Our latest trip to the Orlando area and Walt Disney World Resort in Nov. 2025, we stayed at two locations. One was Universal’s Cabana Bay; the other, Saratoga Springs Resort.
When traveling to the resort areas in Florida, we usually stay at either a borrowed timeshare or a value resort at WDW. We had some points that were made available to us, so we booked Saratoga Springs and ended up getting a One Bedroom Villa. It had been several years since we’ve stayed at Saratoga Springs and this latest stay was great.
About Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa
“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 Lake Buena Vista,” the resort’s website says. “Delight in stately Studios and multi-bedroom Villas, dazzling pools and a spa.”
The property is considered a Deluxe Villa Resort by WDW and is a Disney Vacation Club property. Saratoga Springs opened in 2004 and has a host of amenities: two pools, Lake Buena Vista Golf Course, spa and health club, and seven different dining/eating/drinking locations.
The One Bedroom Villa
The One Bedroom Villa was more than a perfect size for our travel party of three. Being a timeshare unit, the villa had amenities that we have both grown accustomed to and take advantage of.
The biggest draw for the excitement-seeking adrenaline junkie that I am is in-suite laundry. Holy cow, that in-suite laundry will make me go gaga every time! While the laundry units in our villa were smaller apartment-style machines, having the ability to launder clothes is always a big plus for me and my travel companions.
Drooling over laundry capabilities aside, the One Bedroom Villa has a lot to offer. Our suite had a full kitchen, living room, master bedroom, and what I’d describe as a bathroom complex.
The kitchen
This wasn’t just a little kitchenette area. The kitchen in our villa was a full kitchen complete with a dishwasher, full-sized refrigerator, stove, and oven. Don’t forget the ever-so-important coffee maker — there was one of those too.
The living room
The living room was spacious and outfitted with a sofa with lounger-style ottoman. From the sofa, guests can sit and watch one of the two televisions in the villa.
Over the sofa a murphy bed can fold down, revealing a queen-sized bed.
Under the television there’s another fold-down bed, a twin. There’s also a small eating area with a table and seats in the space connecting the kitchen to the living room.
There’s an outside back deck area where you can get some fresh air if you wish.
Master bedroom
The master bedroom is equipped with a king-sized bed, two night stands, a dresser, and a television. The hallway into the master bedroom as well as the master bedroom proper offer access to the bathroom complex.
The bathroom complex
There was no other way to describe the cluster of rooms that made up the bathroom.
If you’re entering the bathroom from the main area or hallway leading into the master bedroom, it takes you to where there’s a shower, sink, and separate room with the hopper — or toilet.
Bashful bowel movers have the ability to separate the living spaces from the toilet area by two to three closed doors. Shy sphincter? No worries, you can separate your sounds from everyone else while you do your thing.
The entrance from the master bedroom will bring guests to where there’s a large tub and sink/vanity area.
Our experience
The first time we stayed at Saratoga Springs was easily over ten years ago. The property is nice and the rooms are well maintained. During our latest stay everything went fairly smooth. The room was clean. There were no hiccups.
The only remotely inconvenient thing was the water was shut off from the washer for some reason, so we had to open the valves to get the washer to run. That took some super sleuthing to figure out, but we persevered. Other than that one minor issue, we’d say our stay was beyond comfortable.
We ended up utilizing all of the beds in the villa — even though there were only three of us and one of us is a couple (one of my roommates likes to play musical beds). And there were no bedding problems.
To the parks
Since this was a theme-park geared vacation, we did not avail ourselves of any of the amenities on the property. Just in-room comforts. Our days were spent at Universal Orlando Resort and Walt Disney World Resort parks.
Transportation
Even though we had our own vehicle, we did use park transportation shuttles a couple of times. While it’s awesome to have your own car at WDW and in the surrounding Orlando area, there’s a simplicity of jumping on the provided transportation.
Generally we’ve stayed away from that option, but in more recent trips we found the shuttles to be a great option specifically for heading to the Magic Kingdom. To get around the ticket and transportation center and monorail nightmares at the Magic Kingdom at rope drop and close, it’s totally worth it to take the shuttle.
Comes recommended
Overall, we can recommend Saratoga Springs. The next time we stay on property, we’re interested in checking out some of the many dining establishments. The Saratoga Springs theming is a nice touch and like many things Disney, transports you to another era.
Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa in Walt Disney World Resort is located at: 1960 Broadway, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
