DVC Pool Question

[tiberius]

As a (hopefully) soon to be resale buyer, I have read quite a bit about the various resorts. With the exception of the Beach Club pool, I do not see much written about the pools at the other resorts. Are they entirely unremarkable, or are they equally distinctive in their own ways?


So far my biggest problem seems to be narrowing down my choice of resorts. Each time I concentrate on one it looks best. I may end up taking any one that has a favorable use year for my family travelling in January or March to WDW, and, of course, a good price!

 

[mickeydvcer57]

Truth is there are, in my opinion, lots of great pools all around WDW, and as DVC members we get something no other Disney guest can get ... access to every pool (minus SAB and AKL unless you are staying there). The pool at Coronado is great. The one at Comtemporary is cool too. And we've even been known to leave Stormalong Bay and head over to the waterfall pool at Grand Floridian. Disney is known for their feature pools, so don't let that stop you from buying.

 

[tiberius]

We have stayed at Coronado twice, and yes, that pool is something!

 

[Uncleromulus]

Well the pool at OKW would fit into the "entirely unremarkable" category. We now almost always head over to Luna Park for our swimming pool time.

Should add that Poly's new pool, the new one at GF, and the Coronado Springs pool all LOOK like fun. But haven't been to any of them.

 

[Scoootch]

We own at OKW and love to pool-hop!

Now that we can no longer hop to SAB though, we tend to mostly go over to the Poly or GF as we really like their pools and they are sort of similar. We have a 2 and a half year old ds and he loves the jumping fountains that they both have. Both these resorts also have a waterslide and zero-entry pools as well.

Have fun making your decisions! Hopefully soon we'll all be able to say "WELCOME HOME"

 

[crisi]

BWV has Luna Park with a large waterslide. Known affectionately (and not-so-affectionately) around here as the "Scary Clown." There are pictures of it all over the web - try www.wdwig.com for some good ones. It also has a simple "quiet pool" by the Villas.

VWL has a really nice pool - "Silver Springs" I believe - with a smaller waterslide. The pool is themed with the resort, with a "brook" flowing into one end. Nice hot tubs, and a geyser (to look at - not play in). It also has a beach on Bay Lake and a quiet pool.

OKW has several pools, including a main pool, but none of them have a slide and - as Disney pools go - it is somewhat less impressive to kids (who tend to place importance on things like slides).

All have toddler pools.

In addition, you may choose to pool hop (when and where available, no guarentee it will always be available) to other resorts except AKL and the Y&BC.

Another thing you may wish to keep in mind when chosing a home is the noise level of the respective resorts. OKW is very laid back and quiet - VWL are away from the main hotel and set back in trees, which makes them pretty quiet as well. BWV is the busiest resort - with many rooms overlooking the Boardwalk (open late) or the pool. Most people don't believe the noise at BWV to be a problem, but it is a different atmosphere.

 

[tiberius]

Crisi,

Thank you for the pool and site comparisons. That was what I was looking for.

 

[PKS44]

My kids love the pool slide at the BWV and found the OKW pools pretty dull. OKW does have a sauna which none of the other DVC pools have.

But,

Besides the pool there is something else to consider that only recently became clear to us. As we were considering staying away from our home (BWV) it became clear that the thing our kids would miss most is Community Hall- the activity center for kids located at the BWV. No other DVC has anything quite like it though OKW has something similar. When the weather was uncooperative, my kids would spend hours at a time down there playing ping pong, air hockey, foosball, video games, etc. My wife and I agreed that we probably would not want to give up that resource much as we would love to try staying at some of the other resorts some time. For this reason we figure the forseeable future- we will be at the BWV.

Paul

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by Uncleromulus
Well the pool at OKW would fit into the "entirely unremarkable" category.

That's one opinion, only. Actually, I think that the pools at OKW are great.

OKW has a feature pool and three other pools. We've used them all, and they're all very nice.

But none of them have water slides. To some people on this board the lack of any water slide means that OKW is incomplete, unacceptable and boring as far as the pools go.

Other people think that it's great to have a choice of conveniently located pools, and that the feature pool, especially, is a wonderful place. The feature pool area offers large, freeform pool, a sauna, childrens pool, spa pool, playground with sand lot, warm showers in the dressing rooms, bar and snack bar, various sports, and easy access to all other facilities of the Turtle Krawl boardwalk, all in a relaxing, tropical atmosphere with a lighthouse. But there's no water slide, and there probably never will be. The other OKW pools have some features in addition to the pool itself, but not as many as the main feature pool.

 

[Uncleromulus]

True enough-one opinion. But not the only one, by a long shot.
I like your description of the OKW pools tho-- boring, incomplete, unacceptable.
I know well enough nothing will ever change, so all I have left are these boards---
and pool hopping, of course

 

[nezy]

Great Description of OKW, Horace!!

No matter what pool we go to , and we have gone to all of them, my kids ASK to go to OKW. I think it is becuse my oldest son learned to swim at OKW and it is a special place for him (8yrs. old). we have great memories at OKW and I think that is why they always ask to go there.

Another favorite is WLV and then BWV(love that slide). Although we like SAB, it is not a relaxing day at the pool. The last time we were there we spent 2 days at the quiet pool at the BCV and one at SAB. My husband and I were in the pool the whole time w/ the kids, because they really could not and I would not let them go in alone. (Ages8, 6 and 4). The air temp was low 70 to high 60, so a "dip" would have been just fine. Although I did have a few runs on the Pirate Ship slide--love it!!

POOL HOPPING is something we love to do.

 

[JohnnyII]

Am I the only one who doesn't think poil hopping is a bis deal?

I am a new owner at BCV and I know I get Storm Along Bay, but it wouldn't matter bwhere I was staying, I would never hop to anoth resorts pool. I like being near my room if I want to get out of the sun for a little while or need something. I would find it to be a real pain in the you know what to be that far away from my room.

I suspect I am in the minority on this subject!

John

 

[nezy]

Johnny

The greatest advantage of pool hopping has been the convenience of going to a resort near whatever park we are in and take a mid-day break, especially if the kids need to get a little break from the parks and just want to cool off or have a little fun at the pool.
We also pool hop if we want to break up our time. Last yr. we were in Disney 10days and only went to the parks for 2. the other days we pool hopped. It was an extra trip that year and we could not afford park passes.

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

JohnyII:

You are not alone. We are in agreement with you on the pool hopping. We used to do it from the BWV's to SAB, but since we can't do that anymore, we simply stopped. We also like being near our room. But I can also understand why others might like it.

HBC

 

[DeeP]

One other thing to keep in mind when considering pool hopping is that OKW does not have any life guards. OKW and the FW campground are the only WDW resorts that do not have life guards at any of the pools. Some say the lack of a life guard does not matter to them, this I can not understand at all. As someone that lives by the shore and in a tourist area with many pools I have seen/heard about too many water accidents that could have been very disastrous had a life guard not been present.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by DeeP
One other thing to keep in mind when considering pool hopping is that OKW does not have any life guards. OKW and the FW campground are the only WDW resorts that do not have life guards at any of the pools.

Disney resorts (DVC and other) have lifeguards at the waterslides. These lifeguards focus their attention on waterslide safety -- to make sure that nobody goes down the slide until it's safe to do so. This is a valuable service.

Also, I'm sure the presence of the lifeguards can be valuable if there's an emergency elsewhere in the pool area and someone alse brings the situation to a lifeguard's attention.

But don't expect lifeguards to monitor swimmers all over the pool. That's not their mission. You must keep your eyes on your children and on anyone with limited swimming skills. You can't send your children to the pool with the expection that they'll be under the watchful eyes of a lifeguard. So, in this regard, the pools with lifeguards are not all that different from those without.

 

[Donald Duck 57]

Try the pool at the Poly, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

 

[KNWVIKING]

I have to disagree with your discription of the lifeguards duty. Your not the first to make the comment that the lifeguards just watch the slide, so last time at BWV I watch the guard. His head was on a swivel the whole time,scanning the entire pool. I watched three different guards -as they change often to avoid fatigue- and all did the same. Also, while I feel it is every parents job to be responsible for their kids at the pool, how many of us are trained lifeguards or even experienced/trained in CPR. How many parents spend every moment at the pool keeping an eagle eye on their kids, never going to the head,getting a snack,reading a book,etc. A lifeguard is always an asset.

 

[DeeP]

Disney resorts (DVC and other) have lifeguards at the waterslides. These lifeguards focus their attention on waterslide safety -- to make sure that nobody goes down the slide until it's safe to do so. This is a valuable service.

The All Star resorts have life guards at all their pools, even the quiet pools, and they do not even have water slides.
I agree with Viking, I have many times watched the life guards at the pools and they are watching a lot more than just the water slide. A resort pool with many people and small children without a life guard is a potential disaster waiting to happen. When my children were young I would have never taken them to a hotel pool without a life guard, and they could swim like fishes but as was stated before I do not know CPR proficent enough nor would I be calm enough to administer it to my child like a life guard would. Also pools without life guards do not have the safety equipment like the back board, breathing tube, etc to rescue a person safely from the pool if they have done damage to their back, neck, spinal cord etc.

 

[PamOKW]

On the lifeguard issue, both sides are right. The reason that there are lifeguards is because of the slides. However, when the lifeguards are on duty, they are monitoring the entire pool. If there is no lifeguard on duty, the slide will be closed but the pool will remain open.

As to lifeguards at the All-Stars...I imagine the large number of people using one pool creates a situation where they need to have a lifeguard on duty.

Lifeguards everywhere should not be considered babysitters. Parents should take responsibility for their children whenever in a pool area.