We just returned home from a 5-night stay in a THV following 1 night at the Renaissance Orlando at Seaworld and a 2-night stay at the Ritz in Sarasota. We are a family of 4 with two daughters, age 19 and 16.
The THV was AWESOME! It was so peaceful. As a an owner, I felt an indescrible sense of pride in ownership. For the first time using points at DVC, I felt like an owner of a vacation home. We really enjoyed using the High Rock Springs pool (crowded), the Grandstand pool (not so crowded) and the THV pool (just us.)
Our location in Villa 7029 was great. At first, I was concerned about the location being too close to the bus stop, but it was perfect: smack dab between the bus stop, the boat dock, the pool and the path to Saratoga. We could barely hear the buses (we had to be listening for them.) The views were of trees with a glimpse of the boats going down the river.
Our biggest regret was spending too much time in the parks (and we visited the parks only one day with another day for Universal and another day for Discovery Cove which was wonderful even though it was the rainiest day of our vacation.) We walked to Saratoga, took the buses on the day we visited the parks and the boat to Downtown Disney. All were fine even at 1:15 am (the bus issue is not as much of a problem as people have feared.)
Now for the bad: the parking. The first few days it was fine. Then a large family with multiple vehicles moved in nearby. The walk from a spot further away wasn't bad, but I much preferred being able to park right out front. I would suggest assigned parking with one vehicle per unit. Probably the only other negative was that the rooms can get a little dark (we had one bulb out in the kitchen which was never replaced despite a request to do so on our first night.) The A/C was a concern before we left but it was fine.
Overall, we enjoyed our stay at WDW. However, the decline in customer service was noticeable and the food everywhere was just plain awful and woefully overpriced (except V & A which was worth every penny.) Early entry at the Studios had only two attractions open and others did not open until well past the park's official opening time. The Wishes Dessert party was great (though not as private as the original Dessert experience at Disneyland for Fantasmic.)
One final note. We attended both Welcome Home Wednesday and the Vacation as You Wish presentations. Welcome Home Wednesday was fun. For the Vacation as You Wish presentation yesterday at 3pm, we told the organizers we had only two hours because we had to catch an 8pm flight. They told us to go with an earlier group for the tour portion. The sales presentation ran over and we skipped most of the Dance Party to go with an earlier group. Because we had told them we had to leave early, they had us meet with a guide first who took us into a studio "to sell us" on BLT before we had even seen it. He talked a lot about "the numbers"--a much different approach than Disney has taken previously. I told him that while we had some interest in BLT, it did not appeal to us enough at this time to make a commitment and we would probably just be saving our money for Hawaii. He then said, "Well, do you know why they brought you to me, then?" Rude, rude, rude! We then quickly looked at the rooms, including the Grand Villa and the Members' Lounge, and left 2 hours and 20 minutes after we started. Very disappointed in this experience.
If anyone has any questions, let me know.
P.S. Paridiso 37 was fun, reasonably good and fairly priced with a great singer throughout the dinner. Wait staff was much friendler than we experienced anywhere else in Disney except V & A.
The THV was AWESOME! It was so peaceful. As a an owner, I felt an indescrible sense of pride in ownership. For the first time using points at DVC, I felt like an owner of a vacation home. We really enjoyed using the High Rock Springs pool (crowded), the Grandstand pool (not so crowded) and the THV pool (just us.)
Our location in Villa 7029 was great. At first, I was concerned about the location being too close to the bus stop, but it was perfect: smack dab between the bus stop, the boat dock, the pool and the path to Saratoga. We could barely hear the buses (we had to be listening for them.) The views were of trees with a glimpse of the boats going down the river.
Our biggest regret was spending too much time in the parks (and we visited the parks only one day with another day for Universal and another day for Discovery Cove which was wonderful even though it was the rainiest day of our vacation.) We walked to Saratoga, took the buses on the day we visited the parks and the boat to Downtown Disney. All were fine even at 1:15 am (the bus issue is not as much of a problem as people have feared.)
Now for the bad: the parking. The first few days it was fine. Then a large family with multiple vehicles moved in nearby. The walk from a spot further away wasn't bad, but I much preferred being able to park right out front. I would suggest assigned parking with one vehicle per unit. Probably the only other negative was that the rooms can get a little dark (we had one bulb out in the kitchen which was never replaced despite a request to do so on our first night.) The A/C was a concern before we left but it was fine.
Overall, we enjoyed our stay at WDW. However, the decline in customer service was noticeable and the food everywhere was just plain awful and woefully overpriced (except V & A which was worth every penny.) Early entry at the Studios had only two attractions open and others did not open until well past the park's official opening time. The Wishes Dessert party was great (though not as private as the original Dessert experience at Disneyland for Fantasmic.)
One final note. We attended both Welcome Home Wednesday and the Vacation as You Wish presentations. Welcome Home Wednesday was fun. For the Vacation as You Wish presentation yesterday at 3pm, we told the organizers we had only two hours because we had to catch an 8pm flight. They told us to go with an earlier group for the tour portion. The sales presentation ran over and we skipped most of the Dance Party to go with an earlier group. Because we had told them we had to leave early, they had us meet with a guide first who took us into a studio "to sell us" on BLT before we had even seen it. He talked a lot about "the numbers"--a much different approach than Disney has taken previously. I told him that while we had some interest in BLT, it did not appeal to us enough at this time to make a commitment and we would probably just be saving our money for Hawaii. He then said, "Well, do you know why they brought you to me, then?" Rude, rude, rude! We then quickly looked at the rooms, including the Grand Villa and the Members' Lounge, and left 2 hours and 20 minutes after we started. Very disappointed in this experience.
If anyone has any questions, let me know.
P.S. Paridiso 37 was fun, reasonably good and fairly priced with a great singer throughout the dinner. Wait staff was much friendler than we experienced anywhere else in Disney except V & A.
Thanks for the Report!!
