Saratoga Springs vs Old Key West - Advice & Opinions Wanted!

[wonderrx]

Hello all, thanks in advance for your responses.

We are planning a relatively last minute trip arriving at Disney World July 4th through July 12th.

Party of 6.

2 Grandparents who get around pretty well, but are 73 and 83. A 11 year old and a 9 year old and 2 parents.

We took a tour of Saratoga Springs on an earlier trip and remembered the 2 bedroom units with kitchen, we are planning on going with that type of unit.

I know Old Key West has a similar set up to Saratoga but differs in some ways.

Taking the facts above into consideration where would you stay?

What are your pros and cons for each resort?

Any pro tips for these resorts/getting a good room?

Thanks again!
Tony

 

[Crafty]

We love OKW and dislike SSR. The rooms at OKW are bigger and we like the theming of tropical music and ambiance. Both resorts can be tough to negotiate and may require long walks.

With grandparents, it is important to know that SSR has elevators and OKW doesn't. With OKW, you could try to get first floor near the Hospitality House. At SSR, I am not sure what you should request. We only stayed there once.

Our favorite rooms are savannah view at AKV. Both kids and grandparents should like the animals and African theming. I recommend looking into Animal Kingdom Villas.

 

[wedenterprises]

Saratoga might be the best middle ground. Elevators for the grandparents, closer and fun pools for the kids.. both resorts require some walking though.

 

[Crafty]

I forgot to mention that if you reserve at Kidani building at AKV that you will get three bathrooms instead of two. That could make a big difference in that the parents, grandparents, and kids, could each have their own bathroom. We live for bathrooms when we are all trying to get out the door in the morning.

 

[bcalltimandanna]

Saratoga Springs, in my opinion, is the ugliest of all WDW resorts. I just can't get over the fact that it looks like pretty much any apartment complex you find in Orlando. We had a DVC appointment there and decided against DVC simply because we never wanted to end up at SSR.

 

[Crafty]

Not only lacking in theming on the outside, the SSR room we stayed in had broken furniture and appliances. We kept begging them for repairs, but no one came to even try to fix things. We won't stay there again, but some other people love the place.

 

[EvilQueen-T]

I haven't stayed in a regular room at SSR but we did a long weekend at the treehouses. They had the 3 separate bedrooms plus the full kitchen, living room which also included a double and single pull out sleeper, a dining room table, deck with grill, and 2 bathrooms. You'd have to walk up the steps but if you have a car you can park right at the treehouse.

 

[EvilQueen-T]

Not only lacking in theming on the outside, the SSR room we stayed in had broken furniture and appliances. We kept begging them for repairs, but no one came to even try to fix things. We won't stay there again, but some other people love the place.

What's with them lately? We just had that problem in Oct at AKL (safari view and not in the dvc's). TV which took until day 3 to replace and part of one of the beds had such a severe slant it couldn't be slept in.

 

[brifraz]

We have done both and greatly prefer Old Key West. Much quieter and more relaxed atmosphere. While SSR has better pools and is easier to get around, the main reason you are there are the parks and we found the busses from OKW to be a little more timely.

Also, OKW are larger rooms and have ALL recently been renovated - most with new beds and furniture.

 

[EOD K9]

Saratoga Springs, in my opinion, is the ugliest of all WDW resorts. I just can't get over the fact that it looks like pretty much any apartment complex you find in Orlando. We had a DVC appointment there and decided against DVC simply because we never wanted to end up at SSR.

Just FYI, there are other DVC resorts out there. That is just where the preview center is to give you an idea of the program.

 

[wonderrx]

Awesome thanks for the replies! We are not big restaurant eaters, we won't use the pools that much either, we are there for the parks, having a nice resort is a plus and relaxing.

Can you give us some thoughts on the food options at both OKW and SSR? We are typically fast food/burgers/pizza/sandwich type people at Disney. Is one resort better one way the other other?

Last year we were pretty happy with the food options at the main building of Port Orleans Riverside

 

[Rob562]

Can you give us some thoughts on the food options at both OKW and SSR? We are typically fast food/burgers/pizza/sandwich type people at Disney. Is one resort better one way the other other?

Last year we were pretty happy with the food options at the main building of Port Orleans Riverside

I've eaten at the counter service place at SSR, Artist's Palette, but not at the counter service at OKW, but based on the menus online, SSR comes out above in counter-service comparison. It doesn't have as many options as the food courts at the Value or Moderates, but it's up there.

Old Key West has Goods Food to Go. Its all-day menu is burgers, pizza, nuggets, hot dog, soup and some sandwiches.
http://allears.net/dining/menu/goods-food-to-go/all-day

Artist's Palette at SSR has more varied sandwiches and flatbreads for lunch. At dinner they add a few more things like pork loin and chicken with pasta. (They also typically have a daily special item)

http://allears.net/dining/menu/artists-palette/lunch
http://allears.net/dining/menu/artists-palette/dinner

If you happen to get an Annual Pass and the Tables in Wonderland discount card, Artist's Palette accepts it, Goods Food to Go does not.

-Rob

 

[slappy magoo]

Can you give us some thoughts on the food options at both OKW and SSR? We are typically fast food/burgers/pizza/sandwich type people at Disney. Is one resort better one way the other other?

If counter service options is important to you, I really (and frequently) recommending staying at Saratoga and requesting a stay in the Congress Park section, a request my family has always been able to get. If you stay there, you're roughly a 5 minute walk to Artist's Palette, the food court in the main building. You're also only a 10 minute walk to the second big pool and the snack bar there, not as great a selection but it's nice to have options. And SPEAKING OF OPTIONS (and segues), staying in Congress Park will only put you a 10 minute walk away from Downtown Disney on the Marketplace side and all the options for counter service they have there, most notably Earl of Sandwich and Wolfgang Puck Express.

Helpful hint - Wolfgang Puck Express is open for breakfast, and accepts orders over the phone to be packaged for pickup. If there's one member of your family that rises a little earlier, he or she can "take orders" for breakfast for the rest of the family. Then while everyone else is showering and dressing and layering on the sunscreen, that early riser can start walking to DtD, and call Wolfgang Puck Express on their cell and place an order. By the time they arrive at WPE, the order will probably be done or close to it, and that person can walk back to the room as you're finishing getting ready, you can eat with no wait and head out to the Park of the Day while half of the rest of the guests at Saratoga Springs are waiting on line at the Palette for a regular old scrambled egg platter.

 

[bethymouse]

Never stayed at OKW, but our visit to SSR last year in September was fabulous! We stayed in the Paddock section , and the kids loved the new slide! It had a grill at the pool, and a place for refillable mugs. The bus stop was also just right there. We had no complaints!

 

[shuflemstr]

We love OKW and dislike SSR. The rooms at OKW are bigger and we like the theming of tropical music and ambiance. Both resorts can be tough to negotiate and may require long walks.

With grandparents, it is important to know that SSR has elevators and OKW doesn't. With OKW, you could try to get first floor near the Hospitality House. At SSR, I am not sure what you should request. We only stayed there once.

Our favorite rooms are savannah view at AKV. Both kids and grandparents should like the animals and African theming. I recommend looking into Animal Kingdom Villas.

If you do decide to go to OKW, keep in mind that buildings 62 63 and 64 are the only buildings with elevators

 

[Sparkle81]

We stayed at SSR last December and LOVED it. We stayed in a 1 bed villa and it was immaculate. The grounds are beautiful, if a little extensive.
We stayed in the Grandstand area and it was ideal. Less than 5 minutes to reception & Artist's Pallette (counter service place) and we were steps from the quiet pool. The staff were also very friendly and helpful. The proximity to Downtown Disney is great, too and the boat trip across is lovely

 

[bgraham34]

Personally I am not a fan of the theming of SSR, but the rooms I do like. I also feel that SSR is not as quiet as OKW. I do love the laid back feel of OKW.

Pools at SSR are better IMHO.

 

[wonderrx]

Thank you all for your feedback!

We have booked at SSR with a AAA discount (got it competitive to some of the DVC resale websites). We are going to request to be on the end nearer to Downtown Disney.

If I forget to circle back here and post our experience in this thread someone reply here after July to remind me!

Thanks again!

 

[GeoDonJac34]

We stayed at SSR a few years ago and absolutely loved the proximity to downtown Disney. Several nights we returned from the parks and took the quick stroll downtown. The place isn't the most exciting place, but it was very clean and relaxing. We would definitely return. We stayed in Congress Park, which was very close to the walkway, but I think they closed that one off.

 

[Kcgirlie]

We have stayed at ssr several times and always loved it. If you decide to stay there go with the springs areas, it's close to the feature pool, main bus depot and hospitality house. They have great pools! My kids love them!!! We have stayed at akl, WL, Coronado, and okw. I did not like the okw pool. The rooms are ok but dated. Hope you have fun!!!