Granny
Yeah, I'm a guy
- Joined
- Jul 25, 2001
- Messages
- 14,433
We (me, DW and DDs 16 & 14) recently returned from a two-week trip to WDW from 6/25 7/9. Many here know that my family and I are die-hard VWL and BWV fans, but one thing we like about DVC is the chance to sample other resort experiences. We decided to try out Old Key West this trip, and enjoyed the experience quite a bit!
Here are my observations from the DVC portion of the trip. Ill bypass the park experiences other than to say that I thoroughly enjoyed a wonderful Illuminations Cruise that my family shared with DIS member MickeyBabe and her family. What a treat to meet such a lovely DIS member and her family on a perfectly cool, clear summer evening.
Now, on to the impressions of OKW.
Check in: We stayed the first night off-site as usual since the drive down gets us into Orlando late Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I went over to OKW to check in at about 9:45. The lines at the registration desk were already fairly long and that lobby area and Guest Services were packed all day long with people.
After about a 15 minute wait, I checked in with a very nice CM. She pulled up my reservation, and indicated that my room was not ready. I didnt expect it to be at 10:00 a.m., but wanted to get checked in so we could bypass the front desk later in the day when our room was ready. I did ask her if OKW was using room ready, and she said that the rooms were pre-assigned based on requests, but if I wanted to get into a room sooner she would look for another room for me. We stayed with the room they had pre-assigned, especially when she said that it met our requirement for non-smoking and she also indicated that it should be ready soon.
I wont go into the checking back regularly process that we went throughout that day. Bottom line is that our room was ready not available until 4:50 p.m., which is not a big deal to us.
The bigger concern was the room assignment procedure. For my reservation (and its the only one I can talk to), they clearly had pre-assigned my room. But then they offered room ready if I wanted to get into a room right away. If the rooms are pre-assigned, then that means that if I had accepted a room ready accommodation, they would have to unassign someone elses room to give me that (since the resort was fully booked according to the CM).
Clearly, IMHO, we will avoid late check ins at any DVC resort with the current methods of assigning rooms. We dont really care about what views we get, though we like nice ones. But I would be concerned if we werent able to get a non-smoking room due to showing up late in the day.
Room: We stayed in a dedicated 2BR unit. Villa 1722 in Building 17 near the Hospitality House on Millers Road. I can certainly now see why people who get used to OKW room sizes might consider other DVC resorts to be more cramped. They are noticeably bigger accommodations, especially in the living room/kitchen area! We have never felt cramped in other DVC resorts weve stayed at (VWL & BWV), but I can see where someone who is used to one thing would find smaller room square footages to be noticeable.
DW enjoyed having not only a full sized washer/dryer (unlike the stacked ones in the closets at other WDW DVC resorts) but an entire laundry room complete with room to iron and hang damp clothing. Also, the jacuzzi tub is huge! Im pretty sure it is slightly larger than the quiet pool we visited a few times!
On the other hand, I do think that Disney improved the layout of the master bathrooms when they started building at BWV and then VWL. We like the VWL layout of the main master bathroom sink area being out of the shower/toilet area. Also, the separate entries into the master shower/toilet areas at VWL helps make our vacation mornings run a little smoother for us. At OKW, you go through a secondary sink/jacuzzi tub area to get to the main sink/shower/toilet area. Not a big deal we just prefer the BWV/VWL layout a little more in that aspect.
Also, we missed our walk-in closets for the master bedroom that we enjoy at VWL & BWV. Again, no big deal as we had plenty of closet/drawer space.
We did enjoy the large balcony with the entry doors from both the living room and main bedroom. In addition to its large size that allows for a round table with four chairs, the balcony had other nice touches a tile floor and a ceiling fan. Our balcony did not have the slats with Mickey heads cut out, but the one next to us did. I always thought that was a great touch from Disney.
View & room location: We enjoyed a wonderful view from our balcony. The view from our second story villa was of the 6th green of the LBV golf course. Beyond the green was the large pond with fountain, the Peninsular Road bridge and the lighthouse near the pool. It really was a postcard setting. It was close enough to HH to get there with a short walk, and close enough to the Miller Road bus stop as well. All in all, a great location, though if we go back to OKW we would probably request the Turtle Pond area since my DDs liked that pool.
One note: the first night we noticed that the lights outside seemed to get brighter and then darker, then brighter, darker, etc. We couldnt figure out what would be doing that. Once I looked outside, it became obvious ..the lighthouse has a beacon that spins around and once we got used to that it was kind of neat.
Room condition: Generally very clean and in good working order. We did find some sticky, sandy substance on the washer/dryer that I cleaned up with a damp towel in a few minutes. And one of the doors on the television cabinet in the living room was off its hinge, but a call to maintenance fixed that within a couple of hours. Otherwise, we found everything to be in good condition with no abnormal wear and tear evident.
And no bed bugs!
Noise: I have to chuckle thinking about all the people who describe OKW as this quiet, out-of-the way place. By far, this was the noisiest DVC villa weve stayed at! It was no problem for us, but it certainly wasnt completely quiet.
The biggest thing is that being next to a golf course, and especially the green, we got golf course vehicle traffic very early (6:00 a.m.) each morning. Someone would show up and mow the greens. Then someone else would pull up and move the hole location. Some mornings, the guy cutting the fairways and rough would show up. A couple of times, a vehicle with spray (fertilizer or weed control?) would patrol the area. But very, very active every morning. No big deal, but certainly not quiet.
And of course, the golfers themselves werent always quiet either! Though must say that Im proud of the golfers in that despite the frequent missed putts, we didnt hear one R-rated word.
On the other hand, building 17 is set back from Millers Road enough that we didnt hear much road noise. The one exception was the laundry train that came through at night. The clatter that thing makes is pretty substantial, and on one night it was running at about 10:30 and went back and forth a few times and was pretty noisy.
On the whole, though, OKW does live up to its reputation as a serene, peaceful setting. And the landscaping is lush and beautiful.
Mousekeeping: No problems with full cleaning or T&T days. Mousekeeping respected our do not disturb signs in the morning and were thorough with the cleaning. Yes, I did tip them.
Maintenance: As stated, maintenance was prompt in fixing our one issue as noted above.
Bus service: We found the service to be somewhat spotty, with a few times having waits of less than five minutes, but more than a couple times having waits exceeding 40 minutes for a bus to our destination. Also, on the way back from the parks, Millers Road is the next to last stop so we had an extra 10 minutes or so added to every bus trip while riding around the resort. Not a big deal, but on a few nights we would have liked to have skipped the resort tour.
As for the internal bus service, we found that to be pretty much non-existent. If we wanted to go to the Turtle Pond pool, we pretty much had to drive or make the hike there. Getting back to our villa from there was no problem as the bus routes worked in our favor then. Guest Services told us that there is a bus marked internal that makes the rounds, but in many waiting periods at the Miller Road bus stop in two weeks, we never saw an internal bus once.
We thought the bus service was adequate in general and slightly better than that of BWV in some of our previous stays there. Going against the grain a bit, but weve found the VWL busses to be the most reliable ones at the locations weve stayed at.
Boat service: We enjoyed the boat to DTD and used it a couple of times. A lovely slow ride through the canals and a quick stop at the SSR dock. This ran very promptly as advertised.
CM attitudes & Welcome Homes: Weve been fortunate to encounter great CMs in past trips, and this one was no exception. Everyone was friendly and helpful. We got a Welcome Home when checking in, and from the guard shack regardless of who was on duty.
Food: We liked Olivias, and thought it was functional though not outstanding. The service was a bit slow, but we are rarely in a hurry so it is not a big deal. The food was good enough for us, though my younger DD is never impressed with any place that doesnt offer pizza! On the other hand, she did enjoy getting her smoothies fix at Goods!
Bottom line, resort impressions: A lovely, first class resort with wonderful landscaping and spacious rooms. We are more of the hotel experience type of family, so it wont replace VWL or BWV as our primary locations to stay. But I would never hesitate to stay at OKW again and am very glad to have sampled its friendly hospitality and lovely setting.
Sorry for the length of this. Two weeks is a long time to form opinions!!
Here are my observations from the DVC portion of the trip. Ill bypass the park experiences other than to say that I thoroughly enjoyed a wonderful Illuminations Cruise that my family shared with DIS member MickeyBabe and her family. What a treat to meet such a lovely DIS member and her family on a perfectly cool, clear summer evening.
Now, on to the impressions of OKW.
Check in: We stayed the first night off-site as usual since the drive down gets us into Orlando late Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I went over to OKW to check in at about 9:45. The lines at the registration desk were already fairly long and that lobby area and Guest Services were packed all day long with people.
After about a 15 minute wait, I checked in with a very nice CM. She pulled up my reservation, and indicated that my room was not ready. I didnt expect it to be at 10:00 a.m., but wanted to get checked in so we could bypass the front desk later in the day when our room was ready. I did ask her if OKW was using room ready, and she said that the rooms were pre-assigned based on requests, but if I wanted to get into a room sooner she would look for another room for me. We stayed with the room they had pre-assigned, especially when she said that it met our requirement for non-smoking and she also indicated that it should be ready soon.
I wont go into the checking back regularly process that we went throughout that day. Bottom line is that our room was ready not available until 4:50 p.m., which is not a big deal to us.
The bigger concern was the room assignment procedure. For my reservation (and its the only one I can talk to), they clearly had pre-assigned my room. But then they offered room ready if I wanted to get into a room right away. If the rooms are pre-assigned, then that means that if I had accepted a room ready accommodation, they would have to unassign someone elses room to give me that (since the resort was fully booked according to the CM).
Clearly, IMHO, we will avoid late check ins at any DVC resort with the current methods of assigning rooms. We dont really care about what views we get, though we like nice ones. But I would be concerned if we werent able to get a non-smoking room due to showing up late in the day.
Room: We stayed in a dedicated 2BR unit. Villa 1722 in Building 17 near the Hospitality House on Millers Road. I can certainly now see why people who get used to OKW room sizes might consider other DVC resorts to be more cramped. They are noticeably bigger accommodations, especially in the living room/kitchen area! We have never felt cramped in other DVC resorts weve stayed at (VWL & BWV), but I can see where someone who is used to one thing would find smaller room square footages to be noticeable.
DW enjoyed having not only a full sized washer/dryer (unlike the stacked ones in the closets at other WDW DVC resorts) but an entire laundry room complete with room to iron and hang damp clothing. Also, the jacuzzi tub is huge! Im pretty sure it is slightly larger than the quiet pool we visited a few times!
On the other hand, I do think that Disney improved the layout of the master bathrooms when they started building at BWV and then VWL. We like the VWL layout of the main master bathroom sink area being out of the shower/toilet area. Also, the separate entries into the master shower/toilet areas at VWL helps make our vacation mornings run a little smoother for us. At OKW, you go through a secondary sink/jacuzzi tub area to get to the main sink/shower/toilet area. Not a big deal we just prefer the BWV/VWL layout a little more in that aspect.
Also, we missed our walk-in closets for the master bedroom that we enjoy at VWL & BWV. Again, no big deal as we had plenty of closet/drawer space.
We did enjoy the large balcony with the entry doors from both the living room and main bedroom. In addition to its large size that allows for a round table with four chairs, the balcony had other nice touches a tile floor and a ceiling fan. Our balcony did not have the slats with Mickey heads cut out, but the one next to us did. I always thought that was a great touch from Disney.
View & room location: We enjoyed a wonderful view from our balcony. The view from our second story villa was of the 6th green of the LBV golf course. Beyond the green was the large pond with fountain, the Peninsular Road bridge and the lighthouse near the pool. It really was a postcard setting. It was close enough to HH to get there with a short walk, and close enough to the Miller Road bus stop as well. All in all, a great location, though if we go back to OKW we would probably request the Turtle Pond area since my DDs liked that pool.
One note: the first night we noticed that the lights outside seemed to get brighter and then darker, then brighter, darker, etc. We couldnt figure out what would be doing that. Once I looked outside, it became obvious ..the lighthouse has a beacon that spins around and once we got used to that it was kind of neat.
Room condition: Generally very clean and in good working order. We did find some sticky, sandy substance on the washer/dryer that I cleaned up with a damp towel in a few minutes. And one of the doors on the television cabinet in the living room was off its hinge, but a call to maintenance fixed that within a couple of hours. Otherwise, we found everything to be in good condition with no abnormal wear and tear evident.
And no bed bugs!
Noise: I have to chuckle thinking about all the people who describe OKW as this quiet, out-of-the way place. By far, this was the noisiest DVC villa weve stayed at! It was no problem for us, but it certainly wasnt completely quiet.
The biggest thing is that being next to a golf course, and especially the green, we got golf course vehicle traffic very early (6:00 a.m.) each morning. Someone would show up and mow the greens. Then someone else would pull up and move the hole location. Some mornings, the guy cutting the fairways and rough would show up. A couple of times, a vehicle with spray (fertilizer or weed control?) would patrol the area. But very, very active every morning. No big deal, but certainly not quiet.
And of course, the golfers themselves werent always quiet either! Though must say that Im proud of the golfers in that despite the frequent missed putts, we didnt hear one R-rated word.
On the other hand, building 17 is set back from Millers Road enough that we didnt hear much road noise. The one exception was the laundry train that came through at night. The clatter that thing makes is pretty substantial, and on one night it was running at about 10:30 and went back and forth a few times and was pretty noisy.
On the whole, though, OKW does live up to its reputation as a serene, peaceful setting. And the landscaping is lush and beautiful.
Mousekeeping: No problems with full cleaning or T&T days. Mousekeeping respected our do not disturb signs in the morning and were thorough with the cleaning. Yes, I did tip them.
Maintenance: As stated, maintenance was prompt in fixing our one issue as noted above.
Bus service: We found the service to be somewhat spotty, with a few times having waits of less than five minutes, but more than a couple times having waits exceeding 40 minutes for a bus to our destination. Also, on the way back from the parks, Millers Road is the next to last stop so we had an extra 10 minutes or so added to every bus trip while riding around the resort. Not a big deal, but on a few nights we would have liked to have skipped the resort tour.
As for the internal bus service, we found that to be pretty much non-existent. If we wanted to go to the Turtle Pond pool, we pretty much had to drive or make the hike there. Getting back to our villa from there was no problem as the bus routes worked in our favor then. Guest Services told us that there is a bus marked internal that makes the rounds, but in many waiting periods at the Miller Road bus stop in two weeks, we never saw an internal bus once.
We thought the bus service was adequate in general and slightly better than that of BWV in some of our previous stays there. Going against the grain a bit, but weve found the VWL busses to be the most reliable ones at the locations weve stayed at.
Boat service: We enjoyed the boat to DTD and used it a couple of times. A lovely slow ride through the canals and a quick stop at the SSR dock. This ran very promptly as advertised.
CM attitudes & Welcome Homes: Weve been fortunate to encounter great CMs in past trips, and this one was no exception. Everyone was friendly and helpful. We got a Welcome Home when checking in, and from the guard shack regardless of who was on duty.
Food: We liked Olivias, and thought it was functional though not outstanding. The service was a bit slow, but we are rarely in a hurry so it is not a big deal. The food was good enough for us, though my younger DD is never impressed with any place that doesnt offer pizza! On the other hand, she did enjoy getting her smoothies fix at Goods!
Bottom line, resort impressions: A lovely, first class resort with wonderful landscaping and spacious rooms. We are more of the hotel experience type of family, so it wont replace VWL or BWV as our primary locations to stay. But I would never hesitate to stay at OKW again and am very glad to have sampled its friendly hospitality and lovely setting.
Sorry for the length of this. Two weeks is a long time to form opinions!!
, I was pretty much worn out! 
.... if you are looking to park at HH on a Sunday, forget about it! Every spot was taken, and people were parking in the villa lots directly across from HH. If someone came back to their villa in that area in their car that day, they would have had to park on Miller's Road somewhere. 
