Doubletree Guest Suites in DTD

[celerystalker]

Any updated reviews on the bus?
How close are the bus pickups compared to the Disney resort spots?
I'll be staying at Pop, but two of my friends will be at the Doubletree.
They'll have a rental car, but they'd like to do the bus thing a few times.

 

[DisnLuvr]

Hi everybody! I have been lurking here on these boards for more than four years but never really felt compelled to post anything up until now! We just got back from a 4 night stay at the Doubletree guest suites in downtown Disney and I felt the need to post a review. Hopefully this will be helpful to anyone considering this hotel or considering an offsite stay.
I have been to Disney many, many times and in recent years we have been getting seasonal passes. I have stayed in every level of resort on the Disney property and also in many offsite hotels as well.

We stayed four nights from April 7-11. I don't have any pictures to post but the rooms look just like they do on the website.
In brief, we were extremely pleased with our stay! The rooms were ENOURMOUS, very clean, service was excellent, the air conditioner was quiet and worked well.
We checked in at about 5PM on Monday with no line and quick service. We were given the warm chocolate chip cookies (just be forwarned that they have nuts...I'm not sure if you can request without). Our family consists of myself, my hubby, our 5 year old son and a 2 year old son. We stayed in a king suite. My older son slept on the pullout couch and the younger one was in a porta-crib. The crib was delivered within 20 minutes of our check in with the extra blankets we requested. This was a real porta crib with a nice thick mattress and not just a pack-n-play. We used the mousesavers rate so we also received the free continental breakfast each morning. This was fine for us...tons of cold cereals, yogurt, fresh fruit, bagels and other pastries. You are seated at a table in the restaurant and can't really just grab and go which kind of bothered me a little but my hubby was fine with it.

Other amnenities: the pool is nothing special but was clean and not crowded (we have a pool so don't usually go swimming on vacation!), the fitness room is well appointed with 3 treadmills, an elliptical machine, bike, some benches and free weights, swiss balls and four tv's. Downtown Disney is about a 10 minute walk in one direction and about 5 minutes in the other direction is the Crossroads strip mall with lots of restaurants and Goodings supermarket. The fridge in the room is a nice size and there is daily delivery of USA Today.

The only drawback is that the doors separating the two rooms are louvered bifold doors so we still had to turn off all the lights and TV to get the kids to sleep. the last night we thought of covering the slats with towels but didn't try it. Most people probably wont have this problem, though but my older son needs complete darkness to fall asleep!

Overall, I think this hotel was superior to some of our recent Disney stays. We had tons of room, were very comfy and really pleased with the service.
I hope that this was helpful. If anyone has any questions, please ask and I will try to answer!
Jill

A honest review can help us in a lot of ways. We are planning to visit DIsney later this year and we would love to have great accomodation. Your review is well received and appreciated.

 

[Karat]

We love Double Tree. In 2007 they did not charge for parking, but I am hearing now that it is $8 per day....

Has anyone stayed recently that could verify??

Looked at staying on-site this year, but after seeing the tiny rooms.....we will be back at DoubleTree WDW.

 

[wdw-ocd]

We stayed last July and we weren't charged for parking.

 

[Karat]

Great!! Thanks so much!

 

[Poly-Anna]

They added the parking charge last fall or so. Actually some if not all of the Downtown Disney Hotels are charging to park. I know the Hilton is charging $8 for self-parking also. Trust me though that is not deterring us from staying at the DTS this August. We got an awesome deal from Mousesavers which includes the continental breakfast. If you stay off-site elsewhere it will cost you $12 to park at the Disney parks. I prefer to take the hotel's shuttle buses. We had no problem with them last year. We just use our car for other parks like Seaworld or Universal.

 

[Mickey's Sister]

If the buses don't begin until 8:00 A.M., I guess if you need to get to the parks before opening it's necessary to drive yourself? We are thinking of changing our June reservations from POFQ to DTS because my DS recently lost her job (there are 4 of us). We have an 8:05 A.M. breakfast scheduled at Crystal Palace. We're also planning to do the Steamtrain Tour another day, which requires you arrive at MK by 7:30. What are they charging to park at MK (TTC) these days? Any info would be appreciated!

 

[Poly-Anna]

I would suggest that if you need to be at the park early, take your car. The DTS bus doesn't start til 8 a.m. so if you need to be at the park earlier, the car is basically the best way to go. It's $12 to park now at the parks, I believe. We used our car once last year when we had tickets for a Pirate and Princess party - we didn't want to deal with buses very late at night with a 4 year old. All other times though we used the bus transportation and never had a problem. We are staying again this August at the DTS and the room is a hundred times nicer than POFQ! (We stayed at POFQ the year before and the rooms are small). So much room at DTS and the beds are much more comfortable. I found mousekeeping lacking at POFQ - DTS rooms were immaculate. I know you probably think you're downgrading but trust me the rooms are on a deluxe level. Plus the mousesavers rate with breakfast is definitely worth it and more.

Have a great time and enjoy!

 

[Mickey's Sister]

I would suggest that if you need to be at the park early, take your car. The DTS bus doesn't start til 8 a.m. so if you need to be at the park earlier, the car is basically the best way to go. It's $12 to park now at the parks, I believe. We used our car once last year when we had tickets for a Pirate and Princess party - we didn't want to deal with buses very late at night with a 4 year old. All other times though we used the bus transportation and never had a problem. We are staying again this August at the DTS and the room is a hundred times nicer than POFQ! (We stayed at POFQ the year before and the rooms are small). So much room at DTS and the beds are much more comfortable. I found mousekeeping lacking at POFQ - DTS rooms were immaculate. I know you probably think you're downgrading but trust me the rooms are on a deluxe level. Plus the mousesavers rate with breakfast is definitely worth it and more.

Have a great time and enjoy!

Hi!

Thank you so much for responding. The more I read about DTS, the more excited I'm getting. I actually changed the character ADRS & replaced them with lunches. Turned out several of the days were EMH days & I was hesitant to attend a park those days even staying onsite (we have so far avoided them). We're not normally big breakfast eaters, preferring if we're going to do waffles, french toast etc., to have them for brunch/lunch. So this will probably work out better & save money, if we take advantage of the hotel breakfast. I will still need to drive a few days because I'm taking my teen-aged son to Star Wars Weekends at DS & you need to be in line early to get fast passes for autographs. Plus we're doing the Steamtrain Tour at MK which meets at 7:15 A.M. I would have had to drive for all of those days even if we were staying at POFQ. The only difference is the parking fee.

I have another question for you, if you don't mind. Did you eat any dinners at the Evergreen Cafe? The Mousesavers rate includes 20% off for lunch or dinner & I was wondering if it was something we might want to do. I've been trying to find out what their menu looks like, but I can't find info anywhere.

The icing on the cake of staying at DTS is that it will put me over the top for Hilton HHonors points so that we can go to New York Columbus Day weekend with 2 free nights.

I believe everything works out the way it is supposed to! Thanks again for your help!

 

[danceintherain]

We got the Mousesavers rate for July, but I'm incredibly tempted to convince my family to switch to a Value Resort (if an AP rate gets released) just because of the extra perks.

First of all, we will not have a car while we're down there. Also, my parents are planning on taking Orlando public transit to get to the hotel, which isn't that big of a deal, as long as everyone only packs in a carry-on. The new bus line from MCO to Disney stops of Hotel Plaza Blvd, so it would be maybe a half mile walk. However, I'm debating about whether it would be better to just switch to 2 rooms on property and take Magical Express.

Can anybody compare the DTS buses to the Disney Value Resort buses. I know the DTS buses only come every 30 mins, but do they send another one if a lot of people are waiting at the bus stop, or if you miss that bus is it tough cookies and you have to wait 30 mins.

The buses and EMH are the major thing for me. The rest of my family has never stayed on the property before. Also, they have never relied on any form of public transportation before (Disney or otherwise). I am planning on watching rental car rates up until our trip, because if we can get a car that would fit all of us for significantly less than what they're going for now, then maybe I'll just convince them to get a rental car. With my AP we could park for free at the Parks, which would cut costs slightly, though we'd have to pay the DTS parking fee.

Oh also... does the DTS bus drop off at the TTC or at the Magic Kingdom gate?

 

[Mickey's Sister]

We got the Mousesavers rate for July, but I'm incredibly tempted to convince my family to switch to a Value Resort (if an AP rate gets released) just because of the extra perks.

First of all, we will not have a car while we're down there. Also, my parents are planning on taking Orlando public transit to get to the hotel, which isn't that big of a deal, as long as everyone only packs in a carry-on. The new bus line from MCO to Disney stops of Hotel Plaza Blvd, so it would be maybe a half mile walk. However, I'm debating about whether it would be better to just switch to 2 rooms on property and take Magical Express.

Can anybody compare the DTS buses to the Disney Value Resort buses. I know the DTS buses only come every 30 mins, but do they send another one if a lot of people are waiting at the bus stop, or if you miss that bus is it tough cookies and you have to wait 30 mins.

The buses and EMH are the major thing for me. The rest of my family has never stayed on the property before. Also, they have never relied on any form of public transportation before (Disney or otherwise). I am planning on watching rental car rates up until our trip, because if we can get a car that would fit all of us for significantly less than what they're going for now, then maybe I'll just convince them to get a rental car. With my AP we could park for free at the Parks, which would cut costs slightly, though we'd have to pay the DTS parking fee.

Oh also... does the DTS bus drop off at the TTC or at the Magic Kingdom gate?

Our bus experience at ASMU (Nov - Dec 2005) was horrible. We waited at least 20 minutes & up to 40 minutes for a bus to any of the parks. Plus there was no shade, so you're standing outside in the hot sun. The return trip always required people to stand. The buses were so full that the entire aisle was packed full of standing people who ended up banging into the seated passengers as the bus turned corners - and we don't rush to the buses right at park closing - we wait for the crowds to thin, but it didn't seem to matter. The 3 All-Stars share buses.

My brother's family stayed at DTD a few years back - their drivers actually had everyone singing songs - so the bus ride was part of the adventure. We road the bus with them one evening when we were all going to DTD & it was a blast! He doesn't remember there being any inconveniences with their buses (and he usually stays at the POLY unless he's using travel points).

To be honest with you, they couldn't pay me to stay at a Disney Value resort again. I'm not overly picky or had unrealistic expectations - the experience was just that bad. It is not an exaggeration to say it was the worst hotel stay I have EVER had in a lifetime of travel. They did absolutely NOTHING right from the first day when they had a SCHEDULED maintenance of the water system & shut down our entire building's water for almost 12 hours. This was NOT an emergency - it was scheduled with an entire building full of guests! Their answer was that 1) We should have been told when we checked in (we weren't & how would this have made a difference when the package was all pre-paid?) and 2) We should walk to the pool house to use their facilities. If you've ever been in one of the Values, you know what kind of walk we're talking about. Plus, who wants to schlepp to the pool house with all your stuff just to shower? Even the most bare-bones hotel needs to have water! There was absolutely no excuse for it. Plus, to add insult to injury, the hotel wasn't full! But there were MANY very angry, sweaty guests milling about.

If you had a problem (& there were many) & tried to call the front desk - they frequently did not even pick up the phone. We once left the phone ring literally for 20 minutes until we finally gave up. Then when you would walk all the way back to the main building - expecting to see a huge travel group checking in - you would instead find a bunch of CM's just standing around gossiping with the phone wailing away in the background! If I had not seen it for myself, I wouldn't have believed it could happen in Disney! Walt Disney would be ill!

I was guaranteed a smoke-free room in a smoke-free building for medical reasons, yet they did absolutely nothing to stop the man in the connecting room from smoking. In fact, they acted as though it was my fault for complaining. Ater 5 days of becoming increasingly more ill and desperate & considering a trip to the hospital (I have severe smoke-induced asthma which exacerbates my Type I diabetes - by this point my blood sugar was over 400) I finally got a 'sympathetic' manager who was also diabetic. But his answer was to move US. So the last day of our vacation we spent packing & moving which caused us to miss our character breakfast & part of the day in the park. Even though Disney is now smoke-free, I'm sure the people at ASMU do nothing to enforce these rules.

These are the most egregious problems...there were many others - even blood-stains & food caked on the drapes!

If you do decide to try a Value - at least go with POP which seems to have a bit higher standards - though I can't speak from personal experience. Sorry to be negative, but I wouldn't want anyone to go through the horror we went through!

 

[danceintherain]

Our bus experience at ASMU (Nov - Dec 2005) was horrible. We waited at least 20 minutes & up to 40 minutes for a bus to any of the parks. Plus there was no shade, so you're standing outside in the hot sun. The return trip always required people to stand. The buses were so full that the entire aisle was packed full of standing people who ended up banging into the seated passengers as the bus turned corners - and we don't rush to the buses right at park closing - we wait for the crowds to thin, but it didn't seem to matter. The 3 All-Stars share buses.

My brother's family stayed at DTD a few years back - their drivers actually had everyone singing songs - so the bus ride was part of the adventure. We road the bus with them one evening when we were all going to DTD & it was a blast! He doesn't remember there being any inconveniences with their buses (and he usually stays at the POLY unless he's using travel points).

To be honest with you, they couldn't pay me to stay at a Disney Value resort again. I'm not overly picky or had unrealistic expectations - the experience was just that bad. It is not an exaggeration to say it was the worst hotel stay I have EVER had in a lifetime of travel. They did absolutely NOTHING right from the first day when they had a SCHEDULED maintenance of the water system & shut down our entire building's water for almost 12 hours. This was NOT an emergency - it was scheduled with an entire building full of guests! Their answer was that 1) We should have been told when we checked in (we weren't & how would this have made a difference when the package was all pre-paid?) and 2) We should walk to the pool house to use their facilities. If you've ever been in one of the Values, you know what kind of walk we're talking about. Plus, who wants to schlepp to the pool house with all your stuff just to shower? Even the most bare-bones hotel needs to have water! There was absolutely no excuse for it. Plus, to add insult to injury, the hotel wasn't full! But there were MANY very angry, sweaty guests milling about.

If you had a problem (& there were many) & tried to call the front desk - they frequently did not even pick up the phone. We once left the phone ring literally for 20 minutes until we finally gave up. Then when you would walk all the way back to the main building - expecting to see a huge travel group checking in - you would instead find a bunch of CM's just standing around gossiping with the phone wailing away in the background! If I had not seen it for myself, I wouldn't have believed it could happen in Disney! Walt Disney would be ill!

I was guaranteed a smoke-free room in a smoke-free building for medical reasons, yet they did absolutely nothing to stop the man in the connecting room from smoking. In fact, they acted as though it was my fault for complaining. Ater 5 days of becoming increasingly more ill and desperate & considering a trip to the hospital (I have severe smoke-induced asthma which exacerbates my Type I diabetes - by this point my blood sugar was over 400) I finally got a 'sympathetic' manager who was also diabetic. But his answer was to move US. So the last day of our vacation we spent packing & moving which caused us to miss our character breakfast & part of the day in the park. Even though Disney is now smoke-free, I'm sure the people at ASMU do nothing to enforce these rules.

These are the most egregious problems...there were many others - even blood-stains & food caked on the drapes!

If you do decide to try a Value - at least go with POP which seems to have a bit higher standards - though I can't speak from personal experience. Sorry to be negative, but I wouldn't want anyone to go through the horror we went through!

Thanks for your input. If it was up to me I'd do a Moderate or a Deluxe...but I'm not paying for this trip. We probably should just stick with our Mousesavers DTS rate, and I can attempt the values during Value season for my DH's birthday...

Can anybody compare the size of 2 Value Rooms compared to a DTS suite?
I can find the square footage of the value rooms, but not the suites.

 

[Poly-Anna]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to all but I only log in a couple of times a week.

Mickey's Sister - no we never ate at the Evergreen Cafe for lunch or dinner, just breakfast - although I think we might try it this time. We're usually in the parks or not at the hotel for those meal times and there are so many restaurants in Orlando it's crazy! We are actually going to try the new T-Rex in DTD this time. Sort of like Rainforest Cafe but with cool dinosaurs. Can't wait!

danceintherain - DTS room size is 608 feet per Allearsnet.com. It's the size of two value resort rooms and more. Plus there is no comparing the two. Like apples and oranges.

Have a great time!

 

[danceintherain]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to all but I only log in a couple of times a week.

Mickey's Sister - no we never ate at the Evergreen Cafe for lunch or dinner, just breakfast - although I think we might try it this time. We're usually in the parks or not at the hotel for those meal times and there are so many restaurants in Orlando it's crazy! We are actually going to try the new T-Rex in DTD this time. Sort of like Rainforest Cafe but with cool dinosaurs. Can't wait!

danceintherain - DTS room size is 608 feet per Allearsnet.com. It's the size of two value resort rooms and more. Plus there is no comparing the two. Like apples and oranges.

Have a great time!

Thanks! I think at this point I'm leaning more towards getting a rental car for while we're there, but we'll see.

 

[Poly-Anna]

The other option danceintherain is to just rent a car for a day or so. DTS has a Budget rental car desk in the lobby as does most of the other hotels near Downtown Disney. Also go to Alamo.com and sign up for their weekly specials. The last two times we went to Orlando we rented a car based on their rates that came out a week before for like $159 a week. Definitely worth it.

Good luck.

 

[Mickey's Sister]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to all but I only log in a couple of times a week.

Mickey's Sister - no we never ate at the Evergreen Cafe for lunch or dinner, just breakfast - although I think we might try it this time. We're usually in the parks or not at the hotel for those meal times and there are so many restaurants in Orlando it's crazy! We are actually going to try the new T-Rex in DTD this time. Sort of like Rainforest Cafe but with cool dinosaurs. Can't wait!

danceintherain - DTS room size is 608 feet per Allearsnet.com. It's the size of two value resort rooms and more. Plus there is no comparing the two. Like apples and oranges.

Have a great time!

I have not been able to find a soul who has eaten in the Evergreen Cafe! I guess we'll have to wait & see. You didn't happen to notice if they have Mickey waffles for breakfast?

We're planning on eating at T-Rex too. My niece can't wait, so we're going 1st day of the trip.

Another question... Do you know if the sleeper sofa is comfortable? I've heard rave reviews of the beds, but have heard nothing about the sleeper sofa.

We leave one month from tomorrow!!!!

 

[danceintherain]

The other option danceintherain is to just rent a car for a day or so. DTS has a Budget rental car desk in the lobby as does most of the other hotels near Downtown Disney. Also go to Alamo.com and sign up for their weekly specials. The last two times we went to Orlando we rented a car based on their rates that came out a week before for like $159 a week. Definitely worth it.

Good luck.

The problem with renting a car for only a few days is my parents are planning on taking the Public Bus from the airport. I don't think it will be too bad once we're on the bus, but if we miss one, it will be another hour before the next one comes.
Also, I looked at the touringplans times for bus traveling between DTD hotels and the Parks, and they were not encouraging. Even using the Disney hotel buses is not always most convenient, but they come more often.