BWW upgrade

[lasob]

We have stayed at Boardwalk view 3rd and 4th floor one and two bedroom since the upgrade. A couple of things were curious to us. First, the space between the TV and that cabinet in the living room and the corner of the room is empty. There used to be a chair there. It's a pretty big space for nothing. We enjoyed the chair when people we hanging out together. We ended up pulling a chair from the kitchen table. The bellman who brought our luggage, said that all the rooms were missing chairs there.

And second, we miss the ceiling fans. Not sure why they took them out, but they probably got plenty of complaints about clicking noises or other issues. We had air conditioning issues and could have used the fans. Plus my wife likes moving air while she sleeps.

Our air conditioning issues were strange. The first 2 nights everything worked great. On the third night, with the thermostat set at the same temperature,73, it came on at 3 a.m. and ran until it got to about 68 degrees, freezing us and forcing me to get up and raise the temperature. It shut off for a few minutes and then back to non-stop blowing. Turned it off completely about 5 a.m.

Same problem the next night even though we raised the temp. Called front desk(call center) and they assured us the would come by and fix it. Our toilet was also having issues, flushing once rarely did the trick.

We stopped by the front desk that night and we were assured that both issues were dealt with. We got to the room,3001, the last room at the end of the hall, and the thermostat was set at 74. The air was blowing and the temperature read 71 on the readout. So obviously it was still not working correctly. We broke out the extra blanket and froze all night.

Called the next morning, same story, same result. It never worked properly. And the toilet issued returned the next day. They tried to tell me that they reset the thermostat and I shouldn't touch it. Yeah, not gonna happen. My wife and daughter were never going to sleep in a warm room. Especially with no ceiling fan.

 

[jo-jo]

Haven’t stay at BWV in years, but yes, also unhappy with the trend away from ceiling fans. I think Disney feels one less thing to clean and fix. My DH likes the moving air too. We bring a little 6 inch fan for bedside. Not the same, but something.

 

[tigerlilly]

We just returned from BWV Sunday. Two studios (on our DVC points) and a one bedroom BW view which my parents paid full rack rate through Disney (they are in their late 70's and did not want to deal w/points, rentals etc). Their one bedroom (room 4003 had all the issues your did). They finally just propped the patio door to the rooms open for air or closed for no air.

Truthfully I was so looking forward to our BW stay (we have stayed before), but this time was just not good. My parents paid an astronomical sum for 7 nights in a one bedroom. While we had a great time overall, the hotel itself is pretty and location cannot be beat, we would likely chose Beach or Yacht Club next time.

I agree about the chair in the corner, the fans, the little touches, the horrid balcony/patio chairs... which I saw so many people just put their couch pillows on. In the studio we ended up putting the little padded "stool" type ottomans below the two dresser drawers in the corner of the room. I used them as our "staging" are for our clothes for the day/bags etc.

Hope you had a fun stay overall

 

[CarolynFH]

I’m sure we’re going to miss the ceiling fans too. We depend on ours at home! But I’m sure the issue is keeping them clean. They’re serious dust catchers, which we’re reminded of every time we change the direction of rotation as the seasons change. I would imagine a hotel would have to clean the blades a lot more frequently than that. So I’m looking for a small fan to bring.

 

[lasob]

We had a great time and still love the resort. Everyone was great, just frustrated by the inability to communicate the problem, so that it could be fixed properly.

 

[The Jackal]

We were recently at OKW in a 1 bedroom. Sometimes the thermostat would work correctly and other times it would just run and run. I had it set at 71F and it was cold. I kicked it up to 72 and it said it was 68F in the room. Even kicking it up to 72F it still ran for another 20 minutes. Other times it would run for 10 minutes and kick off.

 

[FreeTime]

We stayed this week in 31XX. A 1br. It was awful. DH complained everyday about no ceiling fans. The upper cabinet doors are not hung evenly and the one under the kitchen sink fell off. Maintenance came and had to add more screws to hold the door on. The missing chair is very noticeable. I used the indoor cushions on the outdoor chairs. The outdoor chairs were fine but for someone a bit wider I don’t know that they could use them. The thermostat didn’t work right. It was very difficult to maintain a comfortable temp. My biggest complaint was that there isn’t a door sweep under doors. The light from the hall shined in. Other rooms not having sweeps also made the halls much louder and I am sure the rooms were louder as a result. Lastly, the interior doors, the hardware didn’t match each other.

 

[snacks]

I noticed this thread when it was started on October 31. We were leaving for BWV the next morning so it stuck out for me and I made a mental note about the missing chair. We were in a one bedroom villa, garden/pool view. We actually did have the comfy chair in the corner. We had the same chair in the bedroom as well. I had planned to report back here but couldn't find the thread until today when @FreeTime revived it from the dead.

 

[CarolynFH]

I noticed this thread when it was started on October 31. We were leaving for BWV the next morning so it stuck out for me and I made a mental note about the missing chair. We were in a one bedroom villa, garden/pool view. We actually did have the comfy chair in the corner. We had the same chair in the bedroom as well. I had planned to report back here but couldn't find the thread until today when @FreeTime revived it from the dead.

Was it a dedicated or lockoff 1BR?

 

[snacks]

Was it a dedicated or lockoff 1BR?

Sorry for taking so long to answer. I had to consult with my husband because I couldn't remember. It was dedicated.
Are you thinking we had the chair because the door wasn't there?

 

[CarolynFH]

Sorry for taking so long to answer. I had to consult with my husband because I couldn't remember. It was dedicated.
Are you thinking we had the chair because the door wasn't there?

It’s possible that’s it, although pre-refurb even the lockoff 1BR had space for a chair in the corner by the connecting door. So I’m gathering data! Thanks.

 

[FreeTime]

We had a dedicated 1br without the chair.

 

[Skywalker3]

We really missed the ceiling fans. DH brought a small table top fan for our room, but kids didn't have one in the living room.
We were in a 1 bedroom/standard/lock off, no chair in the living room by that door.
DH did override the AC I think, I"ll have to double check. We didn't have any a/c issues.
Only other maintenance issues, except a lot of water coming in under/around the balcony door in the bedroom, but that was during the hurricane.
I'm trying to remember if the kids complained about plugs or needing outlets in the living room/near the sofa bed. I think they did.
I miss the jetted tubs, but the new tub is soooo nice. But, for a short person, it's quite a step into it. It's deep! We did have the sink in the bathroom. I'd read about some not having that.

 

[snacks]

We had a dedicated 1br without the chair.

Was it missing in the bedroom too?

 

[snacks]

We did have the sink in the bathroom. I'd read about some not having that.

Wait! No sink in the bathroom?

Is this an accessible configuration, or they just randomly took away some bathroom sinks from regular units that had them pre-refurb?

 

[Skywalker3]

Wait! No sink in the bathroom?

haha, that does sound kinda weird. I know there was a thread/discussion somewhere around here about how the set up of a few of the refurbished 1 bedrooms did not have 2 sinks, like usual.
Like the room with the toilet and shower and no sink. That wasn't the case in our room. There were 2 sinks like normal: 1 in the room with the tub, and the other in the room w the shower.....if only they'd just added another bathroom/toilet....like BLT/AKL.....

 

[snacks]

haha, that does sound kinda weird. I know there was a thread/discussion somewhere around here about how the set up of a few of the refurbished 1 bedrooms did not have 2 sinks, like usual.
Like the room with the toilet and shower and no sink. That wasn't the case in our room. There were 2 sinks like normal: 1 in the room with the tub, and the other in the room w the shower.....if only they'd just added another bathroom/toilet....like BLT/AKL.....

...or even as a minimum wall off the toilet like at SSR and make that space usable by multiple people at the same time.

Although to be fair, I was fine with the configuration in a 1BR at BWV until I started staying at other DVC resorts.

 

[CarolynFH]

Wait! No sink in the bathroom?

Is this an accessible configuration, or they just randomly took away some bathroom sinks from regular units that had them pre-refurb?

I think it was an accessible villa, IIRC based on photos and comments by other posters who are familiar with accessible villas.

if only they'd just added another bathroom/toilet....like BLT/AKL.....

I wish they’d do that too, but as a BWV owner I wouldn’t want to pay for the major construction it would require!

 

[FreeTime]

Was it missing in the bedroom too?

There was a wingback chair in the bedroom. An interesting note about the bedroom is that the nightstand light on one side could only be turned off by the switch on the other side. It was an annoyance.

 

[snacks]

There was a wingback chair in the bedroom. An interesting note about the bedroom is that the nightstand light on one side could only be turned off by the switch on the other side. It was an annoyance.

I love BWV. It has a special place in my heart. We've made so many great memories there and I've already booked our next visit... BUT,

This refurb really lacks attention to detail. They missed an opportunity to do something of quality. It's refreshed, that's true. Just don't look too closely or you'll see how superficial the work was. There's no way this was a "to the studs" kind of refurb. I also don't think that anyone went into each unit to double check the little things like making sure switches work or things are lined up straight. It's sloppy, which is a shame.