AKV as a non-member?

[DeanDome]

WDW veteran but DVC newbie with a question. We unexpectedly ended up with a three-day weekend this coming weekend and decided we'd like to take our 2 year old and 4 year old back to WDW. As someone who plans everything a year in advance, planning something five days in advance is a little traumatic.

Naturally, most everything was sold out. However, as I was poking around the WDW website, I stumbled across what seemed like a great deal on a Jambo 1-bedroom SV suite through the AK Villa option on the drop-down menu.

It almost seems too good to be true. What are the differences, if any, between booking the Villa as opposed to booking the run of the mill hotel room? I watched the AKV 1-bedroom tour that's been posted on YouTube and it looks great. Is there something I'm missing here? The site went ahead and charged my card without ever asking if I was a DVC member or indicating that I needed to join to book this particular room.

Thanks very much for any assistance and I look forward to learning more about it.

 

[I'mNoPrince]

Some room are handed over to CRO ( if you booked on -line through the WDW sight thats what you were on it's WaltDisneyTravel ) to make up for trades and other means.

They are in the CRO rotation just like other rooms.

You will not get any DVC benifits but will get everything that you get with any other CRO booking. This includes Daily Housekeeping (we don't get that).

So of course you do not have to be a DVC member to book through CRO and you will so enjoy a 1bdrm over just a regular room .

Have fun and welcome to the DIS

 

[Lynne M]

Sure, you can book at DVC resorts without being a member. Disney retains ownership of a small percentage of the rooms at the DVC resorts, and when members trade out of DVC to travel to other resorts, those rooms also go to Disney. So, there's usually a small inventory of DVC villas available to be booked for cash by anyone, members or non-members. Just like booking any other Disney resort.

You're going to LOVE the AKV 1-bedroom. Full kitchen, washer/dryer, separate bedroom, jacuzzi tub, and lots more room than a standard hotel room.

You'll have all the usual perks of staying at a Disney resort, and yes, you will have daily housekeeping just as you would at any WDW resort.

Enjoy!

 

[erin.w]

Once you stay in the 1-bedroom villa you will want to buy into the DVC, so be careful! haha That's what happened to us.

 

[CarolMN]

Agree with the others - you will love that 1 bedroom!

Hope you come back and do a trip report for us. Would love to know how the trip went and the reactions of your two little ones.

 

[Inkmahm]

Once you stay in the 1-bedroom villa you will want to buy into the DVC, so be careful! haha That's what happened to us.

Amen! I can't imagine going back to "regular" hotel rooms after having the luxury of space and other amenities in the villas. We book the one bedroom just for DH and me when we could easily stay in a studio. But we LIKE the one bedrooms!

 

[DeanDome]

I appreciate all the help. We are not telling the kids where we are going until we are on the plane so it should be a great surprise, and it sounds like they will love the villa.

When we went in October we stayed at the Contemporary so I will be happy to come back and post a post-trip report next week and compare and contrast the two (sounds like DVC could be coming to the Contemporary in the near future). We are hoping to learn more about DVC while we are there.

If anyone has a favorite tip/ride/attraction, let me know. We are going to try and hit the Studios, Epcot (must eat breakfast with the princesses, you know), and MK during our trip. Hoping to see animals from the balcony and will fully do AK next time.