Add-On-Itis

[RamblinWreck]

Because they cost twice as much as a studio but don’t really sleep more people.

However I’ve stayed in them by myself and gotta say, worth every point!!!

Most of my solo will be booked that way just in case someone decides to come!!

I'd say that their value is heavily dependent on how you use the room.

My wife and I have 2 very young kids, and the benefit of being able to have them sleep in a different room from us is a big benefit.

The laundry is also very useful, especially with the little ones. It also allows you to pack lighter. Which could save you money on checked bags if you're flying or save car space for other essentials if not.

But the biggest is the kitchen. The full kitchen alone nearly saves us enough money to make the whole upgrade to a 1 bedroom suite a wash. With a 2 year old and a 4 year old, we do a big grocery run for a 7 day trip and 100% of our breakfasts and lunches are coming from that kitchen. And with their sleeping/napping schedules, even most of their dinners are homemade in the suite. Plus we need at least a gallon of whole milk and a gallon of 2% milk, plus all the little snacks they like to have. You can't keep all of that in the kitchenette. And if you're buying them a new single serving milk with every meal, you'll take a $5 expense over the course of the entire trip and turn it into a $100 expense, just on milk.


For people who would prefer to be spending extra money on the food in the parks as opposed to a better sleeping arrangement, I can see why a 1 bedroom makes absolutely no sense and would be a waste. If your goal is the most bodies in beds with the least amount of points used, it's also definitely not for you.

But I do think that some people vastly underestimate the financial benefit of the full kitchen.

 

[Shellyred8]

For us, it's the in-room laundry that is the biggest draw. We fly down, so it's nice to be able to pack a little less knowing that we have laundry facilities in our room. I like the extra space too. After being in the parks and around crowds all day, it's nice to come back to a room and just have some extra space to be in. And, as a few others have mentioned, we don't tend to do the parks as heavily as we used to, so we do spend more time in the room and it's nice to not feel so cramped.

 

[RoseGold]

The laundry is also very useful, especially with the little ones. It also allows you to pack lighter. Which could save you money on checked bags if you're flying or save car space for other essentials if not.

But the biggest is the kitchen. The full kitchen alone nearly saves us enough money to make the whole upgrade to a 1 bedroom suite a wash. With a 2 year old and a 4 year old, we do a big grocery run for a 7 day trip and 100% of our breakfasts and lunches are coming from that kitchen. And with their sleeping/napping schedules, even most of their dinners are homemade in the suite. Plus we need at least a gallon of whole milk and a gallon of 2% milk, plus all the little snacks they like to have. You can't keep all of that in the kitchenette. And if you're buying them a new single serving milk with every meal, you'll take a $5 expense over the course of the entire trip and turn it into a $100 expense, just on milk.

You don't have to stay DVC to have laundry. Swolphin and Art of Animation have this too for a few bucks.

That is a heck of an expensive room for a couple hundred bucks in food to matter. You could eat out every meal, stay Art of Animation, and probably come out ahead for a 1BR. Lugging homemade lunch to Disney is not a vacation to me. I like 1BRs, I book them more than anything else. But they aren't exactly a math winner. And I'm really scratching my head if you think bringing a sandwich is enough to pay for rooms this expensive.

 

[DonMacGregor]

I like the extra space too. After being in the parks and around crowds all day, it's nice to come back to a room and just have some extra space to be in. And, as a few others have mentioned, we don't tend to do the parks as heavily as we used to, so we do spend more time in the room and it's nice to not feel so cramped.

Even if there's just two of you, if one wants to take a nap, having a separate bedroom from the living room is huge. 30 years of marriage has taught me the benefit of the occasional separate space. Oh, and we have never used the stove or oven in a DVC villa.

 

[HappyThoughtsTees]

I'd say that their value is heavily dependent on how you use the room.

My wife and I have 2 very young kids, and the benefit of being able to have them sleep in a different room from us is a big benefit.

The laundry is also very useful, especially with the little ones. It also allows you to pack lighter. Which could save you money on checked bags if you're flying or save car space for other essentials if not.

But the biggest is the kitchen. The full kitchen alone nearly saves us enough money to make the whole upgrade to a 1 bedroom suite a wash. With a 2 year old and a 4 year old, we do a big grocery run for a 7 day trip and 100% of our breakfasts and lunches are coming from that kitchen. And with their sleeping/napping schedules, even most of their dinners are homemade in the suite. Plus we need at least a gallon of whole milk and a gallon of 2% milk, plus all the little snacks they like to have. You can't keep all of that in the kitchenette. And if you're buying them a new single serving milk with every meal, you'll take a $5 expense over the course of the entire trip and turn it into a $100 expense, just on milk.


For people who would prefer to be spending extra money on the food in the parks as opposed to a better sleeping arrangement, I can see why a 1 bedroom makes absolutely no sense and would be a waste. If your goal is the most bodies in beds with the least amount of points used, it's also definitely not for you.

But I do think that some people vastly underestimate the financial benefit of the full kitchen.

I couldn't agree with you more. It may not equal out dollar for dollar, but with three kids under 9, having a washer and dryer in the room plus full sized fridge...total game changers. There is no way my 3 year-old is going to sit and eat enough to justify the breakfast/lunch restaurant price tag but he'll eat his weight in snacks throughout the day. Kids eat dinner on the early side, so we have used both the oven and stove for the occasional dinner in the room before heading back to the parks for evening hours. We tend to get a 2 bedroom and take grandparents with us, but have no problem getting the 1 bedroom for just our family of 5.

 

[RamblinWreck]

You don't have to stay DVC to have laundry. Swolphin and Art of Animation have this too for a few bucks.

That is a heck of an expensive room for a couple hundred bucks in food to matter. You could eat out every meal, stay Art of Animation, and probably come out ahead for a 1BR. Lugging homemade lunch to Disney is not a vacation to me. I like 1BRs, I book them more than anything else. But they aren't exactly a math winner. And I'm really scratching my head if you think bringing a sandwich is enough to pay for rooms this expensive.

Is the Art of Animation on the monorail now?

I think you're meddling with variables here that don't really apply. We're talking about the difference in room categories, not completely different resorts. But if we really wanted to get into the financials of Art of Animation (which I did spend a night in one of those suites once and found it quite nice for what it was), the rack rate price at the time of year I am typically there is ~$600 per night. Even paying "one-time use point" rates, a 1 bedroom at BLT would be $720. And the math on being an owner works out much more favorably than that. I'd easily pay that premium just for the monorail and walking to MK, without even factoring in the in-room laundry or kitchen.

I think you're also really underestimating the cost of eating in the parks. A couple hundred bucks? Per day, maybe.

I have 2 little kids. I'm already "lugging" a stroller, a diaper bag, etc to the parks. This is what I'm saying. Different people have different preferences, which make different rooms work better or worse for them. What's "not a vacation" to me is spending a bunch of time trying to wrangle little kids for a sit down meal in a park when all they want to do is go find Mickey and ride rides (and... so do I). I'd much rather just pull a sandwich or other snack out of the bag to give them in line for a ride, and do the same myself. And on another note, the food in the parks, generally speaking, is garbage. It's also nice to be able to consume vegetables and the like every now and then.

I'm not under the impression that it all balances out totally. But what I do get is a an experience that I personally enjoy a lot more, and the difference isn't as much as you might think it is if you're only looking at the point chart.

 

[RamblinWreck]

I couldn't agree with you more. It may not equal out dollar for dollar, but with three kids under 9, having a washer and dryer in the room plus full sized fridge...total game changers. There is no way my 3 year-old is going to sit and eat enough to justify the breakfast/lunch restaurant price tag but he'll eat his weight in snacks throughout the day. Kids eat dinner on the early side, so we have used both the oven and stove for the occasional dinner in the room before heading back to the parks for evening hours. We tend to get a 2 bedroom and take grandparents with us, but have no problem getting the 1 bedroom for just our family of 5.

And I won't speak for you, but for me personally, if I had 3 kids and one of them being 9, I might go insane trying to share one hotel room sized space together with all of them!

Even having just 2 little ones the thought of not being able to have any personal space for over a week sounds exhausting.

 

[JoeDisney247365]

Passed ROFR today at BCV and called DVC and bought a direct contract at RIV a few hours later. 0 to 400 points in a matter of hours
Talk about Add-On-Itus! I need to delete all of these resale websites now.

 

[gregskellington]

Checking into a 1BR at Kidani on Saturday and I'm unfortunately fairly certain I'll be coming down with a serious case of it myself

 

[SleeplessInTO]

Let’s stop explaining why 1 bedrooms are wonderful. I’d like to be able to book almost anywhere at 7 months still please!