How remote is SSR? Do I need a car?

[rebarone]

I read something on another site that said I needed to rent a car to get around from Saratoga. Even if I had one, wouldn't I need to pay to park? If I go to other resorts, do you have to pay? Is it worth it to drive to another resort to hop on the monorail? This is our first trip to Disney, so I have no idea about travel once there.

Also, are there coffee pots in the studios, does anyone know?

 

[tomandrobin]

Saratoga is a open layout resort. If you have trouble walking, then yes you need a car. Most areas of SSR are within 5-10 minute walk. Do not stay in the Carousel section.

Saratoga has the best all around transportation service of the DVC resorts, in my opinion. Bus service is fairly reliable and will get you to most of the other parks in 10 to 15 minutes.

You do not pay for parking at Saratoga or any of the other DVC resorts. I am not sure about if you parked at a monorail resort, but regardless of cost for parking, you can ride the monorail. It would be faster to take the bus directly to Magic Kingdom, then drive over to Poly, Grand Floridian or Contemporary and park and catch the monorail.

We have never driven a car once we have arrived at WDW. We always have used the bus, ferry, monorail service provided by Disney. The Disney transportation drops you off by the entrance of all the resorts. When we are done at the parks, we enjoy the 10-15 minute ride back to the resort.

Yes there is a coffee pot in each studio, a microwave and a small refrigerator.

 

[GAN]

Unless you need to get off-site for some reason, you don't "need" a car. Disney transportation is very reliable from SSR. Buses for each Theme Park stop at designated areas within SSR every 20min(approx.). If you need to get to another resort from SSR, the easiest way is to walk over to Downtown Disney(5-10min) and grab the resort bus from there -this is much more convenient than most of the other resorts. I would say spend your money on something else rather than a car.

 

[rebarone]

Thank you, that's all great news. How do you request a specific building, can you do that at check-in?

BTW, I LOVE this BB!

 

[DVC Grammy]

Thank you, that's all great news. How do you request a specific building, can you do that at check-in?

BTW, I LOVE this BB!

Hi neighbor!
You can request a specific area when you make your reservation, but remember, it is only a request. We've always been pretty lucky getting our requests, but we also always take the first flight from RDU and check in around breakfast time! . I don't know if later check-ins have the same luck.
Many of the areas of SSR have their own "bests"...........Congress Park-DTD access, Springs-close to main pool and restaurants, Grandstand- new and with the latest pool, etc. Ask for whichever works best for you and give MS a call; your can even request 2nd and 3rd choices if you wish.
Good luck and have a great time!
P.S. We have never needed a car while at WDW, even during those few trips when we drove down (before it became cheaper to fly.......... SWA and DME!).

 

[cobbler]

I think rental cars are just personal preference. You don't "need" one at any Disney resort.

We drive down so we have a car and let me tell you, I am bound determined NOT to get back in that darn thing until the day we leave.

Personal preference.

 

[utahkennedys]

We always find very cheap prices on cars and vans in Orlando. Having said that, we always rent a car. The WDW transportation is nice for going to the parks, but not for going between resorts as you'd have to first go to a park or DTD and then to the other resort. This makes for long trips for us just to get dinner, etc.

The car is great b/c we use it to get groceries, eat off site if we want, and drive between resorts. You will get a parking pass to put in your front window and then you can go anywhere on WDW property without paying a fee.

On our last trip to OKW, I turned the car in a few days early figuring we wouldn't miss it, but we really did...

 

[jpmom]

We love having a car and always rent one. We use the discount codes on Mousesavers and get great rates.

Did it without a car on one trip and will never do it again. Don't like waiting for the busses. Sometimes, it can be 15-20 minutes.

Renting in May - 5 days for $100. Renting again in October - minivan for the week for $200 (all taxes, fees included)

It is a personal choice, but when we want to go - we want to GO!

 

[Jillpie]

We stayed in Carousel (had requested Springs, but got STUCK in the boonies of this place) and you might as well be in Texas its so far from the main bldg and main pool. The buses to the parks and downtown disney were great. Its trying to get around this resort is the major problem, especially just to grab a few groceries from the main bldg. It is a huge hassle if you get one of these remote rooms. But there lies the problem, you don't know where you will be placed until you check in. I'll never stay here again, it was my first trip in 8 years of going to DW that I have ever said that, but it was just too far away from everywhere. In short, I'd rent a car.

 

[loribell]

It is all just a matter of personal preference. I also stayed in the Carousel building during my trip in December and LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it! We enjoyed the walks to High Rock Springs pool, the lobby & Artist Pallet. We even enoyed it in the evenings after a swim when it was only in the 40's. Not once did we ever think it was a hassle to walk anywhere from our room in the Carousel.

Would I like to be in a building right up front where I don't have to walk much at all? Probably. Would I let it ruin my trip if I were in the Carousel again? Absolutely not! SSR is a beautiful resort meant to be enjoyed for the beauty of its grounds. It is not a hotel type resort where everything is going to be right downstairs from your room, including many, many people.

 

[Jillpie]

I think I should clarify my response. I enjoyed the beauty of the grounds here, but in my case, my DS and I only had 5 short days here. So we didn't have the time it takes to walk all over the place. If we didn't want to do so much of the parks (but that is the main reason we were there), we could have taken the time to walk everywhere. But we just didn't have the time.

 

[BroganMc]

And here you see two alternate points of view. SSR is layed out as if you put BCV/BWV/VWL side by side with DTD acting as the Boardwalk area across the water from BCV. (The area for SSR & DTD combined is the same as the entire Epcot Resort/Boardwalk area.)

Having a car for getting around Disney World as a whole is not bad if you hate waiting on bus schedules and don't mind walking up from a possibly distant parking lot (or riding a parking tram). For handicapped parking, it can be better to take your car early in the AM for everything but Magic Kingdom. Parking there is still quite a distance away from the park. Meanwhile the bus takes you right to the gates, not a ferry or monorail ride away.

But having a car to get around SSR seems like overkill to me. You still have to park the thing and walk past the pool to the grocery store. I left my van in its spot and walked around the resort. Now if I was in the furthest buildings of the Carousel or Congress Park, I think I'd be less likely to make repeated trips to Artist Point. That'd be like walking around World Showcase. I'd probably shortcut my trip on the way home and get off the bus at the Springs then walk.

Here's a distance map so you can see what we're actually talking:

 

[drusba]

Why you may want to consider a car: (a) to go to a grocery store or anywhere off-site: (b) to go to another resort -- to get from one resort to another, if you take the bus, generally requires going first to another park or Downtown Disney and then switching transportation from there to the other resort; that kind of trip can easily take 50 minutes to over an hour; you can drive the same distance in 10 to 15 minutes; (c) driving from SSR to MGM, Epcot, and Animal Kingdom is much faster (both ways) than waiting for and taking the bus.

If staying on site (including SSR) you can park at any resort or park in WDW for free except that if you desire valet parking you will pay a fee unless it is a DVC resort. Also, at SSR you park right outside your building

 

[btrim]

We have done both. We have rented a car and never used it the whole time we were at WDW and we have used Magical Express from the airport. As stated before, all areas of SSR have their pluses and minuses. We have stayed in in all areas except the newly opend Grandstand area. Even if you would get the Carousel area, you could catch any of the buses to take you around to the parts of the resort. Usually, the buses come in and the Carousel area is the first stop. If you want to ride around to Congress Park and walk to DTD to catch a bus to another resort you can do that. Really none of the areas are more than a 10 minute walk to the main pool and Artist's Pallett. We enjoy the openness of the resort and if the weather is nice, we enjoy walking and looking at the wildlife and the beautiful landscaping of the resort. Just enjoy yourself and relax. One of the things we really like about SSR is that after a long day at the parks, you can relax and feel like you away from it all, then the next morning go at it again in the parks. I don't know if you have children, but SSR is one of the best for programs for the kids. Our DGD loves to go to the community center and do the crafts and the other things they offer for the kids.

 

[MrsNick]

If you don't want to bring a car but need groceries and don't want to be burdened with a walk, you have two options:

1) You can pre-order groceries from Artist's Pallette (and you could do this before you arrive, or after you arrive. The only thing to remember at the resort is if you were to order your groceries by Wednesday afternoon, you would receive them the next day on Thursday).
2) You can order groceries from one of the delivery services like wegoshop.

This just requires different type of planning than if you had a car, but you can still accomplish the same goal.

I stayed in Congress Park and had no problems with the 5 min. walk to Artist's Pallette to pick up groceries or breakfast and then walk them back to the room. As others have stated, you could also hop a bus back to your area.

 

[starbox]

We never use our car at Disney, but it really is a personal preference.

I actually enjoy walking and choose to walk - even in daily life - whenever possible. I even walk to work. I also live in a city - so I am used to being patient and knowing that it will take me time to get anywhere I want to go. Waiting for public transportation is a non-issue at this point.

I can understand how many people are simply uncomfortable with the planning ahead and patience that using a bus system requires. I also understand that many people don't want to walk. We have an extremely sedentary society. If you think walking and waiting will be an issue, it's probably best to rent a car regardless of which resort you are staying in.

 

[Amy&Dan]

We stayed at SSR with my 80 year old dad (who had just had a major health crisis) and 70 year old mom (who has about 5 major medical conditions and is extremely frail). They loved walking around this resort. We chose the Paddock (which at that time was the most distant section) per the cm's advice because we had a quiet pool and busstop just steps away and it was extremely quiet. That said, we went over to the main areas many times and they never felt a bit tired. My dad would trot right over there every morning to get coffee at AP and also because he so enjoyed the walk. It is a spread out resort, however, not so much we regretted the fact we were in one of the further out sections. We had a car but we used it to go the parks a couple of times, never to get around the resort.

And I agree, have your groceries delivered to your unit via one of the optioins another poster gave. So nice and easy. And I learned that when I lugged my own stuff to my very close in Springs section unit on our next trip. I don't want to lug groceries any distance, near or far!

 

[loribell]

And I agree, have your groceries delivered to your unit via one of the optioins another poster gave. So nice and easy. And I learned that when I lugged my own stuff to my very close in Springs section unit on our next trip. I don't want to lug groceries any distance, near or far!

Oh I totally agree with that, I don't want to even lug grocieries in to my house or shop for them for that matter. Unfortunately I am not yet independently wealthy so I can not afford a butler. But I will be someday!!!

 

[BroganMc]

Oh I totally agree with that, I don't want to even lug grocieries in to my house or shop for them for that matter. Unfortunately I am not yet independently wealthy so I can not afford a butler. But I will be someday!!!

I swear, in May I'm sticking a sign on the back of my powerchair saying "Will Deliver for Tips". I can make a mint just lugging about all that milk, OJ and groceries. Get myself a cup caddy and I can do morning coffe runs.

There's something to be said for those blasted handlebars on the back of a powerchair. You're an instant luggage cart. Of course that explains why everyone in my travel group magically finds a place for all their bric-a-brac on the back of me when we hit the parks. Kids backpacks, extra coat, sun visor, snack bag, extra water bottles, popcorn tub, all those little things you just had to buy at the Emporium or Mousegears, etc. No one wants to use package delivery because they got me. No matter if I have so many bags I become roughly the size of a double-wide trailer.

 

[MrsNick]

I swear, in May I'm sticking a sign on the back of my powerchair saying "Will Deliver for Tips". I can make a mint just lugging about all that milk, OJ and groceries. Get myself a cup caddy and I can do morning coffe runs.

There's something to be said for those blasted handlebars on the back of a powerchair. You're an instant luggage cart. Of course that explains why everyone in my travel group magically finds a place for all their bric-a-brac on the back of me when we hit the parks. Kids backpacks, extra coat, sun visor, snack bag, extra water bottles, popcorn tub, all those little things you just had to buy at the Emporium or Mousegears, etc. No one wants to use package delivery because they got me. No matter if I have so many bags I become roughly the size of a double-wide trailer.

Oh my gosh, I almost spit water on my computer with the "will deliver for tips." Mc, you promise not to do any donuts when you bring my groceries, right?