# Hgvc At International Drive - Best Units In Orlando



## benjaminb13 (Jul 15, 2007)

i JUST SPOKE WITH SOMEONE WHO STAYED AT THE hgvc TUSCANY INT DR.- AND HE SAID THIS RESORT IS NICER THAN EVEN THE DISNEY RESORTS- 
IS THIS TRUE?
CAN HGVC AND DISNEY TUGGERS SHARE THEIR INSIGHT?


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## chesterbhoy (Jul 15, 2007)

Cannot comment on the DVC resorts as only driven through some of these when on the Disney Shuttle buses.

However, in respect to Tuscany this is a very high quality resort....hence, why we bought our timeshare there. We have stayed in a 2BR and 3BR (studio lock-out) and also stayed at Vistana Village, with the HGVC a clear winner. On our recent vacation we stayed at the HGVC at Las Vegas Strip, HGVC Lagoon Tower at HHV and HGVC Waikoloa Village - again in our opinion Tuscany is a better HGVC resort.

*Why* - both pools are fantastic, you can park your car very close to the units, units are top quality (washer/dryer, granite worktops, TV's, etc.) Publix and other shops VERY close, Disney, Seaworld & Universal are only 10 - 15min drive, premier outlet mall next door, LBV Crossroads less than 5min drive, poolside movie nights on a massive screen, outdoor kids playarea covered from the suns rays. The games room, reading room, Deli, pool-side bar, pizza-hut and gym are all good on-site services. Only downside is we have never been impressed by the reception staff on our 3 visits to HGVC on Int Drive.

Although we all love the Disney magic, sometimes you just need to get away from it for a few hours - HGVC provides the escape.

Cant wait to return "home" either for New Year in 2008/09 or summer 2009.


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## Denise L (Jul 15, 2007)

My sisters and Dad stayed in two units at the HGVC Tuscany/International Drive in 2005. It was very, very nice. Huge units, nicely appointed, all brand-new at the time.  My sisters shared a 3 bedroom, 3 bath (a 2 bedroom plus a a studio) and the kitchen was huge. We had Thanksgiving dinner for 13 there, and the dining room table accommodated all of us. The pool looked really nice.

My family stayed at Disney's Beach Club Villas (BCV) by renting points from an owner.  It was so convenient for us because we have young children. We never had to drive anywhere (except to the HGVC for dinner), and could easily take 1-2 breaks during the day.  The BCV was perfect for us, though much, much smaller and not as nice as the HGVC.  We bought resale points at the BCV when we got home, and stayed there again in 2006.  We didn't even need to rent a car, we just used Disney's Magical Express & park transportation  .

If you compare the villas side by side, of course the HGVC would be nicer. For convenience, DVC is obviously better. To choose where to stay, it would depend on what your Orlando plans are.  If you are going to other off-site parks & attractions, then staying off-site makes a lot of sense, and it's a lot less expensive.  If you have young kids and are mainly going to WDW, then you can't beat being on-site!

We have also stayed at Disney's Villas at Wilderness Lodge (VWL), which was very nice and "magical."


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 15, 2007)

Hilton should provide a shuttle to the parks.  That would make it almost as nice as Disney.


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## sml2181 (Jul 15, 2007)

I agree with everything mentioned above.

We have stayed at all Deluxe resorts at Disney, hotels and villas. Mainly because that is what we do in Europe, where we stay at the Disneyland Hotel, which is right at the entrance of the park. We actually never considered staying off-parks.

But this year we bought into HGVC, had many bonus points to use (yes, we bought from the developer, even after discovering TUG) and figured that we should give it a try. 

We never thought that it would be that great! We (2 adults and 4 kids) loved it much much MUCH more than ANY of the Disney resorts. I should add here that we have had very bad luck in the Disney resorts, rooms very dated and molded...., service just ok or less, iow, we have never been impressed. Also, we have always liked the Dolphin and Swan better than the Grand Floridian and the other resorts. I should also add that we never used the Disney transportation, since we just prefer a private transfer from and to the airport (not having to wait is a great deal to us after a 9 hrs flight.) We have always rented a car because we do not want to rely on the transportation provided. We never used the extra opening hours, since our children are too tired to fully appreciate the late openings, due to time difference. When we want to see the Disney fireworks, we just go to Paris. If you do use these amenities, I can see that it might be a better choice staying at a Disney property. 

The HGVC unit we were given was in the newest building and was absolutely brand new. Of course that helps. It took us only 10-15 minutes to the entrance of any of the parks. One comment you will see about the resort is the lack of a full service restaurant. That is correct, they have a bar with a limited menu for dinner. BUT, they are more than happy to serve you what you want outside of the menu. They served us something different every evening, they were really happy to do so.

We will use the Tuscany from now on, at least untill the new HGVC will open in 2009.


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## rickandcindy23 (Jul 15, 2007)

Are you comparing Disney Vacation Club with Hilton's timeshare resort, or are you comparing Disney hotels with a timeshare?  

Timeshare is so different to begin with, so comparing the timeshare to a hotel of any kind is not a good comparison.


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## jerseygirl (Jul 15, 2007)

I used Open Season to stay there for a long weekend a few months ago.  I agree that the unit was wonderful, but I found the resort to be a little "institutional" (best word I can come up with) ... building after building with no real land to speak of.  We couldn't help comparing it to Vistana Resort (which is still one of our favorites) or Old Key West, where everything is pretty spread out ... lots of water, trees, etc.

Having said that, I wouldn't hesitate to stay again, especially using Open Season (one of my favorite Hilton features - I wish everyone had it!).


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## sml2181 (Jul 15, 2007)

We stayed at both villas and hotels at Disney - we just happen to prefer the HGVC.

Usually we stay in hotels (simply because there are no timeshares at many places we visit) and since we always stay at the Disneyland Hotel when visiting Eurodisney, our travel agency suggested we should stay at the Grand Floridian. (This was years and years ago.) We always book 2 rooms, requesting for connecting rooms or we book a suite. One time, when no connecting rooms were available, we requested accomodations in another hotel which would have connecting rooms. (did not know about the timeshares then) We ended up at a villa (sorry, don't recall all the names now, I think it was the Boardwalk or something, near Epcot - it is after midnight here and I am not so much into all the resort names) which we liked but when we entered the bathroom....it had the dusty, molding smell and a lot of molding! We did not complain, we had been awake for 24 hours by then and we think that life is too short to make a big fuss of some mold anyway. After that, we stayed in other villas and hotels, just looking at availability, and we also liked the other Disney resorts. Especially the pool areas.

I guess we are just some of these persons who think that the Disney properties are nice, and we would not avoid staying there, but we are just not thrilled by them. We kept booking the Disney resorts because of the convenience. But like I mentioned before, we never actually used the extra conveniences. In Paris, we will stay at the Disney hotel for convenience, since it is at the entrance of the park, you just leave the hotel and you are there. That is great when you have a 2 years old - I can tell you that. And great units or not, this convenience alone is worth a lot.

I should have mentioned though that we have always stayed in older units in Orlando, in need of updates - a leaking fridge, leaving a lot of water on the kitchen floor, dirty kitchens (and I mean DIRTY), leaking bath tubs, sticky floors, curtains with big holes, even the 2br suite at the Grand Floridian which should be very nice, had stains on the sheets and a whole in the couch. Not to mention the big whole in the wall at the ...sorry, don't recall the name but also near Epcot - we could look into the unit next to ours if we wanted to. We covered it with a suitcase. We never stayed at the newest Disney resorts - a new unit often helps a lot. So, maybe, it was just that what we liked about the HGVC - the new unit. Will let you know next year - will be there in the newest Disney villas for sort-of-converence but don't know the name, and after that we will stay at the HGVC.  

One thing though, I just asked my husband what he had to say about this, and he said that he always thought that timesharing could not be that nice because of the Disney resorts. (Of course we have talked to a sales rep in the past, who told us that their units were the best in the industry and at that time we did not know any better than to trust a developer's sales rep.)
Maybe they (Disney) give the worst units to non-owners, who book their units at travel agencies. I don't know but I know that our friends have had the same experience with Disney Resorts, and they use travel agencies as well.

But having said all this I still think that if you do use the airport transportation, the transportations between the different parks and the extra opening hours, it might be a better option to stay at a Disney resort, especially with children.


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## Denise L (Jul 15, 2007)

Just wanted to add that my sister gave us the choice of getting a villa at HGVC in 2005 versus our BCV point rental.  As appealing as that was, we paid the money to stay on-site.  If we wanted to see Illuminations at EPCOT, we could walk there in 5 minutes.  If we wanted to see Wishes at MK, we could board a bus and be there in 20 minutes. It made it so much easier to enjoy ourselves and relax. When the kids are much older, I can see staying off-site (maybe)  .


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## chesterbhoy (Jul 16, 2007)

The HGVC provides a FREE shuttle bus to Universal Studios and Seaworld. There is also a bus that goes to the Disney Parks, but this costs about $10 return.

Agree that there is not much in the way of landscaping at HGVC, it is mainly the massive lake in the middle, with the 7 bulidings positioned around it and access roads to the back of the buildings. The main pool with deli/pool bar is close to the reception and the smaller pool with pizza hut at the top end of the lake. Buldings 1 to 4 on one side and 5 to 7 on the other side.


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## OnMedic (Jul 16, 2007)

Denise L said:


> Just wanted to add that my sister gave us the choice of getting a villa at HGVC in 2005 versus our BCV point rental.  As appealing as that was, we paid the money to stay on-site.  If we wanted to see Illuminations at EPCOT, we could walk there in 5 minutes.  If we wanted to see Wishes at MK, we could board a bus and be there in 20 minutes. It made it so much easier to enjoy ourselves and relax. When the kids are much older, I can see staying off-site (maybe)  .



This is why Orlando always sees us doing split stays - usually 4 nights at DVC and 4 nights at HGVC. Needless to say thet HGVC is after DVC to allow us to wind down, get away from the Disney crowds and Hustle/Bustle, and relax!


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