Need help with SSR

[gottaluvPluto]

My sister just called me freaking out about our trip to SSR in June. She went online to do some research about the resort and came across all sorts of negative reviews. Some of the reviews told of things being held together with cords, closet doors falling and furniture falling apart. I told her that SSR is not that old and I don't think Disney would let the resort fall apart like that. Well, she isn't listening to me and she is driving me crazy. Can someone tell me if the older sections of the resort are falling apart inside and outside?

Thank you!

 

[daisyduck123]

Hi!

I've must have read some of the room reviews that your sister read.
We're heading down for our 1st stay (7 nights) at SSR next month.
I'm not at all worried about those bad reports. Please don't lose any sleep over this.
It seems to me that there are about 10 POSITIVE room reports for every one negative.
I think you will find that with any resort.

I am so excited to get there, I am about to burst.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

I tried to explain to her not to allow a bad review ruin her vacation and my vacation. For some reason, I don't know what I'm talking about.

I'm excited and thrilled to stay at SSR. I can't wait to just relax and enjoy the resort.

 

[daisyduck123]

When you be there??

We'll be there May 12-19. Can't wait!!!

**Forget it...I just reread your post & saw "June".

 

[Sammie]

Where in the world, are yall reading this? What was held together with cords. I am sorry but I find that very hard to believe.

SSR is the newest Disney resort and we have stayed in all locations except the Grandstand and Carousel and never had a room such as that.

If you did all you would have to do is asked to be moved. Can you link this review, would love to read it.

 

[daisyduck123]

Where in the world, are yall reading this? What was held together with cords. I am sorry but I find that very hard to believe.

Yes, the few negative reports I read, I tended to take with a grain of salt.
Most of the reports are glowing.

I sometimes read reviews from here on the Dis or else allears.net.......so it was one of those two places. Sorry I can't provide a link.

 

[tjkraz]

If she's been reading reviews here, it doesn't surprise me that she might get the wrong opinion. Negative reviews tend to be subject to extensive discussion (sometimes with good reason), and I can see how that can leave and overall negative impression. Some people have their own agenda for posting negative comments, while at the other end of the spectrum some tend to go overboard in trying to oppose such posts (and I'm not excluding myself from the latter group. )

Saratoga Springs has been open for less than 3 years. No, the rooms are not falling apart. Obviously it's not unheard of for random fixtures and appliances to fail after being host to hundreds of vacationing families. But the same is true for any Disney or DVC resort.

I'd point her toward the reviews here:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...atoga_Springs_Resort_Spa-Orlando_Florida.html

I think the reviews there are fair and (not coincidentally) overwhelmingly positive. The biggest complaint I saw after perusing the comments was older reviews that mentioned the lack of a sit-down restaurant. That problem was addressed about 9 months ago with the opening of The Turf Club.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

Where in the world, are yall reading this? What was held together with cords. I am sorry but I find that very hard to believe.

SSR is the newest Disney resort and we have stayed in all locations except the Grandstand and Carousel and never had a room such as that.

If you did all you would have to do is asked to be moved. Can you link this review, would love to read it.

I didn't read the review. My sister read it on trip advisor. She said the review is from March 7th. I'm not going to read it. I figure I can get better information from the Dis.

Thanks for letting me know you haven't seen any cords holding things together or run down furniture.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

If she's been reading reviews here, it doesn't surprise me that she might get the wrong opinion. Negative reviews tend to be subject to extensive discussion (sometimes with good reason), and I can see how that can leave and overall negative impression. Some people have their own agenda for posting negative comments, while at the other end of the spectrum some tend to go overboard in trying to oppose such posts (and I'm not excluding myself from the latter group. )

Saratoga Springs has been open for less than 3 years. No, the rooms are not falling apart. Obviously it's not unheard of for random fixtures and appliances to fail after being host to hundreds of vacationing families. But the same is true for any Disney or DVC resort.

I'd point her toward the reviews here:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...atoga_Springs_Resort_Spa-Orlando_Florida.html

I think the reviews there are fair and (not coincidentally) overwhelmingly positive. The biggest complaint I saw after perusing the comments was older reviews that mentioned the lack of a sit-down restaurant. That problem was addressed about 9 months ago with the opening of The Turf Club.

I told my sister that the resort was one of the newest ones. She replied, "you know they have some older buildings and the older ones are the ones falling apart." I continued to explain how young the entire resort is, but she just would not listen to me. I'm going to send her this way (to the Dis) and tell her to have an open mind. I want to enjoy myself with no negative vibes.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

When you be there??

We'll be there May 12-19. Can't wait!!!

**Forget it...I just reread your post & saw "June".

I would love to go in May! My kids are still in school and cannot miss one day. Very strict. They are in a magnet school.

 

[daisyduck123]

I would love to go in May! My kids are still in school and cannot miss one day. Very strict. They are in a magnet school.

Oh, that stinks!

I pull mine out every year..they miss 6 school days.
(Myself included. I'm a teacher. )

May is about the best time of year to go!!

 

[tjkraz]

I told my sister that the resort was one of the newest ones. She replied, "you know they have some older buildings and the older ones are the ones falling apart." I continued to explain how young the entire resort is, but she just would not listen to me. I'm going to send her this way (to the Dis) and tell her to have an open mind. I want to enjoy myself with no negative vibes.

That comment makes me wonder if she isn't confusing it with another resort. All of the buildings at SSR are brand new with the oldest having opened in May 2004. The newest buildings are just weeks old, and there are a couple more still set to open this spring.

Most of the reviews on Trip Advisor give the resort a 5 out of 5.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

That comment makes me wonder if she isn't confusing it with another resort. All of the buildings at SSR are brand new with the oldest having opened in May 2004. The newest buildings are just weeks old, and there are a couple more still set to open this spring.

Most of the reviews on Trip Advisor give the resort a 5 out of 5.

Maybe she is reading a review about Cornado Springs! She is confused. I'll have to call her and let her know she made a mistake.

 

[mamatojon]

Go to tripadvisor and do a search for "Saratoga Resort Villas" - it is located in Kissimmee and I'll bet you she is reading those reviews. A lot of them sound exactly like what your sister is describing, older rooms versus refurbished rooms, things falling apart, etc.

 

[hematite153]

I don't know what your sister was reading, but, trip advisor doen't have any reviews of SSR from March 7th.

There was a thread awhile back where someone pointed out that SSR is Trip Advisor's highest ranked DVC property. Some people got irritated and said that they were heading over to add some negative reviews. Although the claim was that they didn't like SSR, they either haven't visited or didn't find their visit negative enough to post until told that others who LOVE the resort had been moved to post.

What I noticed out of all that attention, is that SSR is STILL ranked 22nd in Orlando by trip advisor--only 2 Disney resorts were ranked higher.

A brief tour of SSR convinced me to buy into DVC. Then, when I stayed there this year, I had a great time. If there does happen to be a problem with your room, just call the appropriate department.

 

[TenThousandVolts]

4.5 out of 5 stars on trip advisor- 'nuff said. Tell your sister to look at the overall ratings. All big resorts will have some negative reviews-just look at the big picture.

 

[hematite153]

Go to tripadvisor and do a search for "Saratoga Resort Villas" - it is located in Kissimmee and I'll bet you she is reading those reviews. A lot of them sound exactly like what your sister is describing, older rooms versus refurbished rooms, things falling apart, etc.

Yes. I did this search. I still didn't find any March 7th reviews but there is an April 7th review that seems to match your retelling of your sister's reading experience.

I think your sister is looking up the wrong resort. Remind her that the fullname of SSR is "Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort".

 

[BroganMc]

Now I'm dying to find this review with cords held together and things falling apart. I can't find any like that on TripAdvisor.

Taking the devil's advocate, you can always tell your sister she can just stay home. Why put up with a complainer on your vacation?

I am one of those who frequently jumps into the fray here for SSR debates. The biggest complaint seems to be the distances you walk there. It's spread out enough that section to section is around .25 miles. It's like have VWL, BWV and BCV all in the same place. A problem if you're not prepared for it; the rest of us find the walkways relaxing and scenic.

As for maintenance issues: well I admit I had a couple burned out lightbulbs and a loose kitchen cabinet knob in my Springs room last December. But I also got a pair of maintenance works pay a housecall and stay long enough to fix every little thing I found.

Meanwhile the bigger maintenance issues I've seen usually come up when talking BCV and BWV. There's a HA BCV room that supposedly got taken out of service for a greasy fridge and leaky shower a month ago. And then there was the person who was given wet blankets for the sofabed a week ago.

All in all though, they are relatively minor.

The resort is 3 years old. Congress Park being the oldest section. Then the Springs. Next Paddocks. Carousel opened last year and Grandstand opened last month. There may be some wear and tear on the oldest units, but no one's reported duct tape fixes, yet (there is a DIS poster who claims to be married to a MacGyver so who knows what "he's" fixed ).

The distances are what they are. The big improvement from '04-'05 seems to be that the major construction is done. (If you look at Windows Live mapping you can see the unsightly sore the Paddocks were when they were just mud holes.) The landscaping has grown in providing more scenic byways. There's an onsite restaurant now serving lunch and dinner (I want breakfast too!). And there are 4 working pools now: 2 quiet, 2 theme. Oh and they started showing movies at the main pool in the last month.

But if you want to wait on a DTD bus to take you to DTD (instead of walking or taking the ferry), you may have to wait. Disney implemented a new satellite tracking system that seems to put DTD busses into less service during the day when demand is low.

I'll be there in May (14-21) so I'll no doubt be posting yet more reviews and pictures.

 

[Sammie]

To anyone concerned about SSR falling apart, as TJ stated it is not.

However, sadly I must say there are certain individuals, that frequent the Net forums and even possibly now Trip Advisor, that live to bash and discredit SSR.

Please do not take anything that smells of a rat to be anything more than rat droppings.

Enjoy your trip and if you should encounter any minor flaws simply call maintenance ask them to repair it. It is a beautiful resort with lovely interior furnishings.

 

[hematite153]

However, sadly I must say there are certain individuals, that frequent the Net forums and even possibly now Trip Advisor, that live to bash and discredit SSR.

And despite their best efforts, SSR remains trip advisor's 22nd ranked resort. (All but 2 of the other Disney resorts are ranked lower.)