Why do members seem to not like Saratoga Springs?

[Rae]

The feel I'm getting from calling DVC and the face that it's the only resort i can book for our trip lead me to believe that member don't particularly like SSR. Why is this? I've never stayed. This will be our first time staying there. The only deluxe we've stayed at was The Grand Floridian for our Honeymoon in 1999.


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[cyl-e]

I have friends that own at SSR and like it quite a bit.

Of the resorts I've tried (AKV, BWV, VWL, SSR) - it is my least favorite.
I really love the theming and the specialness of AKV; and I like the "hotel" style resorts better than the "villa/condo" style resorts. SSR just feels a lot like my old Marriott Timeshare - it doesn't feel like it has the special Disney touch to it, to me. When I stay on property - I like to feel that I'm somewhere different than a normal hotel.
BWV also doesn't have a strong theming element to it to me (although I think it's nicer than SSR - but it could be that our room at SSR was in need of refurbishment) - but it's close to both Epcot and DHS (we walk to both) - which we love that proximity.
SSR is close to DTD - so if you're a big DTD fan, that's a plus.

The other thing that people don't like about SSR is that it's a very spread out property - which means that there are like 5 bus stops on property - so your bus takes longer to get around. That wasn't that big of a problem for us. I think my friends like it b/c they use the pools a lot with their grandkids and they enjoy DTD a lot - so the walk/boat ride to DTD is really nice for them.

[denlo]

I'm a little mystified that members really dislike SSR while they love OKW. At least all the buildings at SSR have elevators. Maybe it's really because OKW's point cost per night is so low. Having stayed at OKW, I more confused than ever. It just wasn't us. We'll be staying at SSR in August. We're planning to spend more time at the resort and DTD during our stay at SSR too. Maybe I'll have a better idea then.

[KNWVIKING 2.0]

We live in a country and world with wonderous and unique places. They bulldozer the Fairway Villas & DI, have a massive clean canvas to work with. Disney employees incredibly talented Imaginears. They monitor Boards like this to read about things we like & dislike. How many threads are out there titled "What would you like to see the next resort be?"

And we get.........drum roll please........ Saratoga ?

Go to any other WDW resort and you'll fully understand where you are, what the theming means. The only people that "get" Saratoga are the ones that live there. All 82 of them. Apparently the people in Saratoga like big chimneys.

The resort is also too large and spread out. You need a golf cart just to get a free soda refill.

The resort was opened with no sit down restaurant. The main pool area feels like it's down in a hole. There are too many buildings in the common area that have nothing to do with the resort.

It was just a poorly planned project from day one.

[bakerworld]

I really think the answer to this question is the bus situation: how many bus stops on the interior, the circuitous route taken by the buses to and from the parks, the amount of people on the buses, etc. We're not mass transit people and if given a choice of riding a bus or walking, even tho it saves us no time, we'll walk. If we have to use a bus, fine - I try to never sit in the 'wheelchair' seats and I get off as soon as possible.

When we bought into DVC, we weren't allowed to use our home resort for 9 months so they gave us a years worth of SSR only UN-bankable pts. For years I'd said to my husband, "The only thing DVC is selling is SSR and who wants to own there?" We dragged our feet for months but finally decided we had APs, the air was cheap so we'd just hold onto our patience and go.

We ended up really enjoying our SSR time, probably as much as our AKL home resort. The CMs are nice, we explored and appreciated DTD more than we'd ever done, it was quiet (read SSR is the only DVC built to be sound proof) and relaxing. In my opinion SSR, OKW, and AKL are all wonderful places for non-Disney park vacations.

[wdrl]

The nice thing about DVC is that there is something for everyone. And not every resort has to please every single member. I'm looking forward to our first stay at SSR at the end of July. I like the looks of the resort, and I'm looking forward to taking early morning walks around the grounds. The Turf Club is a hidden gem and is the only restaurant at a DVC resort that has a veranda for outdoor dining. Since the veranda is always shaded, you can eat outside even during the warm summer afternoons. As denlo mentioned, all of SSR's buildings have elevators. When we stayed at OKW we were on the third floor. Every time we walked up the stairs I thought about our nephew who has twin now 17 months old. I wouldn't want to be coming back from a park and have to carry two toddlers, diaper bags, souvenir bags, etc., up two flights of stairs.

With the addition of the Paddock Pool renovations and the quick service dining area, SSR has two main pools and three quiet pools. That is more than any other DVC resort. A while back someone posted that she preferred the main pool at OKW because it has a sandy beach area for her kids to play in. Someone else came back and posted they preferred the pool at SSR because there wasn't a sandy area, which meant that her kids didn't bring sand into the villa. Like I said, there is something for everyone.

Some of the negative comments about SSR come from people who have never stayed at SSR. Part of the animosity comes from owners at other resorts who have problems booking their own resorts at less than 7 months. They blame "those SSR people" who use their SSR points to book at other resorts making it difficult to get last minute reservations at BCV, BWV, etc.

Maybe I'll have a different opinion about SSR after we've stayed there. I had higher hopes for OKW before we stayed there, but now its low on my list. We'll see.

[KNWVIKING 2.0]

In a few years, after everything is complete and the landscaping has matured, maybe I'll feel differently about the resort. Right now, the resort just feels "off" to me, disjointed somehow. I don't recall any other resort needing such major elements added/tweaked after construction was completed as we've seen at SSR. The closest comparison would be the addition of the slide at OKW.

[nono]

I'm an SSR owner and complainer.

I liked it when it was smaller. Originally, it was to be Congress Hall, The Spirngs and The Paddock. Then, a hurricane came through...(Good-bye Fiarway Villas; hello Grandstand.) Oh, and look, we missed a spot. Cram some more in here. (Hello Carousel). Then, someone got the brilliant idea to tie the THV check-in to SSR.

Adding all the additonal load to the existing check in area flat out sucks. Unless you check in on a Wednesday at Noon, it's like Grand Central Station, which is not in Saratoga, NY. It just ruins the mood and the theming is too subtle to compensate.

The thing is, the resort doesn't have to suck. They have a whole little town area built and use it for everything but entertaining guests and shaking the last few shekels out of their pockets.* For goodness sakes, remove the darn gift shop from the food area, and put it down there near the pool. Expand the offerings. Heck, it could be like a mini-Main St. Donut/coffee shop. Pool toys. Mini-grocery store for those who like to cook. And so on. Then go back to the main building and configure it for the increased load that is the reality of today. Heck, you just moved the gift shop out. You have some elbow room!

Is this really rocket science to figure this out? JUST FIX IT already! Then, folks will want to stay and the fact that it is a humong ous resort won't matter. Gahhhhhhh!

*To cyl-e and The Viking's point -- very un-Disney-like!

[keepermom]

We have not stayed at SSR but I will tell you we have made the hike from the Royal Plaza to the DVC office to sign our papers and even though the property was beautiful, if you like to walk alot, I just found it to be really confusing and we got lost several times. We did have the option of buying SSR but we just didn't feel it and now I am real real glad we decided on AKV even though I have to admit that the whole buy at SSR for the price but try to get what you really want at 7 months did cross my mind but I just couldn't see us at SSR if all else failed. We do drive so the bus stop problems would not have bothered us too much but I have to agree with Viking, who wants to have to go so far to get a free soda! I did set a good friend of mine and her family up in a 2 bedroom at SSR for their first ever trip to Disney and they loved it, no complaints about the bus service and they used it every day because they flew. I guess its just personal preference.

[Redoctober25]

I have stayed at SSR two or three times on developer points. I agree that every resort has its pros and cons. The first time I stayed there I was so far I rarely made it to the main building other than check-in and check-out. The second time I made sure to ask for a room close to the main building. It was still a bit of a walk, but no more than if you are in one of the far wings of AKL.


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