OKW / Saratoga Springs as non DVC members

[marcus.ka]

We are thinking about staying during our next visit in the Old Key West or the Saratoga Springs but as non DVC member.
During our last visit we stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside and we thought this was a very good hotel.

But do you also have the “hotel feeling” if your are staying at the DVC resorts?

Is there for example every day mousekeeping and do you also have a food court? (or at least a place to refill your mugs? And do the rooms have also 2 Queen size beds like in the POR?

I know that they advertise with “Home away from home” but we don’t wont to feel like at home, we want to feel like we are staying in a hotel.

So what are the main differences if we should stay at these two hotels as non DVC member?

And another personal question. Which one of these two would you choose if you could stay at both of them as non DVC member.

 

[orangetiggs]

we stayed at french quarter last year and next year we are going to old key west

i beleive you get mousekeeping if paying cash and not on points every day

i like both resorts but have heard that the rooms at old key west are bigger and my twins will be nearly 2 next year so need that bit of extra room!

 

[wayneg]

If paying a nightly rate you get full daily Housekeeping.
No food court at OKW, its just a kiosk type outlet with very limited menu, we ate most lunches at POR, POFQ & DTD (Wolfgang Puck Express) all within 5 min drive. Not sure what SSR has for fast food.
I would say its not full hotel feel, we don't like staying in Villas/Condos, much prefer hotels, OKW is between the 2 as you drive upto the room, very spread out resort so more like an apartment but a studio is just like a large hotel room inside, the 1 & 2 bed villas probably feel less hotel like but not been in those. We still felt like we were in a hotel or we wouldn't be going back this August.
We prefer look of OKW but never stayed at SSR to compare.

 

[wilma-bride]

Neither SSR or OKW are hotels. They are very much villa-style resorts and, having stayed at both, I can honestly say they don't feel like you are staying at a hotel at all.

Yes, you do get daily mousekeeping if you are paying cash and have booked through CRO (or a travel agent) and both resorts have counter service options but no way comparable to POR.

The rooms (studios) at SSR will not have 2 queen size beds, only a bed and a sleeper sofa. The rooms at OKW (studios) do have 2 queen size beds.

TBH, if you want a hotel-type holiday, personally I don't think OKW or SSR are the resorts for you. Having said that, I don't consider POR or POFQ - or even the values - to be very hotel-like either.

The main differences between the two are probably that OKW have larger rooms, however SSR has a better choice of counter service options, although I don't consider the options that either of them have as a food court as such. We found SSR's bus service to be far more reliable than OKW's.

Out of the two, I actually preferred OKW but that could be because when we stayed at SSR, the location of our room was very far away from themain pool and other main areas. OKW we were slightly closer although still a good 10 min walk.

I think you need to prepare yourself for the fact that both resorts are very spread out and you could easily be located a good distance from the main buildings/food areas.

 

[Elise79]

Both resorts have a refillable mug station but depending were in the resort you are this might not be very convenient as both resorts are more spread out than POR. You may want to buy bottles of drink and keep them in the fridge as the studios have under counter fridges.

If you are looking at a studio then OKW has 2 queens and SSR has 1 queen and a double sleeper sofa - might be important depending on the people travelling. The one beds are the same with a king in the bedroom and a queen sleeper sofa in the living room.

SSR has a nice QS but it is not as wide a selection as you would find at POR.

Cash stays get daily house keeping.

You can walk to DTD from SSR too.

There is no pool slide at OKW but there is at SSR and depending when you are going they are building a second feature pool at SSR.

 

[wilma-bride]

There is no pool slide at OKW

Yes there is

 

[Elise79]

Yes there is

Sorry, I read posts about there being no slide which I thought was strange but when we went to look round last year we caught by the rain and never made it as far as the pool.

 

[wilma-bride]

Sorry, I read posts about there being no slide which I thought was strange but when we went to look round last year we caught by the rain and never made it as far as the pool.

Only the value resorts don't have slides at the pools. With the DVC resorts, there are only slides at the main pool, not at the quiet pools.

I actually prefer the slide at OKW to that at SSR. And the water at SSR always seems too warm. granted, we stayed there in August last time but it was like getting into a bath - not refreshing at all.

 

[dixonsontour]

Slide at OKW is like a sandcastle and the bit you pop out of it mickey shaped - DD is so excited to try it.

 

[marcus.ka]

Thank you for the very helpfull replies.

And yes Wilma you are right also the POR does not really feel like a real hotel but I think you know what I mean. At POR we did not have the "home away from home feeling". We felt like staying in a hotel. And I just wanted to know if you can have the same feeling at these two hotels.

But if you have housekeeping every day, and you are only staying at a studio I think you can have the "hotel feeling", or am I wrong?

 

[wayneg]

But if you have housekeeping every day, and you are only staying at a studio I think you can have the "hotel feeling", or am I wrong?

That is how we felt, just like in a really nice hotel room with balcony & looked after by housekeeping.
No way did it feel like staying in a condo/apartment putting trash out every morning, making beds, cleaning up etc. Won't be doing that again but wouldn't hesitate to stay at OKW.

 

[iluvtot]

Hi,
We have stayed at all 3, as paying guests and DVC. I really liked POR, but having said that I would always choose OKW, as I have always found it to be more chilled. The rooms are comfortably big compared to SSR. You can actually walk around the beds without tripping up! The little kitchen area in the studios is really useful. We could have a bowl of cereal or some toast in the mornings before heading out. There are usually disposable plates, bowls etc provided, so no washing up, and the fridge! sitting on the balcony with a chilled glass of vino......bliss!(Can't remember if we had a balcony at POR)
SSR (in my opinion) has more of a hotel feel. As Joh said, there is one bed and one sofa bed, which does have the advantage of being put back every morning, giving more space. They also have the compact kitchen space.
POR as I said , I really liked, but after a couple of days, we were tripping over each other (depends how many of you there are, and how long you spend in the room. We do like to come back and chill for a while before going out)
As the others' have said, there is no Food Court at OKW, but there is a restaurant (Olivias) that is quite good, and the counter service we have found to be OK, (if a tad basic), but the food has always been fresh. You can refill your mugs there, and I think there are also refill stations at the pool areas around the resort.
SSR has a food court, we have popped there a couple of times from OKW The food is pretty good, and there is a bit more choice than OKW. having said that, they operate the same system, you queue, order, get a buzzer, pay, and then collect food when the buzzer goes off.
Everytime we have been there, it has been really busy, which we haven't found at OKW. POR as you know has a great food court, but when we went there last year, there was absolute mayhem!!
You can use the food courts at other hotels though, so as Wayne said, they are all pretty close by car (if you are going to drive of course)
Can't think of anything else. Hope I've helped a bit, but it is a personal choice, and maybe if it was just DH and I (never gonna happen) then we might go to POR for a few days, but we would probably want to spend more time at OKW !!

Jules x

 

[disney_princess_85]

TBH, if you want a hotel-type holiday, personally I don't think OKW or SSR are the resorts for you. Having said that, I don't consider POR or POFQ - or even the values - to be very hotel-like either.

No, I don't either. Hotels are most "hotel-like" to me when all the rooms are in one building, along with the eateries and shops, etc.

But if you have housekeeping every day, and you are only staying at a studio I think you can have the "hotel feeling", or am I wrong?

I agree that it probably feels more like you're in a hotel if you're staying in a studio, rather than a villa.

 

[marcus.ka]

Hi,
We have stayed at all 3, as paying guests and DVC. I really liked POR, but having said that I would always choose OKW, as I have always found it to be more chilled. The rooms are comfortably big compared to SSR. You can actually walk around the beds without tripping up! The little kitchen area in the studios is really useful. We could have a bowl of cereal or some toast in the mornings before heading out. There are usually disposable plates, bowls etc provided, so no washing up, and the fridge! sitting on the balcony with a chilled glass of vino......bliss!(Can't remember if we had a balcony at POR)
SSR (in my opinion) has more of a hotel feel. As Joh said, there is one bed and one sofa bed, which does have the advantage of being put back every morning, giving more space. They also have the compact kitchen space.
POR as I said , I really liked, but after a couple of days, we were tripping over each other (depends how many of you there are, and how long you spend in the room. We do like to come back and chill for a while before going out)
As the others' have said, there is no Food Court at OKW, but there is a restaurant (Olivias) that is quite good, and the counter service we have found to be OK, (if a tad basic), but the food has always been fresh. You can refill your mugs there, and I think there are also refill stations at the pool areas around the resort.
SSR has a food court, we have popped there a couple of times from OKW The food is pretty good, and there is a bit more choice than OKW. having said that, they operate the same system, you queue, order, get a buzzer, pay, and then collect food when the buzzer goes off.
Everytime we have been there, it has been really busy, which we haven't found at OKW. POR as you know has a great food court, but when we went there last year, there was absolute mayhem!!
You can use the food courts at other hotels though, so as Wayne said, they are all pretty close by car (if you are going to drive of course)
Can't think of anything else. Hope I've helped a bit, but it is a personal choice, and maybe if it was just DH and I (never gonna happen) then we might go to POR for a few days, but we would probably want to spend more time at OKW !!

Jules x

Thank you Jules for this very helpfull reply.

You have said that you can also use the food courts of other hotels. But how does this work if you have a hired car? Can you tell the CM at the entrance that you just want to use the food court of the hotel and then they will let you in?

 

[marcus.ka]

No, I don't either. Hotels are most "hotel-like" to me when all the rooms are in one building, along with the eateries and shops, etc.



I agree that it probably feels more like you're in a hotel if you're staying in a studio, rather than a villa.

I feel the same. For me it is only a real hotel if all these things are in one building. But this is hard to find at WDW. So I think there is no difference between POR, OKW and SSR. (if you stay in a Studio, not using DVC points)

 

[wayneg]

Thank you Jules for this very helpfull reply.

You have said that you can also use the food courts of other hotels. But how does this work if you have a hired car? Can you tell the CM at the entrance that you just want to use the food court of the hotel and then they will let you in?

Yes, you are free to visit any of the resort, either just for a look around or for a meal. They will ask to see ID and let you in. They used to issue 3 hour parking passes but we have not had one for at least 2 years now so I guess they have stopped issuing them now.