Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Orange Lake Resort - West Village Reviews & Ratings

My husband and I rented a week off a timeshare owner. The first day we were there we got a phone call asking us to view the timeshare and it would only take one hour. It ended up being 3-1/2 hours. We had our two year old daughter with us and needless to say, she was getting cranky. At the end of the tour we declined to purchase. The salesman walked away and came back with another salesman who started to badger us. He started acting annoyed with me because I kept saying no to his offers, so I picked up my daughter and said (enough). The first salesman said okay and walked us out side and sat us at another table and said he would be right back with a voucher for discounted Disney tickets. Two minutes later anther man came to us and sat down with papers. I asked him how to redeem the voucher and he looked puzzled at me, and said, this is your contract for your timeshare. I look back at him and asked him HOW MANY TIMES DO i NEED TO SAY NO TO YOU PEOPLE?? We ended up getting $150.00 off 3 adult tickets, which at the end I didn't think it was worth the harassment. We rented a 2 br 2 bath unit, full kitchen, livingroom, diningroom and laundry room. It was nice, except for a few cobwebs in the kitchen and a very old stove. This was our second time visiting Orange Lake and i'm sure we will stay there again, just next time we will avoid the saleman.

I highly recommend this resort and any of their many loactions. If you are looking for a really great place for your children, this the place to go. If you think Disney World and other attractions are too expensive then just stay here there are plenty of kid things to do for the whole week.

My husband, myself, our 4 kids, and our friends with their 3 kids stayed at the West Village for Spring Break 2010. We had such a wonderful time. It has been almost a year and our kids (all under age 8) still constantly talk about how much fun we had while we were there. We did have to drive to get to all the pools but did not mind at all. It is well worth it! We hadn't planned to return to Florida for several years (to keep costs down) but were so disappointed about not going there this year that we are in the process of buying a timeshare so we won't ever have to miss another year again. I would definately recommend this resort to anyone wanting a fun family vacation.

I am an owner at Orange Lake and spent two weeks over the Christmas holidays there. I really enjoyed my stay - our condo was spacious and lovely. We enjoyed golfing at the Reserve Course and we did use the pool/hot tub just about everyday. We had a great time at the New Years Eve party at Breezes. The on-site restaurants (Breezes, Legacy Grill) were good and they had drink and food specials. I have to wonder if the Miller Ale House, situated just outside the main gates, is going to cut into their business though since it features great prices and the food is good.

The only bad thing about our stay was the sales staff. We didn't want to attend the owners' update and they made us feel badly about not going. It was another unpleasant experience. They need to leave their owners alone! The other staff (front desk, housekeeping, etc) were very helpful and friendly.

When RCI told me they could give me an exchange into Orange Lake, I was hesitant. We had stayed there before and were not pleased. I was told that Holiday Inns had bought the property and it was better. We loved it. The staff is now competent. The units are clean and refurbished. We were sad that since we did not own at Orange LAke we could only trade in once in three years. So...we used red week to buy at Orange LAke. We really love it. ;)

Just came back from staying at Orange Lake, It was GREAT! The units were the best I've ever stayed at. Everything was new, fresh, modern, and clean. The decor was VERY nice. This was the last of about 8 such resorts we've stayed in in the area over the past 10 years, and there's nothing like this anywhere else. We'll only stay here in the future.

The 2 bedroom unit was very tropical. We're a group of six, all stayed very comfortably (no double beds, all queens & kings - nice). We were in an older unit (we were told), #3239 - you couldn't tell it was old.

We were asked at checkin and then received a few calls about touring, but knowing how these sales people are, we declined, but I had just bought a week. There was no pressure to tour.

We checked out all of the amenities. SO much to do, and we did it all between Disney, Universal trips. I would definitely recommend Orange Lake to others!

I stayed for the first time at this resort in January 2006. I took my in-laws for the trip. I was nervous because I wanted to impress them since so many people look down on timeshares and think they are a rip off. Orange Lake was perfect! I read the previous reviews about it being too large, but I did not have any problems. We had a car, so driving to the pool or taking the shuttle was not a big deal at all. They have so many pools and activities that we never had a problem with any of them being over crowded. The staff was great, and I was very impressed with the rooms. As for my in- laws, I would say they liked it being that they bought their own unit there! I was put off by the sales pitch given to them...we too were promised a buffet and no pressure to buy. Donuts and coffee do not come close to a buffet, and there was quite a lot of pressure to purchase a unit. But everyone was happy, we had a fabulous week and look forward to going back every year now! *updated* I have now been to this resort 3 times, now owning a week I purchased on this site as a resale. My last visit was OCT 2009, and still a great resort that gets better every year!

We have been going down to Orange Lake now for 15 + years, we started off with just five in our family and now we are going with 8 other Families. There is always something to do here at Orange Lake so you don't feel like you have to leave the facility. It's a great place for the kids and R&R and cocktails for mom & dad. Enjoy

I have owned at Orange Lake since 1985 and it has grown. I go every year the last two weeks in April and always have a wonderful time . We take our friends every year and they just l love it, they now are proud owners of such a beautiful and friendly resort.

We just returned from a week in the West Village. We were very under impressed. We have stayed at several locations through Redweek and this was by far our worst experience. We arrived to find our unit dirty and smelly. We had mold in our washing machine and refrigerator. We called and requested to be moved. We were told we could move in the morning, of course when the time came there was no room to move to. After several heated discussions we were moved. The new unit was much better. The resort overall has gotten too big for itself. The West Village is like living in a subdivision. Nothing is close to a pool. We spent three days packing up and driving to River Island. Yes driving, and it is over rated. The people staying at the River Island units "reserve" all the pool chairs, although that is prohibited, first thing in the morning, so when guests from the other villages get there, there are no chairs left. Way too many people for the number of pools they have available. We would not stay here again. The only thing we would commend them on is their food. Every meal we had on location was very good, just beware they sneak gratuity on your bill if they consider you a large party. We double tipped the waitress and it wasn't a small bill, she received over 40 dollars in tip and never warned us that a tip was already on the bill, very shady.

I have owned at Orange Lake for ten years and they are always trying to improve. We just returned from another wonderful stay in the West village.

I have stayed in many timeshares and I must admit that this is probabably the best by far ....! Stayed there one week, great deal, well worth the price, clean brand new rooms, superb view on the course, which is in itself a challenge to play( legends ). Jovial staff at your service.Lots of activities on the site itself great pools, food ,fun for all, try the pizza (supreme )at the market...... Unfortunately, no free service to internet, also extremely difficult to find a public telephone on the premises. Nevertheless what agreat place to bring your kids to. Trust me this is the first time i fill in one of these reviews.I owed it to them.... Dan

We were staying at Orange Lake West Village week of August 9 to 16.I must say we were very happy with accomodations and service.We stayed in 2 bedroom villa with beatifull view of golf course and private parking space on the front of our place.Our unit was recently remodeled and it looks great with new countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms ,new furniture ,new carpet and new appliances.On the first night we had a problem with an a/c unit.After a phone call to front desk they have sent a gentelman to look over our unit .He has determined that the a/c unit was low on freon and to our surprise they have an hvac mechanic on hand to fix a problem right away.Great service.The villa was very clean and very well kept. On the other hand the resort is very large .You must use a shutlle or car to drive from one part of resort to another.Another problem is a lack of the internet service in the villas or anywhere in the resort.In order to use the internet you must go to 2 designated areas and pay for the internet usage even if you use your own laptop!I belive the resort of this size should afford free internet access for the guests in their own villas or apartements.

We were there the last week of April. Nice weather, clean facility-office staff very nice. RCI lady in the office was not helpfull at all. We had a RCI exchange meltdown. We were not registered at the site, but registered with RCI. Day one was interesting, by day 2 we had a 2 bed unit. Thanks RCI & the site Managers at Orange Lake that got it all straightened out!

We stayed Easter week at Orange Lake in the West Village. This was our third time at this resort. As always we were completely satisfied with all the resort has to offer. We stayed in a single story golf villa that had just been completely remodeled. It was fabulous!! Two bedroom two bath. The master had a king bed and the second bedroom had two queen size beds. The master bath received a jacuzzi tube with the update. The bathrooms are smaller in the West Village than the East Village or River Island but lets face it, how important is that? I love the West Village because it feels like a nice subdivision instead of a resort. It is so peaceful and landscaping is beautiful. Another great thing about the West Village is you have your own parking space right in front of your front door. Parking could get difficult late at night in the Villages with the larger buildings.

The West Village pool is under construction now, scheduled to be completed in the summer 2008. It's a good thing because last time we were there in 2006 the pool area looked a little worn out.

The Club House in the West Village received some remodeling too. The ice cream shop and pizza pallor were moved over to the golf club house. The arcade was moved to the back and updated. The movie theater also was moved to the back and is just a large room with regular chairs. The movie theater seats are gone. The large open area were they had shuffle board and ping pong tables is gone. For now it's just a big open area. Maybe they have something planned for later.

River Island is great but you have to get there very early in the morning if you want any lounge chairs. It's impossible to find a chair after 10:30. Even though they provide towels you should bring your own if you like a large beach towel. They provide very small bath towels. River Island also has a nice arcade for the kids.

All in all we love Orange Lake and intend on returning as often as we can.

We were given a registration to Orange Lake's West Village through RCI. We were told that there were be no changes by RCI. However, when we arrived and checked in, we were amazingly placed into the East Tower with a lovely view of the Golf Course. I had read so many bad reviews of the West side of the property, I was thrilled when they automatically put us into the East Tower without my even having to ask! Check in was about a 45 minutes wait, but they fed us pizza, popcorn and wine and cokes while we waited. It was the most accommodating resort I have ever run across. We were there to visit Disneyworld, so we started out early and got back late, so no annoying phone calls about "buying" we received. However, the phone rang a couple of times, but since we knew anyone that knew us would call us on our cell phones, we just did not answer the phone. The East Tower had plenty of supplies for us, a washer and dryer in our condo to do laundry - towels or whatever, and plenty of garbage bags. It was great. We had the best time, and the place was as lovely as the pictures shown here. I would highly recommend it. I thought the West Village condos were cute, but did not get to see one up close or inside. Our parking at the East Tower was great as well, no issues whatsover. We got close the elevators every time. I would highly recommend this facility to anyone. I saw one bug inside, near the toilet, but that was it.

Orange Lake Golf and Country Club is an enormous resort with several different “village” areas. You could easily spend a week just enjoying the resort, as there is so much to do. A free shuttle transports guests around the complex. There are also shuttles available (for a fee) to take you to the attractions of the area.

We had a two bedroom unit in a four story building in the West Village, the oldest in the complex. Many of the units are single story villas backing onto or facing the golf fairways. Other arrangements are in double storied villas or larger hotel size buildings. There are wide lawns, small copses of trees and man made lagoons.

With textured candle glow walls and wicker furniture with bright tropical prints, the units are nicely decorated. There is a large entertainment cabinet but the television inside is much smaller than the opening suggests. We find the lighting totally inadequate, especially in the kitchen where there is one dirty light with a 90-watt light bulb.

There is a screened porch with four chairs and a table overlooking the golf course. It is a lovely place to sit and relax, although the plastic chairs offer little lumbar support. Unfortunately all surfaces are full of spider webs and pods soon to release new spiders and there is a wasp’s nest hanging from the ceiling of our porch.

There is glass on the ledge between the windowpanes above the dining area bench—it seems a pane had broken and although they had replaced it, not all of the glass was removed. We also find glass in the cracks behind and underneath the bench.

My husband and I spent the entire next morning cleaning. It is disgusting how poorly the place is cleaned. We both had several conversations with the “front desk” and were referred to the appropriate department. On the phone, help was apparently “immediately on its way”-in reality, this was not the case at all.

Each “village” has a recreation center, with similar activities offered at each one and specific activities available at only one locale. There is a weekly agenda to help you figure out what is going on where and when.

The pools are an attraction all on their own, with a lazy river in one complex, a wave pool in another, fountains, sprinklers, playgrounds, tubes, slides and all sorts of fun for all ages. There are towels available and both shady and open areas with lots of lounge chairs, although unless you arrive fairly early in the day, you will have trouble finding an empty chair. Snacks and drinks can be charged to your room so you do not need to bring cash.

Just came back from staying at Orange Lake, and wow, was I impressed! The units were the best I've ever stayed at. Everything looked new, fresh and clean. The decor was tastefully done in vivid island colors. The mattress was better than mine at home, and I'm very particular about that. There also appeared to be much activity at other units getting them renovated.

The 2 bedroom unit in the West village was very homey. There were 4 ranch units in our building, and it appeared more like a nice subdivision than a timeshare resort.

We were asked at checkin and then received a few calls about touring, but knowing how these sales people are, we declined (plus if I were to buy a timeshare, it would be from RedWeek or another source at great discount). There was no undue pressue to tour.

We were so busy going to DisneyWorld that we did not check out any of the amenities. I would definitely recommend Orange Lake to others!

We just stayed the last week of June in a 3 bedroom unit with my 6 kids. We had plenty of room for all us, in a beautiful unit that felt like home. There were plenty of things for the kids to do on property. They enjoyed the pools more than the expensive parks! Great place to bring the family!!! I can't wait to go back.