Looking for a place to stay

[Starr_DJ]

I am heading down to Orlando in July (solo trip) and am looking for a nice, comfortable, and not too expensive hotel to stay in for a few nights before and after my stay on site at Disney, before I go to Universal Studios. I don't need anything fancy, just a bed and Wi-Fi, and a fridge would be nice. There are so many choices, that it's hard to weed out the good hotels from the not so nice ones. Any suggestions?

Also, I have been to Disney many times, but have never ventured outside of its protective walls. This time I'd like to see a bit more of Orlando. Does anyone have any recommendations on places to shop or places to eat?

Thanks for the help!!!

 

[illinidp]

I would check out Hotwire and look at 3.5 star plus hotels on I Drive or Downtown Disney with user reviews over 90%.

 

[Detailor]

I agree with illinidp. Try Hotwire or Priceline to maximize the quality of hotel while lowering your cost. Watch out for the extra costs that some area hotels charge - particularly those that are closer to Disney. There may be a "Resort Fee" and/or a "Parking Fee" associated with some hotels. You pay those directly to the hotel so they will not be included in the Hotwire or Priceline price. You may be able to avoid those sort of add-ons by staying in a zone, like staying at an International Drive hotel, that's a little further outside of the direct Disney area. 3.5 stars generally gets you out of any of the potentially more questionable hotels.

An I-Drive location would also expose you to some of the non-Disney attractions, restaurants and shopping that the area has to offer. I'd suggest either of the two, large Premium Outlet shopping areas (northern tip of International Drive or on Vineland Avenue just off the lower part of I-Drive). The Florida Mall - off Orange Blossom Trail and Sand Lake Road - is a large, traditional shopping mall and the Mall at Millenia is just off Conroy Road via I-4 going east (north of the Disney area) - that latter mall is a somewhat upscale mall.

Lot's of places to eat in Orlando. You'll get a wide variety of suggestions at this forum. We like places like Bahama Breeze (one on International Drive, one on the Lake Buena Vista end of Vineland Avenue and a newish one to the southwest of Disney on SR192 not far from Animal Kingdom). Lot's of chains mixed with some local type restaurants strewn throughout the area.

Dick Taylor

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

For shopping, we love the Premium Outlets (Vineland or I-Drive) and the Nike Clearance Store in Kissimmee. We also visit the Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores (not as good as the Premium Outlets, but very close to our resort so we try and hit them at least once) and the Florida Mall.

 

[staceyrhood]

For shopping there is Millenia Mall and the premium outlets that are nice. Personally I stay away from the florida mall ... Too many bad things in the news I've heard about happening there over all the years I've lived in the area.
There are some great places to eat on Sand Lake Rd which is a nice area, close to Universal. I live in Celebration, we have wonderful restaurants here and a few shops. There is also a hotel the Bohemian which is a Marriott that is nice and close to Disney.