Great Place to Visit! NOT A DUMP!

OLCC is a great place to visit and not a dump! They continually try and make improvements on the facilities. There are many happy vacationers who come to OLCC and don't go away disappointed. My children continue to enjoy everything they have to offer. We now have a second generation who now splashes around in the pools.

This is not to down play anyone elses bad experience but I feel those are far and few in between.

The only thing that wipes the smile off my face is the sales force. I will no longer go on a sales pitch or an update since it has angered me the last two time I was there.

So I have learned to have a great vacation at OLCC means to stay away from the sales people.

If I were ever to buy another unit it would be by re-sale alone.

Maybe the owners should start their own exchange forum. No big fees and the time of year you want is secure.

Great points. We agree about the sales, although we own there. There is no such thing as a "free lunch" or breakfast. It costs precious vacation time. Otherwise, we love the place and stay there twice a year for several weeks with our grandchildren, children and friends-new and old. As we are in the hospitality business in another state, I can assure you we are critical vacationers and especially as restaurantuers, we are discerning diners. The River Island Grill is one of the best places in which we've ever dined.

susanw275 wrote:

Great points. We agree about the sales, although we own there. There is no such thing as a "free lunch" or breakfast. It costs precious vacation time. Otherwise, we love the place and stay there twice a year for several weeks with our grandchildren, children and friends-new and old. As we are in the hospitality business in another state, I can assure you we are critical vacationers and especially as restaurantuers, we are discerning diners. The River Island Grill is one of the best places in which we've ever dined.

Thanks for the update. It is nice to know that the RI Grille is a good place to eat. I have gone by it a few times now but have not dined there. I did go into Starbucks and was happy to get my Vanilla Chai Latte there. The sandwiches looked really good in the cooler but I didn't indulge this time. We will be back next April and will give it a try.

Has anyone rented the cabanas by RI? Is it worth the money and what all do you get for the day?

gingers20 wrote:

Has anyone rented the cabanas by RI? Is it worth the money and what all do you get for the day?

I have toured them and at least he models we looked at were beautifull, but the rooms were are a bit smaller than the earlier floor plans in the East, North , and Tennis Villas of the West. and much smaller than the original plans of the west. (except for the 3 br which is now a lockout with the new plan). Personally, However, I am not that much more enamoured with them over the other sections. River Island has more of a concrete and pavement ambiance thant the other areas. I like the open green space in West better. Sure new is always nicer, but I have been to orange lake 8-10 times in the last 6-7 years and have never had a bad experience in the any sections. In fact on my last visit I had just spent a week at one of the Marriot resorts and the unit at Orange Lake (west village) was in much better shape than the one we left at Marriot. And that was before the rennovations underway. We are pretty picky and limit our trades to Gold Crown and 5 Star Marriots, Fairfields & Sheratons. The only exception is Orange Lake which holds it's own with all of them in any section!

Rick M

gingers20 wrote:

Has anyone rented the cabanas by RI? Is it worth the money and what all do you get for the day?

We rented a cabana for 3 days in April. I was in a cast and didn't want to be in the sun the whole time. My husband and children burn easily and it was a great escape in the heat of the day. They come with 2 river floats, a TV, ceiling fan, refrigerator, telephone, table and 4 chairs. They also leave a nice basket with fruit and cookies. They are not cheap ($119) but worth it to be able to extend the day at the pool

A nice enough place to visit, certainly. And by no means a dump - but it doesn't live up to it's 4.5 star rating. The location is great for a family holiday, the facilities are nice, and there's a wide variety of things to do onsite, but the West Village unit we just stayed in was simply "okay". Very spacious, but really just 3 star in terms of the quality and comfort of the furnishings, mattresses, and bedclothes - and it had been renovated.