Just back from our stay at the Hotel Royal Plaza!!

[karin037]

We had a great time. We were at Disney World from 11/6 - 11/13. The Hotel Royal Plaza was really nice. There are 5 of us including 3 teenage daughters. The rooms at the Royal Plaza sleep 5 (2 doubles and a sofa sleeper). We only paid $46 a night plus taxes and a $7 a night resort fee. We rented a refrigerator for $25 for the length of our stay. Housekeeping was great. We had to call them several times, for extra pillows, blankets and shampoo etc. Housekeeping came a few minutes after we called. They treated us really good. The shampoo, body lotion, shower gel and soaps were from Bath & Body Works which was a nice touch. We went swimming everyday. The water in the pool was really warm. There was also a hot tub. Next to the pool there is a fitness center and a laundry room. We had a pool view from our room, so we could see the girls from our balcony while they were swimming. The shuttle buses were great. We never waited long for them. They are on a schedule and run every 30 minutes, although one bus driver told us that because of the lack of tourists right now, as of 11/15 the buses are going to start running every 60 mins, until business picks up. The buses are really nice with cushioned seats. If you have a stroller they have storage under the bus. The location of the Royal Plaza was perfect for us. We walked to Downtown Disney. It wasn't far at all. We walked to Disneyquest, Pleasure Island and the Marketplace. If you walk in the opposite direction you can walk to Crossroads Shopping Center. There is a Taco Bell, Goodings Supermarket, Footlocker, Bath & Body Works, and many other places to eat and shop. If you walk a little further, you can walk to many restaurants with all you can eat buffets. We walked to Shoney's and to Sizzler's. Sizzler's was great. They have an all you can eat breakfast buffet for $3.99. We were all stuffed after we eat there. We also went to the dinner buffet at Sizzler's. For $8.99 you get a steak (which was really good) and a potato and the all you can eat buffet. The girls really liked making there own Ice Cream Sundaes. The only thing you pay extra for is your beverage, but they give you as many free refills as you want. It was great. We had such good time. We were at Disney World for 8 days. We had the best weather, it didn't rain at all, except for our last day (on our way to the airport). We went to to MK, EPCOT, AK, MGM. We never waited too long on line. We used fastpast twice. Blizzard Beach was great. My 15 year old went down Summit Plummit, although she said she would never do that again. One afternoon we went over to the Boardwalk and rented a surrey, we had such a good time riding around the Boardwalk. We went to Pleasure Island. The Comedy Club was great. We laughed so hard. We had a good time there. While at EPCOT, we ate at the Biergarten, we had a blast there. We went to Coronado Springs and ate at the Peppermarket. We used the voucher's that I purchased through Connections. We had Steak, a potato, veggies a beverage and dessert. Our bill would have been over $100. We only paid $10.50 for each voucher. So our meal was less than 1/2 price. We also used them at Beaches and Cream, we saved a lot there too. The desserts were huge. You can definitely share meals there. At the Magic Kingdom we ate at Cosmic Rays Starlight Cafe. The family meal is only $16.99 (feeds 3 or 4). The rotissere chicken was good, the mashed potatoes were delicious (made from scratch with red skin potatoes), and the corn muffins were really good too. We were able to see and do everything that we wanted to. We flew on JetBlue, which was awesome. Everyone has there own TV (located on the seat in front of you). They have a long list of beverages to choose from, and they give you seconds, even thirds if you want. They also give you snacks. Our flights only cost us $64 each way. We used Yourride to get back and forth from the airport, and they were great. Rabbit (our driver) was so nice. I made a post on the transportation board about Yourride. This was our very first family vacation, and we had such a good time. I used 21 rolls of film. I just want to thank everyone on these boards for all of the info and tips on these boards. I was able to save a lot of money and have a really good trip because of everything I learned from these boards. Thanks to all!!

 

[w8ting4pooh]

We are going to stay in the tower for New Years holiday. Did you eat at the hotel's restaurant (I think it's called Giraffes)? Our kiddos eat for free so we are curious what it's like.

Another question, did the bus to Magic Kingdom take to the gate or to the TTC? Where were the drop offs and pickups for the other parks (like AK and MGM)?

Thanks! And congratulations on a great trip!

 

[karin037]

We didn't eat at the Royal Plaza. Our kids are too old to eat free, so we didn't bother. We used Yourride, and did a grocery stop at Publix. For breakfast we mostly ate cereal, doughnuts, etc. in our room. We did a few breakfast buffets at Shoney's and Sizzler's. For lunch and dinner we mostly ate in the parks (counter service, except for the Biergarten). We ate at Mcdonald's a few times (Marketplace). The shuttle to the Magic Kingdom leaves you in the parking lot (TTC). Then you take the Monorail, which only takes a few minutes and is a lot of fun. You can also take a ferry boat, which is nice too, but takes longer. The shuttle buses to the other parks leave you in the parking lot in space #26. It's not a long walk. Just a bit further than the Disney Buses. But not much further at all.

 

[wmackleit]

How did you get a rate of $46 per night?

 

[karin037]

Initially, I booked it through the Hotel Royal Plaza website (www.royalplaza.com) using the code from www.mousesavers.com ($65 a night). After I had booked it, I was reading on these boards that they had a special for $69 a night, buy 2 nights get 1 free. So I called the Hotel Royal Plaza and asked for that rate. Turns out they only charged me $46 a night ($65 a night, buy 2 get 1 free). A great rate for a room that sleeps 5!!

 

[millerglass]

We'll be getting to the Royal Plaza the day after Thanksgiving. Thanks for all of the input. Sounds like we're in for a real fun time. We also found a post on these boards that got us a $35 a night rate through Priceline. I never used it before and it was real easy to use.
Eric

 

[Jakk]

Your post brought back a lot of memories. I stayed there years ago after high school graduation. We had a great time! Glad to hear it is still a nice place to stay.