Help me pick a DVC resort!

[ErinInCT]

We've stayed at VWL and BWV and want to try something new for a trip in 2014, maybe in Sept. (taking kids out of school)

Details:

Family - mom and dad, 2 dds 13 and 10

Favorite parks - EPCOT and MK. Will not be going to AK and maybe a day or just a half day at HS.

Never been to DTD or Water parks. Might consider going to DTD but doubt we'd hit a water park. They LOVE water and slides and pools but not sure if the water park would be too crazy busy. We hate crowds which is why we go in Sept.

We've always rented a car and probably will again. We always run to the grocery store to eat breakfast and sometimes lunch in our room.

Meals - We are not early risers. We plan to eat breakfast in our room (unless we book a character meal but the kids are kind of old for princesses!). We often come back for lunch and a swim before going back to the park for dinner. We rarely eat at table service b/c I don't like having to make a reservation and running from one side of a park to the other.

Room - we've always gotten a 2 bedroom so kids could go to bed earlier than us, but now we all stay up about the same time so we're looking at a 1 bedroom. Would like a balcony off the bedroom (I can't seem to find floor plans anywhere) as well as the family room. Location is not a big issue - don't mind long hallways or long walks to the bus stop. Would like a hotel with a good pool/slide.

I think our best bet is BCV or BLT for proximity to the 2 parks we plan to spend the most time at. But AKV seems so cool and unusual and I know the kids would LOVE waking up and seeing animals out their window. I just hate how far it is for everything. Same as OKW. I like the size and the fact that it is lesser points, but so far away!!

Please let me know what you'd recommend for us!

Thanks

 

[Brook1099]

My kids are big fans of Animal Kingdom Kidani savannah view( we are staying for our second visit here this Nov)The rooms are fantastic, and to wake up and sit on the balcony is awesome. We have our car as we drive to Disney and find it very easy to get around from the resort to park. Parking is the best at AK because you park underneath your room location. Kidani is the quieter of the two resorts, and does not have a QS location. But that did not really matter to us.

Second choice is BCVilllas. We love the location and walking a short distance to Epcot is a big bonus staying here, we have AP's so we visit quit often when staying here especially do to it being the Food and Wine Festival time. The pool is also fantastic and so is Beaches and Cream, and Cape May Clambake and the Yachstmen. The boat ride to HS is another bonus.

BL just does not appeal to us even being great for location. We have stayed at WL and did enjoy our stay there as well. OKW was a great stay and loved the feel of this resort and that u park right at your door practically. The boat ride to DTD was really nice.

 

[Kidanifan08]

But AKV seems so cool and unusual and I know the kids would LOVE waking up and seeing animals out their window. I just hate how far it is for everything.

AKV is cool and unusual. And it's not that far from AK, Epcot or HS. MK is the farthest, but even that is not a big deal with your own car. Although, because of the TTC, your better off using Disney transportation from AKV to MK, since it drops off at the front door.

What you described sounds like the perfect kind of trip for AKV. The 1BR has a full balcony across the living room and bedroom. Plus, you will have two full bathrooms. At BLT, you will only have a tiny balcony off of the bedroom, but you will have the two full baths. Plus, getting to any of the parks besides MK is not ideal. AKV is serene and relaxing. Plus, it has three of the best restaurants on property. Both of the resort pools are awesome! If you don't mind long hallways, AKV is your place!

Good luck with your decision!

 

[spiceycat]

if your 2 favorite parks are Mk and Epcot - then BLT!!!

some people love it - others hate it.

happen to love it myself.

you can walk to the MK - big plus for me.
ride the monorail to Epcot - now you do have to change monorails at TTC but not a big deal.

you can see the fireworks from your room - if you get north side even number rooms

what view would you be getting - standard, lake or theme park?

the lake view is what BLT has the most of - and is probably the most popular.

the theme park view is a view of the parking lot with MK on top. So the higher floors are necessary here to get a good view of the MK.

you walk over to CR - 5th floor on BLT - 4th floor on CR - for shops and restaurants - plus the monorail of course.

really love blt - it even has a activity hall (community hall is other places) - BCV does not - you must go to bwv for this.

 

[ludari]

If you are looking for something close to your two favorite parks I would suggest BLT, Beach Club or Boardwalk. I really like the pool at Boardwalk and the fireworks from BLT. My favorite park is MK so my home resort is BLT.

 

[DPCummerbund]

Would like a balcony off the bedroom (I can't seem to find floor plans anywhere) as well as the family room... Would like a hotel with a good pool/slide.

If you want to see all the DVC floor plans, check out this link: http://**************.net/2010/01/26/the-disney-resorts-at-walt-disney-world/

That site can be a little hard to navigate, but if you scroll about a third of the way down the page you'll see a header that says "Disney Vacation Club Resorts". From there, you can click on each resort to see a review and floor plans for each resort.

As for the waterslides - BCV has the longest (and in my opinion, the best) waterslide at any resort. If you haven't seen it before, Stormalong Bay is really amazing! However, not all rooms have a balcony, and some balconies are rather small.

As an aside... nobody is recommending VGF? Is that because it's new & nobody has actually stayed at it & could recommend it, or because they just don't think it fits the OP's criteria? It's on the monorail, so easy access to MK and Epcot. Decent pool. It costs more points than other resorts, but if you would be comfortable you would be downgrading to a studio from a 2-bedroom, the new VGF studios have two showers, which is a plus, and it would save you a lot. At least it's something to consider.

 

[Dean]

We've stayed at VWL and BWV and want to try something new for a trip in 2014, maybe in Sept. (taking kids out of school)

Details:

Family - mom and dad, 2 dds 13 and 10

Favorite parks - EPCOT and MK. Will not be going to AK and maybe a day or just a half day at HS.

Never been to DTD or Water parks. Might consider going to DTD but doubt we'd hit a water park. They LOVE water and slides and pools but not sure if the water park would be too crazy busy. We hate crowds which is why we go in Sept.

We've always rented a car and probably will again. We always run to the grocery store to eat breakfast and sometimes lunch in our room.

Meals - We are not early risers. We plan to eat breakfast in our room (unless we book a character meal but the kids are kind of old for princesses!). We often come back for lunch and a swim before going back to the park for dinner. We rarely eat at table service b/c I don't like having to make a reservation and running from one side of a park to the other.

Room - we've always gotten a 2 bedroom so kids could go to bed earlier than us, but now we all stay up about the same time so we're looking at a 1 bedroom. Would like a balcony off the bedroom (I can't seem to find floor plans anywhere) as well as the family room. Location is not a big issue - don't mind long hallways or long walks to the bus stop. Would like a hotel with a good pool/slide.

I think our best bet is BCV or BLT for proximity to the 2 parks we plan to spend the most time at. But AKV seems so cool and unusual and I know the kids would LOVE waking up and seeing animals out their window. I just hate how far it is for everything. Same as OKW. I like the size and the fact that it is lesser points, but so far away!!

Please let me know what you'd recommend for us!

Thanks

I'd say BLT first and AKV second if you decide on a 1 BR partly due to the extra bath, OKW as a third option. SSR if you decide to go with a 2 BR assuming you don't let the kids go to the parks by themselves which I don't think you can do anyway now unless you get them in.

 

[tinkfan]

This is what I love so much about DVC. Each resort has something different to offer. I think it depends on what your main priority is.

BLT would give you easy access to MK and Epcot. Plus the extra bathroom in the one bedroom, but no balcony off living area.

BCV would be close to Epcot and wonderful pool, but no extra bathroom.

AKV is one of my favorites for resort feel , but prefer Jambo which does not give you the extra bathroom in 1 bedroom as Kidani. Bus service seems to run so smoothly here every time I have stayed and doesn't seem to take long at all to get to parks.

OKW has the best sized units, so if you'd like lots of space this is great. Bus does seem to take forever sometimes IMO.

I don't think there is a bad choice!!!

 

[mama03]

Everyone here has good advice. So this is just my two cents. We have stayed at pretty much every Vacation Club. So my choice for you would be BLT. Its so easy to get to your favorite parks, monorail access, Two pools so close together, we really liked most of staff. 5th floor is where the walkway is. We had lakeside view dedicated 2 bedroom lock-off 7444. We walked up one flight to walkway and walked down to pool. Loved it and great lake view. It was at end of hall. so if you want those ask for 7544,7644,7744,7844 or however high it goes. Really liked AK lodge but too far for everything. Just go over one night and do the night time vision goggles.

 

[manning]

Depending how often you want to go to DTD there is a 15 minute boat ride from OKW.