Old Key West

[RedSox68]

Just a quick post about our first experience at this resort. This is the third time we have reserved a resort by renting DVC points. This was our 7th stay at a WDW resort -- and by far our most disappointing. I actually told a DVC rep that if we were thinking about buying into DVC, the stay at this resort would change our mind.

The resort is huge and beautifully landscaped, but one of the most confusing layouts we've ever seen (and we thought Saratoga Springs was huge). The bus system was a real crap shoot -- never knew which order they were picking up or dropping off (never took the same route twice!). And on every early morning opening, it was a guaranty the bus for that park wouldn't come early. We waited outside in the freezing cold for a . Kingdom bus for more than 35 minutes on EMH -- while two buses for every other park came and went! They do not have enough buses rotating at this resort.

However, the room was a disgrace. We lucked out with a first floor room and I had asked for first room available. When we arrived at 10 a.m., our room was ready. The staff were great. But as soon as we walked into the room it smelled musty and stale. The lighting was the worst I've ever seen -- dull and very low light, even with ALL the lights on. The rug was not only dirty and stained, but looked dusty and un-vacuumed. Behind the nightstand, headboards and dresser were thick layers of dust and cobwebs. And the two table chairs had dark stains on both seats!

The walls had cracks and/or missing paint chips, there were cracked tiles in the bathroom walls, and the worst was the filthy toilet they left us with -- covered in unsundry stains that we cleaned ourselves, and pubic hairs in the sink and bathtub! And the bath towels -- OMG, they were literally thread bare with the ends unraveling and strings hanging down. If I had these at home, I would have turned them into rags!

Won't be staying there again

 

[kaytieeldr]

It's really too bad you had such a lousy experience, but it's surprising that with six great stays and ten DVC properties, you'd let one negative one prevent you from purchasing DVC (if you'd intended to, which apparently you hadn't).

Buses are easy: park buses pull in, stop first at Peninsular Road, head over to Turtle Pond, back to Miller's Road, then Hospitality House and back out of the resort to the park. Downtown Disney buses come in, go to Hospitality House first, then Peninsular Road, Turtle Pond, Miller's Road, and then back to Hospitality House before heading out - the double as the internal buses.

Did you not stay long enough to ask about moving, or at least getting your room oroperly cleaned?

 

[ArwenMarie]

I would never recommend OKW to someone staying without a car for that very reason. But I know some folks say the buses worked for them fine there.

I'm surprised the room was so bad though. That's terrible. We had a really nice villa when we stayed there. It was on the top floor, maybe that helped with the light etc. It was a bit noisy though, whatever road we were near (Buena Vista?) sounded like a highway all night.

 

[darkwing818]

For us, the Op's experience has not been our experience with OKW. We just stayed there this past May & October (a Studio & a 1 bedroom) and had no issues with either room. Both were near the Hospitality House & on the 1st floor, as we requested.
We did have a problem a few year back in a 2 bedroom, the 2nd bath tub for wouldn't drain. We reported it to the front desk, they couldn't get it fixed until the next morning, the "desk manager" felt so bad he gave us a $200 credit to be used for dining or shopping.

 

[MulanMom]

This is distressing to hear. We're DVC members and OKW is our home resort. We haven't stayed there in years. But next week, we'll once again try OKW. Not sure if we'll like the new decor. And now I'm fervently hoping we don't have a room experience like yours!

When we bought into DVC, OKW was the only resort. We've had some wonderful times there and a few not so wonderful. But I would have to say we've only had one visit where room cleanliness was an issue. It was like no one ever cleaned. My daughter was a toddler at the time, so I was prepped with clorox wipes, etc. and ended up cleaning myself. Not how I want to start vacation, but with a little one crawling/walking around and putting everything in her mouth, I didn't have much choice. Even a redo of the bathroom by housekeeping made us wonder if it was really cleaned a second time.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Odd, we have stayed at OKW many times and never had a problem, in fact we always call it the hidden gem of WDW. The rooms, buses, the whole resort is excellent to our minds.


AKK

 

[jcjen519]

This is distressing to hear. We're DVC members and OKW is our home resort. We haven't stayed there in years. But next week, we'll once again try OKW. Not sure if we'll like the new decor. And now I'm fervently hoping we don't have a room experience like yours! When we bought into DVC, OKW was the only resort. We've had some wonderful times there and a few not so wonderful. But I would have to say we've only had one visit where room cleanliness was an issue. It was like no one ever cleaned. My daughter was a toddler at the time, so I was prepped with clorox wipes, etc. and ended up cleaning myself. Not how I want to start vacation, but with a little one crawling/walking around and putting everything in her mouth, I didn't have much choice. Even a redo of the bathroom by housekeeping made us wonder if it was really cleaned a second time.

This is sort of us too. Except my grandparents are the one who bought at okw the first year. We have the points now as well as some at other resorts. We haven't stayed at okw in years with the exception of one night last June. We had issues sometimes with the cleanliness of rooms or other housekeeping issues. We were once put in a room that had soaking wet carpets. I assume from cleaning. Never anything as awful as op mentioned and our room for that one night in June was just fine.

I don't like transportation from okw, we don't like buses in general and the numerous internal stops are annoying. That's the deal at okw there and a reason we choose not to stay there.

Thanks for sharing your experience op. I like reading people's reviews and opinions of resorts.

 

[SusieBea]

We have stayed at OKW over 40 times since 1993. We have never had an experience like that of the OP, and never a problem at all w/ the busses. In fact, having stayed at all the DVC properties at WDW except BC, we find the transportation at OKW to be the best. I'm sorry about your experience, OP. I'd consider giving OKW another shot.

 

[RedSox68]

It's really too bad you had such a lousy experience, but it's surprising that with six great stays and ten DVC properties, you'd let one negative one prevent you from purchasing DVC (if you'd intended to, which apparently you hadn't).

Buses are easy: park buses pull in, stop first at Peninsular Road, head over to Turtle Pond, back to Miller's Road, then Hospitality House and back out of the resort to the park. Downtown Disney buses come in, go to Hospitality House first, then Peninsular Road, Turtle Pond, Miller's Road, and then back to Hospitality House before heading out - the double as the internal buses.

Did you not stay long enough to ask about moving, or at least getting your room oroperly cleaned?

No, we have no interest in purchasing DVC at this point in our lives (retirement is looming). And this was not our only negative experience. Our stay at Wilderness Lodge was worse -- we found food in the bathroom behind the toilet, trash under the bed and used kleenex in the drawers! Our sheets had stains and there were questionable hairs and stains in the bathroom. Animal Kingdom was our all time favorite, followed by Beach Club and Port Orleans.

Yes, I asked about being moved, but was told they were booked. We tried to get a second visit from housekeeping to at least vacuum -- but that never came about!

Apparently there were quite a few complaints about the lack of Magic Kingdom buses (we found out on the last day).

Next time we're going back to our old staples: either Port Orleans Riverside or Beach Club

 

[RedSox68]

We have stayed at OKW over 40 times since 1993. We have never had an experience like that of the OP, and never a problem at all w/ the busses. In fact, having stayed at all the DVC properties at WDW except BC, we find the transportation at OKW to be the best. I'm sorry about your experience, OP. I'd consider giving OKW another shot.

In a conversation with another guest, I was told that we apparently got one of the non-updated rooms That they are slowly doing upgrades around the resort and, unfortunately, we must have gotten the oldest building. The resort itself was lovely and we enjoyed walking around it, but in all our stays at Disney, I've never seen such a hit and miss deal with the buses (and we've only had a car once). Saratoga Springs was very similar -- bus stops a long way from our room, but the buses ran more regularly and the fantastic rooms were worth the stay.

 

[Deb & Bill]

In a conversation with another guest, I was told that we apparently got one of the non-updated rooms That they are slowly doing upgrades around the resort and, unfortunately, we must have gotten the oldest building. The resort itself was lovely and we enjoyed walking around it, but in all our stays at Disney, I've never seen such a hit and miss deal with the buses (and we've only had a car once). Saratoga Springs was very similar -- bus stops a long way from our room, but the buses ran more regularly and the fantastic rooms were worth the stay.

Sorry, just not true. The resort was entirely refurbished about three years ago. You did not get an non-updated villa unless you stayed at OKW in 2011. The complete renovation did not update the kitchen appliances which are replaced as needed nor did it touch the bathrooms. All DVC reservations are paid for by members and not by Disney so they don't happen that often. It's a timeshare.

We are owners at OKW and have stayed there at least 15 times in as many years. Never had a problem with the buses (the buses stop at South Point after Peninsular Road before Turtle Pond). We'll be back there twice this year and are looking forward to another nice stay at OKW.

 

[FantasiaMagic]

This is shocking to hear such a bad experience at OKW. I have stayed their twice - both 1br and never had any issues. I will say we never really used the busses since we had a car.

 

[sharadoc]

HI OP, I'm curious, could you tell us the room or building you stayed in?

 

[RedSox68]

Sorry, just not true. The resort was entirely refurbished about three years ago. You did not get an non-updated villa unless you stayed at OKW in 2011. The complete renovation did not update the kitchen appliances which are replaced as needed nor did it touch the bathrooms. All DVC reservations are paid for by members and not by Disney so they don't happen that often. It's a timeshare.

We are owners at OKW and have stayed there at least 15 times in as many years. Never had a problem with the buses (the buses stop at South Point after Peninsular Road before Turtle Pond). We'll be back there twice this year and are looking forward to another nice stay at OKW.

How nice that you are owners, but your statement that "sorry, just not true" about the refurbishment means that our stay was even more disappointing. If indeed these rooms were refurbished three years ago, then dang - they have truly had the hell beaten out of them in those three years. The rugs were very worn (and dirty), the table chairs were filthy and the padding was threading, the wall sconces were crooked and dull, etc. I was kinda hoping the person we spoke to was right that more refurbishing was coming because, dang, our room really needed an update!

Anywho, I just relaying what we were told -- and our experience. It's wonderful that so many of you love this resort and have never ever had any problems and that's great for you. Guess we just lucked out to get such a crappy room and/or crappy maid service (or maybe a neglected room that isn't rented out as much !?!). Whatever the reason, compared to all our other stays, this was the dirtiest and our standards are NOT that picky, but I do expect a clean room that is dust and dirt free in the least. I can put up with a worn rug or chipped counters, etc., but dirt and a filthy toilet (with yellow and brown stains on the toilet seat), together with two large holes in the bathroom walls and the raggedy towels is NOT acceptable. Once WE cleaned up the room with Clorox wipes, it was livable and smelled a lot better. Oh well, live and learn. But the condition of this room and the linens reminded me of staying at a Hotel Six in the 80's! I guess I was floored by the fact that the attendant never reported any of these glaring repairs. And why in the heck can't they put full wattage light bulbs in the room instead of 25 watt! It is BY FAR the dreariest and darkest room we have ever stayed in at Disney.

 

[WDWOswald]

old key west sucks- hard to believe that place is even a disney resort!

 

[WDW11]

We stayed here in early January, 2015 and were also not impressed. The bus service is terrible, the road noise is really bad, the room was run down, and none of our room or building requests were granted. I also didn't like the fact that all of the walkways were along the roads. The staff at check-in were also rude. The only thing attractive about this resort is the larger size of the one-bedroom villas. I much prefer Saratoga Springs.

 

[Deb & Bill]

In 15+ trips to OKW, never had a problem with buses. Villas were just renovated in 2013, so it's hard to imagine the room being run down in such a short time. It's nice you prefer SSR, but OKW isn't as bad as you make it out to be.

 

[abner1776]

Even though VWL is our home resort we prefer OKW to any of the DVC resorts and with the exception of a studio in bldg 45 2 years ago we have always had a great time with OKW. Now I know when we stayed in bldg 18 this past March that a number of OKW bldgs were shutdown for major renovations including the ones on Peninsula Rd just over the bridge from Hospitality. The outsides were being completely redone and I would "assume" the insides as well.

 

[WDW11]

We stayed in a second floor one bedroom villa in building 47, and it was pretty bad. The bathroom had chipped and loose tiles, the grout lines were really dirty looking, and the button controlling the jets in the tub had an intermittent problem and you had to really fiddle with it to get the jets to turn on and off. There were also stains on the kitchen counters. I would call that run down. I obviously don't like that the room was in bad shape, but I thought these forums were for people to tell of their experiences with the resorts. My family enjoys Disney, and I hope things get better. It just costs too much money for it not to be of a high quality.

 

[mickeyfanachey1999]

As you can see by my signature OKW is our favorite and we have never had a bad stay there. We have never had a bad room there either. We've never had any problem with the busses and have never noticed the busses not following the same path each and every time. In May we the 7 of us had a wonderful stay at a 2300 (approx) square foot 3 bedroom 4 bath grand villa. The only complaint we have is that it was a second floor entry when first floor would have been better for us (DA has cancer and has a tough time with steps, DM in remission and suffered a broken femur in a car accident some time ago so also has trouble with steps). Whenever I see the tough reviews for OKW I wonder why I can never get the hospitality house area when I request it!