BLT Reviews

[dizkneedreamers]

I'm heading to BLT with 2 separate 2 bedrooms and lots of people and spending lots of money.

I get a little nervous when I go online to see such up and down reviews. It seems like people give it 5 stars and love it, or its 1 star and its the worst place they've ever stayed. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[supersuperwendy]

I give it five stars, my husband gives it 4 for location and 1 for everything else.

You just need to try it out and see if it's for you!!! I loved it!!!

 

[CMOORE185]

We stayed in a 2 bedroom lakeview room in June 2011. No one in our family of four was impressed enough to stay there again in the near future. In fact we just changed our Oct. ressie from BLT to SSR. I hope you are not disappointed.

 

[rutgers1]

I think I can put MOST reviews into a nutshell by giving my impressions of why someone would or wouldn't like it:

1) First of all, every resort (and resort staff) has their up-and-down days. Therefore, no matter which resort you look into, there will be people who claim to have been mistreated in some way. BLT does not have a higher level of dissatisfied customers in this regard than any other resort. So, if you hear a "the front desk wasn't helpful" story, disregard it --- or at least realize that these stories exist everywhere.

2) Likewise, you will hear complaints about room cleanliness/upkeep for EVERY resort. Having followed these boards for years, I think that the complaints for BLT are less since the resort is newer.

3) This brings me to why people who like BLT really LOVE it. They love it for the location. It attracts the same type of person who is attracted to the Contemporary. They like the location, the convenience, and overall feel that it is a clean/crisp hotel with everything they need right in front of them. Plus, for many who don't like the "condo" style resorts like SSR, they enjoy having everything in one relatively "contained" area -- less walking.

4) Finally, here is why people DON'T like it --- and this totally depends on the person's tastes. While most of the Disney hotels have a distinct theme that carries throughout the resort, my experience at BLT suggests that the theme is "hotel." In fact, we met up with another DVC family yesterday who used the exact same word to describe the theme: hotel. And when there really isn't a theme to match the other DVC resorts, you start to compare it to other hotels (outside Disney) that you have stayed at for much less money. So, if theming is a concern for you, then perhaps you will not like BLT.

We only stayed there one night before a cruise, and we liked it. Watching the fireworks from the walkway that extends between Contemporary and BLT was awesome. Although the theme (or lack thereof) did not appeal to us at all, we thought the place was really cool because we definitely had a "center of the action" feel with Magic Kingdom, the monorail, the lake, and everything else right nearby. I probably wouldn't choose to stay there again unless we were going to Disney with a family for whom proximity to Magic Kingdom was important. It just doesn't have enough of a "resort" feeling for me. For whatever reason, the Epcot villas (BCV/BWV) have a greater appeal to me because....
1) They too have the feeling of being in the center of the action...plus they are wedged between two parks we LOVE to visit.
2) They have more of a "resort" feel. I could easily spend days on the property, as well as walking from one resort to the next.
3) The theming is stronger. It just feels more "Disney" to me, and it feels like the Imagineers earned their paychecks when they designed them.

 

[cyndiloveswalt]

I just made a res for BLT for Jan for a suprise trip for the kids. We have always wanted to try a resort close to MK. We are only doing 4nights so I think we will be ok. Looking forward to trying something new.

 

[starbox]

I'm heading to BLT with 2 separate 2 bedrooms and lots of people and spending lots of money.

I get a little nervous when I go online to see such up and down reviews. It seems like people give it 5 stars and love it, or its 1 star and its the worst place they've ever stayed. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

If it helps, I was not a "I LOVE BLT!!" but neither did I hate it. We've stayed there 3 times with 3 views (back of the resort, monorail side, MK) From what you wrote, you've got several things in your favor.

1. You are in 2 bedrooms - most of the really "I hate BLT" reviews come from studio stays - and the studios are genuinely weird and worst designed of any at DVC. Plus the furnishing quality/damage issues seem compounded in the small space and are more obvious. Lack of privacy sheers (another big complaint) is obviously a bigger issue when the only room is the bedroom.

The two bedrooms don't have any of those problems. People tend to LOVE their stays and honestly, the views are stunning no matter where you are. I personally preferred the standard view with monorail/lake view. It was probably my favorite view on property.

2. I'm assuming you have small kids in the party - with a big family trip - and the access to MK is so, so, so, so, so nice. Again, many less-than-glowing reviews are probably from people who don't spend lots of time in the MK and so the SIGNIFICANT advantage of being steps away is lost on them.
Guessing you may even have a Chef Mickey meal in there somewhere. Remind yourself as you get up and WALK over the bridg before your ressie that people have to give themselves at least an hour for travel via. bus to get there from other resorts.

3. One potential downside to BLT is that the pool is small and more like a quiet pool - BUT, we spent our pool time at the CR main pool which has all the pool games and etc. Also - you can rent cabanas (and my cabana afternoon is one of my favorite Disney memories!)

In the end - every resort has plusses and minuses. Would I choose BLT for a studio stay during spring break when it's me and my two teens (who list MK as their LEAST favorite park)? Nope. Would it be my first choice for a 2-bedroom and extended family trip with all the grandkids? Yup. It would.

 

[bobbiwoz]

My first and foremost reason for buying into DVC was to have vacations with my extended family and the first big bash was to be a birthday party for DM who was going to be 85 and this was in December 2004. You wouldn't believe the poor reviews that BWV started getting about 6 months before the trip and continued to the GG dates. I was worried, but the trip was a major success and all of the BWV villas lived up to the good expectations that I had before reading and worrying. If I have a problem, I will deal with it.

I have stopped reading overwhelming negative reviews of resorts. I simply stop reading. I've stayed at BLT in a dedicated 2 bedroom and it was a wonderful experience. We don't own there, but I have 2 reservations for short stays there, both in January, one for a 1 bedroom and 1 for a studio.

My best wishes to you and your family and hope you have a great time!

Bobbi

 

[disneynutz]

We find BLT to have a sterile feeling. No one really in the lobby, not much of a lobby really, and there isn't much to do in the hotel. Front Desk, Bell Services, food, shopping, are located next door at the Contemporary. We don't really care for the themes colors, orange, green, mustard, black, white, and teal. Feels like a high raise condo and not a home away from home.

Bill

 

[Invisable89]

Quite alot of reviews i read especially of DVC Resorts suggests that the people (guests) staying there at that specific time obviously wern't DVC Members & did very little research. So when i read things like "There was no counter service options" or "There's hardly anything to do, you have to walk a fair distance to the main building for everything" it really annoys me! Why spend so much money without doing some research on where actually you're staying? Mind boggles me.

Anyways, i think with BLT you either love it or you don't. Alot of people bash the 'theming' because it's too apartment like or hotel like which is fair enough, we all like & dislike different things. I personally LOVE the theming as i love contemporary/modern theming in general. Problem is with BLT is that it's only 2 years old & it's already showing wear & tear, probably due to poor quality furnishings & not enough time to replace/repair any damage, which is a worry.

Just make sure you do your research so you're 100% happy with your choice & so you know exactly what to expect.

 

[brenbrady]

We have stayed in almost all of the resorts over the years, what made us buy into DVC was location of Bay Lake. We have stayed in 2 bed room dedicated Magic Kingdom view, and 2 bed room dedicated Lake view. no complaints on either. We have reservations for december 2 bed room dedicated lake view and we are looking forward to spending more time there.
It is a 10 minute walk to Magic Kingdom, or a 10 minute walk to monarail which is convient for Epcot. The bus service was fine, loved the lounge at the top of the tower, great for watching fireworks or just relaxing after a busy day.
I'm sure you will enjoy your time there just go with an open mind.