US-192 Memories, Sucess, and Failure

[ULPO46]

So I have been thinking US-192 lately especially after looking at old family photos. It's hard to believe that at one point there was no International Drive. That at one point, the fanciest hotels, where the motels on 192. Hard to believe how sad the area has become. Great restaurants like Key W. Cools now gone, you tend to reflect on the good memories that once were associated with this stretch of central Florida road. But one thing that is uncertain is why did a road so close to the Walt Disney World Resort fail. Why did hotels decide not to continue building up to the standards of guest. Yet for the most part the road is within Osceola County, but hotels should have been built. I am not old enough to remember what happened but I'd like to have this become a thread to inform and debate this rather infamous stretch of highway, to share old photos of times gone by, remember how at one point the road was the gateway to the World, and just plain old talk about fond memories.

 

[Goofyernmost]

So I have been thinking US-192 lately especially after looking at old family photos. It's hard to believe that at one point there was no International Drive. That at one point, the fanciest hotels, where the motels on 192. Hard to believe how sad the area has become. Great restaurants like Key W. Cools now gone, you tend to reflect on the good memories that once were associated with this stretch of central Florida road. But one thing that is uncertain is why did a road so close to the Walt Disney World Resort fail. Why did hotels decide not to continue building up to the standards of guest. Yet for the most part the road is within Osceola County, but hotels should have been built. I am not old enough to remember what happened but I'd like to have this become a thread to inform and debate this rather infamous stretch of highway, to share old photos of times gone by, remember how at one point the road was the gateway to the World, and just plain old talk about fond memories.

I don't really think it has failed at all. It is different then it used to be and many of the big resorts have shut down since Disney started building all those rooms onsite. Other that have closed are some of the original ones that you speak off. They needed to be leveled and rebuilt to be acceptable today and it just wasn't worth it since Disney had brainwashed people already to think that unless they stay onsite a huge part of the experience will be missed. A fine example of excellent marketing, btw.

For years the building happened closer to the town of Kissimmee, but, with that growth and urban feel it got a little scary to be in that direction. (not to mention the hassle trying to get to the parks) It is now expanding to the west of the Main Gate where that area was dormant for many, many years. I usually always stay on the west side. It's easy access to the parks and doesn't have the urban feel to it. Not dead, just different. Like all things.

 

[POLY LOVER]

Disney has caused them to fail. They have built so many rooms at all price levels it's hard for others to compete with them. Disney does not want their guests leaving their property. The more on property the more money they will spend at Disney.

 

[mj2v]

As a long time resident of the "tourist zone", there are several factors. I first came to Disney in 1985, and 192 was still considered "nice". By our next trip in 1991, it was getting worn, and by our last trip before moving in 1994, it was declining rapidly. The main problem is that the area did not and or could not keep up with changing expectations. The upper part of the low end market was sucked into the value Disney resorts. If I remember correctly, the moderate Disney resorts started opening in the early 90's, DVC in 1991, and the Disney value resorts in late 90's.

Some of the middle and upper market went to Timeshare, and or onsite. Some of it went to I-Drive, as has the business (trade show) market. Some has gone to the home rental market. Disney has, of course, done a phenomenal job of bringing more people in, and keeping them on property.

192 has become a vast wasteland of poorly run and poorly maintained motels. Some became transitional housing. Some are filled with sex offenders (http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/9-investigates-sex-offenders-living-motels-us-192/nWCLM/). There are some bright spots, such as the Celebration area and the new resorts planned, such as Margaritaville and the "ski" resort (http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busi...y-ramp-xero-gravity-resort-20150211-post.html). Hopefully, these resorts actually happen, and land on 192 becomes valuable enough to tear down and rebuild. The Margaritaville resort is being built where Splendid China and a dilapidated motel once stood.

I would not say it's one thing. It's a series of things, avoiding the reality of change in consumer behavior, and not having a response to existential threats to an area's business are at the top of the list. As a resident of Osceola county and FL, I can tell you, there is very little forethought in government here. It's all reactionary, and tourist taxes can only be used for promoting tourism, as well as building arenas for billionaire sports team owners. Even when they try to do something, like the ill fated "Beuti-vacation" (I kid you not) of 192, it was a few trees and purple light poles (the paint peeled within a year and stayed like that for years) in front of the kitschy gift shop with the huge wizard whose crystal ball blew away during Hurricane Charley in 2004 and has still not been replaced in 2015....

 

[halltd]

Disney has caused them to fail.

Ha ha ha! This is hysterical. Disney can't cause anything to fail. If the hotels/motels along 192 were maintained properly and offered a good value for the money, there's no reason they wouldn't still be open today. A huge issue I have with 192 is the traffic and how unsafe the whole area is for pedestrians...and vehicles. I avoid that area like the plague now because it's mostly filled with junk anyways. That's my other issue...it's mostly cr@p all along that road. I've been visiting WDW since shortly after it opened, and I never remember 192 as actually nice. Over the years, it just got increasingly worse.

But, in all seriousness, it can't have failed yet because there are a lot of businesses still open and thriving in that area. If it had failed, it'd be easy to actually drive in that area.

 

[Debbie]

During the '80's, I always stayed on 192 as I could get a nice room for about $55 per nite. I usually went twice a year and my "go to" hotel was the Travelodge Golden Triangle which is now Royal Celebration Inn. In 1985, I made the best memory of driving my mom and my grandparents to Disney, which turned out to be their last time there together. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on 192 west. My brother and cousin followed us and it was Grandma's birthday. Then I had a family and had to slow my Disney down... When my husband and I went with our 20 month old in Sept '95 we stayed on 192 for one night and then moved to the Contemporary. The traffic on 192 is what really got to me. It took us an hour to get from our hotel on 192 to the Magic Kingdom. The next day when we could just hop a bus or the monorail; he was hooked forever on staying on property! Thanks for this thread----it has brought a lot of nice and sweet memories back!

 

[Tom Morrow]

From roughly Celebration west through toll road 429, US-192 is actually decent, with with the stretch from 429 to 27 continuing to expand with new resorts and restaurants. There also seems to be some push to pretty this section up as well.

From Celebration and east all the way to Kissimmee and beyond, though, 192 is a depressing boulevard of broken dreams. Tons of old closed shops, motels, and tourist traps, and you will likely get hassled for money by homeless or methheads. One frustrating thing is that a lot of people make the mistake of finding these dirt cheap motels and assuming all of Orlando is like this.

I'd have to say that in addition to Disney's expansion of hotels, Universal and the growth of the I-Drive area surely played a part. Staying on 192 puts you close to Disney but far from Universal, I-Drive, and SeaWorld.

 

[Goofyernmost]

From roughly Celebration west through toll road 429, US-192 is actually decent, with with the stretch from 429 to 27 continuing to expand with new resorts and restaurants. There also seems to be some push to pretty this section up as well.

From Celebration and east all the way to Kissimmee and beyond, though, 192 is a depressing boulevard of broken dreams. Tons of old closed shops, motels, and tourist traps, and you will likely get hassled for money by homeless or methheads. One frustrating thing is that a lot of people make the mistake of finding these dirt cheap motels and assuming all of Orlando is like this.

I'd have to say that in addition to Disney's expansion of hotels, Universal and the growth of the I-Drive area surely played a part. Staying on 192 puts you close to Disney but far from Universal, I-Drive, and SeaWorld.

Quoted for "da truth". That is absolutely what I see happening and I only go there about once a year, just seems like the obvious way to go. The further away from the cities the better chance for avoiding less then charming areas. Most of the time if there are delays in the traffic it is because they have hit absolute rush hour, which is easy to beat out with just a minor amount of planning. Also those that must enter on World Drive to see the "Welcome To" sign have never found the "other" entrances, less glamorous, but, much quicker.

 

[POLY LOVER]

As a long time resident of the "tourist zone", there are several factors. I first came to Disney in 1985, and 192 was still considered "nice". By our next trip in 1991, it was getting worn, and by our last trip before moving in 1994, it was declining rapidly. The main problem is that the area did not and or could not keep up with changing expectations. The upper part of the low end market was sucked into the value Disney resorts. If I remember correctly, the moderate Disney resorts started opening in the early 90's, DVC in 1991, and the Disney value resorts in late 90's.

Some of the middle and upper market went to Timeshare, and or onsite. Some of it went to I-Drive, as has the business (trade show) market. Some has gone to the home rental market. Disney has, of course, done a phenomenal job of bringing more people in, and keeping them on property.

192 has become a vast wasteland of poorly run and poorly maintained motels. Some became transitional housing. Some are filled with sex offenders (http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/9-investigates-sex-offenders-living-motels-us-192/nWCLM/). There are some bright spots, such as the Celebration area and the new resorts planned, such as Margaritaville and the "ski" resort (http://www.orlandosentinel.com/busi...y-ramp-xero-gravity-resort-20150211-post.html). Hopefully, these resorts actually happen, and land on 192 becomes valuable enough to tear down and rebuild. The Margaritaville resort is being built where Splendid China and a dilapidated motel once stood.

I would not say it's one thing. It's a series of things, avoiding the reality of change in consumer behavior, and not having a response to existential threats to an area's business are at the top of the list. As a resident of Osceola county and FL, I can tell you, there is very little forethought in government here. It's all reactionary, and tourist taxes can only be used for promoting tourism, as well as building arenas for billionaire sports team owners. Even when they try to do something, like the ill fated "Beuti-vacation" (I kid you not) of 192, it was a few trees and purple light poles (the paint peeled within a year and stayed like that for years) in front of the kitschy gift shop with the huge wizard whose crystal ball blew away during Hurricane Charley in 2004 and has still not been replaced in 2015....

To say it has totally failed is a drastic and incorrect statement, some have failed because they are victims to Disney marketing for that demographic. There are many successful and nice hotels near celebration. They are also building a massive complex right there , not sure if it's a hotel or timeshare complex but it's huge. Say what you want but how do you compete with free dining plans and free transportation. Disney wants all levels of hotel business. This is similar to what happened in Cali.

I do predict Disney will gobble up that property and use it at some point

 

[Figments Friend]

My memory from staying on I-Drive in the early 80s with my Mom -

I was twelve or thirteen at the time, and was living in FL with my Mom at that time.
Drove over from Seffner, about a half hours ride away.
It was one of my first visits to the Parks since moving to FL a year or two prior from the Northeast, and the primary reason for the stay was to visit EPCOT Center which at that time was brand new.

Staying On Site was not a option for us at that time.
Back then you only had a very small selection of expensive places to stay plus the Fort Wilderness Campground.
So we did what a lot of folks did back then....stay on I-Drive in a inexpensive motel.
We stayed overnight for a weekend at what I dimly recall being either a HoJo's or a Holiday Inn.

When we got up one of the mornings, we were delighted to discover that overnight someone had stolen the expensive wire rim hubcaps off of my Mom's Cutless Supreme in the hotel parking lot.
I remember how shabby her car looked without the hubcaps, and she was SO embarrassed to drive it around afterwards!

That pretty much summed up our opinion of that particular area at that time.



-

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

Xanadu..The House of the Future. The all you could eat breakfast buffet at Cheffies. Ahh the childhood memories.

 

[disney4life2008]

The first time I went to 192 was in 1995 or 1996 (I was a youngin'). My mom extended our stay from the disney resort to the holiday inn nikki bird on 192. well, the hotel was filthy, roaches, spots and the second day of being there we both got very ill. It was a tragedy. With that said, I remember in the 90s (the reason why we ended up in kissimee to begin with) was because of the Kissimmee St Cloud commercials that used to air on tv and it promoted 192 and kissimee as the gateway to the world. As an adult, I actually enjoy 192. Both super 8s are nice and cheap and the best resturants are along the stretch of road. Traffic is a mess because you have the locals that live in the area (who work in the tourist industry) combined with tourists. As much as International Drive is promoted I hate it! I avoid it at all costs that is a tourist trap.

 

[POLY LOVER]

I agree there are nice restaurants along I 92' I eat there as an alternative to the high Disney dinning prices. You can find any major restaurant there. I love the Perkins there for breakfast and I am always impressed how they memorize your order, never write it down until you see it on the check, you wonder how they always get it right.

 

[Raineman]

I've only had one experience with staying on 192-it was in March of last year. We stayed at Club Sevilla, a fairly upscale condo/timeshare complex. We stayed there for a week after staying on-property at WDW for three days. The impression I got from the area was not bad-there seemed to be quite a few old motels/gift shops/tourist traps sitting there decaying away, but it didn't really make the area look too trashy. It reminded me a lot of the tourist area of Niagara Falls, Canada, which I have visited many times. The traffic was bad-I was driving myself and my daughter to see a Houston Astros Game, and got rear ended by some punk driving his Honda like he was Paul Walker.

 

[WhatJaneSays]

Of all the places I've lived or spent extended time in: the stretch of ground that is 192 is easily the most … liminal, both in actual physical state and feel. I've likened driving 192 to traveling through a wrinkle in space-time. There are spots that seem like there are perfect open windows right in to live 1980s time. And directly next to that is a stretch that looks like a “Life After People” episode. You can travel 3 blocks (at speed) and feel like hours have passed or you can blink and suddenly you're 10 miles down the road. There are the bits where you can see WDW but it feels like there is no way that part should be visible from where you are. There are some landmarks that seem to disappear at will no matter how carefully or how many sets of eyes are looking at one time. (Or in some cases REAPPEAR: I've had at least 3 people tell me they've seen a ferris wheel at Old Town … after it had been taken down.)

__
Funny anecdote as someone that lives near 192:

Tourist: Do you know where the shop with the giant wizard is?
Me: Which one?

 

[Tom Morrow]

As much as International Drive is promoted I hate it! I avoid it at all costs that is a tourist trap.

I-Drive, at least from the Premium Outlets by Lake Buena Vista up through Sand Lake Road, is not a tourist trap and is probably one of the nicest spots in all of Orlando. Past Sand Lake through the other Premium Outlets near Universal, however, is a different story, but there seems to be steps being taken to turn it around as well.

The tacky shops and rundown attractions that line US-192 are textbook tourist trap.

 

[Goofyernmost]

To say it has totally failed is a drastic and incorrect statement, some have failed because they are victims to Disney marketing for that demographic. There are many successful and nice hotels near celebration. They are also building a massive complex right there , not sure if it's a hotel or timeshare complex but it's huge. Say what you want but how do you compete with free dining plans and free transportation. Disney wants all levels of hotel business. This is similar to what happened in Cali.

I do predict Disney will gobble up that property and use it at some point

Ah, but, you can by providing good rooms for way less money and proximity to good, much more inexpensive restaurants. Even adding in car rental, if that is necessary, is still light years away from the cost of staying on site. Pay for parking you say? The only place that charges for parking are the parks themselves. Still a bargain. I don't understand why people still think that anything is free at WDW. One way or the other you pay for it, and it is a kings ransom.

As long as Disney Marketing continues to plant in everyone's mind that they are missing out on so much by staying offsite they will continue to fill rooms. Not by me however.

 

[POLY LOVER]

Ah, but, you can by providing good rooms for way less money and proximity to good, much more inexpensive restaurants. Even adding in car rental, if that is necessary, is still light years away from the cost of staying on site. Pay for parking you say? The only place that charges for parking are the parks themselves. Still a bargain. I don't understand why people still think that anything is free at WDW. One way or the other you pay for it, and it is a kings ransom.

As long as Disney Marketing continues to plant in everyone's mind that they are missing out on so much by staying offsite they will continue to fill rooms. Not by me however.

You are very informed and resistant to the mouse cool-aide

 

[Figments Friend]

I agree there are nice restaurants along I 92' I eat there as an alternative to the high Disney dinning prices. You can find any major restaurant there. I love the Perkins there for breakfast and I am always impressed how they memorize you order, never write it down until you see it on the check, you wonder how they always get it right.

Yes!
A fave spot, too.

How do they do it...?
Must be there own brand of 'magic'.....



-

 

[mj2v]

To say it has totally failed is a drastic and incorrect statement, some have failed because they are victims to Disney marketing for that demographic. There are many successful and nice hotels near celebration. They are also building a massive complex right there , not sure if it's a hotel or timeshare complex but it's huge. Say what you want but how do you compete with free dining plans and free transportation. Disney wants all levels of hotel business. This is similar to what happened in Cali.

I do predict Disney will gobble up that property and use it at some point

Why would Disney gobble up additional property in the area? They have divested themselves of numerous parcels, notably most of the land where Celebration now sits, as well as the Four Seasons property. There are thousands of acres to still develop bought for next to nothing decades ago. Why buy property outside the berm and be subject to the laws of common companies?

As for hotels in the Celebration area, there are a few nice ones, but most have had serious financial difficulties along the way. The very nice Melia was once the Mona Lisa Condotel... That did not work out well for anyone who bought a room there. The timeshare that is now building has been delayed numerous times and has changed ownership. There is a large closed resort complex right across from Celebration that operated as a Ramada before they pulled their flag. It was slated to be torn down years ago, only to now fester. There is a growing homeless camp just outside of Celebration.

There are areas of 192 that are ok, or are improving, and there are large areas that look like scenes from the walking dead. There are or were dilapidated hotel/motels at several spots, including the back entrance to Animal Kingdom Lodge on Sherberth, the spot where the Margaritaville resort is slated for, and several heading east toward Kissimmee, ah the Viking Motel.... Here's to hoping the trend of tearing down or rebuilding continues.

Just take a few minutes around 192 and Poinciana. Lovely sign for the Knights Inn, with the Knights part spray painted black... So is it just an INN now? Signs are still broken or missing parts from years ago.

As you head into Kissimmee, it gets worse with closed big box stores and more several out dated hotels.

We could debate "total failure", but like I explained to my son, whether you get a 64 or a zero, you still get an F.

There has been talk of the county utilizing code enforcement and eminent domain to solve some of the issues. Just the fact that the county is talking about doing anything is a positive. They are not proactive at all.