871 · The Most Surprising Hotel Near Walt Disney World: My ette Hotel Review

One of the most exclusive hotel awards on the planet - harder to earn than a Michelin star, given to less than 1% of hotels worldwide - belongs to a boutique property sitting just one mile from Disney's Animal Kingdom. Yet most Disney fans have never heard of it.

Lou Mongello has stayed at virtually every Disney resort and countless hotels around the world, always believing that where you stay shapes the entire tone of a vacation. So when he was invited to experience ette Hotel, he wasn't quite sure what to expect.

What he discovered surprised him.

In WDW Radio #871, Lou shares his complete, honest review of ette Hotel - from the beautifully designed rooms and Michelin Key recognition to hospitality that echoes the Disney philosophy of "everything speaks." He also dives into one of the best meals he's had in a very long time at Salt & The Cellar, and why the restaurant alone may be worth the trip. Plus, what makes this property different, who it's perfect for, and why it may be one of Central Florida's most overlooked luxury experiences.

If you've ever wondered whether stepping outside the Disney bubble could actually enhance your Walt Disney World vacation, this episode might surprise you as much as the hotel surprised Lou.

📣 Comment in the WDW Radio Clubhouse or 📞 Call the Voicemail: 407-900-9391

✈️ Looking to visit a Disney Park, Disney Cruise Line, or any vacation destination around the world? Let our friends at Mouse Fan Travel help you with expert planning at no cost to you! - visit MouseFanTravel.com

📬 Stay Connected:

- Subscribe for email updates + get my FREE Disney book!

- Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | YouTube

🎧 Explore More:

• WDWRadio.com - Blog, archives, podcasts, and more
• WDW Radio Nation - Support the show and unlock rewards
• WDWRadioLIVE.com - Watch and chat LIVE Wednesday nights
• Events & Cruises - Join us for group trips and in-person meetups!

LouMongello.com - Creator or solopreneur? Turn your passion into your profession with coaching, courses, and events, including our Momentum events in Walt Disney World. I am also a keynote speaker who shares how to leverage lessons from Disney on customer service, experience, and leadership.

🙏🏼 Thank you for listening, being part of the WDW Radio family, and helping the show be recognized as the Best Travel Podcast for nine consecutive years - and for the incredible honor of being inducted into the ⭐️ Podcast Hall of Fame.

Please subscribe, tell a friend, and join me again next week... and as always, sit back, relax, and enjoy this week's episode of the WDW Radio Show!

One of the most exclusive hotel awards on the planet was given to a boutique hotel twice. Just one mile from Disney's Animal Kingdom. It is a luxury oasis that most people, including me, have never heard of.

And it's a hotel that surprised me again and again in every sense of the word, including a remarkable dining experience. And this episode was not planned. It was not on my calendar or radar.

I was just so caught off guard by the experience, I knew I had to share it with you.

And by the end of this episode, you might be asking yourself the same question I was over and over during my visit, which was, how did I not know about this place? Hello, my friend, and welcome to WDW Radio, your guide to the Disney parks and experiences from around the world.

I am Lou Mongello, and this is show number 871.

Whether this is your first time listening or you've been with me since the very beginning, thank you for being here, welcome back, and more importantly, welcome home. Before we dive in, don't forget to join the community and conversation over in the clubhouse wdwradio.com/clubhouse.

Watch and chat during our live show every Wednesday, 7:30pm Eastern, on Facebook and YouTube. And sign up for my free weekly email newsletter and updates [email protected] so you don't miss a thing.

And if today's episode has you thinking about where you'd like to stay on your next trip, whether it's a Disney Resorts or something like the hotel you're about to hear about, reach out to my friends over@m MouseFanTravel.com for completely free expert vacation planning. But for now, sit back, relax, and enjoy this week's episode of the WDW Radio show.

Most people planning a Walt Disney World vacation spend a lot of time thinking about where they're going to stay. Which makes sense because I think where you stay helps shape the entire tone of your trip.

Obviously, the Disney resorts are varied and incredible, each in their own right for a lot of reasons. Plus, you've got the Walt Disney World, Swan and Dolphin, the Four Seasons, some of the other nearby options. I think they all have their merits.

But there's a hotel sitting about one mile from Disney's Animal Kingdom that almost nobody talks about. I've been coming to Walt Disney World for decades. I've lived in the area. I travel constantly. Not. Not A friend, not a social media post.

Nobody has ever told me about nor have I ever heard of this place until I was invited to come and experience it. And it's called the ette hotel. And I want to be clear about something right from the start.

This is not a sponsored segment, it is not a commercial. This is not part of any sort of deal that I had with about coming to check it out.

This is my honest firsthand review after spending the night touring the property, talking with the people who run it, and sitting down to what turned out to be one of the best meals I've had in a very long time, which was broadcast live on Facebook and YouTube.

And as the timing of all this is important because I had just landed back home from Shanghai, Hong Kong and a too short but six hour layover in Narita Airport in Japan. It took me 53 hours to get there. Thank you American Airlines for the canceled and delayed flight. 32 Hours to get back.

I got home like my bags were still literally unpacked in my closet because there was this.

If you've ever traveled overseas to asia from the U.S. you know that is a special kind of jet lag where your body genuinely does not know what day or time zone it is in what meal it should be eating, what hour that it is. I was running on fumes, I kid you not. The day after I came back, I was working on my couch trying to catch up on things.

Next thing I know, I look up and it's 6:30 in the morning. And I had absolutely no idea. It's fine, I digress.

Just a couple of days after touching down and before I had really fully shaken any of that off, I checked into it. And that was really more by accident than by design. The timing just sort of worked out that way.

But it turned out to be exactly the reset that I needed.

You know, if you ever come home from a long, especially international trip feeling like your whole internal clock is broken, you know exactly the kind of decompression and jet lags I'm talking about. This place gave me exactly what I didn't realize I needed almost without trying. And look, my bar was not low coming in.

I had just come from some of the best hospitality and food on the planet and I was still very much caught off guard. Which is why I decided on my own to not just do some social posts about my stay there.

But I really think it warranted a full conversation here on the show.

So I want to tell you everything about the hotel, the food, the overall Experience and why I personally think the ette Hotel might be one of central Florida's most surprising, which is the word I keep coming back to. Most underrated, borderline, invisible before this to me, and most worthy of your attention, hidden gems. And let me start by painting you a picture.

You're on 192. For those who don't know, 192 is one of those roads that exists in every tourist corridor in America.

It's where you find the souvenir shops, the, the discount ticket booths, the chain restaurants, some of the smaller, more budget friendly hotels. It's not exactly where you expect to pull up and think, this is going to be something, I think in this case, extraordinary.

And then you see the ette Hotel. Because I did not know what to expect as I drove from my house right past the entrance of Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Two minutes down the road and I pulled up to the hotel. It was not what I expected. Even from the outside, you see, it is completely different.

The architecture is sophisticated, it's elegant, it's like thoughtful. And it doesn't look like anything else around it.

And in fact, once you sort of pull into the driveway, you are immediately sort of encased in the bubble, as it were, and everything else sort of falls away and you don't see it, you don't hear it. And the word I kept coming back to. And if you watch the live video, you, you know over and over again throughout the entire night.

The entire stay was surprise because nothing about this experience was what I expected at all. I didn't see anything of the property before arriving. Like I said, nothing on social.

I was invited by at I didn't even do any research because I was getting ready for my trip to Asia. And then. But I thought it was like, okay, this will be a nice little boutique hotel near Disney.

I think it'll be interesting, especially as a local, maybe for staycations people looking for something different.

But from the minute I got out of the car and I stood there looking at the outside of the building, this was the first time I was like, okay, this is definitely not what I was expecting. And when I walked in, I didn't realize just how much that was going to confirm it.

And honestly, before I did and when I saw sort of the big ETT logo on the outside, I sat in my car for a couple minutes and I looked it up. Like for the first time I looked up ette, which is again, E, T T E. Because I'd never heard of the brand before.

I never heard of it before because it didn't exist before. This is the only location they have currently on the planet.

And it's funny because I think starting with the name is important because it tells you a lot about what you need to know. I thought E.T. Was somebody's name. Maybe it meant something in another language. But AT stands for earthy, Timeless, True and Elegant.

And before you roll your eyes, what sounds like a marketing tagline, which I understand it is those four words are genuinely the very clear guiding philosophy behind every single decision at this property. As soon as you walk through the portico share and into the lobby like you, you're hit with this lovely fragrance.

As soon as you get in the door to the way the room is designed, to the service philosophy, even the elevators and the menu at the restaurant, it's not marketing copy like it's clearly the operating manual. And it made me think of the Disney really sort of the Michael Eisnerism of everything speaks right. Everything you see matters. Every detail matters.

And I was going to say that I got that impression the second that I walked in, but I realized I was definitely going to be surprised when I looked outside and saw that they are a triple A four diamond property. And I saw the Michelin logo as well. And I also saw that the hotel was very small. And I came to learn later there's only 126 rooms total.

And that intimacy is one of the things that I think makes it special. I'm going to come back to that because I love smaller hotels and smaller properties and smaller cruise ships like this.

But there is that Michelin key. And I want to stop for a second because I think we've all heard of the Michelin star hundreds of times when we talk about restaurants.

But you might not realize that hotels get something similar now. And I think once you understand what it means, and I think what it pulled off, I think it makes it even more impressive.

This is not something that is an old institutional award that's sort of been handed down year over year that, you know, maybe or other hotel chain has had for decades. This is something that is brand new and fresh and incredibly selective in this category. And it was there from day one.

So think of this as the hotel equivalent of a Michelin star. Same type of anonymous inspectors, same rigor, same same prestige, same levels of expectation.

It just applies to where you sleep instead of where you eat. Michelin actually judges hotels on five specific things.

And I think they map almost perfectly onto what I experienced myself, architecture and interior design, the quality and consistency of service, the overall personality and character, value for the price and the hotel's contribution to the destination and, and the guest experience. And I think this is something that is, is worth pointing out here. Price is not the deciding factor. Michelin's very, very explicit about that.

This is not about whatever hotel charges the most wins, which I'll also touch on when we talk about price as well.

This is very much about intentionality and thoughtfulness and whether every detail was in fact thought through, which I think, again, is this entire philosophy in a nutshell. So for scale and context, A1 key, which is what AT holds, means a very special stay with high comfort and real personality. Two keys is exceptional.

Three keys is the absolute pinnacle of hospitality on the entire planet.

And because this whole concept of the Michelin key was new to me, I did a little bit of digging and I came to find out that a Michelin key has been awarded to fewer than 7,000 properties out of more than 700,000 hotels worldwide. That is an unbelievably small percentage. And in Orlando specifically, AT is one of only three hotels in the entire city to ever earn a Michelin Key.

Along with the Lake Nona Wave Hotel and the Ritz Carlton Orlando in Grand Lakes. I name that one specifically because you know exactly what company that is.

So I think repeating is even a much bigger deal than people realize.

And as I dug further because I wanted to see what the Michelin people actually said about the hotel, and I'm paraphrasing, they said that despite being minutes from the theme parks, you walk through their door and. And it feels as urban and sophisticated as a boutique hotel in Miami or New York. That's Michelin saying that, not me.

I actually said that it felt like a boutique hotel in Europe. But you see, clearly our thoughts are in parallel.

And I want to quickly come back to something that I mentioned as I was talking about walking into the hotel, because it really did strike me as I walked in the first time and as I came in and out a number of times over the couple of days that I was there. And it's not something we normally necessarily pay Attention to. And it's the scent. And I know it sounds like a small thing. It's not.

If you've been to the Walt Disney World, Swan and Dolphin, you know that there is a signature scent when you walk in. Like, even when you. I mean, Disney doesn't really do that in a lot of their hotels.

A few that they do even, like when you used to walk into the Polynesian. When they had the water feature, it had a signature scent which sort of came from. You know, we joke about the. The musty water scent, but this is.

Is different. They have a signature fragrance because I had to ask about it, which is specifically created for the property.

And you find it's very subtle, but you can sense it in the lobby and the common spaces. And even when you walk into your room and all the bath products, like, it's consistently.

And it flows through everything that you see, smell and touch.

And we know that the olfactory experience is really one of the most powerful and I think in terms of hospitality, I think is one of the most underutilized and simple tools. And the team here clearly understands that Disney does too. Right? We know that.

We know of the Smellitzers on Main Street, USA, the way Adventureland and Liberty Square each have their own distinct sense. It's not accidental, it's intentional. And I think it does it very, very well. But it all sort of mixes in again.

I sort of keep referring back to the Disneyisms of it all. It's it again. Everything speaks. We consume things in all five senses and 360 degrees. It's not about just what you smell, it's about what you see.

It's the lighting and the textures and it's quiet and it's peaceful and it's very calm, which is exactly what I was looking for and exactly what I kind of dig. The whole space feels very, very. I think when I was on the live show, I think I talked about it feeling curated. Right.

It's not just sort of pieced together in terms of here's a place to sit, here's a place to wait. It felt as though it was meant to very clearly communicate a certain vibe.

Again, I got the sense that it was very European in what I felt when I walked through. And in talking to the folks from ette, the founders and the owners of the ette Hotel are obviously very well traveled.

It is a lot of that European sensibility that is injected into this experience.

And they wanted to take that and really kind of distill that down into this again for me, Completely unknown property in central Florida just steps from the theme park. And, and I was trying to figure out the way to describe it and the way I felt. And look, I admittedly, like, you know, I'm very fortunate to try.

I have a very tough time relaxing. It is a deficiency in me. But this hotel slows you down. And I don't think that's something that happens very easily in this part of the world. Right.

We come to Disney and we're just going so quickly all the time. Right. We spend the day in the parks, moving fast from attraction to attraction, standing in line, getting to our ADRs.

Like we're making decisions very quickly all the time. And I think when you walk into et, like something changes. Like the pace changes and the noise goes away.

I said it from the second you sort of pull into the driveway. And I think it happens very easily and very quickly. And for me, very clearly, subconsciously.

And you know, I keep talking about Disneyisms and relating things to Disney because I think it's very important because we obviously first and foremost are Disney fans. But I think there are things about this hotel which is clearly not owned by Disney, it's not on Disney property.

But I think there are things that resonate with us as Disney fans in a very specific way. Right. We know Walt said about, you can design and create the most wonderful place on earth, but it takes people to make the dream reality.

And even before getting into my room and talking about the restaurant and some of the other aspects of the hotel, one of the things that I think AT does very well, that I noticed from the moment I stepped up to check in is really the human element of hospitality.

And I think it's one of the reasons why I love being in small, quaint, small number of room size boutique hotels because you're not lost or standing in this long line of people that are checking in. And from the moment I walked in the door, every single employee I encountered smiled. They said hello.

Like, not the performative obligatory smile, but like a genuine, like, we're happy that you're here smiles. As Disney fans, I, I think we are like, I look for the small details, right.

Walt talked about the importance of every light bulb on Main street has to be on, every flower has to be perfect. Because if not, those are the things you notice, right? You notice the things that are wrong.

Like, I paid very close attention to the fact that everyone's uniforms were immaculate.

Even just the way they all carried themselves, from the wait staff to housekeeping to everybody in between all the interactions And I watched as I was waiting to sit down to eat, like I was watching the interactions of the bartender with a guest at a bar again, the way housekeeping staff presented themselves again. Michael Eisner said that everything speaks without saying a word.

And I think this is a lesson that if you are a business owner, you can and should take and pay forward. The environment that you set the environment around you is communicating something. Take notice of that next time.

Whether it's a Disney hotel or anywhere else that you go, any business that you go to, what it communicates comes through very clearly at like, I got the sense like, okay, we're taking very good care. We are paying attention. And your experience from beginning to end really matters because that's the Disney standard.

And I think it's extraordinary to encounter that like that outside of Disney property. I mean, we're really close. Like we're Disney adjacent.

And I think that attention to detail also extends to the physical design in the ways that we like it. I think it feels familiar to us who love the Disney parks. So, for example, like they have a laundry museum. It's called. It's.

We'll talk more about that in a minute. The restaurant has an open kitchen. There's a selfie wall in the hallway, but elevated and elegant.

There's a rotating art installation and fashion collaborations with Neiman Marcus on the Orlando Ballet. There's a book room and a curated perfume bar tucked in the property. And 4,000 square feet of event space in this small 126 room hotel.

These are not normal. Like, these are not things you normally find. Again, not just anywhere, but especially sort of where this hotel to.

Why I keep saying how surprising it is. Like every corner of the property and I walk through every corner of it has been very deliberately thought about. Nothing here is arbitrary.

And this is not just my impression. Like I've seen this again. After I came out, I was like, am I the only one who feels this way?

I'm seeing guests who stayed at both ET and places like the 4 season and the Ritz Carlton pointing out that isn't trying to be that. It's not trying to be a full blown resort. It's the ETT hotel that, not the AT resort.

It's not trying to play that game, but the build quality, the obsession to detail, the people. I think it genuinely rivals hotels that spoiler alert cost twice as much.

So I checked in on late Wednesday afternoon after an event and just a couple hours before my WW radio live show, which I was obviously going to do.

From the hotel started and once I got into my room, I could tell I got like this stupid smile on my face and I just wanted to like take off my shoes and lay on the bed and not leave the room. To me, like the rest of the hotel is a very European feel. I think it's very understated. It's very elegantly appointed. It's not over decorated.

Like it's. It's elevated but still comfortable, if that makes sense. Like the bedding is luxurious.

The temperature was nice and cold exactly the way I like it, like borderline arctic, which is great. And I mean that as a compliment. You open the door and you got that same subtle scent as soon as you walked in.

Again, it's that minor detail that I think ties into the entire sensory experience of the property. Like you go to bed and you smell E.T. You wake up and you shower and you smell E.T. You go downstairs and you smell.

Again, it's not overpowering or flowery or like perfumey, but once again it is something that is consistent and at least for me, was noticeable in a good way. I also loved like and again, I'm going to post a a another video of a walkthrough of the room and all the details.

But there are dark hardwood floors, There is Le Labo bath amenities. There's this beautiful signature box as soon as you walk in, an espresso machine turn down service, room service.

Like all of these things individually are small, but I think together they add up to give you a room again that feels like it is and you, more importantly, are completely taken care of. I'm not a like a foofy guy, but even like the bath products carry that signature at scent.

And of course there are a wide variety of different types of room categories. There are true queens, which is what I was in.

True kings up through elegant rooms and full suites, including a dedicated wellness suite built specifically for recovery.

I've seen in some of the reviews mentions of peloton and techno gym equipment in that category, which is worth knowing if fitness is part of your travel routine. Hi, I'm Lou.

It's not mine, but we'll talk more about wellness and I love the fact that it is very much not just a part of things that you'll find like at the spa downstairs, but even in your room as well. And once again, I was on the sixth floor. It is only six stories high.

The view from my room I was not prepared for either, as I knew obviously that I was near Disney's Animal Kingdom.

But I could See Spaceship Earth, the Walt Disney World swan and dolphin, the Tower of Terror from my room, a mile from Animal Kingdom, like, the whole resort was there. And yes, you can go upstairs and watch fireworks at night. We'll get to that a little bit later. But I think it's.

It's important to know how close you are, but still feeling like you are wrapped in something that is very peaceful and very quiet and very much removed from that now, because I got there again Wednesday afternoon, I was going to do the live show that night, going to do a quick walkthrough, but we were also going to sit down with a couple of folks from at, including the chef, and do a live show from Salt and the Cellar, which is their restaurant. So let's talk about the food. Yay.

Because as much as this hotel impressed me, the dinner at Salt and Cellar is still what I am thinking and talking about. If I have seen you recently and, like, at the Meat of the Month this past week. By the way, thank you everybody who came out for Calistrail Progress.

You probably heard me talk about the hotel and the restaurant. It serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. So if you just want to stay at the resort all day, you can.

And the menu was designed by a chef who grew up in his dad's pastry shop in New York City, working at Chelsea Market before the Food Network put it on the map. So, you know, the food's gotta be good. He learned to roll croissants standing on milk crates because he couldn't reach the counter. Bro, I get you.

I see you.

He has no formal culinary training, just a lifetime immersed in food, in quality, and a belief that a meal should be an experience and not just a simple transaction. And that philosophy came through in every single dish, certainly in our conversation with the chef.

I'll put a link in the show notes where you can go over to YouTube and watch the full replay of the live show and conversation with the chef. But he made a point at dinner that really stuck with me. He said, and I think unintentionally was, was quoting Ratatouille.

He said, anyone can cook, right? Anybody can learn how to cook now. There's apps, there's masterclasses. Recipes are everywhere. You can go on YouTube.

What people, most people don't have access to is the quality of ingredients that a restaurant like this can source. That's the differentiator. And it's something you can absolutely taste.

I should also mention here, while I'm thinking about it, they have a Sunday afternoon tea service that's offered, including a specific blend of tea that they were talking about that I cannot wait to come and try. So there's a lot more happening here than just dinner. And I'm already planning on going back for the brunch, and I already talked to them.

I want to go back and do a live dining review and bring friends to and I want to bring you to the full dining experience as well. And I'll save a lot of the detail, the discussion until and when we do that. But I have got to mention two words for you, and it is tuna pizza.

Don't roll your eyes. I promise. This is the signature dish. This is the one that if you go, you are going to talk about.

The one that if you come here and you don't order it, I don't know what to tell you. You are missing out on something very special because it's called pizza. Don't let that fool you. Like, and it. Don't let it sound casual either.

The quote unquote crust is incredibly, like wafer thin.

It's this just delicate little crisp base that does exactly what it should, which is just hold up everything together without competing with the topping, which is this incredible. And tuna is like one of my favorite foods on the planet. It's this very high quality, low fat tuna with truffle oil.

And the balance and the flavor is just remarkable. Like, the crust is the vehicle, the tuna is the star.

And I'm laughing because I remember the chef said that sometimes when they have a little bit of leftover, they'll take the scraps or like a piece breaks and they'll fold it together and eat it like a little sandwich. And I'm like, I need to be in that kitchen late at night because I can only imagine, like, double the texture, double the flavor.

I was going to do it myself when I was eating there at dinner, but I didn't want to embarrass myself and or offend the chef. But now I see that that's what he was doing anyway. There is also a full sushi bar at ett, and if you are a sushi lover, you need to know about this.

The quality is exceptional. There are signature rolls with torched salmon belly tempura, this balance of sauce and vinegar rice, which is amazing.

I actually tried one that was on the menu that has, wait for it, Pop Rocks on it. Again, I'm going to go back and do a full dining review.

But there was also duck, which, again, if you're not a duck person, this was like a Peking duck, but with this balsamic zoi reduction. It was fantastic. It wasn't gamey. And the short rib might have been my favorite entree of the entire night.

And fortunately, because there was a few of us at the table, he brought out a number of items for us to try. And then he brought out the lamb, and I was like, all right. I'm not really the biggest lamb kind of guy.

It's one of those things that I've tried a few different times. Sort of have to be in the mood for it because it can be strong, it can be gamey, it can be a lot. I ate the entire lamb chop.

There was no heavy sauces there. There was no gaminess. You weren't sort of, like, fighting the protein as opposed to enjoying it. It was clean. It was.

This was, again, I keep coming back to the word, one of the biggest and most pleasant surprises I've had at a dinner table in a long time. And as I said, I don't want to go too deep into all the individual items.

This is not really meant to be a dining review, but there's something I have to talk about, which is dessert. I know I'm not a sweets guy. I'm really not. But they told me I had to try the passion fruit mousse cigar.

And what arrives at your table is exactly what it sounds like. It looks like a giant lit cigar resting on an ashtray, complete with what appears to be a small pile of ash beside it.

The cigar, quote, unquote, is this passion fruit mousse that's wrapped in dark chocolate and almond, and the ash is made from cocoa nibs. It is one of the most thoughtful and, I think theatrical presentations I've seen at a dinner table and. And works on every level.

And once again, I keep coming back to everything speaks like, the box matters. The delivery matters, the story matters. The way you receive something changes the way you experience it.

If they would have just given me passion fruit mousse and chocolate nibs in just a plate or a bowl, it would not have been as impactful as it was having it in this format. Look, Disney understands that better than almost. I think any organization on earth. I think ET Gets it, too.

You're not just eating this passion fruit flavored dessert. You're having a moment. You're meant to eat something and enjoy something that is meant to be memorable.

Now, in the interest of full transparency and disclosure, I get it.

You're probably saying, well, Lou, of course you had an amazing experience that you were there with the chef and you were doing this, this hosted visit. That's true. But I don't think that matters. And I'll tell you why. Because I went back again the next night by myself, unannounced.

I didn't set anything up. There was nothing arranged, just as a guest. One, because I had to get the tuna pizza one more time. And two, I wanted to see if.

And if so how anything changed. And this was. The tuna pizza was amazing, by the way. But the thing that I think elevates at above everything else is. Exactly.

I'm coming back to sort of where I started.

You've got this beautiful building, you've got this extraordinary chef, you've got the Michelin recognition, the triple A diamonds, the saltwater pool, all these things. But if you don't have good service, none of that matters. Great service doesn't cover bad food. But great food also can't compensate for bad service.

And as I said at, from the minute I walked through the door, everybody made me feel welcome.

Like, not in that scripted, obligatory hospitality way, in a way that made me feel like everybody is proud of where they work and they want you to feel that. And I say that because it's not something that can be faked, and it's not something that can be, I think, manufactured.

I do a lot of public speaking and I talk specifically about the Disney difference and lessons that we can learn from Disney, not just on leadership, but more importantly, customer service and customer experience.

Because I also think, as opposed to coming at it from a former cast member perspective, I come at it from a guest perspective and talk about ways we can all leverage these lessons no matter what our business is. Right, because we're all in the.

We're all really, I think, in the relationship business, but the type of service that we have come to expect from places like Disney and I think when we go to other hotels like this, we come to expect as well. Comes down to, I think, not training, but culture. Like, you either hire for it and cultivate it from the top down, or you don't. And at clearly does.

Like, Walt was right. The people make the place. And I wanted to make sure that my or see if my experience was, in fact, unique.

So I went back, and after I got home, I went and looked at some of the independent reviews online. Guests are calling out specific spa staff by name as a highlight of their stay.

They talked about how this was their second or third visit and the service held up exactly as it was the second time around. Like, that's consistency. That's not just about making a great first impression. Again, consistency of service is one of those five Michelin criteria.

So it all connects. Now, I did not get a chance to go to the spa. One, I'm not a big spa guy. Two, it was closed while I was there.

But I think beyond the restaurant, I also didn't get. I saw the pool, I didn't get a chance to go in the pool. There's a lot happening there that makes it feel like a resort rather than a boutique hotel.

That's why I kept on calling it at resort during the live show accidentally, because that's how it felt. So there is a small spa with these beautifully appointment treatment rooms. There's luxury products.

There's a serenity room, serenity now with zero gravity lounge chairs. And during the day there's hot tea and light healthy snacks. It's just this quiet space with no agenda, no activity.

You can just go in there and relax. The pool is saltwater, which I dig.

It's one of the only saltwater pools in the area, completely chemical free, which I think is consistent with the hotel sort of wellness philosophy. They have this lovely little outdoor patio where they do Sunday tea and yoga and Pilates. I will personally stick with the tea.

And as I mentioned, on the sixth floor there is a small rooftop fireworks viewing area that has during the summer freshly pop chef made popcorn.

And you can see Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios, which I think is a huge perk that I think they really need to almost lean into more. Because on my last night there I did go up and I wanted to just see.

And again, I'll post a video on social this week, check out my Instagram to see what that I was able to see a little bit of the Epcot fireworks and what that looks like. And I was the only person there. Like I felt like this was almost this private little elevated, literally and figuratively viewing area.

And actually that just made me think of something else that someone said during our live broadcast that they're going to be bringing in, I think mid July, just a couple of weeks from now, or depending on when you're listening to this, they're going to be bringing complimentary transportation in Lincoln SUVs to both the Disney parks and SUVs, which again I think makes this a really compelling option if you are visiting from out of the area. So when you come to the resort, you don't have to worry about taking a crowded shuttle or an Uber or a Lyft.

They will have complimentary transportation to and from the parks and Disney Springs. And the other thing I said that I was going to come back to, which you're probably like, wait a minute, Mongella, you talk about a laundry museum.

Like, is there really a museum of laundry? Yes and no. It's not what you're thinking. They have this, you know, we talked about sort of the open kitchen and being able to sort of see things.

They have this beautifully designed, fully visible laundry room where you can see your towels and linens being folded and cleaned and paired with this little signature pastry and an espresso. Like, it sounds silly and quirky, but I think that's. I kept on coming back to this.

I'm like, this is the expression of the philosophy about being transparent and being intentional, showing you how things are done.

And I think almost, you know, showcasing not just the people who are doing it, but I think it was about sort of finding the beauty sometimes in the things that most hotels hot.

Like, we don't want to see the laundry, but by making it something that is on display, I think it changes our perception of it and I think the hotel as well. And so I want to be. I want to take a pause for a second because you might be saying this sounds great, but I'm not really sure this is for me.

Like, because I thought about this afterwards, I was like, who is this hotel really for? And I think it's important to answer this and be very clear and honest about it because it is probably not for everybody.

And I think that's a strength, not a weakness. I think this is the right and perfect hotel for couples.

If you're going on an anniversary trip, maybe an adult only getaway, if you're a food lover, if you want a quiet and sophisticated and upscale home base near Disney, if you are a solo traveler, of which I was, I was there by myself. If you want to be able to eat at the bar or at a table and feel okay and be taken care of without any fuss.

If you are local and want to do a staycation and want to feel like you have escaped somewhere very, very different, but only being minutes away, probably for where you live, this is your place.

I also think if you are a Disney fan coming from out of state and you want something that is a little bit different, you want to be close to the parks, but you also want to be able to decompress in an environment that is, I think, very much the opposite of the theme park at the end of the day, right?

You're immersed in the Disney sensory experience all day and when you come back to ETT at night, it's sort of the way and the opportunity to exhale a little bit.

So I'm not sure if this is the right fit for large families with young kids who are looking for a water slide and character breakfast and bus to Magic Kingdom. That's okay. Like there are places for you like that. But I think AT knows exactly what it is.

And to that point, let's talk about where this sits in terms of price because I think this is where you. I know I was very pleasantly surprised. I feel like this is the type of elevated resort experience that is on par with something like a Four Seasons.

Room rates here do not reflect that. Room rates here run in the high threes, low fours per night. And they're, they're pretty consistent.

Like they don't fluctuate dramatically with the seasons the way most hotels and obviously Disney resort rates do. Like you're not going to book in October and find out that you're paying $900 a night during a festival week.

Plus, there's a couple of other distinct things that I think are very important to mention. There is no parking fee. There's no resort fee. There's no wi fi charge. The bill is what the bill is like your resort rate.

That's the rate and that's it.

And when you compare that to some of the deluxe Disney resorts during peak periods or some of the other hotels on property that charge a resort fee and like mandatory parking fees, that value equation becomes very interesting very quickly. Oh, there's something else too.

They also participate in magical dining, which is a great low commitment entry point for anybody who wants to experience salt and the seller without committing to a full stay. You can get there. Try the tuna pizza. Let that food speak for itself. And then I think you're going to book a stay after.

And I think at that price point and at 126 room and the staff to guest ratio, which I think has huge value, I can see why people come and more importantly, come back. I talked to a couple guests on my second day there who this was like their third time there.

And someone was checking out who had just spent a couple of weeks, weeks there because they fell in love with this hotel from the first time they stayed. And look from a personal perspective right when I would like, I think this is important about distinguishing what makes this visit different.

Thanks to you, I have been able to travel a lot around the world and I have stayed in some amazing hotels and resorts and eaten at extraordinary restaurants to have an Experience that like this is so very much unexpected is very rare. And at and I keep using the same word because it's the only one at surprised me over and over again.

Like from the moment I pulled into the to the driveway through walk to the front door to the smell of the lobby and the. The tuna pizza and looking out and seeing the fireworks over Spaceship Earth.

Like I forgot for a lot of the time that I was there, that I was sitting just a mile from Walt Disney World. I really did feel like I was transported somewhere else entirely. Somewhere that required like a passport to get to, not an exit off 192.

And that doesn't happen often. I think it's worth mentioning. It's why I decided to do this type of content about it as opposed to just a short real or social post.

Because I think it's important to pay attention when unexpected experiences like this happen. Because I want to share them with you.

And I've stayed again, thanks to you, at every single hotel on Walt Disney World property.

This hotel, just a mile from property to me, largely unknown, I had no idea it existed, is doing extraordinary things, I think very quietly and very consistently. And it really surprised me more than any hotel I have visited in recent memory.

Again, if you're looking for a water slide and character breakfast in a Disney bubble like experience, this is not it. Right? Everything, every sort of hotel has its place in the circle of life.

But if you are looking for exceptional food, true world class hospitality, thoughtful design, and a place that feels like a very small, quaint, peaceful, elegant retreat that is going to reset you after a day in the parks, I absolutely think you should check out ET Hotel. And if and when you do, or if you have, I would love to hear about it.

I'd love to know what your experience was like what you, after listening to this episode, what your thoughts are. Is this something that now sort of becomes something on your radar? Like, would you ever, this is sort of my question to you.

Would you or do you ever make a non Disney property sort of like your central hub for your Walt Disney World vacation?

Like if the hotel itself becomes part of the experience, would you be willing to look at a non Disney World resort for your Disney World vacation experience? Let me know. Come over to the WW radio clubhouse at www.comclubhouse. Let's have a conversation there.

Or email me if you want to, just email me [email protected] I read and reply personally to every single message. And of course, if you are ready to give ET Hotel a try, you absolutely should.

You can of course visit my friends over@m MouseFanTravel.com and they can take care of all of the booking arrangements for you, of course, at no cost to you. Thank you once again to ET Hotel for inviting me for what was clearly an extraordinary experience.

I will be back not just for the tuna pizza, but a stay once again. This was such a wonderful escape. Just minutes away from where I live and I still can't stop thinking about the tuna pizza.

If only there was somebody, anybody who'd be willing to go with me. That's going to do it for this week's show. First and foremost, thank you so much for being here.

You could have spent your time anywhere and the fact that you chose to spend part of your day or night or commute with me means the world. I sincerely appreciate you. As I said last time, no trivia contest this week. You have until July 6th to answer our last trivia contest question.

If you do and are randomly selected, you'll receive a prize package that includes a mystery prize from my trip to Shanghai and Hong Kong Disneyland that I brought back just for you.

And you know, I keep thinking about this as as we're wrapping up and I keep coming back to the question that I asked you at the top of the show, which is how did I not know about this place? Like, because I think the more that I sit with it and the more that I think, like, that's actually the whole point of doing the show.

After 20 plus years, there are still so many surprises out there, still hidden gems in the parks and the resorts and a mile from the parks that we think we know inside and out. And still those moments that I think catch us completely off guard in the best possible way.

I still find it at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, the Overseas parks, Disney Cruise Line, and then experiences like this.

And I think if this week's show taught me anything, it's remember to stay curious and keep looking past the obvious because sometimes I think the most extraordinary experiences aren't the ones that everybody's already talking about. But if this episode surprised you the way clearly it surprised me, please do me a favor. Share it with somebody who needs to hear it.

Send it to a friend who might be planning their next trip or maybe someone who's looking for something a little bit different. That's how this community, that's how this family grows. One personal recommendation at a time.

And as always, I want this show to not just be something you listen to and move on. I want this to really to be a two way conversation. So if you stayed at would you ever choose a non Disney hotel as your home base?

Is there somewhere else in the Orlando area that you love? Please let me and others know. Come be part of the community and conversation over in the clubhouse at www.radio.com clubhouse.

Call the voicemail and please connect with me over on social. I don't like, follow or subscribe. Come be my friend over on social as well. You can find me on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. I am at Lumangello.

Tell me what surprised you that you maybe heard in this week's show or anything that you want to talk about. I literally do want to hear from you and chat with you.

And whether you are booking a stay at a Disney resort, a cruise or anywhere in between, don't forget that my friends over@m MouseFanTravel.com don't just help you plan a vacation, they help you create the kind of experience that we've been talking about in this episode. I trust them with my own travel and I know you can too.

It is why I have worked with them and more importantly trusted to recommend them for more than 20 years. Visit them over at mousefantravel.com for a completely free, no obligation quote and let them help you plan your perfect Disney Day.

Or apparently your perfect Disney Day just one mile outside the parks.

And if this week's episode has you thinking about chasing your own version of surprising, whether it's building something new or stepping outside the obvious choice the way it did, I want to remind you about my Momentum Weekend Workshop.

It is my four day, one room, 50 person event for entrepreneurs, creators and solopreneurs October 15th through the 18th right here in Walt Disney World at the Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista just across the street from Disney Springs. I am very excited about this year's lineup.

It is the most intentional one I think I've ever put together, including a session from Michael Collier, who is a former Walt Disney World ambassador who walked away from one of the most recognizable roles in the world to build his own brand from scratch.

And across the weekend we're going to cover monetization in depth, AI tools and workflows, video and content strategy, building authentic community of which you are a part of and an example of, and the systems that actually help you step away from your business without it falling apart. This is not a conference where you go and take notes and leave maybe inspired and do nothing with it.

Months later, Momentum is intentionally intimate again. 50 Seats, which means every session is built around you and you leave with not just a 200 plus page workbook but want to do the work in the room.

And you're also going to leave with a real documented plan. Not just inspiration, not just new friendships, not just people to collaborate with.

Early Bird pricing is still live right now you save $200 on your ticket. We have less than 25 seats left. Those are going to fill up fast.

You can get all the details and grab your [email protected] Momentum I would love to see you there. If you have any questions want to know if it's right for you, email me louwwdo.com and I'm happy to help you decide if Momentum is right for you.

And I think that's it for this week. I'm sure there's something that I forgot, but that's okay. I will hopefully see you on Wednesday night. So I will once again just leave you with this.

Please be kind, choose the good set examples for others by the things that you say and do and always keep moving forward. Have an amazing day and even better tomorrow. I love and appreciate you. So until next time, see ya.