How did you decide on a home resort?

[lpoeppelman]

How did you decide on your home resort?

We are a family of 7 (2 adults, 5 kids) and have stayed at BCV - 2 bedroom and enjoyed it; however, we are open to other resorts.

We are on a budget, so we are looking for the best deal, but I also recognize there are other things to consider..i.e. location, amenities, size... for example, I dislike large resorts (like caribbean beach) where you are really far away from everything. I didn't feel like that at BCV.

How is OKW?

Advice please!
Thanks.

 

[com_op_2000]

When we bought in DVC was OKW, no choice.

 

[Kidanifan08]

We own at AKV and love staying at Kidani. We bought direct and they were selling AKV and BLT at the time we bought. We liked the theming of AKV better and still prefer that resort over BLT, although being able to walk to MK is really cool. I did not know about the resale market at the time we purchased, and I don't think resales were quite as good of a deal back then anyway. I don't think I would buy direct now, given the wide difference in price between DVC and the resale market.

You'll obviously need a two bedroom for several years. OKW has the largest rooms, and I think they now have the sleeper chair as well as sleeper sofa in the living room. BLT and AKV also have the sleeper chair. BLT and AKV 2BR have the third full bathroom, which would be a big benefit for your family. Look at the points charts closely to see how many points you will need to stay in the accommodation type that you desire during the times of year you are most likely to travel. If you see yourself only going every 2 years, buy half as many points as you would need.

If you are looking at resale, there is a wide range of pricing. Given that you will need 2BR's, you could probably find a desperate seller with a large contract who would be willing to take a low bid, as the larger contracts take longer to unload. On the other hand, for your own purposes, you may want to buy two or three small contracts with the same UY so that you can "downsize" in the future, if desired. With a large single contract comes a large, single MF bill, which only get larger every year.

Probably the best deals out there are OKW, SSR and BWV. OKW and BWV contract run through 2042 and SSR through 2054. AKV has come down considerably over the past 6 months and the contract runs through 2057. Even BLT seems to be dropping quite a bit. If you are going resale, try to find a loaded contract (or contracts) which come with current year and possibly even banked points from last year.

Choosing a home resort really depends on your personal preferences. Although we love AKV, it is generally easy to get a 2BR savanna view room most times of the year; but the value and concierge rooms tend to go to AKV owners. Similarly, BLT Magic Kingdom and standard view are very difficult to get if you do not own there. If you don't care where you stay, SSR may be the best deal given the current resale prices and the length of the contract.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[FindTheMickeys]

When I bought into DVC in 2005, Saratoga Springs was what they were selling and I fell in love with the resort. Yes, it can be big, but I love the condo style versus the hotel style resort. When I close my door at night, I don't hear anything from outside. I can actually 'get away' from the hustle and bustle and just enjoy the quiet of my room.

 

[bradisgoofy]

If you are not in a big hurry may I suggest renting points at a couple of resorts you are interested in? That way you can get a better feel for that "Home". Personally, BWV is our home resort and we originally bought there because of the incentives at the time. We have added three after market contracts since then and in 2010 bought into BLT through Disney. We LOVE BLT because the MK is our favorite and it is in walking distance. As stated, check the membership fees for the resort as those never go away after your points purchase. We have stayed everywhere at WDW but AKV, it doesn't interest us, and we like them in this order - BLT, BWV, BCV (that pool is a BIG plus), VWL, OKW, SSR. The theme is very important to us and the variety of food choices. At the very least go visit all the resorts and walk around.

 

[Rest&Relax]

OKW was the only one they were selling in 1993!

Bought BLT because we wanted some place easy to grow old at without climbing steps.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We had a choice of OKW, BWV, VB and HHI. We wanted on property and didn't like BWV and loved OKW. So OKW won.

 

[kimberh]

I loved Wilderness Lodge, so the first one I bought was Villas at Wilderness Lodge resale.
Then I bought Animal Kingdom Villas because we loved Animal Kingdom Lodge. Love Savanna view
I bought Boardwalk Villas to be able to get Boardwalk View.
Then Beach Club Villas for Storm a Long Bay pool.

That's it for me, until a monorail resort is built that I love, then I may have to reconsider buying more.
We have not stayed at any of the others. Always get one of our Home Resorts.

Maybe you should tour the Resorts the next time you go to Disney. It might help. Just make sure you buy where you REALLY want to stay.

 

[kangaroodle]

We also bought into OKW when it was "The Vacation Club". We have never regretted our decision, even as newer DVC resorts have been built. We love the size of the rooms and especially the living room/kitchen area.We stayed at BCV last year and thought the 2 bedroom unit seemed small and apartment-like. We have stayed at BW as well and felt the same way. It seems like all the resorts built after OKW have this smaller layout (except HH). Sure OKW is spread out, but it feels more vacation-like to us. We don't mind it being away from the parks because we feel like we can get away from that craziness for awhile and the resort is really a RESORT and feels very relaxing. We also always rent a car so it is easy to get around and at OKW you can park right outside your room.

Like others have said, stay at some of the resorts or see if they will let you take a quick tour of some of the rooms. Good luck with your decision. Everyone has a favorite!

You also said you are on a budget....OKW has the lowest points/stay and the largest rooms of any of the DVC resorts. Something to think about! You get more bang for your buck!

 

[DisDad07]

WE bought at AK first because we liked the point value for the rooms and large selection of rooms. Them we bought at OKW, again the point value seems great. We have stayed at most of the resorts and they all have different room layouts it seems. We have stayed at value studios, 1 bedroom, 2 bedrooms, and this year we will be staying at our first Grand Villa at OKW. OKW seems to have the bigger rooms. People say they have long waits for the bus at Ak but we have not had that problem, the bus runs as often as any other resort. Good Luck.

 

[disneynutz]

How did you decide on your home resort?

We are a family of 7 (2 adults, 5 kids) and have stayed at BCV - 2 bedroom and enjoyed it; however, we are open to other resorts.

We are on a budget, so we are looking for the best deal, but I also recognize there are other things to consider..i.e. location, amenities, size... for example, I dislike large resorts (like caribbean beach) where you are really far away from everything. I didn't feel like that at BCV.

How is OKW?

Advice please!
Thanks.

You need to sit down and make a list of what's important to you and your family. Easy access to a park, transportation, cost, resort amenities, pool, condo style or hotel style, access to food, size of resort, desired view, co-located or dedicated DVC resort, and many more.

After you decide you can start matching your list to the resorts and book your next vacation at the resort that comes out on top.

Bill

 

[Tigger1]

I bought a December Use year resale. Like it as I want to go in Dec some day but If I have to cancel the trip for any reason, I will likely be able to go the next summer.
I would not buy an August as if I had to cancel a June or July trip it might be hard to use the points by July 31

 

[OKW Lover]

Like some other old-timers here, we bought at OKW before it was even known as OKW. Back then it was just known as DVC. But that probably doesn't help the OP with their basic question of which resort to pick and why.

Pick a resort that you will be happy to go back to regularly, and think ahead to at least the next 20 years when you do that. Just because your focus today is the MK, that doesn't mean that perhaps Epcot will be of more interest as the years go by.

They all have different strengths and weaknesses, just like individual families have different interests/needs. As much as I love OKW, If I were buying right now, I'd probably go for BCV. That's because we just love wandering around Epcot and its so convenient. Plus we love the overall ambiance of the BC area slightly better than BW.

Those are the kinds of things you need to think about when you're contemplating a long-term buying decision.

 

[chalee94]

I dislike large resorts (like caribbean beach) where you are really far away from everything. I didn't feel like that at BCV.

How is OKW?

it's a large, spread out resort...

but i do like it:

1) 2 queen beds in the studios
2) less expensive pt costs per night
3) reasonably low dues
4) my age tells me that my contract expiring in 2042 will probably be fine
5) i find the landscaping, pastel color scheme and "gingerbread architecture" very relaxing.

 

[nolanboys]

We bought a resale contract two years ago and were also budget conscience. We are a family of 6, so we always need a 2 bdrm. We narrowed it down to OKW and SSR because of dues, cost per point, and the fact that we can't plan our vacations at the 11 month mark. We had stayed at OKW twice before buying and loved the resort and size of the rooms. The points to stay there are also the most reasonable. We ended up going with SSR because of the longer contract date, and THV and available resale contracts. We loved THV when we stayed there! We waited 5 years to purchase and on the trip before we bought toured the different resorts. We have stayed at SSR, OKW, AKV, BWV, and BCV on our points and have loved all of them for different reasons. They all are great in their own ways. By the way, we purchased 200 points so we could go every other year and every 4 years have enough left over for DH and I to do a long weekend (which we did this past September at OKW and it was great). We won't be going again until March next year and are hoping to be able to try out BLT for part of our trip. Good luck with your decision. You can find a lot of nice pictures and videos about OKW and all the other DVC properties for that matter.

 

[lovin'fl]

We bought via resale at OKW in 2006. We bought OKW because they were the cheapest contracts at WDW at the time (we wanted to get the most points we could get for our $$). And they still kind of are the cheapest, but SSR was new then and selling from DVC at @$98/point and now you can get SSR for about what you can get OKW for. But I, personally, wouldn't buy either of them now and here is why:
1- they (SSR and OKW) are far out from the parks...need to rely on the buses
2- you can always get into those (OKW and SSR)...even at 7 months
3- it's difficult getting into Epcot area resorts at 7 months (these are tough to get:all BCV, standard view or boardwalk view at BWV (might be able to get the pool view which costs the same amount of points as boardwalk view), standard or MK view at BLT...and HHI and VB are tough at 7 months).

OKW is nice...we like it better than SSR, because the rooms are way bigger, they take less points and it's more quaint. But, we like to have easy access (without buses) to Epcot. We will always try for one of the Epcot resorts first. If we need to conserve points, we will probably try AKV next time. OKW is nice for a long trip where you aren't going to the parks every day or if you aren't doing WDW parks at all (we stayed there the 1st time for just 3 days and went to Seaworld only...had our car...it was nice). If you need a ton of space OKW is nice, but there are other large 2BRS (like AKV and BLT). Plus, you can almost always get OKW at 7 months out.

We are adding on points at HHI. They are cheaper to buy than WDW resorts (though MFs are higher, but doesn't add up to too much more over the years). We can now do a HH beach trip if we don't want to go to WDW and spend thousands on park tickets and dining and airfare (from MD). Since we prefer to stay at one of the Epcot resorts (BCV, BWV or BLT), we wish all our points were at HHI...either way, HHI or OKW, we would be trying our luck at the 7 months out window (but we found it very difficult to book HHI at 7 months out).

If you care where you stay, buy there. If you don't mind trying your luck at 7 months, buy the cheapest contract and get more points.

 

[lpoeppelman]

All such great advice... Thanks so much!

I am getting my list together. I would really like to purchase before our next trip though in 2013.

About Points: In general, I was hoping 150 points would be enough if we go every other year (assuming OKW or comparable). That would be 300 total, I believe, plus whatever (if anything) we get when we start out. Any tips on that?

About Food: Anyone have an opinion on food options (counter service) at OKW, BWV, or SSR? We tend to eat out more than we eat in and eat counter service at the hotel. I thought some of the Deluxe hotels had horrible counter service options... I though the Poly and BCV had bad choices... BCV was really not very good IMHO) what did you think of these resorts counter service (OKW, BWV, or SSR)?

SSR and OKW seem pretty big... can you walk to everything fairly easily?

I think we need to take a trip down to just look at the resorts too. I think that would help a lot. The only DVC we've stayed at BCV, but I think that is more money than we want to spend.

Thanks... it is exciting just to think about it all!

 

[Deb & Bill]

...About Food: Anyone have an opinion on food options (counter service) at OKW, BWV, or SSR? We tend to eat out more than we eat in and eat counter service at the hotel. I thought some of the Deluxe hotels had horrible counter service options... I though the Poly and BCV had bad choices... BCV was really not very good IMHO) what did you think of these resorts counter service (OKW, BWV, or SSR)?
...

None of the DVC resorts really have food courts like the moderates and values. But those with food courts don't have much in the way of table service (none at the value resorts). None of the deluxe resorts have much in the way of counter service. The Polynesian probably has one of the best counter service restaurants with Captain Cooks. Even before they did major renovations, it wasn't too bad.

SSR does have Artists Palette which is an upscale counter service, not your standard fare. OKW has Goods to Go which is a small counter near the main pool with very limited offerings.

But with DVC you have either a kitchenette in the studios or the full kitchen in the one bedroom or larger resorts.

 

[lovin'fl]

We did both CS places (SSR and OKW) this past Dec. They have pretty good offerings. At OKW we got tons of soft serve frozen yogurt, wraps, hot dogs, conch soup...they also had nachos, burgers, chicken fingers and other stuff. At SSR we got flat bread pizzas and salads and they had other stuff (sandwiches/wraps and kid items). BWV has a bakery and you can walk over to BCV where there is a good sandwich counter. And you can walk to Epcot easily for the World Showcase counter service places. Swan and Dolphin, near BWV, have some palces too.

Staying at OKW...we booked the HH section this past Dec. You have to get HH section in a special booking and being able to book at 11 months out will help. HH is the hospitality house and the HH section is several buildings right by it. You can walk easily to the pool area or store or Olivia's or boat or the bus stop there. It's a little more busy in that section and we could hear the buses coming in and out of the resort. You can stay farther out and just get on bus to the HH as that's the last stop for any bus heading out. There are quiet pools that are nice and they have a food counter too, but main grill type foods. I think it's quieter and more quaint in the sections not near the HH...we stayed in the Turtle Pond section once.

We did 3 nights at SSR and I don't wish to stay there again. It is like OKW in that it's not convenient to the parks (like BWV and BCV to Epcot), but OKW has larger rooms and they are better laid out too (and you use less points st OKW). OKW is more quaint too. And it seems a bit more spread out than OKW...we were pretty far from the HH and buses took forever. The positives are that there is a section that is a very short walk to Downtown Disney and you have a chance to book a THV if that interests you.

We've done BWV twice and it's our fave of the WDW resorts that we've done so far (we have NOT done BCV, AKL or BLT yet). You can hop in and out of Epcot and get to HS easily too. There is a ton of dining options. And you can avoid taking some buses...you can even walk into Epcot and monorail to MK. You'd have to bus to AK and DTD...which you could do in 1 day (bus to AK in the morning...go to DTD from there...and then back to BWV).

Good luck deciding.

 

[Caren90]

About Food: Anyone have an opinion on food options (counter service) at OKW, BWV, or SSR? We tend to eat out more than we eat in and eat counter service at the hotel. I thought some of the Deluxe hotels had horrible counter service options... I though the Poly and BCV had bad choices... BCV was really not very good IMHO) what did you think of these resorts counter service (OKW, BWV, or SSR)?

There are many places to eat around the Boardwalk that offer different fare and different prices. Remember that the Swan and Dolphin are nearby, both with excellent choices for moderate or expensive restaurants. AND, you can walk into EPCOT at the World Showcase entrance and have many excellent dining options within close distance.
Stephen