Trying to decide on an offsite hotel

[canadiandisneyfamof4]

We are staying in Orlando for 4 nights before our 7 night Disney Cruise at the end of August.

We are a family if 4: 2 adults, 2 kids ages 5&8
We are planning no Disney parks this time and have plans to visit Legoland, Seaworld, Aquatica and a pool/shopping day.

We like traditional hotels rather than condo/timeshare style.
Suites are nice, but not a must

Currently the 2 front runners for hotels are Caribe Royale and Residence Inn at Sea World. Both work out to the same price which is with tax $430 for 4 nights.

Reasons we like Caribe
- suite with a separate bedroom
- nice pool and water slide
- like the look of the hotel
- free parking
- no resort fee

Reasons we like Residence
- free wifi
- free hot breakfast daily
- large room (studio style)
- nice pool, zero entry (no water slide)
- free parking
- no resort fee

Wondering if anyone has any opinions on either of these hotels or if there is another hotel at this price point that we should consider.
Thanks

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I would vote for the Residence Inn SeaWorld. The free hot breakfast buffet each day, free transportation to SeaWorld and Aquatica, and free Quick Queue passes for SeaWorld (not on your list of features above) would move it over Caribe Royale for me.

The RI SW does have one and two bedroom suites available (for a slightly higher cost, of course) if you wanted a separate bedroom as opposed to a studio suite.

 

[canadiandisneyfamof4]

Thanks, I have become obsessed with trip advisor, we have always stayed on site at WDW and I, overwhelmed by the hotel choices out there.

 

[spiceycat]

would go with residence inn too!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Thanks, I have become obsessed with trip advisor, we have always stayed on site at WDW and I, overwhelmed by the hotel choices out there.

I *always* read TripAdvisor before booking a hotel as well. I think its very useful for getting a "feel" of a property before we arrive. I always look for the recurring comments (good and bad)......those things that come up again and again in posts from various people. Those are the kinds of things you can probably bank on. Then I toss out most of the one-post reviewers and re-read those from senior reviewers, as they tend to have the most experience and best perspective. Its not an exact science but it certainly helps!

 

[Enjoying Life]

We just stayed at the Hilton Orlando on Destination Parkway. It's a very nice hotel near SeaWorld. You would love the pool area. It's a modern hotel and is only a few years old. It's very clean, and the elevators and parking are so convenient. I highly recommend it.

 

[canadiandisneyfamof4]

We just stayed at the Hilton Orlando on Destination Parkway. It's a very nice hotel near SeaWorld. You would love the pool area. It's a modern hotel and is only a few years old. It's very clean, and the elevators and parking are so convenient. I highly recommend it.

Thanks we are trying to stick within the same price point, I checked this hotel works out to be $40 more per night when you add the resort fee

 

[2girlsmom]

We haven't stayed at the Residence Inn, but have stayed at their sister property, the Springhill Suites Seaworld, these two properties are next door to each other and share a pool, etc. We did enjoy the hotel quite a lot, but really the selling point for us is the QQ. Without that, or if we didn't care about that/weren't going to Seaworld or riding the QQ rides, I would vote for Caribe. We stayed there this past weekend, and I can't say enough good about it. The pool area is awesome, the restaurants were nice (only tried 2 of them) and decently priced. Rooms were beautiful and spacious and very clean. Staff was very accommodating and friendly.

 

[DCbride]

We stayed at RI SeaWorld for a week last year before moving to the Beach Club for a few nights. The hotel worked well. The breakfast was great. We didn't cook but liked having the big fridge. We paid around $80 a night. It is not a 4* hotel but works if you plan to be at parks most of the day. To get the front of line access you must register the night before or early the next day as they do have a limited number. This alone makes an ok room really great. We never used the pool all week.

We also have stayed at the Springhill Suites at SW a few times - mostly over Easter breaks when Disney is sooo overpriced. Their breakfast is a bit more continental and they do share a pool with the Fairfield. We usually try to get this for around $120 during peak times.

Since you are really doing the research....look into the Omni Championsgate. DH just booked us there for 4 nights in August for the same price as our 7 days in a Little Mermaid room (about $110). And believe me- it is a much nice room/resort than AoA. We have a 6yo DD and the mermaid room is for her the Omni is for me