Is it foolish to book a 1-bedroom?

[SpaceMountain77]

Hi everyone,

We currently have a reservation for the second week of December, which was planned at the 11-month mark. Now, because of work, we need to leave a few days later and are looking to extend our reservation further out.

Much to my surprise, several resorts still have availability for the third week of December. Although we only need a studio, BCV and BWV are possibilities if we reserve a 1-bedroom. If we do not intend on using the kitchen, is it foolish to spend an additional 68 points for a BCV 1-bedroom when we can reserve a standard studio at AKV for 48 points? For now, I do have the BCV 1-bedroom reserved for 4 consecutive nights.

I sincerely appreciate your thoughts!

Jim 8O

 

[Sammie]

Well for it me it is never foolish, to be where I want to be enjoying a larger room and bed.

We don't cook but we do love having a huge refrigerator for breakfast foods and snacks.

We book a 2 bedroom always for the 3 of us. We want the bathrooms and actually bedrooms.

 

[Mousewerks]

Well, one of the benefits of a 1-bed vs a Studio is the king bed in the bedroom. Some would say that is the only reason to get a 1-Bed.

 

[supersnoop]

Don't forget about the washing machine. Having one in the room means you don't have to babysit your laundry. You can start a load and head the parks.

With the full kitchen, larger bed, and ability to put the kids to bed and close the door, I wouldn't call it foolish. A little expensive for my tastes, but not foolish.

 

[murphy7573]

I changed our AKV studio in August to a 1 Bedroom savannah stay. My 5 y/o DD gets the living room area, my wife and I get our own bedroom! Yeah, the extra bathroom, full kitchen and washer and dryer are perks too, but we get OUR OWN BEDROOM ! We need OUR OWN BEDROOM !

 

[jo-jo]

Because of the Christmas decorations, I'd say go for the BCV. We love AKV, but during this time it just seems extra special to be able to see all the special events and then walk home.

Also since weather can be so iffy, with Epcot and HS, if it's nice during the day but turns cold, you can easily go back to room for jackets.

 

[jekjones1558]

Count us among those who always book a 1 bedroom. It is just DH and I and we never cook. Studios feel like hotel rooms but 1 bedrooms feel like vacation homes.
An advantage of BCV in December is its proximity to Illuminations with the "Let There Be Peace" ending. I walk over there from BWV almost every night during our December stay because I love that finale so much.
Treat yourself to the BCV 1 bedroom.

 

[Friendofpluto]

My husband and I always book a 1B. We do so to relax and enjoy the resort. I enjoy having the W/D, whirlpool and kitchen. Not much cooking, but it is nice.

 

[LSchrow]

it depends....
if you have enough points for the 1 bedroom (where you won't need to cut short, or miss another vacation because of it), book the 1 bdrm.
if booking a studio won't detract from other vacations, book a studio.

however, i'm assuming you have only 2 people; with 3 or 4 people the 1 bdrm is a necessity, imho

ETA: we used to book a 1bdrm as 2A 2C, 2bdrm for more. funny, the "you'll never go back to a studio" worked in reverse for us - we don't need or want a 1 bdrm for 2 ppl. i don't cook at home & certainly am not about to start on vacation , don't use tubs (jetted or not), and would spend too much time cleaning.
our vacations are all about relaxing, going out to dinner, sitting on our balcony views are an entirely different matter: we will, and have, rescheduled vacations when our preferred (BW) view was unavailable - that is our one nonnegotiable

 

[DenLo]

I am not sure I could bring myself to book a 1BR when a studio is available at another DVC resort. We prefer studios over 1BRs as we feel the kitchen and living room is really not utilized enough to justify the cost.

I would say if you routinely select a room type like standard over a view type room like Boardwalk, theme park, or lake view to save points, then why would you spend points for a 1 BR? However if the resort is very important to you, then I would select what is available if you can afford the points. Affording the points means using the points for this reservation will not prevent you from making planned future reservations.

 

[MiramarQE]

One VERY good reason we almost always take the 1 BR (at BWV):


Feels great after a long day walking the parks!

 

[ganban]

I changed our AKV studio in August to a 1 Bedroom savannah stay. My 5 y/o DD gets the living room area, my wife and I get our own bedroom! Yeah, the extra bathroom, full kitchen and washer and dryer are perks too, but we get OUR OWN BEDROOM ! We need OUR OWN BEDROOM !

Is AKV the only 1 BR with 2 bathrooms? And is it all AKV 1 BRs?

 

[supersnoop]

Is AKV the only 1 BR with 2 bathrooms? And is it all AKV 1 BRs?

Only Kidani and BLT.

 

[DebbieB]

Only Kidani and BLT.

And VGC.

I originally bought DVC to stay in a 1 bedroom just my mom and I. I wanted to room to spread out, have the kitchen (although we never cooked), washer/dryer, large bathroom. Didn't see the purpose to spend all that money and get a studio, could just get a regular hotel room.

 

[BrerNashville]

It was foolish for me to book a 1BR the first time I did it -- just like it was foolish for me to book my wife for an all day spa package as a birthday present soon after we were married. Suddenly, after years of no manicures or pedicures, she's NEEDED them every couple of weeks since.

You may "never want to go back" to a studio.

 

[MiramarQE]

You may "never want to go back" to a studio.

 

[Maddysdaddy]

It's all a matter of perspective, and there is no 'wrong' answer.

For my family, we are willing to sacrifice additional space for additional nights, so we book studios.

 

[JoeA]

My wife and I always dual over this same question!

She wants to save the points.

I stay over 100 nights a year in a hotel room and the 1-bedroom just feels more like "home". I also tend to wake-up way earlier than she so I like to get up, get my coffee, watch news, etc w/o bothering her. And I like the bigger bed.

And she usually wins but did concede that next trip will be a 1 bedroom. Yeah me!

We stayed in BWV and AKV last Dec and enjoyed both equally but different. The decorations in both resorts was awesome!

 

[SpaceMountain77]

Thanks, everyone, for the helpful and thoughtful replies. After reading through the replies, I was very satisfied with our BCV 1-bedroom reservation. Moreover, I realized that the walking distance to Epcot during Holidays Around the World and an in-room washer and dryer made this a worthwhile use of points. Unfortunately, the final decision has ultimately been made by member services.

Originally, I thought I could request to modify my VGF fixed-week reservation; I wanted to cancel the first two nights and keep the remaining 5 nights intact. Any modification requires one to opt-out of the fixed-week and book a new reservation. If I was to opt out, the released room would immediately be matched to a waitlist request and I would lose the entire reservation. The member services representative suggested that I keep my reservation and schedule a late arrival. Although I am familiar with the opt-out policy and procedure, I did not anticipate a problem for canceling the first night or two of the week.

Now, having reevaluated our points allotment, the BCV 1-bedroom seems excessive. I have replaced our BCV 1-bedroom reservation with an AKV-Kidani standard studio for a savings of 54 points. I realize that it is challenging to predict waitlist success, but which studio requests would have a greater chance of success for the third week of December?

Again, thanks for your help!
Jim 8O

 

[supersnoop]

Originally, I thought I could request to modify my VGF fixed-week reservation; I wanted to cancel the first two nights and keep the remaining 5 nights intact. Any modification requires one to opt-out of the fixed-week and book a new reservation. If I was to opt out, the released room would immediately be matched to a waitlist request and I would lose the entire reservation. The member services representative suggested that I keep my reservation and schedule a late arrival. Although I am familiar with the opt-out policy and procedure, I did not anticipate a problem for canceling the first night or two of the week.

Just for the record, the waitlist process is not "immediate." While there certainly is a risk of losing the reservation, there's a large chance that you would not.