First trip to Disneyworld in October! Where should our family stay??

[Rulanna411]

Hello DVC members or anyone who has been to WDW and the DVC resorts,
I am super excited about planning my family's first trip to Walt Disney World in October but I'm trying to figure out where we should try to book at the 7 month window. My son is six years old and we would need a 2 bedroom villa for 5 nights. Do any of you have any recommendations for where we should try to stay? I don't know anything about WDW and which resorts are close to what parks. I would love to try to experience each of the 4 parks during our trip but we don't feel like we have to experience everything since we plan on being back annually or at least every 2 years. Eventually I want to try to stay at as many of the resorts as possible but for our first trip I want to maximize the magic and wonder for our 6 year old and couple that with comfort and convenience for the park experience for my husband and me. Any input and advice would be very much appreciated! Thank you for reading.

 

[DebLovesPooh]

I think AKV’s savannah rooms are magical for kids that age. Your son may also love the splash area. It’s a bus to all parks, but I still remember DS and DH’s faces when they saw those giraffes on the way to the pool.

 

[Marionnette]

Hello DVC members or anyone who has been to WDW and the DVC resorts,
I am super excited about planning my family's first trip to Walt Disney World in October but I'm trying to figure out where we should try to book at the 7 month window. My son is six years old and we would need a 2 bedroom villa for 5 nights. Do any of you have any recommendations for where we should try to stay? I don't know anything about WDW and which resorts are close to what parks. I would love to try to experience each of the 4 parks during our trip but we don't feel like we have to experience everything since we plan on being back annually or at least every 2 years. Eventually I want to try to stay at as many of the resorts as possible but for our first trip I want to maximize the magic and wonder for our 6 year old and couple that with comfort and convenience for the park experience for my husband and me. Any input and advice would be very much appreciated! Thank you for reading.

Where do you own? I recommend booking your home resort now and then checking to see what is available at 7 months.

 

[CarolynFH]

Where do you own? I recommend booking your home resort now and then checking to see what is available at 7 months.

It sounds to me as if their home resort is not at WDW, i.e. is VGC, AUL, HHI or VB. So they have to wait for 7 months to book at WDW.

 

[Rulanna411]

I think AKV’s savannah rooms are magical for kids that age. Your son may also love the splash area. It’s a bus to all parks, but I still remember DS and DH’s faces when they saw those giraffes on the way to the pool.

Thank you for the recommendation! I'll check it out

 

[CarolynFH]

Hello DVC members or anyone who has been to WDW and the DVC resorts,
I am super excited about planning my family's first trip to Walt Disney World in October but I'm trying to figure out where we should try to book at the 7 month window. My son is six years old and we would need a 2 bedroom villa for 5 nights. Do any of you have any recommendations for where we should try to stay? I don't know anything about WDW and which resorts are close to what parks. I would love to try to experience each of the 4 parks during our trip but we don't feel like we have to experience everything since we plan on being back annually or at least every 2 years. Eventually I want to try to stay at as many of the resorts as possible but for our first trip I want to maximize the magic and wonder for our 6 year old and couple that with comfort and convenience for the park experience for my husband and me. Any input and advice would be very much appreciated! Thank you for reading.

I agree that AKL would be a great resort, because nothing beats seeing animals from your balcony. The other I would suggest is BLT, since you can walk to MK from there, and for a 6 year old the MK will probably be their favorite park. Unfortunately the Epcot area resorts BWV and BCV are very difficult to book in October (a dedicated 2 BR at BCV might not be too hard to get), and I love RIV but the points chart is very high.

 

[Rulanna411]

Where do you own? I recommend booking your home resort now and then checking to see what is available at 7 months.

We just bought at Aulani a couple of weeks ago and have a trip there reserved for May. Our use year is October so trying to get a second trip in this year!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

October is very high season at WDW. At 7 months your most likely opens will be AKV Savannah, OKW or SSR. All are fine.

 

[CarolynFH]

We just bought at Aulani a couple of weeks ago and have a trip there reserved for May. Our use year is October so trying to get a second trip in this year!

If your UY is October, your 2021 UY (“this year”) ends on September 30, so an October 2022 trip would be in your 2022 UY, which is “next year.” Of course, maybe you’re talking about calendar year 2022, not UY!

 

[Rulanna411]

I agree that AKL would be a great resort, because nothing beats seeing animals from your balcony. The other I would suggest is BLT, since you can walk to MK from there, and for a 6 year old the MK will probably be their favorite park. Unfortunately the Epcot area resorts BWV and BCV are very difficult to book in October (a dedicated 2 BR at BCV might not be too hard to get), and I love RIV but the points chart is very high.

That is so helpful to know. Thank you!

 

[Rulanna411]

I agree that AKL would be a great resort, because nothing beats seeing animals from your balcony. The other I would suggest is BLT, since you can walk to MK from there, and for a 6 year old the MK will probably be their favorite park. Unfortunately the Epcot area resorts BWV and BCV are very difficult to book in October (a dedicated 2 BR at BCV might not be too hard to get), and I love RIV but the points chart is very high.

Riviera looks wonderful. We might just be able to do it points wise but do you think it would be hard to book in October?

 

[CarolynFH]

It’s hard to say, because it’s still in active sales and not all villas have been declared into the condominium yet, which means they’re not all available to book with points. And as DVD sells more, they periodically declare more, which boosts availability at unpredictable intervals! So when it comes time to book, check off RIV as well as any other resorts you would be happy with, and here’s some pixie dust that you get it! PS if you don’t get RIV at first, you can waitlist it - you have nothing to lose.

 

[Rulanna411]

It’s hard to say, because it’s still in active sales and not all villas have been declared into the condominium yet, which means they’re not all available to book with points. And as DVD sells more, they periodically declare more, which boosts availability at unpredictable intervals! So when it comes time to book, check off RIV as well as any other resorts you would be happy with, and here’s some pixie dust that you get it! PS if you don’t get RIV at first, you can waitlist it - you have nothing to lose.

Thank you Carolyn for the advice and the pixie dust !

 

[sndral]

Where are you traveling from, I ask because I go to WDW from the west coast annually & prefer longer stays in WDW to ‘make up’ for the travel time. In your case assuming your arrival day is a travel day & departure is a travel day you are left w/ only 4 full days to enjoy WDW & there are 4 parks to explore. Personally I’d try to go for 7 days minimum which gives you time to revisit a favorite park & to factor in down time to enjoy your resort’s pool/facilities which w/ a 6 year old can be important. You can get more nights by looking at resorts w/ lower point costs - which will be challenging during the fall booking frenzy, or by downsizing to a 1 br. - which is a lower demand villa & thus more likely to be available at more places.
Ideally with a 6 yr. old being w/in walking distance of the MK would be optimal - so BLT or VGF, of those two BLT lake view is more likely to be open, & VGF is small, unlikely to be available & costs a lot of points.
BWV & BCV both have walking/boating access to Epcot & DHS, but October is food & wine & BCV is very small & unlikely to be available, you might find pool/garden view at BWV.
Riv. has direct Skyliner access to Epcot & Skyliner via transfer at CBR to DHS - unlikely to be available & costs a lot of points.
SSR & OKW are big resorts, have reasonable point charts, & are most likely to have availability. They are convenient to DTD, but require bus rides to the parks (assuming you aren’t renting a car.)
AKV is a larger resort & a personal favorite of mine, very close to AK, but still a bus ride to parks - Kidani is more likely to be available & if you decide to go w/ a 1 br. the 1 br.s at Kidani have 2 bathrooms.
Good luck w/ your 7 month booking - grab whatever is available, waitlist what you’d really like & then start stalking the DVC site to see if you can replace what you got w/ what you want.

 

[Rulanna411]

I live in Anaheim. I would love to go for a longer trip but I have a weird work schedule where I work nights 7 days and then am off 7 days. It would be hard to vacation longer than 7 days at this point in my career which is a major downside. I think the 5 nights would give me just enough time before and after to rest prevacation and post vacation. Thank you so much for this very detailed information. It is looking like BLT or AKV based on the sound advice I've gotten here. I'm unsure of the wait-listing process. So if you have a reservation in place, you can waitlist at one other resort and then give up the first reservation when your preferred choice opens up?

 

[CarolynFH]

I'm unsure of the wait-listing process. So if you have a reservation in place, you can waitlist at one other resort and then give up the first reservation when your preferred choice opens up?

You can actually have two WL at a time (per UY), so if for instance only SSR was available when you booked, you could WL both RIV and BLT. You can set up the WL so that if it comes through, it automatically replaces the reservation you have. It will also automatically cancel the 2nd WL, if you set up two. You can also set it up to borrow points, if needed (within the 50% borrowing limit).

 

[Rulanna411]

That doesn't sound bad at all. I will definitely use the waitlist feature for upcoming vacations. Thanks again for the helpful information!

 

[Rulanna411]

There are so many intricacies to DVC and booking resorts! It should feel like a chore but all I feel is excitement . These forums are amazingly helpful. I feel the magic of DVC already and I haven't stepped into a resort yet! Thanks everyone for your input and good vibes.

 

[jbish]

Another vote for BLT. That's my home resort, so I'm very biased. It's really nice to be in walking distance of MK, especially with a 6 year old. When our kids were younger, it was nice that we could zip in and out of MK for the mid-day break and not have to worry about getting on the bus. You also ride the monorail to EP, though there is a transfer involved. AKL is really nice and a lot of fun to have the animals right outside your door. But the bus ride to all but AK is a long one. I say wait on AKL for when your son is a little older and can get more out of being at that resort.

 

[Rulanna411]

BLT sounds like a great option. Thank you!