Plans have changed!!!!!!!

[SpideyHulk24]

But for the better. As many of you know, I am planning my August trip. Here was the original plan:

Check in on 08/02 at the HRH for two nights. Spend two days at Universal Studios and IOA.
On 08/04: We will check out of HRH, but will rent a cabana for the day before checking into PBH for three nights.
08/05/-08/07: Enjoy the parks again.

08/07: Check out and head to Wet n Wild for the day before going home. I love it!

Well, last night, the travel channel was showing Seaworld revealed. DS4 said "Daddy, please take me to Seaworld, I would love to give Shamu a kiss!" I was sold! I asked DW and she said let's head up on 08/01, go to SW, and stay off site before we go to HRH. She didn't have to tell me twice! I booked on line tix for SW, and booked 1 night at the Sheraton Studio City Resort before we head over to HRH. I got it on line for $65 plus taxes, so that was a deal! So anyway, I just wanted to share my excitement. My vacation is now extended by one more day! Every second counts!

Has anyone stayed at the Sheraton Studio City? What was your experience like?

Thanks !

 

[Teris]

We will be there August 1-8th Maybe we will see you there! We are at the PBH tho.

Havn't stayed at the SHeraton, but am looking for someplace to hang from the 5th, til the 8th, and we are thinking of going to Seaworld at the end of the trip,,lol.

What made you pick that hotel? What's it's features?

I want a place that has a kitchen and two bedrooms, so I don't think it will work for us.

edit,, ohhhhhhhhhhh, I just looked it up, we normally rent a car from the national/alamo rental place there,,,LOL. They sometimes have the kewlest looking cars outside that hubby drools over,,lol

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I've never stayed at Studio City, but wanted to say congrats. on extending your vacation. I wish I could get my DH that excited about our vacations. How did your DW accomplish this? Maybe she should share with all of us. Have a great trip!!!

 

[SpideyHulk24]

LOL!!!! We both love traveling, so that worked out well.

As far as picking the resort, we went with the fact that it's less than one mile from Universal Orlando. We also thought the theming would appeal to us. It's all about the film era and themed to the movie stars, etc.

Can't wait. They don't have any kitchens I don't think.

Anyone else been there?

Thanks!

 

[Teris]

No, no kitchens as far as I can tell from their website. Did you look at the pics on their website? Looks really neat.

It's just over the bridge and very close to Universal. You can see it from Dr. Doom's Fearfall, if you are facing the right direction,,lol.

I love the 1950's era theming,, and when I move back to the states, that's what my kitchen is going to be like, with a red dinette set,,LOL.

 

[SpideyHulk24]

Thanks for the info. I will go over and check it out.

Thanks!

 

[Teris]

ummmmm,,, when I said it was just over the bridge,, I meant the overpass,,lmao. Don't know what I was thinking,,lol. It's just across from Wet and Wild.

 

[Princess Michelle]

Awe, that is so sweet. I hope you can get a picture of your son with Shamu to share with us. See if you can get him to kidnap one of those fat little penguins for me, I think they are so cute! If you have room for a beluga whale in the car I wouldn't mind having one of those either.

 

[GeminiMom]

Hey Spidey! Congrats on extending your vacation, I'll bet DS will love Seaworld. I just got back today & since I have load 1 of a mountain of dirty laundry already in the washer I thought I'd see what I missed on the boards. After checking out of the RP (3 nights) we stayed at the Sheraton Studio City the other 4 nights. I booked our stay on Priceline & got it for $42/night. Here's a quick review for you.

LOCATION We loved the location, since we still had another day in the parks after checking out of RP. It's almost exactly at the corner of I-Drive & Universal Blvd. (I think there's an I-HOP & Skull Kingdom between it & the corner.) As Teris stated, right over the overpass. Just a few minutes & you'll be at the resorts. We requested a park-view, (would have even settled for a Wet N Wild view), but unfortunately, we faced Fun City & that side of I-Drive....such a waste for a 19th floor view! The day we went to Wet N Wild, it was a very short walk to the entrance. I told DH how glad I was to stay at this end of I-Drive. No traffic to deal with when going to US/IOA

STARWOOD PREFERRED CUSTOMER Our floor was a "Starwood Preferred Customer" floor, since I had signed up as a Starwood member before we left. I'm not sure what exactly that gets you, but I do know that the desk clerk said that no other key would work in the elevator except ours or another Starwood preferred member therefore, we'd need our key each time to get upstairs (couldn't count on using another elevator rider's who might not be staying on those floors). I want to say that the higher floors are for Starwood members or cost more because of the view. We got a terry robe in the room to be used during our stay, and 2 regular sized complimentary bottled waters each day. Not huge perks, but @ $42/nt who can complain!

HOTEL GROUNDS & AMENITIES Yes, the website is really well done & I admit I was happy to have won my Priceline bid for the Sheraton after seeing the theming, but to tell you the truth, I wouldn't consider this to be a 3 star hotel. Don't get me wrong, there wasn't anything truly wrong with the hotel, but I would never have paid the $109/nt I was seeing on Expedia, Travelocity, etc. The hotel does stand out because of its shape & height of course & at night the top of it shines in different colors (I think I may have a pic I'll try to post when I get to my trip report). The cars out front look cool, but upon closer inspection they're showing some wear & tear (explainable since they're not roped off & many people take pictures leaning against them). The hotel itself is actually quite small despite its 21 floors. Small lobby, small bar, dining room (didn't eat there), spa (didn't see that, DD reported that to me after she asked if she could have a spa treatment...even volunteered to pay with her own money! The pool is smaller than it looks on the website, but large enough for the kids to enjoy. There's also a kiddie pool (no hot tub), a gameroom, and a poolside bar. Since it stormed every night we were there, DH & I never used the poolside bar. One night the pool reopened after a storm & the kids swam, but the bar stayed closed. They're building a mini-golf next door, so the construction is a bit of an eye-sore, but should be done by August when you go. There's a chaise lounge in the hallway on the way to the pool that DD loved to lie on when she would walk by. We laughed our heads off the first time she did it, struck a pose & stated "I'm ready for my close-up Mr. DeMille!" She's such a ham. Elevators are cool, mirrored & it looks like there are multiples of you. (Almost reminded me of the lines without FOTL!)

STAFF Checked in Wed. 6/9 late (about 9:00 pm) No wait, pleasant clerk, took about 3 minutes tops. Bellhops were always available & requesting if anyone needed assistance. Maid service was excellent, room was always clean upon arrival & our maid always left a personalized thank you note in return for our note & tip I left each morning. Her name was Janet & she always ended her notes with a smiley face.

ROOMS Because of its shape, obviously the hallways are circular. Never counted them, but would estimate that there may be 12-14 per floor. The rooms aren't overly huge, but the 4 of us weren't crowded by any means. Two queen sized beds in our room, bathroom decent size. In room programmable safe. The decor in our room seemed a little sparce and slightly outdated (light sconces & lamps), but the beds were very comfy. Super soft sheets & lots of HUGE, FLUFFY pillows. We probably loved the pillows the best. Nice toiletries (shampoo/conditioner, lotion, mouthwash, shower gel). Ice machine was right outside of room. Can't say I ever had a problem with the hall noise, but that could be because of the AC unit. Pretty loud & no happy medium to climate control.

All in all, I'd stay here again for the $42/night, even for your $65/night. We had no problems & wouldn't hesitate to use the Sheraton to supplement our on-site nights to help save the budget!

Oh, and one more thing. They do charge a $5/night "resort fee". I know some hotels do this & have read reviews where others have disputed this charge & had it removed at check-out. I didn't since we used the coffeemaker & newspaper each day, which I assume is what the charge is for. Hope you enjoy your stay Spidey!

 

[SpideyHulk24]

Thanks Geminimom. Since it's for the one night, I think we'll be more than happy. How do I sign up for a starwood preferred membership? Is it free?

Thanks again!

 

[Prince Eric1]

That was a must do for us this upcoming trip. My youngest daughter has maintained for almost a year now that she wants to work at seaworld when she gets older, so we have to take her there as our kids have never been. The last time we were at Seaworld was in 1992, and I believe I will find it to be very different now. If she was a little older (and it was a little cheaper) I would do Discovery Cove. I think we'll go back in a couple of years and try that.

 

[d4est]

Spideyhulk...go to the following:

http://www.starwood.com/preferredguest/index.html

at the top of the page, in light gray, you will see "become a starwood preferred guest"

It should be free, it was when I signed up!

 

[GeminiMom]

Glad I could help! As d4est stated, it is free to become a Starwood member. I'm actually surprised they gave us a Starwood preferred room, since I've heard that because it was a Priceline reservation, hotels aren't obliged to honor any perks of specific rewards programs. I did notice when I checked my Starwood account this morning it doesn't show credit for the 4 nights we stayed there, so that's probably what they mean.

 

[SpideyHulk24]

Thanks for all the great info!