Saratoga Springs Resort…tell me what you love about it please.

[michelleiada]

We have been DVC owners for 10 years. Own at Beach Club, Animal Kingdom, and soon to be Saratoga Springs. I have been to the resort but have never stayed at it. I know a lot of people don’t like it because its so large. I like the proximity to Disney Springs and that it is on the golf course. My husband and son in law love to golf when we are at Disney. Our favorite resort is Beach Club…our true love, and we really love AKL too..beautiful resort. So….I want to know, what do you love about Saratoga? Would love to hear from other owners.

 

[mmackeymouse]

I like that even though it's a very large resort, obviously, it never feels that crowded. The buses, the pools, the common areas...I've never felt congested or anything.

We personally love the Paddock area. The Paddock pool is an exceptional secondary pool, maybe the best one on property. It's got some decent food over there, and its own mug-filling station too. Also, there is a bridge that makes access to the main area super easy.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I think the grounds are very pretty. Senior citizen here who likes to swim, and the Congress Park pool fits the bill for me. I don’t book SSR at 11 months out, but if at 7 months or fewer it’s available for my stay, I considered it. It‘s definitely my pick over OKW because there are elevators in every building. It would be my pick over Poly in swimming weather as well, since the Poly‘s pools, in my experience, are not deep enough for me to enjoy. The laundry room next to the Congress Park pool and the restroom there have always been clean and not much used in our experience.

We have had “nearby our friends” requests handled wonderfully there. We enjoy the counter service food and The Turf Club.

We have used our ECV’s to go into Disney Springs. That’s convenient.

They did adjust the points and made a stay at SSR better IMO.

I hope you enjoy your stay.

 

[tiggerx3]

We’re not an owner, but we’ve rented points to stay at SSR for the past 4-5 years. We always stayed in Congress Park because we love the short walk to DS and being able to relax at the quiet pool. We really enjoy outside dinners at the Turf Club (glad the restaurant is finally reopen) and those homemade chips at the Artist Palette. A lot of people complain the busses are full or run slow, but in our experience, it hasn’t been bad. The remodeled rooms are very pretty too.

 

[DisneyRegulars]

Paddock pool slide is the best slide on property! We bought SSR sight unseen and we’re pleasantly surprised. We’ve loved every stay there. The only downside is you can’t walk to any park, but you can walk to Disney springs which is nice. Since SSR is so huge, sometimes we drive over to congress park and park right by the walkway to Disney springs to save some time or if we want to hear less whining from our beast. We always stay in Paddock.

 

[a742246]

SSR is our go to resort when we don’t do the theme parks. Excellent spas and pools. Disney Springs is just a simple walk or boat ride away.

 

[purpliequeen]

Lots to like - so much space (great during a pandemic); immaculate grounds for exploring, running, relaxing; walking distance to DS; and one of the best rooms product right now. Can’t emphasize enough how amazing the renovation was. Seriously I think SSR and Riviera have the best product right now. Bright, clean, new. And those Murphy beds are fantastic!!!

 

[Lilsia]

I really like SSR. I love that I can walk to DS and the location is decent to the parks. The rooms are nice and the cast members have always been wonderful.

 

[SwanVT2]

We’re not an owner, but we’ve rented points to stay at SSR for the past 4-5 years. We always stayed in Congress Park because we love the short walk to DS and being able to relax at the quiet pool. We really enjoy outside dinners at the Turf Club (glad the restaurant is finally reopen) and those homemade chips at the Artist Palette. A lot of people complain the busses are full or run slow, but in our experience, it hasn’t been bad. The remodeled rooms are very pretty too.

We were thinking of eating at Turf Club next week and sitting outside. It is a bit pricey. Is it worth the cost? Thanks!

 

[peabody58]

Parking up close, fair point chart, recently upgraded, fair QS, good pools, DISNEY SPRINGS, elevators, Grandstand close to main bldg, boat rides, nice walking options, buses not really a problem (for us), DISNEY SPRINGS, 7 month availability, quiet and secluded with nice views. Oh did I mention DISNEY SPRINGS.

We had a pre-Covid trip 4 nights in a SSR 1 BR at the Grandstand. DW came down with a nasty stomach bug day 1 and ended up in bed for most of the trip. We cancelled our park plans (NE+ tics) and all our TS reservations. DW was fine just chilling in the 1 BR (a treat to have under these circumstances). I played nurse and went WDW exploring while she napped and watched TV. I travelled all over WDW, visiting as many resorts as I could, tried out every possible transportation method and visited the front of the parks. Had a book and would find a nice comfy spot and read a bit at each stop. Checked in on DW every so often. Walked to DS several times. DW was well enough later to enjoy Splitsville dining with me. It was one of the best non-park trips I've had. Yep, we like SSR.

 

[tiggerx3]

We were thinking of eating at Turf Club next week and sitting outside. It is a bit pricey. Is it worth the cost? Thanks!

We think so. We love their prime rib and filet. We also have the Disney visa, so we get a 10% discount.
enjoy!

 

[The Jackal]

The peace of mind not having to book at 11 months. The most rooms of any DVC = lots of inventory. But if your going to WDW the first 2 weeks in December in a studio, book before 9 months. Points go further here then most resorts. The room sizes and layouts are similar to BCV, just some minor differences on 1 and 2 bedrooms. SSR had the tree house villas. They are really the cheapest, point wise stand alone unit compared to the Bungalows and Cabins. The THV aren’t as luxurious, but hey it also has 3 bedrooms, one has bunk beds ( great for kids). SSR has a full Spa, when it opens back up. The only other full spa is at the Grand Floridian. If you drive you can park right in front of your building. Rooms have just been refurbished and look almost as good as RIV. SSR has some of the quietest rooms on all of Disney property. Short walk to Disney Springs and the golf course is right there. You have lots of pools, 2 feature pools, 1 almost feature pool (grandstand) is themed but no slide. A quiet pool in Congress Park and one at the THV’s. Lots of places to walk a good quick service and the Turf Club was good before it closed. Some people don’t like the busses. Well I don’t like the dirty diaper smell of the monorail. Not sure why more do not complain of this paying the sky high prices for WDW premier resorts preferred transportation.

 

[CaoilinnsMom]

Only thing I have not read already posted is I like their balconies.

 

[MrsNick]

Love that the rooms were soundproofed when built. I believe that was to protect from fireworks noise at then Downtown Disney. The quiet in the rooms are fabulous.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Can you see the golf course from any of the rooms at SSR? DH loves to be able to watch the golfers-that's one reason he loves OKW. But I use an ECV, and would prefer a resort with elevators in every building, as Bobbi pointed out. And great to hear from ECVers who've "scooted" over to Disney Springs.

 

[HairyChest]

The balcony views are absolutely breathtaking from a lot of the rooms and it’s considered standard. The whole place has a Port Orleans vibe to it, beautiful and relaxing and homey.

 

[CarolynFH]

Can you see the golf course from any of the rooms at SSR? DH loves to be able to watch the golfers-that's one reason he loves OKW. But I use an ECV, and would prefer a resort with elevators in every building, as Bobbi pointed out. And great to hear from ECVers who've "scooted" over to Disney Springs.

Villas in the Grandstand section (a standard section) have views of the golf course. It's section H in the lower left corner of this map. And Grandstand building 85 just happens to be almost next door to the Carriage House, where check in, the golf clubhouse, Turf Club restaurant, etc. are.

 

[NeutralNovice]

Kinda gonna highjack this thread... Does anyone know if the Treehouses were also renovated with the rest of the resort? From the videos Ive seen, it looks like they haven't been but can't remember when those videos were shot.

And if they weren't renovated, any word on the timeline for that?

 

[Louis morrell]

Kinda gonna highjack this thread... Does anyone know if the Treehouses were also renovated with the rest of the resort? From the videos Ive seen, it looks like they haven't been but can't remember when those videos were shot.

And if they weren't renovated, any word on the timeline for that?

No they were not. We toured them when we were at SSR in December and the one the guide took us through was really nice. It was clean and well maintained. I asked if it was only used for a model and he said no. It was an actual unit that was normally avaliable for booking.

 

[DonMacGregor]

No they were not. We toured them when we were at SSR in December and the one the guide took us through was really nice. It was clean and well maintained. I asked if it was only used for a model and he said no. It was an actual unit that was normally avaliable for booking.

At sold out resorts, they don't have dedicated model units. The resort rotates out which unit they are letting the DVC guides use for tours. We had a guide take us to what he thought was the correct unit for a Poly studio tour, only to find out he was knocking on an occupied unit, LOL (fortunately he only had the key to the correct unit). He said they also move which bungalow they are using for the tours as well.