what exactly do you all consider a "small" hotel room?

[curlyjbs]

I just had a slumber party for DD at a local Embassy Suites. Had a 1 br suite. 2 double beds, pull out in living area, micro, fridge, the usual. Not the biggest rooms but big enough for Me and five 9 year old girls.
anyway, what was my point?.....oh yea.....I've read on these boards that Disney hotel rooms are small, especially All Stars - We are a family of 5 and can stay in the average size hotel room for a weekend at the MOST but would rather the space of a suite so we booked at HIFS. Heard tons of great things about this hotel! But now with the $20 marriott and all the other mousesaver deals we are having second thoughts about paying $116/nt. when we could spend half that onsite.
How small are the rooms.......really? (I don't care about magic and all that......The only magic I need is my family!)
Should I consider another hotel??? Someone posted that HIFS rooms were also "small"

decisions....decisions......

what would you do?

curly

 

[ceopa]

I can't speak for the othere Disney properties, but we stayed at the All-Stars with 3 kids (5, 4 and almost 2) last year, and it was too cramped. Think less than half of what you had at Embassy Suites. HIFS is so close to Disney property, driving or using their shuttle should be very convenient.
BTW, if you liked Embassy Suites, I believe that the Lake Buena Vista property usually runs $99/night. The cheapest rates I have found for this hotel is directly through their website.
Have a great trip!

 

[Robinrs]

Small, to me, is a room with no separation. I stayed at the HIFS in January and now I'm spoiled to death! The privacy is wonderful, and the separate bedrooms and TVs, priceless!

I now only book suites. It's now an obsession of mine. I only stay in ROOMS at the USF resorts because I book them for the FOTL mostly.

HIFS is great for a family, I just don't understand why anyone would want to be all on top of each other in a small room. I stayed at the All Star Music in September and it was so cramped and there was only TWO of us! The space is secondary to the extras the HIFS offers, the breakfast and the location makes it the perfect resort!

 

[curlyjbs]

OK feeling better about the room size at HIFS! Just had a nervous moment when read a post that said they were small. phew.

thanks for posting

curly

 

[sgtdisney]

If the Marriott Courtyard DD is having a $20 per night special, you could get 2 connecting rooms and save over $60.00 per night plus be within walking distance of downtown disney and have all the priveledges of an onsite guest. Just a thought. All star rooms are the smallest rooms on property. I have never stayed at the Marriott but a friend did and he said the rooms were fine and were larger than the All Stars.

 

[curlyjbs]

sgtdisney,
unfortunetly the marriott promotion ends 9/30.
If I didn't already get $99 rt airfare on priceline I just may have considered it.

Any way we are still very excited about HIFS.

 

[sgtdisney]

Oh, I didn't realize that. It does sound like the HIFS is a very nice place. I am sure you will enjoy it! Have fun!

 

[kozmo]

can someone please tell me what hifs stands for?Pleeze!

 

[horseshowmom]

Holiday Inn Family Suites

 

[kozmo]

 

[*Fantasia*]

The All Stars is definitely considered having small rooms! Two adults and two young children is fine. But if you have teenagers, then it will be tight in the room. All the hotels I've stayed at has a pretty good size room.

 

[jdm]

Everyone has a different idea of small but.... we are a family of 5 and use to staying in suite accomodations such as Residence Inn and Embassy. We stayed at the HIFS last Jan. and I have to say we were speechless when we opened the door. It did not feel like a suite. It felt like a very tiny apartment. Of course, it will depend on the age of your children and the type of suite you have. We had a kidsuite and our 8 year old stayed in there. We had two teenagers with us and they stayed on the hideabed which took up the entire "living room". Really, we had to crawl over them on top of the bed to reach the door. One bathroom. DH took one look and said "This will never work for a whole week, lets go the Residence Inn". We couldn't do that of course, as everything was sold out as it was New Years. We stayed and our daughter did love the kid suite and the pool area was nice. but it was extremely cramped (we were constantly tripping over our luggage) and we tried to spend as little time in the room as possible. You may feel differently but if you think that Embassy is just OK as far as being spacious, I think you are going to find HIFS small. It's just my opinion (and I know I'm in the minority on this hotel) but I was so concerned about space before we went that I wish someone had told me how tight it was going to be. Whatever you decide, have a wonderful time.

 

[R4Suns]

If staying onsite is not an issue for you and you want a suite I would look around some more. Especially with older children. If you go to the HIFS website you can see how small the rooms are. We have 4 older boys and thought about that hotel but when I looked around at other hotels and timeshares I realized we could get MUCH more space (and another bathroom) for the same amount of money. You might check HOTEL KINGDOM. Or we even read everything on these boards and called the resort ourselves and got a great rate. We are staying at Cypress Harbour for $6 a day more than the HIFS cost. Ask for AAA, AARP, travel industry discounts if any of them apply to you. Some of them are running specials depending on what time of year you are going.

Keep looking you will find something that will be perfect for ALL of you.

 

[curlyjbs]

our dd's are 9, 7 & 5.....I think we should be ok at HIFS.

90 more days!!
curly

 

[jesse]

Curlyjbs, I also think you will be just fine at HIFS, and I am one of the posters who also thought the room was "small". But it is certainly doable. We have been twice, and stayed with four adults and two children in a classic suite with no trouble. Now personally, if we are travelling without my parents, I prefer a suite hotel like Hawthorne or Embassy Suites, because my two children are still young enough to sleep on a sofa bed comfortably and my husband and I can have the bedroom, and I like the kitchen in those types better. But with three children, HIFS will most likely suit you best. Relax, you're going to have a great time and you'll enjoy having THREE tvs and the free breakfast. My only other advice is to rent a car if you're not driving, so you can get around faster.