Beach Club, Boardwalk Inn or Neither?

[Marthasor]

Hi Everyone! I want to try out one of the EPCOT resorts. Which would you choose and why? Thank you so much for your advice!

 

[D&R love Disney]

Of the two I prefer the Boardwalk but thats because we've stayed in the garden suites. I like the Beach Club for the pool and we had a nice room but it was practically in EPCOT.

 

[hiwaygal]

The only resort I've ever been to is the Boardwalk...and DH and I LOVED IT!!!

We honestly can't imagine staying anywhere else!

 

[wdwlver]

I've never stayed at the Boardwalk, but I'm sure it's great. We love the Beach Club and are staying there again next summer, you really can't go wrong either way!

 

[LvsTnk]

Well, depends on what your looking for. I am a long time BWI fan butthis summer since they were booked we tried out the BC.

I am comparing both stays as a concierge guest and in that department BWI beats BC hands down even though they share the same IPO which is the BEST!

BC has SAB awesome pool but for us too crowded and spread out as was the resort. I really didn't like having to fight for a chair or explain to another guest why I didn't have my wristband on yet. Room was great and we had a view of MGM fireworks and the BW/Lake very nice. BC has Beaches and Cream great food if you want to wait in a long line for a table or take out. Also, they have several top notch restaurants Yachtsman being one of them. Great new grab and go section in the giftshop too. Concierge CM's and lounge not the best IMHO not even close.

BWI for us is much easier to get around and seems less crowded. We like to be able to go down easily to the BW for entertainment or a snack. Pool is smaller and easy to get a drink or a snack there as well. We actually have room service delivered to the pool on occasion. I love the deluxe room concierge offers. Also, the concierge staff at BWI is awesome.

Now as for the Epcot resorts in general, it is soooo nice to be close to 2 parks. You have endless possibilities for restaurants and fun things to do close by not even including Epcot and MGM. Unless you have really small kids and will spending most of your time at MK I would go for an Epcot resort hands down.

 

[spiceycat]

BC loved the atmopshere and room decorations.

the BW was too much like a hotel in a city for my taste.

save yourself some money. you can rent points from a DVC member at BCV or BWV.

studio have 1 queen bed and a double sleeper sofa.

no housekeeping on stays on points!

 

[Skroops]

Pre-kids we stayed at the Boardwalk, and loved it! It is a beautiful hotel, and the location is awesome. We chose the BW because we enjoyed having the boardwalk and all of the action right outside. You may chose the BC because of the exact same reason!
Either way, you can't go wrong. If we didn't have kids, we'd stay in that location.

 

[LoveMickey]

We stayed at BWI this April/May and loved it.

DH loves ESPN club and we had many lunches and some suppers there.

My favorite park is Epcot and his is MGM, BWI is right in between and you can walk to each one. Nice relaxing - long conversational walks.

We loved the goings on at night, they chose DH for one of the side shows.

And one of the best things, you can be at your room 1/2 hr after Illuminations. Watch it from the bridge between England and France (that's always wind direction dependent) and you can head right out. Wonderful.

It was a busy time of the year with the start up of the 50th Celebration, but we hardly saw anyone in the hallways at BWI walking too and from our room. I was amazed at how quiet it seemed even though the parks were busy busy.

We preferred the quiet pool to the main pool - crowded there.

 

[kirkharrod]

We stayed at BWI in July. Nice resort, great location BUT the pool stays PACKED. Same for SAB at the BC. It was packed every time we walked past it.

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

We love both! Although we haven't stayed at the BW Inn, we do own Disney Vacation Club at the BW Villas. Both are awesome resorts. I'd say for adults, go with the BoardWalk, and for a family, go with the Beach Club.

 

[pal]

Can't go wrong with either.

 

[MinnieSummer]

Can someone tell me why they don't feel BWI is a great place for kids? We are staying there over Christmas and have a DD7.

 

[liamsaunt]

Can someone tell me why they don't feel BWI is a great place for kids? We are staying there over Christmas and have a DD7.

I don't have kids, but I have stayed at BWI, and I think it would be great for kids. Maybe people are thinking Beach Club would be better because of the huge Stormalong Bay pool, but the BWI has a nice pool with a good slide also, and it would be easier to keep an eye on your kids there (there is a nice quiet pool too). I doubt you'll get much swimming in during late December anyway.

There is lots of kid-friendly entertainment out on the boardwalk: jugglers, various carnival games, surrey bike rentals, etc. Lots of places with kid-friendly food--the espn club, walk up pizza window at Spoodles (and a kids menu at spoodles itself), the Boardwalk Bakery for treats, etc. You'll be able to walk to Epcot and MGM from BWI too! I bet you and your daughter will love it.

 

[ducklite]

I think it depends on the makeup of your party and what time of the year you'll be visiting.

The BC is very kid friendly as far as the hotel and lobby, although SAB can be very hard to keep track of your kids if they are too old for teh kiddie pool but too young to be "let loose" with a little less supervision in the mian pool.

The BWI tends to have a lot of bsuiness travelers, and IMHO isn't as kid friendly. Additionally the themed pool is on the BWV side and can be a bit of a walk.

I stayed at the YC once and wasn't terribly impressed.

Of the three the BWI would probably be my choice if you are adults or adults and older teens, the BWV would be the best choice for you if your kids are younger. The BC or BCV are the best if you are going in the summer with teens, if only for the pool.

Anne

 

[Aneille]

Can someone tell me why they don't feel BWI is a great place for kids? We are staying there over Christmas and have a DD7.

I've stayed at the BWV twice with kids and they loved it. We haven't tried BCV yet but hope to on our next trip.

The ages of the kids ranged from 1-6 years.

They liked the pool, loved the slide and enjoyed the performers and the boardwalk area at night a lot.

There is also an arcade near the pool (which I haven't actually been to so I can't vouch for how good it is but it looked okay) and there is also a community hall for the kids. You can rent movies, play video games, and do activities.

 

[Susan-Storm]

Beach Club Beach Club

 

[ducklite]

I've stayed at the BWV twice with kids and they loved it. We haven't tried BCV yet but hope to on our next trip.

The ages of the kids ranged from 1-6 years.

They liked the pool, loved the slide and enjoyed the performers and the boardwalk area at night a lot.

There is also an arcade near the pool (which I haven't actually been to so I can't vouch for how good it is but it looked okay) and there is also a community hall for the kids. You can rent movies, play video games, and do activities.

The BWV is VERY kid friendly. The BWI is IMHO not as kid friendly for a number of reasons.

Anne

 

[Sammie]

Can someone tell me why they don't feel BWI is a great place for kids? We are staying there over Christmas and have a DD7.

Your daughter will love any Disney resort as they are all kid friendly. Not like they throw the little ones out at certain resorts.

The decorations at the BW are some of the most whimsical on the property, she will be enchanted by the chocolate roller coaster and merry go round horses in the lobby.

As to the pools I think the quiet pool at the Inn is lovely and the Keister Coaster, if the clown does not bother you, is great fun. You have elephants shooting water into the kid's pool, what child would not love that.

Yes the Inn does have business center, but so does the Grand Floridian, the Yacht Club and Contemporary.

The BW consists of the BW Inn and the BW Villas which is DVC and definitely will have plenty of families there. You have access to both sides of the resorts and the activities for both.

Enjoy your resort; there will be much there that both you and your daughter will love.

 

[Tinkbell]

The BWI is my favorite, although I have not stayed at the Beach Club yet.

 

[MinnieSummer]

We've stayed at several of the other resorts and have experienced the Business Travellers so that's not my worry. We've never stayed at BWI and my concern when I saw the other posters saying it wasn't kid friendly was that the nightclubs on the BW might make it less of a family environment. If all people were concerned about was that it was a business type resort and the walk to the pool might be long I'm no longer concerned. I've stayed at mods that have a much longer walk. Thanks for those of you who put my mind at ease.