Those BWV Elevators aren't that far!!!

[pumpkinboy]

Originally posted by one_cat
If you don't mind stairs there is usually a staircase much closer to those far off rooms that you can get to from outside if you are coming from that direction.

Those stairs are great for those of us who are "able-bodied". However DS (7) is wheelchair-bound, so the stairs aren't really an option for the parent pushing him. Still, altho 2 mins does seem like a long time winding down hallways, we have been repaid for this minor inconvenience by the great Illuminations views to be had from those Std view units far from the elevators. I do wish there were another set of elevators tho, but then I wish the same thing at AKL, and it doesn't stop us from thoroghly enjoying both.

 

[kathleena]

Guess if the BWV hall is too long, some of you better not go to Epcot. That walk from the entrance to American Adventure is a killer!

Come to think of it, you may want to stay out of the parks altogether. Way too much walking......

 

[Zurg]

Originally posted by drusba
...and you weave down several different hallways.

Someone been having a few at the brew pub on Boardwalk?

 

[Bugeye]

The latest option announced for BWV is that, starting in January, guests will be able to rent Segways for the trip from elevator to room. Special parking spaces will be built next to the elevators for use while you're away from the hotel. This option will not be available to guests who use valet parking as you are required to get in at least one good walk per day.

 

[Bojo]

Also, the choking smoke of buses and cars passing by as you risk you life on the roadway (why are there no sidewalks at OKW?)

Uhm ... there are sidewalks at OKW. Or, at least there were when I was there in June.

 

[timC]

Originally posted by Bojo
Uhm ... there are sidewalks at OKW. Or, at least there were when I was there in June.

Yes... there are sidewalks, but not everywhere... at least not during our stay 2 years ago when we stayed in building 21. To get to the bus stop we had to walk on the roadway, including a walk through a circle buses use to turn around. No sidewalks...not pleasant. Maybe they've added a sidewalk since.

 

[KEH]

I may be being naive here but the Boardwalk is a big resort so isn't it inevitable that some rooms will be quite some way from the elevator, lobby etc? Personally I don't mind the walk even at the end of a long day in the parks as I am usually really glad to be inside in the air conditioning.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Guess if the BWV hall is too long, some of you better not go to Epcot. That walk from the entrance to American Adventure is a killer!

Same goes for you folks complaining about walking around OKW
Also.....I've never been choked by smoke in any of my many stays at OKW
At OKW you're never far from any one of the several pools either. I've never had to pack my car up to go to the pool there

 

[chainkid]

I guess it would depend what unit you get at OKW but the one thing that I like better at BWV than at OKW is the ease of getting to a very attractive pool. The pool we had to walk to was a bit of a walk from our unit and it was a very plain looking poolnot nearly as nice as the one I have in my back yard. I also never got to park near my room as we come back from the parks pretty late. I like to be able to slip in and out of the pool and walk back to my room. AT OKW we had to gather up our gear and walk the length of several buildings thru the parking lot. It just depends on your location because some units are very close and some are not. Of course we often use the stairs at BWV if we are down along corridor. Each DVC resort has plusses and minuses but all are still a step above the average resort room at Disney . In fact I will probably spend more time at OKW when I retire because of the larger rooms and the fact that I will be staying for longer periods of time without entering the parks at all. AND I love Olivia's for casual dining with a real at home feel.

 

[CapeCodFam]

We'd rather make the walk than to be sitting at home.

 

[MiaSRN62]

I guess it would depend what unit you get at OKW but the one thing that I like better at BWV than at OKW is the ease of getting to a very attractive pool. The pool we had to walk to was a bit of a walk from our unit and it was a very plain looking poolnot nearly as nice as the one I have in my back yard. I also never got to park near my room as we come back from the parks pretty late. I like to be able to slip in and out of the pool and walk back to my room. AT OKW we had to gather up our gear and walk the length of several buildings thru the parking lot. It just depends on your location because some units are very close and some are not. Of course we often use the stairs at BWV if we are down along corridor.

I can totally see your viewpoint chainkid (though I didn't have the same experiences as you). The new slide is coming to OKW and this will make it equal to BWV's main pool to alot of people who complained about not having a pool slide there. The themeing looks like it will be beautiful.
We've never had difficulty parking near our villa and we ALWAYS stay to park's close and beyond. Even if we didn't get to park our car directly in front of our door we were never more than 2-3 doors away which added on all of 3 seconds of walk time. At OKW we can always slip in and out of one of the pools and I much prefer to be able to walk directly into my room vs prancing through a lobby or long hallway soaking wet. But that's just our preference and I can see how others would see it differently. I found the quiet pools at BWV no less plain than the quiet ones at OKW ? I'm sure some rooms at the BWV are a closer walk to the pools than other rooms---I know our room there was very far from the main pool. We had room #4131.
I really think every person has their own feelings and preferences about individual resorts and they will always lean toward their favorite---it's human nature. But like I said, whether walking the hallways at BWV or the pathways of OKW, a walk is a walk especially considering that WDW is predominately a walking type of vacation. We tour the parks all day---what's the difference

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

Originally posted by Happy Birthday Cat
*Agree. It's the rooms that are. Rich would have loved this thread.


*Please note the following for those who are easily irritated. This is a joke. We own at the BWV and it is our favorite resort.

I thought of Rich as soon as I saw the title to this thread

 

[ScottOKW2K]

Originally posted by chainkid
I guess it would depend what unit you get at OKW but the one thing that I like better at BWV than at OKW is the ease of getting to a very attractive pool.

It does seem that people tend to forget that disney has other places to swim besides the resort pools. Just a quick walk to my van, a 2 or 3 minute drive and I'm at Typhoon Lagoon. Now, Luna Park is ok, and Stormalong Bay is quite impressive but Typhoon Lagoon beats both by a mile. Though I enjoy Disney transportation, I have found that when I go to the water parks I usually want to drive. This applies no matter what resort that I am staying at.

The reason I say this is that I see the pool issue being brought up again and again. It really seems to be a bigger deal to those that aren't 'KeyWesters than those that are. I've enjoyed both the BW and BC pools, but I really don't think about them that much. Besides, our savings in points cost, points required, and dues more than help offset the small cost of the water park AP's that we purchase.

If one wants to talk about access to restaurants, nightlife , and proximity to Epcot and MGM I will willingly grant BW/BC the obvious kudos on location.

One last item - if one wants to exit the international gateway after Illuminations, park at Beach Club. That's what I did last trip. I did it the right way - OKW parking pass in window, pulled up at BC about 7:30 pm. We stated that we wanted to see Illuminations, and were expecting to leave about 9:30 pm. The guard seemed somewhat surprised by our honesty - and then directed us to the self-parking area and wished us a good evening. If she had said no we would have most likely driven over to Epcot parking, and were prepared to do so if refused. Remember - subject to availability guests at one WDW resort are allowed to park at others.

 

[worldshowcase]

It does seem that people tend to forget that disney has other places to swim besides the resort pools. Just a quick walk to my van, a 2 or 3 minute drive and I'm at Typhoon Lagoon. Now, Luna Park is ok, and Stormalong Bay is quite impressive but Typhoon Lagoon beats both by a mile. Though I enjoy Disney transportation, I have found that when I go to the water parks I usually want to drive. This applies no matter what resort that I am staying at.

Glad to see you enjoy WDW' s water parks. When we had young children we also enjoyed the WDW water parks. Now that we are empty nesters the water parks hold no interest for us but a themed main pool that is easy to walk to, does hold a big interest for us,
We must also not forget that each family is different.

 

[Pluto4Pres]

I think someone need to find out why all the DISboarders get assigned to rooms that are so far from the elevators!!

Actually the walk is probably not that long, it's just that as you walk by all those doors, your subliminal mind says, "We could have been home by now" a hundred times.

 

[crisi]

Scott, but that means you must have a car.

I think OKW (and SSR once the additional units are built) are "best" if you have a car. If you can drive to the pool and the restaurants (and the parks and the water parks) - than being bus dependant is no big deal. If you don't have a car - the "long" hallways at BWVs are arguably better than the hike or taking a bus to get to Olivias or the themed pool from the far units at OKW. I have been assured that OKW can be done without a car, but I think it loses some of its appeal if you are bus dependant.

BWV (and BCV and to a lesser extent VWL) are almost easier if you are not car dependant. Parking is so far away, park access to two parks from Epcot (and one from VWL) is so good, that some people leave their car parked for the entire vacation.

I don't think the LONG hallways at BWV are any longer than getting from the Villas to the themed pool or Roaring Forks at VWL. Or getting to SAB from the back of BCVs.

 

[MiaSRN62]

If you don't have a car - the "long" hallways at BWVs are arguably better than the hike or taking a bus to get to Olivias or the themed pool from the far units at OKW.

I honestly don't feel the hike to Olivia's was any further than the hike we had to get to Cape May Cafe (i.e.) or Epcot when we stayed at BWV for that matter ? Also, we had a further walk to the main themed pool at BWV than we ever had to OKW's main pool from our room ? Our room at BWV was at the end of the hallway in the wing that faces the canal. Maybe the DIS board member do get the furthest rooms
We bring a car to OKW but don't always use it and the bus system is fine there. I found I did no less walking at OKW than I did during my stay at BWV ?

 

[crisi]

Mia,

I've never been to OKW, so perhaps you are right, but I have a hard time believing that the farthest room from the pool or lobby at BWVs is farther than unit 49 is from the Hospitality House. There are two golf holes between unit 49 and the HH - that are 383 and 390 yards - about .4 miles total - granted you don't need to walk the complete hole to get to the HH (but yardage doesn't take into effect distance between holes either), but it gives you an idea of the distance.

The longest hallway at BWV is 818 ft (272 yards): http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=487734&highlight=+Global++Positioning


Here is Caskbill's thread on distances at OKW to the bus stops - but I'm not talking about bus stops - I'm talking about walking your kids to the new pool slide. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=519921&highlight=+Global++Positioning.

I'm not saying this is horrible, I'm sure OKW is a lovely resort - and we are looking forward to staying there sometime. But if your kids are going to be using the new pool slide a lot - request a room near the hospitality house, have a car, or be ready for a lot of walking or waiting for buses (things we are ready for at Disney anyway - we walk a lot and take a lot of buses)- i.e. you may be more car dependant at OKW, and if thats OK with you great - if not, the long hallways at BWV may be a lesser evil than the far units at OKW or SSR. I suspect the far units from SSR will be similar. The farthest possible walk from BWV to the lobby or the themed pool is less than the farthest possible walk from OKW to the HH or themed pool. At OKW you have more options - you can take your car to the pool, or any passing bus will drop you off on the way out - at BWV the buses don't travel down the long hallways - on the other hand - those long hallways are air conditioned.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Crisi ~
I most certainly appreciate the fact that Caskbill did his math---and a good job I might add
But if you're familiar with the BWV layout http://www.mcdanieldesk.com/dvc/bwvmap.jpg
We were in that small yellow section at the bottom of "J" formation on the BWV's side, facing the canal. We were at the tip closest to the tennis walkways in room 4131 if anyone is familiar with that area. We had a hike to the pool--- through chilly air conditioned hallways/lobby in wet suits.
After looking at bdlg 49 at OKW on the map, I'll say maybe it's an additional 2-3 minute walk to the main pool (guesstimating here)? I know we walked to the main pool from bldg 43 and didn't find it bad at all. I feel the comparisons between the length of the walks between the two resorts are extremely comparable give or take a few minutes----but this is just my take on the situation after having stayed at both resorts (and liking them both I might add). Just as you mentioned requesting being close to the HH at OKW, I swore to my dh that we'd request main "pool view" next time at BWV. I think it all evens out in the end between the two resorts

***Just noticed the above link the BWV map isn't working. Try this : http://www.mcdanieldesk.com/dvc/bwvmap.jpg

 

[chainkid]

I'm really surprised that there wasn't a short cut to the pool via a set of stairs..I have always found the pool fairly close no matter which unit I'm in as long as there is a set of stairs nearby. The other point that you made as a negative is a real plus to me...walking in chilly air conditioned corridors versus hot 98 degree heat...to each his own I guess.