Stayed at Saratoga Springs earlier this month for the first time, as there wasnt availability anywhere else in the Deluxe or DVC category. Overall we were very disappointed in this resort, Disney definitely missed big on this one in my humble opinion. In an effort to be fair though, the good and bad as we saw them below:
The good:
1) The grounds and landscaping that do exist are very nice. The place is very clean.
2) Downtown Disney options, close proximity to shopping and dining
3) Like Artists Pallette alot .. nice selection and departure from standard food-court fare.
The bad:
1) What is with all of the roads and vehicles smack dab in the middle of the resort? Even when they designed the moderates, they designed from the outside-in whereby vehicles would stay at the perimeter of the resort, leaving the inside as "transporting" you somewhere else. In most areas of SSR, you are within eyesight or earshot of cars, buses, or ugly concrete skyscrapers of the Downtown Disney area. Even the themed pool area is within 50 ft of a bus stop. This is a total ambience-killer in our opinion.
2) Parking lot views - seems to have a large amount of parking lot and road views from guest villas .. given #1 above I suppose this was unavoidable when designing the resort.
3) Spread out ... we stayed in Congress Park and felt far apart from the rest of the resort... cant imagine how people in the Paddock section feel - they are truly an outpost. I dont mind walking at all, that is if I feel immersed in a special place, but didnt feel that way here.
4) Outside Corridors - other than saving money I cant think of one good reason to do the "motel style" outdoor corridors.. made the place feel cheaper from the inside than it should have or looks from the outside.
All of the above has to do with ambience ... both my wife and I felt Saratoga Springs was severely lacking in ambience. From the pictures on websites it looks deluxe, but having actually staying there didnt feel deluxe at all compared to other Disney Deluxe or DVCs that we have stayed at. We just felt an overall "empty" feeling when staying there .. no way we will return there unless there is nothing else in the Deluxe or DVC category available.
The good:
1) The grounds and landscaping that do exist are very nice. The place is very clean.
2) Downtown Disney options, close proximity to shopping and dining
3) Like Artists Pallette alot .. nice selection and departure from standard food-court fare.
The bad:
1) What is with all of the roads and vehicles smack dab in the middle of the resort? Even when they designed the moderates, they designed from the outside-in whereby vehicles would stay at the perimeter of the resort, leaving the inside as "transporting" you somewhere else. In most areas of SSR, you are within eyesight or earshot of cars, buses, or ugly concrete skyscrapers of the Downtown Disney area. Even the themed pool area is within 50 ft of a bus stop. This is a total ambience-killer in our opinion.
2) Parking lot views - seems to have a large amount of parking lot and road views from guest villas .. given #1 above I suppose this was unavoidable when designing the resort.
3) Spread out ... we stayed in Congress Park and felt far apart from the rest of the resort... cant imagine how people in the Paddock section feel - they are truly an outpost. I dont mind walking at all, that is if I feel immersed in a special place, but didnt feel that way here.
4) Outside Corridors - other than saving money I cant think of one good reason to do the "motel style" outdoor corridors.. made the place feel cheaper from the inside than it should have or looks from the outside.
All of the above has to do with ambience ... both my wife and I felt Saratoga Springs was severely lacking in ambience. From the pictures on websites it looks deluxe, but having actually staying there didnt feel deluxe at all compared to other Disney Deluxe or DVCs that we have stayed at. We just felt an overall "empty" feeling when staying there .. no way we will return there unless there is nothing else in the Deluxe or DVC category available.