Best Section to Stay at SSR - Any Advice?

[jmack37]

We are going to Disney in January and are staying at SSR. I am now trying to decide which area of SSR to request. We are going with a 17 month-old and a 4 year-old. I'm pretty sure it will be Grandstand, Springs or Congress Park, all having their own advantages/disadvantages. Grandstand has the first bus pick-up less the water views, Springs has the convenience of the main buildings but is the last bus stop, and Congress Park has the possibility of nice views with of course another late bus pick up. We have never been to SSR - any opinions on what would be best for a family with small children? Anything would be greatly appreciated! Oh, and one more question: If you are picked up at Grandstand, how long does it take to make the bus route around the resort? Thanks!

 

[disneystick]

Just got back this past Monday from SSR. It was our first time home there. We own a small add on at SSR...main home is BCV. Here is my opinion and just my opinion.

We had requested Springs first and Congress Park second. We got Congress Park with a Downtown Disney view. Awesome view. However, unless you have a car...any part of SSR except Springs is quite a walk. We had our 80 yr. old Mother with us...and she was ok with all the walking. The walk from Congress Park to the main lobby was about a 10 minute casual stroll. We were in the first building (closest Congress Park building to Main lobby) room 2601. Since, we had a refillable mug...walking back and forth to fill the mug was not something we looked forward too. Especially since, we used it for breakfast one morning and did not want to go back to Congress to drop mugs off, but instead carrier it in our backpack. Then that night filled it up after the parks and once again the 10 minute walk back to our room.

The buses were fine...we never had more then a 10-15 minute wait on the bus during peak times. It takes about 15 minutes for the buses to do their complete rounds at SSR before going to the parks. And even though at Congress Parks...we never had a problem with no seats. Congress Park is second to last pick up and Springs is last, with Grandstand being first. However, to DTD it is revise with Springs first.

Everyone there was very helpful, friendly and they have great plan activities each day for the little ones. They give you a printout with the activities and times for each day. So even if you decided not to go to the parks...you and yours can still have a great time at SSR.

SSR is a very beautiful resort...I would have loved it more if I had a car instead of depending on the buses. Because without a car...staying there, will require lots of walking back and forth. I'm glad I got to stay there, and those who likes the apartment feel in a resort...this place is great!

 

[Amy&Dan]

I would say that on average the route from Grandstand to Springs is five minutes. And that of course depends on how long it takes to load and unload other guests and if there are any scooters involved. But five minutes is a safe bet. The Grandstand is a very nice section, very close to the Springs, it has a very fun pool with spray cannons your kids would love (and its own pool bar and drink station). Another section I really like is The Paddock. Its number 3 on the stop, is very quiet, has a nice quiet pool and playground right there and is between 5-7 minutes to the Springs across a bridge/pond. I love that section. My daughter loved walking across that bridge and we had my mom with us that trip, and even though she was quite ill, she did fine with the walk as well. That section is very quiet which is nice but didn't feel too remote or cut off. It doesn't get a lot of mention but to me, its a great section to be in!

We were also just in the Congress Park Section also in the first building, closest to the Springs and it took us around 5-7 minutes to get to the main area. I loved that section as well. One of the things that made it so nice was that if we dined at other resorts, we could easily walk to DTD and then hop whatever resort bus we needed. The quiet pool in Congress Park is amazing at night in particular as it has a lovely view of DTD.

SSR is very large, however, once you get the lay of it, its easy to navigate around. My husband and I took lots of walks around the resort and because I am a disboard geek, I timed myself several times on how long it took from the various sections to the main area. Even from the Carousel (furthest out) it never took longer than ten minutes at a reasonable pace. I have stayed all over WDW and most of the resorts have long walks involved one way or the other. I do agree, if you have a car,, SSR is even more convenient as you can park outside your door. However, we didn't have a car this trip and never missed it. And one thing about it, unlike other WDW resorts that have only one bus stop, at SSR, your unit is not far from your stop which after a long day is really nice.

I hope you have a great stay!

 

[monorailmom]

Hi all, we just came back from our first DVC stay last week. We were in the Grandstand, and I said all week while we were there that we definitely picked the right section. We were the first bus stop, never had a large crowd to deal with while waiting. Twice the bus had to bypass everyone waiting at the Springs, because the bus was full by then. It is a bit of a walk to the Artists's Palette, but the pool with the water sprayers made up for it! I did like the view from the Congress Park area, and my kids actually asked if we could try staying over there sometime. My kids are older, though, so the draw of Downtown Disney is a big deal. If I had little ones, I think I'd definitely pick the Grandstand.

 

[jwfla422]

We are going to Disney in January and are staying at SSR. I am now trying to decide which area of SSR to request. We are going with a 17 month-old and a 4 year-old. I'm pretty sure it will be Grandstand, Springs or Congress Park, all having their own advantages/disadvantages. Grandstand has the first bus pick-up less the water views, Springs has the convenience of the main buildings but is the last bus stop, and Congress Park has the possibility of nice views with of course another late bus pick up. We have never been to SSR - any opinions on what would be best for a family with small children? Anything would be greatly appreciated! Oh, and one more question: If you are picked up at Grandstand, how long does it take to make the bus route around the resort? Thanks!

We "usually" request CP first and then GS. Usually we get CP which we really like because it's a pretty easy walk to DTD, however that being said it is usually only myself and my 10 yr old dd. We also have a car and we have driven to the main area on several occasions either to go to the pool or to catch the boat.

Two weeks ago we were in GS which I actually did like..a lot. We were right by the bus stop, and as already mentioned is the first stop which a definite plus.

We were about a 5 minute walk to the boat dock to DTD and to the main bldg/pool area. I found this section to be a bit more convenient than CP however if you wanted to walk to DTD from GS it would be a fairly long walk. There is a bridge which you can walk over to the WEST side of DTD but it takes you to the Cirque parking lot which is fairly large.

It was a nice change for us and I would welcome staying in GS again. In your case I'd recommend GS since you have little ones. You'd want to have seats on the bus and have the convenience of being close to the main bldg. The Springs is also close to the main bldg but on most of the bus routes it's the last stop.

 

[maraki527]

We like to request the Grandstand or the Springs. Our first three trips using DVC we had the Springs. It is close to everything. The only downside is not having seats on the bus sometimes but we usually go the first week or two of December so its a little slower.

 

[jndmommy]

Good info, planning a week there next August. Will have to reread this thread b4 we go. Thanks