Winter Park Wedding

annakb8 · October 2010

   I am getting married at Casa Feliz next August and am looking for rehersal dinner and hotel room block suggestions. Ideally I would like to keep as much as possible in the Park Ave area. I don't think this will be a huge issue for the rehersal dinner but I'm not sure if there are any hotels in the area. Has anyone done a hotel block in Winter Park?

     If there is nothing in Winter Park I would much rather go south, ie Downtown Orlando, rather than north, ie Maitland or Altamonte Springs. I think people will most likely want to go out after the wedding (the reception ends at 6) so I think it makes sense to have hotels close to nightlife.

     Please let me know if anyone has any suggestions! I grew up in Orlando but haven't lived there for about 6 years so I am not super familiar with good restaurants or things like that anymore. I do know the area though, and know how to get around. Thanks in advance for the help!

[Deleted User] · October 2010

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Megs30 · October 2010

Ericka and Alyssa were both Casa Feliz brides. If they are still lurking around they can probably give you some good ideas.

GL with the planning!

liz1379 · October 2010

The park plaza hotel in winter park is very popular but it's older, smaller and i've heard it's noisy. My friend used the embassy suites downtown for her hotel and i'm planning on using it for mine. It's close to the bars and all the rooms are large with seperate living room areas, perfect for getting ready if your staying there the night before. The grand bohemian is the nicest hotel downtown but also the most expensive.

annakb8 · October 2010

I think there will probably be about 25-30 people at the rehersal dinner. I want something good but not super fancy or expensive. I went to 310 Park South during a recent trip home and think that might be an option but I was not overly impressed by their menu. I think it is probably around the right price point though.

Thanks for letting me know about the Embassy Suites. That sounds like a good option. All I had heard about before was the Grand Bohemian which sounded like it would probably be too expensive.

Thanks again!

andee1353 · October 2010

Best Western on 17/92 in WP is close and a good price. Rooms are clean but not spiffy. They have a pool and a good breakfast. Good location.
Park Plaza is nice, small, old and noisy. Breakfast is bun from Costco. Prices high.
If you guests don't know their way around I'd stay close to Park Ave. Sometimes getting from downtown to WP can be tricky.

andee1353 · October 2010

Another dinner option is Chez Vincent on New England, WP. They have a wine room that is nice and their food and prices are good.

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eso16208 · October 2010

I'm having mine at 310 park south. Their menu may not be extensive, but the food is wonderful and the price is right.

stardust21587 · October 2010

We used 310 park south for our rehearsal dinner. The food there is always delicious, however, it got SUPER busy and loud the evening we were there and service was rather slow. =\

JustKate · October 2010

Here you go:
Dinner suggestions:
Antonio's off of Lee Rd. They have a private room and the food is delicious.
Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in Winter Park Village. They have a private room and the food is delicious.
Luma on Park Ave. They have a wine cellar and excellent drinks.

Hotels: Do not let your guests stay at the Best Western on 1792. The deluxe rooms aren't that bad but they aren't something I would want my guests to associate with my wedding at all!!

Park Plaza has a train that runs ridiculously close to the hotel and will wake guests up in the middle of the night unless they get the balcony suites that face Park Ave, which are the most expensive, and even those aren't completely spared from the noise.

There isn't a great hotel option IN Winter Park. I put people at the Sonesta downtown. It's right off of Ivanhoe exit on I4. I've also put people at the Sheraton in Maitland which is right off the Maitland exit on I4. Both are within 10 minutes from Park Ave in Winter Park.

I hope this helps!!

chiokevan · October 2010

I bet all the brides who have had room blocks at the Best Western on 17/92 really appreciate that.

JustKate · October 2010

Too bad this post isn't about those brides who have already had their weddings and this is more a tool for the current bride asking for help. If I could've given those previous brides the same bit of advice, I would've said the same exact thing.

ericak926 · October 2010

I'm still lurking!

So .... we got a hotel block at Crowne Plaza. I also called Embassy and Marriott but they never called me back. The rooms were nice but the service kind of sucked at Crowne. I got a $99 room rate that included a continential breakfast which no one got. I complained and they gave me some coupons to their restaurant to give out. Like I really wanted another job to do. Arg! Also, they only had ONE luggage cart thing for the ENTIRE hotel. Major PITA.

I chose to block rooms in Downtown because I wanted our guests to be close to highways, food and nightlife for the after party! Our wedding ended at 10pm and a bunch of us went downtown. DH and I were still in our wedding attire.

It was awesome. At 2am we headed back for the hotel and realized we didn't have any cash for a cab and everyone else went in different directions. We decided to walk back. Not the smartest idea we've ever had but still fun none the less.

The Park Plaza is the closest hotel to Casa Feliz but I read reviews that it is really noisy because of the trains but since you don't have a lot of guests this could be an option as well as the Best Western off 17/92. You can go to the Wine Room on Park Ave after the wedding too if you didn't want to do the downtown Orlando scene. Just an idea.

As far as the rehearsal dinner goes ... we had close to 20 people so the cheaper the better. There was a wedding the night before ours so I opted to do a rehearsal lunch instead of dinner and I went to Buca in Maitland. They aren't normally open for lunch but since I had a lot of people the manager opened early just for us. The food was good and so was the price. I especially liked that it wasn't too far of a drive from Casa Feliz.

So that's my input. I also have a ton of pictures and stuff on my wedding site if you need any ideas. (see link in siggy)

Good Luck!

andee1353 · October 2010

The Best Western isn't that bad "justkate". Our guests stayed there and liked that it was close to everything they wanted It's only for a night or two anyway not an entire vacation.

JustKate · October 2010

Ladies - if you read my post, even I said the deluxe rooms aren't THAT bad - but you can get better rooms for around the same rate that aren't that far away and may be closer to other activities that are being planned. I could share more details about the hotel that has turned me against it as we use this hotel at work for transient guests/clients/etc (we use other hotels for employees, execs and VIP's) but I'd rather just voice my opinion for brides to read and they can make their own decision. Please keep in mind that this is a forum where people ask for experiences, recommendations and helpful hints.