diznyfanatic
Officially a Moosehead
- Joined
- Sep 16, 2005
We just returned from a 7 night DVC stay that included four DVC resorts, with only one move being originally scheduled that way. A last minute waitlist for BCV came through for one night so we decided to live on the wild side to try it out and grabbed it. Finally, we also decided to use up some Holding Points and added two extra nights and requested to stay at SSR.
We have now experienced all of the DVC resorts except HHI & AKV. We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to be able to look forward to many more DVC vacations through the years.
Day ONE After nearly a 22 hour drive that should normally take 15 hours from the Midwest, having fought unbelievable Spring Break traffic congestion nearly every step of the way, we arrive at SSR at approximately 6:30 PM to check in. Much to our relief, the check in line only required a short wait and we were greeted by a very friendly and helpful CM. Our requested Congress Park studio was ready and waiting for us and we made the short drive to our villa.
We were immediately taken with how lovely this resort has blossomed and how gracefully it is maturing. It really felt like an oasis, especially after our grueling drive.
We were pleased with our first floor studio and everything looked clean and fresh and was in great working order. We were also able to walk out the door on our first floor patio, turn left and sit on the benches on the walkway with an amazing water view and and see the twinkling lights from DTD and listen to the music coming from DTD.
We had initially planned on picking up some essentials for our two day stay after our arrival, but decided we were just too tired and decided to walk the grounds and grab a quick bite at Artist Palette before calling it a day. After a leisurely 5-6 minute stroll to AP, we were quickly through the line and had a very enjoyable meal (the Veggie Flat Bread is great!). The CMs there were extremely friendly and helpful.
We then continued our walk, toured the new AKV model (which is gorgeous), sat by the pool for awhile, and returned to our villa at about 10:00 PM. The Main Pool has a really cool movie size screen set up there which we thought was a very unique offering
The only negative thing at all that we experienced at SSR was a Mousekeeping issue but even that was ultimately taken care of and handled with the service we have come to expect from Disney. Upon returning to our villa, we discovered that we were missing a sheet for the pull out sofa. As I decided to walk back to AP for some breakfast things anyway, I stopped at the Front Desk and the CM was happy to report it to Mousekeeping and advised one would be delivered shortly.
I then walked over to AP, purchased my items, walked back to our villa, and waited for another 15-20 minutes more. As we were extremely tired, we were anxious to go to bed, I called Mousekeeping to inquire about the sheet. I explained that the Front Desk had previously called on our behalf about a half an hour earlier, and I politely inquired as to when the sheet might arrive so that we could retire.
The woman who answered the call was extremely snarky and identified herself as the one that took the original call from the Front Desk. She then became argumentative about how long it had been since the original call (I have no idea why as I only mentioned the original call in passing in the first place to let them know that this was a second request and not a new issue so that we didnt have another delivery after we had gone to bed). I honestly was not upset or rude at all, just really wanted to go to bed! She then replied that It was going to be a while as there are many others ahead of you. She then ended with What IS it that you want? Remaining calm, I replied simply that Id like to go to bed and requested to speak with her supervisor.
She immediately transferred me and the supervisor that I spoke with was very professional and apologetic and said Im really sorry and you shouldnt have to speak with me just to get a simple need fulfilled. I could then hear what sounded like her making a very firm dispatch about the sheet. The sheet was delivered within 5 minutes.
The next morning we made the enjoyable and very convenient walk from our room in Congress Park to DTD. This resort offers a perfect respite away from the crowds, and is a nature lovers paradise just begging, and is perfectly designed, to be explored on foot. The new Grandstand section is also impressive and quite convenient to all the amenities. We felt the only section that we might be disappointed with would be the Carousel section, since it is further removed, but each resort that weve stayed also has areas that we prefer over others.
We will happily request to stay at SSR again.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt Use
Food A
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping D
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A-
Day TWO - I mention this day only because it was our first day at the parks. Oh-My-Gosh! Ive never seen crowds like this during Spring Break and it was bad all week. I cant tell you how many times we overheard others talking about how bad the crowd levels were. Between the traffic and crowd levels, we decided if it is at all possible in the future, we will avoid WDW during Spring Break and possibly stay the week at Vero Beach or Hilton Head instead.
Day THREE We said goodbye to SSR and drove over to VWL. Oh my, it was good to be back home! Since it was early, we let Bell Services handle our luggage, but we decided to just park the car ourselves and pre-check in, and head over to Fort Wilderness if our villa wasnt ready.
After waiting in a fairly short check in line, we were greeted with a hearty Welcome Home but told our 2 Bedroom villa wasnt ready. So, after a few minutes of relaxing in the wonderful rocking chairs on the main villa porch, we took the boat to Fort Wilderness and my DGD had a great afternoon riding the ponies and exploring. We had a good, but otherwise unremarkable lunch at Trails End. By that time our villa was ready so we headed back and with room number in hand, requested our bags be brought to our room.
As we walked into our second floor villa, I could have danced with joy! It was so incredibly spacious, extremely clean and had two balconies overlooking the woods and a sliver of the quiet pool. Heaven! Our bags arrived timely and we really felt like we were in a vacation HOME!
After getting settled, we spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the pool as we had a 5:20 dinner reservation at Boma, one of our favorites and it didnt disappoint us this time either. We had a fabulous dinner! Our all time favorite Butter Nut Squash soup wasnt on the menu, but not to worry, the Carrot Ginger Soup is to die for!
Day FOUR - After returning from brunch (actually a late breakfast) at 1400 Park Fare, we hopped the boat to the MK to battle the crowds again! After another exhausting park day, we grabbed a quick bite at Roaring Forks and we spent a cozy evening watching the Electric Water Pageant on the beach, playing checkers in the Iron Spike Room and then renting a movie (a little Tower of Terror with Steve Guttenberg and Kirsten Dunst anyone?) for our last night. I truly dont think there is anyplace on earth Id would rather relax than at our VWL home. It really is something special to us.
Grounds A+
Transportation Boat Only A+
Food A
Cleanliness A+
Mousekeeping A+
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A+
Day FIVE - We sadly said goodbye to our beloved lodge and made our way for the first time to our BWV Home. We arrived around 10:00 AM and were thrilled to discover our second floor studio was available. While checking in, we met and chatted with D.J. and Jackie, the wonderful management team at BWV. They really took a personal interest in us and it was nice to see them interacting so much with all of the guests.
We loved our studio overlooking the Village Green as well as a portion of the Boardwalk. The room was very clean and tidy but we noticed our sink by the bathroom was very slow to drain. This was also the noisiest room we had as we could hear the carts rumbling by each morning.
We had a 2:30 Lunch reservation at Le Cellier, so we enjoyed the afternoon at Luna Park which we think has the best slide of all the resorts. On the way back to our room, we saw Jackie again and reported the drain problem and she said shed have it looked at immediately.
We enjoyed the best meal of the trip at Le Cellier and our server was top notch and very friendly. The Crab and Salmon Timbale and Petite Filet as an appetizer and Entrée were absolutely out of this world. The Crème Brulee sampler was the perfect ending to a perfect meal.
We then enjoyed the rest of the evening at Epcot. Upon our return to our villa, we found a handwritten note had been slipped under our door from D.J. and Jackie thanking us for our chat and visit and to make sure and let them know if we needed anything. We also found that Maintenance had fixed the sink, but it appeared as though there was some water involved in the fix as there were many towels placed in front of the sink and a new supply of fresh towels had been left.
Day SIX We took advantage of the MK EMH and were able to ride Buzz and BTMRR as well as the Laugh Floor. We were expecting some last minute guests for dinner for a 4:30 ADR at Ohana, so returned to BWV to enjoy a quick swim and to change and meet our guests. We attempted to change our ADR to accommodate the two additional guests with no luck and everything else was booked as well.
The Concierge staff at BWV came through for us and made arrangements directly with Ohana to accommodate us. The meal and service were wonderful, although the food was coming so fast we were hard pressed to keep up! My DGD enjoyed the Coconut Races so much!
After returning from dinner, we enjoyed the walk to MGM and spent the evening there.
By the next morning, our check out day, the room was starting to smell musty from the apparent water that had leaked during the sink fix. We reported this at the front desk upon checking out.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt use - Loved walking to Epcot & MGM
Food B for convenience factor since no counter service options available
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping A
Maintenance - B due to the sink issue
Front Desk / Management A++ Best front line staff we have encountered with very personal service
Pool - A+
Overall A
We really wish BWV had an onsite counter service facility such as Roaring Forks or at least something like the BC Marketplace. We found it a little inconvenient without any similar options at BWV.
Day SEVEN - We checked out of BWV and headed for BCV around 10:00 AM. We couldnt believe it when the very welcoming CM said our third floor studio was available! Our villa was located in the back by the road, however, it was still very quiet. We loved the theming here as well.
We had lunch at Hurricane Hannahs and spent the day at SAB. It was a little more challenging here to watch my DGD however. At both Luna Park and SAB, there were attaching wristbands in order to access the pool.
We had a 7:20 ADR at Cape May and enjoyed the food and the service very much. Attempted EMH at Epcot but got rained out so decided to turn in early for our long drive home the next morning.
We were interrupted at 8:30 AM by a knock on the door from Mousekeeping. When I said we would be departing in about an hour, she kind of sighed and rolled her eyes. A little while later, we received the mysterious phone call with no one on the other end. When we left our room, we told the mouskeeping staff stationed in the hallway, that we were now out of our room so they could get started.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt use but loved being able to walk to Epcot
Food A
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping B
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A
Despite the crowds, we had a fantastic time and enjoyed each resort in their own way. Overall, the few truly negative issues we had were with mousekeeping, and weren't even related to cleanliness issues. Rather they were concerning general attitude and are probably the result of being very overworked. It would be nice to see some improvement in this area.
Now we cant wait to someday try HHI and AKV! In the meantime, for a while, we will be very content to stay in one place for the duration of our stay!
We have now experienced all of the DVC resorts except HHI & AKV. We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to be able to look forward to many more DVC vacations through the years.
Day ONE After nearly a 22 hour drive that should normally take 15 hours from the Midwest, having fought unbelievable Spring Break traffic congestion nearly every step of the way, we arrive at SSR at approximately 6:30 PM to check in. Much to our relief, the check in line only required a short wait and we were greeted by a very friendly and helpful CM. Our requested Congress Park studio was ready and waiting for us and we made the short drive to our villa.
We were immediately taken with how lovely this resort has blossomed and how gracefully it is maturing. It really felt like an oasis, especially after our grueling drive.
We were pleased with our first floor studio and everything looked clean and fresh and was in great working order. We were also able to walk out the door on our first floor patio, turn left and sit on the benches on the walkway with an amazing water view and and see the twinkling lights from DTD and listen to the music coming from DTD.
We had initially planned on picking up some essentials for our two day stay after our arrival, but decided we were just too tired and decided to walk the grounds and grab a quick bite at Artist Palette before calling it a day. After a leisurely 5-6 minute stroll to AP, we were quickly through the line and had a very enjoyable meal (the Veggie Flat Bread is great!). The CMs there were extremely friendly and helpful.
We then continued our walk, toured the new AKV model (which is gorgeous), sat by the pool for awhile, and returned to our villa at about 10:00 PM. The Main Pool has a really cool movie size screen set up there which we thought was a very unique offering
The only negative thing at all that we experienced at SSR was a Mousekeeping issue but even that was ultimately taken care of and handled with the service we have come to expect from Disney. Upon returning to our villa, we discovered that we were missing a sheet for the pull out sofa. As I decided to walk back to AP for some breakfast things anyway, I stopped at the Front Desk and the CM was happy to report it to Mousekeeping and advised one would be delivered shortly.
I then walked over to AP, purchased my items, walked back to our villa, and waited for another 15-20 minutes more. As we were extremely tired, we were anxious to go to bed, I called Mousekeeping to inquire about the sheet. I explained that the Front Desk had previously called on our behalf about a half an hour earlier, and I politely inquired as to when the sheet might arrive so that we could retire.
The woman who answered the call was extremely snarky and identified herself as the one that took the original call from the Front Desk. She then became argumentative about how long it had been since the original call (I have no idea why as I only mentioned the original call in passing in the first place to let them know that this was a second request and not a new issue so that we didnt have another delivery after we had gone to bed). I honestly was not upset or rude at all, just really wanted to go to bed! She then replied that It was going to be a while as there are many others ahead of you. She then ended with What IS it that you want? Remaining calm, I replied simply that Id like to go to bed and requested to speak with her supervisor.
She immediately transferred me and the supervisor that I spoke with was very professional and apologetic and said Im really sorry and you shouldnt have to speak with me just to get a simple need fulfilled. I could then hear what sounded like her making a very firm dispatch about the sheet. The sheet was delivered within 5 minutes.
The next morning we made the enjoyable and very convenient walk from our room in Congress Park to DTD. This resort offers a perfect respite away from the crowds, and is a nature lovers paradise just begging, and is perfectly designed, to be explored on foot. The new Grandstand section is also impressive and quite convenient to all the amenities. We felt the only section that we might be disappointed with would be the Carousel section, since it is further removed, but each resort that weve stayed also has areas that we prefer over others.
We will happily request to stay at SSR again.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt Use
Food A
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping D
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A-
Day TWO - I mention this day only because it was our first day at the parks. Oh-My-Gosh! Ive never seen crowds like this during Spring Break and it was bad all week. I cant tell you how many times we overheard others talking about how bad the crowd levels were. Between the traffic and crowd levels, we decided if it is at all possible in the future, we will avoid WDW during Spring Break and possibly stay the week at Vero Beach or Hilton Head instead.
Day THREE We said goodbye to SSR and drove over to VWL. Oh my, it was good to be back home! Since it was early, we let Bell Services handle our luggage, but we decided to just park the car ourselves and pre-check in, and head over to Fort Wilderness if our villa wasnt ready.
After waiting in a fairly short check in line, we were greeted with a hearty Welcome Home but told our 2 Bedroom villa wasnt ready. So, after a few minutes of relaxing in the wonderful rocking chairs on the main villa porch, we took the boat to Fort Wilderness and my DGD had a great afternoon riding the ponies and exploring. We had a good, but otherwise unremarkable lunch at Trails End. By that time our villa was ready so we headed back and with room number in hand, requested our bags be brought to our room.
As we walked into our second floor villa, I could have danced with joy! It was so incredibly spacious, extremely clean and had two balconies overlooking the woods and a sliver of the quiet pool. Heaven! Our bags arrived timely and we really felt like we were in a vacation HOME!
After getting settled, we spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the pool as we had a 5:20 dinner reservation at Boma, one of our favorites and it didnt disappoint us this time either. We had a fabulous dinner! Our all time favorite Butter Nut Squash soup wasnt on the menu, but not to worry, the Carrot Ginger Soup is to die for!
Day FOUR - After returning from brunch (actually a late breakfast) at 1400 Park Fare, we hopped the boat to the MK to battle the crowds again! After another exhausting park day, we grabbed a quick bite at Roaring Forks and we spent a cozy evening watching the Electric Water Pageant on the beach, playing checkers in the Iron Spike Room and then renting a movie (a little Tower of Terror with Steve Guttenberg and Kirsten Dunst anyone?) for our last night. I truly dont think there is anyplace on earth Id would rather relax than at our VWL home. It really is something special to us.
Grounds A+
Transportation Boat Only A+
Food A
Cleanliness A+
Mousekeeping A+
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A+
Day FIVE - We sadly said goodbye to our beloved lodge and made our way for the first time to our BWV Home. We arrived around 10:00 AM and were thrilled to discover our second floor studio was available. While checking in, we met and chatted with D.J. and Jackie, the wonderful management team at BWV. They really took a personal interest in us and it was nice to see them interacting so much with all of the guests.
We loved our studio overlooking the Village Green as well as a portion of the Boardwalk. The room was very clean and tidy but we noticed our sink by the bathroom was very slow to drain. This was also the noisiest room we had as we could hear the carts rumbling by each morning.
We had a 2:30 Lunch reservation at Le Cellier, so we enjoyed the afternoon at Luna Park which we think has the best slide of all the resorts. On the way back to our room, we saw Jackie again and reported the drain problem and she said shed have it looked at immediately.
We enjoyed the best meal of the trip at Le Cellier and our server was top notch and very friendly. The Crab and Salmon Timbale and Petite Filet as an appetizer and Entrée were absolutely out of this world. The Crème Brulee sampler was the perfect ending to a perfect meal.
We then enjoyed the rest of the evening at Epcot. Upon our return to our villa, we found a handwritten note had been slipped under our door from D.J. and Jackie thanking us for our chat and visit and to make sure and let them know if we needed anything. We also found that Maintenance had fixed the sink, but it appeared as though there was some water involved in the fix as there were many towels placed in front of the sink and a new supply of fresh towels had been left.
Day SIX We took advantage of the MK EMH and were able to ride Buzz and BTMRR as well as the Laugh Floor. We were expecting some last minute guests for dinner for a 4:30 ADR at Ohana, so returned to BWV to enjoy a quick swim and to change and meet our guests. We attempted to change our ADR to accommodate the two additional guests with no luck and everything else was booked as well.
The Concierge staff at BWV came through for us and made arrangements directly with Ohana to accommodate us. The meal and service were wonderful, although the food was coming so fast we were hard pressed to keep up! My DGD enjoyed the Coconut Races so much!
After returning from dinner, we enjoyed the walk to MGM and spent the evening there.
By the next morning, our check out day, the room was starting to smell musty from the apparent water that had leaked during the sink fix. We reported this at the front desk upon checking out.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt use - Loved walking to Epcot & MGM
Food B for convenience factor since no counter service options available
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping A
Maintenance - B due to the sink issue
Front Desk / Management A++ Best front line staff we have encountered with very personal service
Pool - A+
Overall A
We really wish BWV had an onsite counter service facility such as Roaring Forks or at least something like the BC Marketplace. We found it a little inconvenient without any similar options at BWV.
Day SEVEN - We checked out of BWV and headed for BCV around 10:00 AM. We couldnt believe it when the very welcoming CM said our third floor studio was available! Our villa was located in the back by the road, however, it was still very quiet. We loved the theming here as well.
We had lunch at Hurricane Hannahs and spent the day at SAB. It was a little more challenging here to watch my DGD however. At both Luna Park and SAB, there were attaching wristbands in order to access the pool.
We had a 7:20 ADR at Cape May and enjoyed the food and the service very much. Attempted EMH at Epcot but got rained out so decided to turn in early for our long drive home the next morning.
We were interrupted at 8:30 AM by a knock on the door from Mousekeeping. When I said we would be departing in about an hour, she kind of sighed and rolled her eyes. A little while later, we received the mysterious phone call with no one on the other end. When we left our room, we told the mouskeeping staff stationed in the hallway, that we were now out of our room so they could get started.
Grounds A+
Transportation Didnt use but loved being able to walk to Epcot
Food A
Cleanliness A
Mousekeeping B
Front Desk / Management A
Pool - A
Overall A
Despite the crowds, we had a fantastic time and enjoyed each resort in their own way. Overall, the few truly negative issues we had were with mousekeeping, and weren't even related to cleanliness issues. Rather they were concerning general attitude and are probably the result of being very overworked. It would be nice to see some improvement in this area.
Now we cant wait to someday try HHI and AKV! In the meantime, for a while, we will be very content to stay in one place for the duration of our stay!
