Let me start out by saying that I LOVE the Omni ChampionsGate Resort. LOVE LOVE LOVE! I’ve celebrated my birthday there in the past, but this year we decided to go all out and stay 3 nights. My bestie drove down from Atlanta and we started our Birthday Staycation on the Thursday before my birthday.
We checked in a little late, but the Omni staff made sure we were well taken care of. A couple bottles of water, a cheese plate, and a bottle of wine were waiting for us in our room. Throw in the balcony with views of the pool and golf course and we were in heaven. This was definitely the right way to start our weekend.
The next morning we started the day with the Art of Breakfast Buffet at Trevi’s. This breakfast buffet has everything you could possibly want, including a honey bar, and includes beverages. I love taking advantage of the omelet bar to make sure I have a filling meal before heading out to the pools for the day. I also love that they always ask if you want a drink to go before you leave. *Helpful hint: Say yes and take it with you to the pool!
The Omni recently updated its pool area and added a Kids Pool with 3 slides and a Wave Pool. The addition of the pools included more chairs, cabanas, and an additional set of bathrooms. Our first day by the pools was spent in a cabana by the Wave Pool. This was my first time spending the day in a cabana at the Omni and it was wonderful. Having our own place to stash our stuff, get out of the sun, and staff to help make sure everything is perfect is just the best. Add in a mini fridge stocked with soda and water, fresh fruit, and 2 fruit smoothies and we were happy girls. The cabana especially came in handy when the afternoon rain rolled through and we needed somewhere dry to go until it was done.
That night we headed to Disney Springs for my “birthday dinner.” We had a great time and enjoyed some GREAT food at Homecoming Kitchen and Paddlefish before heading back to the Omni for a late night trip (or 10) around the lazy river.
Our second day poolside was a little bit different than the first. Holy crowds Batman! It seems that everyone checked in on Friday night while we were at dinner and all went straight to the pools on Saturday. After sleeping in a little more and grabbing breakfast, we headed to the pools around 11 am. Bad decision. It was crowded. We walked around all the pools (5 total) and had a hard time even finding 2 chairs together. I even tried to get us a cabana for the day, but they had just rented out the last one. Thankfully the recreation staff at the Omni is AMAZING and did their best to help us out as we had two friends joining us later that day. By mid-afternoon we were able to get 4 chairs together and then were even able to upgrade to a cabana for a couple of hours. If you need something at the Omni, just ask! *Helpful hint #2: If you want a cabana, reserve it ahead of time! If you want chairs, go to the pools early!
We spent the day going back and forth between the lazy river, wave pool, and formal pool. Our cabana in the afternoon ended up being by the formal pool so we spent the last few hours of the day there. Being the great big kid that I am, I brought a huge inflatable flamingo float with me for the weekend. I was able to bring it on the lazy river which was great for those times that it was busy and finding a tube was hard. *Helpful Hint #3: Bring your own float for the lazy river! Just keep in mind that you CANNOT bring your own float in the wave pool.
All in all we had an amazing weekend! The Omni really knows how to take care of their guests and it was the perfect place to relax and pamper ourselves for the weekend. When we checked out on Sunday I REALLY wasn’t ready to go back to reality. Is it too soon to start planning my next staycation?
*Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary stay at the Omni Orlando Resort. As always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.