We have been annual pass holders since 06 for Disney and Universal- we travel from Broward many many times a year (over 12) - Due to the short stays, and usually having an extra person with us, we like to have some space - As of 2011, we also travel with our son, so its nice for him to have some extra space to play- We have ditched staying in places like the Marriot World center for condos in the area. Some times this included Tropical palms. It DID include them at least. It is done. For a few years now, this place has steadily gone down hill. I have been staying here for years and years (since 07 at least but I believe earlier) and always enjoyed the freedoms of having my own "place" - the pricing was always wonderful, and to be honest, the value was there. Yes, there was some maintenance needed at certain points, but they were upgrading alot of their bungalows and they were more then accommodating when there was an issue. That was then; this is now: You can see in my previous reviews, I had GOOD things to say; Those days are over! Here is how our last few stays went:
December 2011 - Our son's first trip to Orlando, we chose tropical palms for the space. We arrived at 8pm, checked in to the "TOP OF THE LINE" cabin - unpacked and were getting ready to head out. We had opened the crib for our son and changed the sheets (brought WHITE sheets from home) - While washing my hands, I put my son in the crib - When i came back (in the living room) there was a giant ant in the crib. I am from Florida- I know the drill, these things happen- So i picked him up, killed the bug and went on my way. Opened the dishwasher (was going to santizie the bottles from the car ride)- There was mold inside there (ew) - Either way, i called the front, told them I was leaving for disney's very merry christmas and would need to either have something fixed while I was gone (I had found about 10 more PILES of ants during this time) or moved rooms. They said they had rooms available and it would be no problem when we got back. We returned at 2am and our sons crib and sheets had about 50 visitors in it (ants) - (remember these are LARGE) We called, were told "no more available rooms" - we said we would even stay in a standard. They were sorry, there was nothing available. I called back a few minutes later (as i was packing the bags and my husband was packing the car) and advised if we couldn't get a new room, we would be leaving and expecting a refund. I was told they had a no refund policy, they would not offer that, but I was free to leave, the gate guard would meet me for my keys- We left, checked in to another hotel- it was very very late (think 6am By time we got somewhere else and settled with a FIVE MONTH OLD!!!!!!!)
After trying to wrap my head around these "new changes" of dirty bungalows and rude people, I thought about writing a review, as I often like to give honest feedback to the hotels and the other consumers. However, 2 things crossed my mind: 1. There are tons of bad reviews, and the hotel does not seem to care a bit (look, no responses from them to unhappy people reviewing on here) 2. Maybe it was an off day? Maybe they really were that crazy due to the fact that it was the first weekend of a very busy Christmas season there.
It took my over a year to go back. My husband was not thrilled, but we were travelling with my parents, and since they have not been since 2010, they were excited to stay again. - We had told them about the previous stay, and it did deter them during those 2+ years, and they stayed elsewhere (also annual pass holders) but we had them, us and the baby, and they felt we would be comfortable there. At the last minute, my brother decided to join, which seemed okay since we were told that there was a pull out bed. We booked a platinum cottage I believe and knew all the things to expect - Smaller rooms, basics, bring your own shampoo and conditioner as getting housekeeping to help you is a joke etc etc. Still , all of this is FINE, here is what is not fine -
1. Every room has drapes or blinds- go ahead- touch them. Disgusting. Dirty, dusty, mess. Same with the fans. Yuck!
2. 3+ INCH gap from the door in the bathroom to the floor. Do you know how big three inches truly is? I could fit most of my arm in there.
3. The pull out bed. A joke- this "matress was quite awful. I know they usually are, but jeez, dont even offer them as a sleeping solution- my brother left in the middle of the night on the first night and had to spend money at a different hotel - the only one available was a small room with 1 bed and it was only available for one night, so he had to find a different place for night 2, so we couldn't even enjoy our FAMILY VACATION TOGETHER- by the way, have you seen a trend with the complaints where people have to spend DOUBLE AND TRIPLE THE MONEY just to get a decent nights sleep at a different hotel.
4.Only one tv- we called, because this was NOT the case the last time or any time previous- not only that there were wires in the 2nd bedroom just hanging out of the wall- so it was pretty apparent that there was a tv there at some point in the recent past.
5. This one is probably the BEST of the bunch- WAKING UP SUNDAY TO NO WATER WITH FREEEEEEEEZING weather outside. No toliet, no shower, NO HELP - i think the worst part was the attitudes that surrounded this. turns out something hit the lines 3 hours prior. Instead of having someone walking around, driving around etc trying to be proactive and tell people, there were massive amounts of people walking all the way down to the office, waiting in LINE (why did they have a line, they should have had someone at the door letting people know) - the clerks were so rude, as if it was somehow OUR fault or we were wrong for being upset. we then asked if they could fill a bucket and bring it to us (pool water would have worked) since we had to flush the toliet. They told us no, they couldnt. We asked if we could borrow a bucket to do it. The women actually said "If you do that, we will have you removed from the property, do not take the pool water, im warning you" WHAT ??? there are few things you can expect of a basic room; water, air and a sleepable bed for ALL STAYING. we got ONE of those... and quite honestly, with the beautiful weather, I could have gone without THAT more then any of the others. We wound up leaving there dirty - they told us they would give us an hour late check out, but could not do more. I understand things happen. Im not an idiot. When something is out of our control, we have no choice but to grin and bare it. These people seem to want to have an attitude and take their frustrations out on other people. It is ridiculous. We are headed to Orlando this weekend.I will say, we are staying in the Tuscana resort condo right down the street. We contacted them, told them we usually stay at Tropical Palms and were hoping to find a new place to stay that didnt include the drama. They gave us a wonderful rate (71.00/night) - They seem to really care and have answered every complaint, good bad or indifferent on tripadvisor. THAT is the kind of company I want to stay with! They listen to their patrons. I am also coming up on April 5, and hoping the Tuscana will be a good place so we can make it a permanent fixture in our April and May trips.