BCV versus BWV versus Yacht Club

[corpcomp]

I know, you are asking what yacht club is doing in this comparison.

I threw a convention at WDW last week and spent several days at the Yacht Club (5th floor Club level) and three days at BoardWalk Villas (a studio facing the lake room 5005) and had stayed at Beach BCV (our home resort) in April. Here are what we noticed:

BCV - April

1 bedroom - 4th floor facing the woods. No issues with anything and of course always enjoy the gelato. However for April, SAB was absolutely packed - counted about 30 kids in the whirlpool section alone. My son who always enjoys it did not want to fight the crowds. But we had our normal great time.


Yacht Club - June

Elegant - very nicely done rooms with I-pod holders and VCRs, as well as really nice food all the time in the 5th floor lounge and wine in the evening. We had a waterfront room overlooking both SAB and the lake, just spectacular. Excellent service - the manager (Alfredo) even drove us to BWV as we were transferring as my wife fell during our convention dinner party and broke her toe - two paramedics showed up and helped her. The crowning touch was a really nice Disney submariner watch given to me by the Convention Manager as a thank you for bringing our meeting there (also gave us two free nights in the hotel). - Conclusion - one of the top hotels in Disney but at about $600 per night its pricey - DVC is a better deal.

Also, SAB was extremely hot - probably over 90 in the water and the air temp was about 92. Not enjoyable from a temp standpoint. Felt more like bathwater. We will not come in June again.


BWV - June

Studio - our first in a studio - but in Room 5005 we had a perfect view of the lake and the fireworks.

After three days it got small and were really annoyed with the paper plates! We were at the end of the infamous long halls and with me and my son pushing my wife in a wheelchair, it was really long.

The room can only be described as dated. The hall rugs had a dirty / grimy look to them and the room just did not have the appeal of BCV.

Spent 15 minutes in the Clown pool and my son and I were bored. SAB it is not.


Conclusion - While I understand how many would not go back to a studio after a 1 bedroom, we will likely not come back to BWV until the place is upgraded. We will stick with BCV (regardless if its a studio or 1 BR.) However if I get an inheritance, I will spend more time at the yacht club!

 

[Corinne]

Nearly all of our stays were at the YC before we became DVC members (we have stayed at he WL several times as well). Our first DVC stay and several subsequent stays have been at the BWV. I do like it there, but we really do not care for the pool area at all, in fact, we only go to the quiet pool when we stay there. All of our other stays have been at the BCV. We just love it there. We are staying at the VWL in July so I am looking forward to trying something new, but I am worried about missing my beloved Epcot area!

 

[LSchrow]

totally agree with you about the YC ~ it is our fave non-DVC resort

we can agree to disagree about BCV & BWV tho (we own at both, as well as at SSR). we love the BWVs, & haven't found the rooms nor common areas more worn/dated than any other resort , rather the BW's charm, elegance, amazing views, entertainment, etc "wow" us every time.
however, we find both the BC & BCV's waaaaaaaay too noisy (both inside & out), with unremarkable room views. (the appeal of SAB is apparently lost on us as well....we enjoy swimming & relaxing in pools, & sadly found SAB is not conducive to either with its literally wall-to-wall people, even during off-season ). btw, we've relatives & friends who have come to the same conclusion, & will absolutely not return to the BCVs .

thank goodness there are different resorts for differing tastes

 

[jekjones1558]

We have never had the pleasure of staying at the YC, but you make it sound pretty great. Side note: We loved Alfredo when he was front desk manager at BW.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

totally agree with you about the YC ~ it is our fave non-DVC resort

we can agree to disagree about BCV & BWV tho (we own at both, as well as at SSR). we love the BWVs, & haven't found the rooms nor common areas more worn/dated than any other resort , rather the BW's charm, elegance, amazing views, entertainment, etc "wow" us every time.
however, we find both the BC & BCV's waaaaaaaay too noisy (both inside & out), with unremarkable room views. (the appeal of SAB is apparently lost on us as well....we enjoy swimming & relaxing in pools, & sadly found SAB is not conducive to either with its literally wall-to-wall people, even during off-season ). btw, we've relatives & friends who have come to the same conclusion, & will absolutely not return to the BCVs .

thank goodness there are different resorts for differing tastes

While at BWV in April, we decided to walk over to BCV to get some ice cream at Beaches and Cream. I didn't like the fact that you have to walk into the lobby to get outside to BC. I was also hoping to get something from the counter service there....absolutely no way was going to get any food in under an hour! The whole entire eating area was overly packed with kids and adults. This was close to 10pm! I never felt crowded at BWV, neither at the quiet pool or Luna pool. Yes, the boardwalk at night was crowded, but it was not an all day thing. To be fair, this was an extremely crowded time period (3rd week of April). Still, I guess I'm getting old, but there was way too much activity in one small area over at BCV. I'll take my BWV Boardwalk view any day. JMHO.

 

[paults]

lets see

1) BCV 1bedroom
vs
2) YC club level
vs
3) BWV studio BWview

let me guess who wins. #2 then #1 then #3
this isn't even close to being equal to me because BWview wins hands down for us

 

[jekjones1558]

A note about the hallway carpets:
I used to think that they were really dirty and couldn't understand it because I saw them being cleaned many times. I looked more carefully and I now believe that they are mostly faded. In the BW view hallway, the portion that is next to the big windows near the pool gets a lot of sun and it is particularly washed out. While I like the pattern, perhaps when the carpets are next replaced the decision maker will choose a design that is less prone to show fading.

 

[twinklebug]

lets see

1) BCV 1bedroom
vs
2) YC club level
vs
3) BWV studio BWview

let me guess who wins. #2 then #1 then #3

I was thinking the exact same thing.
Not exactly comparing apples to apples now are we?

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

I have stayed in a worn room at BWV (04/07) and I have stayed in fresh rooms at BWV (01/08). I'm sure BCV also has fresh and worn rooms. Of course, we had the worn rooms when I was trying to impress my sisters.

We'd love for you to give BWV another shot!

On 2nd thought...how did you ever put up with that Boardwalk View room? I'm sure all of the terrible noise of the boardwalk and the boats kept you up all night. You poor thing. I don't see how anybody puts up with that.

 

[MrsG]

Our home resort is BCV and we adore it (full disclosure here), but this past Feb. we were forced (rather we were thrilled) to extend our stay an extra day due to a blizzard in the North east. We could not extend our stay for a studio in BCV but BWV studios were available. We had never stayed there before but often would walk the BW and watch the entertainment, snack there, etc.

There were a few things we noticed. It is more dated than BCV. I guess since it is older and highly used also, that's understandable. The one real drawback was that we were a few rooms down from the elevator on the 5th floor and every once and a while we heard a really LOUD noise. It was the elevator moving up and down! I can't imagine how load it must have been for those whose room was smack up against it!

Anyway, overall we had a great stay.

 

[corpcomp]

I have stayed in a worn room at BWV (04/07) and I have stayed in fresh rooms at BWV (01/08). I'm sure BCV also has fresh and worn rooms. Of course, we had the worn rooms when I was trying to impress my sisters.

We'd love for you to give BWV another shot!

On 2nd thought...how did you ever put up with that Boardwalk View room? I'm sure all of the terrible noise of the boardwalk and the boats kept you up all night. You poor thing. I don't see how anybody puts up with that.

Well we never even noticed the noise and the lake view was spectacular from the 5th floor- infinitely better than BCV unless you like trees (which we have plenty of in our yard). I spent a lot of time on the balcony (well not a lot - I kept getting dragged out by my son wanting to go to the parks). I had hired a magician and characature artist for our meeting and we met them on the Boardwalk later in the week. We enjoy the Boardwalk. And for that person who could not figure out how to get to Beaches and Cream from the outside, you can walk down the back entrance of the Yacht Club and follow the porch all the way to B&C. And yes at any time there is a wait - we saw the same wait at ESPN, which is a lot of fun. Next time we will try Big River Grill. If you want a wait, try Midway Mania - 110 minutes last week.

But the best was getting the dream fast passes again.

 

[corpcomp]

lets see

1) BCV 1bedroom
vs
2) YC club level
vs
3) BWV studio BWview

let me guess who wins. #2 then #1 then #3
this isn't even close to being equal to me because BWview wins hands down for us

Actually the Yacht Club 5th floor waterfront view was just as good as BWV - try it some time

 

[WALTSAGOD]

92F sounds rather cool to me,...of course I live in New Orleans though.

 

[dan and scott]

I love the BW it is more "adult" than the BCV.
The grand entrance and the lobby have more of a WOW factor,probably the best of any of the deluxes.
We usually don't use the feature pool at BW and find SAB full of screaming kids all the time-kids just arent our thing on vacation.
Really don't have any reason why I would stay at BC although the BC and BW resorts are sort of "kissing cousins". OKW and BW were the only resorts besides the coastal properties offered in 98.
I do appreciate though why families with kids do like BC. It is a stunning resort though.

Scott

 

[Lesli54]

The Yacht Club has always been my favorite and if it had villas, I would own there. Just love the atmosphere and the close proximity to the launch so that you can easily get to BW for entertainment.

We own at BCV and it works well with us because of SAB for the kids. Of course, Beaches & Cream and Cape May have wonderful food. The marketplace is well located so that the walk from the villas isn't long. Also the quite pool at the villas is a decent size and we use it for a quick swim, so we don't always have to deal with the crowd at SAB. We just got back from a 2 week trip there and I have to admit that the resort was very full therefore making SAB even more popular. However, we found that if you go in the late afternoon, early evening, the crowd diminishes greatly. Also, you can walk to Epcot, which we love, and it is not far from all the great entertainment at BW.

As for BWV, that is probably 3rd on my list, although it can run a close 2nd to BCV since I love the atmosphere of the BW. It does seem like it can be a bit of a walk at times, but it still has so much charm.

We stay in a 2 bdrm due to the size of the family and eventually, we will probably move down to a 1 bdrm. I cannot see us staying in a studio except for a night or two, possibly. We love the extra space that a one bedroom gives you and I would much rather eat off of real plates and pop them in the dishwasher.

Either way, our vote is always for an Epcot resort when possible, there is just so much to offer regardless of which one you pick.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Well we never even noticed the noise and the lake view was spectacular from the 5th floor- infinitely better than BCV unless you like trees (which we have plenty of in our yard). I spent a lot of time on the balcony (well not a lot - I kept getting dragged out by my son wanting to go to the parks). I had hired a magician and characature artist for our meeting and we met them on the Boardwalk later in the week. We enjoy the Boardwalk. And for that person who could not figure out how to get to Beaches and Cream from the outside, you can walk down the back entrance of the Yacht Club and follow the porch all the way to B&C. And yes at any time there is a wait - we saw the same wait at ESPN, which is a lot of fun. Next time we will try Big River Grill. If you want a wait, try Midway Mania - 110 minutes last week.

But the best was getting the dream fast passes again.

My comments about the noise was tongue in cheek. I love BWV and want to always have a room.

 

[photobob]

I stayed at Yacht Club three times before buying DVC. I've stayed at BWV twice. We really loved the Yacht Club, so much so that we got spoiled and had a hard time going back to lesser accomodations. Those experiences led us to buy into DVC.

BWV's has appeal to me for many different reasons.
1. Location. Two of the four theme parks easily accessible.
2. I really like the Boardwalk and it's restaurants, shops and street entertainment.
3. Standard view rooms are a real point saver. I only have 180 points and it is hard not to get a standard view room there when available given the previous two points.
4. I enjoyed the Luna Park pool area and slide. It is not as elaborate as SAB, but that is true of all resort pools.

Haven't stayed yet at BCV but really want too!

I will stay eventually at all the DVC resorts, but most likely if possible all 1 or 2 BDR stays will be standard view at BWV for reason #3. I'll probably stay in studios everywhere else, except maybe OKW where points are even lower.

 

[Tiger926]

We just stayed at Yacht Club last month - club level, 5th floor, and found it extremely dated. In fact, the club level floor is in desperate need of a refurbishment. We had a great view of SAB, but the rooms and the concierge lounge were not in great shape at all. We had just come from Club Level at Contemporary and there was no comparison between customer service, IPO department and quality of club level experience. Although we enjoyed our stay at the Yacht Club, we will most likely never stay again as we found the rooms small, hallways way too long (we were all the way at the end of hall with a preschooler and baby in tow - very long walk each day) and stains, torn drapes and faded furnishings not to our standards.

This being said, we absolutely fell in love with the Epcot resort area, and have decided to stay at Beach Club next trip. Even with 2 small children, we spend a huge amount of time at Epcot (we eat at least 2 TS per day - just did deluxe plan), and love the fact that we can walk to Epcot, ferry to Studios or take monorail to MK. That's the best for us! Depending upon how that goes (we greatly enjoyed our visit over there), we are considering an add-on. We haven't stayed at Boardwalk yet, but have spent lots of time over there for eating, shopping, etc. We didn't find SAB to be too crowded either - we were there for Mother's day and 3 days following.

Interesting observations, Tiger

 

[shovan]

92F sounds rather cool to me,...of course I live in New Orleans though.

That's what I was thinking! But I'm also a New Orleanian!

 

[kaelarad]

DH and I own at BWV and are very disappointed. Still no dvd players in the studios and the entertainment unit during our May stay was so broken it could have been extremely dangerous for a young child. Of course told maintence and management and was completely ignored. We are close to considering selling our DVC. We pay too much for poor accomadations and a complete lack of concern by DVC and BW management.