Originally posted by vernon
Your geography skills seem to be a little lacking, the value resorts ( i.e. All Star resorts) are about as far from DTD as it's possible to get on Disney property (without scurrying off into the woods) granted the yet to be opened Pop Century is/will be very convenient, but it isn't open as yet.
Well I guess your reading comprension skills are a little bit lacking then?
I don't see how what you said is at odds with what DeeP said. DeeP said if you want to be convenient to DTD, OKW and SSR are "the closest resorts by far." What does that have to do with how far the all stars are from DTD? I guess I'm confused.
With regard to my feelings about OKW, they weren't meant to "knock" it. That's just how I feel about it. I don't understand why people say that the "hustle and bustle" of the boardwalk is too busy for them because we find that once you are inside the villas building, it's as quiet as anywhere else. At least I don't have to worry about a golfer rooting around right outside my window for their golf ball (really freaked me out the first time I was at OKW to hear scratching noises, open the door to the patio and find a golfer on it). BUT I don't take people feeling like the boardwalk has too much "hustle and bustle" to be an insult.
To me, it's about perception more than actual distance. To me, getting in my car and driving everywhere is not vacation. That's what I do every day. I live in an apartment that is laid out like a condo complex and we drive to our spot in front of our unit and carry our own groceries in and carry our own luggage in and out when we travel. To me, this experience is not vacation. To me, vacation is driving the car up, having valet take care of it and having bell services deliver my luggage to my room. We do get the car to go to DTD at night, and the boat wouldn't do us any good because we return after the boat has stopped running. When I stayed at my parents' offsite timeshare with them, the routine was much the same. Pile into the car parked right outside your condo and drive to the parks. This is not what *I* want in a vacation. It's not magic for me.
Getting in a bus is not vacation. I hate having to sit and wait for a bus (or even worse, stand and wait, that kills my feet more than walking does). I would MUCH rather be strolling somewhere, seeing the sights and hearing the sounds and smelling the smells of WDW (and not the sight of the bus or the sound of the bus or the smell of the diesel fuel). I hate the hard seats. I hate the way a billion sweaty people are crammed into them. I hate having to hang on for dear life as it goes around turns. This is not a vacation to me, this is my daily commute (though we do have padded seats on the DC metro)! Oddly enough, cram me into a monorail and i am perfectly happy. It must be the view or just knowing I am on the monorail. Maybe it's the recording. Who knows, but to me, it's vacation.
All of the things I said above are how *I* feel. Everyone else is entitled to define vacation the way they want for the reasons they have. My parents love their offsite timeshare and would never pay extra to stay onsite (though I want to take them and show them what they are missing). They've had it for over 16 years now and they've seen the world with it. They feel like it was one of the best purchases that they ever made.
DVC costs a lot, and I would not have bought into it unless it came really close to my ideal vacation. Ideal for me is the deluxe hotel experience. We love room service. I LOVE the fact that we can get a gourmet meal from the fine restaurants available at the various deluxe resorts with DVC components brought up to our room. I love that they will set the table complete with white tablecloth and that i can sit in my pajamas and watch a movie and enjoy a gourmet meal. I love that we can have a hot breakfast brought up for the same. My husband and I don't get to spend enough couple time together so we cherish the opportunity to have our own private restaurant. Sure, I could order a pizza from pizza hut but I can do that at home. I want experiences I can't have at home.
Different strokes for different folks, but I don't understand why it is that whenever someone says what THEY like, everyone has to assume that they are saying anything they DON'T like is bad. I don't like the location of OKW/SSR. That doesn't mean it's bad, it means I don't like it. The poll asked how important location was to people in buying into DVC and my answer reflected that.
Lisa
