BWV - The Bad and Good of our first DVC Experience (long)

[5infam]

Last summer, a colleage of mine told me about DVC. We had been to WDW once (stayed offsite) and loved it, so it sounded great. After finding these boards and doing a lot of research, we bought 150 point resale at BWV. We just came back this morning from our 8 night trip, and here is the bad and the good from a first time member, who bought sight unseen.

First the bad:

Arrived late so check in was no problem. Got a 1BDR dedicated, standard view, room 3002. This is the very last room in the hallway from hell (very long hallway). It is right next to a member room called The Attic (I bet many of you do not even know of this room). When the bellman came with our luggage, I asked him what the Attic was. He told me that it was a very nice member lounge room, but it was so far away from anything, that BWV closed it down because no members would ever walk this far to visit it!!!! Lucky us, we get to spend the next 9 days walking to The Attic. The room was OK (remember, I had never seen a DVC room in person before), but to be honest I was disappointed. After months of reading great posts on these boards about the luxury of DVC rooms, and the fact that it was tied to a Deluxe Hotel, I was really expecting a nicer room. We were missing a lot of things; all the coffee supplies, sponge and soap, some utensils. Also, the bathroom sink stopper was broken, called and asked them to fix it, which they did. While they were there, I started the tub (in the other bathroom) to give the kids a bath, and when I turned on the jacuzzi, water went flying everwhere!!! Engineering came in and said that all of the pressure valves were not working properly, so he fixed that too. Then I spent the next 30 minutes soaking up water. 2 of the 4 burners on the stove didn't work, the fridge was broken (but the freezer worked), stains on the countertops, several lights were burnt out, and to top it off, when my son opened the door to go on the balcony, the valance cover fell off and hit him in the head!! Not a good start to our first DVC visit!!!! The biggest thing that really got us though was no "Welcome Home's" from anyone. Now I know this may seem silly, but we have seen that DVC video so many times (you know the one that shows a greeter saying Welcome Home to everyone) that we were really looking forward to it. The Bus service to Animal Kingdom was terrible, and MK wasn't much better. When we stayed offsite, I was able to get there quicker using the hotel bus (non-Disney).

The Good:

Loved being on the Boardwalk!!! Loved being so close to Epcot (I really had no idea it was this close), and also close to MGM. Although at first I really didn't care for the fact that I was cooking and cleaning on vacation - when the trip was all said and done I was really glad that we had the space and the full kitchen, huge pluses!! In fact, I only used half of my total food budget. To me, this is what makes DVC a good value. Also, the kids loved the keister coaster...and so did I (went on it 3 times in a row). We also liked the community hall, and rented some free movies (imagine something free from Disney). Also, liked being close to BCV, as we ate there and also rented a water mouse.

With all of the bad, you may think this is a negative DVC post. It really isn't. I just want to set some expectations for first timers, that they may run into some issues when they go. All in all though, DVC is not going to keep us coming back, but the great fun we had at the parks as a family is!! Which is why we added on 50 points yesterday before we left (surprise!!). As I mentioned, I saved about $800 from my food budget (we budgeted $200 per day, based on 3 meals a day in the parks), which we used as a deposit for 50 BWV points (I just got back today and have already written the check for the balance and put it in the mail box). These extra points will come in handy for our December 05 trip, and now we are bringing along family that otherwise couldn't afford to go. To us, this is what DVC is about.

As a final note, I really wish we would get some more perks as members. While I was there I bought a shirt that says Members are Magical. I really don't know what Disney means by this...except that us members keep magically coming up with more cash to buy more DVC points!!! So for Disney, our money is magical, but I wish they had a few more little extras that only DVC members get (like instant Fast Passes or something) just to make it a little more magical. Anyway, I am off to get my new countdown clock started again

 

[jarestel]

5infam,

Interesting experience. On the bright side, your next room probably couldn't help but be better, so there's that to look forward to. I think most people get a sub-par room once in a while, but unfortunately yours was on your first trip. I think it's important to report any shortcomings in the room to the appropriate department so it can be fixed for the next guest. If the previous guest had done that, your experience would probably have been much better. Glad to hear you enjoyed most of the trip though, thanks for posting your impressions.

 

[5infam]

jarestel,

Your absolutely right!!! I was upset with DVC at first because I figured that they should be doing a better job of keeping up the rooms with all of that dues money they are collecting. As the week progressed, I was really more upset with whoever stayed in that room last!! It would have been easy for me to work around the things that weren't right, but I really felt as you do that its up to us members to make sure that DVC stays on top of the repairs. I did report everything that I found wrong with the room, so the next member that has to walk the hallway from hell will at least arrive in a room that is up to par.

 

[CarolMN]

Thanks for taking the time to post all the details.

Sorry you found so many things in the room that weren't working/maintained properly. THANKS for reporting them and getting them fixed. Wish more members would do that -

We also own at the BWV and frequently stay in the standard view rooms. As you already discovered, the location just can't be beat! I agree that the bus service to the AK (we drive there) and the MK need improvement.

As for the long walk to your room - well, we actually prefer that location. The rooms are much quieter because there isn't much traffic in the hallways, especially early and late. We also enjoy the view from that part of the resort. And if you can use the stairs, it's about the same distance to MGm as it is to EPCOT from there.

We love vacationing in early December - maybe we'll run into you in 12/05.

Best wishes -

 

[BWVDee]

As a fellow BWV owner, I also want to thank you for taking the time to report all the room problems to management. Disney can not fix, what they do not know about and if housekeeping or whomever is slacking off on their job of maintaining the villas, then management needs to know about it. There is no reason for a DVC villa to be in that condition.
We also love the villas the fartherest away from the elevators. When we have a standard view villa we always request these villas.
I am glad you had a wonderful trip dispite the villa problems. I wish you many more magical DVC trips in the future.

 

[5infam]

CarolMN,

Your right about how quiet it is - and to be honest, I forgot to mention that I thought the view was great, considering it was standard view. I was expecting to see all parking lot. The only potential negative was that we could see a small piece of the dumpster area from Jellyrolls, but you really had to look hard. Otherwise, you had the view of the canal, the Swan and Dolphin, and Tower of Terror. Plus we could see some fireworks!!! The only noise was from The Swan last night (there was a huge outdoor party) which normally I wouldn't have cared but we had to be up at 4:00 this morning to catch our flight, so I was trying to sleep. As far as the stairs go, I asked the bellman if we could use the stairs and he said no, because they were alarmed at the bottom. If we could have used the stairs, I would have been much happier!!

 

[CarolMN]

Originally posted by 5infam
CarolMN,
...(snip)... As far as the stairs go, I asked the bellman if we could use the stairs and he said no, because they were alarmed at the bottom. If we could have used the stairs, I would have been much happier!!

That surprises me. We were there just last December and used the stairs at least twice every day - both to go out and to come in and no alarms went off (that we know of, LOL). Maybe something has changed or it was just that particular stairwell - there are several scattered throughout the resort.

Best wishes -

 

[chris1gill]

Wow! well I agree, your next room HAS to be in better shape! We've not ever had that kind of experience, usually it's just like one or two things missing from the inventory list!

I agree, members need to bring these things up to the staff, so they can be remedied!

For the life of me though, I can't figure out where this room is? Did you have a view of the village green?

 

[5infam]

I'm not sure where the Village Green is, but I will try and describe the location a little better. We were on the third floor, and from the balcony, we looked directly at the Swan. To the right (as you are standing on the balcony looking out) you could see the Dolphin and the bridge connecting the Swan/Dolphin and the Boardwalk. As a matter of fact, from the canal, if you are taking the boat from the BWV to MGM, once you pass that bridge, if you look to your left at BWV, we were in the very first set of rooms, third floor. Next time your there, take the elevator to the third floor - walk down the hall for about an hour and a half (or roughly 8 miles) until you come to the desserted room called The Attic, look to your left, and there you go room 3002.

 

[PamOKW]

Thanks for the report and for calling to have things repaired. It's a shame your first visit wasn't a little more "perfect". I'm betting that your next trip you won't have as many issues with the room.

I also think your bellman may have been a little "off" in his information. I think you probably could have used the door in the stairwell. Most people report doing so.

His info on "The Attic" is also off. It was indeed included in the original plans as a member meeting room where folks could watch Illuminations. It was never allowed to be used for this purpose. When BWV opened it was not open to members and, instead, is used to host (paid) functions for conventions, etc. Members didn't not use the room -- we were never given the opportunity.

 

[MJTinNH]

Thank you for posting all your impressions; good and bad. I agree that if we all take the time to report room problems then the next guest in should benefit from improved conditions.

 

[5infam]

PamOKW,

Thanks for the update. As usual, the folks on these boards seem to know a lot more than your average CM. Accross the board, it seemed that most of the cast members at BWV did not seem to know a whole lot about DVC. At the front desk, I had several questions that I had to explain to the CM what I was talking about. They could definitely use some more training relating to DVC. On the otherhand, throughout all of WDW, I ran into the nicest and most helpfull CM's around. This is a big difference to what we are used to here at Disneyland and Cal. Advent., where most CM's are down right rude, and almost never willing to go out of there way to offer advice or suggestions. We go to DL and CA all the time, so we are used to it, but were surprised at how nice 98% of theCM's were at WDW.

If I ever get stuck in that area again, I will definitely try the stairs!!

 

[chris1gill]

5inFam, thanks for all your information... But I'm still SO curious about this room! I thought all the standard view rooms overlooked the front parking/driving areas... I'm really surprised about your room/view! Whoever came after you was pretty lucky as you'd had fixed all the room troubles!!

Well, I think next time things will be just perfect!

 

[5infam]

chris1gill,

I was shocked as well too!!! I couldn't believe they were calling this room a standard view. There are 2 reasons why it could be standard; 1) The aforementioned partial dumpster view of Jellyrolls (but you really need to look hard for the dumpster, usually you would just see a CM in that area smoking every now and again) 2) there are some rooms or some kind of building that is a 2 story building that partially blocked our canal view. It didn't really matter though because we could see a lot of the canal, and were starring at guests at the Swan when they were on their balconies. I really thought it was a nice view, with fireworks to boot. If you ask for this room, just make sure to bring your hiking boots and a 3 day supply of food and water. If you get lost in the hallway, just stay in one place, as another hiker will be along in a day or two to offer assistance

 

[Ralph&Pam]

I wonder if the standard view rooms in that location (at the far end of the hallway near the Crest o' the Wave and Jelly Rolls building) will change to Preferred View after the temporary building that blocks the view is removed. The view of the canal and the Swan will then be quite direct.

Ralph

 

[spiceycat]

I am sorry your first visit wasn't very nice.

the maids don't report any maintence issues - unless a pipe is broken and water is all over the place. It isn't their job - so I asked who job it was and guess what -I got told it is the members!!!!

I think your room might not have been used regularly - sometimes at OKW I get one (generally handicapped however) and yes they need alot of work - a whole lot of work. they generally only give these rooms out when the resort is full.

I hope your next visit (and all the others) - will be much, much better.

I have used the side door without a problem - but who knows what the new security might require.

 

[Pa@okw95]

Next time ask for a new room. They might be forced to give you a upgrade. Upgrades are rare at DVC but you certainly deserved one. I wish I had your temperment. I would have been over the top with that room. Thanks for your report.

 

[Lexxiefern]

Wow, sorry you had so many problems in the room. Glad you had a great time anyway though.

I know exactly where your room was - we were in room 4010 in january. Just a few doors down (and on a different floor). I thought this was a fabulous view for standard points.

 

[raidermatt]

the maids don't report any maintence issues - unless a pipe is broken and water is all over the place. It isn't their job - so I asked who job it was and guess what -I got told it is the members!!!!

If true, I'd like to see some kind of periodic maintenance check. Not necessarily a full check of every fixture/faucet/drain/appliance after every guest visit, but monthly or quarterly would be reasonable. Make the process at least slightly proactive.

The op also mentioned a lot of supplies not being stocked as well. That would be housekeeping's responsibility, correct?

Bottom line, I agree members need to report issues. But by the same token, DVC should not be allowing things to get that far either.