Just back from BCV and OKW

[jaclark]

Hi Everyone -

This was our second stay as DVC members. I planned a surprise trip for our kids while Dad was snowmobiling We left, by car (first time driving) on Jan 30 from the far south suburbs of Chicago (it was below zero temp when we left) and arrived Orlando on Sunday at the BCV, 1 bedroom room 265. When we arrived, there was some blower going and they told us they must have just shampooed the carpets. This room had a road? in the back and we heard a lot of traffic noise. On Sunday night, there was a "beeping" alarm noise that kept my Mom up. She kept turning on the dryer for white noise. Needless to say, she was crabby on Monday!! This room was also missing a lot of items (spoons, liquid measuring cup, cookie sheet) and the dishwasher bottom rack was missing wheels so wouldn't roll properly. We asked for the items we needed. Whoever designed the bathroom with all those doors, it was like a fun house!? Kind of crazy.

On Monday afternoon I called member services and asked about availability at OKW for a 2 bedroom. It was available and after about 40 minutes on the phone (I guess this whole switch was complicated and she kept thanking me for my patience), I had secured the room for the next day. We packed up the car and headed over to OKW and a our room was ready at 9am!! We were in 1331, a three story building. We LOVED it!!! OUr balcony had a view of a pond and golf course (hole 8) and was so peaceful. The room itself looked to be recently redone - had a DVD player and new appliances. We were in heaven!! The kids were bummed about no slide after the slide over at BCV (we have stayed twice at WLV so they know that slide as well) but we put in long park days so there was no pool time then anyway. We had to wait one morning (thurs) about 20-25 minutes for a magic kingdom bus - we arrived at the bus stop around 855am so I think it was just bad timing. All other times no problems are long waits for buses.

Needless to say, I would never hesitate for a second to go back to OKW! Depending on what you are looking for, it is a hidden gem! I even called the front desk and told them how delighted we were with the room.

As we were riding the bus around the complex, we did see new appliance boxes sitting out and another poster wrote that they were doing work on those rooms.

Needless to say, we did enjoy 5 days of beautiful weather - we hated to leave on Friday to head back to Illinois. When we left Orlando area around 1pm, my car said it was 87 - by the time we stopped that night in Tennessee, it was down in the 60's if memory serves... Got home last night and it was 22...

We are going back in the fall with my hubby's family and we will stay at OKW

TAke care everyone,
Annette

 

[MiaSRN62]

Needless to say, I would never hesitate for a second to go back to OKW! Depending on what you are looking for, it is a hidden gem! I even called the front desk and told them how delighted we were with the room.

Thanks for the report Annette ! Glad you enjoyed your stay at OKW---I have to agree with you on your comment
Sorry you had some problems with BCV. Hoping things will be resolved by the time you make your next trip there.

 

[Dancind]

I know that some rooms at BCV can be miserable for a light sleeper. We paid the $25 cleaning fee to be moved from a "road view" room on one trip. That beeping is a mystery, though. Don't know what that one was! It's good luck that you weren't given a "golf course mowing view" at OKW, though. See the "OKW studio" thread. Diana

 

[jaysue]

Whoever designed the bathroom with all those doors, it was like a fun house!? Kind of crazy.

We thought so as well - It took me 2 days to get used to going through the right door - LOL

BCV is kind of jammed into it's space and it does have Epcot Resorts Blvd on the one side

We had room #252 at the end of the hall - we had an Epcot view and a view of the Blvd and a lateral view of the service area

We had the "beep beeps" from trucks backing up into the service area around 5am or so

thanks
jaysue

 

[MJTinNH]

Sounds like a great trip overall. Especially the break from this freezing weather. At this point I enjoy just hearing that someone some where had temp's in the 70's & 80's. Gives me hope for the future!

Thank you for posting!

 

[PamOKW]

Sorry to hear you had a rough time with the BCV room. I hope you give it another try in the future. It sounds like things were a little "off" in that room.

I can't tell for sure whether this was your first time at OKW. If it was, I'm glad to hear you gave it a try, too. Even happier to hear that it worked out well. I think DVC members owe it to themselves to at least give each resort a try and then decide (if you can) which one works best for you.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I agree Pam.

So glad you liked our "home".

 

[Lexxiefern]

So you didn't enjoy BCV? Were you scheduled to be at BCV the whole time but decided to switch to OKW or did you just add on a few nights? Wow, I'm sorry if you did not enjoy BCV. We have only been once so far and we were in a studio there. We are very excited about trying a one bedroom there.

Is the bathroom setup at BCV the same as BWV? Or are there more doors - anyone know?

Anyway, glad you enjoyed OKW it is a beautiful resort.

 

[jaclark]

Originally posted by Lexxiefern
So you didn't enjoy BCV? Were you scheduled to be at BCV the whole time but decided to switch to OKW or did you just add on a few nights? Wow, I'm sorry if you did not enjoy BCV. We have only been once so far and we were in a studio there. We are very excited about trying a one bedroom there.

Is the bathroom setup at BCV the same as BWV? Or are there more doors - anyone know?

Anyway, glad you enjoyed OKW it is a beautiful resort.

My kids loved the pool at BCV - the slides were a huge hit. I think if I had been with my hubby, we would have been fine at BCV or requested to change rooms. The mysterious beeping did not occur the second night there. I would never say I'd "never" go back there. I can say I did enjoy our stay at OKW and at the VWL more. That said, each resort is so unique, I really think your personal preference comes into play. I'm more a "peace and quiet" person which is why I probably enjoyed the others.

We were scheduled for 5 nights at the BCV but after two, switched our other three nights over to OKW (yes, our first time there as well). I thought it was wonderful that MS were able to accommodate us. I'm sure at prime times, that would not be the case.

Overall, we truly enjoyed the beautiful weather we were blessed with and the time together. The car ride, on the other hand, I would probably pass on!!

Thanks everyone for reading,
Annette

 

[Bella2000]

We just returned from BCV trip and had a great time. We did have a handicapped room which was a surprise but wasn't really that inconvenient (there is less space as there is no closet but an armoire thing) as it was in a great location and our trip was last minute. I hope that you try BCV again and have an enjoyable stay.

 

[Tigger7570]

Hi jaclark:
Glad to hear you enjoyed OKW. Like you said, it is a hidden gem. Did you say that there was a DVD player in the room? Wow! I wonder if this means that they are in the process of switching to DVD players. We were there in October and had a VCR. Anyone else gone recently and had a DVD in their room?

 

[jaclark]

Originally posted by Tigger7570
Hi jaclark:
Glad to hear you enjoyed OKW. Like you said, it is a hidden gem. Did you say that there was a DVD player in the room? Wow! I wonder if this means that they are in the process of switching to DVD players. We were there in October and had a VCR. Anyone else gone recently and had a DVD in their room?

Yep, they are in the process of rehabbing rooms - new appliances, DVD players, etc. Ours was recently refurbed and WALTER was also at OKW and gave building numbers of rooms they were working on while we were there. I saw a bunch of appliance boxes out in the parking lot one day as we were riding the bus around in the afternoon. I think that was the area Walter was talking about.

Take care,
Annette