*** Bay Lake Tower Owners Group***

[aleria24]

I am planning a trip for Dec'25 and trying to start deciding where we will stay. Any chance they put in a sower stall like the other monorail properties in the studios? I know they won't get 2 bathrooms, but our party has mobility issues and stepping over a tub is deal breaker for us so hoping for a stand up shower at least.

 

[ocdb8r1]

I am planning a trip for Dec'25 and trying to start deciding where we will stay. Any chance they put in a sower stall like the other monorail properties in the studios? I know they won't get 2 bathrooms, but our party has mobility issues and stepping over a tub is deal breaker for us so hoping for a stand up shower at least.

Why not book one of the accessible rooms with a roll-in (also walk in) shower? I think it's unlikely they replace the tubs in the normal rooms.

 

[aleria24]

Why not book one of the accessible rooms with a roll-in (also walk in) shower? I think it's unlikely they replace the tubs in the normal rooms.

There are less that 10 of them, and they are VERY hard to get, particularly as a points rental. There are very small numbers of accessible rooms across all the DVC properties.

 

[slvc1996]

Just passed ROFR for our first DVC contract at BLT! So excited to be joining you all in the club.

 

[bcuinohio]

Just passed ROFR for our first DVC contract at BLT! So excited to be joining you all in the club.

Congratulations, it’s a great resort.

 

[RickNJane]

Congrats. Hope you love it as much as we do!

 

[Lorraine]

BLT owner here. I always loved the subtle modern style of Bay Lake Tower.

We always get a lakeview villa. The first time we were super lucky and got a room, high floor the section furtherest from Contemporary with views of Space Mountains and the Castle. We watch the fireworks from our sofa and balcony.

Second time we got the top floor inner circle overlooking pool. My boys loved the looks on the elevator when they needed their key card to access the top floor.

Since then, I aways request a high floor and that same section.

Hi

We have just booked a grand villa preferred view. What is the wording you use to book this specific area please?
Many thanks

 

[bcuinohio]

Hi

We have just booked a grand villa preferred view. What is the wording you use to book this specific area please?
Many thanks

This is a separate booking category. I think anll the GVs are are on the top two floors. Preferred is probably lake view. They recently changed their he view descriptions so not sure what is included in preferred.

Edited: correcting answer on view.

 

[eticketplease]

This is a separate booking category. I think anll the GVs are are on the top two floors. Preferred is probably theme park view. They recently changed their he view descriptions so not sure what is included in preferred.

Resort replaced Standard View.
Preferred replaced Lake View.
Theme Park view stayed the same.

 

[MartyParty]

Hi

We have just booked a grand villa preferred view. What is the wording you use to book this specific area please?
Many thanks

Took some screenshots for you from the DVC Bay Lake points chart.

I kinda liked having the prior names of standard, lake, and theme park.

 

[MartyParty]

Any BLT room refurbishment videos for the 3 bedroom villas yet? I've been looking but haven't seen any.

 

[supercarrie]

Any BLT room refurbishment videos for the 3 bedroom villas yet? I've been looking but haven't seen any.

Yes.

 

[MartyParty]

Yes.

Thanks for this. Love it! I liked the BLT 3 BR before the refurb. Like it even more post refurb. Nice balance of walnut woods, pops of color, and the views are still the same.

We had a 3 BR villa in 2023 to celebrate my youngest's high school graduation. Looking to do a repeat in 2026 for my oldest graduate program.

Fingers crossed the wider DVC community continues to not love on BLT! Makes booking all those BLT rooms a lot easier!

 

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

Yes.

Nice. I hope a better quality video comes out soon! I'd like to see more of the details

 

[Mexacajun]

Yes.

Thanks for sharing. I am actually quite sad about the refurb. I was so hopeful for something more bright and vibrant. The kitchens in the villas are just sad. The backsplash looks terrible and extremely antiquated. This 3 bedroom is particularly disappointing as it has nothing special in the kitchen for a bigger room (than the 2 bedroom). I was excited to stay in the grand villa but I will just go to riveria instead where you have something special.

 

[starsaber25]

Well I just got back from my first home resort stay. Overall I was super happy with my stay and extremely happy to be a DVC member at Bay Lake. However, this does go without saying, I wish there were a few small items that were different. This isn't my first DVC stay as I stayed at Kidani this past summer so there will be some comparison. Here is my review:

Obviously like many of us here, we have researched and gained a lot of knowledge about DVC and our home resorts then most other visitors. So I had expectations. My family and I (Wife, 3 kids under 16 and my Father in Law) stayed in a 2 bedroom Lake View room. Of course upon check in I was hoping that I we were going to get a refurbished room. I for one have liked looking at the photos of the new rooms and I am happy with the way they have looked. Well low and behold we did not end up in a refurbished room. But now that is okay with me and I will explain my reasoning later.

We ended up on the 12th floor in room 8217 which very much had a direct middle view of the pool area. It was a very nice view. Upon entering the room I very much noticed the condition of the room and it was looking tired. But I knew this was going to be the case. I thought the layout of the room was great and we had plenty of space. My 16 year old claimed the extra bathroom and shower pretty much right away. My wife and I went to the master and my other two sons and my father in law claimed the bedroom with the two queen beds. Overall I thought the master bedroom along with the bathroom had ample space for us and I would not need anymore then that. The 2nd bedroom also had plenty of space.

The kitchen was fine for our purposes. We were not going to eat in at all on the trip so we were just concerned with the refridgerator and coffee pot. The room was pretty well stocked with coffee, creamers, and sugar. We did have to call down to get extra coffee delivered and the front desk was more then happy to help. There was also plenty of dishwasher detergent as well as laundry detergent. We ended up doing two loads while we were there and it is great having your own washer and dryer.

So going back to my expectations and the fact that I was originally bummed about not getting a referbished room; well after one night both my wife and my father in law said to me that the room is awesome! Again, neither one of them have stayed in a DVC room before so it made me very happy that both of them were just completely happy with the way the room was. Which in turn made me also realize that I am happy to be in an old room because now I can say I stayed in one of them. Now on my next trip I will be able to compare an old room to a new room.

So onto transportation and park access. I totally understand now how great the walk is to Magic Kingdom. This was one of the main reasons why we bought at BLT. And it is a homerun! It is so easy to walk back and forth. We also loved taking the monorail to EPCOT. Yes the ride back isn't as great as the ride there because you are the last stop on the resort monorail. But it is still great. So now on to the buses. We took the buses to Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. Overall, it was not really a big deal. The one thing that I did like better at Kidani is there were specific benches for each park. So if you wanted to go to Hollywood Studios then you would wait at the Hollywood Studios benches. At the Contemporary there is just a line of benches and believe it or not there was some confusion among guests and it wasn't as orderly. The last downside to the buses was having to share the rides home with Wilderness Lodge. I'm sure it is a cost saving measure and I totally understand it but the buses on the way back to the resort from the parks were PACKED. I just wish there was a better way to do this. But overall, like I said, the buses aren't a huge deal.

The main "complaint" I have along with my wife is we wish there was a small shop inside of Bay Lake Tower for a quick bottle of water/soda/juice and a snack. When I stayed at Kidani there was a small gift shop inside which completely served its purpose. I understand that there are shops in the Contemporary but it would be nice to not have to walk over there just for a juice. Also note, that during my stay the skyway was closed for refurbishment so we had to walk outside and then go up.

So to wrap this up because it has gone on for very long, it was overall an excellent stay and we are so happy to call BLT home. There are so many awesome things about this resort. We cannot wait to stay again. That walk to MK cannot be beat! Also, I'd like to add that the CM at the resort were great and very nice and accomodating.

 

[MartyParty]

Well I just got back from my first home resort stay. Overall I was super happy with my stay and extremely happy to be a DVC member at Bay Lake. However, this does go without saying, I wish there were a few small items that were different. This isn't my first DVC stay as I stayed at Kidani this past summer so there will be some comparison. Here is my review:

Obviously like many of us here, we have researched and gained a lot of knowledge about DVC and our home resorts then most other visitors. So I had expectations. My family and I (Wife, 3 kids under 16 and my Father in Law) stayed in a 2 bedroom Lake View room. Of course upon check in I was hoping that I we were going to get a refurbished room. I for one have liked looking at the photos of the new rooms and I am happy with the way they have looked. Well low and behold we did not end up in a refurbished room. But now that is okay with me and I will explain my reasoning later.

We ended up on the 12th floor in room 8217 which very much had a direct middle view of the pool area. It was a very nice view. Upon entering the room I very much noticed the condition of the room and it was looking tired. But I knew this was going to be the case. I thought the layout of the room was great and we had plenty of space. My 16 year old claimed the extra bathroom and shower pretty much right away. My wife and I went to the master and my other two sons and my father in law claimed the bedroom with the two queen beds. Overall I thought the master bedroom along with the bedroom had ample space for us and I would not need anymore then that. The 2nd bedroom also had plenty of space.

The kitchen was fine for our purposes. We were not going to eat in at all on the trip so we were just concerned with the refridgerator and coffee pot. The room was pretty well stocked with coffee, creamers, and sugar. We did have to call down to get extra coffee delivered and the front desk was more then happy to help. There was also plenty of dishwasher detergent as well as laundry detergent. We ended up doing two loads while we were there and it is great having your own washer and dryer.

So going back to my expectations and the fact that I was originally bummed about not getting a referbished room; well after one night both my wife and my father in law said to me that the room is awesome! Again, neither one of them have stayed in a DVC room before so it made me very happy that both of them were just completely happy with the way the room was. Which in turn made me also realize that I am happy to be in an old room because now I can say I stayed in one of them. Now on my next trip I will be able to compare an old room to a new room.

So onto transportation and park access. I totally understand now how great the walk is to Magic Kingdom. This was one of the main reasons why we bought at BLT. And it is a homerun! It is so easy to walk back and forth. We also loved taking the monorail to EPCOT. Yes the ride back isn't as great as the ride there because you are the last stop on the resort monorail. But it is still great. So now on to the buses. We took the buses to Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. Overall, it was not really a big deal. The one thing that I did like better at Kidani is there were specific benches for each park. So if you wanted to go to Hollywood Studios then you would wait at the Hollywood Studios benches. At the Contemporary there is just a line of benches and believe it or not there was some confusion among guests and it wasn't as orderly. The last downside to the buses was having to share the rides home with Wilderness Lodge. I'm sure it is a cost saving measure and I totally understand it but the buses on the way back to the resort from the parks were PACKED. I just wish there was a better way to do this. But overall, like I said, the buses aren't a huge deal.

The main "complaint" I have along with my wife is we wish there was a small shop inside of Bay Lake Tower for a quick bottle of water/soda/juice and a snack. When I stayed at Kidani there was a small gift shop inside which completely served its purpose. I understand that there are shops in the Contemporary but it would be nice to not have to walk over there just for a juice. Also note, that during my stay the skyway was closed for refurbishment so we had to walk outside and then go up.

So to wrap this up because it has gone on for very long, it was overall an excellent stay and we are so happy to call BLT home. There are so many awesome things about this resort. We cannot wait to stay again. That walk to MK cannot be beat! Also, I'd like to add that the CM at the resort were great and very nice and accomodating.

Thanks for sharing your trip report Starsaber. Welcome home.

 

[Wiltony]

Great comments on your stay!

I want to commiserate on the bus station situation. It is always disorganized and frequently results in unfair boarding order, because no one knows who is waiting for what bus, and there is no "line" so no one knows who was there first, so people just stand up and run to get on as soon as they see their bus. Tragically, this means some people who may have waited *way* longer than them, may not get a seat even though they might deserve one, or worse, the bus might be full and they weren't able to get on that bus at all!

Like you, I was also originally irritated there was no small convenience store/shop over at BLT, but as long as the skyway is open, it hasn't been too difficult to pop over to the contemporary. I can certainly see the extra mileage being really irritating if the skyway was closed, however!

Finally, Disney should have a hard line that Deluxe resorts guests do not have to share buses with other locations! It's crazy they make you stop at WL first on the way home at night. Definitely a cost-saving measure. It was never like that pre-pandemic.

 

[Chili327]

@starsaber25 Awesome review!!
My first BLT stay is coming later this year (or Jan 2026)

Finally, Disney should have a hard line that Deluxe resorts guess do not have to share buses with other locations! It's crazy they make you stop at WL first on the way home at night. Definitely a cost-saving measure. It was never like that pre-pandemic.

I bet that changes once Lakeshore is up & running.

 

[RickNJane]

Our first BLT trip was December 2023, also in a 2br with our DD, SIL and 2 DGDs. Could not have been happier. We do know what you mean about the bus stop. What a free for all. We usually did not have a problem, fortunately. To combat that we are doing a Split stay in November. BWV, AK and BLT. We will only take a bus to AK from AKV. We will walk or take a boat to all other resorts! We have done splits before and things usually go really smooth. This will be our first 3 way split, but we are staying for 15 days, so should not be too bad. We are really looking forward seeing the refurb. The BLT room was great, but a little tired. This trip we are going for theme park view. Hard to wait for November.