Villa OKW or SS

[distrip]

I am booking a trip for next November and am trying to decide between an villa at Old Key West or Saratoga Springs. We are traveling with 6 adults and 4 kids (we getting a 3bedroom villa). Any advice on which resort is better (ie. location, amenities, room decor). Also, any advice on where is best to stay within each resort.

 

[chalee94]

owners at OKW and SSR have been able to book those rooms since december, and november is very popular for DVC resorts, so you'll want to hurry up and book if you find any availability.

SSR and OKW are both condo-type resorts, spread out but with parking right in front of your bldg. SSR is right next to DTD, but both resorts are more distant from the 4 parks. SSR is more deluxe and upscale feeling, while OKW is more laid-back and relaxed. the most popular areas are probably OKW=near the hospitality house and SSR=congress park but opinions vary.

here are some threads to give you some ideas of what to expect:

OKW lovers thread

SSR lovers thread

recent OKW discussion thread

recent SSR pics thread

 

[spiceycat]

the third bedroom at OKW has double (full) beds.

pretty sure the third bedroom at SSR has queen beds like the second bedroom.

if that makes a difference to you.

here is the layout and what is in it
ssr
http://dvc.disney.go.com/dvc/guest/...id=ProspectsSaratogaSpringsAccommodationsPage

okw
http://dvc.disney.go.com/dvc/guest/...d=ProspectsOldKeyWestResortAccommodationsPage

 

[PlainJane]

I would go with SSR for the following reasons:
1. All buildings have elevators.
2. I personally prefer how the rooms are decorated.
3. While we find the cast members at OKW to be friendly, my mother and I both agree that SSR has the nicest staff of all the resorts we've stayed at on property. They just go above and beyond what is required of them. A manager even picked up distilled water for my mother at Walgreens. My mother never even asked her to do so, she had just called to see if it was available at the resort, and the manager offered.
4. It has a spa and arguably the nicest gym on property.
5. While their main pools are pretty equal, the quiet pools at SSR are very nice in their own right, the grand stand pool even has a water play area.
6. They have a CS option that is quite large and indoors (the OKW CS is outdoors).
7. I personally prefer the Turf Club over Olivia's. The Turf Club has been more consistent as far as food quality goes and has been in my experience has always had enough waiters to go around. They also remember us from trip to trip. The last meal I had at Olivia's took two hours. There were only three other families in the restaurant by the way. They completely botched my order, and it had already taken longer than should be necessary to grill a hamburger. The waitress kept disappearing, and I maybe received one refill. It was just terrible.
8. The layout of OKW is somewhat confusing.
9. We have experienced consistently good bus transportation at SSR.

As far as your question about location, both are essentially in the same location. I would give a slight edge to SSR because their pathway is nicer, but I wouldn't choose one resort over the other based on their location, they're just to similar.

 

[Deb & Bill]

You may not be able to book any of these until DVC members with that resort as their home resort get to book them. So that would put you at 7 months out. However, you should be able to book at two bedroom (that sleeps 8) and a studio (that sleeps 4). If stairs don't bother you, go with OKW, the rooms are very large. If you need an elevator, go with SSR (OKW only has three buildings with elevators).

 

[BroadwayGirl]

Actually, DVC member inventory and DRC villa inventory are completely different alotments so don't worry about DVC member bookings. And DRC gets their villa inventory at the 11 month window, same as DVC home resort owners. So if you are looking for November you should be able to book now if there is still availability. If you are booking a package all you need to put down is the $200 deposit so it is worth it to lock in the villa early. Since the 3BR Grand Villas are typically never discounted there is no need to wait to see if a special offer comes out.

As far as which one to choose - I'd go with SSR, primarily due to the 2Q configuration in the 3rd bedroom. I also prefer the decor and theming of the rooms at SSR. However, if cost isn't a huge factor, consider a GV at DAKV if one is available - those are truly lovely.

 

[tinkerbee]

OKW

1. Found the CMs to be much better here.
2. Like the decor of the rooms better.
3. Layout of the rooms better.
4. Like the quite of OKW
5. I think the main pool is better and never seems to be as crowded as SSR
6. Found the busing at OKW better.