Redundant Windsor Hills / VRBO question

[wmson2000]

I know this post is redundant. I've been a lurker for a couple of years. And I'm finally ready to take the plunge and rent a close-to-disney pool villa.

I HAVE read tons of previous posts and here is what I've been able to determine:

- AllStar is reputable but a little more pricey
- a lot of people have had great experiences using vrbo but watch to make sure the property is owned by the person posting the property
- Windsor Hills, Rolling Hills, Emerald Ilse, Formosa Gardens area is closest to Disney Parks. Windsor Palms might farther away and might have odor problem from treatment plant.
- Windsor Hills is very popular. Lots of people use the windsorhillsrent dot com website. I should watch for the "verified" tag on the listings.

Sooo, if I follow these guidelines am I likely to be a happy guy? I'm paying the lodging bill & I'll never be forgiven by my wife and grown children if I mess this up.

We've been to Orlando 6 or so times - staying at Contemporary, Swan, Doubletree, Hilton, Summerfield Suites. Kids are grown now with little ones and everyone has different tastes - thought a pool villa w/big screen & game room would match needs better. We are 8 adults with 4 kids under 4 years old.

I know rules of the board specify no solicitation of owners - but renters, give me any last minute advice & property recommendations for April/May '08, 5/6 BR.

Thanks in Advance!!!

 

[Lisa BC]

Hi!

We too are renting a pool villa for the first time this fall. We are so excited! We have stayed both onsite at OKW, and offsite at Vistana & hotels.

Your whole family will love the extra space and private pool, you'll never want to stay in a hotel again. I know we don't. Our last several trips have been in condos... just because we can't stomach hotel rooms anymore...lol.

Since most of our family is heading there this Nov to celebrate my parent's 50th anniversary, we wanted a larger place where we could all stay - 9 adults, no kids.

We are staying in Formosa Gardens at St. Andrew's Villa - 7 beds/6 baths. It has four master bedrooms with king beds, and two "kids" rooms (one with 2 twin beds, and one with 2 sets of bunks - twins on top, full size on bottom). You might want to take a look at this house - www.ov4u.com Franco & Audrey are the owners, and they have been wonderful to work with. Very prompt in responding to e-mails and questions. Another Formosa Gardens owner who is also a DISer (psharrock), confirmed that St. Andrews Villa is a nice property - at least from the outside. You might also PM psharrock about his property in Formosa Gardens. We would have rented from Paul (psharrock), but the house is undergoing a major remodel & addition, and wasn't available for our dates.

Renting a villa is a bargain compared to staying onsite in 4 hotel rooms. You get deluxe finishings in a villa for less than the price of 4 "value" rooms - amazing.

Formosa Gardens is one of the closest neighborhoods to WDW - and perhaps oldest vacation neighborhoods in that area. The lots are much bigger than most of the neighborhoods in that vicinity, and the houses are also larger. It does not have a club house or community pool. But, since the house is so well equipped, we can't imagine leaving the house to use community facilities anyway.

Good luck! And, let us know what you decide!

Lisa

 

[deejay-55]

Renting thru a management company such as AllStar will usually cost more than renting direct, to cover the ManCo's expenses. Some people prefer to go that route for the comfort factor, others are happy to rent direct. Either way, your family will have a great time at a close-to-Disney pool home.

 

[Hasil72]

With all those people a house is surely the way to go.
We used All Star for our last vacation in May of 2005 and rented a 5/6 BR house in Oak Island Cove. We chose that particular house because it had a "nursery" next door to the downstairs master (DD was under 2 and still needed a crib). It was a good experience, no issues, good customer service, loved the house.
Pro's...only a $200 deposit, final payment due 30 days prior, no security deposit vs. $300 to $500 depending on the owner, and the office was easy to find. They now offer free pool heat and have an incentive program with a week stay. I think it's $100 in gift cards.
Cons (and why we're going through VRBO for our next trip)...WAY more expensive. For example, there used to be an amazing house on VRBO in Formosa Gardens 7BR/6BA with princess bunk beds, Buzz Lightyear space ship bunk, a swing set, fenced yard, huge pool, etc. for between $2000-$2300/week. The owners must have sold it as it's now listed on the AllStar site anywhere from $2800-$4000/week. Tough choice.

Good luck!

 

[sympatico]

Welcome wmson2000,
I think you'll be happy staying off site in a home. Dh and I and our 2 sons, wives and 4 grandkids (4 and under also) are staying in a 6 bedroom in WH in Nov. Another Diser has the same house next week so I'm waiting for her report on it. It's new as of May. I'll give you the website: http://www.vrbo.com/82681 The owner also has a couple of others.
You summed up the points of properties and renting very well. We've done this a number of times and haven't had a problem renting from owners. Dh and I have stayed a WH in townhouses a couple of times and I picked it for the whole family because of the great castle playground and the zero entry clubhouse pool. I thought it would be nice for the grandkids to be able to wade into the water. My grandsons have seen pictures of the playground and can't wait to get there, they'll probably rather do that than Disney.
Good luck picking a place to stay.

 

[psharrock]

Hi

Emerald Island Resort is a great place and has something that Formosa Gardens Estates doesn't have and thats a clubhouse and communal pool. And if your looking for those amenities then Formosa Gardens Estates should be crossed off their list straight away.

Some people perfer more space and privacy in their rental homes, and thats why the prices on Formosa Gardens are higher than any other short term rental community, but after all, its down to personal choice.

The builder of EIR confessed to me that they made a big mistake when building the community, in that they didn't limit house selection on adjacent lots, which they now do on all their new communities. This means by their own admission they have generated Magna Bay Blvd

Getting back to the original questions as the original poster wasn't asking for a debate on 'perceived' overcharging or whether EIR was better than Formosa Gardens.

Allstar are very reputable, and are always their for you if you have any problems (BTW I do not have any connection with them)
Windsor Hills is certainly the hot community at present, it has a great resort complex, and has Condos, Townhomes and Villas within it.
WH is fractionally closer than FG to Animal Kingdom
but they are both about 5 - 8 mins away from disney (depending upon if the single set of lights are on red or green)
These timings are not via jet plane or at 2am in the morning.

Potentially another area to consider is the northern end of Poinciana Blvd as this is also only a few minutes away from Disney via Osceola Parkway.

Good luck with your search and I'm sure we will try to answer any further questions you have during your search.

Paul

 

[wmson2000]

I've narrowed my decision down to two choices - help me decide!
Both are:
-same 8 nights in may
-almost exactly same price
-same resort location WH
-exactly same house floorplan between the two choices
-both have big screen tv, game room, kids themed rooms, baby stuff, pool w/heat, BBQ

House Mickey housemickey dot com
-all adults get a king or queen bed
-a little bit more private yard/house
-upgraded furniture and apliances
-disney themed children's bedrooms but house does not have a "disney theme"

Storytime 6BR storytimeorlandorental dot com
-whole house has great "disney themed" decorating including great children's rooms
-two adults from the group will have to sleep in twin beds
-a little bit better game room
-brand new property, only a couple of months old

Wife and grown kids (and me) want some "disney feeling" to the property - hence these two choices. And 4 yr old grandaughter has insisted on a princess room! And she rules grandpa!

Hopefully someone has direct knowledge re: these two properties?? Or educated guess's/opinions/etc/etc are also equally welcome!

 

[sympatico]

We looked at the storytime one because that's the bedroom configuration we need but it was booked for our dates. Everyone that has stayed in their other properties ( townhouses ) have given good reviews except a problem with the management company but as of this month they have changed mc's and have their own family run mc which should be better for them.
This is another we looked at but wrong configuration but it would work for you.
http://www.vrbo.com/82687

 

[wmson2000]

Good luck! And, let us know what you decide!

Picked the Storytime 6BR villa.

Hope we picked wisely!

Mickey, here we come - 1st week of May '08

I'll post report! Not enough "pool villa homes" trip reports on these boards!

 

[sympatico]

wmson, good choice and the adults can always push the twin beds together.

George, take a deep breath.

 

[Lisa BC]

I will agree that we are renting a house that is really bigger than we need, in terms of bedrooms. However, there are many advantages to this home that made it well worth the cost for us. This trip wasn't entirely about the bottom line, but about a really special time for our family to gather. We wanted sufficient seating in both the kitchen/breakfast area & dining room for all of us... 8-9 people. We also wanted a great room that would comfortably hold all 8-9 adults. Even if the upholstered seating wouldn't hold 8-9 we wanted it large enough to at least pull in the dining room chairs and get us all in one space for family activities. And, we wanted three master bedrooms on the ground floor.

We also really think the very high end furnishings in this home make it extraordinary... the draperies, the solid surface counter tops, the gas cook top, the cabinetry, the lighting, and the games room. The back yard is also very private with hedges blocking any potential pool views between neighbors.

It is really just different strokes for different folks. For instance, you place a a high qualitative value on a rental within a resort community, that isn't as important to my family.

Just as a side note to homeowners, from a renters' perspective, I found it frustrating to look at so many 5-6 bedroom homes that could only seat 6 for dining in either the kitchen or the dining room. It was one of the primary reasons that I started looking over 7 bedroom homes.


wmson2000,

Looks like a really cute place! Enjoy!

Lisa

 

[wmson2000]

I started this thread nearly a year age seeking info. We picked a vacation rental and just recently returned.

FYI: I did a trip report about our stay at the Storytime 6br Windsor Hills Villa on a different thread. Here's the link if you're interested:

http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=25196913&postcount=43

 

[jjjmranch]

We just returned from Windsor Palms and there was no odor at all. Everyone we met there was extremely happy with the community and their accommodations. We liked that it was a smaller community and the distance to the parks compared to the other communities is negligible. Good luck on your choice!

 

[dgaston]

wmson2000: Thanks for the report.

I have stayed at Windsor Palms 2x and was never bothered by any septic smell. This past Christmas we stayed at Windsor Hills for the pool, but I never got into it! Just the spa at our pool home. The teen boys did make it over though and liked it.

 

[mamamouse08]

I have my first trip booked to the Magic Villa #3 (magicorlandorental.com). I have never been ANYWHERE and have waited my whole life for this! I can't tell you how nervous I am as the date is quickly approaching. I am really surprised there aren't more posts about villas cuz to me??? They seem like the best bet.

Surely I am not the only one whose kids will not sleep in the same bed?!?!

Windsor Hills looks BEAUTIFUL and can't wait to get there!

 

[candy1]

Hi we used to really like Windsor Hills and Palms but during our last stay at Windsor Hills 3yrs ago the villa we stayed in was very shabby and tired looking,it looked like it had been rented for about 20yrs,the pool was not filling up properly and the bricks around the outside of the pool area was all lifting badly also it had not been cleaned very well at all(dirty carpet and bathroom mats,tissues under the bed ) so we havent stayed there since,also i think the villas are slightly smaller than other villas in different communities.If i am right one of the reasons our villa might have been well worn is because some travel companies are using Windsor hills/palms for there guests.
We are staying at Acadia Estates this November,hadn't heard of it before but the villa looks lovely and we got it very cheap so we are hoping it will be nice

http://www.vrbo.com/108066

good luck

 

[sympatico]

Hi we used to really like Windsor Hills and Palms but during our last stay at Windsor Hills 3yrs ago the villa we stayed in was very shabby and tired looking,it looked like it had been rented for about 20yrs,the pool was not filling up properly and the bricks around the outside of the pool area was all lifting badly also it had not been cleaned very well at all(dirty carpet and bathroom mats,tissues under the bed ) so we havent stayed there since,also i think the villas are slightly smaller than other villas in different communities.If i am right one of the reasons our villa might have been well worn is because some travel companies are using Windsor hills/palms for there guests.
We are staying at Acadia Estates this November,hadn't heard of it before but the villa looks lovely and we got it very cheap so we are hoping it will be nice

http://www.vrbo.com/108066

good luck

Three years ago Windsor Hills was just being built and is still being built for that matter. The condos, townhouses and some of the homes closest to the entrance were built in 2005, others in 2006 and the homes in the Reserve section in 2007 and on-going.
Windsor Palms was built from 2000 - 2002.
Windsor Hills and Windsor Palms are two separate subdivisions about 2 miles apart. Other than their names and builders they are not connected in any way.

 

[Justbranches5]

We are staying in Magic Villa 3 as well...in October!

 

[Frothy]

We always rent a home from Florida Leisure as they have always looked after us well. We are very nervous about renting directly from an owner as if something goes wrong they can't move us to another house like a management company can.

Also, in this day and age of increasing foreclosures we'd rather not take the risk of renting from an owner who may not have paid his electric or water bills. We are happy to pay for piece of mind and have rented from Florida Leisure for 4 years now and would not change.