Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort Review

The Saratoga Springs Resort is a Deluxe Villa Resort at Walt Disney World!

Location: Disney Springs Resort area

Description:

Saratoga Springs Resort – Inspired by historic Saratoga Springs—a late-1800s’ New York retreat famous for its spas and horse racing—this charming, Victorian-style Resort hotel is nestled between rolling golf course greens and the shimmering Village Lake. Delight in stately Studios and multi-bedroom Villas, dazzling pools and a spa. You can also explore the fun activities and exciting dining options of Disney Springs, just a boat ride away.

Our Take

The Saratoga Springs Resort is an all DVC resort, the first of its kind built several years ago. The resort is pretty big and features some really amazing grounds. As you walk around you’ll see lots of open areas filled with grass, bridges and small lakes, many of them featuring fountains throughout.

We mention the fact that this resort is all DVC just so you’re aware that you won’t find standard rooms here but only villas including studios, 1,2, and 3 bedrooms villas. Villas include full kitchens whereas studios only have a small kitchenette. the kitchen in the villas come with a full fridge, stove, silverware and dishes, a dishwasher and a table to eat at. They are really great for people who want to cook their own meals or for guests who are staying a long time and want to feel at home.

If you don’t know by now DVC resorts can be used by non-DVC members when there is availability. Thus the Saratoga Springs Resort is available for guests to stay when there are open rooms (there’s usually a lot open).

This resort is fairly big so you may end up in a house that’s a good distance away. In fact, depending on which house you end up in a bellman with a golf cart will drive you over there. Before you arrive you may want to book The Springs or The Grandstand houses for your room (preferred rooms). Both are close by the lobby, main pool and all the restaurants.

The Paddock, Carousel and Congress Park houses are furthest away from the lobby and restaurants though each features it’s own pool area and BBQ patio. Congress Park is closest to Disney Springs which you can walk to from Saratoga Springs Resort. It’s a nice perk and only takes about 5-7 minutes to walk there from Congress Park.

The Paddock is our least favorite place to stay. It’s far away from the Carriage house (lobby) and only has one bus stop for the entire house which mean a fair amount of walking if you’re staying in one of the outer building. If you are assigned there request the building closest to the Grandstand house. It has a bus station right outside of it and is fairly close to the Carriage house.

One of our complaints about the resort is the fact that they made the closest buildings around the main pool, restaurants and lobby the preview center for DVC showings and not a house to stay in. Thus as you can see above many of the houses are further away.

Saratoga Springs Resort

The rooms and buildings were recently refurbished in 2021-2022 and are much better than they used to be. They all feature fresh new furniture, decor and appliances. We’re super pleased with how they turned out. It’s improved this resort by 10-fold!

We would always suggest getting a 1 bedroom villa and up depending on your groups size. The 1 bedroom villa features 1 king bedroom separated from the living room and kitchen. The kitchen is complete as mentioned above and the living room has a table, small bar, and a pull-out sofa bed. You could fit 4-5 people in one if someone was okay with the ground or a chair.

Outside of the studios and 1, 2, and 3 bedroom villas Saratoga Springs Resort is also home to the Treehouse Villas. These massive homes are hidden in the trees near the river and feature some really cool stuff for bigger families. First, they are circular which makes for a unique design. They have full kitchens, several bedrooms, a large patio and your own parking space! They also feature upgrades with the cabinetry, furniture, hardware, television etc. They make for a much nicer stay. Our only caution is the bus stop. They do have WDW buses that come to the Treehouse Villas but they only take you to the main bus stop of the Saratoga Springs Resort. Then you have to get onto another bus for your theme park. It’s basically an extra step and can add an additional 10 minutes onto your travel time.

This takes us into the busing situation for the resort. It’s big so there are several stops to make throughout. The last stop is the bus station in front of the Carriage house (lobby). All of the houses have their own bus stops but some of them are far away from some of the building. Take a look at this map before booking to decide where you want to stay. Choose a house and building close to a bus stop and/or the Carriage house.

The restaurants here are nice but nothing special to write home about. Because of how close Disney Springs is we would highly recommend walking there and eating instead of at the resort. There are so many better options here.

We only have good things to say about the pool situation here. All the houses have their own pools which means there are plenty to choose from and never a far walk. The Carriage house has the “main pool” and does have a few features that some of the other pools don’t such as a kids splash pad area and waterfall. Other than that we think you’ll enjoy any of them.