I have reservations for the Celebration Hotel near Walt Disney World and wondered if anyone has stayed there -- what's it like?

Celebration is the town that Jim Carrey's movie "The Truman Show" was filmed in. (I live nearby)

The town is very nice, if somewhat antiseptic. It is owned by Disney. I'm sure the hotel is pleasant.

The Truman Show was filmed in Seaside, not Celebration.

The town concept was interesting, but it did feel a bit like the Truman Show. We almost wondered if the kids riding their bikes, fishing poles balanced across their handle bars were, in reality, actors. Strange place...hard to distinguish fact from fiction.

I've been to Celebration, not the hotel, but the "city," and found it quite charming. It is a bit surreal . . . but that's the magic of it. I'm sure you'll have a fabulous time there. By the way, the food at the little diner on the corner of the main street is really good.

No, Julie, haven't stayed there, and please forgive the following screed.

I've worked and taught city planning in several countries over the years and I've never been as creeped out by a place as I was by Celebration. Developed by Disney in coordination with several universities and private firms, the idea was to build a new town where all the best ideas of current city planning, architecture, information technology, health care, and education could be combined. In terms of "master planning" the scope and depth of control exerted by Disney and partners over the community (control of the schools, for example, although I guess that ultimately didn't fly with the local education authorities) would have made Stalin weep.

What's missing is the chaos and excitement and spontaneity that you get with more organic towns - it's pretty but so is Forest Lawn. My wife and I kept thinking, "You've visited Main Street, now live there!" There was an Italian restaurant in a faux-1890s looking building in the "village center" where I kept looking for Lady and the Tramp slurping noodles out back. Or Jimminy Cricket reminding me not to jaywalk. We looked at some of the offering brochures for the houses, all very pricey. None of the promotional materials we took away featured photos or drawings of any persons of color, although of course Disney is not dumb enough to behave in a discriminatory manner. But telling, we thought.

I'd like to go back and speak with some Celebrants to see if it "lives" as spiffy as it looks. I'm betting not, but I wouldn't put it past Disney to have animatronic social workers on the job.

Julie, if you stay there please report back on how you found the place, okay? Maybe I'm all wet on this, not the first time for sure.

People who buy homes in Celebration have to sign a statement swearing to never discuss "bad points" of the development. But there's been a lot of press here in Orlando about promises that weren't kept, schools that weren't built, etc. I think the place is incredibly eerie and avoid it at all costs!

John, thank you for the language lesson. Thought "screed" might be a typo, but Webster said it meant "harangue". Further research found the meaning as "a long vehement speech, a tirade". And some people think this site is garbage!

Here's a GREAT website, free to non-commercial users. www.atomica.com. Download a small program and you'll have a 1/4x1/4" icon off to one side of your screen (mine sits up on my taskbar and out of the way). From then on, place your cursor on any word, hold down "Alt", left click, and a small screen pops up with that word, it's definition, translations into several other languages, internet keywords if you want to do a search, synonyms, and you can click another icon on that screen and hear the pronunciation. If you have mis-spelled a word, it offers several words which you may have meant, allowing you to choose and correct. Spelling challenged as I am, I use it any number of times a day. Here's what it gave me for screed.

screed (skrçd)
n.
A long monotonous speech or piece of writing.

A strip of wood, plaster, or metal placed on a wall or pavement as a guide for the even application of plaster or concrete.
A layer or strip of material used to level off a horizontal surface such as a floor.
A smooth final surface of a substance, such as concrete, applied to a floor.
[Middle English screde, fragment, strip of cloth, from Old English scrçade, shred.]


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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Note...Atomica didn't have a "c cedilla" in the pronunciation. Somehow the e with long accent mark they had, got translated to C cedilla by Fodors program.

And to think I actually requested information on a hotel . . . I've been to Celebration, the town, myself and did find it a bit odd. I'm interested in just relaxing and sitting by a calm pool for a few days so am not too worried about getting sucked into some Hitlerish (I'm sure Webster hasn't heard of that one) sort of living style -- just hanging out for a few days. If anyone has actually stayed at the hotel, please advise.

Thanks, OO, Celebration sounds boring anyway.....

I haven't stayed here but here is the link on what Fodors has to say about it
Sounds like a nice place to stay for a little peace and quiet.

http://www.fodors.com/rants/rrread.c...y=Celebration%
20Hotel@234250&entity_id=32832