SSR Lovers and/or Owners Thread!

[Dizny Dad]

Thanks BigMama , , , , Been there , , , , wish we were doing that!

 

[CHOPR]

SSR.....can't wait. 22 days until our first stay at our home resort!!
We havn't been there since taking the DVC tour in 2005 and REALLY! pulling myself back from buying on the spot. Went home and thought about it for 2 seconds realizing the pull/magic was still there and immediately started the process NO REGRETS! I plan to take some time this trip looking around the other resorts to decide on our next adventure. Want to try them all.

No more commando parks for us been there done that too often

 

[Dizny Dad]

. . . . . . I plan to take some time this trip looking around the other resorts to decide on our next adventure. Want to try them all.

No more commando parks for us been there done that too often

DW and I look forward to visiting as many of the other resorts as possible during our returns to "The World". Each resort has something we like to enjoy, whether that be an event to experience, a place to sit, some food to share, or an atmosphere we are invigorated by. A return to "The World" without our tour of the resorts would be like missing one of the themed parks.

And, please, relax - no commando raids on the parks this time!

 

[KeepSwimmingDory]

Hi Dory - You will love SSR. It is a totally different enviroment from VWL (and it should be!).

Just got back from eight days in "The World". DiznyDi, DD, & DML all found it HOT and Humid, but a great time as always.

We stayed at VWL this go around, but I need to tell all that we spent part of an afternoon at SSR just because we needed an SSR fix! We had lunch at the Artist's Palette and it was great! DiznyDi & DD both cheered when we decided to spend a little time at our other home.

This December we are splitting our 15 day trip between VWL and SSR. I guess we just need both to feel satisfied!

Dman67 - outstanding photo layouts! Thanks!

Hi Dizny Dad!

I just now read what you wrote. I was surprised at how much we liked SSR. We were a little apprehensive because of the negative we had read, but own there so were glad to try it out on a last minute trip when nothing else was available. It was a wonderful surprise that we all enjoyed it so much. Funny that you snuck over to SSR for a fix--we took 2 little mini trips over to WL to get ours there. We don't even own there but do love it. Our long time home is Ft. Wilderness from before DVC so we usually go over there for a visit. We can find lots of good things about all of them!

We were in a 1 BR in Congress Park and loved the pool being less crowded and the ability to grill right there at the pool. That is one of DH favorite parts of our trips. The view of DTD from back there is so nice.

I have some pictures of the resort I can post. Is there a thread for SSR pictures?

 

[KeepSwimmingDory]

Here's hoping this will work. Credit goes to BroganMc who has it on her blog and Caskbill who measured the distances.

Great map! Thanks to you for posting it, and to BroganMc and Caskbill for doing the work on it. SSR is DH new first choice of where to stay so I'm sure we will be back and enjoy the map with the distances. We will probably stay there next May with my parents who enjoy walking early in the morning so it will help them as well.

I did a tour of SSR May 1st, and fell in love with it (but not the price). Then I found a great resale deal and sent in the deposit and contract Friday. Hopefully the rest will be approved, and my kids (9 yr old son and twin 5 yr old girls) will be "home" next year for Star Wars weekend.

I loved our first family trip to WDW, but wanted an upgrade from Allstar Music, which was adequate for a first "power trip", but I think our future visits will be much more relaxed. Or at least as relaxed as you can be as a widowed dad with three kids.

Good luck with closing the deal and how exciting to plan for next year SWW. And we find that with owning you can relax and even the kids will say "it's ok if we don't do that ride...we'll do it next time" so they no longer like to go commando either.

Although it was our 4th trip in a DVC villa it was our first trip "home" to SSR last weekend. Must say that we liked it better than we THOUGHT we might and will happily plan more trips there! I was worried the size of the resort would be overwhelming and that we'd end up in a location we were unhappy with, but persistence at check-in got us into a studio in one of the 8000 buildings in the Grandstand section. It was a perfect spot and I thought the grounds were quite nice & well kept. The Grandstand pool was awesome and the walk to the High Rock Pool / Artist's Palette was reasonable and the bus stop was right there. Buses were prompt & we never waited more than probably 15 min. for any bus. We did notice a low spot with no drainage on the path up to the Carriage House that had a lot of standing water & muck in the path that was pretty gross but other than that everything was in great shape! Our unit was clean & well maintained.

Our first ever DVC stay was at OKW and we had a unit that was far from the bus stop, far from the "quiet pool" and very far from Hospitality House & main pool. Add to that the the buses were horribly S-L-O-W and our unit was in need of a refurb and we had a most disappointing stay. We had bought SSR sight unseen and went over to see the models while on that OKW trip. After our tour I was concerned we'd dislike the decor but it didn't bother me as much as I thought it might (too traditional for our tastes). I think our location within the Grandstand definitely added to our enjoyment & overall perception of the resort. The decor took a backseat to having a great location!!

We are on a mission to stay at all of the DVC resorts before we start repeating. In August we try BCV and VB then we only need to try BLT, BWV & HHI. Then we can plot where we want to return to, but at least now we know we also love our home resort and will want to plan more trips there too!

Hi Annie! Glad you enjoyed SSR as much as we did. It is not WL but it is wonderful in its own way. I tend to like the hotel type resorts better but was overwhelmingly pleased with SSR. It didn't seem as spread out as I had pictured it in my mind. The walk to anywhere didn't seem long and it was so beautiful and peaceful.

I enjoy staying different places too and would love to try some other resorts as well, but now it will be harder to get DH away from SSR.

 

[kam0202]

This is our 2nd year as DVC members. Last May we spent a week at VWL in a 2 bedroom and enjoyed our time there. I have to say, that this year at SSR was even better.

Everyone has mentioned positives and negatives about each DVC resort; I'm convinced there is a resort suited for everyone for their own reasons. These were our reasons we loved SSR, though this could be some reasons why others don't care for it.

1) It is more of a condo feel than a hotel; we stayed in the Springs 3425 - 4th floor. It's like a 4 story condo complex but with elevators. The resort is expansive. We enjoyed the trails - every morning we saw a lot of people walking..running into bunny rabbits, lizards, even saw a deer one day, and otters swimming in the waterways. I was able to find a 1.4 mile loop (ask the front desk for this trail map) that I could run a couple of times.
2) Loved the gym; this was huge - lots of modern machines, resistance machines, and free weights; working out was never crowded in the afternoons or evenings.
3) Loved the main Springs pool - 0 degree entry; rock tunnel waterslide, and baby waterslide. There were also more quiet pools to choose from if you wanted to stay away from the action. We have a 3 and 4 year old so they enjoyed the excitement at the main pool.
4) Had no trouble with the bus system or schedule, or if we did drive to the Transportation Center (my kids love just riding the monorails all day), roads were clear, easy and no fuss.
5) Nights were quiet; we loved this...took late night walks - so peaceful.
6) Loved the walk or the water taxi access to Downtown Disney. Lots of great shopping and restaurants. The DDP does not suit our family. We love to make our own breakfasts, pack sandwiches for lunch, but then eat at Shula's or Todd English's or Fulton's Crab House to splurge for dinner (incidentally, they are not on the DDP).
7) Grounds were always clean, charming, people were friendly, and weather was beautiful. We really enjoyed our time there.

Does anyone know how to attach pictures? Would love to show you some from our trip.

 

[Sheribo]

This is our 2nd year as DVC members. Last May we spent a week at VWL in a 2 bedroom and enjoyed our time there. I have to say, that this year at SSR was even better.

Everyone has mentioned positives and negatives about each DVC resort; I'm convinced there is a resort suited for everyone for their own reasons. These were our reasons we loved SSR, though this could be some reasons why others don't care for it.

1) It is more of a condo feel than a hotel; we stayed in the Springs 3425 - 4th floor. It's like a 4 story condo complex but with elevators. The resort is expansive. We enjoyed the trails - every morning we saw a lot of people walking..running into bunny rabbits, lizards, even saw a deer one day, and otters swimming in the waterways. I was able to find a 1.4 mile loop (ask the front desk for this trail map) that I could run a couple of times.
2) Loved the gym; this was huge - lots of modern machines, resistance machines, and free weights; working out was never crowded in the afternoons or evenings.
3) Loved the main Springs pool - 0 degree entry; rock tunnel waterslide, and baby waterslide. There were also more quiet pools to choose from if you wanted to stay away from the action. We have a 3 and 4 year old so they enjoyed the excitement at the main pool.
4) Had no trouble with the bus system or schedule, or if we did drive to the Transportation Center (my kids love just riding the monorails all day), roads were clear, easy and no fuss.
5) Nights were quiet; we loved this...took late night walks - so peaceful.
6) Loved the walk or the water taxi access to Downtown Disney. Lots of great shopping and restaurants. The DDP does not suit our family. We love to make our own breakfasts, pack sandwiches for lunch, but then eat at Shula's or Todd English's or Fulton's Crab House to splurge for dinner (incidentally, they are not on the DDP).
7) Grounds were always clean, charming, people were friendly, and weather was beautiful. We really enjoyed our time there.

Does anyone know how to attach pictures? Would love to show you some from our trip.

BINGO! You just hit the exact reasons we love SSR. Can we go back now please..........

 

[kam0202]

BINGO! You just hit the exact reasons we love SSR. Can we go back now please..........

Sheri - we can't wait to go back next year and are taking my friend and her family along as well.

Incidentally, saw that you're heading to HHI next month. We went last Sept and have another trip this Sept. This is our quick getaway from the kids; you'll enjoy your time there, too!

 

[mamaprincess]

Does anyone know how to attach pictures? Would love to show you some from our trip.

You need a photobucket account so sign up at www.photobucket.com. You can then upload your pictures there. Once you have all of your photos uploaded to photo bucket, you will have options under each picture. Copy the img line under your photo then paste it into your message here. You will need to have the Dis open and photobucket open so that you can easily go back and forth copying and pasting. Once you have all of the images (this will be lines of text) copied into your message, preview your message. If you see your pictures, post the message.

 

[kam0202]

You need a photobucket account so sign up at www.photobucket.com. You can then upload your pictures there. Once you have all of your photos uploaded to photo bucket, you will have options under each picture. Copy the img line under your photo then paste it into your message here. You will need to have the Dis open and photobucket open so that you can easily go back and forth copying and pasting. Once you have all of the images (this will be lines of text) copied into your message, preview your message. If you see your pictures, post the message.

Thank you MamaPrincess!

 

[Sheribo]

Sheri - we can't wait to go back next year and are taking my friend and her family along as well.

Incidentally, saw that you're heading to HHI next month. We went last Sept and have another trip this Sept. This is our quick getaway from the kids; you'll enjoy your time there, too!

We're going to SSR in November for our first ever adult only trip. I'm so excited! Never been to HH but a good Samaritan made the ressie for me since we don't own there and I'm really pumped.

I won a really nice DVC duffel bag at Welcome Home Wednesday and I've started packing it already.

 

[thelionqueen]

We just returned from our first stay @ SSR and really enjoyed our stay! There were some things that were disappointing, but the positives far outweighed the negatives. We will definitely be returning to SSR!

I'm now part of the crowd that hopes that those who don't like staying @ SSR stay that way so that there are rooms available when I book

 

[oakmanner]

If you stay in Congress Park you may have a view like this:

 

[kamikazecat]

2 days until we are at SSR. I am so excited and I know we will love the resort!

 

[disneykid4ever]

SSR is our home resort and we stayed there again this past May. We tried the Grandstand area this time instead of Congress Park and liked it for the proximity to the Carriage House. We found ourselves using our refillable mugs much more this trip since the Grandstand pool bar had a refilling station and the walk to the Carriage House was short. HOWEVER, the one bad thing I have to say about Grandstand is the horrible drainage problem on the walkway to the Carriage House. There is one spot right where the walkway along the drive-in to the Carriage House connects with the walkway from the Grandstand area that dips down and all the water collects there (right ON the walkway). There is no drain or any way for water to divert, so if you are walking on the walkway you literally end up in 3 inches of water. The only thing to do is go through the nearby shrubbery or divert onto the golf cart driveway. Half the time that we walked to the Carriage House and diverted onto the golf cart driveway, we met with bell services carts which were zipping around to get bags to rooms; this is not good for bell services or guests. Disney NEEDS to remedy this problem.

 

[BigMama]

granstand

 

[tomandrobin]

What a great view of the GrandStand Pool....Big Mama!

 

[BigMama]

Thanks !! 2 months I'll be back there!! can't wait !!

 

[zinkfamily]

Hello all,

I am a first time post(ee or er) and Ihave run into aposibble snag in my families plans to go to SSR on 25JUN09.
I am stationed in Afghanistan and I was just informed by my chain of command that they need me to push back my dates moving around to get out of my base until a few days befire I should arrive back in the states.

I talked to a cast member on the phone and they said they can help with little more than 24 hours notice but I am wondering about all the dining plans we made.
Does anyoe have any alternatives to dining areas around SSR on or off property that I might be able to walk into w/o a reservation?

I am sure I am just stressing about something trivial but truth be told I really miss my family and I want this to be an awsome vaccation for my wife son and daughter.

Any suggestions help and tidbits would be very much appreciated.
Thank You

 

[Dizny Dad]

Zinkfamily: THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!
Our family prayers go out to you and your family. We hope all works out for you and your schedules allows the magic to happen!

We just completed a great visit to WDW with the hope our son would make it back from Iraq. We planned accordingly, with Josh being in the states for a week before the trip, but the needs of our country come first. Josh missed the trip, but made it home for R&R. We were glad to have him!

Again, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!