My stay in a luxury vacation home

One of the many "firsts" I experienced during my Princess Half Marathon weekend trip was staying "off" Disney property at a luxury vacation home. Normally when we visit the Walt Disney World resort we stay "on property" at Disney. But this time, the ladies and I had the chance to stay in a Global Resort Homes vacation home in the gated community of Windsor Palms .. and it was amazing !

our house - 8016 King Palm Circle

The house was a 5-bedroom, 3.5 bath, two story house and it can sleep up to 12 people. As there were only five of us in the house, we had more than enough space...but I could see my entire family (the "party of 10") staying there and never stepping on anyone's toes. There was one "king" bedroom, two "queen" bedrooms, and two "twin" bedrooms (each with two twin beds, and one of those rooms was Mickey Mouse themed!). There was also a sleeper sofa, so everyone had their own space for catching up on some much-needed sleep.

 foyer

The house was light and airy and beautifully decorated. We all loved the kitchen and spent quite a bit of time one morning musing about where the pictures and other decor might have been purchased - because we all wanted to replicate it in our own homes! The picture up above shows the entryway as you walk in the front doors - the steps lead to the upstairs bedrooms (the two "twin" rooms) and one of the three full bathrooms. Through the archway on the right is the kitchen area. The kitchen had a dishwasher, coffee pot, AND a Keurig coffee machine - and enough dishes and coffee cups for everyone.

living room with the most comfortable red chair EVER!

The living room area had vaulted ceilings, a flat screen television and very comfortable seating areas. One of my favorite details in the living room were the huge (empty) frames hanging on the walls. I had just seen something like that on Pinterest and thought it was a genius decorating idea for larger walls. And that red chair in the photo? Yeah. It was the best chair ever. I wanted to take it home, along with the very cool clock in the foyer. 

 the frame decor...love it!

As great as the inside of the house was (and it really was!)...my favorite part of this house was the screened in lanai with the pool and hot tub. Yes, we had our very own pool, complete with an alligator (fake, of course...we named him Gary the Gator because no pool in Florida should be without gators, right?). If I had the time, I would have spent at least an entire day sitting poolside, sipping fruity cocktails. As it was...we were super busy and only had minimal pool/hot tub time. 

ah, paradise

The hot tub was the favorite spot for all of us that weekend - even when we arrived home at 11 p.m. Friday night and had to be awake at 4:30 a.m. for the Royal Family 5K ... we still decided it was time to take a dip in the hot tub and rest our weary feet. Sadly, we were all too tired to sip fruity drinks at the time. But the next day, after finishing the 5K, the hot tub was the destination of choice once again. And ... once again we were all too tired for tropical cocktails!

In addition to the great decor, pool, and hot tub the house also had a full size washer and dryer - perfect for washing the bathing suits and towels after a day of swimming, or doing a full load of laundry so you can go home with clean clothes! And, we also had wireless Internet ... a great thing when you have a house full of bloggers and social media geeks.

the kitchen/dining area

The Windsor Palms Resort is one of the nine Global Resort Homes communities in the Orlando area. We were just 2.5 miles from the gates of the Walt Disney World property and the drive was easy, even when traffic was a bit heavy (early in the morning). Windsor Palms has a 7,500 square foot clubhouse complete with a community pool, sundeck, and hot tub. There's also a playground area for the kids, a fitness center, sand volleyball courts, tennis courts, and a 58-seat movie theater.

my room

The thing I enjoyed most about our stay with Global Resorts - other than the hot tub! - was the feeling when you came home at night, tired from walking all day at the parks, that you were HOME. We walked in the front doors, dropped our things in our rooms, and gathered in the kitchen area and it felt like home. It was a great feeling. And then in the morning, we had our "coffee talk" time before heading out for that day's adventure. I was definitely sad to say "goodbye" to our house when I left. 

For more information on Global Resort Homes, visit their website.

Disclosure: I stayed with Global Resort Homes as part of their Global Blogger Program and our stay was complimentary. I received no monetary compensation for my stay or for this review. All opinions and photos in this post are mine.