Saratoga vs. Boardwalk in December

[off to neverland]

We just bought SSR and are planning a trip for my extended family for December 18-22, 2005. My brothers are in their early to mid 20's, and would like an appropriate nighttime atmosphere, I'm sure. I'm also hoping for the "wow" factor in accomadations, as we will all be together for the first time in a while.

We plan on booking SSR 11 months in advance, but are considering trying to change it at 7 months to Boardwalk. What do you all think? What are the chances of getting into Boardwalk the week before Christmas? Which resort would be funner for 20 somethings?

Thanks for your input. I so enjoy reading all your posts; I have learned so much already from reading this board!

Rae
PS. We are planning on booking a studio (for me, my husband, and kids) and a two bedroom for the rest of the family.

 

[tjkraz]

If you call right at 7 months, I seriously doubt that you will have trouble switching your reservation. There's an outside chance that you may need to go on the waitlist, but I wouldn't hesitate to do that. Dates will open up as BWV owners who booked at 11 months decide to try other resorts themselves.

Regarding the "which is better" question, I think they both have something positive to offer. Pleasure Island (and really all of Downtown Disney) has a great variety of late night hot spots. On the other hand, the Boardwalk has the ESPN Club, Jellyrolls (piano bar) and a couple of other places.

Incidentally, my own personal feeling is that resorts like SSR and OKW work better if you have a car available (since there's parking right outside your door), while the other properties work better if you mostly use WDW transportation.

Good luck. I doubt you will go wrong with either property. Just do a little studying and decide while better meets the interests of your party.

Oh, and I think you're CRAZY for taking the studio for yourself while giving the others the 2B, but that's just me.

 

[off to neverland]

Thanks for your quick reply, Tjkratz.

I haven't been to SSR yet, but it still may seem odd that I don't know how far Pleasure Island and Downtown Disney are from SSR..... I know they are walking distance, but does this mean right next door? Just curious........

I can't seem to get an image of where SSR and Boardwalk are in relation to Downtown Disney. I wasn't focused on that when we bought it; my concern was more about how far it was from Magic Kingdom since we have the young kids.

We're taking the studio for privacy. There will be 6 of them; my brothers tend to stay out late and be very noisy, and we have young kids who need sleep! We'll still be able to use their kitchen, but when it's time for some peace and quiet away from the relatives, we'll have it!

Rae

 

[tjkraz]

Here's a map of the resort...

The four buildings on the far right all face Downtown Disney. Those are the buildings open now, although all 12 buildings pictured will probably be open by next December.

Item #12 on the map is a walkway to the Marketplace side of Downtown Disney. From the closest waterside building, I've been told it is about a 5-10 minute walk. #11 is a boat dock which offers transportation to Downtown Disney. But, I've already walked to the dock myself and found it to be pretty inconveniently located. Finally you'll notice that there are three bus stops scattered throughout the resort, all of which will offer bus service to DD.

When you book your room at SSR, I'd suggest requesting a room in "Congress Park" which is the name of the region with the four waterside buildings.

From the Boardwalk, you have to take a bus to DD, and the bus service doesn't have a very good reputation at present. But, the Boardwalk itself is just a short walk (5 min or less) from any Boardwalk Villa room.

From either resort, you'll have to take a bus to the Magic Kingdom. Honestly, it sounds like SSR at present has better bus service to MK than BWV. SSR has dedicated busses, and if you read the trip reports on this board, people are saying that they wait no more than 10 minutes for a bus. BWV presently shares busses with the Beach Club / Yacht Club, Dolphin and Swan. This can make for some long waits.

On the room issue, one alternative at SSR would be to specifically request a "lockoff" Two-Bedroom unit. Lockoffs are basically a 1B + a Studio. The studio portion of the room (second bedroom) would still have it's own entrance door (they wouldn't have to walk through your part of the unit to enter), and it would have two queen beds. You know your group better than I do, but I hate to see you give up that master suite on your first DVC experience.

 

[off to neverland]

Thanks so much for the map.

The lockoff idea is good, but only if the studio connects to the three bedroom. They will need two bedrooms at least, as there are 6 adults. And then my family needs a room. There are 10 of us in total.... 8 adults and 2 kids.

It won't be our first trip. We will be going in May for a week! (We've just started this, and are already planning on borrowing points from the following year. I guess an add-on will be needed much sooner than we thought! This is FUN STUFF!)

Rae

 

[off to neverland]

Thanks so much for the map.

The lockoff idea is good, but only if the studio connects to the three bedroom. They will need two bedrooms at least, as there are 6 adults. And then my family needs a room. There are 10 of us in total.... 8 adults and 2 kids.

It won't be our first trip. We will be going in May for a week! (We've just started this, and are already planning on borrowing points from the following year. I guess an add-on will be needed much sooner than we thought! This is FUN STUFF!)

Rae

 

[CarolMN]

IMHO, your brothers will like the PI nightlife a lot more than that on the Boardwalk. There are several clubs at PI to choose from and lots more young people around. (FWIW, the Boardwalk has been pretty dull/dead in December before the Holiday crowds arrive - at least that's been our experience for the past few years).

The Boardwalk has ESPN and JellyRolls. That's pretty much it - at least as far as places of interest to young men in their 20's, LOL! Those can be fun, but I don't think they can compare to the atmosphere at PI. Believe you can buy a special ticket that's good for 5 days, so cost would be minimal.

There's lots of info about PI here on th DIS and other Disney sites. Maybe you could share some of it with your brothers and see what they think!

Best wishes -

 

[sters]

Have you thought about splitting your stay? That way you could have the benefits of both.

 

[bobbiwoz]

2 weeks ago we had to cancel a 1 bedroom standard view at Boardwalk for this year, and we were able to book a studio at 4 months out (moving will be involved) for the 4 nights ending Dec. 23rd. So, I think if you do the rebooking 7 months out, you'll stand a good chance to get Boardwalk.

I think the idea of splitting your stay is a good one. We intend to do that in future years, VWL for the Christmas party at MK and BWV for CP and Osborne lights.

Bobbi