Booked at Wilderness Lodge, thinking of switching to Beach Club

[BlueSuitDonald]

we are currently booked at Wilderness Lodge for this July. I am thinking about switching to Beach Club, especially if we can get a discount when it comes out. We have stayed at Wilderness Lodge twice and love it, but I have always been interested in the Beach Club. One thing I love about Wilderness Lodge is the boat to Magic Kingdom so we don’t have to park and take the ferry over to the park. We always rent a car. How is the bus system from Beach Club? Does it share a bus with other Epcot resorts? How easy is it to park at Epcot and then take monorail to MK? Do you have to go inside Epcot to ride monorail? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Dentam]

From the BC, you can walk to the International Gateway entrance of Epcot and take a monorail to MK - you do have to get on the monorail inside Epcot and it is at the opposite end of the park from the International Gateway entrance, so there would be a bit of walking involved. You can also take a boat to HS. So, you'd really only need to take a bus to AK.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

The monorail from Epcot to MK requires a transfer at TTC. It would be a longer trip than I care for just to get from BC to MK. We just do the bus to MK from BC when we stay there. The BC buses usually share with Yacht Club.

 

[Wood Nymph]

How is the bus system from Beach Club? Does it share a bus with other Epcot resorts?

The nice thing about staying at the BC is that you only have to take buses to two parks, MK and AK. The bus only shares with YC, so it isn't too bad. The bus ride to MK is less than 20 minutes long and goes directly to MK after picking up at BC.

How easy is it to park at Epcot and then take monorail to MK? Do you have to go inside Epcot to ride monorail?

It would take a lot more time to drive to Epcot in order to take the monorail to MK. You would end up going through bag check twice, once when entering Epcot, once when switching to the MK monorail at the TTC. You can walk to the monorail by entering Epcot at the International Gateway. It is about a ten minute walk to the monorail from there. Most people buy park hoppers when they stay at an Epcot resort because it is very easy to hop into Epcot or DHS.

 

[BlueSuitDonald]

So between the 2 resorts, which would you choose?

 

[starry_solo]

Beach club for stormalog bay.

But which parks do you plan to visit?

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I'd try BC since you've thought about it for awhile and you've already stayed at WL a couple of times. Then you'll know which you really prefer! At least unless MK is the main focus. Then I'd stick with WL. But if you'll be going to Epcot and DHS too then BC is very nice.

 

[Karen46]

BC is a wonderful resort. Walking and boating to Epcot and HS is wonderful. The atmosphere with the Boardwalk, Yacht and Dolphin and Swan is great. Many restaurants and fun things to do. Stormalong Bay is great. Taking the bus to MK and AK is fine also.
Wilderness Lodge is wonderful also. It would be great to try another resort.

 

[Wood Nymph]

So between the 2 resorts, which would you choose?

The BC and the WL are our two favorite resorts. For us the big attraction of the WL is the resort itself - the architecture, the location on Bay Lake, the woodsy feel and especially the boat to MK. The thing we like about the BC is the location. We love being able to walk into Epcot or Hollywood Studios. There are plenty of places to eat when staying at the BC, especially when you include Boardwalk, YC and the Swan and Dolphin, as well as the Epcot restaurants. As far as buses to parks, I would say that the BC has the edge, especially since it only shares with the YC, which is right next door, while the WL shares with Contemporary or FW, which makes for a little longer bus ride.

As I said, we like them both and will continue to go to both of them.

 

[BlueSuitDonald]

We plan to visit all the parks about equally so either resort would be work for that purpose. I think if we can get a decent discount, we will switch!

 

[Shellyb84]

BC is amazing and our favorite resort. The atmosphere is very relaxing and the Epcot resort area is beautiful. The pool is so awesome and being able to walk to two parks. We love to walk over to the BW for ice cream or a margarita, and the surrey bikes are fun. It's an easy walk to a lot of great restaurants. We've never had an issue with the buses at BC no matter the time of day. One thing to note is that not all rooms at BC have a full balcony, so if that is important to you make sure to request one. We've requested it for all 3 of our stays and gotten our request every time. We're returning for our 4th stay in June and I can't wait!

 

[Mousemommy1]

Walking over to the Beach Club into Epcot to hop on the monorail is not really a good idea if you are against a time schedule. You have to walk all the way to the front of the park.

One thing that I did not like about BC was that the MK bus stopped at YC first and often the bus was already full by the time it got to us so we'd have to wait for the next one. This is one reason that I prefer the YC over BC. Have you given YC any consideration? They both have the same amenities for the most part.

 

[BlueSuitDonald]

I don’t think yacht club had any standard rooms for the dates we are there. We are renting a car so the buses aren’t a necessity unless some of us stay later in the parks and need to take bus back to the resort

 

[hobbes4444]

The only time I'd choose WL over BC is during Christmas. While YC/BC is beautifully decorated, WL is just stunning during the holidays. WL is a great location for the MK if that is your primary park destination. But if you're visiting all parks and other parts of WDW, then BC is a great place to start. Easier access from BC to just about everything (other than MK, FW and the other MK resorts), and as others have noted, there is so much to do with Epcot, Studios, BW, S&D, mini-golf all within relatively easy walking distance. Can't go wrong with either resort though. YC/BC is our favorite with GF a pretty close second.

 

[Hopefully]

We love the BC. I would switch

 

[alohatigger]

BC is great. Everyone should try it once, the pool is AMAZING and we love the Cape May Character breakfast in the morning.