The we loooooove Bonnet Creek thread part2

[minnieandfamily]

Hello!
I just booked 7 nights at WBC in April. This will be our first time too. I am a little confused about the construction and renovations. I called Wyndham directly today and the woman I spoke with said that construction of the 7th building was complete - but from this thread it looks like there are only 6 towers?! Was she referring to the hotel?

Also, she said that they had renovated the rooms in their oldest buildings, Towers 1 & 2. Just wondering how these renovated units compare to the "newer" towers. The same? Better?

I am trying to figure out what Tower to request...I would like to stay in either "new" or "recently renovated." We have young kids so being close to one of the kiddie pools would probably be important too.

Thanks!!

 

[KWithers]

Suerob- Tower 2 has a nice BBQ area with grill, table, a lake view and it's right in front of the pools. We stayed in tower 3 and it was still close.
Minnieandfamily- the kiddie pools are outside tower 2 and the main building (close to tower 1).
We go again in April and will most likely request tower 2 or 3. I liked tower 3 because you're right in the middle of the shuttle pickups (at tower 1 and tower 6). That way if you're late for one bus, you have time to make the second one.

 

[gretchenohar@hotmail]

We are staying at Bonnet Creek for the first time in October (Me, my mom, DD10 and DS7) I'm thinking it will work out well as the shuttles will be there in case my mom wants to go to the parks to meet up with my brother's family and my kids want to sleep in, which happened a couple of times on our last extended family trip, and it will be so much more cost effective for our 2 week trip.

I've made it a little over halfway through this thread and will keep reading I'm done , but I have one question. I've seen pictures of a view with the Tower of Terror, and we were wondering what we should request to try and have a view of it.

Thanks!

Check here:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=44059039#post44059039

Post # 62 has the Tower, floor, etc & shows a nice view of TOT - among other things...

 

[Destructsean]

the most interesting thing I remember on the menu was the Krispy Kreme Burger.

That's what I want to see!!

 

[SigEpMike13]

Your "big 3" delivery... Papa Johns, Dominoes, and Pizza Hut. I also recall at least 1 or 2 other popular local places being listed. Off-site Pizza however can only deliver to the building itself and not your room, so you need to meet them outside the building lobby.

There is also the onsite pizza delivery from the restaurant/pool bar by Tower 3. They will actually deliver to your room.

Because of the number of Pizza Delivery scams in the Tourist area, the resort limits access to the resort property for pizza delivery to only a few 'approved' businesses. I seem to recall there was a text message on the room phone actually listing the places which were allowed to deliver the last time I stayed there.

A great option for pizza delivery is Giordano's (famous Chicago pizza place).

 

[samples78]

I tried searching for my answers, but could not find the info. My family is looking at renting a 4 bedroom presidential unit and I was wondering what floors these are on? I have gathered they tend to be on high floors, but are there any on lower floors? My grandmother does not like being up high, so I would love to know the lowest floor these are available on. Also, are these available in all of the buildings, or just some of them. Thanks!

 

[under da UP]

This plane is going to land in a hot minute or 60 so we'll arrive at WBC shortly there after. I'll try to answer any questions while I'm there... It will distract me from all the disney "stuff". Fantasia is the only disney film i've seen... Yea I know, lame.

So let me know if ya'll want any pictures/video or info of any specific part of the resort. We will be staying in a 3 br deluxe so i'll include any views from the unit in the picture thread.

Boy this plane is hot as all get up. Think they'll let me open a window....yeesh haha. I hope i adjust to the heat faster than this.

So post your questions

 

[DCTooTall]

I tried searching for my answers, but could not find the info. My family is looking at renting a 4 bedroom presidential unit and I was wondering what floors these are on? I have gathered they tend to be on high floors, but are there any on lower floors? My grandmother does not like being up high, so I would love to know the lowest floor these are available on. Also, are these available in all of the buildings, or just some of them. Thanks!

As a general rule, usually the 4bedroom Presidentials are going to be on the top 1-3 top floors of the towers. There aren't any on the lower floors.

The bright side here is that the 4bedroom presidentials are located in every building. Because of this, if you are really concerned about overall height, you might want to request some of the older towers since they are significantly shorter than the newer towers. (For instance, I believe tower 1 is about 9 stories, while tower 6 is closer to 18+ ). There may even be a Presidential unit in the main building above the lobby, and that building is only around 3-5 stories tall.


Now if you are renting a unit from someone, there is no guarentee that you'll be able to get one in one of the shorter buildings, but it's something to keep in mind.

 

[RvingDude]

Humaira from Vacation Strategy just called to give me good and bad news on my upcoming 9 night stay at WBC. I asked for the bad first and she said my family would have to switch to a different room after 2 nights from our 2 bedroom deluxe. The good...switching to a 2 bedroom presidential suite for the last 7 nights.

She said the 2 bedroom presidential will be in Tower 6.
Do all the 2 bedroom presidentials in Tower 6 come with a lake/pool view or is it the same as deluxe rooms and you need to request a lake/pool view?
Thanks.

 

[alicia080979]

I am really excited after finding this thread. We were going to rent a condo about 2 miles off property and then found a good price for a 2 bedroom here. We are also using Vacation Strategy as they seemed to have the best price that I found online.

This will be our first time staying "off" property so I was a little hesitant at first but with APs, it just doesn't make sense to pay a higher price for a Value Resort when we can get 2 bedrooms here with a full kitchen to offset some of the cost of food.

I'm only a few pages into this thread so time to curl up with a blanket on the couch and read, read, read!

Thanks for all the great info!

 

[mkpat]

I am really excited after finding this thread. We were going to rent a condo about 2 miles off property and then found a good price for a 2 bedroom here. We are also using Vacation Strategy as they seemed to have the best price that I found online.

This will be our first time staying "off" property so I was a little hesitant at first but with APs, it just doesn't make sense to pay a higher price for a Value Resort when we can get 2 bedrooms here with a full kitchen to offset some of the cost of food.

I'm only a few pages into this thread so time to curl up with a blanket on the couch and read, read, read!

Thanks for all the great info!

I am going in March for the first time (we are DVC members) and I am also a little apprehensive, I guess moreso on the "experience" other than anything else. By that I mean the buses, dining plan, resort hoping, etc. Having not read through all 100+ pages of this thread, but has anyone that has stayed on Disney property before ever stayed here, and would you do it again?

 

[MelindaRuns]

I am going in March for the first time (we are DVC members) and I am also a little apprehensive, I guess moreso on the "experience" other than anything else. By that I mean the buses, dining plan, resort hoping, etc. Having not read through all 100+ pages of this thread, but has anyone that has stayed on Disney property before ever stayed here, and would you do it again?

We used to be strictly on Disney property. Then we found this Bonnet Creek. To me the amenities are more plentiful, the rooms way nicer and roomier (in the Deluxe they are a lot nicer and in the Presidential they are way nicer, in my opinion, than anything Disney has to offer in the Moderates or higher categories. I'm comparing to Animal Kingdom Lodge, Grand Californian Lodge, and Wilderness Resort Lodge.)

We never use their bus system, so I can't tell you about that. We always rent a car so we can come and go as we please. The drive to any of the parks from Bonnet Creek is a piece of cake and become second nature very quickly, the parking at Bonnet Creek is good, especially if you stay in Tower 6. We have had a few issues where my husband couldnt find something right up on entering the parking lot and just dropped the kids and I off at the door of Tower 6 then by the time we were up in the room he was coming up after parking.

For us, it was so nice we bought at Bonnet Creek, even after comparing to DVC, and that took a lot of thinking because we are truly Disney fanatics. But, in the end BC was a way better deal for a nicer resort, and we can of course stay other places too.

 

[GraceLuvsWDW]

I am going in March for the first time (we are DVC members) and I am also a little apprehensive, I guess moreso on the "experience" other than anything else. By that I mean the buses, dining plan, resort hoping, etc. Having not read through all 100+ pages of this thread, but has anyone that has stayed on Disney property before ever stayed here, and would you do it again?

I've stayed on property. At pop, CS, OKW, Poly, POFQ and WL.

Here's the thing for me: Disney charges WAY too much for their rooms. Yes, there's Disney magic. Yes they make it far too easy for you to never leave the bubble. But for me the "magic" (CMs, extra touches, intense themeing, etc) isn't worth the huge amount of money. Especially not since most of the rooms on property are in my opinion run down. I stayed in a $500 room at the Poly and it wasn't worth HALF of our 3BR Presidential stay at WBC last year, which was $214 a night.

So for me, I need to feel like I got my money's worth. That's really hard at Disney. At WBC I feel like I get my money's worth and then some. I am right next to CBR, I can see Pop, Swan, Dolphin, Epcot Ball, ToT, so I still feel like I am close to the magic. But there are pluses beyond a Disney resort, too.

 

[Brian Noble]

has anyone that has stayed on Disney property before ever stayed here, and would you do it again?

Yes (OKW, VWL, and BWV) and yes.

 

[teacher31]

I contacted Vacation Strategy two days ago and haven't heard back. Is this typical?

 

[GraceLuvsWDW]

Are the grills gas grills?

 

[carlbarry]

I am going in March for the first time (we are DVC members) and I am also a little apprehensive, I guess moreso on the "experience" other than anything else. By that I mean the buses, dining plan, resort hoping, etc. Having not read through all 100+ pages of this thread, but has anyone that has stayed on Disney property before ever stayed here, and would you do it again?

I own both Wyndham and Disney timeshare.
I have stayed at Star Island (2006), Bonnet Creek (2009), AKL Jambo House (2010), and Wyndham Grand and Old Key West (2011).
It actually costs me less to stay at Disney (in a studio) than at Bonnet Creek. Of course, at BC I'm getting a big 1 BR condo.
AKL is a truly unique experience. No other resort can compete with that.
Having stayed at Wyndham Grand, and then moving to OKW on the same vacation, I can honestly say that I enjoyed OKW much more. Being able to use all of Disney's benefits was great.
That being said, I still feel BC is a great resort. It has loads of amenities, is conveniently located, and is priced right for the renter. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. And in fact, in December I'm planning 3 nights there before moving on to either OKW or AKL.
I hope that helps.

 

[alicia080979]

I contacted Vacation Strategy two days ago and haven't heard back. Is this typical?

I contacted them yesterday for the first time and they got back to me right away with a price and details. I paid the deposit last night and haven't heard anything since. I am hoping it is bc it is a weekend (and long weekend to some). If I don't hear anything tomorrow or get some sort of confirmation that they got my deposit, I will call Tuesday morning. Did you try calling them? I found them through VRBO and contacted them through there.


***Update***
In the 20min between when I posted this and now I got my email confirmation from them with my dates and some more information about requesting a room. Hopefully you will hear something soon, if not, I would give them a call. If you need their contact info let me know!

 

[jaysmom4285]

GraceLuvsWDW, yes the grills are gas. We didn't use them, but I checked them out once as I was walking by.

 

[jaysmom4285]

We checked out this morning and are now home in Maine. I had intended to post more while we were at WBC, but it just didn't happen. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we spend most of our time at the parks, so we don't take full advantage of all that WBC has to offer.

I was a bit surprised that we given practically no information at check-in about the resort's facilities and amenities. There was no info about the restaurants or snack bars, and we had to come up with that ourselves. A packet of information about all of that would have been very useful. Maybe that was an oversight on their part, but it would have been helpful.

We did do the miniature golf. I found it odd that nowhere on the mini-golf course does it say where to get the equipment. We had to go back to the room and call the front desk. Turns out you have to get the equipment from the activities centers in either Tower 6 or the main building. While we were playing, several people passing by asked us where they could get the equipment, because they hadn't been able to figure it out.

We were at WBC on an RCI exchange. I didn't expect housekeeping, but I did think there might be another supply of towels delivered mid-week. Turns out they don't do that, unless you ask for it, which we did. They promptly brought us enough for an army!

I had posted previously about how to reset the a/c so that it cycles on and off and isn't dependent on the motion sensors. It definitely works, but it seemed that, if the temperature was adjusted again, it reverted back to the motion sensor business. I'm not positive about this, but I think that's why we were too warm for a couple of nights after I had reset the thermostat. What seemed to work best was to do the reset after you've adjusted the temperature to whatever you want it to be for a while, like at bedtime. We were much more comfortable after I figured that out.

I only used the buses once, when my husband and son decided to go back to WBC in our rental car and I wanted to stay at Epcot. The bus lane was easy to find, and the bus was right on time. The schedule seemed adequate enough - lots of trips in the morning and evening, and fewer in the afternoon, but still a reasonable number.

As I had mentioned earlier, we got absolutely no hassle about attending the timeshare presentation when we got our parking pass, and we didn't get so much as a message about it all week long. Maybe it just depends on who you talk to. If you see Sandy at the parking pass desk, try to talk with her - she was the one who was so low key about it with us.

All in all, we had a great time at WBC, and I would stay there again in a heartbeat. The location is perfect - just a few minutes from all the WDW parks - and we found the facilities to be top notch.