Magic Castle Inn & Suites — Hotel in Kissimmee

Bottom line up front: this hotel is NOT a Howard Johnson, charges fees for amenities supposedly included for “free,” and is a DIVE (see photos and roach video, if I’m able to post vid).||||Listen, I’ve stayed at DOZENS and DOZENS of budget hotels in the Kissimmee/Orlando area. This one is near the top of my “worst” list. Here’s why:||||1) I booked through Priceline, took screenshots of the fine print, and even chatted with Priceline. They assured me that all fees were included in the price I paid. Like so many SCAM HOTELS in the Orlando area, this one will try to add an extra 20% to your bill in the form of fees once you're standing there at the desk. Fees for what? Roaches? Peeling paint? Long check in lines? Parking, breakfast, and WIFI were included, so not sure what the $29 in fees was for two nights. I talked to "Alex" at the front desk to try to get the fees reversed. I emailed the front desk to try to them taken off. They didn’t bother to reply. I phoned them after my stay, and the person just wanted to argue about the legitimacy of the fees (they clearly have prepared arguments and deal with this a LOT, which they wouldn’t have to if it wasn’t a SCAM), and they had NOT read my email of a few days prior. SAVE ALL OF YOUR FINE PRINT ETC. AND CONTEST IT THROUGH YOUR CREDIT CARD.||||2) The entry to the hotel is difficult to find.||||3) The parking lot feels more lot a prison cells looking down on a prison yard, with people hanging out on balcony railings, etc.||||4) The front desk never had two people, even though it’s made for two people. So, expect a 15+ minute wait whenever you need something (check in, check out, towels, etc.)||||5) This is NOT a HOJO. This is a “Developer Inn” that paid HOJO/Wyndham for a license to use their name. Expect to be treated as such, and to receive no help from HOJO/Wyndham.||||6) The paint was peeling in the shower, and NOT just a little. Like, HALF of the shower. The exhaust fan also had lots of dust/mold.||||7) There WERE ROACHES, and no, not the big palmetto bugs common outside in FL. These were German cockroaches, the kind that like to hitchhike back home in your belongings and are HARD to eliminate.||||8) The walls are thin. I could clearly make out the neighbor watching The Outer Limits, and opera music playing somewhere from another building. Oh, and there’s a helicopter tours launchpad about 400 yards away from your front door.||||9) Other issues: the pool is not close and not welcoming, like it was placed as an afterthought. No all-day coffee. The bus to the parks must be reserved and runs at hours that will have you missing HOURS at the parks (it’s like 845am and 745pm, leaving you in the park from like 10am to 630p before you have to make your way to the shuttle). Oh, and the shuttle only goes to two parks. The AC from the rooms drips water onto the badly-painted stairs, so BRACE YOURSELF!). Pubes in bathroom on first use. Towel delivery and room turndown only every two days.||||10) Pros: AC was cold (but LOUD, and cycled on and off a lot). Blinds worked well.||||Let’s not reward this hotel any further for their deceptive practices! Write to another hotel and get a commitment, in writing, that there will be no additional fees, and go with that hotel. This one is NOT WORTH THE COST EVEN BEFORE THE FEES. End amenity fees in Orlando and beyond so that consumers can compare apples to apples when booking hotels! As for me, I gave this hotel a chance to make things right, and they dropped the ball at every opportunity. I will be disputing charges and reporting to BBB (and perhaps State of FL Attorney General Dept. of Consumer Protection), but wish I’d picked a more-expensive hotel where I didn’t have to now spend time...

In a word - DEPLORABLE - My fiance and I thought we had booked with a Super 8 but somehow got sent to this hell hole. The deputy's cruiser parked at the entrance should have given me a hint but I figured maybe he was monitoring traffic. We paid for a mini-suite (Room 247) and when we entered, we were hit with the foul smell of mold. We turned the air conditioner on to air out the room and the rattling noise forced us to go back to the front desk and ask for another room. We found left over juicy juices in a mold infested freezer. We were switched to room 149 which was a bit cleaner, and the a/c worked. However, there was a hole in the wall right next to an electrical socket which showed exposed wiring (I did inspections at Riker's Island and inmate housing areas were not allowed such blatant safety violations). The reception on the television was poor at best (grainy), and there was a stand alone sink directly outside of the bathroom which left no room for you to place your toiletries. Thank God we were only staying one night and that was because the Holiday Inn Resort where we were having a family reunion was sold out. The following morning, we went for the free breakfast (another joke) which consisted of juice, dry cereal and pastries that looked like they were purchased at the local dollar store and cut into pieces. don't be fooled by the pictures online, there was seating for about six! We had a cup of coffee and left. We figured we would make our own coffee in our room where there was a coffee maker but - no coffe! Back to the front desk to ask for coffee where we were told - unabashedly - that they did not provide coffee or cups for that matter. I took photos of the hole in the wall, the grainy television reception AND the mold that lined the inside of the lamp cover. Needless to say, we slept ON TOP of the bed - we were afraid to pull the cover sheet off. Who knows what we would have found. This place should...

update If I could leave no stars I would. After driving 20 hours to get here we were severely disappointed. At check in there were several people already complaining about their rooms. Obviously that was red flag number one, the second red flag was walking into a room that everything had been turned off (not just the lights which is pretty standard, but the a/c and fridge as well.) Once we got everything turned on we hoped that it would start working well. The fridge did end up cooling our food and drinks, but the a/c never cooled down the room. We even tried to "seal" the room better by putting one of the comforters by the huge gap at the bottom of the door. By the time we realized nothing was going to work the desk had been closed for the night. We will be leaving and staying at a different hotel in the morning. I also would like to add that the cleanliness level of the room is not up to par, but no other problem trumps a bum a/c. Please do not book here, and if someone else in your group is booking for you hope and pray that they read all of the reviews (I guess it is partially my fault for not double checking after someone else in our group made the reservations, lesson learned).

ok so after I left this review we stayed at the motel 6 down the street. While it was slightly more expensive it was worth every extra penny. I also would like to add that a member of our party wrote a separate review on the site he booked from. They have contested his review multiple times, and have claimed it is because they addressed the problem. Unless they installed new a/c units in every room I am assuming this is a lie. Seriously consider staying at a different hotel in the area. They might be slightly more expensive, but you will be much more comfortable...