Hawthorn Suites or Clarion Inn LBV?

[Cloverlady]

Originally Posted by Traincrashing

I'm just back from a stay at Clarion Inn LBV and would go back and stay again. It's a basic hotel, nothing fancy. On check in they didn't have the king room that I had requested, so gave us a normal room for the night and asked us to come back the following morning and they would change the room for me to what I had requested, which they did.

I can't comment on the food there as we ate out the entire time, and the location to restaurants is fantastic so there really was no need to eat there. We had a fridge and a microwave in the room which was handy for bringing home leftovers.

The shuttle service was the reason I booked this hotel, but we ended up not using it at all as the times didn't really work for us. For example, the shuttle to Universal is at 7am! We ended up using Uber the majority of the time and spent just under $400 in 10 days on Uber.

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Hi
Just a question about uber costs please - we are staying in LBV and will be using Uber for first time as we aren't having a car this time.
Trying to work out a budget for Uber, when you say you spent $400 is that taking just one trip to and from one park a day?

Did you go to Seaworld or Aquatica? Or take a trip to Outlets at Vineland? If so how much was that trip please, (just trying to work out of the Uber estimate on website is accurate).

Hope you had a great time!

Thanks!

[PumpkinCupcake]

Originally Posted by Cloverlady

Hi
Just a question about uber costs please - we are staying in LBV and will be using Uber for first time as we aren't having a car this time.
Trying to work out a budget for Uber, when you say you spent $400 is that taking just one trip to and from one park a day?

Did you go to Seaworld or Aquatica? Or take a trip to Outlets at Vineland? If so how much was that trip please, (just trying to work out of the Uber estimate on website is accurate).

Hope you had a great time!

Thanks!

See more...

We went on a Wednesday and then left the following Saturday, and during this time we hired a car on the Friday evening to go to the KSC on the Saturday, and then dropped it back on the Sunday morning at Epcot. Thought I'd mention this so you can see that we had a car for a few days

We had a few taxis a day. Most mornings we walked to IHOP or Dennys for breakfast, and then from there got a taxi to Universal or to the park we were going to that day (Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom, and the Grand Floridian from what I rememebr (we had an ADR)). Sometimes we got the taxi to Disney Springs and went on from there. On the way home we got a taxi either direct from the park, or again, we went to Disney Springs and got the taxi from there. I think it was around $16/18 from the park, or around $8 from Disney Springs, so it's a bit of a saving if you want to do that.

We also went to the Mall at Millenia, to the outlet on international, and to the outlet at vineland, so there were a few further trips there too! Once we also got a taxi from Universal to Target, and then from Target to the Mall at Millenia.

We didn't go to Seaworld or Aquatica unfortunately, but I do think that the Uber estimate is quite accurate

I would say to be careful with using it sometimes. I found that I would price a trip and then leave the app open on my phone while we discussed what we were doing, and I would then go back 5 minutes later to find that the price had gone up (as if it knew we were interested). After I noticed this I started closing the app down completely so that it didnt have my trip info in it.

Edit : Just wanted to let you know that included in this total are also two mistakes I accidentally put in the wrong olive garden restaurant when we left animal kingdom one night instead of putting the one in LBV. This caused a big detour as we didnt realise until we got to the wrong one, and it meant the price of the Uber doubled (not because he added a charge, but because of the journey time). I also made another mistake and accidentally selected the Uber XL for one of our journeys (there were only 2 of us), so that also cost extra!

[Cloverlady]

Originally Posted by Traincrashing

We went on a Wednesday and then left the following Saturday, and during this time we hired a car on the Friday evening to go to the KSC on the Saturday, and then dropped it back on the Sunday morning at Epcot. Thought I'd mention this so you can see that we had a car for a few days

We had a few taxis a day. Most mornings we walked to IHOP or Dennys for breakfast, and then from there got a taxi to Universal or to the park we were going to that day (Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom, and the Grand Floridian from what I rememebr (we had an ADR)). Sometimes we got the taxi to Disney Springs and went on from there. On the way home we got a taxi either direct from the park, or again, we went to Disney Springs and got the taxi from there. I think it was around $16/18 from the park, or around $8 from Disney Springs, so it's a bit of a saving if you want to do that.

We also went to the Mall at Millenia, to the outlet on international, and to the outlet at vineland, so there were a few further trips there too! Once we also got a taxi from Universal to Target, and then from Target to the Mall at Millenia.

We didn't go to Seaworld or Aquatica unfortunately, but I do think that the Uber estimate is quite accurate

I would say to be careful with using it sometimes. I found that I would price a trip and then leave the app open on my phone while we discussed what we were doing, and I would then go back 5 minutes later to find that the price had gone up (as if it knew we were interested). After I noticed this I started closing the app down completely so that it didnt have my trip info in it.

Edit : Just wanted to let you know that included in this total are also two mistakes I accidentally put in the wrong olive garden restaurant when we left animal kingdom one night instead of putting the one in LBV. This caused a big detour as we didnt realise until we got to the wrong one, and it meant the price of the Uber doubled (not because he added a charge, but because of the journey time). I also made another mistake and accidentally selected the Uber XL for one of our journeys (there were only 2 of us), so that also cost extra!

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Thank you so much for all this info, it's very helpful!
And I note the tip you gave about leaving the app open and price going up! Thanks for that!

Sounds like you had a really super holiday!

(Apologies for hijacking and side-tracking your thread, Sucee! )

[PumpkinCupcake]

Originally Posted by Cloverlady

Thank you so much for all this info, it's very helpful!
And I note the tip you gave about leaving the app open and price going up! Thanks for that!

Sounds like you had a really super holiday!

(Apologies for hijacking and side-tracking your thread, Sucee! )

See more...

It happened to us a few times! It only goes up a few dollars, but it's still really annoying when it was cheaper only a few minutes before.

I went on my first trip in November 2016 and we used Uber the whole time then too, but we actually stayed in a villa in Davenport so we were further out then. We only went for 7 days that time, but probably spent around the same price then.

I think Uber is quite handy and when we added up the cost of the car hire, gas, and parking, it wasn't too bad and gave us the freedom to drink at meals if we wanted to

Let me know if you have any other questions on it!

[onion2803]

Cant give any advice about Hawthorn but we love Clarion - it's cheap and cheerful and means we can spend our money elsewhere (like a 4nt Disney Cruise or two nights club level in HRH...I'm forever tinkering with our holidays!)

Continental breakfast is now free at Clarion for most bookings, the cooked breakfast is chargeable - but I wouldn't bother, it's not that nice. We get cereal and donuts in from Walmart for the mornings, or nip over to IHop if we're really hungry.

Re: ants. If you leave uncovered food out, you will get a few but it's nothing to be concerned with and they disappear as soon as the food does! The rooms are cleaned every day. Just make sure to use the fridge to store leftovers etc.

The rooms are lovely, beds are so comfortable and its exactly the same layout as the Disney value hotels - in fact, we thought the Clarion was much nicer than All Star Movies when we stayed there last year. We always request a car park view on a higher floor as it's quieter.

I cant comment on the shuttles but the Lynx bus stop is right outside the hotel and you can take that anywhere...

With Uber, just download the app to your phone and go through a dummy booking (don't click Confirm) from the hotel to your destination. You might want to check the prices at various times throughout the day so you get a better picture. Right now, an UberX from Clarion LBV to Universal Citywalk is $11.90.
The good thing with Ubers in the States is that the price it shows you is the price you pay...it's not an estimate, regardless of traffic. You can also get a couple of free rides if you're new to Uber, or can download it to someone else's phone in your party. I wouldn't use the website to track prices though, only the app.

xx

[onion2803]

Originally Posted by Traincrashing

It happened to us a few times! It only goes up a few dollars, but it's still really annoying when it was cheaper only a few minutes before.

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Oh my god this drives me to distraction - I use Uber a lot over here and I'm forever fuming at the price increases Another tip, the app knows when your battery is low, and bumps the prices up...

[Cloverlady]

Originally Posted by Traincrashing

Let me know if you have any other questions on it!

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Thank you!

Originally Posted by onion2803

Another tip, the app knows when your battery is low, and bumps the prices up...

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Really!?!?! Again, noted!

[PumpkinCupcake]

Originally Posted by onion2803

Oh my god this drives me to distraction - I use Uber a lot over here and I'm forever fuming at the price increases Another tip, the app knows when your battery is low, and bumps the prices up...

See more...

Seriously!? That is so sneaky! It's so frustrating. We noticed it a lot when we were at Disney Springs and wanted to leave. I would price how much it would be and then we would start walking towards the pick up point, and by the time we got closer and I wanted to request a ride, it would have went up $2-3!

[Captain Ethan]

I’ve stayed at Hawthorn suites 3 times and love it! Some of the rooms and corridors are in need of a little TLC but most rooms have now been renovated to a high standard and I always request one prior to leaving the UK. Never a problem. The pool area has also had a makeover. The breakfast is free and plentiful certainly enough choice for any picky eater. We appreciate the free wine and beer Monday to Thursday with snacks / hotdogs or burgers after a hot day at the parks. The free transportation to the parks and shopping outlet worked well for us too. Staff here are amazing and will do anything to help. Personally I love the space that the room gives you I wouldn’t like to spend 2-3 weeks in one room, as a family it would be chaotic. Just my opinion though as I know many who like the Clarion 😃

[suecee]

Originally Posted by Traincrashing

I'm just back from a stay at Clarion Inn LBV and would go back and stay again. It's a basic hotel, nothing fancy. On check in they didn't have the king room that I had requested, so gave us a normal room for the night and asked us to come back the following morning and they would change the room for me to what I had requested, which they did.

I can't comment on the food there as we ate out the entire time, and the location to restaurants is fantastic so there really was no need to eat there. We had a fridge and a microwave in the room which was handy for bringing home leftovers.

The shuttle service was the reason I booked this hotel, but we ended up not using it at all as the times didn't really work for us. For example, the shuttle to Universal is at 7am! We ended up using Uber the majority of the time and spent just under $400 in 10 days on Uber.

See more...

Thanks so much. I think I am edging towards the Clarion. We stayed on idrive last time and used Uber a lot too. That is why we decided on lbv as it's a bit closer to Disney.