What's Good/Bad at Saratoga?

[Gator]

I've got a friend who has some points he'd like to rent to me. I've done this before and stayed at AKL-K and it was great. His home is Saratoga, though. I saw where they had a spa and thought my wife might like that while I take the kids to the parks one day. What else can you tell me about this place? How's the bus service, etc?

[laprana]

We stayed at SSR a couple years ago and really enjoyed it. It's not my favorite DVC resort, but it's still very nice. Here are my pros and cons:

PROS:
*Within walking distance to DTD, especially if you stay in the Congress Park or Paddock sections. Short walk, only about 5-10 minutes.
*The rooms are nice and I could be wrong, but I believe I read something not too long ago about SSR getting a room refurb soon.
*Great QS and TS restaurants
*Feature pool is very nice (and they have just added a second feature pool in the Paddock area)
*Relaxed, laid back atmosphere - a nice break from the hectic parks

CONS:
*It didn't have much of a "Disney" feel or theme to it and it feels more like just a generic condo development.
*It's huge! There are a ton of buildings that are spread out all over the place! If you get too far out, it would be a long walk to the main building, shop, restaurants, and main pool.

We didn't have any problems with the bus service, but we only used it a couple of times. I think a lot of it depends on where your room is and whether you're the first stop or the last. We saw lots of very crowded buses filled to the max leaving and entering the resort!

Overall, I think SSR is a good choice. But, one thing to remember is that if you rent your friend's points and book SSR, you can always try to change the reservation (or have your friend change it) at the 7-month mark to a different DVC resort if you want to stay somewhere else. Good luck with your choice! :mickey: