Reviews of Saratoga Springs Resort (Disney Vacation Club)
Reviewed by maddox4 Review Date: 11/15/2017
Rating: (0) Recommended
My husband (56) and I (54) stayed here in a studio the end of Sept. We received a text on our way in the car around 4pm that our room was ready so we didn’t have to go check in at all….seamless entry into our room with Magic Bands from our last Disney trip in March17. DH is a stroke survivor and while we don’t need wheelchair accommodations, we had requested a ground floor room close to the main pool and gym and received just that. It also had a wheelchair type shower and sink and while very thoughtful (increased the size of the bathroom exponentially) , it shrunk up the bedroom and left no counter space in the bathroom. I ended up setting the ironing board in the bathroom to hold our toiletries, etc. The room was spotless, furnishings starting to show a little wear but nothing bad. This was our literal “Disney on a dime†trip! We had booked the accommodations thru David’s DVC rentals for September (value season), chose to not go to a single park, ate breakfast in our room daily and we had one of the best trips we have ever taken to Disney. This was the perfect resort to accomplish that challenge for us. Quiet, beautiful scenery within just a short walk to Disney Springs and boat connection service to Port Orleans, great gym (which my DH used daily) and walking paths for me. While I love the parks, it was so relaxing to not have to be on a schedule and we used our car to visit other resorts for meals, shopping, etc. Many have commented the resort is too boring but we have stayed here at least 4 times and wouldn’t hesitate to come back.
Pros:
quietCons:
none for usReviewed by joshwatkins23 Review Date: 08/18/2015
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
If you are looking for a deluxe resort that feels like a moderate resort, than Saratoga Springs is the place for you! We just returned from a stay at Saratoga Springs Aug 8-15. We stayed in a 1-bedroom room via DVC. Our last trip was in 2013 and we stayed at Old Key West. This time we tried Saratoga Springs and boy were we disappointed. I can honestly say that it feels no different than staying at Port Orleans Riverside or any other moderate resorts. The room was very clean and we were pleasantly surprised. We had a great view from our room as well. It was a perfect size for a family of 4 at our home away from home, but that is pretty much all the pros. I read reviews of people complaining about the bussing and just ignored them thinking it was just bad luck. Well, I have to say, the bussing is just awful. We stayed in the Grandstand which is the 1st pick up and drop off. Very convenient when/if a bus comes. We learned very quickly that we have to plan 2 hours of travel time to get to a dining reservation or to a park by a specific time. I've had 12 visits to WDW in my lifetime, 9 as an adult, and never have I experienced such poor transportation issues at a resort (I've stayed at all of the levels from value to deluxe). The entire resort feels like a moderate resort. There is nothing special about it, outside of the spa experience that you can purchase at any time (you don't have to stay at the resort). The bell services and housekeeping crew were wonderful. We did on-line check-in which turned out to be a waste of time as we had a NUMBER of issues that included 3 trips to the front desk in the first 2 hours that I arrived. I love WDW, and can't wait to go back - but I will never stay at Saratoga Springs again, and cannot recommend it to anyone. Despite the awful accommodations, my family still had a magical time....and look forward to our next visit....hopefully real soon.
Pros:
Room cleanlinessCons:
Feels like a moderate resort, Awful bussingReviewed by Shirleykung Review Date: 03/22/2016
Rating: (2) Not Recommended
Rude staff, unable to perform the basic duties of their jobs. Made my 4&6 year old children wait for at least an hour in the cold night air bc staff was disgruntled and oppositional toward performing their basic job duties. Staff seemed to be intentionally confusing regarding the check in procedures and then seemed to find delight in our confusion, as they were seen snickering and continued to be unhelpful. Also, by the time we finally got to our room it was LATE, after midnight, so their one restaurant wss closed. I was told there were vending machines on thr first floor by thr elevators which turned out to only be a $3/soda machine. My children were hungry and the significant waste and disrespect of our time left us all with empty stomachs & thoroughly upset that this was our "disney" experience.
Pros:
Nothing uniqueCons:
Rude & downright disrespectful staffReviewed by Kpow12 Review Date: 06/29/2022
Rating: (4) Not Recommended
This resort doesn’t feel like it should be a deluxe resort. The only good thing I have to say is that the newly refurbed room looked nice. We booked a preferred room but we still had a half mile walk to the main building. The busses can get very crowded since there are 5 internal bus stops. The food at the quick service locations is very mediocre. We got Mickey waffles for breakfast one day and they were still completely doughy inside. We have stayed at a lot of the different Disney resorts on property and I can confidently say we will not be staying at this one again.
Pros:
Nice refurbed roomsCons:
Very very spread out. Bad food with not a lot of options.Reviewed by thenardier1500 Review Date: 06/14/2014
Rating: (4) Recommended
We decided relatively last minute to take a 4 day, Memorial Day weekend trip. By 'relatively last minute', I mean that we booked the middle of February. When I went online to look, Saratoga Springs was the only DVC resort with any availability. So we took what we could get.
I stayed here before, back in 2010, and while I remember that it is a huge, sprawling resort, it really impacted us this time. We had 2 studios in the Paddock area. The walk from out room to the Carriage House/Artist Pallette was roughly a mile round trip. Not so much with that. Besides that, the bus service, as it is everywhere around WDW, was as inconsistent as ever. I almost prefer to just cab it from resort to resort than screw around waiting for the busses.
The room was nice, and well kept, so no issues there. The Paddock pool was also very nice, and much more convenient to us than the main pool.
All in all, while it is a nice resort, it's definitely down on the bottom of the list for me when it comes to DVC resorts.
Pros:
Price/cost of pointsCons:
Size, locationReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 02/08/2022
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
Cookie cutter decor makes this 2 bedroom villa feel highly sterile and impersonal. The walls are paper thin and we can hear our upstairs neighbors every footstep. I much prefer Old Key Wests’s spacious villas and relative quiet. Saratoga Springs isn’t terrible, but for a DVC I expected more. There are better choices.
Pros:
The rooms are newer and look recently refurbished.Cons:
Over under washer dryer(old key west has full size and a separate laundry room), poor sound dampening between rooms(use a sound machine app on your phone or you won’t sleep), weirdly cramped floor plan.Reviewed by JessicaBonnell Review Date: 02/13/2018
Rating: (5) Recommended
This was out first stay at Saratoga Springs. We stayed in a studio, in The Springs area. The location in relation to the bus stop/main pool/Carriage House was great! It was a 20 second walk from our building to the buses!
The room was a huge bummer. We only stayed in one room, so maybe we just got a dud. It was very outdated, there is still an entertainment center with a square cut out, with a rectangular television. the drawer knobs were broken...hanging off. But, the worst part was the bathroom. It was much more spacious than most. But, there was carpet in the sink area. Gross. There was mold on both ends of the fabric shower curtain, the bathroom floor was dirty, and the bathroom door was sticky to the touch, I wiped it down with clorox wipes, more than once. It was NOT up to the standard I have come to expect from WDW.
We did rent a surrey bike one day, and went all around the resort. It was so much fun!
If the room was updated, the resort would have been more more enjoyable.
Pros:
lovely grounds, beautiful exteriors, nice pools, friendly staffCons:
outdated decor, grimy room, very little selection QS and gift shop, multiple bus stopstReviewed by Andybren01 Review Date: 01/06/2013
Rating: (5) Recommended
We stayed here on 11-29-12, our first villa experience. While over all it was ok, I don't know how much I would want to stay here again. Our sliding doors in our villa didn't work, the sofa was hard, the resort itself is huge. Not bad, very friendly castmembers, but just missing that extra touch.
Pros:
Clean room, friendly staffCons:
huge resortReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 12/28/2019
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
It seems the quality of DVC resorts has taken a downturn. After OKW, the size of DVC resort rooms has continued to decrease. The \"living room\" area is very small and It is difficult to imagine a family of six eating at the small table provided in the \"dining area\". My home resort is OKW which has, admittedly, the largest rooms of all DVC properties. Coincidentally, it is the first DVC resort. One an only assume, imaagineers realized smaller units translates into more units; hence the reduction in size.
Putting the size of the unit aside, housekeeping has also declined over the 24 years I have been a DVC member. In early ears, units were impeccably clean on check-in and all amenities worked. On my most recent trip, the faucet in the kitchen sink was leaking an had to be repaired by maintenance, very quick response, the shower head in the master bath was immobile and the sliding door to the balcony had to be repaired as well. On occupying the room, it was rather obvious housekeeping had done only a cursory clean of the unit, as dust was readily observed on the tops of furniture, small bits of trash were on the floors and bathrooms were in need of attention. Again, all things which would not have occurred in previous years.
Finally, bus service to Saratoga Springs has not improved since my first stay in 2007. Buses are still overloaded by the time they reach appropriate stops and some drivers are not exactly customer service oriented; they do not announce stops or even allow the programed announcer do so
Pros:
Convenient to Disney Springs, if a big part of your vacation plans Convenient to offsite grocery stores and pharmacies, if neededCons:
Distance from all park areas, long \"tours\" of resort to get to bus stops. I would strongly advise using either Uber or Lyft service, if possible, for returns to the resort. Use regular Lyft X service as opposed to Minnie Van; good service for less than half the cost. Overall, a very disappointing stay for a DVC member of almost 25 years. I will not stay at this resort again.Reviewed by Stitch1623 Review Date: 04/18/2019
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
Resort itself is very pretty with views of the golf course. The treehouses are awesome. Always have had clean rooms but this resort we have always had bus issues where we wait much longer than the twenty minutes and the Buses are always full. We always try to not stay here when booking rooms. Turf club is also my least favorite restaurant. I have gotten food poisoning there and had issues with the wait staff and will never eat there again. Only place on Disney property I can say that about.
