Springhill Suites or Renaissance Orlando?

[tfoster]

Which would you pick for two nights?

We were booked with the SeaWorld special at Springhill Suites. Then we started thinking about changing our dates so I looked at rates again. The Springhill rate would go up a little and the Renaissance rate is a lot lower than I remember, so basically for our new dates they'd cost just about the same amount of money.

We won't have a vehicle, so I'm liking the location of the Renaissance better, but I like the idea of Springhill's bigger and newer rooms.

I know Springhill includes breakfast, but for one morning we're planning to have the Elmo breakfast at SW anyway and for the other we could have the breakfast package (for $129) which would be the room and free breakfast buffet at Ren's Tradewinds Restaurant.

Anyone familiar with both and have an opinion?

 

[Disney grandma]

We recently stayed at the Renaissance for two nights and loved it. Our package included our SW tickets and a free shamu plush for each of the grandchildren. The rooms are beautiful and very large. We had two connecting rooms, one king with a sofa bed and chair, connected to two queen beds with an extra plush chair. The rooms overlooked the interior lobby of the resort and each room had a balcony. The lobby is beautiful and it was fun to just "people watch" from our balcony. With the french doors open, it also makes the room feel larger. We enjoyed the pool one afternoon, very nice and big and an additional children's pool area with a play ground. We ate a late lunch at the pool bar and the food was very good. The biggest perk of this resort is walking just across the street to SW. We went over in the morning, came back to the pool in the afternoon, and then returned for the evening Shamu rocks show. If it is showing while you are there, do not miss it, it is wonderful. There is a parking fee but well worth it. This is a very deluxe resort and the package we purchased was less than Springhill Suites at that time. I defintely recommend this resort.

 

[tfoster]

We recently stayed at the Renaissance for two nights and loved it. Our package included our SW tickets and a free shamu plush for each of the grandchildren. The rooms are beautiful and very large. We had two connecting rooms, one king with a sofa bed and chair, connected to two queen beds with an extra plush chair. The rooms overlooked the interior lobby of the resort and each room had a balcony. The lobby is beautiful and it was fun to just "people watch" from our balcony. With the french doors open, it also makes the room feel larger. We enjoyed the pool one afternoon, very nice and big and an additional children's pool area with a play ground. We ate a late lunch at the pool bar and the food was very good. The biggest perk of this resort is walking just across the street to SW. We went over in the morning, came back to the pool in the afternoon, and then returned for the evening Shamu rocks show. If it is showing while you are there, do not miss it, it is wonderful. There is a parking fee but well worth it. This is a very deluxe resort and the package we purchased was less than Springhill Suites at that time. I defintely recommend this resort.

Did your reservation include SW tickets for the kids? I'm unable to get one that has more than 2 adult SW tickets (even though more than that number of people are listed as being in the room). I've also called and they said they aren't able to add additional SW tickets to the package. It's okay in that we can just buy the other ones separately, but I'm just feeling like it would probably end up being a better deal if they were part of the package.

I'm leaning heavily towards this resort if for no other reason than its location. We won't have a vehicle, and I don't want to be tied to a shuttle schedule or keep paying taxi fees to get back and forth. Your response made me feel really good about staying at the Renaissance - thank you!

Also, interestingly enough, last night, I called Springhill Suites to ask about the size of their suites. I was told they are 418 sq ft. In comparison, the rooms at the Renaissance are listed as 460 sq ft.

 

[Disney grandma]

We had a package that was for two adults plus one child ticket to SW. There were four adults in our group and 2 children so it worked out okay that way. I had originally booked a package that only included the adults and we were going to buy the children's tickets when we arrived, it was still a good price, but right before we left, the package became available with the child's ticket included. I checked back on a daily basis and called the resort by phone, and was able to get the tickets we wanted included. You can purchase the additional tickets at the resort and that way don't have to wait in line at SW to buy them. It was nice to have our tickets in hand and enter as soon as we got to the park. I'm sure you will love this resort, and the rooms are very big and comfortable. We had a problem with our credit card when we checked in and the front desk phoned our card company and we got it resolved right away. They were very nice. Also our grandson got sick in the night on our second night, and housekeeping came right away with clean linens. We will definitely stay at the Renaissance again if we are in that area.

 

[tfoster]

We had a package that was for two adults plus one child ticket to SW. There were four adults in our group and 2 children so it worked out okay that way. I had originally booked a package that only included the adults and we were going to buy the children's tickets when we arrived, it was still a good price, but right before we left, the package became available with the child's ticket included. I checked back on a daily basis and called the resort by phone, and was able to get the tickets we wanted included. You can purchase the additional tickets at the resort and that way don't have to wait in line at SW to buy them. It was nice to have our tickets in hand and enter as soon as we got to the park. I'm sure you will love this resort, and the rooms are very big and comfortable. We had a problem with our credit card when we checked in and the front desk phoned our card company and we got it resolved right away. They were very nice. Also our grandson got sick in the night on our second night, and housekeeping came right away with clean linens. We will definitely stay at the Renaissance again if we are in that area.

Thanks! I'll keep checking back then and if we have to, we'll just buy the tickets there if we have to.