Boardwalk or Beach Club

[Wedgeout]

To add: I look at room designs too. I like that the connecting doors at BCV are at the entrance foyer and not in the living room/sleeping areas.

 

[RoseGold]

But I dislike their overly soft beds.

I just stayed at BW and BC. I thought the beds (and linens) were identical. If you want a nice bed, you have to go Marriott.

 

[Dobermanns]

I just stayed at BW and BC. I thought the beds (and linens) were identical. If you want a nice bed, you have to go Marriott.

They could well be identical. After the last stay at BWV I said I won’t stay there until after refurb. I haven’t stayed at BCV in a couple of years and unfortunately had to cancel our marathon weekend trip a couple weeks ago. I love the beds at VGC and RIV.

 

[DVCSunDevil]

Please keep in mind that even if the OP cannot get a BWV Standard View Studio, they can still book a Water View or Boardwalk View Studio at BWV for the same number of points as BCV. (BCV and BWV rooms, other than BWV Standard View, tend to require the same number of points per night.)

BWV Water View rooms tend to be easy to book at 11 months, just as easy as BCV Studios. Thus, there’s no downside to owning at BWV, only upside.

The most often listed reason to buy at BCV is Stormalong Bay. Some of us actually don’t like Stormalong Bay - it’s nearly always tough to get a seat and difficult to get around. The lazy river takes up a lot of space and is deep in many places. The sand they use in the zero entry area is not soft. In addition, you actually have to leave the pool area to get to the water slide, making it difficult to keep track of children.

I get that many love Stormalong Bay. I am not one of them.

As far as the BCV food court goes, it’s not really a food court. Instead, there is very limited seating in the hallway. The Boardwalk Bakery serves much of the same food, and you have to sit outside there. Wonderful when the weather is nice, terrible when it’s not. (The Grand Floridian, for example, has a real food court.)

You don’t have to stay at the Beach Club to get a reservation at Beaches & Cream. And you can easily visit the Boardwalk when staying at BCV. In addition, if you just want ice cream to go, the Boardwalk has its own ice cream shop.

BCV is closer to Epcot, but BWV is closer to DHS.

Whether direct or resale, BWV costs appreciably less than BCV.

IMIO, choosing between the two mostly comes down to theming - which one appeals to you more?

I think your point about theming is what it comes down to. Both BCV and BWV have pluses and minuses. It all comes down to the type of vibe you want. We visited all of the resorts before deciding on which one to buy into and for us BCV was the easy choice, but obviously everyone’s tastes are different.

You mentioned that BWV is “appreciably less” than BCV in terms of purchase cost, but you also have to take into consideration the maintenance fees. BWV has higher maintenance fees than BCV. Just thought I would mention that for the OP.

 

[LSchrow]

If you are okay with going to a public pool on 4th of July, then BCV (we dislike that SAB is frequently too crowded to swim, and that lounge chairs require (often fruitless) stalking).
Aside from better views, lower point options, nighttime entertainment, etc, BWV also has a great Community Hall with crafts (nominal fee), free-play, games, foosball, ping-pong, billiards, etc (you can walk to it from BCV, but it's a bit of a trek).
BCV dues are about $0.54pp less ($27.20 less for 2022 on 50 points) than BWV. Important to consider is that dues go up every year, but not all by the same percentage.
Btw, we own both BCV & BWV, use all our BWV points, & usually rent out the BCV.

 

[chainkid]

It really depends on your own preference since all the plus's of Beach club mentioned here are big negatives to me a BWV lover. I hate that it is basically an after thought and has pretty boring views . I'm not a fan of storm along bay for the same reasons listed above. Pain to get a chair or navigate from point A to point B. I love the community hall at BW for the grandkids who often need a park free day to get back to themselves. I find the bakery is perfect for quick takeout meals or snacks so a food court is not a must have for me. I like the elegance of the boardwalk, watching the entertainers from my balcony and being able to book Grand villas . That wont be a consideration for small purchases but my best advice is to buy small 50-100 pt contracts with same use year and same resort. You have the most flexibility and if you want to stay at other resorts you can do it with abit of planning . So if you love Beach club buy your points there but this gal is a BW lover thru and thru after 20 plus years/

 

[sethschroeder]

But I dislike their overly soft beds.

Be aware this will change and likely change in the next 2-3 years when I think the next refresh will replace the beds.

 

[eandt]

As an owner of both, BWV mostly for cooler weather stays, and BCV for warmer weather, I don’t think it’s easy to get BWV boardwalk view as some here are suggesting. You can do as well at 7 months, getting pool view with other points. I don’t think a stand alone 30 point contract at BWV is necessarily a good idea.

Thank you. Probably isn't a great idea but in looking at availability it may be the only way to ensure 4-5 nights every other year and be comfortable with the purchase. We also have 125 points at AKL that we bought direct in 2021. I hardly ever see small contracts on the resale sites but when I do they don't last long so I assume that the seller is getting at least asking price so feel like should it not work out for us after a couple of years we would have little trouble dumping it without much of a loss. Really appreciate all of the input from everyone, it's interesting to hear different opinions and experiences.

 

[RoseGold]

all the plus's of Beach club mentioned here are big negatives to me a BWV lover.

Even the lobby smell?? One of the best in Disney!

 

[gharter]

We've stayed at both and enjoyed them. If you have younger kids that will use Stormalong bay, BC is the easy choice.
Now that we travel without kids, we adore BWV and own there.
We found BC catered more to families and BWV seemed more toward adults, although there were still plenty of kids there.
You really can't go wrong with either.

 

[dvc lover 1970]

Also since it seems you are booking a studio then I would go with bwv. If looking for two bedrooms then I would choose bcv for the dedicated rooms

 

[TCRAIG]

Have stayed at both many times - I would go with BCV - smaller, much harder to book and BWV only has 1 elevator area…