If you could stay at any DVC where would you stay and why?

[Friendofpluto]

Blt, bc,vwl

 

[starbox]

Hands down AKV with a 3 and 8 year old!

Why? The animals will appeal to both kids, the pools are both very, very, very smaller kid-friendly. GREAT kids activities at the resort. A very convenient CS restaurant with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating (indoor even has an area where they show classic Disney movies for kids). There's just so much to see and do.

I love BCV but would not enjoy the pool if I had a three year old and eight year old - the 8 year old won't be content staying in the toddler area and is not old enough to go in the big pool alone. That's probably the worst possible age combo for SAB. Wait a few years and try BCV when the youngest is an independent swimmer and the oldest can swim without being watched the whole time - it's a fabulous resort and pool.

 

[DizGirl20]

Taking into consideration the ages of your children and that you will have a car, I would vote:

1. AKV - theming, animals, kidani pool area
2. VWL - boat to MK, proximity to activities at Ft Wilderness

* Save BCV for when they get older. My kids went last year (they were 9 & 12 at the time) and it was perfect for them. Happy Planning!

 

[rmcildw2m]

I have only stayed at okw so far , since joining last year . BWV is up next for the up comming star wars weekends kick off may the 20 th . next year I plan on staying at akv before going on my dcl 7 nighter .

 

[RNBelle]

I voted BCV for Stormalong Bay!!! It's so much fun for school-aged children. We also love BLT (which isn't listed) for the monorail!

 

[tidefan]

I voted SSR because I love the Treehouses!

 

[Buckeye Fan]

I didn't know how to answer your poll, so I'll tell you where I'd pesonally stay, and then where I think you should stay.

We have stayed in all of the DVCs with the exception of BLT. I love OKW. I like the condo-style, love the larger rooms, and OKW theme (I live in OH ). So if I had to pick one, I'd pick OKW.

With kids your age, I chose AKV in the poll, as I think they would really enjoy the animals. I've only stayed at Jambo, but if I remember correctly, Kidani has a zero entry pool and a water spray area like SSR. As much as I adore BCV, I completely agree with starbox. We went last year, and even at 7 and 14 and both DH and me at the pool, it was hard keeping an eye on them.

Good luck chosing a resort! That's the fun part. If you haven't yet, I'd suggest you go on disney.com and look at the various resorts to see which ones appeal to you most. Enjoy!

 

[RocketEAR99]

I voted for BWV because of it's proximity to EC and DHS, and because of the actual Boardwalk. I like the rooms there too. I would have voted for BLT if it was an option though. I like having the monorail access, walking to MK and being able to enjoy the balcony and lounge at the top!

 

[CMOORE185]

Great responses, keep 'em comin'! BLT is not on the list because, quite frankly, it's just too hard to get. Plus, I'm not sure if we really like the whole "contemporary" feel.

Forgot about the water pageant. Yes, we will definitely have a rental car. My DH will not go to WDW without one.

I will have to disagree that BLT is hard to get into. So far we have had no problem booking BLT at 7 months. In fact when I tried to book in Oct. 2011 at 7 months there was no availabiltiy at VWL, but they had BLT available.

 

[Brian Noble]

For that age group, and a car, I also think I'd go with one of the "lodges", either AKV or VWL. They just seem more fanciful than the others. We *loved* our VWL stay last summer, though my kids are a little older and the lack of a zero-entry pool was never an issue.

 

[ccgirl]

Thanks for all of your ideas. Looks like AKV is a favorite. We have stayed at BWV last year and absolutely loved it. Believe it or not, Epcot is my DD8's favorite park so the being on the monorail for MK isn't a necessity.

Personally, I was thinking of BCV (love being able to walk to 2 parks) but didn't realize the pool is that big. My DD8 is a competitive swimmer but we still watch her at all times. My DS3 doesn't know how to swim and it a total daredevil so he would probably make me nervous there!

To further elaborate, we trade in using RCI and have yet to see BLT available. However, we have seen 2BR's available for all of the others. I wanted to put in an ongoing search for next year giving us a better chance of our top choice. That's why I posted a poll, was looking for multiple options.

Thanks so much everyone for your thoughts. They are so very helpful.

 

[Brian Noble]

Ah. In that case, there are a couple of other things to think about.

If you want to be picky about resort, you will need to be flexible about dates---give yourself several different weeks you could include in your search at least. If you can't be flexible about dates, you'll probably want to be flexible about resorts, and include more in your search rather than fewer. If you want to be picky about both, I'd recommend hedging your bets. Start with a broader search. If you get a match on a "less favorite" resort, take it, but get the cancel protection, and start another narrower search with "more favorite" resorts in it. Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is my typical strategy for thaw-out trip during Michigan's "spring" break, though in that case I run two searches in parallel; one broad, and one focused on my few "most favorite" resorts.

 

[smjj]

I voted for VWL but really prefer our home resort of OKW. Both are my favorites. I just wish VWL had 3 bedrooms. We would have stayed there with our family on our last trip if they did. We stayed then at BLT grand villa. With small kids in tow we thought that was the better option and it worked great for us. Face it, they all have something going for them and it is hard to pick a true favorite...smjj

 

[ccgirl]

Ah. In that case, there are a couple of other things to think about.

If you want to be picky about resort, you will need to be flexible about dates---give yourself several different weeks you could include in your search at least. If you can't be flexible about dates, you'll probably want to be flexible about resorts, and include more in your search rather than fewer. If you want to be picky about both, I'd recommend hedging your bets. Start with a broader search. If you get a match on a "less favorite" resort, take it, but get the cancel protection, and start another narrower search with "more favorite" resorts in it. Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is my typical strategy for thaw-out trip during Michigan's "spring" break, though in that case I run two searches in parallel; one broad, and one focused on my few "most favorite" resorts.

Unfortunately, I cannot be flexible on the date as my DD does not want to miss school. I can, however, be flexible with resorts. That is why I was looking for "favorites" of others. I intend to start my search within the next couple of weeks knowing they haven't deposited the weeks I need yet and hoping that when/if they do I will be one of the first in line. While our ultimate choice would be to stay on site we realize we may need to stay off site as well.

Brian- a bit off topic but if I accept a week with one of my lesser favorite resorts, do I need another week banked in order to search again to see if I can get a more favorite resort? I'm asking because I only have one week banked.

Thank you all for the advice.

 

[5forDiz]

I voted VWL because it will be a very different atmosphere than BWV. The Lodge pool is great and Villas pool is nice too because it isn't too large so it is easy to keep eye on kids. Also, there's beach area & Electric Water Pageant passes each evening, bikes to rent for riding trails to Fort Wilderness or you can walk it too and if you & DH want some adult time there's Cubs Den kids club from 4pm through midnight located in the Lodge.

Have fun planning

 

[ccgirl]

I voted VWL because it will be a very different atmosphere than BWV. The Lodge pool is great and Villas pool is nice too because it isn't too large so it is easy to keep eye on kids. Also, there's beach area & Electric Water Pageant passes each evening, bikes to rent for riding trails to Fort Wilderness or you can walk it too and if you & DH want some adult time there's Cubs Den kids club from 4pm through midnight located in the Lodge.

Have fun planning

Wow! This post helps a lot. Thanks! I didn't realize VWL was so close to Fort Wilderness. My DD has ridden the ponies there and loved those. We could do the Chip & Dale campfire thing too. I totally hadn't considered that! Ohh...the Cubs Den kids club would be great so my DH and myself can have dinner. Thanks so much for mentioning those. There's so much about the DVC resorts I don't know about having just stayed at BWV. Thanks again!

 

[UConnJack]

In order of preference:

BCV
AKV
BWV
VWL
OKW
BLT
SSR

 

[Brian Noble]

I can, however, be flexible with resorts. That is why I was looking for "favorites" of others.

But the definition of "flexible" is "include as many resorts as possible in your search." If you have only one week you can travel, *and* you need a 2BR, I would encourage you to place a search for all of the WDW resorts. So, stop worrying about which ones are favorites, because unless you have nerves of steel, you'll want to take the first one that comes up.

if I accept a week with one of my lesser favorite resorts, do I need another week banked in order to search again to see if I can get a more favorite resort?

Yes. You cannot search without something on deposit. What's more, you really want to have the second one rather than rely on sightings---it would be extraordinarily sad to cancel the "less favorite" resort only to find that someone sniped the "more favorite" one out from under you.

 

[Uncleromulus]

BLT would have gotten my vote--but I guess it's out. So I went with my home resort of OKW. With a car, it is a perfect location!!

 

[spiceycat]

blt is my favorite and since it is not on your poll - did not vote.