Old Key West-first stay

[AdamsMum]

We will be arriving at Old Key West by magic express probably around 7-7:30 p.m. I'm concerned about the size of the resort. I have arthritis in my knees, and have had a recent surgery (not knee). I didn't know I was having surgery when I booked the trip and as usual I'm living on borrowed points. If we get placed at the opposite end of the resort from check in building (or even far from it), what are our options for getting to the room. Is there availability of transport? Will we have to wait for a resort bus? I don't think that walk will be very welcome after a full day of travel.

 

[hakepb]

Bell services has multi-person golf carts and can drive you and your carry-on luggage to your building.

 

[disneynutz]

You should have addressed your room request when you made the reservation. You may have booked the hospitality house category that is close to check in and the main pool or you could have requested close to hospitality house due to medical reasons which may have improved your chances. Most rooms are assigned several days prior to check in.

Let the CM at check in know about your needs and hopefully that can help you out.

Have a wonderful vacation.

Bill

 

[sgtdisney]

Worst case scenario, if you aren't staying by the Hospitality House, you could probably request a ground floor room as close as possible to a bus stop. At least the bus stops have places to sit. When are you leaving? Call MS now and let them know of your mobility issues and ask them to add those requests to the reservation?

 

[AdamsMum]

Thanks for the replies. I booked my room online with dvc points so there was no opportunity to put in requests. I'm also not in the HH category it wasn't available for all nights. I will call member services though and ask them to add these requests to my reservation. We are only there for 3 nights so in the end it shouldn't be that bad. Good to know about the golf carts. I wondered how bell services dealt with this.

 

[southerngirl528]

I agree that you should call right away and request ground floor and close to a bus stop. The resorts typically assign rooms a week to 10 days out. I would have MS read back to me what requests they have placed for you to make sure it is as you want. Good luck! I've loved OKW as an owner since the early 90's!

 

[Anal Annie]

Funny that more than 1 person here has said rooms are assigned ahead of time. I was JUST on the phone with MS making a reservation at OKW (the website kept wonking out on me before I could complete the reservation online so I ended up calling). While I was on the phone I went ahead & added some bldg. requests (the HH category was not available to book). The CM told me specifically to try to arrive as early in the day as possible as rooms are not assigned until arrival and the earlier I could arrive the better the odds of getting 1 of the buildings I requested.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

The CM told me specifically to try to arrive as early in the day as possible as rooms are not assigned until arrival and the earlier I could arrive the better the odds of getting 1 of the buildings I requested.

CMs frequently state inaccurate information.

 

[jimmytammy]

I would call DVC and request Hospitality House area, ground floor for mobility issues. If this isnt available, request elevator. These bldgs are not terribly far away from HH area and that will help with avoiding stairs.

Another thing, they have golf carts that are set up to transport folks to rooms on as need basis. Get them to transfer your luggage and you as well

 

[goofy4tink]

Funny that more than 1 person here has said rooms are assigned ahead of time. I was JUST on the phone with MS making a reservation at OKW (the website kept wonking out on me before I could complete the reservation online so I ended up calling). While I was on the phone I went ahead & added some bldg. requests (the HH category was not available to book). The CM told me specifically to try to arrive as early in the day as possible as rooms are not assigned until arrival and the earlier I could arrive the better the odds of getting 1 of the buildings I requested.

Well, it that were so, it would be hard to imagine how anyone would get a text, via on-line checkin, telling them their room was ready, before they even got on the plane to fly there. That's happened to me twice now!!
Rooms are assigned a few days out...I doubt it's as early as 7-10 days. More like 3-5. But, if you arrive and you find the room you have been given just doesn't meet your needs, there is always a decent chance they can find you something else. You may have to wait for the new room to be cleaned and such, but it is possible.
As far as arriving as early as possible to get the room you want goes, sure, that will work. But that's because if you don't like the room you were assigned, there may be more to choose from that might meet those needs. If you arrive at, say, 5pm, most rooms will be occupied and no longer available.

 

[DenLo]

You can get to the Hospitality House via a bus. The stop for HH is the last stop before leaving the resort. I would as jimmytammy said and request a ground floor room or a building with an elevator for medical reasons which also are close to the hospitality house. You have a better chance with the ground floor room as there only 3 elevator buildings and they are a very popular request.