First trip as DVC member end of Jan 2006 report ***

[toesmom]

Long time in the planning, we stayed at BWV with view of boardwalk room 3029. Beautiful view, worth the extra points definitely.

We only bought into DVC last year, so before that we always stayed at value because with little kids it was fine. So imagine the difference when suddenly we had to start tipping everyone everywhere at BWV. As soon as we drove up (don't get me wrong, the service is nice) we had to tip the bellman who helped us take out our bags, the bellman who helped us bring them to the room etc etc. Now that may not be a big deal for many of you out there, but buying DVC was bringing us into a new category of hotels obviously. I'm pretty dollar conscious and by the time we got in our room we had already spent $10. I could buy my daughter a little doll for that money. So I'm not sure how to handle that in the future...

The room itself was very nice... deluxe??? Well, I don't think so. It was much nicer and way bigger than any value resort rooms, but I think you basically get extra amenities for the difference in nightly rates. The balcony of course is wonderful. But the tiles in the kitchen area (studio) were sticky and broken in some sections. Carpet was ok (loved having vacuum to clean up any mess). Just not my picture of deluxe that's all. I pictured something much more "grandiose" for $300 per night.

Mousekeeping... didn't realize that I actually liked having someone tidy up the room when I was gone everyday. I really felt like I was at home cleaning up the kitchen area and tidying up after the rest of the family... welcome home... that's actually very literal. I did miss having someone clean up to be honest, but I didn't really want to part with $25 to have a small clean up. Can you believe I was vacuuming on my holiday?

One thing I didn't think about when buying into DVC.

Kitchen area was useful... we brought skillet and used it for small things like grilled cheese, quesedillas, not much else. But useful definitely. Small sink, but ok. Not too many places for a family with little kids to eat affordably. Missed a food court area definitely.

Now, I don't think I'll ever go again in January. It was pretty darn cold. Pool felt heated but that air was freezing. One or two sort of warmer days, but it didn't feel like that much of a holiday when we still needed coats. I'd really re-consider the use of low points when travelling. For that one holiday it might be better to go when point usage is higher, but for now we won't be buying more points so we'll make do. Again, I don't recommend january.. parks were not busy, but something felt lacking in the holiday when I was shivering in the pool !!!!

DVC was a smart move for our family since we love disney but it somehow felt different from our previous holidays there. Hard to explain. Amenities were wonderful and the service is excellent, but obviously something new and different for my family who managed ok at value resorts.

My husband has no desire to go back to value resorts, however we may end up on weekend nights doing it when kids are older.

Sofabed was comfy. We removed it from couch and kept on floor at night. Room was very large, with daybed.

The car parking area was so so so so far from the hotel. Great exercise. We didn't want to use valet because if anything happened to our rental we would be responsible.

Now maybe because we travelled with a 2 year old my perception is a little off... I think for adults it's excellent. Anyhow, my short report.

 

[jlx2]

Thanks for the trip report. I love reading them!

 

[jade1]

Wow, sounds like you really got spoiled at the Allstars. It happens. Look at this way, if you have 150 points-you can rent them for $1500 and stay 2 weeks at the Allstars "and" have enough to buy the littel doll for your daughter.

 

[Daitcher]

Sorry your first trip "home" wasn't as magical as you hoped. You obviously hadn't read any of the posts saying " If you are content staying at value resorts then DVC may not be for you." Tipping is part of the equation at BWV, BCV, and VWL and other deluxe hotel like resorts. Sounds like you may be more of a SSR or OKW person. Those resorts are condo style where you park outside your unit. No tipping required there. You'll be hard pressed to find bellman at those resorts. You may change your tune on that tip when you find no bell carts or grocery carts to help with your luggage and groceries. $10 doesn't sound so bad after three or four trips up and down to the room when you're dripping sweat. If you truly enjoyed your trip to the value resort more and long for a food court then you should strongly consider selling. Just wait untill the annual dues bill comes. You will really be questioning your purchase. I wish our family could be content staying at value resorts. I'd be about $30,000 richer. Think this through, it may not be for you guys. Nothing wrong with that either. DVC isn't for everyone, contrary to the strong love you'll see here.


DAVE

 

[bounceliketigger]

We just bought under F & F & have a trip scheduled in March. Perhaps I didn't do enough research...We always stayed at Moderate resorts, particularly love French Quarter & Riverside. Are you guys saying there's only sit-down food avail @ OKW? We're taking Magic Express from the airport--will we have to schlep our own luggage all the way to our rooms from check-in? Is it typically a long haul? I'm getting nervous!

I appreciated the comments re: renting points then going to another resort--that's not a bad idea, particularly if it's just 3 of us. This time we're taking a whole gang, which is part of what I love about DVC. None of the group could really afford to do it & have a kitchen, etc.

Also, does anyone know if there's a slide @ OKW pool? If not, my 3 year old is going to have a fit! Thanks!

 

[rwcmath]

We just bought under F & F & have a trip scheduled in March. Perhaps I didn't do enough research...We always stayed at Moderate resorts, particularly love French Quarter & Riverside. Are you guys saying there's only sit-down food avail @ OKW? We're taking Magic Express from the airport--will we have to schlep our own luggage all the way to our rooms from check-in? Is it typically a long haul? I'm getting nervous!

I appreciated the comments re: renting points then going to another resort--that's not a bad idea, particularly if it's just 3 of us. This time we're taking a whole gang, which is part of what I love about DVC. None of the group could really afford to do it & have a kitchen, etc.

Also, does anyone know if there's a slide @ OKW pool? If not, my 3 year old is going to have a fit! Thanks!

OKW has a great new slide!
You can get bell service to bring your luggage to your room at OKW!
I've only stayed at OKW once, but there was a place to buy food by the dock area, and you can buy groceries in the store. We were very pleased with these amenities at OKW.

rwc

 

[bounceliketigger]

Thanks! I'm more at ease...one more question--I'm a little confused about transportation from there. One spot online says there's boat & bus transportation from OKW. The map doesn't look that way & some other folks have expressed disappointment that you have to take a bus everywhere from there. Does the boat "transport" simply mean there's boating available as recreation there? If not, where in the World goes the boat go?

Thanks again!

 

[mickeysbestfriend]

They have a water taxi that takes you to downtown Disney, Disney Marketplace and the West Side. It was very relaxing. The rest of the transportation is by bus or you can drive your car if you have one.

 

[LIFERBABE]

Thanks toesmom for the report. BWV may not be for your family. There's nothing wrong with that and I really do understand. Many of the points you brought up are good ones and I agree with many.

Many things people love and extoll here, are not for everyone. I suggest you try a new DVC next time and find one that suits you.

I sent family to SSR last October. I could have put them at BWV Standard View and saved points, but I know my cousins, and BWV well enough to know that as impressive as BWV is, my cousins would not appreciate having to tip at every turn, no food court, far parking, and expensive restaurants. SSR is just as impressive in decor and family amenities, and the dining is more flexible with McD's to Wolfgang at DTD along with counter service and bar.

We are staying at BWV in May and we really enjoy it there, it is not our #1 but we enjoy all the DVC's and know we will have a great time.

 

[Juliet25]

I'm confused. I've stayed at both the the WL and BC-Concierge, and I don't ever remember tipping all that often. I really prefer to get my own luggage and stuff like that, so I never really felt pressue at Disney to utilize valet or luggage service. The only people I tipped was Mousekeeping.

 

[NMW]

I don't understand. Don't you have to tip at all hotels? I can understand not tipping valet if there isn't one-like at OKW and SSR! But don't all hotels have bell services? How do people at value resorts get all the luggage to their room and from their room when they are ready to check out? Aren't there bell service people to store your luggage if your room is not ready when you check in at a value resort? I admit I have not stayed at a value, but there must be staff at those resorts to do all that stuff, right?

I guess if you are used to having a food court and then stay someplace with out one, you might miss it. I do think there are inexpensive dining choices on the boardwalk-Spoodles, ESPN, and Big River are all pretty cheap. The hot dog kiosk isn't expensive either. Did you try any of those places? Flying Fish is also on the boardwalk but it is pretty expensive. You also can take the boat to the YC/BC. Yacht club galley and Cape May Cafe's clam bake dinner are inexpensive too. My family loves the clam bake! We have been doing it the first night of each trip since the first time we stayed at the BC. It's a tradition. Spoodles has a very good breakfast, it's one of our favorites. I do really like the new little marketplace thing the BC has. I wish there was something like that at the BWI/BWV. I think there is also a take-out pizza window at Spoodles, if your kids like pizza.

I agree with you about the daily housekeeping. I miss it too. We stay in 1 bdr villas and are moving to 2 bdr's soon-that's a lot to clean on vacation! We don't cook on vacation so that will keep the kitchen clean, except for glasses that have to be run in the dishwasher. I think next trip I'm bringing plastic cups and only buying things in cans!

I think that the villas are at least as "deluxe" as the regular rooms at the BWI. I mean the regular rooms, not the presidential suite or whatever they call it there! Is it maybe the decor you didn't like? You might find other DVC resorts with decor/furnishings you like better. It does sound like those tiles should be replaced if they were broken.

Hope your next trip "home" is more magical! Where are you thinking of staying?

 

[Rozzie]

Bell services are available (if desired) at SSR also. We found them to be very friendly, professional and prompt.

We just got back from a stay at BCV, while it was nice staying within walking distance to Epcot, we love the feel of SSR and OKW more. Just because BWV didn't leave warm fuzzies, doesn't mean none of the others will.

Great thing about DVC is there a lot of choices, and I am sure you will find the perfect fit.
We all have our different tastes and desires in a vacation. Hope your next trip is magical!

 

[fluffykim]

Why do people keep saying there is no bellboy at SSR...I was just there in January, and not only is there a bellboy, there is giant bellyboy station. It is located right where the Magical Express and/or taxis drop off.

They load you and your luggage in an airconditioned bus and whisk you off to your room

I just wanted to clarify that incorrectness.

 

[Simba's Mom]

You mentioned the lack of a food court. We like food courts also-where you can grab a quick, relatively inexpensive bite to eat. That's one of the disadvantages I see with BWV, also-there's not much unless you go over to the BC. At OKW, there's Good's to Go for fast food, and one thing I like there is that they made our sandwiches with the ingredients seperate, put it all in a paper bag, and we just carried it back to our room. By giving us the ingredients seperately, the sandwiches didn't get soggy. Also, I don't remember tipping anyone at OKW. But the downside is that we carried our own luggage and parked our own car, which was OK with us.

 

[byoung]

Thanks for taking the time to report.

 

[toesmom]

About the food, I should explain that we did try beaches and cream (really wasn't so great - we did it last year and was much better than this year), we went to ESPN and had wings everyone thinks are great (I got really sick within 1/2 hour of eating them), and we did have jumbo hotdog on boardwalk (my dh fell sick shortly after eating). So now our choices are limited.

Oh but we did see a woman being attacked by the seagulls outside of the bakery. She just dropped her purchases are ran really fast. It really freaked out my husband and daughter.

Anyhow, at the values you don't generally deal with staff tipping outside of housekeeping. So this is sort of new to us and we really felt pressured to have the bellmen help us even though we could manage on our own.

I should preface that the decision to buy into DVC was mostly economical but I love disney so worked out fine for our family. We paid upfront and have been saving money all year to cover these costs, so spending lavishly was not really planned for. But at least now I know what to expect in terms of the tipping and can keep it in mind.

I'm just the average woman who liked DVC and wanted to post to other families about my experience the first time there and things I didn't expect I would run across.

Oh, the reason we chose BWV over SSR or OKW is because my little guy likes to walk and I didn't want to worry about vehicles.

I still think DVC is the best choice for us and probably for most other young families who like disney, but the points I was making were my own first impressions.

 

[Cinderelli]

Like others have mentioned, give another resort a try. You don't really have to worry about cars at OKW or SSR. There are plenty of places for your little guy to roam without being in traffic. You get to park in front of your own villa. And, at OKW, depending on what season, you could upgrade to a one bedroom (didn't you have a studio?) and you'd really feel awed. The difference in size and ammenities in a BWV studio and an OKW one bedroom are HUGE!!!

Thanks so much for posting. I love reading everyone's opinion and if you try a new resort next time - please let us know how you like it.

Lissa

 

[Daitcher]

Why do people keep saying there is no bellboy at SSR...I was just there in January, and not only is there a bellboy, there is giant bellyboy station. It is located right where the Magical Express and/or taxis drop off.

They load you and your luggage in an airconditioned bus and whisk you off to your room

I just wanted to clarify that incorrectness.

Bell stand there or not most people don't utilize it. You walk quite a ways from there to get to check in. Also it really isn't a conventional pull up location like BWV or BCV. I'd guess most people ( this is what I saw happening) pull into the parking lot right there then walk in to check in. Then you get back into your car and drive to your room. Also I've posted this in the past: Why aren't there bell carts near the elevators at SSR? If you build a condo style resort make it that way. Most condo style resorts I've stayed at have bell carts/shopping carts near the elevators. Even VB has them. You need those carts to get your stuff to the room, especially groceries. Most Marriott timeshares have them. Please don't give me the other reasons I've seen here about carts being a hazard or not getting returned, etc. Why have them at other DVC resorts and not SSR?


DAVE

 

[westjones]

I didn't realize this the first time I stayed over at the Boardwalk (discovered it on our second trip), but if you go over to the Dolphin, there is a cafeteria called TUBBI's that you can get food for a fairly good price AND if you show your DVC member card you get 20% off! That is where we are going on our next trip when we just need inexpensive food.

Here is the menu:

http://www.allearsnet.com/menu/menu_tub.htm

It is open 24 hours. I believe it is being refurbished, but I would assume it will open back up by summer.

Also, about the tipping. If you pack your luggage so that everyone can grab their own suite case (get the kids backpacks and luggage on wheels), you can take your own. That is what we usually do, but if we have too much, we go ahead and do the bell service, but at that point it seems worth the tip (if I have that much stuff). But we try to pack so that we don't need to use it. I prefer to handle my own luggage when possible and I don't like it to be out of my sight. But the bell service is a nice feature when you need it.

You will get use to the "no housekeeping" thing. The towels are my problem (with the studio). I just bought hooks to hang over the door so we can hang up the towels that way (hope it works). I actually like knowing that no one will be in my room while I am gone. I don't worry about 'cleaning' it before they come to 'clean' it like I do in the other resorts. Again, you get use to it and adapt.

I believe Wilderness Lodge has a food court (Roaring Forks), so you may want to try that resort. It is small (which I like) and you can walk on a trail over to Fort Wilderness. The kids liked that.

Tubbi's is great though. I think the prices are better than at the WDW Resorts (the Dolphin is not owned by Disney, but it is right next to the BWV and BCV).

DJ

 

[UConnJack]

I liked the cafeteria at All-Stars too, and have missed it in some ways on my trips to BWV, HH, and VB. However, when we bought into DVC, much of the point of it was to have a kitchen and cook for ourselves, rather than having to buy every meal out. Even the cafeteria, while relatively inexpensive, adds up VERY QUICK when you are using it for 1-3 meals every day. If on a 1-week trip you ate breakfast in your room every morning, a couple lunches, and a few dinners; while eating out at some sit down restaurants or in the parks the remaining times, I guarantee you save more money than eating at the cafeteria most meals every day. Obviously, a studio at DVC isn't setup to make full meals, so a cafeteria would be nice at those times. But even there with a fridge and microwave, breakfast can be eaten in room every morning (bagels, cereal, oatmeal, breakfast sandwiches, etc.), and some lunches which you can even pack into the parks. Basically, IMHO, while a cafeteria would be convenient for an inexpensive meal, the convenience and savings of having a kitchen (even if just a fridge, microwave, counter and sink) far outweighs it.

As for tipping, I hate tipping too. I am and always will be a do-it-yourselfer. Just give me trolley, and I have no problem pushing my own luggage to my room. Like they have at HH and VB, every DVC should have these available. Bellboy service is great to have available, and I do and have no problem tipping (and generously) when I want to use that amenity (I especially use them when I check in early before my room is ready and want to store my bags and food so I can go have fun). However, I don't think one should feel compelled to use them. Same goes for valet. I agree that while these resorts are termed "deluxe", they ain't the Plaza Hotel in NY (or even the Grand Floridian). Schlepping luggage yourself at these types of places is probably gauche, but BWV, BCV, and VWL are not in that league. Just the fact that they are essentially condos with kitchens excludes them from that kind of status (and when is the last time a pull out couch was a viable sleeping option in a 4, 5-star hotel). While nice accommodations, their status is drawn more from their location than their amenities or creature comforts.