"Unexpectedly Delightful"
Given the reviews of the place I had seen, and the price that I was paying, I expected the hotel to be small, shabby, and barely tolerable in terms of cleanliness and amenities (which, for the price I was paying and the purpose of my trip -- to spend all day at the park, and only use the hotel as a place to sleep in between -- was perfectly acceptable to me). However, I found that I have grossly underestimated the place. It was absolutely delightful. In fact, it reminded me strongly of Oglethorpe Dorm in Savannah, GA; it seems to the be the standard Southern motel layout.
It was nothing too fancy, mind you, but it was decidedly nicer than I anticipated (also larger, with a nice courtyard around the pool in the middle). The rooms were roomy, the beds quite comfortable and well-stocked with pillows; there was a refrigerator and microwave of granted not the highest quality, but perfectly functional; there was an iron and board, a hairdryer, and a television. The bathroom was a bit smallish, but nothing out-of-the-ordinary for a motel, and it was quite clean, as was the whole place. There was a even a tiny little arcade and gym, and the pool (which I did not bother taking time to use) looked very nice and larger than I would have thought it to be.
The whole place was nicely decorated and tricked out, and the few members of staff that I interacted with (being as I was rarely there) were all helpful, friendly, and quite cheerful. When we had to catch a taxi they had one for us in moments; our shuttles to and from the parks were always prompt; when we were waiting for our airport shuttle we were twice checked-up on by staff making sure we were taken care of, despite it being nearly 5am at the time, when I cannot imagine anyone is much interested in worrying about other people.
The breakfast provided is simple but suitable: when we were there it consisted of eggs, sausages, two choices of cereal, muffins and bread, and fruit that appeared to transition between bananas and oranges depending on which was stocked each day. There is also coffee and tea in the lobby at all hours, for no charge, which was really quite lovely. Basic stuff, but nice. Apparently there is free internet provided in the lobby, but we never had time to avail ourselves, so I cannot speak to that personally. There is also a little shop attached to the lobby that sells snacks, drinks, microwavable meals, and souvenirs, all at reasonable prices. One can also purchase tickets to Universal Studios there, at prices that were slightly cheaper than what my friend and I had paid ahead of time.
I will caution you: apparently the place has changed names a number of times recently, so be sure to have the actual address with you, not just the hotel name, should you have need of transportation to the place. We only had one driver, however, who was either incapable or simply disinterested in trying to find the place; everyone else knew exactly the place I was talking about immediately, so perhaps it was simply the one fellow. Still, I think having the exact address about one's person when hiring shuttles or taxis would be a very good idea. (There are numerous hotels of every chain around the Orlando area, so it's a good idea in general to have the address of wherever you end up staying, so as to be sure that you are driven to the right one.)
It seems to be a reasonable (not short; just reasonable) walk to Universal Studios, although given the free shuttle to-and-from the park provided, and the fact that a cab ride comes out to $10 or less, I never ended up actually walking -- but I could see, examining the route, that it would be quite possible, although perhaps not exactly pleasant, given the traffic around the area.
All-in-all I quite recommend the place, and I would be more than willing to stay there again myself. I was strongly surprised upon my arrival, very happily so, to find it so delightful.
Traveller from Camp Hill, PA, USA
