The point of this post is to provide some experiences of renting at OKW versus staying at a Moderate resort. Opinions are my own. It was a tough decision for us, I could not find much to help make a decision. Perhaps this will help you if you are our in our boat.
I have stayed at WDW a dozen times or so staying in downtown Disney (it will always be that to me!) transitioning to CB / PO and CS. Its been a decade since we were able to get to WDW; but we made it back! Things change in 10 years but many things remain the same. We did venture back to CS / CB nd CS to show my daughter where we stayed in the past and to dine.
Why we stayed at moderates in the past…Is this you?
1) Cost – the deluxe pricing was simply not in our budget – though we did stay at WL the year of 9/11 when CB was closed. We were upgraded. I know some argue WL started as a moderate and is not really a deluxe…whatever…WL was beautiful and offered boat transportation to MK but not so overwhelming that we’d spend extra to return to a 'deluxe'.
2) Food – particularly food courts. We all have varied diets, eat different things at different times, like to grab and go at times and sit down at other times or some of us dine in while others eat by the pool. at the same time. The courts always served us well. The deluxes offer some grab and go items but not the extent of the food courts. They do offer sit down dining but we had neither the time nor money to dine there every day. In this respect the moderates severed us well. Note: the moderate's food courts are not as great as we remember them-won’t get into that, suffice to say we still used them on our recent trip.
3) Theming – One could argue the moderate's theming and foliage is just as nice as the deluxe's. Further we love ‘walk around the resort’ experience the moderates offer. We feel like we are in a world away from everything else and love it. No cars, no busses just the scenery and quiet casual strolls.
4) Pools – the themed pools at the moderates seem as good as they deluxes – they do seem to be more crowded. Fortunately, they have numerous quiet pools generally within a short walk from wherever your room is.
5) Proximity – by this I mean from my room to food, pools and busses. Yes some rooms, at CB in particular, can be quite a walk but we NEVER had difficulty getting a room request near where we wanted be….the main themed pool /food area.
6) Transportation – Some moderates have a boat to DD. All have buss transportation. I never recall any real issues with the busses, but, yes, sometimes one could have a 15 to 20-minute wait. Nevertheless, we always used the busses in lew of our rental car. The deluxes likely win in this category since some offer direct boat/monorail or walking into the parks.
7) Price $150 – $200 a night. Deluxes are a lot more than that.
So why Old Key West?
Well, we know a DVC member who had no interest in returning this year who offered us a week at a point rate you would need to be crazy not to take advantage of. Its been a decade since we’d been to WDW, we perceived the DVC as an u'pgrade'…we thought it a chance to try something new on our budget in a higher category than we were accustomed too.
To be honest, we watched all the video of their available DVC resorts and OKW was our second to last choice followed by Saratoga. Why? Well, we liked the idea of walking into EPCOT or HS. Sadly Beach/Yacht club and Boardwalk was not available, even 6 months in advance. In fact only OKW and SS was. OKW sort of looked like CB and heck, it had the biggest rooms! I never understood why Disney put a bed and pull out couch in all their other DVC studios…since there would be three of us I figured a bed would be more comfortable for our daughter. We booked OKW.
The room was great. Oddly shaped (watch a video), probably the space could have been better used but the 3 of us never felt crowded. The bathroom was large. We had a larger fridge than I recall the mod’s having plus microwave and cabinet. We had our own patio…small but enough for 2. We had central air. We had a parking spot directing in front of our room
The downside to the room was that there was no ‘get ready’ area outside the bathroom. The mod’s offer a sink and mirror outside the bath. The ladies like this since one could be showering and the other doing their hair. The OKW configuration consisting of everything in the bathroom slowed us down. Honestly, I think I’d trade the microwave, cabinet and bar sink for a full sink and mirror. Also, we found the dresser of drawers a bit small for 3 likely not enough if you have 4.
Resort pools. I found the resort main pool hum drum. I think the mod’s have a better themed main pools. Of course the mod’s are way more crowded…not sure why because I think OKW surely has a lot of people in its sprawling area. The quiet pools are very nice and were not too crowded either.
Food: This was the killer for us. No food court…we knew that going in. What we did not know is that there would be NO where to grab something to eat and sit INSIDE in cool air to eat it EXCEPT the sit down restaurant…which was quite expensive and not conducive to varied grab and go items. Yes the quiet pools had some grab and go food choices and there is one by the main pool but no where near the selection offered by the food courts the moderates have. . Sadly the quiet pool grab and go's had limited hours, 11 -5. The main area was open till only 10pm. The refillable mug refill station at the main area was not up to Disney standards. It was supposed to be open all night however many times by 9pm ice was gone, beverages sold out not to mention the very small area was always sticky mess surrounded by flies. I think the food and beverage area upset us the most. (Note you can get your refillable mug refreshed at the quiet pools but they take your cup and do it for you…. when they are opened)
Proximity: this was unfortunate. We put our request to be somewhere near the main pool / food area in 6 months ahead of time. We did use online check in and again made our requests known. Check in is at 4pm. We noted we would arrive at 1pm. I got a text at 1pm saying to go to the main desk. Uh Oh. Fortunately, there was no line but no reason offered why we could not have been texted our room number so I am unsure why I had to go stop there. Nevertheless the area we were stationed was not where near the main area and even a trek to the nearest quiet pool. I asked to be moved and was told nothing was available. I should have said I’d wait till 4pm if necessary. Fortunately, we had rented a car…and they had an internal bus…
Transportation: Well, I was none to impressed with transportation. To be blunt the design of OKY does not lend itself to efficient transportation. It’s a large ‘resort’ that seems to jut out in many directions none of which allow the buss to circle around but rather all appear to be dead ends which force the busses to continually circle around at the end of each. By the way, we saw the internal bus only 3 times in seven days. I meant to ask if it perhaps makes rounds at other resorts. The is a nice boat to Downtown Disney (Ok, Disney Springs). Only ONE was running though. We enjoyed the ride but the bus would have been quicker.
Resort Feel: This was a biggie for us. It did not feel like a resort to me. More like a residential neighborhood with palm trees. After a few days I figured out why. The mods isolate you from the cars, traffic and busses. OKW put you in the middle of it. Its like an inside out mod resort. Instead walking around lakes on paths INSIDE the resort, rather there is a golf course therein…not meant for strolling. Strolling is done OUTSIDE. To us, that’s just not what we were used to. The walk to the main area was ridiculously far because for some reason they did not add a bridge over the waterway down our end. Look at building 30 on a map. Should you be staying further than that, be sure you rent a car to get you around. Especially if you plan on going to the main area or even a quiet pool. I know its a drag but the Phantom Internal bus may never be seen.
They say you can rent a room at this resort for the same price of the mod’s. We paid even less so I really can’t complain. Personally I’d like to try Saratoga which offers the ‘inside’ strolling and inside counter service along with 2 themed pools open 24/7. I understand thought the rooms are a little smaller and have a bed and pull out sofa.
Personally, I found no advantage to renting at OKW over a moderate. In fact I wish our friends could do their timeshare at a moderate. I have to say OKW was a lot less crowded than the Mods. (We tended to drive to a mod, get breakfast then take the mod bus to whatever park we were going to, sometimes eating at the mod again upon our return) I guess if less people is a priority for you, renting here will be less than say staying at Polynesian or Contemporary.
We’d like to return at XMAS 2017. (If they bring the Osbourne lights back somewhere!) I think I’d like to try DVC WL if we can get it. I would not be disappointed to return to OKW but would also not be upset staying at a mod if that does not work out….in fact, considering there would likely be less people there in early December, and I might get a free dining package, it may be better for us.
If this helps anyone…great. If you have any questions…just email me.
I have stayed at WDW a dozen times or so staying in downtown Disney (it will always be that to me!) transitioning to CB / PO and CS. Its been a decade since we were able to get to WDW; but we made it back! Things change in 10 years but many things remain the same. We did venture back to CS / CB nd CS to show my daughter where we stayed in the past and to dine.
Why we stayed at moderates in the past…Is this you?
1) Cost – the deluxe pricing was simply not in our budget – though we did stay at WL the year of 9/11 when CB was closed. We were upgraded. I know some argue WL started as a moderate and is not really a deluxe…whatever…WL was beautiful and offered boat transportation to MK but not so overwhelming that we’d spend extra to return to a 'deluxe'.
2) Food – particularly food courts. We all have varied diets, eat different things at different times, like to grab and go at times and sit down at other times or some of us dine in while others eat by the pool. at the same time. The courts always served us well. The deluxes offer some grab and go items but not the extent of the food courts. They do offer sit down dining but we had neither the time nor money to dine there every day. In this respect the moderates severed us well. Note: the moderate's food courts are not as great as we remember them-won’t get into that, suffice to say we still used them on our recent trip.
3) Theming – One could argue the moderate's theming and foliage is just as nice as the deluxe's. Further we love ‘walk around the resort’ experience the moderates offer. We feel like we are in a world away from everything else and love it. No cars, no busses just the scenery and quiet casual strolls.
4) Pools – the themed pools at the moderates seem as good as they deluxes – they do seem to be more crowded. Fortunately, they have numerous quiet pools generally within a short walk from wherever your room is.
5) Proximity – by this I mean from my room to food, pools and busses. Yes some rooms, at CB in particular, can be quite a walk but we NEVER had difficulty getting a room request near where we wanted be….the main themed pool /food area.
6) Transportation – Some moderates have a boat to DD. All have buss transportation. I never recall any real issues with the busses, but, yes, sometimes one could have a 15 to 20-minute wait. Nevertheless, we always used the busses in lew of our rental car. The deluxes likely win in this category since some offer direct boat/monorail or walking into the parks.
7) Price $150 – $200 a night. Deluxes are a lot more than that.
So why Old Key West?
Well, we know a DVC member who had no interest in returning this year who offered us a week at a point rate you would need to be crazy not to take advantage of. Its been a decade since we’d been to WDW, we perceived the DVC as an u'pgrade'…we thought it a chance to try something new on our budget in a higher category than we were accustomed too.
To be honest, we watched all the video of their available DVC resorts and OKW was our second to last choice followed by Saratoga. Why? Well, we liked the idea of walking into EPCOT or HS. Sadly Beach/Yacht club and Boardwalk was not available, even 6 months in advance. In fact only OKW and SS was. OKW sort of looked like CB and heck, it had the biggest rooms! I never understood why Disney put a bed and pull out couch in all their other DVC studios…since there would be three of us I figured a bed would be more comfortable for our daughter. We booked OKW.
The room was great. Oddly shaped (watch a video), probably the space could have been better used but the 3 of us never felt crowded. The bathroom was large. We had a larger fridge than I recall the mod’s having plus microwave and cabinet. We had our own patio…small but enough for 2. We had central air. We had a parking spot directing in front of our room
The downside to the room was that there was no ‘get ready’ area outside the bathroom. The mod’s offer a sink and mirror outside the bath. The ladies like this since one could be showering and the other doing their hair. The OKW configuration consisting of everything in the bathroom slowed us down. Honestly, I think I’d trade the microwave, cabinet and bar sink for a full sink and mirror. Also, we found the dresser of drawers a bit small for 3 likely not enough if you have 4.
Resort pools. I found the resort main pool hum drum. I think the mod’s have a better themed main pools. Of course the mod’s are way more crowded…not sure why because I think OKW surely has a lot of people in its sprawling area. The quiet pools are very nice and were not too crowded either.
Food: This was the killer for us. No food court…we knew that going in. What we did not know is that there would be NO where to grab something to eat and sit INSIDE in cool air to eat it EXCEPT the sit down restaurant…which was quite expensive and not conducive to varied grab and go items. Yes the quiet pools had some grab and go food choices and there is one by the main pool but no where near the selection offered by the food courts the moderates have. . Sadly the quiet pool grab and go's had limited hours, 11 -5. The main area was open till only 10pm. The refillable mug refill station at the main area was not up to Disney standards. It was supposed to be open all night however many times by 9pm ice was gone, beverages sold out not to mention the very small area was always sticky mess surrounded by flies. I think the food and beverage area upset us the most. (Note you can get your refillable mug refreshed at the quiet pools but they take your cup and do it for you…. when they are opened)
Proximity: this was unfortunate. We put our request to be somewhere near the main pool / food area in 6 months ahead of time. We did use online check in and again made our requests known. Check in is at 4pm. We noted we would arrive at 1pm. I got a text at 1pm saying to go to the main desk. Uh Oh. Fortunately, there was no line but no reason offered why we could not have been texted our room number so I am unsure why I had to go stop there. Nevertheless the area we were stationed was not where near the main area and even a trek to the nearest quiet pool. I asked to be moved and was told nothing was available. I should have said I’d wait till 4pm if necessary. Fortunately, we had rented a car…and they had an internal bus…
Transportation: Well, I was none to impressed with transportation. To be blunt the design of OKY does not lend itself to efficient transportation. It’s a large ‘resort’ that seems to jut out in many directions none of which allow the buss to circle around but rather all appear to be dead ends which force the busses to continually circle around at the end of each. By the way, we saw the internal bus only 3 times in seven days. I meant to ask if it perhaps makes rounds at other resorts. The is a nice boat to Downtown Disney (Ok, Disney Springs). Only ONE was running though. We enjoyed the ride but the bus would have been quicker.
Resort Feel: This was a biggie for us. It did not feel like a resort to me. More like a residential neighborhood with palm trees. After a few days I figured out why. The mods isolate you from the cars, traffic and busses. OKW put you in the middle of it. Its like an inside out mod resort. Instead walking around lakes on paths INSIDE the resort, rather there is a golf course therein…not meant for strolling. Strolling is done OUTSIDE. To us, that’s just not what we were used to. The walk to the main area was ridiculously far because for some reason they did not add a bridge over the waterway down our end. Look at building 30 on a map. Should you be staying further than that, be sure you rent a car to get you around. Especially if you plan on going to the main area or even a quiet pool. I know its a drag but the Phantom Internal bus may never be seen.
They say you can rent a room at this resort for the same price of the mod’s. We paid even less so I really can’t complain. Personally I’d like to try Saratoga which offers the ‘inside’ strolling and inside counter service along with 2 themed pools open 24/7. I understand thought the rooms are a little smaller and have a bed and pull out sofa.
Personally, I found no advantage to renting at OKW over a moderate. In fact I wish our friends could do their timeshare at a moderate. I have to say OKW was a lot less crowded than the Mods. (We tended to drive to a mod, get breakfast then take the mod bus to whatever park we were going to, sometimes eating at the mod again upon our return) I guess if less people is a priority for you, renting here will be less than say staying at Polynesian or Contemporary.
We’d like to return at XMAS 2017. (If they bring the Osbourne lights back somewhere!) I think I’d like to try DVC WL if we can get it. I would not be disappointed to return to OKW but would also not be upset staying at a mod if that does not work out….in fact, considering there would likely be less people there in early December, and I might get a free dining package, it may be better for us.
If this helps anyone…great. If you have any questions…just email me.
