Home Resort decision

[pfurs]

We are ready to make an offer on DVC (probably resale but I will look for better advise once the home equity is approved). Now I need input on location. Our family mix is DS10, DS6, and DD3 we have been staying in the FW Cabins for the past 10 years for space and ease to MK. My children prefer MK currently however, I realize they will outgrow this? I am tending the the VWL due to the boat to MK, however, the the possibility of BCV or BW transportation to MK via walk to Epcot is not out of the question. It just seems that the boards have so many positive things to say about SAB and all of the other activities associated with the other two home resorts. Opinions please?

 

[littlestar]

Our girls are 22 and 18 and we own at BCV and VWL. They still love VWL the best (Bay Lake with it's boating, etc., bike trails, boat ride to Contemporary to shop, Magic Kingdom) although BCV is right up there almost tied because of the pool and the activities of the boardwalk area.

Our girls don't like staying at OKW. They call it Old, Old, Key West. My husband and I like Old Key West, though.

How about splitting your membership with some points at BCV and VWL? Just an idea (don't know how many you are buying).

 

[riggins]

Hi pfurs-
We recently bought at BWV and had the same struggle. Our DDs are 2 and 4 months, so we spend a lot of time now at MK. We had previously stayed at BWV and loved the convenience of the Epcot area. We had also stayed at OKW and loved the extra space and peace and quiet. We felt all 4 resorts were great and we could think of reasons and times when we would want to stay at all of them.

So, while the frequent advice "buy where you want to stay" is good, its not so helpful when you want to stay at them all. I made 2 pro/con lists- 1 for pros/cons for STAYING at a resort and 1 for OWNING at a resort. My Owning Pro/Con list included things like dues and availability at 7 vs. 11 months. Based on the info on both lists, we decided to buy at BWV because we wanted to take advantage of the low points for the Standard View rooms. You may come up with a different decision based on the same information.

Good Luck making your decision.

 

[Cruelladeville]

It sounds like VWL are a good choice for you. You are correct for recognizing that their tastes will change, and that's when you will most likely need to get closer to the action over at BWV. However, except for the premier holiday times like New Year's and Easter, you probably won't have much difficulty getting in, so that should not be a consideration. Something you may want to think about, however, is that BWV standard view costs less than WL rooms, so you will save points, and you need the 11 month window to get standard view rooms, which sell out first. That's in case you aren't already confused enough...

 

[colleen costello]

We own at BCV and it is not our favorite, but we don't mind. So far we have had no trouble in booking elsewhere, even at high-demand times. I get up early and book day-by-day. This could change in the future, but so far, so good. I usually book us at Beach Club and then move us at the 7-month window. Beach Club is lovely but to us it's not worth the high points (at this point itime). We'll stay there occasionally so the kids can do SAB.

I love OKW but don't need my main contract there as it's relatively easy to book there anyhow. I would say buy at the Lodge if it's your absolute favorite, or at Boardwalk if the amount of points you can afford is on the low side. Then you'll have the option of a standard view to conserve points.

We stayed at the Lodge this summer and LOVED it. Very easy bus ride to Epcot, very convenient. Don't let transportation issues scare you off! It was great to get the boat to the MK and the buses to everywhere else were fine.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Originally posted by pfurs
Now I need input on location. Our family mix is DS10, DS6, and DD3 we have been staying in the FW Cabins for the past 10 years for space and ease to MK. My children prefer MK currently however, I realize they will outgrow this?

Gee... I'm 39, and I still have not outgrown it!

 

[dianeschlicht]

It sounds to me like VWL is your location of choice. I would not let transportation issues bother me, since we own at OKW, and I have never felt transportation is much of an issue. The only one that usually gives us a bit of trouble is AK, since it is the farthest away.

I believe someone else said they have a list of pros and cons for each resort for both staying and for owning. Here are mine...
Do you like a hotel like setting, or do you like a "vacation home"? I ask this only because you are used to the cabins, and I think you might like the privacy of them.

Is parking near your unit important to you, or do you not ever have a car?

Is proximatly to Epcot, and MGM an issue for you, or do you prefer MK?

Is riding the bus something you NEVER do in WDW?

Is having a large deck important?

Do you like a quiet atmosphere, or do you like lots of activity?

Is a resort pool important to you, or not?

Are the number of points you can buy limited? Some of the resorts require more for a unit than others.

Are maintanance dues important to you, or do you find the differences to be too insignificant?

These are all things to think about. We are members at OKW. We love the vacation home atmosphere and parking outside our door, the large decks and the quiet laid back more private feel of the villas as well as the size. Location away from the parks isn't an issue for us, because we find the transportation system to work just fine. Maybe it's because we use the bus as a way to wake up and get going in the morning, and to relax on when going back to the villa. Most important, we like the fact that our dues are cheap, and it costs us less points per unit than at the other DVC resorts.

Because you are used to the cabins, I would say you would be most happy with VWL. It will look familiar as far as scenery and area is concerned, and you will have the peace and quiet yet proximaty to a park that is important to your family. All other parks are still accessible by bus. You wont have the nearby parking. I recommend you go visit EACH of the DVC resorts and see all unit sizes before making your decision.

 

[DeeP]

We did the same thing, when the kids were young we always stayed at the FW cabins. As the kids got older they tended to still love MK but to spend more time at Epcot and MGM.
Your kids are still young so you have time before they will want to venture around WDW without Mom & Dad, but having had teenagers at WDW for many years, it is easier for teens to navigate around WDW from the Epcot resorts then the MK resorts.

 

[Dean]

I'd say BW, esp since you're looking at resale. They have the standard view rooms and GV units. It should be cheaper than VWL or BCV resale. The location to Epcot and MGM will better serve you over the years than being near MK. Of course you could do both!!!

 

[pfurs]

It sounds like alot of advise is to split points between VWL and BW. We are looking at @ 400 pts for our initial purchase. I have not been to any of the resorts. Although we have a ressie for OKW in Sept. Should we look at same use year? or best deal?

Are all of the resorts except OKW like hotels? Since we are a family of 5 we will need a 2 br each trip.

Does anyone know if DVC will ever accomidate rooms for families of 5 w/o having to use the 2 br option in the future? (going from 4 to 8 is hardly fair)

Can you visit SAB w/o staying at BC?

Bus transportation is not appealing. We will have a car but we prefer to use boat and monorail and then our car.

What is the difference in std room vs preferred? (besides pt value)

Is parking bad at the resorts?

Can someone explain booking day-to-day? Thanks

 

[Dean]

By all means split your contract into two or even three options. Same use year is best but the best deal should be your first priority. Good luck.

 

[disneyberry]

hi pfurs, just noticed that some of your questions are still unanswered. i'll give it a shot. (apologies in advance, as i tend to ramble when it's late, so this reply will end up being way too long)

Originally posted by pfurs
It sounds like alot of advise is to split points between VWL and BW. We are looking at @ 400 pts for our initial purchase. I have not been to any of the resorts. Although we have a ressie for OKW in Sept. Should we look at same use year? or best deal?

since you're buying resale, i'd also say to look for the best deal (many banked pts).
however, you should be aware of how owning multiple resorts or multiple Use Years will complicate things:
1) if you own 200 BWV pts and 200 VWL pts, and let's say you want to book a 1-week trip July4th week at VWL in a 2bdrm requiring 350pts. at the 11mo window (Aug of prev year), you are eligible to call and book a trip. BUT, you cannot combine, say 200 VWL pts with 150 BWV pts, to book your trip.
so you are limited this way, and your workaround would have to be bank/borrow to have enough pts to book at 11mo window (alternate, for instance, go VWL one year, BWV the next year). or you book half the nights w/ VWL pts, and then wait until the 7mo window to book the rest using BWV pts.
2) if you own 2 different Use Years, you have another issue where you will have to do even more careful points accounting, and possibly juggle some points transfers between Memberships in order to get your vacations booked. plus, extra banking deadlines to remember.
3) a pro to buying multiple contracts is that, if for whatever reason, in the future you find you don't need all 400pts anymore, you could sell off some of them, and keep the rest. if you only buy 1 400pt contract, then you are stuck with 400 or nothing. if you buy 2 separate 200pt contracts, then you could sell 200 and keep 200.
4) have you already calculated using the Point Calculator how many points you might need? a family of 5 will definitely need a 2bdrm. yes, it is a jump from 4 to 8 occupancy, but such is life. anyway, 1 week in a 2bdrm in Magic Season is 350pts. IMO using Magic Season to estimate your point needs is a fairly safe bet. if you plan to go every year for 1 week, you need at least 350pts. if you plan to go every other year, then you only need half that (175pts, or you could round up to 200pts to be safe).

Can you visit SAB w/o staying at BC?

i believe the answer is No. someone please correct me if i'm wrong.

Bus transportation is not appealing. We will have a car but we prefer to use boat and monorail and then our car.

OKW is Bus-only to all parks. VWL is Ferry to MK. Bus/Monorail to Epcot. Bus-only to MGM + AK. BWV and BCV are Ferry/Walk to Epcot+MGM. Walk+Monorail or Bus to MK. Bus to AK.

What is the difference in std room vs preferred? (besides pt value)

basically the same difference as std-view vs. water-view at BWI or any other non-DVC resort. BWV std-view rooms make up less than 20% of the entire resort. because of that, Std-view rooms mostly sell out at the 11mo window. if you are not booking your trip at 11mo out, you will probably have to waitlist to get a Std-view room.

Is parking bad at the resorts?

at OKW, parking is the best. right outside your door practically. BCV self-parking is okay. BWV and VWL self-parking can be a nightmare. i recommend, at VWL, BCV, or BWV, to take advantage of the DVC Member free valet parking. tips are additional.

Can someone explain booking day-to-day? Thanks

a simple example (hopefully): you want a 2bdrm at VWL for 3 nights - 7/3/04, 7/4/04, and 7/5/04.
to book this normally you would figure out the 11mo window by looking at your check-out date, which would be 7/6/04. subtract 11mos from that. so, on 8/6/03, you can call MS to book your trip.
to book this day-by-day, you would look at the "check-out date" of each night you need. figure the 11mo window on each night. then you call every day for 3 days to book each night. in the example, you can call on 8/4/03 to book 7/3/04. then call back on 8/5/03 for 7/4/04. then finally call back 8/6/03 for 7/5/04 and complete your reservation.
it is tedious, and only freaks book their ressies this way. (and there are indeed many freaks on this board... Disney freaks! heh)

whew! well, way too much info in one post. oh well.
good luck, and i hope this answers your questions.

 

[tinkgrl]

Hi,

Just wanted to say good luck with your decision!!!

Allison
Officially DVC 7/03
Home Resort BCV

 

[carone0318]

What the one poster said is very confusing. We own 3 contracts at 2 different resorts. This is how we work it year to year, just to make it easy. I own 150pts at BWV and 174pts @HH. We bank and borrow.

Year 2003 we use HH points. Borrow 174 pts from yr 2004 and we have a total of 348pts to use (including the 174 HH pts for yr 2003.) We bank 150 pts for BWV yr 2003 into 2004.

Year 2004 we use BWV pts. With the banked from 2003, we have 300 pts to use at BWV.

Year 2005 HH pts
Year 2006 BWV pts.

Hope this makes sense. It really makes it simple for me to keep track (plus I always have an excel spreadsheet to refer to )

We happened to buy BWV, our initial purchase, because it was that or OKW, we chose BWV. We bought our HH pts because the dues were the lowest. I have never been to HH, but will get there eventually. I prefer BWV, but honestly I really don't care as long as I'm in Disney. Good luck with your purchase.

 

[pfurs]

Do the 2 contracts have the same use yr?

or do you try to use the 11 month window use yr advantage for the home you want during a particilar season? such as VWL during Dec having a Jan use yr (is that right?) and perhaps BW/BC summer vacation May use yr.

I would like to have the ability to go twice a yr but I realize that 400 for a family of 5 is not going to be able to go on pts alone and we will need some cash nights.

If we purchased 2 resale contracts, then we would have double the closing costs does this outweigh the extra incentives for bank points and lower cost per point?

If purchased outright from disney (I know there is no inventory right now for VWL) could we waitlist for a packaged deal from them? Do they ever have that many points to add-on? or do they offer add-on with first time purchases?

Thanks for the inputs.

 

[carone0318]

My contracts do have the same use year, but I think that doing the banking/borrowing would work really well for contracts that didn't have the same use yr. All you would have to know is your cut off dates for banking/borrowing and when your pts get allocated. I think that have separate use yrs would be more realistic if you are shopping the re-sale market. It really isn't hard to manage.

 

[littlestar]

Hello again.

Just wanted to mention that Boardwalk Villas has some studios that will sleep five. I don't know if they can guarantee this, but we have friends that own at Boardwalk that use these occasionally for short visits when they are hitting the parks a lot. So, I know they exist. Their youngest sleeps on the daybed (I think it's a small daybed of some sort).

If Storm-a-Long Bay pool is not a necessity, owning some points at the Boardwalk for the standard view two bedrooms could be an option to save points and have the great Boardwalk area location, too - especially for longer trips when you need more space.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by littlestar
Hello again.

Just wanted to mention that Boardwalk Villas has some studios that will sleep five. I don't know if they can guarantee this, but we have friends that own at Boardwalk that use these occasionally for short visits when they are hitting the parks a lot. So, I know they exist. Their youngest sleeps on the daybed (I think it's a small daybed of some sort).

The studio plus rooms have a SMALL day bed. They sleep 5 but with the set up, not 5 adults or even larger kids. They are no longer guaranteed and are simply a request.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by pfurs
Do the 2 contracts have the same use yr?

or do you try to use the 11 month window use yr advantage for the home you want during a particilar season? such as VWL during Dec having a Jan use yr (is that right?) and perhaps BW/BC summer vacation May use yr.

I would like to have the ability to go twice a yr but I realize that 400 for a family of 5 is not going to be able to go on pts alone and we will need some cash nights.

If we purchased 2 resale contracts, then we would have double the closing costs does this outweigh the extra incentives for bank points and lower cost per point?

If purchased outright from disney (I know there is no inventory right now for VWL) could we waitlist for a packaged deal from them? Do they ever have that many points to add-on? or do they offer add-on with first time purchases?

Thanks for the inputs.

You could do anything you wanted assuming you have at least 150 points in each contract. In general it's best to have the same use year as it's much easier and simpler. But there's nothing to say you must. I have 3 use years and that allows me to pick both the home resort and use year when I decide to place a reservation. While you would potentially have 2 closing costs, it should be worth it. Good luck.

 

[dmoore22]

A year a go we agonized over which way to go the same as you are. We have 8 in our family including 5 girls and 1 boy plus DW and myself. OKW was not our first choice but we found an excellent resale that included a significant number of banked points. Our thought was that we would benefit from the low maintenance fees, banked points, and low cost of OKW while staying at other DVC resorts. We stayed at OKW for our first trip home. It was difficult to return to our real homes after this experience. Bus transportation was excellent. Often times it was just a couple of families on the bus taking a straight shot to MK, Epcot, etc. or returning to the resort from the parks. None of the waiting for or standing on the crowded buses that we experienced when we stayed at the likes of All-Star. Our older kids enjoy Downtown Disney. The bus tranportation to DD or the use of the Trumbell Ferry to and from OKW to DD is a wonderful experience plus very convenient. Many other positives about OKW have been listed on other posts so I won't repeat what has already been said. At this time we have no desire to spend our points elsewhere. The accomodations and location was perfect for our family. We can't wait for our second trip home. We are already shopping for add-on points at OKW.