Deluxe Villa Benefits

[CBMom01]

Can anyone help me understand the benefits of a Deluxe Villa vs. FTW Cabins for a group of 6? I know about the late EMH or whatever they are calling it now. Is there anything else?

 

[CarolynFH]

Can anyone help me understand the benefits of a Deluxe Villa vs. FTW Cabins for a group of 6? I know about the late EMH or whatever they are calling it now. Is there anything else?

For a party of 6 you'd be looking at a 2-bedroom DVC Deluxe Villa. That will have a king bed in one bedroom, a queen and double or queen foldout couch in the other bedroom, and a queen foldout couch in the living room. Some of the DVC 2 BR villas have a twin/bunk size Murphy bed either in the 2nd bedroom, the living room, or both, and some 2 BR villas will have 2 queen beds in the 2nd bedroom. All 2 BR have at least 2 full bathrooms; some have 3 full bathrooms. The Ft. Wilderness cabins have a queen foldout couch in the living room, a queen bed and a bunk bed in the bedroom, and one bathroom. Both DVC and Ft.W. have full kitchens; the DVC villas also have in-room laundry, but I'm not sure about the cabins. Which DVC resort are you looking at?

At the Ft.W. cabins, to get to the parks you'd ride the internal bus to either the lakefront to catch the boat to MK or to the front of the resort to catch a separate bus to the other parks. However, if you have a car you can park at your cabin and drive to the parks. The DVC resorts have various transportation means to get to the parks - buses, boats, monorail, Skyliner - but even the ones with multiple internal stops (OKW, SSR) go directly to the park, no transfer needed once you board the bus.

 

[CBMom01]

Thank you! Looking at okw.

 

[Sammie]

The difference in a two bedroom at OKW and a FW cabin is huge. For one thing so much more space. Full dining area, large living and kitchen Full Size laundry, two bedrooms, one with a King and one with two Queen beds. The living room has a sleep sofa and sleeper chair. Two full size bathrooms. Also better pools. Quicker access to buses, therefore quicker access to parks.

 

[CBMom01]

How would you compare travel times to the parks, other than MK?

 

[Stargazer65]

the DVC villas also have in-room laundry, but I'm not sure about the cabins.

We stayed in the FTW cabins back 11 years ago just before we decided to join DVC. They did not have in-room laundry.

 

[Best Aunt]

My answer was going to be: price.

OP, if you were to book at OKW, were you planning to rent points or pay cash through Disney?

If you were going to pay cash through Disney, I would think a two-bedroom villa would cost significantly more than the cabins at Fort Wilderness.

Also, at some resorts, the 2-bedroom villas never show as being available for cash bookings on the Disney website. I'm not sure about OKW.

I searched a random night in February. The cabin was $381 plus tax per night. OKW wasn't available on the Disney website for a cash booking, so I looked at Saratoga Springs. A 2-bedroom preferred villa was $926 plus tax per night. One of the DVC rental agencies was showing $703 per night for a 2-bedroom at OKW.

 

[Stargazer65]

If you were going to pay cash through Disney, I would think a two-bedroom villa would cost significantly more than the cabins at Fort Wilderness

Yes, I remember when we were looking back then the FTW cabins were significantly less than a two bedroom villa which was one of the reasons we went with it. But there is a big difference between staying in one vs the other as well, and after experiencing both I agree with Sammie:

The difference in a two bedroom at OKW and a FW cabin is huge. For one thing so much more space. Full dining area, large living and kitchen Full Size laundry, two bedrooms, one with a King and one with two Queen beds. The living room has a sleep sofa and sleeper chair. Two full size bathrooms. Also better pools.

 

[Stargazer65]

How would you compare travel times to the parks, other than MK?

I thought it was similar to Wilderness Lodge travel times. IMO...slightly slower bus times than most of the other resorts we've been. FTW cabins is a laid back, quiet Disney experience, kind of like glamping. I wouldn't mind doing it again as a split stay...relax for a while at FTW, and do the parks and other things while at a DVC resort. Not that you can't do everything while you're at FTW, it's just that it almost seems a shame to leave the place all day, it's so nice and quiet there.

 

[CarolynFH]

How would you compare travel times to the parks, other than MK?

Our experience staying at the cabins was many many years ago, but I do not think it has changed very much. We had to wait for the internal bus, ride it to the front of the resort, get off, wait for another bus, and then ride that to the parks. We were glad we had our own car because we started driving everywhere except to MK. At OKW you only have to wait for one bus, and you may have to ride it through the resort depending on where your room is, but then you go directly to the parks. No getting off one bus and waiting for a second bus. So I think it is quicker than buses from Fort Wilderness to the parks because of having to ride two buses.

 

[drusba]

FTW cabins are about 504 sg ft, have one small bedroom with a double and bunks, and a pull-out couch in the also small living room, and a little kitchen, and it has one small bathroom. Many years ago, I actually stayed in those a few times.

If you have six with DVC, you need to get a 2BR because the maximum in studios and 1BRs range from 4 to 5 depending on resort. The 1BRs themselves are more than 200 to 500 sq ft larger than a cabin, depending on resort. The two bedrooms are more than 500 to 900 sq ft larger than the cabins. You mention OKW as the possible choice, its 1BRs are just over 1,000 sq ft and 2BRs 1400 (i.e., almost 3X larger than that cabin) The one and two bedrooms all have large kitchens, washer/dryers, large master bedrooms, large master bathrooms, and 1BRs at Kidani and Bay Lake Tower have a second bathroom. The 2BRs add another large room that has its own bathroom and two beds, either two queens or a queen and a pull-out couch or Murphy bed that pulls down from the wall over a couch. Comparing the FTW rooms to a 1BR or 2BR DVC room is really like comparing a walk-in closet to a house. Since it sounds like have done a FTW cabin, you should likely go to YouTube and do a search for walk-throughs of the DVC 1BRs or 2BRs to get a sense of the difference, e.g., you can find such walk-throughs for any DVC resort by simply searching for "two bedroom " or "one bedroom" and name the particular DVC Resort after those words, e.g., "two bedroom Old Key West"

Transportation to parks from a DVC resort depends on the resort but all have quicker applicable trips to a park than FTW. FTW has an internal bus that makes multiple stops that takes you to a place to get the transportation to the park -- a boat for MK and bus for others and thus you have the issue of two different waiting times for the transportation to a park. With DVC resorts, the transportation device you get on after leaving your room is the one that goes to a park (e.g., a bus, a monorail, a boat, or the Skyliner, and for some you can just walk to a park (to EPCOT or Studios from BWV or BCV, to Magic Kingdom from BLT or VGF).

FTW is very good for on-site amenities when all are working (not subject to covid closures or limitations). I have always considered its buffet restaurant, Trail' End, to be one of the best. It provides quick access to Hoop-Dee-Doo, you can do wagon rides and horseback rides, and pony rides for kids, there is an evening campfire (with movie), stores are good, good pools, you can rent boats, and you can even rent a golf cart for internal transportation. DVC Resorts also have good amenities and they vary among the resorts, and those at some of the DVC Resorts may be considered better than those offered at FTW, but If amenities were the only issue, choosing the less expensive FTW would likely be the choice.

(As corrected following Zavandor's post below) FTW will, come Oct, be limited to early entry extra hours while all the DVC resorts will have both nightly and early entry extra hours. (That Disney decision to deprive the moderates and values of nightly extra hours is, in my personal view, an extremely callous and bad decision.)

FTW is significantly less costly than what you need for six at a DVC Resort, a 2BR, even if your are renting points, which itself is significantly less costly than what Disney charges for DVC Resorts to the general public.

 

[Boopuff]

Fort wilderness cabins are not deluxe nor DVC. Just to clarify. We did FW cabins years ago with 5 and it was tight with one bath. A two bedroom at any DVC would be great.

 

[zavandor]

FTW will, come Oct, be limited to nightly extra hours while all the DVC resorts will have both nightly and early entry extra hours. (That Disney decision to deprive the moderates and values of early entry is, in my personal view, an extremely callous and bad decision.)

It's the other way around. All on site resorts and some third party hotels will get early entry. Only deluxe will get the twice weekly (for the moment) nightly extra hours.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

It's the other way around. All on site resorts and some third party hotels will get early entry. Only deluxe will get the twice weekly (for the moment) nightly extra hours.

However, if you're not able to do extra hours, FWC are a nice place to hang.

 

[drusba]

It's the other way around. All on site resorts and some third party hotels will get early entry. Only deluxe will get the twice weekly (for the moment) nightly extra hours.

Thanks for the correction. Disney has done so many bad things lately that I'm having a hard time keeping up and remembering all of them accrurately

 

[CBMom01]

Thank you all! This has been really helpful. Looking at renting points if ur cones up but that will still be more.

I wanted the evening hours but for our dates it would be a waste since we couldn’t use the MK night. Unless everting falls into place we’ll just live with the cabin i think, everyone can just wait for me to be done in the bathroom