Help me pick which resort to stay at

[xceebeex]

My family is looking at making a reservation for a 2BR at either BLT, BWV or BRV. There will be 9 of us total, 6 being adults and 3 kids (13, 10, 7). None of us have stayed at any of the resorts before so we have no experiences. In regards to which parks we may visit the most, if I had to guess, MK would be the one that we would visit more than once which has me leaning towards BLT or BRV.

Looking to hear anyone thoughts, opinions or experiences to help us decide!

Thanks!

 

[DisneyRegulars]

With that many adults the extra bathroom at BLT might be nice too. You can always take the boat from the contemporary over to BRV to visit there.

 

[CarolMN]

Agree with DisneyRegulars - go with BLT. With 9 people, you're going to need the extra space and the extra bathroom. BLT 2 bedrooms average 1152 sq ft and BTV 2 bedrooms average 1083 sq ft.

At BLT you can either walk to the MK (about 10 minutes) or take the monorail (that's a fun ride, but will take longer than walking). Staying at BLT will give you convenient access to the TOTWL and the surrounding deck with its great view of MK fireworks.

 

[xceebeex]

The one thing that I personally don't care too much about, but our kids might, is that BLT doesn't seem like it has a ton of the whole Disney theme, is that true? Although BWV doesn't look like it is over the top with Disney themes either. Is TOTWL available to renters as well, or just the members?

Thanks for the inputs so far!

 

[Granny]

The one thing that I personally don't care too much about, but our kids might, is that BLT doesn't seem like it has a ton of the whole Disney theme, is that true?

I think BLT would work best for you. Walking distance to MK is just a great perk especially for a group your size. And the extra bathroom with 9 people is huge.

Disney theming is not strong in any DVC resort, so that's kind of a non-issue.

I would think that you would want a lock-off 2BR to get you the extra drop down bed in the studio portion. 9 people in a 2BR is kind of tight quarters.

 

[xceebeex]

I think BLT would work best for you. Walking distance to MK is just a great perk especially for a group your size. And the extra bathroom with 9 people is huge.

Disney theming is not strong in any DVC resort, so that's kind of a non-issue.

I would think that you would want a lock-off 2BR to get you the extra drop down bed in the studio portion. 9 people in a 2BR is kind of tight quarters.

Are there any downsides to a lock-off 2BR? Are the views not as good, etc?

 

[Ben E N]

The one thing that I personally don't care too much about, but our kids might, is that BLT doesn't seem like it has a ton of the whole Disney theme, is that true? Although BWV doesn't look like it is over the top with Disney themes either. Is TOTWL available to renters as well, or just the members?

Thanks for the inputs so far!

 

[Granny]

Are there any downsides to a lock-off 2BR? Are the views not as good, etc?

No downside really, and as far as I know it's only a request anyway. I'm not completely familiar with BLT room locations, but I would think that the views would be pretty much the same in each view classification for dedicated & lock-off villas.

The downside to a lock-off 2BR may be less closet space in the second bedroom since it has to accommodate a separate entry door to the room from the hallway. Also, with a lock-off the second bedroom will have a queen bed plus a sleeper pull out sofa and the dedicated will have two queen beds.

The upside is the second bedroom will have a kitchenette, its own thermostat and its own entry door. And the pull down trundle bed for one more person.

 

[Ben E N]

The one thing that I personally don't care too much about, but our kids might, is that BLT doesn't seem like it has a ton of the whole Disney theme, is that true? Although BWV doesn't look like it is over the top with Disney themes either. Is TOTWL available to renters as well, or just the members?

Thanks for the inputs so far!

The lounge is only available to members and their guests. Still, the views of the MK fireworks are very nice from the bridge connecting BLT to the Contemporary.
We stayed there this past summer and loved it. While Mickey Mouse is not plastered everywhere and there are no 100 foot figures to greet you as you walk on, there is still that Disney friendliness you can find at any of their hotels.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

BLT would be my recommendation with 9 people. The only one of the 3 with 3 bathrooms. And it actually is the one that probably has the most Disney theme. Mickey mouse hangs on the wall in the second bedroom and Space mountain graphic in the living room - or at least it did and I don't think it was changed during the soft goods refurb. And you walk out the building and see the monorail, hear the train whistles and the boats honking. You can find places to watch the MK fireworks and can watch the Water parade every night.

I think BLT would work best for you. Walking distance to MK is just a great perk especially for a group your size. And the extra bathroom with 9 people is huge.

Disney theming is not strong in any DVC resort, so that's kind of a non-issue.

I would think that you would want a lock-off 2BR to get you the extra drop down bed in the studio portion. 9 people in a 2BR is kind of tight quarters.

Granny, you talking about BRV for the lock-off, yes? I assume so because BLT does not have the murphy bed in the studios. They also are very small so for 9 people I'd recommend the Dedicated 2BR at BLT. It will give a King bed, 2 queen beds, 1 queen sleeper sofa and 1 sleeper chair. A lockoff at BLT would give 1 king bed, 1 queen bed, 1 queen sleeper sofa, 1 double sleeper sofa and 1 single sleeper chair.

 

[Granny]

Granny, you talking about BRV for the lock-off, yes? I assume so because BLT does not have the murphy bed in the studios.

Ah...thank you for the correction. I was thinking they had added the murphy bed there as well, but now that I think about it I am sure that you are correct. But you are also correct in that the sleeper chair makes up for that. So I'm with you...BLT would be my choice for this large of a group primarily for that third bathroom.

 

[Ben E N]

Granny, you talking about BRV for the lock-off, yes? I assume so because BLT does not have the murphy bed in the studios. They also are very small so for 9 people I'd recommend the Dedicated 2BR at BLT. It will give a King bed, 2 queen beds, 1 queen sleeper sofa and 1 sleeper chair. A lockoff at BLT would give 1 king bed, 1 queen bed, 1 queen sleeper sofa, 1 double sleeper sofa and 1 single sleeper chair.

I agree. The studio set up at BLT is very nice but tight for any more than 3 people. I did it with my wife and two wee ones and it worked fine, but am looking forward to more space in the future.

Also, another advantage of BLT over BRV is that the walk to and from the hotel is very nice. Come and go as you please without waiting for a boat, get your own small bag check point, listen to the park noises as you come and go. If someone is running behind, they can just jog and catch up with the rest of the party. Plus, it is on the monorail line to Epcot.

 

[n2mm]

Brv 2 bedroom dedicated only sleeps 8. You would have to make sure you book a 2 bedroom lock off at brv to accmodate 9. Bwv only have lockoff 2 bedrooms so you are covered for 9 and BLT sleeps 9 because there is a sleep chair in the living room. Like others said, only BLT would have the 3 full bathrooms. Hopefully you’re not trying to book during a busy time because when the 7 month window opened for us to book a 2 bedroom for the first week of June, only BRV was available out of your list. Keep in mind that busy times for dvc are generally oct-dec, along with the normal busy times.

 

[xceebeex]

Thanks everyone for the responses! Looks like we might go with BLT!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Ah...thank you for the correction. I was thinking they had added the murphy bed there as well, but now that I think about it I am sure that you are correct. But you are also correct in that the sleeper chair makes up for that. So I'm with you...BLT would be my choice for this large of a group primarily for that third bathroom.

I wasn't quite certain if you were still referring to BLT or were suggesting BRV lock-off which would be the way for 9 ppl to go there albeit it would be exchanging a real bed for a pull out. BLT studios would pretty much lose all clothes storage if they tried a murphy bed there - and I'm not certain you'd be able to walk between the bed and the murphy bed if they did! Of course storage didn't seem to be too much concern when they changed VWL and BWV but they were able to fit in one small dresser. At a BLT studio a dresser might need to be placed out on the balcony.

 

[xceebeex]

One more question about BLT. Are there a lot of activities and/or things to do at the hotel for kids?

 

[kboo]

Yes - re kids activities - there are water activities on the lake, movies in the evenings, and also kids activities on the 4th floor of the Contemporary. Plus all the pools, of course. Also, there's a lot of open space in the lower floors of the Contemporary where kids just kind of run around and get silly. (There's also a lot of open space in the back). That's one underappreciated aspect of the Contemporary/BLT, I think, that there's a lot of open space in and out where kids can be noisy and work off some energy without getting in others' way.

Also - there are no bad views at BLT.

 

[xceebeex]

Yes - re kids activities - there are water activities on the lake, movies in the evenings, and also kids activities on the 4th floor of the Contemporary. Plus all the pools, of course. Also, there's a lot of open space in the lower floors of the Contemporary where kids just kind of run around and get silly. (There's also a lot of open space in the back). That's one underappreciated aspect of the Contemporary/BLT, I think, that there's a lot of open space in and out where kids can be noisy and work off some energy without getting in others' way.

Also - there are no bad views at BLT.

Are the activities at Contemporary available to quests that stay at BLT?

 

[kboo]

Are the activities at Contemporary available to quests that stay at BLT?

Yes! There is also a community hall on the first floor, though I haven't even visited there yet.

http://blog.touringplans.com/2013/11/05/disney-world-community-hall-faq/

 

[Deb & Bill]

Are there any downsides to a lock-off 2BR? Are the views not as good, etc?

With a lockoff you have more sleeper sofas and fewer real beds. Plus the BLT studio is really crowded. The dedicated won't have the kitchenette so there will be more space in the room.