It's July 1 - Any one at BCV??? Please share your experiences!!!

[KarenB]

As we all know, it is July 1 and BCV has opened!!!! Is anyone there for the opening?? If so, please share any information you can with us!! I can't wait to see it for myself at Christmas!!

Karen

[RweTHEREyet]

also, anyone with a digital camera, please share anything you can. We are hungry for on the spot info, can you tell? :)

Sorry if you guys thought this was a reply from someone there, didn't mean to get your heart racing or anything. :) :) :earseek:

[HeatherPage]

We'll be there end of September so yes please post (I'm sure you all are off having a wonderful time) but if you can squeeze a report in-pleasseee!! :D

[lkenyon]

I am checking in to a one bedroom villa Wednesday, July 3 through Monday, July 8th - I will take gobs of digital pics and put them out for everyone to see! I must remember the most important things to take is a smile and my own T-Fal frying pan w/spatula! ha ha ha ha ha (Actually it is not funny if you have ever had to scrape/scrub scrambled eggs out of those dreaded stainless steel ones they provide - never again)!

[chris1gill]

Man, I agree with you about those stainless steel pans, stuff sticks to them!!!

I'm also interested in how everything is going for those that have checked in today!!!

[Terry S]

What are all the people doing who are staying there today? Enjoying themselves??? How dare they when we want reports????

Okay, just wanted to thank anyone who does take the time to post! ;)

[HookdonWDW]

Hi!

We're checked in, and the Villas are AWESOME! We have a 5th floor 1BR, and the view is great. You can see Spaceship Earth from the room, and over to Canada. We think that we'll be able to see Illuminations, but I'll let you know for sure this evening. DH just downloaded photos, so I'll try to post a link to them in just a minute...

BTW - a couple of us DISers were here for the "non-existent" ribbon cutting ceremony this morning. I'll put up pics of that also.

Lisa

[chris1gill]

Thanks Lisa! How did you get the fifth floor Spaceship Earth view? Did you ask ahead of time or at check in? Which other floors do you think might get that view & how much of the fifth floor would have the view?

How does it feel to be there for OPENING DAY? Must be just great!

[Cris]

how exciting :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[Lars624]

I can't wait to find out about the view for Illuminations. We booked a 2 bdr in Feb and were offered a choice between a pool view and an Epcot view. I picked Epcot & I'm hoping we'll be able to see Illuminations.
Thanks for taking time out at BCV to keep us updated!:Pinkbounc

[HeatherPage]

Wow Lars, I'm surprised they even offered you a choice, we booked a two bedroom for this coming Sept. 22-28 and I specifically asked for an EPCOT view and was told the general spiel of we will try to honor your request but there are so few of those blah, blah, blah. Hope you get it though! (and us too ;))

[Lars624]

Heather-
I hope you get your Epcot view! I'm a new DVC member & Feb will be our first trip on points so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we won't be disappointed. Let me know how it works out for you in Sept.

[HeatherPage]

I'll do it! :D

[KarenB]

oohhhhh...this is so exciting!!!

I wonder if the lucky ones staying there got a early check in ;)


Terry S...I agree...how dare they go out and have all that fun??? Just kidding. I am thankful for the people that have read this post and posted!!!!


Thanks for the replies!!!!
Karen

[Terry S]

Thanks Lisa, congratulations on the view. Can't wait to see the pictures. Let us know how the view for illuminations is? Also, how many of the rooms do you think will have an illuminations view? Thanks again!

[HookdonWDW]

Originally posted by chris1gill
How did you get the fifth floor Spaceship Earth view? Did you ask ahead of time or at check in? Which other floors do you think might get that view & how much of the fifth floor would have the view?

How does it feel to be there for OPENING DAY? Must be just great!


I asked for this view when I made the reservations. When I checked in, I'm pretty sure that the rooms were already assigned, because the CM was really fast. I did hear a few people asking if BCV were available for the night, and they were told "no", so I guess it's pretty full for the opening.

Things seem to be going fairly smoothly, but we did have a problem with the washing machine - the cold water did not work. Maintainance was called twice, and on the second try, they got it fixed (first try fixed the hot water :rolleyes: I guess you have to expect glitches at any opening. The Maint. worker said that they've been kept hopping all day.

I'll try to take some pics from different areas... right now, I would guess that the 4th and 5th floors Northeast view (The right side of the "T" if you're standing on the Epcot walkway). The lower you get, I would guess the worse the view. I'll post my exact room number when I get back, to give you an idea... if I post it now, I'm sure that I'll be visited by 250 of my closest friends by nightfall ;) .

Oh... it feels great to be here for the Grand Opening!

Here's the link to my photos. Hope it works!
BCV Grand Opening Photos (http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/hookdonwdw/lst?.dir=/Travel)

[HeatherPage]

Great pictures! Thanks! Have a great trip :D

[Lars624]

Thank-you...thank-you...thank-you for the great pics of opening day!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's the next best thing to being there!:earsboy: :earsgirl:

[Tinkrbell]

Great Pics Lisa!

Thanks for sharing with us, since we can't be there.

Have Fun!!!!

[Terry S]

Wow! Great pictures, thank you sooooo much for taking the time to do this on your vacation! What specifically did you ask for Epcot view or Epcot Spaceship earth view? Sorry for all the questions!

[Cris]

thanks so much :)

[Minybear]

WOW GREAT PICTURES :):). Thank you for sharing them with all of us.

[jcanary]

Need the room range where we can request for this great view. How are the balconies?

[WolfpackFan]

Great pictures!!! Thanks for posting them. I can't imagine having SE as my balcony view. I'd be in pure heaven, as that is my most favorite ride of all at WDW (or anywhere for that matter).

John

[Mouse Ears]

Thanks a lot for the pictures. I am in the process of purchasing at BCV sight unseen, so pictures like this go a long way toward making me feel good about that decision. It is SO exciting to see the new villas opening and see that you really can get a great view! Can't wait to visit myself. Hope we get such a great view.

Thanks!!!

:earsboy: M.E.

[pixiechick]

Thanks for the great pictures!! Can't wait to see it myself!:)

[chris1gill]

Definitely, THANK YOU for the pictures!! They look great, enjoy your vacation & be sure to post that room number when you get back!!!

[lsutigger]

HookedonWDW - Let me join the others and say thanks for the pics! Hope there are more to come. But now I have a problem - how do I pass the days (103 and counting!!) until it's our turn?

Hope you have a grand time :p :p :p

[KarenB]

Thank you for taking the time out of your visit to share these wonderful pics with us!!!!

Karen

[KaterBell]

Thank you Thank you Thank You for taking the time to post those pics for us, who are DROOLING right now over BCV (well, I know at least I am.) :)

I LOVE IT! :)

Counting down to Oct. 26 - my 1 BR. :)

[rtp-resident]

Thanks for the wonderful pictures and for taking time out of your vacation to share them with us. Have a great time!!

[kem330]

THANK YOU!!!!!! I am drooling here.. we have to wait until 12/29 to see it first hand

[StephenKay]

Thanks for the pictures, Days to do are getting few!!!!!!!

See you all there sooooooooonnnnnn

[mickey7861]

Thanks so much for the pics....I'll be there in just 27 days....can't wait. Enjoy your vacation.

[CathyCanada]

Great pictures! Thanks for the first-hand account!
Cathy

[AnnaS]

Thanks a million for taking the time and posting. Would love to see more of course. I am sure it was exciting.

[rbuzzotta]

Thanks for the pictures........we are all jealous to say the least....

Stevie Kay....have a great trip..........sorry we won't get to meet you and your family again this year..........but we do have 40 years left!!!

[allforpooh]

Thanks for the wonderful pictures!!!!

Have a great trip.....

Denise

[Whizzo25]

Can anyone who is there tell if they plan on having the flag family on the roof at BCV just like they have at WL? I think the view of Epcot and the rest of WDW would be just as breathtaking at BCV as it is from the top of WL. I'm hoping that the railings shown on some of the pictures pre-opening indicate guest access.:Pinkbounc :bounce:

[mikesplash]

Love to see your pictures from your room of Space Earth. What room numbers have this view? We are going the end of Jan 2003 and would like to know what rooms to ask for. Thanks for any help, hope you enjoy your the view from your room. I am very jealous that you will be seeing Illumiations from your room.

[trishy]

We're at BWV and walked over to BCV this morning to see the "hoopla" - nada! Nothing going on there today. People checking in - just like everywhere else. All in all very disappointed about it. Our guide had called us last week and told us about the opening - to be honest, I really thought there would be more activity and excitement. There was NONE. The rooms are the same as BWV - less the view. It was interesting to hear from the cm at BCV that there was originally going to be a view of the Land; however, trees were planted in between to obstruct that view. You can sit on the balcony and watch the water from the drainage ditch on the other side of the first row of trees. Overall, a disappointment. The quiet pool is very, very small. You will need to go to SAB if you have kids. They will find the quiet pool extremely boring. They have a cute playroom for the kids with a t.v. and adorable little chairs. They need to put some games in that room. Anyway, just one person's point of view. Time to watch the fireworks from my BWV balcony.

[3DBallou]

:p Yippee! I searched high and low today all over the place to find some pictures, a press release - something to get us closer to the excitement.
Of course all I had to do was log in here after supper, but the wait was killing me! Thanks so much for the photos, it really does help us to feel like true blue BCV owners! We'll be down for our first trip HOME in Feb. Your pics made us feel like we were there today. :Pinkbounc :p :bounce:

[TDC Nala]

Hoorah! They're open!

I'll be out there on Friday - there'll probably be lots of pictures up by then but I can take more...

I'm not staying there until November but I'm glad to be going to check out the Villas!

[HeatherPage]

Gee Trishy, that's wonderful, but some of us couldn't get BWV when we wanted it so we are hoping that BCV will be as beautiful as the pictures we've seen. I guess I'll just bask in this cyberworld fantasy of the BCV before I can get there and form an opinion myself. But thanks for sharing.

[Maistre Gracey]

Indeed that must be very exciting to be there for the Grand Opening! :cool:
Just out of curiosity, is that a cell tower in view off your balcony?

[HookdonWDW]

I'm glad so many of you are enjoying the pictures :D . I promised to report back on the firework view, and the answer is....

The fireworks were FANTASTIC off the balcony. There was a clear view, and you could faintly hear the music in the background. The view was good enough from where we were to allow us to see the light from some of the torches around the lagoon. I uploaded some pics of the fireworks. Although we were watching from the fifth floor, there were people on the third and fourth who seemed to have a good view, and even people watching from the side courtyard (closest to the street). They stayed for the whole show, so I assume they saw the fireworks.

I don't know when Trishy was looking at the goings-on at BCV, but at 9:05 or so, there was a definate ribbon cutting - I promise that I didn't manufacture the pictures! She is correct that there wasn't a lot of hoopla after that. There were models open on the first floor, and there were many CMs in place to make sure that everyone was Welcomed Home. I lost track of how many people welcomed us!

As for the pool thing - my kids love SAB, and enjoyed their time in it. The quiet pool is IMHO quite adequately sized for a quiet pool. Perhaps it just looked small to Trishy because she passed SAB on her way over ;) . I assure you that most families, complete with kids, would have no trouble fitting in the pool:rolleyes:

Well, I'm off to enjoy the rest of our vacation. I don't feel like reposting the link, but if you go back to my picture site at the beginning of the link, I've added some photos. Hope this helps tide all of you over until you make it home yourselves!

Lisa

[Tigger1]

Oh, I wish I was there.

Thanks for the pics

Tigger

[Maistre Gracey]

Great pics! Thank you for taking the time to post! :cool:

[fredonna]

The pictures of the fireworks as seen from your balcony exceeds all my expectations by eons!! I battled to secure my 1-bdrm. ressies the VERY FIRST MORNING MS began accepting them. I requested top floor facing Epcot's SE. I can only pray I have your fortune!

When you get back, please make sure to specify ideal room numbers to request! Have an outstanding trip and welcome home!!

[JulesMom]

I can't wait to go home next June!!!

Thanks so much for the pics & info!:D

[spiceycat]

Great pictures - thanks for posting - have alots of fun on your vacation!!!

[Love Tigger]

Thanks for posting the pictures. They were wonderful!! I can't wait for our trip to BVC in November.

[MinnieGi]

Wow, the view of the fireworks if very awesome! Thanks so much for taking time out of your vacation to post and load your pictures for all of us to see!!!!

[dvchuck]

Thanks for posting the pictures!

[GCM13]

We're here at BCV now. Checked in opening day. We were disappointed in the grand opening day. We arrived shortly after 11:30 am. We got our room right away - 1st floor overlooking the quiet pool. We immediately checked the store for any BCV merchandise, specifically, opening day pins, t-shirts, or just something that said "Beach Club Villas". Couldn't find anything so we asked several CMs. I was directed to a very small section with DVC merchandise. The CM was surprised that there were not any BCV shirts on the rack. The only items there were 10 yrs of DVC shirts, hats, and mugs. I was told that there are not any pins for BCV and didn't know if they'd be getting any. What???? No BCV pins? It's opening day, a new resort, and Disney usually has a pin for everything! They don't even know if they will be getting any in. I was just told that they get shipments twice a week and don't know what will be in them. We were very excited to be here for the grand opening, but it turned out to be a let down. It looked like any other day, not the grand opening of a new resort!

As for the resort, it is beautiful. Everything is very nice and well done. A few things make you wonder what they were thinking, such as the toilet paper holder so far from the toilet (my daughters can't reach it), the master closet (1 bdr) is very small and can not hold luggage unless you want to leave the door open, master bath counter does not have hardly any room to put items on. Our microwave was not working, so I let them know early this morning, it was fixed when we got back to our room in the afternoon. Quick service! Very nice and friendly CMs everywhere. It does seem like they weren't quite ready yesterday. We had CMs coming to our room to deliver room service menus, the store does not have a whole lot of food selection and it seemed picked over today, plus there isn't a whole lot of information or knowledge of DVC benefits. I'm sure that these minor things will be worked out soon.

We are having a great time. Our kids love Stormalong Bay. Haven't tried the quiet pool yet, but it may be a little too deep for our kids. Too bad because we can walk out our patio to the pool. We did walk around the back of the resort and saw some of the Illuminations fireworks. Could only see the high ones, but that was good enough for the kids!

[kem330]

Just to get a perspective on the quiet pool- how does it compare in size to the BC quiet pool? and the spa? Are they comparable? How's the bus service? THANKS again for all your feedback!!

[GCM13]

I can comment a little on the bus service. We are having a non-park trip, but did use the buses so far for Downtown Disney and Blizzard Beach. It wasn't bad. For DD, Swan, Dolphin, YB & BC share buses. For AK/BB, all of the above plus Boardwalk share buses.

[jlambrig]

Thank god there are poeple there to shake all the bugs out before we get there in Sept ;)

[Shontell_Crawford]

Hi Everyone,

I got back this morning and have been busy since I hit the office....but I wanted to give a quick report:

I was SO disappointed that nobody knew about the ribbon cutting! I called all weekend and nobody would give me any idea. When we arrived at 10am to find out it had already happened I pouted! The CM didn't care.

Anyway, our studio had a spectacular view of the Epcot Sphere and we watched the fireworks with a "flight of red wine" from Martha's Vineyard while relaxing on our balcony last night. It was definitely the highlight of my trip. When I looked over my balcony and saw all the other DVC members doing the same, it was definitely a "warm fuzzy" moment...we were all "home"! (Room 550 for those of you making requests.)

The regular pool was just that...regular. But, it's a great alternative if you aren't a child oriented traveler. I would venture to say it will become the "adult pool" similar to the Disney cruise...because SAB had children everywhere....and we all had fun!

Location, location, location! We walked all around the BW last night and jogged around it twice this morning. It is more convenient than BWV if you are going to Epcot. A CM told me they are already 40% sold out and I'm not surprised.

If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail. I took pics, but they aren't digital...I'll try to have them up for you tomorrow if the phones allow me the time.

All the best,
Shontell

[MiaSRN62]

Thanks ! Really enjoying the report and pics from opening day ! It's the next best thing to being there :bounce:

[KarenB]

Thanks again for all the reports......and especially for taking time out of your vacations to post!

When I made our ressies for Christmas, I asked MS if I should be requesting any type of view. She told me many were requesting the Epcot view, but that they were very, very limited. I opted to request close to the pool instead, and by the pictures posted, I think that will be a great place!!!!Especially since DSs live for the water, even in December! ;) ;)

Thanks again for the great replies!
Karen

[Sneaky3]

When I got there on 7/1 around 12:30 pm the CM at the front asked me where I wanted to be that I could choose anywhere. I chose to over look EPCOT room 463 which had this huge balcony two studio widths (by the way I had a studio). I really liked this hotel better than BWV. Glad I chose to do my add on here......

Michele

[Towncrier]

I have some video of the ribbon cutting ceremony along with a few pictures that we took. The DIS was very well represented at the ribbon cutting. In the interview with Sam, he mentioned a family that had camped out since 6AM in order to be the first ones into the BCV. He was very kind not to mention that the patriarch of this family was a real grouch. All he could do was gripe.

We had a studio on the first floor (143). The pool and hot tub both are handicap accessible. As soon as I catch my breath, I'll post our pictures of the ribbon cutting ceremony.

[chris1gill]

Towncrier, I just have to ask... Were you that first family? Did you meet other DIS'ers at the BCV's?

[Towncrier]

We were not the first family. They did pick a family to cut the ribbon. I did ask the night before when we could checkin (seeing that it was a new resort). We were told that checkin would be at 4PM just like all the DVC resorts. Even for the first day. Apparently the "grouchy" family didn't get the word. That guy was humorless. Not the Disney type.

I was standing back from the crowd of CM's until one of the cleaning staff told us to come on up and join the crowd. We were a well behaved bunch and stayed in the background until the ceremony was over. The family that helped open the resort got a backpack filled with pins and "stuff". After the ceremony, the characters posed for pictures with each family that had "crashed" the ribbon cutting ceremony. I promise to post the pictures as soon as I have a free minute.

As far as picking a room, we checked in at 8AM and left our bags will bell services. We were told to call back after 10AM to get our room assignment. Our only preference was non-smoking, and since we had made our ressies only 7 days earlier, we were glad to have ANY room at BCV. I think that a pool view room would be fantastic and hope that I luck into one when I return in December.

[BriarRosie]

I've been very excited to see the pictures! I'm not staying there until December, in a 1 BR.

I'm a brand new member, and I'm very excited to be using my points for the first time! :p

[Minybear]

Towncrier

I cannot wait to see your photos. We are going in January for our first visit as an owner and I wish it was tomorrow.

Its sad that the first guest at the BCV was not in a good mood :(. I guess with them out in the parking lot that early in the morning means that they didn't get that much sleep so it made them quite grouchy when they found out that check in was at 4pm.

[mistermouse]

Towncrier -

it was probably not difficult to fulfill your request for non-smoking! Since you were the first guest ever in your assigned room! No one could have smoked in the room....

Glad you had a great visit - we can't wait to visit our newest home; we also own at WLV and love to stay at OKW. BCV sounds like a great new addition to the DVC on-site experience.

[Towncrier]

mistermouse - I thought the same thing when I was checking in. On the first day, all the rooms were non-smoking. Except that CMs had occupied the rooms for the week prior to the opening and perhaps some of them had been smoking. Our coffeemaker still had a used coffee filter in it when we checked in, so we knew that the room had been used before us. That was the only thing wrong that we found during our stay.

[yesdisneyfool]

Thanks for the pics HookdonWDW it brings us all closer to our stay at the new BCV.

To anyone with specific room numbers facing Epcot (SE, it is greatly appreciated to us all waiting to come home.:D