Did you buy into DVC thinking you would only stay in studios?

[bumbershoot]

I know, I'm too lazy to change it

 

[alldiz]

We bought into the DVC back in 2000. Our idea when purchasing was to stay in a 1 or 2 BR unit all of the time. As a family of 4 staying in a studio kind of defeats the purpose of staying at a DVC resort.

When its me and my DW we stay in a 1 BR with our Kids 2 BR

My wife and stayed in a studio at VB and hated it.

What did you think when you bought?

We purchased in 2006 6 months after our 1st Wilderness lodge stay. I fell in love and quickly booked our 2nd trip. I realized Dvc was the option.

So yes I did intend to stay in studios at 1st.... Thought the kitchenette would be great!

But..... Then I stayed in a 1BR.... Not what I intended to purchase for but now I'm glad I purchased for being able to stay there because I would never pay those "cash" rates.

I still utilize studios which is why I love my Dvc not locked into any resort, date or room
Kerri

 

[keishashadow]

We bought into the DVC back in 2000. Our idea when purchasing was to stay in a 1 or 2 BR unit all of the time. As a family of 4 staying in a studio kind of defeats the purpose of staying at a DVC resort.

When its me and my DW we stay in a 1 BR with our Kids 2 BR

My wife and stayed in a studio at VB and hated it.

What did you think when you bought?

Planned on staying @ studios and have, happily!

When/if the time comes that we find ourselves not visiting as often each year, probably will still book studios (as in book a couple of them) to take adult children/family along

 

[luckyman_apd]

Yes and no. The "plan" was to go 2 times every 3 years....and the first trip was a 2br because we had banked points included in our resale contract. After that we've been studios only and have gone more than "planned". The $399 premium annual pass deal a few years ago jump started our getting off plan travel schedule. Once we realized we could stay 2 nights in a studio for the same as 1 night in a 1br (ballpark most of the time) it was a no brainer. Give up the space and go more often. We have a crock pot and griddle in our owners locker and manage quite well in a studio. 2 adults, 2 kids. The refurbs with the murphy bed additions have made it even easier to stay in studios as the kids grow.

 

[LSchrow]

we're another "opposite": initially bought (in 1999) intending to stay in 1 bdrm, 7 days every year (4 ppl), & a 2bdrm (6 ppl) 7 days every other year.....17 years 3 add-ons later, we (now 2 ppl) stay in a studio twice a year, 12-14 days each time (we've no desire or use for a full kitchen: don't cook at home, not going to start on vacay ), the 2bdrm (4 ppl) is still every other year.
we have changed our point usage over almost 2 decades based on our needs & wants - DVC's flexible point based system was a huge reason why we had purchased initially, & why we still own it today

 

[DenLo]

Yes. Retired couple, no children. It's worked well .

It is the same with came with us. In fact one time we reserved a 1BR for us was because a single family member was joining us and then cancelled within 30 days of the arrival date. So DH and I stayed at BWV and BLT doing a split stay for a week in 1BRs. We thought it was a waste of points for us, because we were always in the same room. In fact we rarely used the living room and kitchen except for the fridge. We kept thinking about how many more days we could have stayed at WDW if we had been in a studio.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

It is the same with came with us. In fact one time we reserved a 1BR for us was because a single family member was joining us and then cancelled within 30 days of the arrival date. So DH and I stayed at BWV and BLT doing a split stay for a week in 1BRs. We thought it was a waste of points for us, because we were always in the same room. In fact we rarely used the living room and kitchen except for the fridge. We kept thinking about how many more days we could have stayed at WDW if we had been in a studio.

That is how we feel.

It might be different if we have a larger group. But for just the two of us? Or even when our son comes and it is just the three of us.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

We bought in 08 at SSR with the intention of staying in a studio. We like the kitchenette and the balcony. We can stay longer if we stay in a studio. For us the DVC was about securing accommodation and because of the exchange rate at the time ( we are from the UK ) it paid for itself in 4 years. We have added on since but we have no want to cook on vacation. But we do like a cereal type breakfast in the room. This saves money and going out first thing.

 

[kniquy]

We bought in planning on staying in a 1BR every other year. We are a family of 5 so we need the room of the 1BR despite that some studios do sleep 5. When the kids are older and we can take adult only trips we will hopefully be able to increase our trips to yearly and just stay in studios when it is just the two of us. Things might change when grandchildren come into the picture, but we can addon if we need to at that point.

 

[Shellyred8]

We bought into the DVC back in 2000. Our idea when purchasing was to stay in a 1 or 2 BR unit all of the time. As a family of 4 staying in a studio kind of defeats the purpose of staying at a DVC resort.

When its me and my DW we stay in a 1 BR with our Kids 2 BR

My wife and stayed in a studio at VB and hated it.

What did you think when you bought?

When we bought, we bought with the idea that we would stay in Studios. Then we stayed in a 1br. We are now in the process of adding on! It's just me and DH, so a studio really is sufficient. But having the laundry facilities and the King sized bed hooked me. We will frequently do a split stay where the first part of the trip is in a studio and the last half of the trip is in a 1br.

 

[Kidanifan08]

When we bought in, the plan was to spend 7 nights in a 1BR, so we bought exactly 268 points, which was the going rate for a 1BR savannah view during Magic season. We did not even think about a 1BR being twice the closet of a studio-- we just liked the idea of space. We have since more than doubled our number of points with resale add-ons, as we discovered that 7 nights was not long enough, and we liked bringing family and friends. We do use studios, but generally for stays of 4 nights or less. for most 4 night stays and longer, it's a 1 or 2BR for us, depending on the travel party. We love the W/D, living room and kitchen. We have never made a full meal in 8 years of ownership, but we like the space for Happy Hour and breakfast!

 

[3 Hobbits 2 Disney]

We bought our initial points with the plan for 1BR; however as DD has gotten older, a second BR is very attractive too. So we did an add on to allow for one 2BR stay per year plus some time in a 1 BR. When DD heads to university in 2018 we'll be able to do studios for pop downs or 1BR for longer trips and be quite happy.

 

[AdamsMum]

Initially planned on staying in studios. If there's just me or me and one other I still stay in a studio. But have stayed 8 people in 1 bedroom (note to self---never do that again) , and a 2 bedroom. I prefer the larger units for the space.

 

[RachaelA]

We bought in always planning on staying in a 1 bedroom. We've never stayed in a studio. DD and I will stay in one for the first time in the spring since it will be just the two of us.

 

[christianweecare]

DH & I bought as empty nesters although we host our children's families as well as my sister's family from time to time. Depending on the number involved we may book several studios or a 2 bedroom villa. Most of our trips involve just DH & I so we just stay in studios which work fine for us. We're not in the room much anyway.

 

[disneynutz]

We started small point wise and stayed in studios, after a couple of years we stayed in a 1 bedroom and haven't stayed in a studio since. We enjoy the 1 bedroom amenities and space. To save some money we cook some meals plus Disney food is small in portion size and I hate paying for a smear of some kind of sauce on my plate. We like to pack less and do some laundry in the room.

Bill

 

[BillPA]

Initially planned on staying in studios. If there's just me or me and one other I still stay in a studio. But have stayed 8 people in 1 bedroom (note to self---never do that again) , and a 2 bedroom. I prefer the larger units for the space.

I hope that 8 in a 1 BR was a typo, or you are a major rule breaker. Shame on you

 

[RAD]

When we did the DVC tour of BWV one of the big selling points was having the 1BR and larger units, the studios did nothing for us and we've only stayed in a studio once and that was for a 1 night stay before doing a DCL cruise. When we need to fly in the day before a cruise we don't even bother with DVC but stay out at the airport.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

When we bought, we were newly married and didn't discuss room preferences. But when we started using our DVC, we were booking 2BR because of extended family. When we had our daughter, there was a big lapse in points use because she was so premature. But once we started using our points again, we were always getting a 1 BR. Mostly because of space and how we were using our points at the time. Usually one big vacation a year. We lived in California at the time and prefer WDW so if we were going to travel all that way, we'd use up most if not all our points and stay in a 1 BR for about 10 days. Now that we are back living on the East Coast we can easily drive to WDW and I can now see us spending more time there so I'd say we will probably do a studio so we can have more stays.

 

[keishashadow]

I hope that 8 in a 1 BR was a typo, or you are a major rule breaker. Shame on you

I've heard of all sorts of "X" - shaming but never of the DVC variety.

Would like to take the high-road & give @AdamsMum the benefit of the doubt by stating the obvious: occupancy levels are not merely a suggested guideline. Mistakes happen, but comfort & security issues surely would come into play if you would nearly double the # of guests in a studio. At the very least you wouldn't be able to make FP+ for more than the unit's stated maximum # of guests.