OKW THUMBS DOWN

[KAT4DISNEY]

As something of an aside: If you've never been to Hilton Waikoloa Village, it is worth a visit just to look around. One of the few places that gave me something of the same "inside the bubble" vibe that WDW has. Maybe it's the monorail?

Monorail? When did they get a monorail? I think it was around 2000 that I was there or maybe even a couple of years earlier but I don't recall that.

 

[Brian Noble]

Well, technically it is a tram, but very evocative:

https://www.hiltonwaikoloavillage.com/trams

 

[snappy]

When were OKW villas updated, wasn’t it fairly recently?

 

[sarahandgreg]

I was going to suggest you move over to the Four Seasons tonight to take the taste of a bad breakfast and a dirty balcony away, but they wanted $1225 before tax.

Looked that up because I was looking to see if luxury could be had (close to Disney) for $600.

Sorry you weren't happy with your stay and I don't care for poached eggs that still have a watery white part either. I do like poached eggs with a soft yolk.

When I find litter in the rooms, I feel as if it hasn't been cleaned. It may be as clean as possible, minus the candy wrapper/tissue/jelly beans/underwear/shoes - but finding things that should be gone before I arrive means someone was either careless or over worked.

Take care and hope you enjoy your future vacations wherever you may stay.

Lol I actually was poised over the book now button for the four seasons, but availability came up at OKW and I chose there for convenience. Bad move I guess but there you go. Lol

 

[sarahandgreg]

When were OKW villas updated, wasn’t it fairly recently?

It was, I believe in the last 2 years.

 

[Pens Fan]

I was actually considering Olivia's for brunch on our next trip until I saw your pictures. Those eggs just look wrong. I wouldn't have eaten them either and I'm not overly picky.

Thanks for sharing. Sorry you're having a bad stay.

 

[JWG]

I think it's hard to judge overall Disney based on COVID Disney. They've scaled back staff so much that nothing seems to be operating the way it should. I'm hopeful some things get a bit of a return to normalcy in 2022.

That said, if a room isn't clean, say something so they'll come take care of it or so the next person has a better experience. We try to let the resort know of any issues that didn't bother us but should still get addressed as we leave so they can handle them during the room turnover. Unless it's a bigger issue, then we'll tell them sooner so they can plan accordingly.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

I've ate worse.

Eaten

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

I agree that they need to clean the floors. Seriously. They are gross.

 

[Oldnewfan]

Eaten

Oh Lord. My 7th grade English teacher found me

 

[DVCSunDevil]

Just got back from a stay at the Beach Club and had a totally different experience (other than the lack of restaurant options with Yachtsman and Cape May closed). Our room was clean but worn. It definitely needs a bit of TLC that likely requires it not have back to back guests - with the 1st floor construction outside of the building I don't think that's happening for awhile. Our room (a 1BR) wasn't available until after 4:30pm as it was.

We were missing a door hook on one door, the hook was falling off on another, some towel racks and shower door handles were loose, but overall it seemed pretty good. Given the reduced staffing and increase expectations of mousekeeping I'm not sure how they keep up. Disney was understaffed everywhere we went (except for life guards at the pool).

Interesting. We are at BCV this week and everything is awesome. Room is excellent and clean. Had great service and food at Beaches and Cream. Everyone at the Marketplace is attentive and very nice, as well as the bell desk and front desk. We called to request egg crates for the pull out bed and they were delivered very fast. It has been great so far.

 

[jodifla]

Interesting. We are at BCV this week and everything is awesome. Room is excellent and clean. Had great service and food at Braches and Cream. Everyone at the Marketplace is attentive and very nice, as well as the bell desk and front desk. We called to request egg crates for the pull out bed and they were delivered very fast. It has been great so far.

Great to hear! We are there later this spring. How's Stormalong Bay? Really crowded? I am wondering about where we'll eat with so much closed there.

 

[The Jackal]

The room issues sound like it is due to the lack of staffing of the house keeping. Olivia’s, the chefs like any restaurant make it a hit or miss. We have only eaten lunch or dinner there and it has been great. We eat breakfast in the room. Supposedly, it sounds like all furloughed cast members have been called back along with some laid off cast members. Hopefully things improve soon. We were there in November, house keeping didn’t take out the trash much, we are fine with that. Other than that everything was great.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Got to my room and immediately had to call because the bathroom door handle was falling off. BTW, this was SSR, renovated room in the Paddocks. Do the math... how long did it take for that to break?

 

[JWG]

Great to hear! We are there later this spring. How's Stormalong Bay? Really crowded? I am wondering about where we'll eat with so much closed there.

Stormalong was fine for us because they were capacity controlling. Between 11:30-2:30 on nice (hot) days, there was a wait to get into the pool. But, once in, it felt fairly empty. I've not been there in "normal" times but I have to believe it was notably less crowded.

Know that the Beach Club Marketplace and the Ale & Compass Marketplace (Yacht Club) do have different menus - so you can see some differences in options if you're doing quick serve. The Ale & Compass restaurant is open (for in person and take out dining). More and more of the Boardwalk is starting to open up as well. Trattoria al Forna and Big River Brewing are open over there.

Beaches and Cream is open for resies as well, just hard to get. I wish they'd reopen the walk up window.
Plus, with "always a festival" at Epcot we walked over to get food there on occasion with park hopping back.

 

[DVCSunDevil]

Great to hear! We are there later this spring. How's Stormalong Bay? Really crowded? I am wondering about where we'll eat with so much closed there.

SAB had a lot of people in it, but the staff and the setup of lounge chair spacing didn’t make me feel nervous at all. We spent our second day poolside and it was awesome!! And there actually weren’t that many people in the water.

 

[jodifla]

I will just add these pics. Housekeeping is not as it should be and I would lay money on every unit being the same.. I am not a germaphobe but this is just gross and a lack of care probably since the refitting of the units. Proper cleaning takes time, that costs money, money they obviously don’t feel is worth spending. To be honest I listed all five of my contracts for sale last night. Time to try somewhere else for us. We have been in DVC since the beginning and had so many happy vacations here but there are now so many other options available for home from home vacation experiences now that Disney are not to of the tree anymore . It’s sad though that they don’t really seem to care that much.

It does sound like a really disappointing trip, but I wonder about judging DVC in these times, with less staff and less money, since the parks are open at diminished capacity.

We have stayed a few places in the past year, and all are a shadow of their non Covid selves.

I've run into a lot of roadblocks trying to book our spring trip, and it's disappointing, but after 25 years of owning, I'm willing to cut them some slack -- for the time being.

 

[DVCSunDevil]

It does sound like a really disappointing trip, but I wonder about judging DVC in these times, with less staff and less money, since the parks are open at diminished capacity.

We have stayed a few places in the past year, and all are a shadow of their non Covid selves.

I've run into a lot of roadblocks trying to book our spring trip, and it's disappointing, but after 25 years of owning, I'm willing to cut them some slack -- for the time being.

This is how I feel. We are at BCV this week and you can see/feel the slight decrease in everything. Not just DVC, but WDW as a whole. The grounds aren’t kept up in quite the same way, the attitudes of many CMs (in the parks) isn’t quite as customer friendly, etc. My kids used to comment that one of the things they loved about WDW was the attention to detail, how every inch of the grounds was manicured and kept in great condition. We all see that slipping on this trip. Some queues even went backstage (Smugglers Run), which was odd because it definitely killed the vibe (seeing trash compactors and big shipping crates doesn’t scream Star Wars). It just feels like a step down, but I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Until I don’t see improvement.

 

[Debbie Jean]

This is how I feel. We are at BCV this week and you can see/feel the slight decrease in everything. Not just DVC, but WDW as a whole. The grounds aren’t kept up in quite the same way, the attitudes of many CMs (in the parks) isn’t quite as customer friendly, etc. My kids used to comment that one of the things they loved about WDW was the attention to detail, how every inch of the grounds was manicured and kept in great condition. We all see that slipping on this trip. Some queues even went backstage (Smugglers Run), which was odd because it definitely killed the vibe (seeing trash compactors and big shipping crates doesn’t scream Star Wars). It just feels like a step down, but I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Until I don’t see improvement.

Not sure what your life has been like this past year, but with what most people, including CMs have been through, I think it is only reasonable to understand that people, places and things are not... and will not be the same.

I have been twice since the reopening and overall very impressed with the dedication and professionalism of almost all CMs I have dealt with. Were there things I could complain about? Sure. But given the extraordinary effort put forth to accommodate guests keeping them safe at the same time, I think it would be petty.

But you need to be realistic and honor your feelings...if these things truly bother you, then right now WDW is not for you.

 

[Brian Noble]

Not sure what your life has been like this past year, but with what most people, including CMs have been through, I think it is only reasonable to understand that people, places and things are not... and will not be the same.

I would "like" this twice if I could. It is spot-on in my view.