10 days, 4 resorts, one great WDW trip !

[marivaid]

Rate : $279/night, AP rate
Value : 9/10
Atmosphere : 10/10
Transportation : 9/10
Location : 20/10!

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There really aren't enough words to say how much I enjoyed this resort. We were at BWI this summer and although it was gorgeous, I didn't like the resort's feeling at all. So I was a little worried that BC would be the same. Couldn't have been more wrong.

We came in from MK around 2pm. We had walked maybe 3 steps into the lobby when a gentlemen came to greet us. By the time we got to the front desk, 2 other greeters welcomed us home. Our room was ready, which was great.

Just like the Poly, this resort is luxurious yet has a very relaxing feel to it.

The rooms are large and bright. I am in with the bedspreads!! The daybed is big enough for an adult to sleep on comfortably. We had booked a Standard room, and the girl who checked us in said nothing about an upgrade, but we could see the Swolphin from our room, a bit of the lake, as well as the tip of the ship from Stormalong Bay. We had a full balcony with chairs.

Speaking of Stormalong Bay,it was very cute and not too busy. They had games for the kids in the afternoon, so we avoided it at those hours, but the rest of the time it was rather quiet. My mom really enjoyed the sand bottom pool. The only thing she didn't like is that you have to leave the pool area, and cross the "street" to get to the slide.

We ate breakfast at Cape May which was great, a lot less chaotic than Chef Mickey's and better food as well. The characters there are dressed in their bathing suits We had dinner at Beaches & Cream one night, and it was fun too. Not enough tables though.
Mugs can be refilled at the Beach Club Marketplace, which also sells fresh sandwiches, pastries, and a bunch of frozen/fresh foods that you can cook yourself if you're staying in the Villas part of the resort.

The best part, of course, is the location. The walk to Epcot through International Gateway was about 5mns. We walked all around the lake, and it was really nice. Boat to MGM was very convenient. We also used it to go to Epcot once, because we enjoy the ride. A lot of people were having fun on the surrey bikes and we definitely want to do that next time.

Our room :

View from our balcony :

Exterior photos :

Inside photos, Christmas decorations :

Stormalong Bay

Beach and view from the other side of the lake :

 

[myladyisatramp]

I am glad you like BCV, I am looking to stay here next year as I love the way its between Epcot and MGM, (or Hollywood Studios) that will take a long time to get used too. I have been having a terrible time trying to figure out if its worth the extra money to stay there v/s OKW. Thanks for your input.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Nice reviews! I'm curious about the sleigh ride at WL. You said it was boring and embarassing. What made it embarassing? Tell us more!

 

[marivaid]

Nice reviews! I'm curious about the sleigh ride at WL. You said it was boring and embarassing. What made it embarassing? Tell us more!

Oh it was SO embarassing LOL.. I'm going to cut/paste what I wrote about it on another thread about the sleigh rides :

We did one last week and I'm sorry to say it was a waste of money and a waste of time as well.

The "sleigh" is cute, well decorated. But all you do is go down the street in the woods, turn around and come back. It's not magical. There's nothing to see except trees.
Our driver didn't talk much, but I don't know if it'd have done any difference if he had.

It was just boring IMO and a little embarassing, because they take the same street as the cars and buses, but the horse goes very,very slowly. We held up traffic, on the way back there were 4 cars and 2 buses stuck behind us.

There was a couple in another sleigh who we "met" in the woods and they seemed to be as mortified as we were. If you have little kids they may enjoy it, but for us, it became the joke of the trip. For the rest of our trip, whenever my mom complained in WDW, I threatened her with another sleigh ride

And, I left out the best part of the ride, when our horse stopped to pee. He couldn't "go" until our driver turned off the Christmas music. So we sat in our sleigh and listened as our horse peed for a good 2mns straight. Magical.

 

[PrincessPaczki]

Thanks for the reviews and the pictures. I can't believe how much the rooms at the WL changed since we were there!

 

[doodlesmommy]

Love the reviews; can't wait to read more.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Oh it was SO embarassing LOL.. I'm going to cut/paste what I wrote about it on another thread about the sleigh rides :

Oh my! That does sound embarassing. For both you and the horse!!!!!

 

[dclfun]

Thanks for the great BC photos and review, of course. I love those bedspreads too! I don't know if any other resort's bedspreads have Mickey on them??? Loved the story about the sleigh ride. How did the driver know the horse had to pee? I have a service dog that will "go" on command and hold it until she gets that command but seems amazing a horse would do that too. Come to think of it, has anyone ever seen a horse pee on Main Street, and if not, where do they go backstage to do it?---Kathy

 

[JulyGirl]

Oh, no sleigh ride at WL for me! Thanks for the warning. I was under the impression that the ride was a bit more secluded. I would also hate for bus riders to be staring at me... most likely laughing.

 

[marivaid]

Rate : $199/night, rack rate
Value : 6/10
Atmosphere : 4/10
Transportation : 7/10

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We had stayed at POFQ last year so I more or less knew what to expect.

The only difference is that we had a Water/Pool view last year and got a standard this year. Our room was in Building #1 and a little farther that I would have liked, but POFQ is very compact so even in the furthest building you're only 2-3mns from the bus stops and food court.

Our room was very nice, I like the large double sinks area and privacy curtain. We got a ton of towel animals, there were 3 when we checked in and after that we got 2-3 more each day for 3 days, that was really sweet.

My mom used the pool & hot tub quite a bit, as they were never crowded. The entire resort was very quiet... a little too quiet for my taste. We only used the food court once for breakfast, the beignets were yummy. Gift shop has improved - it was really pathetic last year, but this time we found a bunch of good stuff.

The boat trip to Downtown Disney was nice. Buses were okay. We never shared on the way to the parks, and POFQ now has its own stop at Magic Kingdom, however we did share with POR coming back from Epcot, and the wait was pretty long.

My impression of POFQ hasn't changed much : a nice, compact, quiet resort, but a little on the boring side.
I personally would rather stay at a Value and use the extra $70 a night for shopping, dining or a tour. My mom is crazy about hot tubs though so for her it was worth it.

 

[cara loves the poly]

What great pictures, thank you!

 

[marivaid]

Well, that's all folks Thank you all for reading and for the nice comments

If you have any question about these resorts please feel free to ask, I hope I can help !

Oh, and HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

 

[becka]

Thanks for the reviews. I really have not liked the values but I told DH if we ever go back for a value resort trip I want to do All Star Music...I think the quieter atmosphere would be nice.

BC sounds heavenly. I want to stay there so bad but I can never justify the cost. Hopefully someday I will get some money and decide to splurge.

 

[drag n' fly]

What a fantastic trip report! Poor horsie must of had stage fright or was sick of Christmas music

 

[simonkodousek]

Excellent reviews, pics, and trip report! Welcome back!

 

[wdwiala]

Thanks for all of the photos. They were enjoyable to go through. Those POFQ ones look just like a snakey Louisiana yard. Been there, done that!

 

[mericletwins]

I am glad you like BCV, I am looking to stay here next year as I love the way its between Epcot and MGM, (or Hollywood Studios) that will take a long time to get used too. I have been having a terrible time trying to figure out if its worth the extra money to stay there v/s OKW. Thanks for your input.

I have stayed at both. I loved OKW until I stayed at BCV. There is no way to beat the BC location, though I do like the OKW rooms better.

 

[Skroops]

Thanks! I really enjoyed your reviews!

 

[Cheryl N. WI]

Excellent reviews ands pictures Thanks for sharing!

 

[DisneyTabby]

Don't forget us and keep us up tp date on your next adventure. I thought your pictures were great! Talk to you soon.