Anyone else find Stormalong Bay overrated?

[tinkerbellybutton]

I am sort of torn on this pool.

Yes, I do think it's overhyped. Some say "it's like a mini waterpark". We don't agree, it's a far cry from a waterpark in our minds.

However, we do love it. We love the sand bottom area, we love the lazy river area, my boys love the slide. It can be difficult to navigate with more than a couple of kids, and forget about being able to keep an eye on your child unless you are with them at all times. This isn't a "hang out on a lounge chair and watch your kids play" kind of pool. It's too spread out for any of that nonsense. LOL.

When my boys were younger, I think 6 and 8 we stayed at BC for a week, followed by the Poly for 3 nights. At that age the Poly pool was favored by all of us because it was easier. It was easy to keep an eye on both kids even if one was one the slide while the other played in the sand. It was easier for the kids to get around without one of us constantly hovering over them. For that age the Poly pool was more enjoyable all around, except for no hot tub. For that reason WL is one of our favorite "easy" pool areas.

Then we stayed at YC when my boys were 12 and 10 and they LOVED the pool that time. They were old enough for us to let them roam freely within the pool area, and they enjoyed that freedom.

So I guess it just depends on your family, ages of kids, what your looking for in your resort pool time. Overhyped??? Yes, I think it is!

 

[Pirate Me]

I like the quiet pools better and would only go to SAB late at night when it's not too crowded.

 

[penel3]

Both my DS (13) and I think it's definitely overrated. He says the slide is very uncomfortable....

too many WDW trips to mention, 2007 Wonder Concierge, January 2013 Wonder Concierge, WDW AKL Concierge Nov 2013, March 2014 Walter E. Disney Suite (finally!!!!)

 

[sunshineNJ]

It's very pretty but the slide hurt my daughter's back and she said it was not comfortable at all. I didn't like the separate areas.

 

[sonofanarchy]

It's very pretty but the slide hurt my daughter's back and she said it was not comfortable at all. I didn't like the separate areas.

The slide is awful on the back. Not sure why it's designed that way, but it should really be changed.

 

[mcd2745]

I like the quiet pools better and would only go to SAB late at night when it's not too crowded.

Actually, my biggest problem with it was that it wasn't open late at night. SAB closed at 10pm every night (this was in August) when we stayed at the BC - I believe it should have been open to at least 1 or 2am. We would have loved to spend some time there after returning from the parks, but couldn't. On the whole though, the BC is easily my favorite resort for location/convenience, decor and service (although could use a food court - especially for expanded CS breakfast selections).

While we enjoyed it very much (when we could), I do think those who describe SAB as a "mini-water park" are completely over-hyping it. Yes, it's a very nice complex, but nowhere near a mini water park. I can definitely understand people thinking it is overrated - and it probably is overall here on the DIS.

 

[Murron]

Love everything about BC but not crazy about SAB for all the reasons other posters have already stated -- too crowded and really too awkward to navigate. We live in the BCV quiet pool.

 

[bwifan]

Am I the only one who swims in the lazy river? I love it. I'm really tall so it's nice to be able to chill and tread and swim and laugh as my kids try to stay on a tube! My son needs tube lessons or something.

 

[DisneyFanatic1215]

Bummer to hear that! I was considering staying here for our next trip because I thought my family would love it!

 

[pixarmom]

We love SAB. As you can see from my signature, we've stayed at BC many times, but we've also stayed at a number of other WDW resorts. For fun, SAB is definitely our favorite pool. For peace and quiet, the BWI quiet pool is #1. It really depends on the ages of your children, their swimming ability, and what you expect from a pool. But in our opinion, SAB has it all - zero depth sandy area that STAYS shallow and doesn't connect to deeper areas of the pool; multiple hot tubs; big slide for the big kids and really fun kiddie slide for the little kids; corners that are more relaxing; waterfalls and bridges, volleyball, lazy river, etc. We've at SAB during all four seasons and never had difficulty finding a chair (but we're looking for one or two to store our stuff and to use as a home base for my husband and me - not five in a row.) During our last few visits, we've set up camp near the waterfall in front of Beaches & Cream. Now that our boys are older and all three are swim team swimmers, my husband and I were able to order drinks and enjoy a little more relaxation time than we have in the past. Clearly, I'm biased, and here's the SAB photo thread I created a couple years ago to prove it: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2790323

For those who mentioned the big slide, our boys used to think the slide was uncomfortable. Still the best resort slide on property, but uncomfortable. After several slide rehabs, in January of this year, they reported no discomfort on the slide. So at least for our boys (ages 6, 13 and 14) the slide is in much better shape now.

 

[pixarmom]

Am I the only one who swims in the lazy river? I love it. I'm really tall so it's nice to be able to chill and tread and swim and laugh as my kids try to stay on a tube! My son needs tube lessons or something.

You are not alone! Our teens swim in the lazy river - no tubes. But they're strong swimmers so I wouldn't recommend it for tiny kids or beginners!

 

[Boski]

Bummer to hear that! I was considering staying here for our next trip because I thought my family would love it!

They will love it, my family does.