The newer "toned down" resorts does appeal to a lot of people.
Agree. I love detailed theming. However, my DH really prefers the more relaxed vibe of offsite resorts like Wyndham Bonnet Creek, Hilton resorts and Marriott resorts. At heavily themed DVC resorts, he feels like it's a commercial hard sell, Mickey "in your face" all the time trying to prod guests to open their wallets. We differ in what we prefer, but obviously, he's not alone.
Maybe we are the oddball, but seeing a healthy resale market made us comfortable taking the plunge.
Judging by the frequent comments by DVC owners over on the Timeshare Users Group forums, that's a pretty common thought.
If it ends up being poly2, is it going to be it’s own resort and therefore not have access to the poly pool or are all the amenities going to be shared? It seems like things are crowded at poly as is… won’t this make it worse?
Well, consider what happened over at Wilderness Lodge. When they first added the (DVC) Villas at WL (now called Boulder Ridge Villas), they also added a small quiet pool and a fitness room but no additional restaurants. Hotel guests and DVC guests all had access to both pool areas. The total increase of WL guests made the WL feature pool much too crowded.
So when they converted a wing of WL's hotel rooms into DVC units (note: it's a 2nd, separate association, Copper Creek), they also overhauled and greatly expanded the quiet pool area, as well as adding a large splash pad to the main feature pool. Now both pool areas are better utilized by guests and don't feel as crowed, IMO. They also significantly enlarged the outdoor dining capacity by building Geyser Point for sit-down dining, with a side take-out counter, located lakeside and centrally to both pool areas of the WL resort.
The opening of Copper Creek did not substantially increase the number of guests using those pools, since the only additional rooms were the lakefront cabins. So these expanded facilities were likely to address the need for more facilities at an expanded deluxe resort. Btw, all guests staying at WL, BRV, & CC have full access to all shared facilities on those grounds. I'd totally expect the same at Poly.
At Saratoga Springs, they also later added a 2nd feature pool area in the center of the resort (Paddocks section) with a decent poolside bar/grill. These larger facilities were not in the original plans for the resort but rather a welcome addition late in the game.
The initial artist rendering released for Poly's DVC2 appears to show a large additional pool. They must know that is necessary. They may also look to add another restaurant since the Ceremonial House restaurants are often so busy and hard to book. AKV-Kidani has Sanaa. Guess we'll see, eventually.
