twinsouvenirs
Mother of Dragons :)
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2013
- Messages
- 1,608
We just got back from our 'trial visit' to SSR & BWV. It was a blast. Best family vacation (only so far) that we've taken and it was a great getaway.
BEFORE you jump in, please keep in mind a point that is, in my opinion, understressed in the wash of financial debate here.
IT IS DIFFERENT FROM BUYING INTO THE HOTELS. You are actually buying into a condo. A condo that is, depending on the age of the resort, 20 yrs + old.
It is definitely a 'condo' type experience. My family regularly rents condos. I am not fazed by a sink backup, a laundry machine backup, etc. I stayed in a hotel treehouse in Nicaragua without electricity and running water on my honeymoon and had a blast (my new husband got a little testy...) so we've seen them all. But on some level, since it is Disney, you expect even a condo to feel 'perfect' and surreal. I'm hear to tell you that they are just condos. With amazing pools.
We stayed in a one bedroom at SSR and one at BWK. They were lovely, spacious, fun, easy layouts. They were definitely NOT new. A few cupboards/drawers hung funny, the molding in the halls was crumbly by the base, the appliances in SSR were old. Our laundry machine backed up and soaked about 50% of the carpet in the whole unit one night at about 10pm, but our babies were asleep so we called engineering, told them to be quiet, and put on our flipflops. The night of arrival at BWV our sink was leaking so they wanted to get in to plumb. They said it could wait, and once again, the babies were asleep so we told them to come back in the am.
Despite not being a hotel, we were constantly visited by mousekeepers, maintenance, engineering, etc. It was comic--at one point we had four separate people in a row knock at the door (apparently someone with a similar unit number had been requesting a bunch of things, and they thought we were checking out several days when we were not).
That said, the service is great. We were given our choice between cribs and pack n plays, given sheets, and when the laundry machine flooded they gave us a gazillion towels for the floor and the engineer was there nearly immediately. They offered us a new unit but our babies had fallen asleep for the night so there was no way we were moving.
HOWEVER, the engineers left muddy footprints all over our kitchen, as well as taking the trash cans out from under the sink and leaving them out in the kitchen (with kids, not a great idea). When I called to ask if they were still in the middle of the job or had finished, they offered to send mousekeeping... in my opinion, the engineer probably should have had them swing by after he/she finished since he/she clearly was not cleaning up after his/herself. I told them not to bother and cleaned it with a towel. We had plenty of towels since it was just two adults but if we had been staying longer, using one of the towels to clean up the floor after the plumber would have rankled a bit.
The housekeepers came by at 8am on checkout day to clean. She had us put the privacy placard on the door while we finished getting ready (we were out by 8:45 am). On on hand, annoying. On the other hand, both of our rooms were ready when we arrived around noon/1pm so their quick service also allowed us to check in early so on balance we'll take it!
There was no white glove treatment outside of the lobby--but everyone was very nice.
We had a blast, we're bought in, etc... and SSR is an older building, and so is BWK, but we just wanted to ensure people know they are getting condos, and in many cases older condos. NOT hotel rooms. My husband likened the repairs to 'bandaids'.
Just wanted potential purchasers to understand that you are really really not buying into a perpetual hotel. You are buying an interest in a condo building with no control over any given unit, and if you are expecting pixie dust and perfect order you should revise your expectations accordingly. I am not sure about other timeshares in the area, so DVC still may be a cut above, but these are the kind of issues that can sink a vacation for people that are expecting a first-rate hotel.
BEFORE you jump in, please keep in mind a point that is, in my opinion, understressed in the wash of financial debate here.
IT IS DIFFERENT FROM BUYING INTO THE HOTELS. You are actually buying into a condo. A condo that is, depending on the age of the resort, 20 yrs + old.
It is definitely a 'condo' type experience. My family regularly rents condos. I am not fazed by a sink backup, a laundry machine backup, etc. I stayed in a hotel treehouse in Nicaragua without electricity and running water on my honeymoon and had a blast (my new husband got a little testy...) so we've seen them all. But on some level, since it is Disney, you expect even a condo to feel 'perfect' and surreal. I'm hear to tell you that they are just condos. With amazing pools.
We stayed in a one bedroom at SSR and one at BWK. They were lovely, spacious, fun, easy layouts. They were definitely NOT new. A few cupboards/drawers hung funny, the molding in the halls was crumbly by the base, the appliances in SSR were old. Our laundry machine backed up and soaked about 50% of the carpet in the whole unit one night at about 10pm, but our babies were asleep so we called engineering, told them to be quiet, and put on our flipflops. The night of arrival at BWV our sink was leaking so they wanted to get in to plumb. They said it could wait, and once again, the babies were asleep so we told them to come back in the am.
Despite not being a hotel, we were constantly visited by mousekeepers, maintenance, engineering, etc. It was comic--at one point we had four separate people in a row knock at the door (apparently someone with a similar unit number had been requesting a bunch of things, and they thought we were checking out several days when we were not).
That said, the service is great. We were given our choice between cribs and pack n plays, given sheets, and when the laundry machine flooded they gave us a gazillion towels for the floor and the engineer was there nearly immediately. They offered us a new unit but our babies had fallen asleep for the night so there was no way we were moving.
HOWEVER, the engineers left muddy footprints all over our kitchen, as well as taking the trash cans out from under the sink and leaving them out in the kitchen (with kids, not a great idea). When I called to ask if they were still in the middle of the job or had finished, they offered to send mousekeeping... in my opinion, the engineer probably should have had them swing by after he/she finished since he/she clearly was not cleaning up after his/herself. I told them not to bother and cleaned it with a towel. We had plenty of towels since it was just two adults but if we had been staying longer, using one of the towels to clean up the floor after the plumber would have rankled a bit.
The housekeepers came by at 8am on checkout day to clean. She had us put the privacy placard on the door while we finished getting ready (we were out by 8:45 am). On on hand, annoying. On the other hand, both of our rooms were ready when we arrived around noon/1pm so their quick service also allowed us to check in early so on balance we'll take it!
There was no white glove treatment outside of the lobby--but everyone was very nice.
We had a blast, we're bought in, etc... and SSR is an older building, and so is BWK, but we just wanted to ensure people know they are getting condos, and in many cases older condos. NOT hotel rooms. My husband likened the repairs to 'bandaids'.
Just wanted potential purchasers to understand that you are really really not buying into a perpetual hotel. You are buying an interest in a condo building with no control over any given unit, and if you are expecting pixie dust and perfect order you should revise your expectations accordingly. I am not sure about other timeshares in the area, so DVC still may be a cut above, but these are the kind of issues that can sink a vacation for people that are expecting a first-rate hotel.
As for DVC vs off-site condos, it's all about the location and being "inside the bubble". 
Bill 
