Indecision BLT vs GFV

[justme0729]

I am so struggling with deciding between purchasing points at BLT or GFV. We are a young married couple with no kids yet but plan to in a couple years. Right now, we would want to book a studio every other year and would be happy in a studio for at least 10 years I would think. Everyone keeps saying to "buy where you want to stay" and I agree but my problem is I love them both and I am afraid of committing to just one especially without being able to predict the future about our family size. The biggest selling point to me for BLT is I love the theme park views and walk to MK while the GF has studios that sleep 5 and I love the way they look. BLT scares me a little because the studios only sleep 4 and we might have more than 2 kids one day. GFV scares me a little because we wouldn't have enough points to book a one bedroom. Has anyone been in a similar position and how did you decide?

My thinking is to pick the one that would offer the most advantages with the 11 month booking window. I picture myself booking either a standard view studio at Grand Floridian, a theme park view studio at Bay Lake Tower, or a standard one bedroom at Bay Lake Tower (or lake view if I owned at GFV).

I know that Grand Floridian studios are barely available. Would you say a theme park view studio at BLT or a lake view one bedroom at BLT at 7 months is very likely to be available over Christmas break, Thanksgiving, Spring break/Easter, and early June? I guess that would make my choice so that I can likely stay at both. My opinion about which one I love changes every day so I need something logical to help with my decision! On that note, BLT is cheaper...I really don't see us adding on later so we want to pick something that we can be happy with for a long time.

Sorry for the rambling post. I keep going back and forth and it's driving me crazy! Any thoughts?

 

[kboo]

Buy both! Hehehe. (That's what we did) j/k

But seriously, in your shoes, I would look for a lower priced VGF contract, and take your time waiting for the right one to come along. I think with the newer direct points restrictions, resale prices may soften a bit. We recently got a VGF contract at $135 per point, which is really in line with some of the moderate BLT contracts. If you're not in a huge hurry to buy, I would just get on every broker's email list and alert, and get to know the "market" - look at the ROFR threads, see what VGF and BLT are asking with the various brokers. Prices seem high right now, but every once in a while a contract is priced to move.

I have 2 kids, aged 6 and 2, and frankly the BLT studios scare me a bit too. a family of 4 can stay in a VGF studio pretty comfortably until the younger one is out of a crib - the crib fits in the hallway area and the older kid can sleep on the murphy bed, so the couch can stay folded up. So you'll feel like you have relatively a lot of space for quite some time in a VGF studio.

Another thing you can do is have a target price and size for either a bLT or VGF contract, and whichever one comes up first, you bid on.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Spring Break, as long as it doesn't correspond with Easter usually has a lot of availability to switch to at 7 months. I'd expect the 1BR lakeview to be available to at BLT but maybe not TPV studio but there may be Lakeview studios. But I also expect VGF to have all 1BR's available then and maybe studios too. Same for June. For Christmas and Thanksgiving it's going to be best to own at the location you'd prefer to stay then.

 

[bumbershoot]

GFV scares me a little because we wouldn't have enough points to book a one bedroom.

In ten years you can get more points.

I really don't see us adding on later so we want to pick something that we can be happy with for a long time.

I think that that isn’t the way you should be thinking. Very few things that work for you now will still work for you later. We have changed bed sizes three times at home lol. Couches more than once. Etc. Things change.

I would buy what works now. I will not burden you with my long story but I urge you to not set all your dreams on certain future outcomes so much that you forget to enjoy NOW.


All that said, we bought bay lake and I dream of GFV. I spent months on waitlists and stalking to get 5 nights there after booking the Home resort 11 months out. And that’s for Princess weekend, and nothing was available for ages and ages. Literally got my stay night by night. That’s how much I love GFV. The lobby isn’t as grand as the hotel, but the rooms are fabulous. My cousin and I spent the last two Princess weekends at Bay Lake and I’m really looking forward to this.

 

[Cyberc1978]

.

I have 2 kids, aged 6 and 2, and frankly the BLT studios scare me a bit too. a family of 4 can stay in a VGF studio pretty comfortably until the younger one is out of a crib - the crib fits in the hallway area and the older kid can sleep on the murphy bed, so the couch can stay folded up. So you'll feel like you have relatively a lot of space for quite some time in a VGF studio.

YMMV but even a studio at VGF or poly feels quite cramped with 4 people heck even with 3 it’s cramped. I can live with 3 in a studio without it negatively impacting my vacation but not 4.

With 4 I’d go for a 1br or larger. To me our vacations are important and I don’t want to compromise just to save a few points. I’d rather go on one vacation less each year and have had the feeling that we had some superb vacations compared to one or more that was just okay because of the cramped studios.

As I said YMMV we are all different some are perfectly fine with 4 or 5 in a studio that’s not us.

 

[Matty B13]

Be careful with April vacation, you might run into the Star Wars Half-Marathon. It put a little wrinkle in our vacation this year, but we worked around it.

 

[MrsP833]

I was having the same dilemma. I swear, I changed my mind several times a day. We're a family of five with three young children. Even though the studios sleep 5, I'm terrified to put us all in the same room, especially as they get bigger. Haha! The point chart for a 1 BR at BLT was much more appealing than VGF. Plus the walk to MK can't be beat! Good luck making a decision. Both resorts are great choices.

 

[citivas]

Totally personal decision.

When we bought last year I had the opportunity to get a contract at either resort for almost the same cost per point (whereas GF is typically a higher price point) and still we choose BLT. And we love the theming of GF and their 1900 Park buffet, so it had that going for it.

For us it came down to the fact that BLT's location trumped everything else. We've taken the monorail from Poly, we've taken the private ferry from GF and really nothing compares to the simple walk to MK from BLT. For us anyway, and our kids. GF is not walkable (pragmatically) to anything directly, so you'll need at least a ferry or monorail to MK, 2 monorails and a transfer to EPCOT and an inconsistent and sometimes crowded bus service that makes multiple stops or your own car for everything else.

Also, we loved the BLT MK view in general and nightly fireworks viewing specifically. Many of the GF rooms don't have a fireworks view and none like BLT. We also didn't like the lack of overall room capacity at GF which has led to some issues whereas BLT has much more inventory and room types. BLT also requires less points for comparable room types. To answer your question, there usually is inventory left at BLT at the 7 month point.

I'm not saying BLT is better, just better for us. Everyone has different person priorities that would affect their right decision.

 

[kboo]

YMMV but even a studio at VGF or poly feels quite cramped with 4 people heck even with 3 it’s cramped. I can live with 3 in a studio without it negatively impacting my vacation but not 4.

With 4 I’d go for a 1br or larger. To me our vacations are important and I don’t want to compromise just to save a few points. I’d rather go on one vacation less each year and have had the feeling that we had some superb vacations compared to one or more that was just okay because of the cramped studios.

As I said YMMV we are all different some are perfectly fine with 4 or 5 in a studio that’s not us.

Here's why I suggested VGF - but now I am waffling on my advice. A standard VGF studio costs about as much as LV BLT studio, and I think the studios at VGF are far superior. OP has no kids yet, but will have some in a few years. With only 1 kid, a family of 3 can stay pretty well in a VGF studio with the split bath and pull down bed, and you don't need to open up the sofa bed at all, which makes the room still feel pretty large. Because of the size and layout of the BLT studio, that just isn't an option. Once the kid is out of the crib, the sofa bed pretty much has to be opened up. Even with a second kid, if they are in the crib (because this is what we did 6 months ago), the crib fits pretty nicely in a little space in the hallway, and older child sleeps on the pull down bed, and keeping the sofa bed closed still makes the room feel decent-sized.

Would a 1-br feel nicer? Of course, but OP has said studios every other year are in the budget. "I don't really see us adding on later" - is that a realistic assessment of budgetary concerns and income expectation for the future, or just an overall inclination/hope for the future? Not knowing OP, I have to take that statement at face value. It's not constructive to tell the OP to "just" buy enough points for a 1BR if buying points to go in a studio every other year is a stretch that needs to be budgeted for. A VGF studio is going to be more comfortable with 1 or 2 kids than a BLT studio, and can actually accommodate 3 kids if it came to that.

Now here's where I am waffling - because @citivas 's post got me thinking - IF adding on points *is* a possibility, then I would suggest BLT, because the BLT 1br std is the lowest cost 1br at MK, plus walking access to MK is just the best. VGF 1br are REALLY nice, but it makes me cringe to spend the points on a 1BR because they cost SO many points. So to go from a studio to a 1BR at BLT isn't going to cost as much as doing that at VGF, so then it does sort of matter which resort starts as your home.

BLT/VGF points cost about $15 differential; even on 200 points that is only $3000. Dues aren't too different, so I wouldn't let $ cost be too much of a factor. It's more about what those points can get you.

 

[CraigInPA]

Plans, no matter how well thought out and considered, change over a 10 year period.

BLT studios are fine for 2 adults and 2 young children. By the time your children are old enough for the BLT studio to feel cramped, they'll be ten or more years old. Since they aren't born yet, you're looking at more than 10 years from now. If you find you're cramped, you can always buy more points (easily done now at BLT, not quite as easy at GFV) and move up to a 1 bedroom.

GFV has only a limited number of studios. During some busy periods, such as race weekends and Christmas, owners "walk" reservations to make sure they get them. Availability is measured in the number of minutes they last once the window opens. I see a huge potential for you to be disappointed unless you buy enough points to get a 1 bedroom.

Switching at 7 months has become more difficult, especially when your target resort is on the MK monorail loop. The mantra "buy where you want to stay" is becoming more and more a "rule".

 

[citivas]

Also, my wife and I went a couple times before we had kids and then many times since. Kids will change your entire pattern of how you do the parks. Before kids we could stay out all day and into the night. Post kids (particularly little ones) it will be about go for a while, then break for down time, maybe or maybe not go again depending how the kids are doing, etc. It's no fun being at the parks with kids in melt down mode because they are tired or over-stimulated. Even now that the kids are all teens they prefer to break for a while around 3pm and then go back (possibly to a different park) after dinner. Also, with multiple kids you may likely end up breaking up into sub-grouns and improvising -- kid A wants to do rides, kid B is in melt-down and needs a nap, etc. If and when these things are true for you, having a the park with the most rides and by far the most attractions for small children within walking distance is golden. The more friction there is in coming and going, the more it changes your behavior with kids. Even the kids themselves influence that -- once they are back in their room if they are facing 30 minutes of bussing they may not want to go back. But our kids never complained about a 5 minute walk to the gate.

 

[skippytx]

I really don't see us adding on later so we want to pick something that we can be happy with for a long time.

Just wait, addonitis is real. I haven't even made first trip on the points I bought and I've already mapped out my next 2 DVC point addons. I plan on purchasing another 200 points over the next 5-7 years. End goal is about 400 points which will get us a week in a 2bed lake view at BLT during spring break. My kids are younger right now, but I know I'm going to want the extra space as they get older.

 

[citivas]

They all said the same thing when we bought a small power boat -- that we would get "two feet-itis" and want to upgrade to a bigger boat every couple years. So far we're happy with the boat but no temptation to upgrade. We still have a list of vacations we would like to do around the world longer than we'll ever get to, in time or money. I can't see us using a full week on Disney every year at least until retirement which is no time soon. We bought enough to go once every 2 years. If we were tempted to go more often we would likely actively resist that draw in favor of trying places we haven't been before.

 

[justme0729]

Here's why I suggested VGF - but now I am waffling on my advice. A standard VGF studio costs about as much as LV BLT studio, and I think the studios at VGF are far superior. OP has no kids yet, but will have some in a few years. With only 1 kid, a family of 3 can stay pretty well in a VGF studio with the split bath and pull down bed, and you don't need to open up the sofa bed at all, which makes the room still feel pretty large. Because of the size and layout of the BLT studio, that just isn't an option. Once the kid is out of the crib, the sofa bed pretty much has to be opened up. Even with a second kid, if they are in the crib (because this is what we did 6 months ago), the crib fits pretty nicely in a little space in the hallway, and older child sleeps on the pull down bed, and keeping the sofa bed closed still makes the room feel decent-sized.

Would a 1-br feel nicer? Of course, but OP has said studios every other year are in the budget. "I don't really see us adding on later" - is that a realistic assessment of budgetary concerns and income expectation for the future, or just an overall inclination/hope for the future? Not knowing OP, I have to take that statement at face value. It's not constructive to tell the OP to "just" buy enough points for a 1BR if buying points to go in a studio every other year is a stretch that needs to be budgeted for. A VGF studio is going to be more comfortable with 1 or 2 kids than a BLT studio, and can actually accommodate 3 kids if it came to that.

Now here's where I am waffling - because @citivas 's post got me thinking - IF adding on points *is* a possibility, then I would suggest BLT, because the BLT 1br std is the lowest cost 1br at MK, plus walking access to MK is just the best. VGF 1br are REALLY nice, but it makes me cringe to spend the points on a 1BR because they cost SO many points. So to go from a studio to a 1BR at BLT isn't going to cost as much as doing that at VGF, so then it does sort of matter which resort starts as your home.

BLT/VGF points cost about $15 differential; even on 200 points that is only $3000. Dues aren't too different, so I wouldn't let $ cost be too much of a factor. It's more about what those points can get you.

Right now we can get enough points for a BLT one bedroom (standard or LV if add the 24 use points) every 3 Years but not enough to get a GF one bedroom. That’s why at 7 months if we own at GF, we could book a LV BLT 1 bedroom. I appreciate your input!!

For those wondering about saving to add more at GF, we don’t want to save to buy more points for a GF 1 bedroom. We got a small chunk of inheritance money we are planning to use and don’t really want to tap into our own savings plan we have going. We can definitely afford maintence fees and we could add more points if we wanted but I’m staying strict to the amount we have set aside so I’m thinking BLT might be better so we can get a 1 bedroom 11 months out if we can’t count on getting a 1 bedroom BLT at 7 months.

 

[kboo]

I would suggest you take a little time to look at the points charts on the dates you would want to travel, and see if tihngs change if you look at Sunday - Friday stays, especially over the points heavy holiday times. Friday and Saturday nights are most expensive, so sometimes cutting one of those nights out makes the points cost a little more bearable.

Two more things:
1. An every-3-years plan is risky, to me. Once you bank points, they can't be put into any other UY. So if you bank points in anticipation of going the following year, and something happens, you run the risk of losing your banked points. Also, if you are off by a few points here and there (if the villa you want to book isn't exactly 3x your points) you run the risk of losing points.

2. the 24 OTU points can only be used at 7 months. So you'd have to count on being within 24 points of the reservation you need, and have space available at 7 mo out. Again, highly unlikely at very popular resorts at peak times.

One final point - if you think ultimately someday you will want to be staying in the BLT 1-br, I would lean toward BLT simply because your points will go a lot farther at BLT (and they will cost slightly less) and so you will have more flexibility. If in the future you decide you need to add on so you can go more often or more reliably get the 1br std, it is much more achievable than the counterpart at VGF. The views and rooms are really terrific at both resorts - and many BLT LV rooms have pretty good theme park views - so you really can't go wrong.

Considering that resale prices for both VGF and BLT are a little crazy right now, and I see you've stayed at GF already, perhaps you should take a "research" trip and rent some points at BLT - stay in a studio and maybe a 1BR, walk to MK, and see what you think. We love VGF but we also bought BLT first because the larger rooms are so nice, the views are pretty awesome, and the walk to MK is also great. We are staying at BLT twice this year and I actually do not feel like looking for a different resort at 7 months.

 

[disneynutz]

We own both. Make a pro and con list on both resorts and list what is important to YOU. Things to consider, BLT can walk to MK, has an activity room for the kids, modern contemporary theming, a just okay pool, IMO the TPV's are over rated. VGF just okay pool, very different theming, feels more upscale with heavy theming. You should stay at both prior to buying.

Bill

 

[citivas]

We own both. Make a pro and con list on both resorts and list what is important to YOU. Thinks to consider, BLT can walk to MK, has an activity room for the kids, modern contemporary theming, a just okay pool, IMO the TPV's are over rated. VGF just okay pool, very different theming, feels more upscale with heavy theming. You should stay at both prior to buying.

Bill

We loved the theme park view. I was worried it would be a glorified parking view but it wasn't. Loved seeing the iconic parts MK by day and watched the fireworks every night. And the fireworks were so straight on that we were able to lie in bed and still take in the show.

The north facing lake views are nice too, with a combo theme park and lake view. But there's no way to guarantee getting them and the interior facing lake views are much worse.

 

[kboo]

We own both. Make a pro and con list on both resorts and list what is important to YOU. Thinks to consider, BLT can walk to MK, has an activity room for the kids, modern contemporary theming, a just okay pool, IMO the TPV's are over rated. VGF just okay pool, very different theming, feels more upscale with heavy theming. You should stay at both prior to buying.

Bill

I agree with all of this and would add:

I think the VGF pool and kids play area is a little nicer, better than "just okay."
Food options are much better at VGF.
Direct transportation anywhere on Disney property is a huge plus for BLT (walk to the bus area at MK and catch a direct bus anywhere; this is great for going to the Boardwalk and also AKL for Boma and Sanaa)

 

[disneynutz]

We loved the theme park view. I was worried it would be a glorified parking view but it wasn't. Loved seeing the iconic parts MK by day and watched the fireworks every night. And the fireworks were so straight on that we were able to lie in bed and still take in the show.

The north facing lake views are nice too, with a combo theme park and lake view. But there's no way to guarantee getting them and the interior facing lake views are much worse.

We have found that after a few BLT stays the parking lot view seems larger and seeing the top of space mountain and a micro castle in the distance loses it appeal. The fireworks also lose their attraction and are often ignored after the honeymoon period is over.

Bill

 

[citivas]

We have found that after a few BLT stays the parking lot view seems larger and seeing the top of space mountain and a micro castle in the distance loses it appeal. The fireworks also lose their attraction and are often ignored after the honeymoon period is over.

Bill

I could see that if we went often enough. Since we intend to go once every two years it's enough time for you to miss them.