Stovall’s vs Element

[CJN]

If you DL experts can bear another hotel comparison thread..

I’m trip-planning for my niece - two adults, two kids ages 11 and 8. When Candy Cane Inn canceled their reservation we already had BW Stovall’s as a back-up. But after reading some of the reviews on Element (and watching your excellent videos @crystal1313 ) we decided to check it out too.

Turns out we could book a theme park view, one bedroom suite at Element for slightly less than the Stovall’s room. So there would be almost twice the room space although the kitchen probably wouldn’t get much use. Both offer breakfast and it looks like walking distance might be about the same. Does anyone have experience with both places to know if there’s a significant difference in room quality or other features to make one the no-brainer choice over the other?

One thing to consider is two park days will overlap with friends who are staying at DLH. The location of Stovall’s should make it easier to meet up with the friends but I don’t want my niece to have to sacrifice the quality of her lodging just for that one perk. Any opinions would be welcome.

 

[kirstyfly]

What is the parking situation?

Element is right next to The Suncoast which is where we stayed 3 weeks ago. We had reservations booked for Candy Cane and Suncoast was our back up hotel.

The Art bus stops right outside the element hotel.

I would go for more space. The walk I would imagine is similar we walked in the morning and caught the ART bus at night.

Stovalls was also on our list pior to finding candy cane inn,

 

[lalasmama]

Personally, I think I'd do Stovall's, mostly because of the walk and location-- the walk is 98% on Disney property so it's all on video should anything happen (though I've never felt unsafe on the walk to Stovall's regardless). The walk to Element will have substantially fewer crowds walking that way, meaning less security cameras and less people around. I'm a solo, 40-something lady that's 5'3" on a tall day. In other words, I'm not imposing in any way, so I'm pretty attentive about my safety. Also, Stovall's isn't near the freeway. Element would make me worry about possible traffic noise being so close to I-5.

 

[mel2014]

How many days total are they staying? Having a separate space where kids can nap and parents can veg (or kids can watch Youtube TV while parents nap ) would be huge to me.

The theme park view rooms are away from I-5 so there shouldn't be any road noise (there are very few rooms directly adjacent to I-5). Our room was pretty centered on the south side of the hotel and we heard no road noise.

Assuming they're okay with their 8 year old riding without a booster (or using an inflatable booster or mifold), I will point out that it's easy to get an Uber XL from the Element over to the Downtown Disney drop (which is directly adjacent to the DLH) for around $12 including tip.

The breakfast at the Element was very high-quality, with lots of choices.

The Element is a 3-year old interior corridor hotel; Stovall's is 50+ year old motel. I haven't stayed at Stovall's, but for the same price I would absolutely choose the Element.

 

[CJN]

How many days total are they staying? Having a separate space where kids can nap and parents can veg (or kids can watch Youtube TV while parents nap ) would be huge to me.

The theme park view rooms are away from I-5 so there shouldn't be any road noise (there are very few rooms directly adjacent to I-5). Our room was pretty centered on the south side of the hotel and we heard no road noise.

Assuming they're okay with their 8 year old riding without a booster (or using an inflatable booster or mifold), I will point out that it's easy to get an Uber XL from the Element over the to Downtown Disney drop (which is directly adjacent to the DLH) for around $12 including tip.

The breakfast at the Element was very high-quality, with lots of choices.

The Element is a 3-year old interior corridor hotel; Stovall's is 50+ year old motel. I haven't stayed at Stovall's, but for the same price I would absolutely choose the Element.

They‘re staying five nights. Great point about the extra space at Element providing privacy for naps, etc, especially for a longer trip like that. And thanks for the other info about it.

No car, so parking’s not a concern. That’s a good tip, though, about taking Lyft to Downtown Disney. Thanks!

 

[crystal1313]

Aww, thanks for the super sweet shout out!!

We have stayed at both the Element and Stovalls. I would personally pick the Element hands down. As @mel2014 stated, it’s a newer hotel, vs an older motel. We are staying at Element again later this month in that exact room type I believe! And yes, I would say there is a significant difference in room quality in favor of the Element. It’s so hard to compare a newer property to an older property.

While Stovalls is nice for a motel, the finishes and larger room layout at Element make us more comfortable. No kids fighting over who is sitting on the bed, because there are other places to sit in the room. lol. Plus, in my opinion, the breakfast was much better at Element as well. Lots more choices, bigger breakfast room and dining area too. Stovalls was good, but we all preferred Element for breakfast.

We were walking back to the Element with quite a few other people and I felt safe walking in that direction. Even if I was alone. I do feel the walk is shorter from the Element too. Yes, the walk from Stovalls might be more fun walking through DTD, but I would rather have a shorter walk. I’m looking at our walking videos and it looks like it took us about 13ish minutes to walk for the Element, vs about 20ish minutes from Stovalls.

Wanted to add that we had great customer service at both places. We had to take cold showers at Stovalls and they did give us some money back on our stay because of that issue. Luckily after my husband and I showered, the water got warm so the kids didn’t have to take a cold shower too. Lol.

Hope that helps!! And hope they all have a wonderful trip!!!!

 

[gelatoni fan]

The Element is a hotel I highly recommend when the price makes sense.

The BW Stovall is a place that my cousins tolerate when their favorite hotels happen to be so much more expensive that they are willing to compromise on quality. If the prices are similar, I absolutely go with the Element.

 

[CJN]

Exactly the kind of input I was hoping to get. It’s very helpful, so thanks to all of you. The final decision is up to my niece but once she reads your comments I’m sure it’ll be Element