I am going to apologize now.... TRIP REPORT OKW

[DebbieB]

Last but not least, be aware and do a lot of research before you choose any resort. One more thing - We requested a 1st floor room because of a pregnant wife and we had not clue there were not elevators. We ended up with a 3rd floor room and they never changed us during the week

If you did not know there were no elevators, why would you request the first floor for the pregnant wife? If there were elevators, why would she need the first floor?

I travel weekly also and stay in nice places. I do not compare DVC to them because I don't expect them to be the same.

 

[simzac]

To the OP, sorry to hear about your bad experience at OKW with the buses. Our experience was much better, but we were there in January when it wasn't nearly as crowded. Good luck with your future trips at SSR, it is a great resort, just like all the DVC resorts are.

 

[jennz]

 

[Sammie]

Bus service to Downtown Disney and the water parks is horrible everywhere at Disney.

in fact bus service at Disney can be horrible at any time at any resort. We have had bad at all of them from SSR to the Grand Floridian to the values.

I just think they need a new transportation vice president. Obviously your main complaint is with the transportation system and OKW just happen to be where you experienced it and in all fairness to them, it is a transportation issue not a resort issue. As to the CM comments and lack of friendliness I know that when things start going wrong, then it is easy to transfer what is really wrong to other areas. Would the CMs have seen unfriendly if the transportation issues had not occured.

To the OP sorry you had a hard time and an harder one here. But obviously you are not on the approved list of being able to voice a negative opinion. and it be accepted as your opinion.

A friendly piece of advice though, traveling in the heat of the summer at WDW with a 3 year old, 2 year old, 1 year old and a pregnant wife would be enough to push even the most patient over the edge.

Hope your next trip is more relaxing and with the make up of your group I recommend a rental car.

 

[starbox]

In addition I travel every week and stay in Marriott & Ritz Carlton resorts which are a hell of a lot nicer than any DVC resort. Believe me I am not a hotel snob by any means. I have stayed at other resorts and in our opinion this is the bottom of the barrel and we would never stay here again. Your opinion is yours and ours is ours. A lot os people love OKW and that's great, it's just not for us and I was warning those that have not stayed there yet.

I am a lover of the Ritz Carlton resorts as well (we gave up an annual 4th of July stay @ Reynold's Plantation to purchase DVC) and I think this is probably why you had such a positive reaction to SSR and a negative reaction to OKW. SSR is much more designed in the style of a Ritz/Four Seasons Spa and Resort than the other DVC properties. If you like it alot, you probably won't be very happy elsewhere because SSR is very different from the typical Disney resort (which is also why lots of people hate SSR).

I don't see why a bad experience at OKW would make you want to sell your DVC - just don't stay there again. We won't be returning to OKW - not because it was a "bad resort" but just because it was not my style of a resort. As long as it's not your home resort, you'll never be in a position where you need to go back.

To be fair, I also don't think you can judge a resort based on a bad bus or check-in experience, because those problems seem not to be resort-specific - they can happen anywhere. Bus transportation to and from DTD usually ranges from very bad to totally abysmal no matter where you stay - one reason we don't even attempt to visit DTD if we are not at SSR.

 

[Chuck S]

To the OP, at ANY DVC resort, when you make a room request for medical reasons (first floor because of your wife's condition) be sure you state to Member Services it is for medical reasons, otherwise the room assigners or check-in CM (depending upon if they pre-assign or do room ready) will have no idea why a first floor room is requested...and then a request is "just a request, but not guaranteed."

As far as your bus experience...sorry, that should not have happened, but the bus driver should have been in control of that bus for guests safety, including the fight. A crowded bus does not necessarily lead to fights or safety issues, but a fist fight is certainly a safety issue that should have been addressed by the driver...he/she should have called security.

I am assuming it was the DtD/PI bus where the fight happened...mix too much alcohol and testosterone, and fights will occur...Disney or not...again security should have been summoned by the bus driver immediately...but that is not a resort specific issue. Usually OKW bus service has been no better or worse than any other resort, DVC or not.

As far as the rude clerks at the store, very subjective..they may very well have been rude...they may not, we really don't know, we weren't there. It certainly has not been my experience to have rude clerks at the General Store, and we have been at OKW at least 35 stays in 15 years.

As far as your 35 minute check-in, the wait was likely every bit at long at SSR and any other DVC resort during that time frame...there is no way to compare it.

 

[loribell]

I'm just wondering if this was only your second onsite stay? From your signature it looks like you stayed onsite in Feb @ SSR and everything else has been offsite.

It's too bad that you didn't have a great visit but you were there during the 4th of July week. I believe it is the busiest week of the summer. There definetly would have been more waits & more crowded busses. I really don't think it should be blamed on OKW.

Actually my first stay at OKW I was not real impressed with it, had no intention of staying there again. We wen't back for a big family gathering in 2005 and absolutely loved it. The entire family thought it was wonderful & there was 24 of us. I do have to say though, if any of them had complained there is no way I would ever invite them to join us again. That was very rude of your guests and very unappreciative.

 

[WDWLVR]

I'm like the previous poster. Stayed at OKW for the first time for Member Homecoming in 2004. Didn't really care for it and I wondered what all the fuss was about from those who love OKW. Then in 2005 we had to use points in a holding account and the only available location was OKW. This time we loved it! Boardwalk is still my favorite but I do like OKW a lot now.

I also agree with Starbox - why sell DVC just because of one bad experience at one resort. If you enjoyed your SSR stay than plan on staying there in the future.

 

[3DisneyKids]

I can appreciate the feed back but it was not minor by any means. I am just being very polite in my post.

Please don't take this the wrong way but if you think traveling with a 3 year old, 2 year old, 1 year old and a pregnant wife being crushed on a bus, seeing a bus driver almost get his a$# beat, and an actual fist fight on a bus amongst adults which probably scarred some of the children for life MINOR than you need to re-evaluate yourself. Again my apologies

I would have owned Disney if me child was injured in the fight

As a parent of three small children, I definitely understand your issue here. However, this has absolutely nothing to do with OKW.

 

[UConnJack]

Everything I read from the OP tells me he had a bad experience at WDW while staying at OKW, not that he had a bad experience BECAUSE he stayed at OKW. Like many have already said, bus service can be bad anywhere at any time, particularly during one of the arguably three busiest weeks if the year (behind only Xmas and Easter), and ESPECIALLY to DTD/PI/TL/BB. Same goes for check in time and general attitude of CMs (even they get worn down by the heat, crowds, and inevitably difficult guests). I would really like to know what kind of experience the OP, if any, has had during these crazy busy weeks at other resorts. Everything the OP complained about are valid complaints, albeit not unexpected, but I have seen no evidence that it was the particular fault of OKW.

 

[perdidobay]

I think your issues have more to do with the time of year this trip took place than with it being OKW. A 35 minute check in is normal I'm sure for peak summer.... as well as long bus waits.... to me Disney bus service is slow even in the off season..we always rent a car now for that reason. CM's can be not so nice at any resort.. doesn't excuse that, but it happens everywhere.

 

[dwelty]

Where is Diane? I can't wait to hear what she has to say.

 

[jekjones1558]

If the OP is so down on DVC and so high on Ritz Carlton and Marriott, then I do think he should sell DVC. No use being so miserable on vacation if DVC standards do not match his expectations. His money would be better spent elsewhere and I am sure there is someone out there who will very much enjoy buying his contract and spending time at DVC resorts.

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

To the OP sorry you had a hard time and an harder one here. But obviously you are not on the approved list of being able to voice a negative opinion. and it be accepted as your opinion.

I know I wasn't trying to give OP a hard time...I was just trying to figure out what his negative experiences had to do with OKW. Even the title of his thread indicates he knew what he was getting into.

After reading OP's responses I really feel like he and his guests set their expectations way too high for the time of year they were visiting the resort. A bet he would have a completely different experience had they stayed at OKW during a less crowded time.

I'll admit up front that I am a total wimp, and with that said, I don't think I would have even considered WDW in July with three todlers and a pregnancy...I commend them for their bravery!!!

 

[rapisano]

I can appreciate the feed back but it was not minor by any means. I am just being very polite in my post.

Please don't take this the wrong way but if you think traveling with a 3 year old, 2 year old, 1 year old and a pregnant wife being crushed on a bus, seeing a bus driver almost get his a$# beat, and an actual fist fight on a bus amongst adults which probably scarred some of the children for life MINOR than you need to re-evaluate yourself. Again my apologies

I would have owned Disney if me child was injured in the fight

Wow I so agree with you!!! I think the resort needs to give you a gift and refund your points because is seems to be that it was a huge inconvenience to you and your family and it does weigh heavily on your vacation experiences. So so so sorry this happened to you and I hope you get a token of thanks in return..

 

[jbrowna]

I'm curious as to how much of the OP's experience might be due to the time of year, and how much due to location. Are there others out there who have gone to the Ritz Carlton or Marriott (for example) during July 4th week? Was the transportation to/from Disney parks also crowded, or more frequent? Is the resort itself crowded? How is the checkin in those offsite places at that time? And how does the cost compare?

For myself, I've never been near WDW on the 4th or thereabouts. DW and I usually take our vacations in September or early December. Sometimes we've done a short one in January and once in February. So normally we've steered clear of the busier times. So perhaps I'd also be disappointed if I went during Spring Break or Christmas Week or anytime in the height of the summer crowds. Or would, like the OP, any disappointment stem from staying at the wrong resort? How much of a difference might it make to stay at a different resort during those crowded times? Would the OP's experience been much better, do you suppose, if they had stayed at SSR rather than at OKW? Which resort would folks recommend during high seasons? What does the experience of others have to say?

 

[LES---OKW95]

 

[LES---OKW95]

We have stayed numerous times at OKW and have also stayed various times at other resorts, including some value resorts.
I admit that the bus situation at OKW can be bad at times but we always try and add that to our schedule. Always give yourself more time than you think you need to let the transportation get you to your destination. I admit though that you cannot do that when you are trying to get back to your resort, so we just try and go with the flow.
As far as the fight on the bus, we have never in all of our trips to Disney, ever witnessed any behavior near that bad. I would say that you were just in the wrong bus at the wrong time! NOT THE FAULT OF OKW!!!!

We have just purchased an add on for SSR and have not yet had a chance to stay there, so I hope it is as nice as a lot of people are saying, but all of our guests that we have brought to OKW have always asked to go back to this resort!!

In closing, I know this is comparing apples to oranges and it sounds like you have never or ever will stay at one of the value resorts, but try getting on one of their busses after a park closing----good luck!! You will never want to see public transportation again!!!!!
(In making this last statement, we have really enjoyed our stays at Pop)

 

[vandy]

The OP is wrong in connecting OKW to the bus situation, BUT, they did make some of the same observations we made last month. We did have more of a wait for a bus both to and from the parks, but we realized that was not OKWs problem. Most of our bus rides were full and riders that stood were so packed in you could not see across the aisle. Some drivers did not handle the situation so well but others (especially Isaac), made the trip actually enjoyable and made us laugh and forget about our tough situation. I have made Disney Transportation aware of this and I hope the OP does as well. As far as friendliness between SSR and OKW, from our experience I would have to agree to a point. Our experience was no where near the degree of difference the OP stated, but the staff at SSR did seem to be slightly more welcoming and friendly. At OKW, no one "welcomed us home" for 2 or 3 days and then that was a driver. That said, the service was still good and most CMs were friendly, it's just that SSR was a little bit more. I hope the OP realizes a lot of the frustration was due to the time of his trip and tries OKW at a different time of year.

 

[douglas4315]

This should hoefully settle some of the dust!! I just got off the phone with one of the Directors for the transportation group and indeed IT WAS OKW's FAULT this week. The explained the whole process of how they work together with the resorts:

The resorts send information to transportation daily on guest check ins and check outs and the information that was being sent was incorrect therefore the extended delays.

In addition I did speak with someone from OKW and they also informed me that they had a bunch of new recruits on the resort last week for training which may have resulted in the negative reactions of the guest. By the way one young lady at the snack bar was from France and never spoke a word of english.

Anyway they apologized both from OKW and transportation.

As far as the parks they were not even remotely close to be crowded and the longest line we waited in was 45 minutes.

If you go back and review the post I am NOT bashing OKW. I am bashing the people that work at OKW and the transportation group. You never saw me write anything about the grounds, food, etc. It's not an OKW issue, it's an OKW personnel issue.

As far as other resorts yes I did stay at BWV (Loved it), and VWL (Loved it). Just something to think about, it's not me it's OKW personnel.