"
VWL vs. BC/YC to me is all about which location you prefer. I LOVE the MK area...
We really need a thread/support group for our spouses
You will love the setup for eating in the room. The table inside seats 6 I think and then one night we brought in a chair from the patio. Plus everything is right there together so you and dh or one of the bigger kids can sit on the couch and use the coffee table but still be part of the group, KWIM?basketlacey Thank you SO much for the OKW review!!!My concern is the buses and the distance to the main pool. Glad to hear the buses ran often, did you find them superpacked at the end of the evening? We have two late nights...wondering if we are better off driving. As for the location of the room...my fingers are crossed. View and quiet are more important
Well I am telling you I checked EVERY DAY! That was the hardest Cha Cha Change I have ever had!
Loved your impressions of OKW. I got a good rate back when kids were in Jr High. We were across the street from the Turtle Pond. We liked that location and the size of the studio(huge). Did not like the distance to the theme pool, food and shops.
Who wants to take a bus with swim suit on??? Or walk along the street with busses and cars passing you??? It just was not as private of a feel compared to walking on pathways like other resorts.
DD's BFF has family that stays there all the time(owners) yet I probably wont go back. We love BLT and VGF
I see you going to CR soon!
I put my DH through the same thing every trip. Which is exactly why resort changing isn't our fault, it's Disney's for giving us so many amazing options.So sorry for your sister, it is devastating to have a furbaby suffer
Ok, so let's talk OKW. First off, we had a 2 BR villa. HOLY GUACAMOLE. The room was HUGE. I was in shock at how big it was! You walk in the front door and to the right is the laundry which leads to the master bath (toilet shower sink area - HUGE) which leads to another room that has another sink and the garden tub which leads into the master with a king size bed and door leading out to balcony. If you skip the laundry and continue down the hallway from the front door, there was another doorway into the master. Seriously this whole side of the house was so spacious I couldn't believe it. The only complaint I have is that there was no door from the garden tub room into the bedroom. Because my kids were also using my bathroom some, that was a bit awkward at times. But this is a minor complaint.
So, the other side - to the left, was the second bedroom. Two queen beds plus a small table and chairs. Much bigger than most hotel rooms. Bathroom had separate vanity area outside of the toilet/shower area. My in-laws shared with with my two girls. Lots of closet space too. This was a big big room.
Ok, further in to the room straight ahead was the kitchen and family room area. Family room has a chair, sofa and loveseat and open floor plan to the kitchen with dining table. Lots of flat surfaces and storage space here too. My son slept on the pull out chair. It is a memory foam mattress and he was in heaven. We never pulled out the sofa bed once he sat on the chair bed. We cooked eggs one morning but that was the extent of the cooking we did in the room. We did load the fridge with drinks and bring in pizza and salad one night.
Straight through the family room was a large deck overlooking the golf course. It was so close we could talk to the golfers on the putting green. Very cool! The deck had another 4 person table.
General resort feedback - I loved the room. It was great for the arrangement we had. This would have been too big for just the five of us (and too expensive) but it was great considering we had the in laws with us. Our building was pretty far back on the grounds. The walk to the feature pool was far. You could use the buses but that wasn't super convenient. We ended up taking the car a couple of times. The walk never bothered me at CBR in April where we were also far away but I think the heat makes a big difference. July was hot and when we came back midday for a swim (every day) we were HOT. We were much closer to Turtle Pond Pool. It was a good spot, not crowded with plenty of seating and a bar with snacks. We did that one day but my kids liked the main pool with the slide and the games.
Main pool - awesome. Big pool, great slide, fun poolside activities. As I said earlier, we stopped everyday midday for a swim except the last day when we hit the pool after breakfast. About the time we were heading to the pool, most people were leaving and we never had trouble finding chairs. The pool has lots of twists and turns and you couldn't see the water from where our spots were. This wasn't an issue for me as mostly, I was in the water with the kids (I loved the slide too). I also have three kids that are very strong swimmers so not an issue. We had a couple of yummy drinks and ice creams from the QS area.
Food options - this is probably my biggest issue with OKW and it doesn't overshadow our stay but I was disappointed about no indoor QS place. The options were pretty limited. Again, not a huge deal but definitely a step down from our last few resort stays. We did eat breakfast one morning at Olivias and it was fantastic - banana bread French toast - yes please! I would have tried dinner there too but it was pricey and I was feeling bad choosing so many expensive options.
The gift shop had a good variety of items but not much in the way of groceries - go offsite for that.
Transportation - the buses came often but there are a lot of bus stops. We don't mind this much as the buses are cool and we don't like to drive to the parks. I'll take the extra stops to not have to deal with parking and walking and driving back.
Anything else you want to know???
The cups I bought for my girls only trip came in today!! My friend's cup is part of her birthday gift I am taking her, so I'm not showing them to her. The only itsy bitsy problem is that I had wanted the MH on the black cup to be red, so they would be opposite, but they are so cute, I don't even care. I needs y'all opinions on something. They came with one red and one black plastic straw. When the MH on my cup was going to be red, I thought I would use the red straw with mine, and the black with hers. This way the straws matched the MHs. Do y'all think I should put the red straw with the red cup, or like I have it shown with the red straw with the black cup?
It's so hard, isn't it! Honestly I would have been fine staying at POP. Our plan was rope drop then a sit down lunch then QS dinner. We would hang out at the mono resorts midday and/or swim at POP.
Think of it this way, spend money on food or maybe a water park with savings or upgrade to the next acceptable price.
Good luck. You will have fun whatever you choose
On RC note, dropped visions of CR TPV to snag Frozen Premium Package for our last night! Totally worth it - going to Akerhaus at 8AM and then DD7 will find a note with the package info. Will totally blow her away!
Reading through last few pages and like some of the plans coming together! Hope everyone is finding what they are looking for!
Boardwalk is on my "to do" list. My family just prefers the monorail line. Someday though, especially CL. Many people have had a good time there.Oh, btw....for me it is T-98 days!!!! wooo hooo...double digits
Seems faraway but will be here soon!
7 is such a sweet age. Sounds like a great surprise
Morning Friends
Looks everybody is busy today.
Hopefully doing some changing
Have a great weekend. Monday our plane is a 6am so just need to get my work done, housework done and double check my packing.
Oh and I checked today and scored a SDMN finally for 8/13
I am almost complete. Just need to check if CHANGE is available from coach to 1st class when I check in on sunday. Never stop changing
Morning Friends
Looks everybody is busy today.
Hopefully doing some changing
Have a great weekend. Monday our plane is a 6am so just need to get my work done, housework done and double check my packing.
Oh and I checked today and scored a SDMN finally for 8/13
I am almost complete. Just need to check if CHANGE is available from coach to 1st class when I check in on sunday. Never stop changing
Incredibly irrational, right?!? She's beginning the tantrum phase and it doesn't take much for her to be upset. We've learned to ignore her and she stops pretty quickly, but I can't imagine doing that in WDW!
GrumpyGrandma also mentioned that area tooJeanette,
We liked the turtle pond area because pool was nice, private hot tub AND a snack area to get lunch
Safe travels!!Our poor spouses!!!We are currently booked at BWI-CL. I will probably keep it......probably, lol.
And yes, my hubs probably needs a support group, lol!
Oh, btw....for me it is T-98 days!!!! wooo hooo...double digits
YAY for double digits I am not a fan of the new BWI decor, but their CL gets great reviews!Thank you
I forsee using the balcony to eat a LOT!! 
I like the straws switched. Red with red, black with black. I may be the minority thoughThe cups I bought for my girls only trip came in today!! My friend's cup is part of her birthday gift I am taking her, so I'm not showing them to her. The only itsy bitsy problem is that I had wanted the MH on the black cup to be red, so they would be opposite, but they are so cute, I don't even care. I needs y'all opinions on something. They came with one red and one black plastic straw. When the MH on my cup was going to be red, I thought I would use the red straw with mine, and the black with hers. This way the straws matched the MHs. Do y'all think I should put the red straw with the red cup, or like I have it shown with the red straw with the black cup?
I think it will be great. CL after all the breakfast is cereal and minipastries...A Mickey Waffle from the food court is SO much yummier IMHO
Safe trip, and ENJOY (you WILL enjoy it) Hope the steps forward will prevailQuick note - spent day running around base trying to get all the ducks for Japan to stay in a row (like herding cats!)... two steps forward and one back but such is life
Ginny - so glad to see positive news and hope your birthday was good!
On RC note, dropped visions of CR TPV to snag Frozen Premium Package for our last night! Totally worth it - going to Akerhaus at 8AM and then DD7 will find a note with the package info. Will totally blow her away!
Reading through last few pages and like some of the plans coming together! Hope everyone is finding what they are looking for!
I booked the Frozen package but cancelled. For 7 the price was 
plus we don't have great luck with nighttime parties...crowds are primo meltdown moments for the Pas-lettes 
I'm sweating bullets here.....I have just about an hour or so left to change my resort and keep the free dining. After tonight, I'm locked in. I can change to a non club level room at BC for about $1000 less. But I really want CL, but also want SAB and save money too....oh dear Lord. This is terrible! Poor DH says leave it alone, but, I am so tempted to change!
