Wyndham Palace Resort & Spa

[barbnbrian]

Just won 2 rooms on Priceline for $63 each for the Wyndham Palace. I was bidding on WDW Resorts and after reading the FAQ on Bidding For Travel, did not see this resort as one of the WDW Resort properties people have won.

Now I'm really nervous since after looking at the resort website, it doesn't look too resort-like. It looks very "business" like. I don't really mind if it isn't Disney themed and "magical", we just returned a few weeks ago from POFQ. This is just a quick weekend extra trip I'm sneaking in before the kids return to school. I was able to get SWA tickets for $115 each roundtrip nonstop, so I'm trying to keep my hotel costs down.

Please tell me, will we be happy at this resort?

 

[dg39]

Going to disney, we always stay on-site, deluxe. We went to orlando 3x's and stayed at MOWC(for personal reasons) and did love the place. Last summer we were at the GF main building and decided to ride around the outside areas. We stopped at the Wyndam Palace Resort & Spa and I remember saying to my dh, that the place looked really nice. The pool area was great looking and the lobby and restaurants looked almost as nice as the deluxes on site. I don't think we'd hesitate on staying there for the price you got. I didn't see any of the rooms, but being the outside areas looked so nice, I can't imagine anything less on the inside. I'm sure someone who stayed their will respond to your questions and I'm looking foward to reading about the place also. Sometimes you just don't want to blow all your money on a resort, but want the look and feel of a real nice place to stay.

 

[cvemom]

Absolutely !!!!!That's our favorite hotel.Been ther 15+ times. We've stayed there since it was built as "The Palace". Their restaurants are great...wonderful breakfast buffet at Watercress and don't miss the Outback. We'll be there for dinner tomorrow night! The hotel is beautiful, quiet and relaxing. You still have all your Disney amentities such as transportation etc...it's far enough away for peace and quiet. You can walk to the Marketplace and Downtown Disney even though there are buses. At night relax in the pool and watch fireworks over at Downtown Disney. There a wonderful spa too if you want to pamper yourself. Enjoy yourself.

 

[CarolA]

I have stayed here several times.

Almost ALL of the hotels on Priceline are hotels that do a lot of conventions so basically you do get some business types. Since I am not sure what you mean by "resort like" it is hard to respond. Personally I think it is more "resort like" then the Hilton which is one of your other Priceline options.

That said, the hotel has very nice grounds with a nice pool and a great location.

 

[barbnbrian]

By "resort like", I mean lush and tropical. Originally, I had booked at 2 bedroom suite at the Caribe Royale, but didn't like the $189 plus tax price tag so I thought I'd see what I could get two rooms for on Priceline. I'm thrilled with the $63 per room rate, but when I looked at the resort website, I was not so sure if it was very nice. I've stayed at the Contemporary, All Stars and POFQ, but never a downtown Disney, off-site non-Disney resort. We do want to go to Disney Quest, but are not planning on going to any of the parks. Is Quest close to the hotel? What is the pool like? Thanks everyone.

 

[cvemom]

Three pools...kiddie pool...sports pool for volleyball and a freeform large pool (a section of which goes under a waterfall and indoor) There are saunas and a hot tub too.Basketball and tennis courts are available too.

 

[Lewisc]

Just remember, you're not paying much more than you would for the All-Stars.

 

[yecats]

I started my trip here last Nov. 2003 and won the bid just like you on priceline. I loved the hotel. I agree with everything listed above. Upon checkin, I was bumped into a minisuite on the 5th floor of the main building but my room faced the front entrance and a parking lot. I did not have a room with a balcony but didn't care. I walked over to DTD which is right across the street. Now Disney Quest is on the Westside of DTD and the Wyndham is really on the Eastside of DTD (maybe an 8 to 10 minute walk at best). I did enjoy the recreational island area and did walk across the street to go shopping at DTD. Lots of fun and you get two convenient ways to travel, either by the buses directly from your resort or walking directly across the street where you can use the Disney buses.

IMO, I have also stayed at the Hilton and I would prefer to stay at the Wyndham. One reason is the recreation island area. The Hilton has a nice pool area but it is completely enclosed. The island at Wyndham is open and certainly gives a different feeling/atmosphere in my opinion. You'll have a good time.

 

[gibbys1]

Hi ! We won this resort on Hotwire and stayed for 8 nights in April and I loved the location. It was very convienent to DTD. The room was great as was the pool. Let me know if I can be of further help.

 

[barbnbrian]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I'm starting to feel better about this trip. My only other question is, should we bother with a rental car? We're not planning on doing much but hang around, Disney Quest and maybe a waterpark. We could hop a Disney bus over to the waterpark. We've always used a towncar to drop us off at the resorts and used Disney transportation in the past. Can't seem to find a good rate for a minivan, so I'm leaning toward not renting. Opinions please?

 

[Lewisc]

You can walk to DQ and if you get tired waiting for a bus you can always just grab a taxi to/from the water parks.

 

[floridagirrl2]

For a weekend trip, I think the hotel transportation will be fine as long as you plan to eat every meal at the hotel, the parks, or DTD. There are no other restaurants close by (within walking distance).

DH and I thought the bus service on weekends was great--it was just very sparse on weekdays. We liked the hotel and wouldn't hesitate to stay there again at the price you got--we just wouldn't pay what we paid for it ($89 plus $10 resort fee plus $10 Internet access fee plus tax). We don't use the pools, fitness room, spa, etc., though so, for the price we paid we would probably prefer to either be at a hotel on 192 near lots of restaurants, or on-site.

 

[Gillian]

You're very close to Crossroads, where there are a lot of restaurants, but it isn't walking distance. A cab should be inexpensive. I don't know if Orlando has those minibus taxis.

It doesn't seem like a car would be necessary, but you may want to check into renting 2 economy cars instead of a minivan. It can sometimes be cheaper.