First time going to Disney, some questions about BWV

[MaC410]

Hey everyone! I'm going to Disney for the first time ever for my honeymoon April 2016. My fiancee and I originally thought the Beach Club Villas would be our first choice but that recently changed after some research. We have a few questions about the Boardwalk Villas that I hope some people can answer.

Our research has told us that it seems like the Boardwalk Villas have better views than the Beach Club Villas. Looking at the map of the resorts areas I can see why this is true. The BCV looked tucked away behind the BC Resort while the BWV look to go along the boardwalk along the lake! So as a Disney newbie who has never done this before, what is the best way to ensure a room with a great view of the lake? We plan to get a one bedroom at BWV. Since our trip isn't until April 2016 does it just simply take a phone call to book and ask for a room with a view of the lake?

Along the lines of views...Does every one bedroom at BWV have a balcony? If we get a room on a higher floor with a view of lake it would be really nice to have a balcony! Is this something I need to specifically ask for when booking?

I also hear that the BWV is getting a refurbishment! Is it possible to specifically ask for a refurbished room? Since our trip is in April 2016 would we even need to ask for a refurbished room or would all of them be refurbished by then do you think?

So basically, as a Disney newbie, what I'm asking is...How accommodating are they to your requests? If I called up tomorrow and asked to book a refurbished one bedroom BWV for a week in April 2016 on the highest floor, with a lake view and with a balcony...would they be accommodating? Is it possible to be that specific and know exactly what you are getting? Or do you not know what you get until you get there?

Sorry if all these questions seem silly. As I said, this is my first time and since it's for my honeymoon I would like to make sure we get what we are looking for! Thank you!

 

[disneynutz]

Are you getting a cash reservation or a point reservation?

A boardwalk view is a separate DVC booking category, all boardwalk view rooms have a balcony.

Bill

 

[drusba]

The best views are BWV "boardwalk view" rooms, a booking category available to DVC members but not to cash guests booking through Disney central reservations. It is that view that looks across the lake. If you are a DVC member or renting through a DVC member, you can book a boardwalk view room but only about 17% of all BWV rooms are boardwalk view, and it can be important to assure getting that view to book 11 months out from date of arrival when owners at the resort can start making reservations for any particular time.

Other views, such as pool/garden view which is most of the rooms and what you are likely to get with a cash reservation through Disney, are decent but nowhere near as great as boardwalk view. The refurbishment should not be an issue for 2016 since it should be finished this year and is already well along. As far as balconies go, all 1BRs have a balcony but it varies what they have. Many have separate living room and bedroom balconies, some have one long balcony across both rooms, and then a fairly small number have only a balcony outside the living room or outside the bedroom but not both. There are two 1BRs with boardwalk view on the 4th floor that have balconies only outside the bedroom; the rest of the Boardwalk view 1BRs have either two balconies or one long one.

 

[MaC410]

The best views are BWV "boardwalk view" rooms, a booking category available to DVC members but not to cash guests booking through Disney central reservations. It is that view that looks across the lake. If you are a DVC member or renting through a DVC member, you can book a boardwalk view room but only about 17% of all BWV rooms are boardwalk view, and it can be important to assure getting that view to book 11 months out from date of arrival when owners at the resort can start making reservations for any particular time.

Other views, such as pool/garden view which is most of the rooms and what you are likely to get with a cash reservation through Disney, are decent but nowhere near as great as boardwalk view. The refurbishment should not be an issue for 2016 since it should be finished this year and is already well along. As far as balconies go, all 1BRs have a balcony but it varies what they have. Many have separate living room and bedroom balconies, some have one long balcony across both rooms, and then a fairly small number have only a balcony outside the living room or outside the bedroom but not both. There are two 1BRs with boardwalk view on the 4th floor that have balconies only outside the bedroom; the rest of the Boardwalk view 1BRs have either two balconies or one long one.

Wow! Thank you so much for this helpful info. I had no idea the boardwalk view rooms were only available to DVC members. So the only way to get a boardwalk view is to rent through a DVC member. I guess I will need to look into this if that is what we decide we absolutely want. Is it a difficult process to rent through a DVC member? Does renting through a DVC member make it any harder to manage other aspects of your trip? Like I know when you go directly through Disney with their website you can manage and get everything. Your room, park tickets, wrist bands and so on. How does this work when renting from a DVC member?

 

[xlsm]

David's DVC rental website will have a lot of info for you as far as renting points. You'll probably need to book right at the 11th month window for a 1BR boardwalk view, which would be next month for April 2016.
Also, I'm pretty sure that when you rent points, you don't get daily Mousekeeping, you have to pay extra for Mousekeeping package. If you book directly through Disney you do get daily service, however.
You will be able to manage your own vacation, you will just need to link your MDE account with your reservation number from your rental. Then, you can buy tickets directly from Disney or from Undercover Tourist. If you choose the latter, you just link your ticket numbers in your MDE too. Your magic band is connected to your reservation through your MDE account, and it will be your room key, tickets, etc...

Are you dead set on villas? If not, you might enjoy a club level stay for your honeymoon.

Good luck with everything and have fun planning!

 

[deedisneydream97]

Have you considered the BoardWalk Inn side of the resort? That is the more traditional hotel-type room and not DVC. I don't think they have 1 bedrooms....but they do have these adorable little cottage type things that face an interior type courtyard with wonderful gardens and a quiet pool. No kitchen either....but you are on your honeymoon....do you really want a kitchen?

Drusba is right on the money about the BoardWalk views on the DVC side. There are not that many 1 bedrooms. There are some standard view one bedrooms that are pretty nice...we never minded having the parking lot view. We like to watch the comings and goings. Or we would carry our wine or our coffee to the veranda on the Boardwalk and catch the sights and sounds that way. I agree with your assessment about BCV vs. BWV. A lot more action at BWV and an easier walk to DHS. Epcot walk is about the same believe it or not.

The Time Share Store (a sponsor of these boards) also does rentals, in addition to David's mentioned above. I don't think the process is all that difficult, but as xlsm mentioned, you need to do it sooner rather than later. and I don't think you can change your mind once you commit (I could be wrong about this though).

Good luck and congratulations.

 

[MaC410]

Have you considered the BoardWalk Inn side of the resort? That is the more traditional hotel-type room and not DVC. I don't think they have 1 bedrooms....but they do have these adorable little cottage type things that face an interior type courtyard with wonderful gardens and a quiet pool. No kitchen either....but you are on your honeymoon....do you really want a kitchen?

Drusba is right on the money about the BoardWalk views on the DVC side. There are not that many 1 bedrooms. There are some standard view one bedrooms that are pretty nice...we never minded having the parking lot view. We like to watch the comings and goings. Or we would carry our wine or our coffee to the veranda on the Boardwalk and catch the sights and sounds that way. I agree with your assessment about BCV vs. BWV. A lot more action at BWV and an easier walk to DHS. Epcot walk is about the same believe it or not.

The Time Share Store (a sponsor of these boards) also does rentals, in addition to David's mentioned above. I don't think the process is all that difficult, but as xlsm mentioned, you need to do it sooner rather than later. and I don't think you can change your mind once you commit (I could be wrong about this though).

Good luck and congratulations.

Our research turned towards the villas for our honeymoon for a few reasons. While we understand no rooms on Disney property are really going to be super romantic we wanted to find something that seemed romantic enough. Obviously a kitchen isn't very romantic but the other aspects of the villas are what got our attention. It was the larger spaces, the whirlpool tub and the larger walk in shower. It was those things that made the villas seem more "honeymoon-like".

With that said...We are open to other ideas. Are ANY of these features that draw us to the villas found in any other resort type rooms? I'm sure if you book some super expensive suite somewhere you can find them but we don't look to completely break the bank for our honeymoon. Again I understand with the Disney rooms and their theming of rooms you won't really find a super romantic room. But are there any reasonable choices out there that help make rooms seem more honeymoon-like?

 

[disneynutz]

Our research turned towards the villas for our honeymoon for a few reasons. While we understand no rooms on Disney property are really going to be super romantic we wanted to find something that seemed romantic enough. Obviously a kitchen isn't very romantic but the other aspects of the villas are what got our attention. It was the larger spaces, the whirlpool tub and the larger walk in shower. It was those things that made the villas seem more "honeymoon-like".

With that said...We are open to other ideas. Are ANY of these features that draw us to the villas found in any other resort type rooms? I'm sure if you book some super expensive suite somewhere you can find them but we don't look to completely break the bank for our honeymoon. Again I understand with the Disney rooms and their theming of rooms you won't really find a super romantic room. But are there any reasonable choices out there that help make rooms seem more honeymoon-like?

I would look for a VGF DVC rental, 1 bedroom. Can't get better than that and if you rent a lake view, you will have a view of the lake, Poly, and wedding pavilion.

Bill

 

[jekjones1558]

OP, I think that a BW Villas 1 bedroom with BW view would be a great choice. You can walk or boat to 2 parks. You will have a view of Crescent Lake and Illuminations fireworks every night. The rehab of all the BW Villa rooms will be finished by then. You will be guaranteed a balcony. Request a high floor (that won't be guaranteed) for the best views of fireworks. You will also be able to see Magic Kingdom fireworks in the distance. Because you can only get a BW view by booking through a DVC member, you should look at your options now because DVC members who own at BWV can book 11 months ahead of time. It is somewhat cheaper to book directly with a member, like through the Rent/Trade board right here on the DIS
http://www.disboards.com/forums/dvc-rent-trade.29/.
You can pay a little more and make the process a little more secure and easier by booking through David's
http://www.disboards.com/threads/points-for-rent-same-day-service-all-resorts.2386546/or Timeshare Store.
Whatever you decide, congratulations! Have a perfect Disneymoon!

 

[MaC410]

Thanks for the input! Due to some of the input in this thread I think my fiancee and I are actually leaning heavily towards one of the Garden cottages/suites at the BWI. They seem to have everything we want while providing us with a quieter honeymoon setting. So excited!

 

[gdrj]

Thanks for the input! Due to some of the input in this thread I think my fiancee and I are actually leaning heavily towards one of the Garden cottages/suites at the BWI. They seem to have everything we want while providing us with a quieter honeymoon setting. So excited!

The cottages definitely look very nice from photos we've seen. It is quieter back there which is fine.

We also enjoy the boardwalk view from the villa's but it can get a bit louder with the boats and late night bar closing time. No matter what you choose it will be great. We have been going to the Boardwalk for 15 years and could not be happier.

Congrats. If you do decide to rent DVC be sure to review and make sure you understand how it works (payment upfront, no refunds etc.)

 

[LauraLea]

Thanks for the input! Due to some of the input in this thread I think my fiancee and I are actually leaning heavily towards one of the Garden cottages/suites at the BWI. They seem to have everything we want while providing us with a quieter honeymoon setting. So excited!

Good choice. The pool in the courtyard is my favorite in all of "the world". This area is much more suitable for a honeymoon. I believe these rooms also include access to the club level lounge.

Laura

 

[chicita713]

The boardwalk view is exciting but can be loud at times especially at night when most people visit and walk around. The privacy and quietness of the BWI side will make it more romantic. You really can't go wrong no matter where you are. The boardwalk is an amazing place with dining, entertainment and traveling to to HS and Epcot can't be beat. Congratulation! Good luck with the planning!