BWI VS. Yacht Club

[kandb]

We have a 8 night WDW vacation coming up in August. We are staying 5 nights at the YC and 3 nights at the GF. We stayed at the BC last August and liked it but have never stayed at BWI. I am considering changing from YC to BWI just to try a different hotel. Can anyone compare the 2 who have stayed in both (I know sometimes its personal preference) but wonder what most think the negatives/positives are about both resorts. It will be my husband, myself and 2-14 year olds and an 8 year old. Thanks for any info.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I've stayed in both. Honestly, it does come down to decoration preferences. You're looking at similar (or maybe even same) cost, same transportation options, same room layouts, etc.

If I had to pick one, I'd give the slight edge to YC because of Stormalong Bay. That, and I found the resort layout less confusing than BWI (I had to have my husband help me get to the boardwalk itself every single time...maybe I'm just directionally challenged). Still, I don't think you can go wrong at either place. I'd happily stay at either one again.

 

[mtemm]

I've stayed at BWI a couple of times, most recently in April. Last time I stayed at YC was almost 11 years ago, but will be staying there in July. I like both resorts a lot, neither really has an edge for me except I do like stormalong bay better than the BWI pool. Stayed CL for the first time in April and will stay at YC CL for the first time in July and I'm very curious to compare those. BWI was amazing!

I honestly don't think you can go wrong. The only concerns I have for YC is they are still doing some refurbishment, and I'm not thrilled that they took the ceiling fans out. If I could get BWI for same as I'm paying for YC I would be tempted to switch. But then I think of SAB....

 

[suse66]

I stayed at YC with the fam (Mar/16) and BWI for a solo trip (Aug/16) and would definitely give the edge to YC. While I enjoyed the BWI, I didn't care for the feature pool and pool bar at all. I preferred the lobby area of the Yacht Club and of course , I love Stormalong Bay! The main consideration for me would be the current renovations going on at Yacht Club. That could have an adverse affect on your trip. It is certainly easy to walk over and enjoy the amenities of the Boardwalk. I also loved Crew's Cup lounge and the Ale and Compass. Good luck choosing!

 

[Babsy]

Sounds like a great visit - with a perfect split stay between the two best areas! Lucky you!

We have stayed at both the YC and the BWI and really enjoyed both. We have had some issues at the YC (noise and room views not what we had paid for), so we are a bit biased in favour of the BWI where we have had nothing but pleasant experiences.

YC pros:
Stormalong Bay
first pick up/drop off when sharing bus with BC
full size balconies

YC cons:
QS dining requires a walk to BC marketplace (atlas when we were there)
some views of roofs are not pleasant, IMO (we disliked ours)
pool is spread out and winds around so that it is hard to keep track of young children
pool slide requires exiting the pool area to board


BWI pros:
we like the theme of the rooms better
nicer standard views, IMO
fun location on the boardwalk
nice quiet pool
fun slide at themed pool
close to Epcot
the CM's seem to be really nice at this resort, at least in our experience


BWI cons:
creepy clown pool
access to the Boardwalk requires 2 elevators
you have to go outside to access dining

Good luck choosing! I believe that I agree that it is largely a matter of personal theme preference.

 

[KrazeeK120]

BWI cons:
access to the Boardwalk requires 2 elevators

Just wanted to throw out that this dependable on your room location. We didn't have to take an elevator to get to the Boardwalk. We would have needed one if we'd had a stroller, but it sounds like OP's kids are of ages where a stroller is not necessary.

 

[johnnyblz20]

YC now has a QS place similar to marketplace at BC. I've been to all of the epcot resorts and definitely think YC is the best. BWI is decent, but aged and not nearly as nice looking as the newly renovated YC. Plus you get the amazing pool at YC.

 

[vettegirl]

I have stayed at both and I find the rooms at BWI are nicer (this was before the YC renovated rooms though), however what keeps us going back to the YC is pool.

 

[kandb]

Thank you all for your quick responses. YC is a really nice resort but I think it's nice to try different resorts. It's a really hard decision. I think we would most likely get a new room at YC since we are going at the end of August and think MOST rooms at YC will be renovated by then however, I don't like the idea of the floors not having carpeting at YC (making it noisy) and having no ceiling fan. We leave our fans on all the time up here in northern NJ. We like it on the cold side!

 

[Babsy]

Just wanted to throw out that this dependable on your room location. We didn't have to take an elevator to get to the Boardwalk. We would have needed one if we'd had a stroller, but it sounds like OP's kids are of ages where a stroller is not necessary.

So, are there rooms located on the Boardwalk level? Or do you mean that you took the stairs?

Thank you!

 

[KrazeeK120]

So, are there rooms located on the Boardwalk level? Or do you mean that you took the stairs?

Thank you!

We took the stairs. Unless someone in OP's party has a disability, they should be able to take the stairs. Their kids are old enough that I'm thinking they're no longer in strollers.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would go with BWI. It's actually our favorite resort! It's very lively with lots to do and fun entertainment at night. I also like BC, but I'm not a big YC fan. You'll have a longer walk to EP (plus you can walk to DHS and EP from BWI!) and I find the resort very bland and boring. It seems to really cater to the convention crowd. Since you've done BC and had the SAB experience, I would try something new!!

I'm a little confused about the comment about the elevator. There are stairs that lead from the lobby area to the Boardwalk. Unless you have a mobility need, you don't have to take an elevator to the Boardwalk level.

 

[chirogrrl]

We have stayed in both and Boardwalk is our family's favorite resort. Our kids are 13 and 15 and they would choose it every time. The location and feel of the Boardwalk (especially in the evening) make it feel like an experience. We often visit the Boardwalk on trips when we are staying at different resorts, because we love it that much. The food options are plenty, plus it is really easy to pop into the World Showcase for fish and chips in the UK!

I don't love the Friendship boats that run between the Epcot resorts. They are slow, and in the summer they are SUPER hot (no A/C). The Boardwalk is an easy walk to both Epcot and DHS, so we skip the boats.

 

[Wood Nymph]

YC cons:
QS dining requires a walk to BC marketplace (atlas when we were there)

The wuick service restaurant at the YC opened in May. We ate there a few times. I like their Coke Freestyle machines.

So, are there rooms located on the Boardwalk level? Or do you mean that you took the stairs?

There aren't any rooms located on the Boardwalk level. If you have a ground floor room, which we did the one time we stayed there, we had to go up to the second floor, down the hall, and then go down to the ground floor on the Boardwalk side in order to exit the resort. It was very annoying.

 

[Babsy]

We took the stairs. Unless someone in OP's party has a disability, they should be able to take the stairs. Their kids are old enough that I'm thinking they're no longer in strollers.

OK, that is what I thought. I should have said that you have to take an elevator and then another elevator or stairs. Actually, I suppose that you could just take two separate flights of stairs as another alternative. Really my point was that it takes two stages to get to the Boardwalk, at least from MOST rooms in the BWI. Some rooms that are on the right floor would be able to do it with one flight of stairs or one elevator, I guess.

 

[Babsy]

There aren't any rooms located on the Boardwalk level. If you have a ground floor room, which we did the one time we stayed there, we had to go up to the second floor, down the hall, and then go down to the ground floor on the Boardwalk side in order to exit the resort. It was very annoying.

Thank you.
That it was annoying was kind of my original point, although I didn't make it very well. It is a more complicated way to get around, IMO. I simply presented the way we did the journey to the Boardwalk level from our rooms - 2 elevators. It is a two stage process of some combination of elevators or stairs for at least MOST of the people staying in the BWI, AFAIK. There may be a few rooms perhaps on the floor where you have to switch from one elevator to the other (or the stairs), where only one set of stairs or one elevator would be needed, I guess. We have only stayed on the upper floors so I don't have personal experience with that particular floor, except to go from the main elevator bank to the small one that brings you to the BW..

 

[Shanti]

We have a 8 night WDW vacation coming up in August. We are staying 5 nights at the YC and 3 nights at the GF. We stayed at the BC last August and liked it but have never stayed at BWI. I am considering changing from YC to BWI just to try a different hotel. Can anyone compare the 2 who have stayed in both (I know sometimes its personal preference) but wonder what most think the negatives/positives are about both resorts. It will be my husband, myself and 2-14 year olds and an 8 year old. Thanks for any info.

I liked both, but prefer Boardwalk Inn. It had the prettiest resort room we'd ever stayed in (note that this was a resort room at the Inn, not a villa at the DVC). The Yacht Club's resort rooms are currently being renovated into a rather sterile, charmless style that I don't happen to care for. Besides the rooms themselves, they both have very nice pools & water slides. Yacht Club's Stormalong Bay is bigger & has more hot tubs, though. Also, there are no restaurants inside the Boardwalk Inn. You have to stroll out onto the Boardwalk or over to Yacht & Beach Club or Epcot for that. It really comes down to personal taste and your family's vacation style.

 

[kandb]

What are the chances we would get a balcony at BWI? That would be important to us and we would be booking a standard view.

 

[Shanti]

What are the chances we would get a balcony at BWI? That would be important to us and we would be booking a standard view.

We had a standard view (with a really pretty view of an inner courtyard) with a balcony. At check-in they had us in a room over a parking lot, but I just asked for a change and we got a really nice view.

 

[kandb]

One more question for those who have stayed at both. Are the health spas comparable? My husband is not going to the parks but will be hanging at the resort to go to the gym, lounge at the pool and take naps in the room. Just wondering if these services are comparable?