How did you choose your home resort?

[DisneyDreamMaker]

As I dig through all the boring stuff I've been reading I can't help but dream of the fun part of choosing DVC, like how to choose home resort.

I made a list of important things that I thought would impact the decision such as:

Cost pp
Maint Fees
How many pts needed to stay.
Location of resort
Amenities (pool, food, entertainment, etc.)
Room type
View
Transportation
Rent/resale value
**The feeling you get when you are there!

How did you choose your home resort?

 

[DizMagic]

totally the feeling. we have been going to WL for years and i honestly feel at home as soon as i pull in. we have been to other resorts and they are "nice" but there's no place like home.

so - we bough VWL. just got in the system today! woo hoo!!!!

 

[DisneyDreamMaker]

totally the feeling. we have been going to WL for years and i honestly feel at home as soon as i pull in. we have been to other resorts and they are "nice" but there's no place like home.

so - we bough VWL. just got in the system today! woo hoo!!!!

Congrats on getting in the system!!

 

[DanenRox]

We chose BCV without even seeing it! Ok, well, we did see it, at a distance! We knew we LOVED the Boardwalk area and much to our delight there were 2 DVC's in our favorite neighborhood. Our first purchase was BCV. Our new add-on was BWV. Our advice, buy where you love!

 

[missy2217]

We bought in SSR. At the time we bought there were two resorts selling SSR and AKV, we didn't care for the dark decor at AKV so we went with the warm cozy decor in SSR. We also wanted a zero entry pool as we have small children.

 

[Sorcerer's Dad]

we selected Hilton Head because we wanted the assurance of always being able to choose beach vacation in prime time. We already had timeshare to cover WDW or other area vacations.

 

[mjc2003]

We bought at BCV after staying two years in a row paying cash for villas. We loved everything about the place. The pool, the relaxed atmosphere, the smaller size, the proximity to Epcot where we spend many nights eating and watching fireworks. We looked at BLT and did not like it, just not our style. We have seen little of the rest of the choices. We pretty much realized that we were not going to love any of them as much as BCV....but will stay around, and if we really like something maybe we'll add on. We are staying at AKV in November, and cannot wait. We've heard great things about all the spots, and these boards are full of testaments as to the varied strengths/aspects that make each location unique.

I would say that your last criteria on your list is probably the most important. All are important, but if you don't feel good when you're there do the rest matter as much?

Good luck.

 

[disneynutz]

Since your home resort is the only written guarantee, you need to take your time and spend some time at each resort. You might have the same home resort for 30 to 50 years. That's a long time to stay at a resort that you may not end up liking as much as you thought.

We have 5 home resorts and we stayed at 4 of them before buying. The 5th one, BLT, we bought without staying there first. BLT has ended up being our least favorite WDW DVC resort and our most expensive purchase.

Bill

 

[Checkers]

After we toured the model rooms and met with our Guide, the only two resorts available were OKW and BWVs. He recommended we buy OKW and we did. We since have added on more points at OKW and BWVs.

 

[Kidanifan08]

When we bought, DVC was selling AKV and BLT. We loved the warm cozy feeling of AKV. The rooms and public spaces are darker than other resorts, but this adds to the laid-back, relaxing feeling of the resort. BLT was a little too sterile for us -- too much like a high-rise metropolitan hotel. We never get tired of Kidani. It just feels right to us. It turned out to be quite a bit less $$ than BLT for the number of points we wanted to buy, which was a good thing too!

Good luck with your decision!

 

[papamouse1]

When we bought DVC, we were at Disneyland, and had never been to WDW at all, so I had no idea what resorts were like. Plus our CM made it basically sound like we only had one choice at the time... SSR. We have since added on another small contract at our fav resort, and will add on to it more in time... AKV.

 

[bwvBound]

We knew we wanted BWV for the location (easy walk to Dolphin/Swan conference centers) with a DEC UY. It was the first DVC resort we had ever stayed in (1998) and we had exchanged in a few times via II. Once we decided to buy DVC (Jan 2004) -- we hit the resale outlets, waited for the right account to surface, made offers, entered into contract and failed (rinse, repeat). We finally added our names and credit card into to the direct-purchase waitlist. Months later, our guide called with good news: he had our resort!

When the paperwork arrived it wasn't for BWV/DEC -- it was for SSR/OCT. We hadn't even heard of SSR at that point. Phoned the guide and heard his sales spiel for the very first time. Ok, we'll bite.

In the end, we "chose" our home resort (SSR/OCT) based on the following:

• Price per point. The incentive, at that time, for SSR was very close to BWV resale listings.
• Extra years! The contract on this yet-opened resort was a full 50 years. Far more years than offered on existing BWV contracts.
• Lower dues than BWV.
• Reasonable assurance that our SSR points would be quite successful booking our desired BWV reservations. Indeed, this has worked out perfectly.

Our first visit to our "home resort" came after 5 years of ownership. The points have worked quite well at the 7-month window for stays elsewhere: VB, BWV, OKW, AKV Concierge, GC, VWL, Aulani, etc. To me, they are simply "DVC POINTS." The notion of "home resort" is only an issue of paper.

 

[NatashaDisneyCM]

I have paid cash for Villas since 1998, when I passed up the BWV at what? $48 bucks a point! (ok, I know). That is my favorite area by far.......BUT, I bought at SSR last week and changed today right before contract was final, because the AKV is my favorite resort, and I wished I could move it to the Epcot area! lol

But I changed it because I am all over the AKV, it is me, and I felt like I needed to get my points there. So I did it!!
oh, and I am determined to stay AKV concierge!!!

 

[dbs1228]

Location, location. location! MK is our favorite resort and have gone every year during Presidents week and MK is open late many of the nights. Nothing better then strolling from BLT to MK at 9:00 PM just to walk down main street, catch the fireworks and stroll around until mid night!

 

[Sandisw]

We chose BLT for one reason and one reason only, the location. MK is our favorite park and prior to owning DVC, the CR was our favorite place to stay.

We considered purchasing DVC years before we did but could never get past the fact that staying anywhere other than within walking distance to MK would put a bit of a damper on our trips.

When BLT was built, we bought in. We knew it would cost more than other options, but in the end, we just knew if we had to wait until 7 months to book BLT we would go crazy.

Now, I can book where I love without any issues. We have since found that we also love the Epcot resorts and if we ever add on points, we will buy some at BWV. And, most of our summer stays will be split between BLT and BWV for a few nights (if we can get them).

The great piece, however, is that if we don't get BWV, we are fine because we simply just love BLT.

At the end of the day, I think you should be comfortable with where you own since that is really all you are ever guaranteed.

Good luck!

 

[laura-k]

We chose BLT for one reason and one reason only, the location. MK is our favorite park and prior to owning DVC, the CR was our favorite place to stay.

We considered purchasing DVC years before we did but could never get past the fact that staying anywhere other than within walking distance to MK would put a bit of a damper on our trips.

When BLT was built, we bought in. We knew it would cost more than other options, but in the end, we just knew if we had to wait until 7 months to book BLT we would go crazy.

Now, I can book where I love without any issues. We have since found that we also love the Epcot resorts and if we ever add on points, we will buy some at BWV. And, most of our summer stays will be split between BLT and BWV for a few nights (if we can get them).

The great piece, however, is that if we don't get BWV, we are fine because we simply just love BLT.

At the end of the day, I think you should be comfortable with where you own since that is really all you are ever guaranteed.

Good luck!

This is exactly what we did and for the exact same reasons -
I had thought about DVC for a long time and when we where ready to get serious they where only selling SSR ,then the next year they started building BLT , (Even though nobody would officially tell you what it was) ,so at that point I went to one of the short DVC meetings they used to do in the park and purchased in Oct 2008 ,so it was a year or so before I actually got to use it -but I love that casual stroll back from MK and the monorail when it rains ,just to maybe resort hop or grab a snack somewhere -
This past year we stayed at BCV and I really enjoyed the evenings at the World Showcase too-and would strongly consider a add on at BCV in the future -
Good luckto you !

 

[jekjones1558]

Our process was totally different. We stopped by the BWV models and signed on the spot. We didn't even know OKW existed. We didn't know about resales. We didn't consider use year. We never thought about dues. We just asked our guide how many points to buy. He suggested 220, so that is what we got, without even looking at our potential needs. We were completely clueless and did no research whatsoever, just bought on a whim. Well, here we are 12 years later with 1150 points and we are very, very happy.
I can think of decisions in my life that I have analyzed to death and still things did not work out as planned. Ain't life a mystery!

 

[drusba]

Since we bought at BWV in early 1997 shortly after it opened, it was an easy choice. We had done the tour of OKW in 1992 and did not care for it -- distance to parks, lack of any hotel services, too spread out. When we bought BWV, it was the only other WDW choice and it had best location of all hotels at WDW plus it was a hotel atmosphere. Bought AKV before it even opened as our second place mainly because we had been there and liked the atmosphere, and liked having animals, a pool area (at Jambo) with lots of shady areas and two of our favorite restaurants, Jiko and Boma (however, Sanaa now rules).

 

[DisDad07]

We picked AK for the over all theme. You can stay at studio's for less then anywhere else and stay at the savanna views, a great club concierge, and then the three bedroom grand villa's. Yes you will have to take the buses but you can't find a view like the Savanna in the morning, anywhere else. You have 2 of the best restaurants on sight.Boma and Jiko and now the Mara.

 

[disneydenisel]

Before we purchased, I researched all the resorts for a 2005 stay. Rented BCV points from an owner, came home and knew that we needed to buy points there. We like the location, we like walking around, we like walking to Illuminations at 8:50 and walking back to our home. We like the short boat ride to Hollywood Studios. We like that it is small, we like the gingerbread house in the lobby during the holidays, we like Beaches and Cream........the list goes on.

For VGC, it was a no brainer. We live in California and knew we needed to own there some day, too. It is just a feeling of home at both places.