Beckles

Do they charge the resort fee on award stays?

Shamrock 105

Just returned from a six night award stay at this property (50,000 Starpoints). Booked a one-bedroom villa and inquired about an upgrade. The front desk agent called her manager who approved an upgrade to a two-bedroom villa. The room was very nicely appointed and was very clean throughout. It was my wife, myself, and our eight year old son and five year old daughter so the extra space was very welcomed, especially after schlepping around the Disney parks all day.

As many have noted, the resort is sprawling and is less like a hotel and more like a large condo complex. We were urged to attend a timeshare presentation the day after our arrival (we declined), and we got a call from a concierge on our second to last day inviting us again. It wasn't a hard sell but if you stay here you will be asked multiple times to attend. The offer for attending was a $75 pre-paid Visa card or 5,000 Starpoints.

There are multiple pools on the resort and several of them have a bar/restaurant next to them. We ordered lunch one day and appetizers one night, along with a couple of beers. Prices were reasonable and the food was as you would expect at a tiki bar next to a pool.

On two separate days our room was not cleaned by housekeeping. I called to the front desk and the agent verified that we should have had service and didn't know what happened. I know that timeshare guests only get weekly service so perhaps there was confusion. The second time it happened they sent a room attendant up immediately. This was my only gripe with the hotel. In terms of space provided, it is perhaps the best bang for your buck (Starpoints) in my opinion. There are several restaurants within one half of a mile (aside from the on-site ones). It was a great stay, especially given the upgrade to the two-bedroom villa. I would definitely consider staying here again.

By the way, we were not charged a resort fee.

lbbzman

Thanks for the stay report, Shamrock 105. Was this at one of the Sheraton Vistana resorts? This doesn't sound like the Sheraton LBV.

Cheers,
LBBZman

brownpaw

Booked a three-night award stay (Sat-Tues) at some 'special' rate that was 3000 points per weekend night and 4000 points per weeknight. Not a bad redemption overall for this location -- 10,000 points for three nights (then opted in to Make a Green Choice to get some points back!)

I'm SPG Gold and was told that parking was free for me (usually $15 per night) which was nice. The resort fee is advertised at something like $21.95 per night but I was charged only $11.95 + a dollar or so in taxes per night. I wasn't told if this was some Gold perk, or because it was an award stay, or some other reason, so there's maybe a data point for y'all.

Did get upgraded from parking lot to pool view on top floor; I did not request this but it showed up in my reservation details in the SPG app several days before the stay. No Club at this location, sadly.

Didn't have time to use the pool but every time I looked out there, it wasn't overly crowded and there were always free lounge chairs.

I had stayed in this property once before a few years ago and did notice the 'musty' smell that's been mentioned (very difficult not to have this in locations like this). However I didn't notice it this time around. Wifi was on the faster side compared to a lot of hotels I've been to where it barely works.

Walgreens across the street, Winn-Dixie and ABC Liquor Store about 3/4 mile up the street, and the hotel is a fairly straight shot from the airport if you take the toll road ($3 in cash tolls). When heading back to the airport I was door to door in around 15 minutes.

Overall if I'm hitting Disney hard then I'd usually opt to stay in one of the cheapo Disney resorts to be able to get into Extra Magic Hours, but I only had time for a few daylight hours in the parks. So if Extra Magic Hours is not a concern, this hotel might be one of the better values in the area as long as the award promo continues, or as cash rates occasionally drop as low as $90.

cmw021

Planning a February golf trip with a couple friends with no intention of anything disney-related. Can anyone comment where an SPG gold would be better served between LBV and the Sheraton Four Points on International Drive?

I've read through all the pertinent FT threads, but most of the info has been Disney-driven. We just want to golf and watch the Super Bowl at a low SPG points cost (both of these properties are 10k points for our 3 nights).

marlee1421

Have stayed in both properties. Sounds like for your purposes 4 pts would be better. LBV tends to get lots of kids and at times can be very noisy, particularly around the pool and pool facing rooms. 4 pts is a high rise and is in a good location.

cmw021

Very much appreciate the insight!

EJonLam

Anybody know if they charge the resort fee on award stays for Platinum?

craigthemif

Resort fee is usually waived for Platinums. It certainly was for my 3-room booking in the summer.

lbbzman

It is waived for Platinums on award stays, as is self parking. Just completed an award stay on 11 December, and closing balance was $0 including parking.

Cheers,
LBBZman

EJonLam

Thanks LBBZman and craigthemif!

How was the hotel? I'm just wondering why the average is 3500 points per night in March. It seems to good to be true!

lbbzman

The reviews in this thread are pretty accurate. My wife and I stay there frequently for WDW visits. It's not the nicest Sheraton, but not the worst either. If you're looking for a quiet room, avoid a pool view room as the pool can be noisy from morning until late at night (11 pm). If on the other hand that isn't an issue for you, the pool view suites are spacious (think Embassy Suites room layout).

We keep coming back because it's a tremendous value especially for Platinums. We used to rotate between Sheraton LBV, Swan, and Dolphin, but S&D have gotten too expensive especially with pricey parking and no more waived resort fees.

I hope this helps.

Cheers,
LBBZman

TravisMT81

I have stayed here at least 50 times, today they started charging a five dollar up charge for the hot portion of the buffet plus 15 percent “service charge”. We have had the same server for years and she apologized! Still gave her a nice Christmas tip.

The GM Cindy must be a real Grinch!

craigthemif

My family thought it was amazing. Pool great for kids of varying ages. Decent location and free shuttle to Disney.

I stay much more often at hotels and would rate it as an average Sheraton with a few outstanding members of staff. Platinum benefits for three rooms also deserved a big ^. I am a bit surprised that it is an award Category 2.

ExpatSomchai

At the LBV you also have a Millers Ale House literally over the road which is sport and beer friendly :-)