Editor: Please enjoy this special review from my wife Stacey.
The Holiday Inn Walt Disney World Resort at Lake Buena Vista reopened for business on February 12th after a period of ‘rebuilding’. Over 18 months they took the interior of building down to the bare concrete and replaced nearly everything from pipes to fixtures on every floor and the main guest areas. I was pleased to be invited to a special tour of the new hotel.
The airy lobby
When you walk in the front door it’s very airy, very light, you hear background music and enjoy a welcoming smell. The sound and scent is pumped into the area. The whole design is aimed to be inviting to the entire family. The dad sees the bar, the kids see the pool and mom sees that everyone is happy and she has somewhere to sit and watch her kids, or perhaps get a drink from the bar.
an ‘ah-ha’ moment
This hotel is one of the 1800 Holiday Inns that have been remodeled to the new brand standard. That has given them a lot of “ah-ha” moments including a hook under the bar for a woman’s purse or that bag of souvenirs you’ve brought back from the parks.
Outside of the bar next too the pool will be an outdoor bar specializing in Tapas called Aqua Luna. Those couches look very comfortable.
Future tapas bar area
The pool has three regions designed to make it as family friendly as possible. The odd looking shape has luxurious entry steps, a lap pool and a toddler friendly zero entry all in one.
A totally new pool for the property
We saw two different rooms. 1/3rd of the rooms have King beds that can accommodate a sleeper. Those rooms feature a glass door shower with no tub. Most of the rest are two queens, which come with a bathtub. Another ah-ha moment was to include lots of extra outlets in each room for all the modern toys and tools travelers bring with them these days.
All the rooms have a safe big enough for a 17 inch laptop, complimentary fridge, 32 hdtv with hd signal, a cordless phone, premium bedding, and local & 800 calls are free. The rooms and bathrooms were well lit, with extra care to the makeup counter and mirror so you won’t miss a details as you get ready for that night on the town, or that important business meeting. 75% of the hotel’s rooms have balconies.
The rooms feature Internet plug-in ethernet to meet with government business requirements. There is wi-fi available in the lobby and business center.
The hotel amenities also include a fitness room, a restaurant with Asian fusion cuisine, a 6000 sq ft ballroom and various conference rooms, and buses direct to each of the Disney theme parks. Kids 2-12 eat free at the restaurant with each paying adult and care is taken to address any food allergies. Soon a Disney operated store will be opening in the lobby area which means package express will be available to guests staying at the hotel. A nice bonus.
the main restaurant
I liked the open, light, clean, and welcoming feel of the hotel. It was so quiet. Even in the room looking over the I-4 freeway you couldn’t hear a thing, that’s due to the airport quality noise suppression glass. It was all those little details that will make the Holiday Inn at Walt Disney World Resort the new gem of the Downtown Disney resorts.
view of Downtown Disney
My wife's review of the newly rebuilt Holiday Inn at Walt Disney World resort that re-opened at Downtown Disney – http://bit.ly/cZMINV
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