detroitdad
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 13, 1999
- Messages
- 549
We decided on an impromptu road trip down to WDW this past February from Feb 16th-Feb 21st. Our home resort is OKW which we absolutely love. We always get a 2 bedroom as we are a family of 6 with kids 15, 12, 9 & 7. Ended up on a waitlist just a month prior to departing but nothing was coming available until 2 weeks prior---a 2 bedroom at Saratoga for the last 2 nights. We decided to give it a try and just stay off site for the 1st 3 nights of our stay and hope that more days would become available. 4 days prior to leaving, we luck out and get a GV at OKW for the 1st 3 nights. Total splurge of points as we had to borrow, but it beat paying for accomodations off site. We aren't planning to return to WDW until 2011 at the earliest anyway so let's treat ourselves to a GV! We didn't tell the kids until the day we arrived that OKW became available, but we kept the GV a surprise.
The kids are so spoiled with the amount of space at a 2 bedroom at OKW that it makes travelling elsewhere difficult. They have become total hotel snobs---"this room is tiny...where's the kitchen?...no jacuzzi tub??" You should have heard/seen the reaction when we opened the door to the GV. They were so excited and just couldn't get over how huge it was. It really was overkill for a family of 6. They each got their own huge bed and thought that was the best. I explained that this was a one shot deal as nothing else was available, so they shouldn't get used to it! We aren't booking the GV every time.
We spent 3 great nights there and tried to see if a 2 bedroom opened up at OKW, but nothing ever became available. So, we sadly packed up the van and moved over to Saratoga. We were disappointed to leave OKW but excited to try a different DVC resort as we have only stayed at OKW.
We really liked the theming at Saratoga. The building styles/colors were very appealing. The check in area is very impressive and we thought the restaurant/market area was a great option (though we never used it). Pool area was great too. We were in the Paddock area which we thought was a decent location. Short walk to the bus stop and we enjoyed the walk over the bridge to the main area in the evenings. We must have been one of the fortunate that timed the buses well because we never seemed to wait that long for one. I know buses seem to be a hot topic at Saratoga.
Our only disappointment was the size of the 2 bedroom. I could not believe how small the 2 bedroom was in comparison to OKW's. We really wanted to like Saratoga but we felt so cramped. (Please know that we were not comparing this to the size of the GV that we just came from.) The kitchenette (I refuse to call it a kitchen) was really tight. My wife and I spent so much time laughing because we kept bumping into each other. I was really surprised to see how worn the villa we were in looked already for being a relatively newer property.
It really is all perspective. If we didn't know any better, we would think that the Saratoga 2 bedroom was huge. The resort is really beautiful and I can see why owners love it there. It has a lot to offer and we're glad we tried it. But for us, the space at OKW just can't be beat. We also feel so much more "at home" there. We love all the lush vegetation and how so many of the buildings are tucked away. It really has more of a true condo feel for us. That's the beauty of DVC---so many choices. I'm sure there are many people who have stayed at OKW and it just wasn't for them.
We also spent time touring the models for BLT and AKV. It seems that most people tend to love one and not the other, but we liked the decor for both of them a lot! If we had a choice, we would probably book AKV over BLT. THV's miniature model looked interesting although that separate area is screaming for it's own full sized pool.
So what we took from this experience is that it's good to try other resorts, but we are so happy that OKW is our home.
The kids are so spoiled with the amount of space at a 2 bedroom at OKW that it makes travelling elsewhere difficult. They have become total hotel snobs---"this room is tiny...where's the kitchen?...no jacuzzi tub??" You should have heard/seen the reaction when we opened the door to the GV. They were so excited and just couldn't get over how huge it was. It really was overkill for a family of 6. They each got their own huge bed and thought that was the best. I explained that this was a one shot deal as nothing else was available, so they shouldn't get used to it! We aren't booking the GV every time.
We spent 3 great nights there and tried to see if a 2 bedroom opened up at OKW, but nothing ever became available. So, we sadly packed up the van and moved over to Saratoga. We were disappointed to leave OKW but excited to try a different DVC resort as we have only stayed at OKW.
We really liked the theming at Saratoga. The building styles/colors were very appealing. The check in area is very impressive and we thought the restaurant/market area was a great option (though we never used it). Pool area was great too. We were in the Paddock area which we thought was a decent location. Short walk to the bus stop and we enjoyed the walk over the bridge to the main area in the evenings. We must have been one of the fortunate that timed the buses well because we never seemed to wait that long for one. I know buses seem to be a hot topic at Saratoga.
Our only disappointment was the size of the 2 bedroom. I could not believe how small the 2 bedroom was in comparison to OKW's. We really wanted to like Saratoga but we felt so cramped. (Please know that we were not comparing this to the size of the GV that we just came from.) The kitchenette (I refuse to call it a kitchen) was really tight. My wife and I spent so much time laughing because we kept bumping into each other. I was really surprised to see how worn the villa we were in looked already for being a relatively newer property.
It really is all perspective. If we didn't know any better, we would think that the Saratoga 2 bedroom was huge. The resort is really beautiful and I can see why owners love it there. It has a lot to offer and we're glad we tried it. But for us, the space at OKW just can't be beat. We also feel so much more "at home" there. We love all the lush vegetation and how so many of the buildings are tucked away. It really has more of a true condo feel for us. That's the beauty of DVC---so many choices. I'm sure there are many people who have stayed at OKW and it just wasn't for them.
We also spent time touring the models for BLT and AKV. It seems that most people tend to love one and not the other, but we liked the decor for both of them a lot! If we had a choice, we would probably book AKV over BLT. THV's miniature model looked interesting although that separate area is screaming for it's own full sized pool.
So what we took from this experience is that it's good to try other resorts, but we are so happy that OKW is our home.
Oh, I think sometime between now and 2054 you could find your way over there!
