This place was a good value for what I paid. My two complaints were that there was no hot water for the shower in the morning (Brrr!), and that there was no coffee maker in the room. The place is a little hard to find because access is a little road off the street with a low profile sign.

Take home message: If you go into this hotel realizing that you are going to be charged $.8.50/day on top of your room rate for internet, playgrounds, pools, a shabby mini-golf course, and other “conveniences” you probably won’t use, and can live with 1-2 star service, this is your place. They lure you with amenities that you pay separately for, but this is, at best, a 2 star experience.

I wish I’d gotten this review up sooner so that I could have spared some people a bad experience. I have also forgotten some of the things that went wrong and that I didn’t write down during our stay. Here are the things I did write down during our stay.

Stay at this hotel if you enjoy:
- Tepid water at all times of day: noon, always in the A.M., and midnight
- Loose shower handles
- Hearing people talking and using the bathroom through thin walls
- Leaf blowing outside of your room at 8AM
- Peeling bathtub finish
- Sloppy post-hurricane remodels and ceiling patches
- Popcorn ceilings sprayed so thick that they literally fall onto the floor
- A shallow, alligator/mosquito pond
- Loose/missing baseboard
- A nearby Walgreens that upcharges everything (VERY expensive)
- Very small playground with debris in the sand (no maintenance)
- A “business center” that charges you by the minute, by the fax, and by the print
- No fitted sheets
- And fees and surcharges upcharging you 15% or more than your online rate that you will be told you can pay or forfeit your prepaid reservation
- Unresponsive management and rude staff that curses in front of your kids
- Spotty housekeeping. Sometimes there before 3pm. Sometimes not. Sometimes bring you towels. NEVER bring you the number of towels/washrags that were originally in the room. Sometimes leave them hanging outside on your doorknob in a sack while you’re gone all day.

I booked online via Priceline. I originally got a hotel for $24 per night, but it had many bad reviews. After inquiring, the hotel refunded my money and I bid higher on Priceline. I got this hotel. I had stayed there previously (a year before) and have stayed at this location twice for a total of 35 days in the past 16 months. During our first stay, I only paid $21 for the room per night. So when they applied a $6.00 per night “convenience fee,” I didn’t complain. That is JUST what they’re counting on. The second stay, the fee had gone up to $8.50 and the winning bid rate was higher. I complained and said I didn’t want to pay any surcharges. They said I could simply not check in, but that I would have to take up any refund with Priceline. I called Priceline, and they said that their “terms” indicate I agreed to pay any additional hotel fees. They could not help me nor would they be refunding any money. Note: book via Travelocity. They at least help with problems. So, I wrote on the check in form that “I was not given the option to decline fees.” and signed it. DO NOT SIGN THE FINAL CHECKOUT FORM, EITHER, TO AUTHORIZE THE CHARGES. The moment I checked out, I contested the fees via my credit card. The sad part is, the management said that they would waive ½ the fees because of the terrible experiences we had while staying here (see above), but then at checkout, the counter person said, “I see the notation in the computer, but only a manager can waive the fees, and there won’t be one here today.” So that was useless. This hotel is one disappointment after the other.

Pros: big screen TV by pool some evenings showing movies. Fridge. Pools nice. Safe in room. Quiet A/C. Adequate surface area (counter tops, table, etc.). Relatively clean/tidy.

Cons: Housekeeping might move your stuff (organize your shoes; arrange stuff you’ve left lying around); all of above. Close to Disney, IHOP, and other restaurants.

I also have video of our room doorhandle, which look like it had survived a break in attempt, and some other issues, but was unable to post video.

We stayed here in January for two nights using a Groupon coupon for $99 for two nights lodging plus $30 food credit. Our room was located on the first floor overlooking the pool. The door didn't appear to lock securely, and looks like it easily could have been jimmied open. The room itself was very basic, with cheap furnishings. It definitely has the look of a room way beyond its prime. It was adequately clean, but everything just seemed grungy. The bedding was very sparse (a sheet, blanket, and paper-thin coverlet), and we ended up freezing the first night, as the heating/ac unit cycles, so it went from cool to chilly throughout the night. The shower never got warmer than lukewarm. We complained at the desk, and the person at the desk wrote a request for maintenance to come which merely said "shower". My husband left a far more detailed note in the room about what was wrong with the shower, but it was not fixed.
The second night we were there, numerous kids were running back and forth past our room around 9-10 pm. Later on, there must have been a party or two going on nearby as there was shouting and music and mayhem into the wee hours of the night. My husband boldly put his head out the door and politely asked them to keep it down, but to no avail.
We went to the breakfast buffet offered at the restaurant, as we had the $30 food credit. While there was a lot of food offered, it was nothing special, with the exception of the "egg man" who will make a custom omelet for you. That was really the only decent part about breakfast.
With so many places to stay in the Orlando area, I would recommend you look elsewhere.

Since I was traveling "on my own dime" I searched for a bargain in the area. I found one of those deals (on Yahoo) where you have to pay up front first before you get the name of the hotel. However, I did see that the "secret" hotel was recommended by most of the reviewers so I figured it can't a total loss. For $22/night (+$15 "resort" fee) I took a shot and it turns out it's the Maingate Lakeside Resort. Location is EXCELLENT..walking to distance or very short drive to tons of shopping and eating. A very quick drive to any of the Disney attractions. The place is a tad run down and in need of renovation. Don't expect a high def flat screen TV but the free Wi-Fi worked just fine. The room appeared fairly clean with no signs of roaches, bedbugs or other unwanted critters. Bed was reasonably comfortable. I give it a thumbs up if you are looking for just a place to sleep and save some money to spend elsewhere. If you are looking for a fancy, classy place...look elsewhere.