Question about OKW room request

[renda460]

We are staying at OKW for the first time in Dec. We do not know much about the resort and are looking for some help in regards to putting some room requests on our reservation. I would like a room near the pool with the new water slide. Is there any special terminology I use when requesting this? Also, if I am hoping for a room with a balcony. I assume that would mean a non-first floor room. Do I request balcony room? Or non first floor?
From reading about the resort, it looks like there are some buildings that do not have elevators to get to the second floor. Is this correct?

I know that these are just requests and not guaranteed, but it cant hurt to put them on the reservation.

 

[donald...really]

There are only a few buildings (3?) with elevators, the others you would need to use the stairs. If having an elevator is important to you, you should mention that as one of your requests. Your requests would look like this.

Near Hospitality House (that is the area with the pool and slide).
Upper Floor
Building with elevator

You should list the requests in order of importance.

Also note that the request to be near the HH is the MOST popular request for OKW and there are VERY FEW buildings with elevators.

 

[Scoootch]

If the elevator request is important to you....you may want to just request that blng.# in particular The only bldng.#'s with elevators if memory serves are bldng.#63 and #64? (someone please verify for sure) and they're down Miller's road I believe and not far from HH and the main pool. As for the balcony thing, all rooms/villas have them even the 1st floor ones so if the only reason for wanting an upper floor is the balcony it's not necessary to go upwards to get one That said, the upper floors may get you a slightly better view depending on location due to all the vegetation in some spots and sometimes it can be quieter on the upper floors vs. the lower ones....but if it's just for the balcony, I wouldn't worry about it

 

[JudithM]

Please remember that a request is just that - a request, no guarantees. There has been some discussions here - both pro & con - about room requests.

The elevator buildings at OKW are 62, 63 & 64. They are along Miller's Road as someone else mentioned.

Also please remember that the more requests you include in your reservation, &/or the more specific you are (specific buildings or specific room), the less likely you are to get everything. Requests should be made in order of importance to you.

Keep in mind that in December the weather varies from day to day. You might want to swim or you might not .

 

[DebbieB]

What size room are you reserving? There are very few studios & 1 bedrooms on the third floor, most are first and second. See Doc's configuration summary:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=146435

See map of OKW:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/okwmap.jpg

 

[SueM in MN]

As the others mentioned, you are asking for something that there are very few of to begin with (rooms in the buildings with elevators).
The other things you have put (close to Hospitality House) is one of the most frequent requests.
So the chance of you getting a room that meets all your requests is not that good.

 

[kpk89]

We stayed in building 63 (I think we requested to be in building 63 or 64) and it was a very quick walk to the HH and pool. We requested first floor, since we had a stroller and figured it would be easier than shlepping up an elevator each time. The patio was lovely, and we had a nice view of the golf course.

Another bonus was that when going to the parks, the HH is the final stop so when you get on the bus there, you head straight to the park. Coming back, it's the final stop so we got off at either Miller's or Peninsular, whichever came first, so that we didn't have to ride around the whole resort first. Both of those stops were about a 5 minute walk back to building 63.

Have a great time! It's a lovely resort with a very friendly staff.

 

[renda460]

Thanks for the info. The elevator is not that important of a request. If the first floor rooms have balconies, are the actually off the ground or more like a patio.

One more thing. I read in another thread that they have outdoor grills at OKW. I assume charcoal grills?

 

[SueM in MN]

Thanks for the info. The elevator is not that important of a request. If the first floor rooms have balconies, are the actually off the ground or more like a patio.

They are not patios. They are actually porches and are off the ground with a railing all around them. The only difference between a first floor porch and a 3rd floor porch is how far off the ground you are. They have a ceiling fan and a table with chairs (a real table you can eat at, not just a little snack table).

 

[SueM in MN]

Here's a link to the DIS site page about OKW.
If you look at the 2 big pictures near the bottom of the page, the farther up one (the buidling that is next to a "river") gives a good view of the porches, so you can see that the lower level ones are the same as those on the upper level.

 

[colleen costello]

When you speak to the CM at Check-in, a nice "backup" request (if they offer one or Hospitality House area is not available) would be "Turtle Pond area." We have stayed in this area many times and always enjoy it. Turtle Pond Pool has a playground, shuffleboard, and a small snack bar offering sandwiches and drinks. They play music and the area is quite like the main pool, albeit not with a slide. The buildings near this pool are also close to a main bus stop and are very quiet and beautifully landcsaped. Turtle Pond is one of our favorite OKW locations. We have never gotten assigned near HH and have honestly never missed it! It's an easy walk or drive to the main pool when you want the slide.

OKW has few "bad" locations and each area has its own charms. There are sidewalks everywhere and good parking at the main area so it is easy to get around. Enjoy!

 

[Disney Doll]

If you want the building with the elevator because you have someone that has difficulty with stairs, then I would request "elevator building or first floor unit due to medical reasons". If you get a 1st floor unit, it still has the balcony. It's not that far off the ground (maybe 2 feet tops) but it is off the ground, like a deck with a railing around it. It is not a patio at ground level. If you request elevator or first floor, you have a better chance of getting nearer to the HH, because that opens up the # of units available to you, rather than just those available in the buildings with the elevators.