Greetings from OKW!!!

[dianeschlicht]

We arrived Sunday and had a GREAT check in experience. "Bill" from Illinois checked us in and gave us a choice of buildings. When 46 was among them, I jumped on it, because it is one of our favs. We are in 4612, a ded. 2 bedroom on the first floor with a fantastic view of the canal. Our DDIL has to use an ECV because of a back injury, so it is convenient to have a first floor unit this time. Our check in was easy because they had a LOT of agents working at the same time. The Magic Express bus pulled in right behind us, so we hurried to get in line before those folks hit the lobby. By the time our check in was finished, the line was out the door!

BTW, when Bill checked us in, he als booked out our 1 bedroom for next week, and told us we woujld be in the same building, just down one unit. IT will make moving VERY easy!

Our unit is in great shape. The toilet doesn't always like to flush correctly, but everything else is great. Very clean, and mostly in good repair. I am a little concerned about them not replacing "parts" correctly. For example, the door latch on the bathroom door had been replaced, but instead of using the same brushed nickel that is on all the OKW hardware, they replaced it with antique brass. Looks strange and "shoddy" when it doesn't match. Also, those plastic wood look blinds they replaced the real wood ones with a few years ago are not holding up well. They seem to sag and not work well. That's just a general observation though.

Crowds are high, but not as bad as I had thought they might be....at least so far. We found MGM to be quite manageable yesterday. Today is MK, so we'll likely see more crowds today. I suspect each day closer to Thanksgiving Day will bring more and more people.

I observed the construction at the Contemporary, but didn't take any pictures. Haven't been over to AKV yet, but we'll likley hit that over the weekend.

 

[Cee]

I'm so glad to hear this, Diane! We'll be there in a little over two weeks and
I've requested a studio on the second floor in either Bldg. 45,46, or 55 so we
can have that wonderful canal view. Hope you're having a blast!

 

[justjudy]

I don't blame you for jumping on Building 46. Every time we take the ferry to DTD I say "That's where I want to stay!" Maybe next time.... Hope you have a great time. Can't wait to hear about the progress at AKV.

 

[TLinden16]

Have a great time, Diane!

 

[bobbiwoz]

We would love to have that canal view sometime! Have a great trip!

Bobbi

 

[alldiz]

Have a great trip
Can't wait to try OKW
Happy Thanksgiving.
Kerrei

 

[DMKEDM]

Hi, Diane! We're just down the path a bit, over at SSR...I plan to walk over to OKW tomorrow (DS wants to eat at Olivia's!), so will wave as I go by Building 46! And I'll see you Sat at the DisMeet (I am not going to hold my breath that this will "hold up," but as of last night DS said he'd like to come, too...yay!)

I was at Epcot yesterday late afternoon/early evening (and for those following along on my Greetings from SSR thread, DS gave me permission!)...I haven't seen it that mobbed in a long time! VERY crowded--could have been the time of day, or just "luck of the draw" but I was surprised at how crowded it was on the Monday of T-giving week!

Hope you & your family have a really fabulous week..."hug" OKW for us (and I'll give SSR a "hug" from you!)...see you Sat...

Dani

 

[DisneyFreaks]

We just returned two weeks ago from OKW and stayed in building 46. It was so lovely. This was our first time staying there so I guess we got lucky with that view. I so envy you. I miss that porch! Have a wonderful time.

 

[LisaS]

Sounds like your trip is off to a great start. Have a wonderful time!

 

[FOTM_Ring_Bearer]

Diane,

We had that villa in 06. It was wonderful. We spent a lot of time on the patio, relaxing and enjoying the view. Sounds like you've had a great start to your vacation. Enjoy!

 

[RobDoc]

Thanks for the report, Diane! Have a great trip!

 

[simzac]

Hi Diane, glad to see someone is enjoying my home since I'm stuck up north. Hope you have a fantastic time on your vacation.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I'd be walking over from Old Turtle Pond to visit - IF - we hadn't cancelled our reservation. Rats. Sounds like you are having fun.

 

[dallastxcpa]

Sounds like a great trip so far! Hope the rest of your trip goes smoothly.

 

[CarolAnnC]

Hi Diane! Thanks for checking in with us here and writing the report. Hope you enjoy the rest of your trip!

 

[carol1231]

We are at OKW too! We're spending the day inside today, one of the kiddos isn't feeling too good. Hopefully will be better as the day goes on.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving!!

 

[jade1]

YOU MISSED THE FIRST SNOW? Actually its nice it took this long to arrive. Only about an inch but it did stay and is about 18 degress right now. Hope you have a lovely, warm time.

 

[PBader]

Have a wonderful stay.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Well, we moved to the 1 bedroom yesterday, and we got unit 4615, so just moved over a bit. Hard to believe, but the view is even better here than from 4612! I took some great photos at both places, so I'll post them when I get home. I just hate to take the time on vacation to find, download, and upload them.

We have the meet today, so hope to see lots of you at WL! We actually have felt the crowds were less than we expected. It hasn't been bad enough to miss anything yet.

Just wanted to say that I think housekeeping is doing just fine her at OKW...at least in building 46! Our DS, DDIL and DGSs said the best meal they had all week was at Olivia's on Thanksgiving night! They were there late in the day, and the server gave them a whole pitcher of Sprite instead of water, and just winked as he did it. Then when they left, he presented them with 4 individually packaged pumpkin pie slices for beakfast! Needless to say, DS left him a great tip! We have always thought Olivia's is one of the best kept DVC secrets. The other is Turf Club at SSR!