Live from THV 6/7 to 6/12

[jarestel]

Great info, Tim! Thanks for giving us an up-close look at THV!

 

[ACDSNY]

Great review & pics! We added a couple of nights to the end of our Nov trip to test them out for future trips. Thanks for testing out the bunkbeds as I'll have two adults using them. Sounds like they are the XL twin if you fit on them.

 

[TosaTrio]

Great Report! Thanks for sharing...

 

[rascalmom]

I am 6'3" and I can just fit on the beds. I assume they are regular twin size. I don't know that someone my height would be comfortable on the bottom bunk since it's more enclosed. On top you could stretch out a bit more.

While I'm thinking of it, each of the bunks have their own private reading light. I thought that was a nice touch.

Thanks for this! My dd's are both considerably smaller than you , so I think it would work fine for our family. The oldest is 5'2", so she would probably be ok in the smaller, lower bunk. Younger dd is a little taller, but I think she would be ok. She sleeps on a twin bed at home, so she probably won't even notice. This would allow us to put the dgrands in the other bedroom.

 

[rentayenta]

Thank you so much for sharing! I cannot wait to stay here!

 

[Paticake]

Thank you for your great report. We will be at THV 11/7-14. We leave 6/27 for our trip (staying in a GV this time) and hope to walk over and check out the THV area in person.

 

[Luckymommyx2]

Thank you for taking so much of your valuable vacation time to report on the THV's for us! I love how you captured those hidden details. It will be a few years until we stay there but I feel the THVs have given my SSR membership a boost!

 

[PEANUT1]

This is awesome information!!! I was getting a little nervous after reading the treehouse blog. We are staying in January with my inlaws. We will have 2 cars so I don't know how that will work...hopefully by January, there will be some changes in that department.

All in all, would you say you are enjoying the treehouses?? My husband is sooo excited, like a kid about staying there. I am excited but I am just worried it won't feel like disney. I really LOVE AKV and BC/BW so I hope this will be just as nice for us.

 

[5forDiz]

Great photos and enjoying your TR, thanks for taking the time to share what

you're learning on THVs Enjoy your trip.

 

[dgaston]

Tj, thanks so much for taking the time to post and share pictures with us. I can hardly wait until we have adult children with enough vacation time to help us share a THV experience.

 

[tjkraz]

Great pics and report! We are staying at AKV. Is there a model open or a tour of the real units? Would love to see them in person.

Nope, no model. There are only 60 treehouses and I assume they are accepting reservations for all.

You could always ask at the front desk but I don't know if they'd be able to give a tour since they are a bit isolated.

Could you answer one other question -- are there any other mirrors in the master bedroom (aside from the bathroom itself)? There will be 8 of us and I am hoping there will be other mirrors available to use so we don't have to hog up the bathroom ones too much while getting ready. Thanks again!

There are full-length mirrors in the master and second bedroom (both rooms with queen beds.) There is also a large mirror near the villa entry which is hung at waist level. But it must be angled downward a bit because if I stand 2' away I can see down below my knees.

Hey tj, do all the rooms have a ceiling fan or only in the Master bedroom?

There are fans in both queen bedrooms and the living room (right above where the coffee table sits between the sofa and TV.)

 

[tjkraz]

All in all, would you say you are enjoying the treehouses?? My husband is sooo excited, like a kid about staying there. I am excited but I am just worried it won't feel like disney. I really LOVE AKV and BC/BW so I hope this will be just as nice for us.

Well, I should start by saying that I really don't "love" any single resort. Those closest to my heart tend to be the BoardWalk, SSR (two resorts we own) and OKW (first one we stayed at.) But I would never want to be stuck staying any any of those over and over again. We've stayed at BWV probably 3 of the last 4 years and have another trip scheduled for October. And as much as I enjoy it, I'm getting a little restless and ready to try something new.

So I tend to take something of an intellectual approach to bookings. For us the THVs worked out great this time because our party consists of DW and I, kids 6 and 8, my parents and a 14-year old niece.

If we had booked any other Two Bedroom villa, my wife and I probably would have had to take the second bedroom and sleep with the kids all week, giving my parents the master suite. But at the THV, we kept the privacy of our own master suite, parents get the second queen room and the kids get to enjoy the bunk beds.

So from that perspective THV was the absolute best option available.

But you do lose some of that pampered feeling of being in a full-service hotel. There's no room service...no restaurant or gift shop within easy walking distance. Bus transportation can be a challenge.

However for our situation I still think this was the best option available. I'll gladly trade easy access to Artist's Palette (or Spoodles, or Boma, etc.) for the ability to put the kids to bed (or nap) in their bunks and still go on about our lives for a few more hours. And as I've illustrated, Disney appeared to spare no expense with these rooms so the actual living experience is probably bettre than anything we would have gotten at BWV or other SSR rooms.

Will we book the THVs every time? No way. But when it "fits" our traveling party, I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Our 40+ years of ownership is too much for us to pass-up trying new resort experiences.

 

[tjkraz]

Treehouse Villa Bus Notes

I broke my left big toe a couple weeks ago and decided to cut my MK day short today and put some ice on it. So I left the family behind with the car keys and decided to give the buses a try. Here is the exact timing on my journey:

1:32pm Arrived at MK SSR bus stop
1:38pm Bus arrives
1:51pm Bus enters from gate of Saratoga Springs
2:02pm Bus pulls into The Springs (5th and final stop at SSR)

So the entire trip around SSR only took 11 minutes. And that was with us waiting a full three minutes just to get into The Springs (there were two buses already parked there--one was unloading an ECV and the other was delayed due to a driver shift change.)

I've seen posts about it taking 20+ minutes to make the rounds at SSR and I just don't see that being the case. Best case it could be as little as 8 minutes (if we hadn't had the wait at The Springs.) And that was with about 20 people on board who disembarked over 4 of the 5 stops. Also picked up people along the way.

Worst case it could be a longer route if you have to wait for ECV loading, but I think the average is probably in the 10-12 minute neighborhood.

As for the treehouse shuttle, I almost hate to say this but the bus pulled up just as I got there. So I had no wait at all for the THV shuttle.

The shuttle driver was very friendly and chatty. Doesn't sound like many people are using the shuttle yet. From The Springs we stopped at The Grandstand and then over to the Treehouses. I believe it was 9 minutes from the time I boarded until I was dropped at the THV stop. Again that included a stop at The Grandstand.

From the THV stop it was about a 3 minute walk to our room.

 

[Sammie]

Thanks for sharing photos, and sorry to hear about your toe. Nothing worse than a sore toe or foot at Disney World.

Enjoy the rest.

 

[SLM]

Thank you for posting the report and your wonderful pictures! I hope you're having a great vacation!

 

[Goldeelox9]

Thank you so much for sharing all of this great information! My sister and I have a surprise stay at the Tree houses planned for our husbands in November and have been dying for information. We will not have a car and will be relying on the buses. We will also have an almost 2 year old with us so your decription of the buses has made me VERY happy!

Thanks again!

 

[liznboys]

Ouch, so sorry about your toe!

Hey, did they give you a map at check in with the THV numbers listed on it? I'd love to see a picture of that!

 

[kikiq]

Treehouse Villa Bus Notes

I broke my left big toe a couple weeks ago and decided to cut my MK day short today and put some ice on it. So I left the family behind with the car keys and decided to give the buses a try. Here is the exact timing on my journey:

1:32pm Arrived at MK SSR bus stop
1:38pm Bus arrives
1:51pm Bus enters from gate of Saratoga Springs
2:02pm Bus pulls into The Springs (5th and final stop at SSR)

So the entire trip around SSR only took 11 minutes. And that was with us waiting a full three minutes just to get into The Springs (there were two buses already parked there--one was unloading an ECV and the other was delayed due to a driver shift change.)

I've seen posts about it taking 20+ minutes to make the rounds at SSR and I just don't see that being the case. Best case it could be as little as 8 minutes (if we hadn't had the wait at The Springs.) And that was with about 20 people on board who disembarked over 4 of the 5 stops. Also picked up people along the way.

Worst case it could be a longer route if you have to wait for ECV loading, but I think the average is probably in the 10-12 minute neighborhood.

Sorry about your toe. Looks like you are making the best of it.

I am so glad that you posted actual times of your bus experience. We were at SSR last summer with summer crowds and didn't ever experience the long times some folks were claiming it took buses to make the circuit.

 

[Korea Ears]

I would like to possible see how the pack-n-play takes up space in the master and/or 2nd bedroom.

 

[Mackwell]

Hey, did they give you a map at check in with the THV numbers listed on it? I'd love to see a picture of that!

I have been referring to this map on AllEars.net.

On my reservation (checking in Sunday), I have requested a unit somewhere in the 7020 to 7036 range. I'll report in Sunday on how that goes.