aring75
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2001
- Messages
- 320
My husband and I stayed at OKW in early November (sorry it took so long to post, too much going on this time of year). We purchased points from a DVC member. I was hesitant about this because it was the first time I had tried it, but all reservations were exactly as I had expected.
Now, we only stayed three nights, so I realize we did not get to experience everything the resort had to offer. That being said . . .
We arrived around 2:30 PM. (We had reserved a studio since it was just the two of us and only three nights. I do not recommend this. Even if there will be only two adults, go for the one bedroom. You'll be much happier. Even with the much lower rate, we did not feel the room was worth the money.) The CM who checked us in to the resort (Amy) was pleasant, if not overly friendly. No complaints here. She said there was a studio already available (two queen beds - nothing available with king) and we could get our room keys right away. Okay, that made me happy, I knew we were a little early. She told us that it was a handicapped-accessible room, but there would be both a tub and a shower. "Okay," said I, "as long as it will have both, because that's important." "Don't worry," said Amy.
Well, when we got to our room (which was located right beside a road with heavy traffic) we found that it definitely did not have a tub. Only a shower with a fold-down bench. Ugh! After a call to the front desk, I was informed that the room we were in was the ony room available. Yeah. In early November. When we scarcely saw another person at the resort most times we went out. Okay. Aggrevating, but not enough to ruin a vaction. We dealt. I decided to just get over the lack of bathtub and enjoy the vacation anyway.
Our first night's sleep brought another unpleasant surprise. The pillows on the beds are pratically nonexistant. The first night was so uncomfortable I got less than three hours sleep. The very next day we made an unscheduled trip to Wal-Mart in Kissimmee for a decent pillow. If you plan to stay here and like a firm pillow, bring one from home.
The room we were in seemed older and in need of some "sprucing up." There was some kind of permanent mildew in the tile grout in the bathroom and the sink did not drain properly. Wallpaper in various areas of the room was torn and peeling from the walls. Our television did not get very good reception and the color was a little off. It looked more like a black and white TV instead of color. We tried to find a way to correct it and couldn't. The carpet seemed pretty new, they may be in the process of replacing things one at a time. (??)
The room does come with a coffee pot, microwave oven and small refrigerator. These items all seemed to be relatively new and in working order. However, we had no need of them while we were there.
The towels and linens were okay. They did not seem old or worn.
There was a ceiling fan, but it only had one speed. Slow. Very slow. Too slow to feel any noticeable breeze. Which was too bad, since we both like the breeze and noise of a fan on high speed. Oh well.
The exterior of the resort was nice. The laid-back Key West-style theming was relaxing. Nice foliage. The pool area was very nice. Lots of chairs and chaise lounges. Even a sauna. Didn't get to try that, although I wanted to. There's a separate kiddie pool.
We ate dinner at the resort's only sit-down restaurant, Olivia's. The decor was very casual. The food was good. My husband ordered the "Surf and Turf" platter with bacon-wrapped shrimp and lobster (it was the day's special) and I got the NY Strip. He loved his. I thought mine was good but not great. I would love to find a restaurant that could consistently cook a steak MEDIUM. Not medium rare, not medium well. LOL! My steak was barely pink in the middle, but tasted good. Also, my veggies were too salty. The service started out badly, but improved as the meal progressed. We thought the server may have just started his shift and took a little while to warm up. They have sweet iced tea. That's a really good thing. There aren't many WDW restarants that do, and that scores rather high with me. Not only is it sweet tea, it's "southern sweet" tea, which anyone who lives or has lived in the South can tell you means you can almost stand your spoon up in it. Okay, maybe I exaggerate, but just a little. All-in-all the meal at Olivia's was good enough to say we would probably eat there again given the opportunity.
The transportation was not bad. It was only an issue one day. Our last day at OKW we decided to take advantage of EMH at MGM Studios. The early bus never showed up. We waited at the bus stop for 35 minutes. Luckily ours was the first stop, because, by the time the bus finally got there and picked up everyone waiting for MGM, it was packed as tight as any bus I've ever seen leaving EPCOT after the fireworks!
Checking out of the resort was quick and painless. And we spent our next three days at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and enjoyed it so much more. But that's better left to another post . . .
Now, we only stayed three nights, so I realize we did not get to experience everything the resort had to offer. That being said . . .
We arrived around 2:30 PM. (We had reserved a studio since it was just the two of us and only three nights. I do not recommend this. Even if there will be only two adults, go for the one bedroom. You'll be much happier. Even with the much lower rate, we did not feel the room was worth the money.) The CM who checked us in to the resort (Amy) was pleasant, if not overly friendly. No complaints here. She said there was a studio already available (two queen beds - nothing available with king) and we could get our room keys right away. Okay, that made me happy, I knew we were a little early. She told us that it was a handicapped-accessible room, but there would be both a tub and a shower. "Okay," said I, "as long as it will have both, because that's important." "Don't worry," said Amy.
Well, when we got to our room (which was located right beside a road with heavy traffic) we found that it definitely did not have a tub. Only a shower with a fold-down bench. Ugh! After a call to the front desk, I was informed that the room we were in was the ony room available. Yeah. In early November. When we scarcely saw another person at the resort most times we went out. Okay. Aggrevating, but not enough to ruin a vaction. We dealt. I decided to just get over the lack of bathtub and enjoy the vacation anyway.
Our first night's sleep brought another unpleasant surprise. The pillows on the beds are pratically nonexistant. The first night was so uncomfortable I got less than three hours sleep. The very next day we made an unscheduled trip to Wal-Mart in Kissimmee for a decent pillow. If you plan to stay here and like a firm pillow, bring one from home.
The room we were in seemed older and in need of some "sprucing up." There was some kind of permanent mildew in the tile grout in the bathroom and the sink did not drain properly. Wallpaper in various areas of the room was torn and peeling from the walls. Our television did not get very good reception and the color was a little off. It looked more like a black and white TV instead of color. We tried to find a way to correct it and couldn't. The carpet seemed pretty new, they may be in the process of replacing things one at a time. (??)
The room does come with a coffee pot, microwave oven and small refrigerator. These items all seemed to be relatively new and in working order. However, we had no need of them while we were there.
The towels and linens were okay. They did not seem old or worn.
There was a ceiling fan, but it only had one speed. Slow. Very slow. Too slow to feel any noticeable breeze. Which was too bad, since we both like the breeze and noise of a fan on high speed. Oh well.
The exterior of the resort was nice. The laid-back Key West-style theming was relaxing. Nice foliage. The pool area was very nice. Lots of chairs and chaise lounges. Even a sauna. Didn't get to try that, although I wanted to. There's a separate kiddie pool.
We ate dinner at the resort's only sit-down restaurant, Olivia's. The decor was very casual. The food was good. My husband ordered the "Surf and Turf" platter with bacon-wrapped shrimp and lobster (it was the day's special) and I got the NY Strip. He loved his. I thought mine was good but not great. I would love to find a restaurant that could consistently cook a steak MEDIUM. Not medium rare, not medium well. LOL! My steak was barely pink in the middle, but tasted good. Also, my veggies were too salty. The service started out badly, but improved as the meal progressed. We thought the server may have just started his shift and took a little while to warm up. They have sweet iced tea. That's a really good thing. There aren't many WDW restarants that do, and that scores rather high with me. Not only is it sweet tea, it's "southern sweet" tea, which anyone who lives or has lived in the South can tell you means you can almost stand your spoon up in it. Okay, maybe I exaggerate, but just a little. All-in-all the meal at Olivia's was good enough to say we would probably eat there again given the opportunity.
The transportation was not bad. It was only an issue one day. Our last day at OKW we decided to take advantage of EMH at MGM Studios. The early bus never showed up. We waited at the bus stop for 35 minutes. Luckily ours was the first stop, because, by the time the bus finally got there and picked up everyone waiting for MGM, it was packed as tight as any bus I've ever seen leaving EPCOT after the fireworks!
Checking out of the resort was quick and painless. And we spent our next three days at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and enjoyed it so much more. But that's better left to another post . . .
