Orange Lake

[2kidsnow]

I've booked a March Break week at Orange Lake resort. When it came available (RCI exchange) I took it, now I'm having second thoughts after seeing some on-line pics and reviews. Has anyone stayed here? We have 2 kids 5 and 8 and I want to spend some days at the resort. Is there enough to keep the kids happy? What about the distance between pools, and is there anyway to get a unit close to the water play area? Last year we stayed at Vacation Village and kids had a lovely time.

 

[swilshire]

We didn't like it, but a lot of people do. As exchangers, they refused to let us request any particular unit and put us in the oldest part. We had several issues with the unit and were not particularly happy, but it wasn't bad enough to ruin the vacation. We just would have preferred to be elsewhere.

March weeks can be hard to get in Orlando and at it's worst, it will probably be fine. Maybe you'll get lucky and be in a nicer section.

There should be plenty for the kids to do, but you'll probably wind up driving around the resort.

Sheila

 

[dreamscometrue47]

You will find that a lot of people don't like OLCC because it is very spread out. We've stayed there several times (but not in the past 4 years) and never had a problem using our car to get around. They also have an internal shuttle (think big golf cart) that you can use to get around.

We couldn't request a particular unit ahead of time, but on check-in, we did request a unit near Splash Lagoon (twice) and both requests were seemingly granted.

We have always been extremely pleased with our units (2-bedroom) and would not hesitate to stay there again.

 

[grease freak]

Hi
we stayed there back in march, sorry to say we didnt like it, for the same reason as alot of people haven given, its just too big. We couldnt fault our room (2007) it was lovely, but I just didnt like the idea of having to get in the car to get to places, such as the pool, who likes to get into the car wet. The time we went it was in spring break, bearing in mind we have been to orlando for the past 7 years at this time and never had a problem with any resort we stayed on, well orange lake was a different thing. It was packed, for the whole week we was there, we spent just 2 hours by the pool, it was just too crowded. I had to get a towel and put it on the floor, just no room. I will again say, the room, the whole resort was well maintained, there is loads for the children to do, put be prepared to drive, or wait to the shuttle bus on the resort, that finishes at 11pm. I prefer to be able to walk to the shop, pool and just like to walk around the resort, but you just cant do that.

toni

 

[momoftwodisneykids]

We have stayed at Orange Lake a couple of times and loved it. The resort is huge, but we didn't mind getting in the car to go places. The villas themselves were very nice. We stayed in the high rise villas by the tennis courts twice and once over near the newer North Village. We did prefer the tennis villas even though they were older, because it is very near the Olympic pool, clubhouse and mini golf. We are planning to go back next year and hopefully will get to stay at the new River Island area with the waterpark.

Joanne

 

[lawgs]

momoftwodisney

are you an owner at OLCC or are you just renting to get into the resort?

 

[Brian Noble]

My uncle has owned back-to-back weeks there for over 20 years now, and my cousins, now grown with their own families, still go down too. They don't go to the parks at all; there is *tons* of stuff to do there. It is spread out, and you'll have to drive some, but you certainly won't lack for things to do for your family.

 

[f7prez]

The place is big, it is spread out, but that is usually the only bad things you will here. OLCC has been around for a long time, and some of the units may not be as nice as others, but hardly a dumpy place.

Now they have a new water area called River Island. Check it out

http://users.adelphia.net/~gjw007/RI/Pool.htm

 

[Suzyq9241]

Yeah we have been there for the past 10 yrs and love it no matter where we stay....

But this year we are staying on site....

but next year we will be back at OLCC....

 

[gjw007]

We have stayed at Orange Lake a couple of times and loved it. The resort is huge, but we didn't mind getting in the car to go places. The villas themselves were very nice. We stayed in the high rise villas by the tennis courts twice and once over near the newer North Village. We did prefer the tennis villas even though they were older, because it is very near the Olympic pool, clubhouse and mini golf. We are planning to go back next year and hopefully will get to stay at the new River Island area with the waterpark.

Joanne

Joanne

I very much like the Olympic-sized pool at OLCC. The Tennis Villas were built in 1996/7 range while the North Village units were in the 1999/2000 range so the Tennis Villas aren't really that much older. The East Village first started building in 2002 and they are continuing to add new units. While it is one of the reasons people don't like the resort, the fact that it is large is one of the reasons that I do like it.

 

[2kidsnow]

Thanks everyone for the information. I hate the idea of driving around to get to resort things. I'm just going to look into some other options and keep this week for now. For those of you who exchange, where would you go instead?

 

[JudyS]

My impression is that most people who are unhappy with OLCC are exchangers who are put into the oldest section of the resort. People who are happy with the resort are often owners who are put into the newer sections. Many owners have commented that OLCC now has a policy of putting all RCI exchangers into the oldest section. I had been thinking of trading into to OLCC via RCI, but with the policy of putting all RCI exchangers into the oldest section, I probably won't.

There may be a possibility of getting the newer sections via RCI Points in the future, so I may try that route at some time.

Nice resorts that are often available via RCI are Cypress Pointe, Vistana Villages, Sheraton Vistana (also has older areas, but doesn't put all exchangers into these), The Fountains, and Hilton Grand Vacation Club at I-Drive. I have stayed at the first two of these, and they are quite nice.

What I would do is call RCI and say that you exchanged into OLCC because it was Gold Crown, but have now been told that exchangers are put into the oldest, most run-down section of the resort and that you feel it won't be up to the standard that you were promised. I suspect that they have heard this complaint before. Perhaps RCI will be willing to move you without charging you a fee.

If RCI is not willing to move you, and you don't want to pay the fee, I would just stay. It's not like it's a terrible resort, the complaints are usually just that the older sections could use some renovation, and are far from the nicest pools and other amenities. If you are willing to drive to them, the amenities themselves should be excellent.

 

[gjw007]

What I would do is call RCI and say that you exchanged into OLCC because it was Gold Crown, but have now been told that exchangers are put into the oldest, most run-down section of the resort and that you feel it won't be up to the standard that you were promised. I suspect that they have heard this complaint before. Perhaps RCI will be willing to move you without charging you a fee.

This is an uninformed statement. Orange Lake (OLCC) has a policy of replacing the soft items (carpet, drapes, etc) every 6 years. It completely renovates every unit every 18 years down to the wall studs. While the units may be older, the interiors may be newer than the newer units as they have been completely renovated whereas the newer units have several years before they have the ronovations done except for the 6-year renovations. The units is the West Village (the oldest section) are very nice and are not run down. I prefer the older West Village units to the newer units. Why would I prefer them if it was rundown? For that matter, why would I own at the resort if it was rundown when there is a variety of very nice places to stay?

One of the items that more recent designs include are oversized-whirlpool bathrubs. The West Village area has regular-size bathtubs and the bathrooms do tend to be smaller. The renovated units have jets in the regular-size bathroom rather than an oversize bathtub. People may or may not like OLCC due to the size, location, etc., but it is not rundown. Those who dislike OLCC tend to be very vocal about it.

You can look at the interiors of these units at this link. People have read comments like the one above and have dreaded going to the resort because of it only to find that the resort is very nice. I read these comments and I dread going there expecting a disaster yet I have been going for the last 6 years in all the sections (including the studios) without an incident. Some people may not like the resort for a variety of reasons and that is fine. And like all resorts (I haven't read a report on a resort yet that hasn't had its share of problems, especially clean rooms), there are occassional problems.

OLCC (West Village) was a Gold Crown resort since the inception of the classification before OLCC began building new units in 1999. It wasn't the newer units that made OLCC a Gold Crown resort and the resort does maintain the units.

 

[JudyS]

Gary, I was advising the Original Poster as to what to say to RCI if she felt that she wouldn't be happy at OLCC and wanted to request a different resort. And, I wasn't advising her to lie -- OLCC's policy is to put exchangers into the oldest section, and there are reviews that say the West Village is run down, and the OP had said that she had seen some negative reviews.

As for whether the West Village actually is run down, well that's a different question. I haven't ever seen OLCC, so I really don't know. I also don't know whether the West Village would qualify as Gold Crown if rated by itself. It's actually quite hard for me to tell whether the West Village is nice, because many of the reviews I've seen don't state which phase of the resort the person stayed in. I have seen some very negative reviews of OLCC, as well as many very positive ones, and really can't tell what I would be getting if I exchanged in. It does concern me that the resort phases seem to differ quite a lot, that I have no way to be sure that the units praised in the positive reviews are in the phase that exchangers are assigned to, and that the resort doesn't seem to be willing to move disatisfied exchangers to a different phase. None of this means that OLCC is bad resort, though.

I thought I had stated in my post that I hadn't stayed in OLCC, but I should have made that clearer. What I told the OP was intended as advice on what to say to RCI (based on the many OLCC debates over on TUG and other boards) , not as my review of any personal experiences at OLCC.

 

[Suzyq9241]

That we are going back to OLCC the week after July 4th 2007....


I am so happy... we don't care about the driving to get around because it a great place and lots to see and do....

 

[jeff968]

We stayed there a few years ago and did not like it. The reasons mentioned earlier we also had issue with. The place is too large and you have to drive everywhere. I also found our unit dirty when we got there. There were bags of laundry in front of our building when we got there and they stayed there until the next morning. The location of OL is not great either as it is all the way down 192 on the west side. We won't go back to OLCC. We're Orlando timeshare renters so we can go anywhere we want.

 

[swilshire]

The West Village area has regular-size bathtubs and the bathrooms do tend to be smaller.

I'd have to classify this as an understatement. I've stayed in about 40 timeshares through the years and have never seen a master bathroom anywhere near this small. It is smaller than most cheap hotel chains. You could easily sit on the toilet and put your feet and legs into the tub.

We hated the fact that there was only a tiny overhang outside with no screens. Most Orlando resorts have a nice screened porch or at least a cover to sit under. My husband, the smoker, hated this.

We had a serious ant problem, which I didn't freak out about.

Just lots of little things made our stay in the West Village less than memorable. And I REALLY hated the $1 charge for toll free calls. Never encountered that before or since. Another resort charged us 25 cents for toll free calls, which I could live with.

Sheila

 

[siobhan1997]

Heres what we did this past March break when we stayed there through an RCI exchange. Our check in day was a Friday. Based on past experience with Orange Lake we knew our unit, a west village unit, would be assigned to us even before we arrived. So we went to check in and immediately was assigned a west village unit. I said to her no I will not accept this, she said I had to , so I said to her, NO My RCI confirmation notes on it "Unit assigned upon check in, so I am now checking in so I now want you to assign my unit" Well she was not very happy, but she could not argue with me as it was written on my confirmation. So she sent me to another lady near the owners check in section. So I explained to the nice lady why I did not want the unit I had been assigned before check in ( this unit was far from everything, ) I told her I have been here twice before and I want a tennis villa, she said no because ever unit is being used by the owners, So I laughed and said well I want another unit that is right by a pool, she said I have nothing. I said there must be something, so she said how about a unit in the East Village (I knew these were the newer condos, but she did not know I knew this) so I said fine I will take it, but as usual here I go driving to the pools.

So in the end I was very happy with a unit in the East Village.

Lesson learned do not be willing to accept the first unit given to you as it was assigned a week before you even checked in.

 

[lawgs]

but, to be honest gary, "some" OL owners are just as vocal about defending OLCC against any and all comments/opinions that people who have experienced OL and have posted their experiences in reviews sometimes paying no regard to the veracity of the stated opinions

as nice as the pictures of the model unit for west villages units which have been posted, unless someone was there all the time, there is no way of knowing how many west village units have already undergone this major restoration

until all the west village units have been updated, there still might be reviews that state exchangers displeasure with the west village

once they have all gotten the "good go round", there might be less exchanger malcontent since they are being placed in the newest interiors at OL ( with the exclusion of any new River Island units that come online )

for the record, we have owned at OLCC since 1990, but we can understand the reviews of exchangers ...it is what they have experienced while vacationing at OL, their experiences should not be negated just because they are expressing something that not everyone agrees with

 

[gjw007]

but, to be honest gary, "some" OL owners as just as vocal about defending OLCC against any and all comments/opinions that people who have experienced OL and have posted their experiences in reviews sometimes paying no regard to the veracity of the stated opinions

as nice as the pictures of the model unit for west villages units which have been posted, unless someone was there all the time, there is no way of knowing how many west village units have already undergone this major restoration

until all the west village units have been update, there still might be reviews that state exchangers displeasure with the west village

once they have all gotten the "good go round", there might be less exchanger malcontent since they are being placed in the newest interiors at OL ( with the exclusion of any new River Island units that come online )

for the record, we have owned at OLCC since 1990, but we can understand the reviews of exchangers ...it is what they have experienced while vacationing at OL, their experiences should not be negated just because they are expressing something that not everyone agrees with

Lawgs;

I have stayed in the like-units pre-renovation and I never had a problem. I also don't make the claim that the resort is right for everybody or that improvements can't be made. I also worked in the hotel industry for over 10 years and there would be occassions when we put guests into dirty rooms (they had gotten marked clean so the front desk staff assumed they were clean), so it happens. With the size of the resort, unfortunately there will be some problems occassionally. Given the size of the resort, even a small percentage of complaints can still be a large number (i.e. there are over 2500 units times 52 weeks or about 130,000 different possible checkins. If 1% of these had a complaint, it is 1,300 complaints, quite a large number). Some people like smaller, more intimate-sized resorts as an example where you step out of the room and into the pool area. OLCC was designed as a golf resort based on the country club model, so it is large. It is the design of the resort. Some of the complaints, such as the screen porch, are being done as part of the current renovation, so the resort does listen. It may not respond as fast as some like. There are about 200 units undergoing the renovation but there are also 1200 units in the West Village, so it will take some time to do the major renovation to all the units. The only difference that I remember from the units in the West Village that I've been in versus the pictures I showed were coils on the stove, the washer/dryer (not pictured) was in the open and not enclosed, the patio didn't have a screen, and there was carpet in the dining room not tiles. I like the wide-open design of the West Village units. Many people like a large bedroom and bathroom and smaller living room area. Neither is right or wrong, just a personal choice.

There will always be complaints. This is true of any resort. The worst reports that I have read have been on DVC resorts with feces everywhere on the wall, sinks, etc. My suggestion has been to read the reviews, not just the negative reviews, for any resort. For OLCC the vast majority (8.9 out of 10 at www.tug2.net - highest resort is 9.5 out of 10 - other review sites are similar) give it a positive reviews. I don't think negative reviews should be negated, I don't think they should be the only focus of evaluating a resort and then declaring it to be a 'dump' based only on those negative reviews. All reviews - good, bad or indifferent - should be evaluated. Some reviews over the past few years have stated that OLCC would only put exchangers in the West Village section yet it has only been in the last few months that OLCC has stated that it has begun to implement this policy. When exchangers were put in the newer sections, it was also stated that these were exceptions. While I'm not sure that I agree with OLCC's current policy (started in May/June) about exchangers going into the West Village, I expect it to change when OLCC goes RCI Points at the end of the year as stated by a number of people.

Some complaints are based on expectations of feature that the resorts don't do. For example, I read a report where a person exchanged into Summer Bay and didn't get mid-week housekeeping. While I've never been to Summer Bay, apparently it, like OLCC, doesn't do midweek housekeeping and so the resort was given a negative rating because of it. The exchangers home resort did have this feature and expected it at any resort that they exchanged into. Needless to say, they gave the resort a negative review because of this. The only way to get a good idea is to read all the reviews and then make an informed decision. In the end, if there is this expectation about what the resort should or shouldn't have, when it is not met, it will be an unhappy stay.

I think we could argue that OLCC probably didn't go far enough in the major renovations. I would have enlarged the bathroom in the master bedroom but expanding the area between the door and the bed (top half of bed) to the nightstand. I would have removed the privacy door in the bathroom (not really enough room to have it anyway). I would have put an oversized whirlpool tub in this area. In addition, the closest currently is accessed through the bathroom. I would take a little space away from the sink area (this cuts a little into the bathroom space), move the closest over a foot or so, make a door in the master bedroom and make a small walk-in closest. The screened porch is already being done as well as enclosing the washer/dryer. I would rewire some telephone lines to have a telephone line next to the desk. In addition, I would eliminate the VCR and put in DVD players (or combo VCR/DVD) and would put in in a large screen television, perhaps a plasma that could be mounted on the wall. I can understand waiting on do this as there is a change to HDTV that will occur shortly so putting in a tabletop unit may not be a bad intermediate position. My point, there are always some changes that could be made but it still has to fit within the basic layout as they are not going to tear the buildings down and start from scratch. Even then, not everybody would be happy with the design (I don't think that is a bad thing; different things for different people).

I also think that more attention needs to be given to renovating the West Village clubhouse. Given the growth of the OLCC, the clubhouse gets a lot of use. With the opening of River Island, it should help lower traffic and give an opportunity to do some renovation. Likewise, the miniature golf in the West Village could use some spicing up as it is rather bland. Hopefully the miniature golf in the River Island area will be more colorful. I would put another Olympic-size pool in the River Island area (I understand another pool is being built in the East Village area). I also thought that since it has the area, set up an area for R/C model cars. The resort can work with a local hobby shop to provide the vehicles to rent and set up a little track where guests can run the cars. I think that the size of the resort gives it the possibilities to provide a diverse range of activities. Of course, we can never loose sight that most people are going to Orlando to go to Disney but the different activities at the resort can enhance the vacation.