Can’t decide which resale to buy? AKL, BCV, or BWV

[Beckyb3]

We are current Poly owners purchased direct last April. I have fallen into the Disney trap and bought the amazing discounted annual pass and took way too many trips to Disney this year because of it. We are totally hooked. What we realized though is part of the magic to us is going with family and friends so we would like to purchase more points. I haven’t stayed at all resorts but our favorite we have been to so far is AKL so initially I thought AKL was the way to go. Now I am second guessing because as our girls get older (they are currently 7 and 4), we may like the area of BCV or BWV better and it seems like those are harder to get at the seven month mark. We will mainly be looking to get 2BR or 3BR accommodations. Which would you recommend given that?

 

[RAD]

BCV doesn’t have 3 bedroom GV, BWV does. While AKL is a nice resort I find it too far away from everything except AK, while the other two allow you to walk to HS or EPCOT.

 

[lovin'fl]

We had AKV and resold it due to always being able to book at the 7 month mark (so we can use our original OKW purchase to stay at AKV). We then bought BWV. We also had to decide between BWV and BCV and went with BWV for the ability to save points when booking standard view. Also like that wr can walk easier to HS so can walk to 2 parks. And they have 3BR villas. And they have the jetted tubs still while BCV replaced them with a soaker tub with no jets.

But you get a longer contract life with AKV.

 

[Frederic Civish]

I recommend AKV. My family loves AKV. I have 2 contracts, 485 points, at AKV. We also own BLT and Poly. Like you, I bought AKV and BLT on the Secondary market, and Poly direct. I think AKV is our favorite. The facilities are wonderful. We enjoy the magic of the Savannah, and I’m talking about my adult kids. It has some really good restaurants. And EXTENDED travel time to other parks and other resorts is greatly exaggerated. The actual travel time is usually faster than staying at some other common Resorts. Because Disney is aware of the distance of animal Kingdom from the other locations and it seems to run the buses more frequently and more punctually. Besides those buses from other resorts frequently make 2 or 3 or more stops on the way to the parks, and some buses from other resorts can make up to 5 stops. Each of those stops can add more time than you would lose by being 2 miles farther out at animal Kingdom.

BLT is too sterile for us to really enjoy it, as a PLACE, however, the Lake Views can be Amazing. Poly is fun, but expensive. Hollywood Studios and Epcot are not our favorite resorts. Our favorites for Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Epcot doesn’t have that much to do, except in Food and Wine festival. The Boardwalk is nice, but BWV and BCV contracts end in 24 years, while AKV still has about 39 years to run.

All things considered, including price and length of contracts, I think AKV wins hands down.

One other thing, this is just speculation but I really think the gondola system is the wave of the future. I think Disney wants to maximize it for “urban transportation.” Coronado Springs does not have the gondolas and I think they will be extended over there, soon. Once they are extended there, it is only 2 miles farther to Animal Kingdom. I really think that within the next 10 years you will see the gondolas extended all the way to Animal Kingdom Lodge. Once that happens, transportation time differences and differences in ease of access to the other parks will be minimal when compared to other resorts.

 

[suebeelin]

We almost bought AKV but changed to BWV last minute (7 years ago). No regrets. We value ease of transportation (walk to two parks) and are not big pool fans (so SAB was not a draw for us).

As the kids get older, there’s more appeal for the boardwalk resources/nightlife, as well as Epcot and Hollywood. The downside is the expiration date (2054) for boardwalk vs AKL. We thought the trade off was worth it given the ease of access to the parks and nightlife.

Good luck! There is no bad choice!

 

[pineapplepalms]

We bought BWV resale this year and love it. The location is amazing for walking to HS and Epcot if you enjoy those parks and the boats are nice too. It's definitely not the most cost effective over the life of the contract given the earlier expiration, but we felt like 24 years of vacation are still worth it, especially since it may not be the easiest to book during festivals, holidays, and races without owning. We chose BWV over BCV since we prefer the location of BWV and the option to book Boardwalk view villas, whereas BCV doesn't have the best views. Also, BWV has the option of Grand Villas and a Community Hall. BWV tends to cost a bit less than BCV, so we felt like BCV was only really worth it if you specifically value its amenities like SAB and the fact that it has dedicated 2BRs versus the lock-offs at BWV. With the lock-offs, the studio portion still has 2 sleeping surfaces without the pullout, so it can work well for two kids for quite a while (as an adult I think I could still comfortably sleep on the Murphy bed, but I'm not that tall).

 

[jerseygal]

Our home is AKV, lovely and peaceful, wonderful for Animal Kingdom, is inconvenient to Epcot, especially for F&W. We have been lucky in previous years at 7 month mark to get BWV and BCV, even at 7 month mark during F&W, we usually go in October. With that said, with the opening of Toy Story Land at HS and predicting with Star Wars next year will even be more impossible. This was the first year at 7 month mark that we couldn't get either BCV or BC, been waitlisted since 7 months, but nothing so far. We are waitlisted for a studio. Enjoy both BWV and BCV, but my favorite is BCV, love the lobby area and e biggest appeal to me is Stormalong Bay. Even traveling as adults, we love Stormalong Bay and the whole Epcot Resort Area. My vote is for BCV. Good Luck!

 

[kniquy]

If you are really uncertain then I would actually consider waiting until Rivera opens (Maybe by next fall??). This might provide a good mix of longer contract and easy gondola access (so we think) to 2 parks. I feel that the real draw back of BW is that is tends to be busy, never stayed at BC so I am not sure if that is the same issue there. AK is a bit out of the way, but we have only felt that the bus ride to MK was the only long one.

If there is not limit on your budget then i would wait for Rivera -- it sounds like it will have a lot to offer and might end up being more appealing than the 3

 

[disneynutz]

BCV if you want Storm-A-Long bay, BWV if not. Having an Epcot area resort is a nice addition to your MK area resort. We own AKV, sold some of the contracts and don't really stay there anymore. We prefer the MK and Epcot resorts better, more to do and see.

Bill

 

[momto3pirates]

The value villas at AKL are great for big trips with extra people. You need to book those right at 11 months. We also love the atmosphere of AKL.
We stayed in a grand villa at BWV and the location was great but we just didn’t love the hotel. We are not pool people though so that may make a difference.