Angela Brown, our guide to Northwest U.S. Travel, took a trip to the opposite corner of the United States for a visit to Orlando. She stayed first at the Peabody Orlando for a conference. Says Angela,
The Peabody was nice. It was definitely oriented for convention travelers rather than leisure travelers. They recently switched to all valet parking, which was rather confusing on check in. However, as part of a $10ish daily service fee, they included tickets for the trolley that covers International Drive. That also included two bottles of water a day and some other stuff I can't remember right now.Angela went on to play a few days at Disney World, where she stayed at Disney's Saratoga Springs, where I was just a few weeks ago. She was upgraded to a one-bedroom suite from a studio, "very nice!"I did see the ducks, but not the actual duck march.
Once thing I appreciated about the hotel was that they had a place where you could get take-out sandwiches and salads, baked goods, espresso, and milkshakes, which was nice when I just wanted to eat simply in my room. They also had a diner-type restaurant in addition to the two upscale ones.
When I visit my sister in Orlando, I would happpily eat every meal at the B-Line diner mentioned above. Apparently the reviewer was too tired to turn the corner and she missed one of the most outstanding and delicious displays of pastry I have ever seen. I only wish they could survive the long journey unrefrigerated to home. The food in the diner is wonderful, especially for breakfast and the pancakes and hash browns are the best anywhere. Pizza and pasta in the Italian restaurant are also outstanding, though pricey. It’s also fun to arrive in time to see the ducks, who reside in their duck palace if they’re not in the downstairs fountain. They are quite cute. Trouble arises though if a convention is in town; parking is very difficult, especially since much space was being used for a new addition I guess. The line for the restaurant was so long that we left and came back for a late dinner instead of the lunch we planned. I just can’t get enough of the place!
Be advised that as of 12/08 the Peabody is in the lengthy process of adding new rooms/space. There was NO self-parking, only valet, a minimum of $10 for 3 hours. And the validation would be ONLY if you ate in one of the two costlier restaurants. We would have eaten there several times but with the extra $10 we had to spend, we did it only once. Also note that the ducks were displaced they claimed by the construction, yet not much appeared to be going on in the lobby area. They were upstairs in their palace…