Any place you wouldn't stay again?

[sandar]

We found out some interesting opinions when we posed a similar question about restaurants, so here's one for resorts.

Is there any on-site or off-site hotel in the Disney/Universal area which you've tried but would not return to? When did you stay there? What happened/didn't happen that has you thinking you won't return?

thanks in advance for your responses,

Sandi

[LindaR]

Ok, this will NOT be a popular answer. I did not care for AKL. We stayed there last month. Can't really pinpoint anything. It just was ok. Nothing special to me!

[DisneyPam]

The former Dixie Landings gets my vote. Room and resort decor was nothing special IMO, service was just AWFUL - especially the buses, CMs were surly and rude (and this was well BEFORE the economic downturn) and nothing about the resort left a positive mark for me.

I would stay in the All Stars surrounded by squads of cheerleaders and a pack of the loudest South American 15 year old tour groups before agreeing to stay at the former Dixie Landings.

[SuzyQ]

LidaR Wrote:

Ok, this will NOT be a popular answer.

That's ok, Linda, my vote is not very popular either.

We wouldn't stay at the Beach Club again. We stayed there for a few days on our honeymoon and received less than Deluxe (or even Moderate) service. We were glad that the stay there was a gift, because we would have felt really awful if we had paid $200 a night for it.

The front desk gals were not very Disney in attitude and the Mousekeepers were even worse. The room was a bit old and worn looking (though I have heard that they have been remodeled since May 2002) and the tub was a bit grimy.

You can't beat the location, but if I were to stay near Boardwalk, I would probably go to YC or BW.

~Suzy

[LisaG]

Ok I'm gonna agree with DisneyPam. We disliked Dixie Landings immensely for all the same reasons. Plus we thought the resort was so large we had to hike to everything then rest-up when we got back.
The buses were always crowded and the food court was nothing special.

[roodad]

Roodad ties himself to the stoning stake and says "Wilderness Lodge." Don't get me wrong - I love the feel of this resort and will visit it everytime I am in the World. However, I really don't care for the location and I thought it quite noisy. From my room, I could hear every conversation in the hall - and there are lots of conversations in the hall.
It isn't that I dislike the resort, it is just that with all the other choices available, this is the one I probably won't go to again.

[LimeGreenCheri]

I probably won't stay at CBR again. I did not like the decor in the room, I thought the wallpaper didn't match the bedspreads, etc. The 2 other things about this resort that I disliked were the bus service. We ended up driving because the busses were so full and the resort was just too big for my taste!

Sorry, I know there are a ton of CBR lovers out there. :?

[MargaretJ]

I don't think there is any Disney Resort we have stayed at that I would not stay at again but I was disappointed in Coronado Springs in May. Tubs were not clean & our room was so far from everything. Caribbean Beach has always been one that I said I would not stay but not that it has been refurbished I may give it another try. I will say that since I have stayed on property I do not think I could stay offsite again. Roodad & LindaR no stoning from me but WL & AKL are 2 of my favorite resorts. That is the great thing about Disney there is a resort for everyone.

[DisneyBUff]

woo babay have i got a noff site one.. THe knights in Maingate. It was a nasty nasty place. 3 of our 4 bath towles were stained. the carpet was stained adn we didn't even bother to undo the beds we brought in our own blankets and slpet o nthe top of the comferter.. it was yucky......

[Barb D]

We probably wouldnt stay at the COntemporary again. We had ants inthe main room area and a bit of mold in the bathroom. They even tried to say we drew in tht ants if we had food. we told them the only food we had was in zip lock baggies (We had things liek beef jerkey and licorish) we are pretty clean so I doubt we brought in or encouraged the ants.

Now I woudl deffinetly visit there for shopping, and going on the roof. In fact we did that last trip, Shopping that is. I also got to parasail form the lagoon there.

Barb

[Kaycee]

We just got back from Coronado Springs, and I doubt if we stay there again. We loved the theming here, and we got a newly refurbished room so the room itself was great. We got the location we requested (Casitas 3) and it really was a great location. The cast members were friendly, and housekeeping was excellent. So why won't we stay here again? The noise and the buses.

Maybe we just hit it on a bad week, because our experience contradicted everything I'd read about CSR. We were expecting lots of convention-goers but only saw a couple the whole time. Instead, there were tons of families. We chose this resort because we wanted a quiet location, but that's definitely not what we got. The noise level was unbelievable. And most of the families had older children or teenagers, which meant the noise level stayed high late into the night. By the end of the week, we were feeling very sleep-deprived. I've heard people complain about the noise level at WL, but our experience here was much worse!

I had also read that the buses weren't crowded because so much of the hotel is full of convention-goers. Again, this was not at all our experience. With the exception of one afternoon bus to Epcot, there were people standing on every single bus we rode! It didn't matter whether it was early entry, park closing, or trips back and forth during the day. The buses were always crammed full. We only had to stand about half the time, usually on the way back from the parks, because our stop was the first one. But it was unpleasant whether we were the ones standing or we were sitting with the standers leaning very close to us.

We didn't even visit Pepper Market. We walked down the first night to get our refillable mugs, and the line came out of the restaurant, all the way up the hall, and into the next hall! We would've had to stand in that line to get the mugs, and because of the way this restaurant is operated, we would've had to stand in that line just to check in with the cashier to get refills. No way! We walked by here several times during the week, and it was that busy quite often.

Again, maybe we just caught CSR on a bad week. But I don't think we'll take our chances on it, especially since we've had such wonderful experiences at WL and the Dolphin.

[HappyCamper]

Aw, Kaycee, sounds like a terrible place to stay. I don't function very well without sleep and I'm afraid that I would have been a bear!!! I hope the rest of your trip was really good.

Debby

[Rosebud]

Wow Kaycee you didn't have very good luck there did you. I have stayed there a few times and never experienced what you did. As a matter of fact it is my favorite resort. One time we were in Casitas 4 right by the quiet pool - not really quiet, a lot of people were there but it didn't bother us in the room.

Were you in the Courtyard part of Casitas 3? Maybe that made things echo more?

Most times we pretty much walked right into the Pepper Market and the most we had to wait was about 3 or 4 families in front of us - never even reaching out the door of the little store. I do think they should set up a better system to get your soda from there though. Having to get a card to go in an get a soda is stupid. I prefer the food courts like Allstars and DxL where you just walk up and get the soda.

I must say though that even though it is a Convention Hotel, I have never seen many people there for Conventions.

As far as the busses - well if anyone knows me they know I HATE Disney busses. I have ridden them from every single hotel and have had problems at every hotel, park or DD at one time or another. It really does depend on when you are there (at different locations for different things). From my personal experience at CSR I had less bad bus service from there then other places. But, once again I HATE DISNEY BUSSES! I hope I never have to take one again.

[Kaycee]

Rosebud and Happy Camper,

Thanks for your comments. I'm sure we just hit CSR on a bad week, because I've never heard anyone else say they had the problems we did. But I doubt that we'll give it another try - we've had such great stays at WL and the Dolphin, we'll probably go back to those for future visits. Or maybe we'll try another resort next time. The Polynesian sure looked nice. We just don't want to take the chance on having the same problems at CSR again.

Other than those relatively minor issues (and a lot of rain!), we had a truly magical visit at WDW. We can't wait to go back again!

[Ursulinda]

It's beautiful, very beautiful. But very VERY inconvenient for all the reasons mentioned.

[smallworld0]

I would stay in the All Stars surrounded by squads of cheerleaders and a pack of the loudest South American 15 year old tour groups before agreeing to stay at the former Dixie Landings.

You gave me a good laugh, DisneyPam, and I am with you all the way on this one. Although I have never stayed at a Moderate we have always loved the All Stars. Perhaps that's because it's a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of resort and you aren't expecting any illusion.

I have stayed off-site many times, most recently the Radisson Resort Parkway - which was wonderful. (Sorry, Roodad, I know you wanted resorts we didn't like. :wink: ) The greatest benefit to staying off site in my mind is that I can have a king size bed and it doesn't cost me my entire vacation budget! (I'm spoiled since we bought one for our own room a couple years ago.) My plan is to one day stay at the Polynesian, which we visit on every trip, but I just haven't been able to see myself spending THAT kind of money on accomodations...yet. Other than that, I just can't imagine spending money on any moderate when the All Stars have almost as much square footage and the same basic amenities. If I'm going to spend more for a room then I really need to feel I am upgraded, not just my pocketbook. :roll:

And, I agree with Rosebud totally. I hate the buses, too! I would definitely want a monorail resort if I upgraded. We always rent a car anyway and have had AP's the last few trips, so parking is free. The convenience is that you can come and go when you want, always have a seat - a comfortable one at that, and you have instant transportation if you want to shop or dine outside the parks.

Nancy :mickeyXmas:

[smallworld0]

(Sorry, Roodad, I know you wanted resorts we didn't like. :wink: )

Nancy :mickeyXmas:

Big oops! Sorry Sandar! :oops:

[sandar]

Don't be silly, smallword, that's minor! 8)

The important thing is the good exchange of observations and opinions. I'm grateful to everyone who's added their 2 cents here!

Sandi

[cshore]

DD and I had a similarily bad experience at CSR. We had previously stayed there (about 3 years ago) and HATED it. It was too spread, and we had to walk way to far to get to almost anything. We then decided we'd never stay there again, until this past trip. With POFQ being closed, and POR being full, we had no choice but to choose that moderate.

When we checked in, we said that we had requested the Cabanas. They had in their computer Casitas. We then told them we really would like building 9b, and had requested that as well. The first CM told us the building was going under refurbishment during our trip and we'd have to stay elsewhere. A second CM told us it was completely full the entire trip. Both were exceptionally rude, not acting like a Disney CM at all. By this time, I was in tears. It was my daughter's graduation gift and I wanted everything to go smoothly. They did nothing to help us.

HOWEVER, this story does have a happy ending. Thanks to the Guest Service Coordinater (who felt horrible about our situation) we were able to get into builing 9b with albsolutely no trouble or wait. The first night upon returning to our room, we had a wooden photo album and balloons sitting on our table with an apologize note.

We won't ever stay there again. :)

[Alycia]

I don't know if there was a resort I would NEVER stay in again. But I do know I will avoid the AllStars. I didn't hate it or anything ... it just added too much foot mileage for this lazy tourist!! I was so tired by about day two from all the extra walking to and from the stop and then it was the farthest away bus stop at the parks. I also felt a little like I was part of the "herd" instead of being a special guest.

Of course I was in charge of 36 people (dancer trip) so that could have worn me down a bit!

Alycia

[Lou-Ann]

I would have to agree with Alycia on that one. My hubby was not a happy camper at All Star Sports at all. We really enjoy a spa/whirlpool at the end of the day. The walk from the parking lot was the frosting on his cake as we were offered no help with luggage and had to park a great distance from our room. He is now spoiled (and that does not bother me a bit) by the WL. It is funny. I used to have to try and justify why I would like just one night there and now if i say I have booked elsewhere he hands me the phone........LOL....... :D I think that for those with little ones the All Stars have a big draw.The kids seem to love the themeing....My big kid just prefers the peaceful stream at the Lodge. This does not break my heart one bit........ :D

[Cosmic Amanda]

Add me to the Dixie Landings list. Of course, the main reason I didn't like it is the hide-away bed I had to sleep on...which was so small and thin I felt like I was sleeping on a maxi pad! Otherwise, I thought it was just passable- I liked the atmosphere over at Port Orleans much better, although I did actually think the food court at Dixie Landings was better than most resort food courts.

Of course, if you told me it was Dixie or no go, I'd totally do it again!

[JennyAnne]

I have only stayed at what used to be the Disney Inn (now Shades of Green) and CBR. I guess I will probably never stay at Shades of Green again since I am not military. :lol: I think only military is allowed to stay at that resort. We had no problems on our last stay at CBR, which was quite a bit ago (10 years). DH and I will be staying there, although I am requesting the new "preferred area" so we won't have to hike all over the place.

I can't think of anyplace I absolutely wouldn't stay. There are some that I don't think I would be interested in because of theming, but I would actually like to visit those resorts for a drink or an appetizer on our trip next spring to see if I still feel the same way. :D

[Sandy]

I'd probably only stay at the Contemporary again (a) if I were traveling with 4-5 people and needed a HUGE room and (b) if there were an excellent rate like the $139 AP rate I was lucky enough to get in 2001. Otherwise, I just wasn't wowed enough to go back.

[DocTinkStat]

all stars...just cus of noise and bus problems and a very crowded pool even late at night

[Brer]

My vote goes to the Holiday Inn, can't remember where exactly it was ,but it was West side as I remember, small,dirty ...not what I go to Disney for, just called me spoiled. Roodad. DW would agree with you , no WL for her. we visited there last December and stuck over there in the rain after riding the boat over and had to ride over half of Disney just to get back to our resort.

[Snickerdoodlesmommy]

It's funny, and maybe because I have an attitude (er just kidding) but I will be darned if I am going to wait in line for some stupid refill card at the Pepper Market! :hppmad: I just waltz right by, get my refill and stroll right back out. Have never been stopped, and if I had been, would have just 'splained I guess.
We have stayed here 4 times so far this year, and it has not been an issue so far. However, I have to say this resort is starting to annoy me and I will be staying somewhere else in December.

LindaClaus

[cshore]

We did the same thing Linda, and got "busted". I said I thought it was ridiculous to have to stand in line for a refill, then stand in line to not pay to hand back that silly card!! I was directed to the window just next to the Peppermill where they haphazardly refilled my mug. Very inconvenient!!

[Sandfisher]

Probably I'll never say NEVER, but I would really and truly prefer never to stay at the Grosvenor again. I know they advertise great rates, but we ended up there once when we registered late for a convention DH was to attend. CSR was full and Grosvenor was getting the overflow.
We had never stayed at a Downtown Disney hotel and we made the best of it, but it just can't hold a candle to any Disney resort. Many years ago we stayed at a couple places off site because we were really watching our pennies. Wouldn't do that again either. I've forgotten the names/locations and would have to look in our "souvenier" drawer of papers, etc. to jog my memory. ;-)
Sandy

[Perla]

Just can't stay at the WL again. I know, I know, tons of loyal fans love the place. Too noisy, transportation is a real negative, and that music! I felt I should have been in my Annie Oakley dress. Seriously, it is a beauty if you like all that rustic stuff going on, and it was a surprise for my husband, as he had always wanted to stay there. OK, we did and we've moved on. Give me hot and tropical. Hey, I'm a snowbird!