DoubleTree Suites by Hilton – Disney Springs Area – Resort Review
Location, Location, Location!
From a Cost Perspective
An additional strongpoint and real strength of this particular property is the cost. Inevitably if you’re a Hilton Honors member or staying on a discounted rate, you can save some money staying here if you’re careful about transportation costs and parking fees. If you’re driving, you’re almost better off staying on property because the nightly parking fee is $22 per night. Plus, if you opt for using your own transportation you will still have to pay parking fees at the parks on top of that unless you’re an annual passholder (assuming you don’y fly in and use a service like Uber or Lyft – here are our thoughts on that).
If you plan your stay carefully, you can save a little money when comparing accommodation prices to those found on property. When you add in the greater room size, even in standard suite rooms, the benefits can occasionally outweigh some of the downsides of not being in a Disney owned and operated resort. You are going to lose a certain element of being in that “Disney bubble” and to me that’s a huge part of the Disney experience overall for many first time and returning Disney guests. It’s not something I can fault the Double Tree for but there’s just an added piece to the vacation puzzle when you can see and do everything you want without the worries of any transportation concerns or hidden costs during your stay. When Disney provides everything it’s just “easy” and a adds a little something to the feel of your vacation.
The Standard Rooms
A standard room at this particular DoubleTree property isn’t entirely standard. The hotel features suites offering guests a living area and a separate room with either two queen beds or 1 king bed separated by a sliding door. Additionally, each room comes with a miniature refrigerator, a small sink in the living room style area, and a fairly good size table. The extra space in the room is a huge bonus for those with larger families or who just want a little extra space without having to pay the Deluxe Villa price of similar Disney accommodations.
Sure, there are sacrifices when staying off property and I talk about them heavily in our Disney World Budget Tips – How to Plan a Budget Friendly Disney Vacation article. I even went as far as to recommend not staying off property if you can absolutely avoid it. While that may be seemingly contradictory, at the same time if you’re not an Annual Passholder or coming to the parks multiple times during the year like some guests are, I still don’t recommend staying off property. If you are like us and headed to the parks multiple times throughout the same year, it can be a good option, but if you’re a first time guest or planning your one big vacation for the year just stay on property. I don’t say that in any way to discredit the great value you can find at the Double Tree (it truly is a great hotel), but it’s all about convenience and making the absolute most of every minute of time you have with friends and family.
Breakfast Offerings
Breakfast tends to be a big benefit here if you are a Hilton Honors card holder. If you are not a card holder, you can buy a breakfast package to get a really good breakfast for each day of your stay added to the cost of your room. As a Hilton Honors card holder you are automatically given a a breakfast for each guest in your party each night of your stay depending on your cardholder status. The complimentary offering is pretty good but you can upgrade your breakfast to include bacon, sausage, omelettes, and a few other add ons for $5 per guest. Truthfully, it’s a really poor system and one that I literally saw two different guests get irritated with the front desk about upon check in. $5 obviously isn’t the end of the world for a great breakfast with a ton of offerings but if you’re Hilton I don’t see why you’d try to pull $5 more dollars out of your guests pockets and risk them being irritated about it as soon as they check in. Sure, it makes financial sense but if you read any reviews on Trip Advisor or other online sites that’s the number one thing guests complain about.
With all of that being said, it’s not really a complaint I had with our stay. We gladly payed the $5 a couple days of our trip to start the day off right with a good breakfast and the staff at the dining location is exceptional. It’s the same group of servers that have been there for years (select servers literally 20+ years) and they treat you like part of the family. Many guests know them by name from repeat visits to the property and the servers know them just as well.
Overall Experience
Long story made short, this is and always likely will be a great place to stay if the rates are cheap or at least more budget friendly that Disney resorts. However, its not going to be an ideal solution for so many different reasons. Would I stay here again, absolutely. Would I rather stay on Disney property? Without a doubt. Not everyone is like me though and some prefer a classic hotel style accommodation over a heavily themed experience for any number of different reasons. The Double Tree is a great hotel and an even better location. It’s far better that other non-Disney resorts in the area and the added advantage of being in the Disney Springs resort area makes it a far better option that so many other resorts that are truly “off-property” a and down the road from Disney. If you’re booking a trip, it’s certainly worth a look. If you want to do some comparisons completely free of charge, let our friends over at Destinations to Travel help you out in the booking process. It really helps us out when you book through them!
Your Thoughts
As always, if you have thoughts, concerns, questions, or even some tips of your own to share, don’t hesitate to reach out to us on Facebook or your favorite social media platform. Give us a follow while you’re there, and we’ll keep the conversation going in the future. We’re not the largest Disney community, but we’re one that’s there and one that listens. Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day wherever you are!
Need a Travel Planner?
If you want or simply need a little bit of planning help to make your Disney vacation dream a reality, check out the quote request form below this article for our friends over at Destinations to Travel. They’ll let you do as much or as little of the planning as you’d like and may even save you some money along the way! As always, thatks for supporting those who support us.
Ready to Plan?
Last but certainly not least, if you’re starting the planning process, a great place to start are with some of our top planning articles! Looking for dining? Check out Disney World Dining Tips For 2018. Want to start with some more tips? 44 Excellent Disney World Tips for 2018 or Disney World Planning Guide and Tips For 2018 are a great place to begin! Looking to save money on tickets? Check out our friends over at The Official Ticket Center for great deals that even made it into our 2018 Discount Disney World Ticket selections and another great way to help us create more content through your contributions at no additional cost to you! You’ll probably even save money along the way.
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