First AKV, thenBLT, now OKW???

[88golf88]

What a couple of months it has been. We started off buying into AKV and then changed our mind and switched changed contracts and bought 160 pts at BLT because we have always loved MK area the best. Well, over the weekend DW and I found out we most likely will be having our first little one roll along by the end of the year!!!

At first DVC didnt make sense once learning this news, but after talking it over with my guide, OKW for $90/pt seems pretty doable for a few reasons. The price point is definitely in our price range and with the (potential) little one, a more laid back atmosphere may make more sense. We can always add on at BLT later on.

For those who have stayed at or own at OKW, what are your impressions of the studios and 1BR? It seems that the studios are a little larger than most other studios, which would be good for us. How was the bus service? Food options?

Thanks!!!

 

[dboules]

You can always stay at any of the resorts if you book less than 7 months out. So I would say buy where you can afford.

All of the "original" DVC resorts expire on January 31, 2042. This includes OKW, VB, HH, BWV, VWL and BCV. Some OKW owners chose to accept the offer by DVC to extend their contracts until 1/31/2057 - and many did not.

SSR expires 1/31/2054, AKV expires 1/31/2057, BLT and VGC expire on 1/31/2060.

That is most likely why the price point is different.
You just have to decide how valuable those additional years are to you.

Hope this helps.
Diana

 

[88golf88]

You can always stay at any of the resorts if you book less than 7 months out. So I would say buy where you can afford.

All of the "original" DVC resorts expire on January 31, 2042. This includes OKW, VB, HH, BWV, VWL and BCV. Some OKW owners chose to accept the offer by DVC to extend their contracts until 1/31/2057 - and many did not.

SSR expires 1/31/2054, AKV expires 1/31/2057, BLT and VGC expire on 1/31/2060.

That is most likely why the price point is different.
You just have to decide how valuable those additional years are to you.

Hope this helps.
Diana

The OKW contract thru Disney is thru 2057, they are including the extension. As far as staying at any of the resorts, we definitely were considering that as one of the reasons to go with OKW. We are very flexible with where we will stay. We have been to WDW several times and usually like staying different places each time down.

 

[dboules]

If the contract lengths are the same I would definitely buy wherever it is cheapest. The only time you really have to be concerned about booking more than 7 months out is if you are trying to go on a holiday (Christmas, Easter, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, etc..). And from my experience it's not that great to be there then as it is PACKED and you just can't enjoy yourself as much. Now I love Disney at Christmas time - so pretty; but would never go again. Waiting in an hour long line for counter service was horrible.

So if you are not planning to go at peak times, then buy at the cheapest point price possible. Then plan to stay at different resorts and enjoy!!

Diana

 

[dboules]

I realized I didn't answer probably your most important questions:
For those who have stayed at or own at OKW, what are your impressions of the studios and 1BR? It seems that the studios are a little larger than most other studios, which would be good for us. How was the bus service? Food options?



The rooms at OKW are much much larger than the other resorts. They are quiet and feel like you are tucked away. Some rooms can be undesirable if you are directly by a bus stop as the bus is noisy stopping/starting, but given the number of rooms and the size of the resort; those are not the vast majority. And there is the convenience of being close to the bus stop.
The pool is no where near as cool as Beach Club, but it's also not nearly as crowded. They have updated it in the last 5 years or so. Regarding food, there is one sit-down restaurant onsite there and the food is good. And there are a couple of quick service options. There are also grills available around the property for your use.

I think OKW is really laid back, park right by your room, quiet and homey feeling.

Now if the pool is the #1 thing for you; then this is not the resort. But you can always try booking other places 7 months out.

Hope this answers all your questions.
Diana

 

[88golf88]

I realized I didn't answer probably your most important questions:
For those who have stayed at or own at OKW, what are your impressions of the studios and 1BR? It seems that the studios are a little larger than most other studios, which would be good for us. How was the bus service? Food options?



The rooms at OKW are much much larger than the other resorts. They are quiet and feel like you are tucked away. Some rooms can be undesirable if you are directly by a bus stop as the bus is noisy stopping/starting, but given the number of rooms and the size of the resort; those are not the vast majority. And there is the convenience of being close to the bus stop.
The pool is no where near as cool as Beach Club, but it's also not nearly as crowded. They have updated it in the last 5 years or so. Regarding food, there is one sit-down restaurant onsite there and the food is good. And there are a couple of quick service options. There are also grills available around the property for your use.

I think OKW is really laid back, park right by your room, quiet and homey feeling.

Now if the pool is the #1 thing for you; then this is not the resort. But you can always try booking other places 7 months out.

Hope this answers all your questions.
Diana

Thanks for answering those questions. The resort is important, but we are easy to please. We would be happy to stay at any of the resorts, so I think the cheaper option may be better for us, especially starting with additions to the family!!

 

[dboules]

I agree...

And CONGRATs on the news of the addition to the family.
The first baby is so special!! Mine is leaving for college this fall!!!

 

[dgaston]

While the OKW studio is the largest on property, the bathroom sink is in the room with toilet and shower. There are 2 queen beds, not 1 queen and a sofa bed. For some this is a plus; I prefer to watch TV sitting on a sofa. The patios are very large, although often next to the air conditioning unit on the first floor. Elevators are only found in buildings 62, 63, and 64, which are often reserved for folks who require them.

Like the pool and pool slide. Counter service is very limited.

HTH

 

[kenny]

Wasn't sure from your post. So do you own BLT and are looking to add-on at BLT or OKW or buying for the 1st time?

Going to go the other way from everyone here and say BLT.

We just returned from a 3 night studio stay at OKW and 7 night 1 bedroom at BLT.

While you can not compare the two rooms as one was a studio and one was a 1 bedroom, we definitely liked BLT more.

We had some issues with OKW. 1st was the cleanliness of the room. Having stayed in many WDW rooms, going to chalk this up to luck of the draw. Sometimes you just get a room that is not up to your satisfaction.

However, we did find the room extremely noisey. From our studio in building 51, we could hear every bus that drove by (and they drove through the parking lot not the street). With a 5 month old and 5 year old we needed to keep the AC running to drown out the noise.

We did like the grounds/pool but just weren't overwhelmed with the room.

BLT we loved. However, if you are planning on studios they are the smallest of the DVC's. But you get LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. With little kids this can not be beat. You will spend most of your time at MK. At BLT you can simply walk over. Takes about 5-10 minutes. No buses, cars, etc. With a sleeping child we were able to wheel them right into our room still in the stroller asleep. No need to wake them up to get on the bus.

Plus you get all the amenities of CR and Monorail to Epcot. For us it was a no brainer.

 

[88golf88]

Wasn't sure from your post. So do you own BLT and are looking to add-on at BLT or OKW or buying for the 1st time?

Going to go the other way from everyone here and say BLT.

We just returned from a 3 night studio stay at OKW and 7 night 1 bedroom at BLT.

While you can not compare the two rooms as one was a studio and one was a 1 bedroom, we definitely liked BLT more.

We had some issues with OKW. 1st was the cleanliness of the room. Having stayed in many WDW rooms, going to chalk this up to luck of the draw. Sometimes you just get a room that is not up to your satisfaction.

However, we did find the room extremely noisey. From our studio in building 51, we could hear every bus that drove by (and they drove through the parking lot not the street). With a 5 month old and 5 year old we needed to keep the AC running to drown out the noise.

We did like the grounds/pool but just weren't overwhelmed with the room.

BLT we loved. However, if you are planning on studios they are the smallest of the DVC's. But you get LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. With little kids this can not be beat. You will spend most of your time at MK. At BLT you can simply walk over. Takes about 5-10 minutes. No buses, cars, etc. With a sleeping child we were able to wheel them right into our room still in the stroller asleep. No need to wake them up to get on the bus.

Plus you get all the amenities of CR and Monorail to Epcot. For us it was a no brainer.

We have a contract in our possesion to buy into BLT, we agreed to purchase a few weeks ago and then this little surprise came to us this past weekend.

As far as BLT goes, I couldnt agree more that the location is great. We will still try and stay there at 7 months, but if we cant get in, our trip wont be ruined.

As far as the noise goes at OKW, that is definitely a concern, especially if we have the little one trying to sleep. Are there some buildings that are away from the bus route? I am sure that we can request a room on the opposite side of the building away from the bus route.

Essentially, it looks like we can afford OKW at this point and this will get our foot in the door and we will have it paid for by the time the little one is old enough to participate in most of the activities that WDW has to offer. I am thinking that if we dont get in now, we may not in the future and will end up kicking ourselves as both of our parents are doing now. We both grew up Disney babies and we plan on raising our little one as a Disney baby!!!

 

[cseca]

CONGRATS!!!!
Your lives will change dramatically with this little one... for the better
Get lots of sleep now... because you won't have any once you get closer to delivery and then many many months after (trust me, this advise comes from this sleep deprived new mommy )

As far as your question, I believe in the saying buy where you want to stay the most. I know you can stay anywhere as long as there's availability within 7mo but the more resorts they build the more members could mean the harder it is to get the more popular resorts. IF your favorite is BLT or BCV, treehouse, or AKL concierge I think it's better to get points at those home resorts. But if you are OK staying wherever, then the cheapest points (AND MF!) could be the best way to go financially.

Good luck again! And cherish your sleep... zzzz....

 

[DizGirl20]

First of all, congratulations!

Secondly, where did you get the $90/point price from? Is that direct? Resales are much much lower. You might want to check into resales before you proceed with an OKW direct purchase. The sponsor of this board (The Timeshare Store) is an excellent resource.

Finally, we stayed at OKW in a 1-bedroom last year. It was HUGE! I found it to be a very quiet and a very laid-back resort. We absolutely loved it and actually joined DVC because of our stay at OKW. We knew we could never go back to a standard hotel room at Disney!

Best of Luck with your decision. Take your time trying to sort this all out. DVC isn't going anywhere and it is a big commitment... but a wonderful one!

 

[DizGirl20]

Just thought of one more thing to add: when you stay at OKW, avoid the buildings next to the community pools. The noise carries right in, esp. at night!

 

[88golf88]

First of all, congratulations!

Secondly, where did you get the $90/point price from? Is that direct? Resales are much much lower. You might want to check into resales before you proceed with an OKW direct purchase. The sponsor of this board (The Timeshare Store) is an excellent resource.

Finally, we stayed at OKW in a 1-bedroom last year. It was HUGE! I found it to be a very quiet and a very laid-back resort. We absolutely loved it and actually joined DVC because of our stay at OKW. We knew we could never go back to a standard hotel room at Disney!

Best of Luck with your decision. Take your time trying to sort this all out. DVC isn't going anywhere and it is a big commitment... but a wonderful one!

Thanks, we are going thru Disney to finance it, we can afford the monthly payment, especially that I have a feeling that a decent part of our savings are going to a little bundle of joy!!!

 

[Malaguti Ball Clan]

We stayed this past June for 5 days, absolutely loved it The botanical tranquility is unmatched....we lived in the real KW for 4 years so we are biased. We followed on with 5 days at SSR and although enjoyable, we all agreed we love OKW. We bought AKV, but I will be adding on soon and am trying to decide between OKW and BLT, most likely I will go with OKW as the points are much cheaper, but thats the beauty of DVC, we have had 10 days at two great resorts so far...and neither are our home resort..but that is coming up this fall, Congratulations on the biscuit, have fun every day as they grow too quick...sniffle....

 

[TLSnell1981]

We chose monorail resorts when our children were small and spent most of our time at MK. It was so easy going back to the resort for an afternoon nap. We purchased at BWV because we like being close to EPCOT. Our children are grown and now spend most of our time there.