3 Options for Next Vacation

[arieltriton]

My family is planning a Disney trip for February vacation of 2015. We can start booking hotel reservations at 7 months in a couple of days. It will be 6 people who are staying in the room; three adults and three kids. The three options we are thinking of right now and look available are through the online resort tool are:

1. 3 nights BLT grand villa and 4 nights GF 2 bedroom

2. 3 nights Kidani 2 bedroom and 4 nights BLT grand villa

3. 5 nights Kidani 2 bedroom and 3 nights BLT grand villa

Option 1 and 2 would give us 7 nights and 6 full days, and option 3 would give us 8 nights and 7 full days. We will be traveling as a family of 4 with teenage daughter's best friend with us and one grandfather. We would like to make it an enjoyable stay for them since this is their first time staying in a DVC room.

Thanks for any input.

 

[disneynutz]

For a short stay I wouldn't bother moving. It interrupts the day and your vacation.

Making a nest and really spending time at 1 resort is enjoyable. Packing, moving, unpacking and setting things up again isn't much fun.

I would stay at a resort close to the park when you expect to spend the most time.

We have learned at WDW, more isn't better. Take your time and don't over do it. There is always next time. Who is more important the daughter and friend or Grandfather, consider their needs.

Bill

 

[luckyman_apd]

For us 8 days is a good long stay. On our way home now from a 9 night 10 day stay. As what bill says I wouldn't advice a split stay unless you are looking for something specific or to try different resorts. We were BLT for 4 nights because we own there and could get a second room for my mother to join us. But the last 5 nights were BCV because we've never stayed there before and really wanted to. If it wasn't for wanting the BLT for 4th of July we would have tried to stay at BCV the whole time.

With the split stay we packed very light... And did laundry twice during the trip. Packing up and being without a room for 5 hours (especially when it's as hot as it was this week) is not fun unless you have plans to be out all that time.

 

[arieltriton]

Thank you for the input. The reason we are thinking of a split stay is to have at least some nights in a 3 bedroom. Grandfather will get his own bedroom in the 2 bedroom, and the three kids would be in the living room. We don't have enough points for the whole week in a grand villa. If we stay at one resort it will be a 2 bedroom for the whole week. We thought it would be nice to have the kids have their own bedroom for some of the trip.

I appreciate any opinions that you give!

 

[disneynutz]

Thank you for the input. The reason we are thinking of a split stay is to have at least some nights in a 3 bedroom. Grandfather will get his own bedroom in the 2 bedroom, and the three kids would be in the living room. We don't have enough points for the whole week in a grand villa. If we stay at one resort it will be a 2 bedroom for the whole week. We thought it would be nice to have the kids have their own bedroom for some of the trip.

I appreciate any opinions that you give!

I would see what the Grandfather would like, he won't be around forever and probably won't vacation at WDW again. The kids don't matter in my book, they will sleep anywhere and will be back for many years.

Bill

 

[Dean]

Thank you for the input. The reason we are thinking of a split stay is to have at least some nights in a 3 bedroom. Grandfather will get his own bedroom in the 2 bedroom, and the three kids would be in the living room. We don't have enough points for the whole week in a grand villa. If we stay at one resort it will be a 2 bedroom for the whole week. We thought it would be nice to have the kids have their own bedroom for some of the trip.

I appreciate any opinions that you give!

I'd approach it differently. My preferences assuming the single BR for the one adult would be as follows.

1. 2 BR Savannah view Kidani plus studio standard view, you should be able to get this for around the same points or less than you're looking now.
2. GV at OKW or SSR.
3. 2BR plus studio anywhere of preference.

Personally I'd likely go with just a 2 BR at OKW or a dedicated 2 BR with 2 queens somewhere and give the 2 teens the pullouts in the LR. I would not move if I could help it.

 

[DavidG1966]

Option Number 1. Its the only option where you get to stay at the Grand Floridian. The Grand Floridian is amazing. The Girls will love how beautiful it is and the Grandfather will love sitting in the lobby or a lounge listening to The Grand Floridian Society Orchestra. You can all enjoy the fireworks from the Magic Kingdom from many places at the resort. You can also take a nice boat ride on the lagoon to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[DenLo]

I'd approach it differently. My preferences assuming the single BR for the one adult would be as follows.

1. 2 BR Savannah view Kidani plus studio standard view, you should be able to get this for around the same points or less than you're looking now.
2. GV at OKW or SSR.
3. 2BR plus studio anywhere of preference.

Personally I'd likely go with just a 2 BR at OKW or a dedicated 2 BR with 2 queens somewhere and give the 2 teens the pullouts in the LR. I would not move if I could help it.

I would vote for the option of number 3. A 2BR and studio at any resort of your choice. And you will save points for next year's vacation. You can request that the rooms be near each other (traveling with). Grandpa has the option of having sleepovers with the kids if he wants or privacy if he prefers it that way.

Ask him, and tell him you want him to be happy. I agree that kids will be fine. They now are guaranteed to have Disney vacations for the rest of their childhood, how can they possibly be unhappy this first trip?

 

[disneymath]

FWIW ... i am a BLT owner and routinely travel with 7 other people ... Three young nephews, sis and brother-in-law and my parents.

We got the chance to stay in a BLT GV for a few nights this past October and honestly felt like it was TOO MUCH space! (It was a beautiful villa, but we would rather use the points to stay more nights!)

With.3 bathrooms at AKV and BLT, a dedicated 2BR would likely be enough for the 6 of you.

In terms of the pullout situation, as the odd adult in our group, and with the boys being young enough that we're not comfortable having them sleep in the living area alone, I usually spend the entire trip on a sleeper couch or chair ... so far, no real complaints (and I'm not a small person).

If you go with one 2 BR, a suggestion might be to give grandpa the master, that way if one of your girls needs a night in a real bed, she would be in your room.

We've also done the 2BR + studio combo as PPs suggested ... easier on the points than a GV in most cases.

Whatever you choose ... Have a great vacation!

 

[Carrie in AZ]

How active is Grandpa? Is he able to get around pretty well? Is he of advanced age? The reason I ask these questions is because I have read here many times that the corridors at Kidani are insanely long and go on forever. All that extra walking at the resort may not work well for him. I would also think about the food/restaurants. Aren't Jiko and Boma a bit adventurous? I know for a fact my elderly Mom is not that open to trying new dishes and don't think she would enjoy staying at Kidani, so that is why I am mentioning it. You may be planning on eating quite often in your villa so maybe the on-site restaurants aren't that big of a deal.

Another thing, was Grandpa raised during a more frugal time and on a simpler budget? Again, I am thinking of my Mom. She hasn't had very many extravagances in her life, so being someplace like the GF would be such a treat for her. I'm curious if there would be a WOW factor for Grandpa if you stayed there.

Anyway, I vote for the MK area resorts. Super fun to take the water launches and the monorail. Also, can take the boat from CR over to the WL for a meal or look around.

Your trip sounds amazing, and I'm really happy for you!

 

[hakepb]

Thank you for the input. The reason we are thinking of a split stay is to have at least some nights in a 3 bedroom. Grandfather will get his own bedroom in the 2 bedroom, and the three kids would be in the living room. We don't have enough points for the whole week in a grand villa. If we stay at one resort it will be a 2 bedroom for the whole week. We thought it would be nice to have the kids have their own bedroom for some of the trip.

I appreciate any opinions that you give!

The BLT grand villa is 2 stories. Is he OK with stairs or will you be OK giving him the master?

You might consider Jambo GV because they are 1 floor
(So is GFV. There are a few at bWV but its not guaranteed)

 

[paults]

Looks like you got a lot of pts to use
If I had this problem I would do #1 with a small change. I would do 2 nights at BLT GV because of pts and add extra days at GFV 2 bedroom ( from 4 to 6 days) giving you 8 nights if your pts allow.
good luck

My family is planning a Disney trip for February vacation of 2015. We can start booking hotel reservations at 7 months in a couple of days. It will be 6 people who are staying in the room; three adults and three kids. The three options we are thinking of right now and look available are through the online resort tool are:

1. 3 nights BLT grand villa and 4 nights GF 2 bedroom

2. 3 nights Kidani 2 bedroom and 4 nights BLT grand villa

3. 5 nights Kidani 2 bedroom and 3 nights BLT grand villa

Option 1 and 2 would give us 7 nights and 6 full days, and option 3 would give us 8 nights and 7 full days. We will be traveling as a family of 4 with teenage daughter's best friend with us and one grandfather. We would like to make it an enjoyable stay for them since this is their first time staying in a DVC room.

Thanks for any input.

 

[arieltriton]

How active is Grandpa? Is he able to get around pretty well? Is he of advanced age? The reason I ask these questions is because I have read here many times that the corridors at Kidani are insanely long and go on forever. All that extra walking at the resort may not work well for him. I would also think about the food/restaurants. Aren't Jiko and Boma a bit adventurous? I know for a fact my elderly Mom is not that open to trying new dishes and don't think she would enjoy staying at Kidani, so that is why I am mentioning it. You may be planning on eating quite often in your villa so maybe the on-site restaurants aren't that big of a deal. Another thing, was Grandpa raised during a more frugal time and on a simpler budget? Again, I am thinking of my Mom. She hasn't had very many extravagances in her life, so being someplace like the GF would be such a treat for her. I'm curious if there would be a WOW factor for Grandpa if you stayed there. Anyway, I vote for the MK area resorts. Super fun to take the water launches and the monorail. Also, can take the boat from CR over to the WL for a meal or look around. Your trip sounds amazing, and I'm really happy for you!

Thank you everyone for your great responses.


Grandpa will probably use a scooter in the parks. We are also renting a car, but we thought it would be good to take the boats and monorails. In the GV we would give him the master bedroom so that he doesn't have to walk up and down the stairs. We have thought of a two bedroom and a studio, but think he would feel too secluded.


Both BLT and VGF would be a splurge for him, he has stayed in moderate resorts. These two hotels would be a splurge for both the grandfather and teenage friend who haven't stayed in big resorts like these. We usually only travel as a family of four, so this would maybe be the only time when we would be able to try out a GV. Also we go at least once a year so this trip would be more about making it nice for grandfather and daughter's teenage friend.


Thank you again for your help!

 

[arieltriton]

OP here!

Right now we are thinking of going with option one if it is available. (3 nights BLT grand villa and 4 nights VGF 2 bedroom) We love BLT and are looking forward to trying VGF.

We were wondering about another option though. If we change the first half to a GV at SSR or Kidani standard GV (we already have the Kidani standard GV booked for 3 nights since it is our home resort) and then we would have enough points for five nights at a VGF instead of 4. Even though we love the look of the BLT GV, we are wondering if it is better to do SSR or Kidani to get the extra night at VGF.

Does anybody have an opinion on how much nicer the BLT GV is?

TIA!

 

[DavidG1966]

Stick with Option 1

 

[disneymath]

OP here!

Right now we are thinking of going with option one if it is available. (3 nights BLT grand villa and 4 nights VGF 2 bedroom) We love BLT and are looking forward to trying VGF.

We were wondering about another option though. If we change the first half to a GV at SSR or Kidani standard GV (we already have the Kidani standard GV booked for 3 nights since it is our home resort) and then we would have enough points for five nights at a VGF instead of 4. Even though we love the look of the BLT GV, we are wondering if it is better to do SSR or Kidani to get the extra night at VGF.

Does anybody have an opinion on how much nicer the BLT GV is?

TIA!

While the living area (kitchen / sitting room) of the BLT GV is pretty awesome, the master bedroom and upstairs bedrooms are really no different than the master and second bedrooms in a dedicated 2BR at BLT. Unless you plan on spending lots of time in the living area at BLT (e.g. in villa meals, etc.) I would go for the GV at AKL or SSR and the extra night at VGF.

(FWIW I have not stayed in any villas at AKL or SSR, so won't try to make a comparison involving them.)