Just Got Back from BWV!

[roydavid7771]

Hey all,

Rather than go through a full fledged trip report, I wanted to share a few highlights of our stay at BWV from 7/27-8/4......

1. First, my wife and I stayed in a standard view studio for our first two nights. Getting to Orlando was an adventure, since our flight out of Newark was delayed by about an hour and a half. We passed the time b wathing the opening ceremonies at the Earl of Sandwich bar in the terminal followed by watching them ont he plane. We didn't get to the Boardwalk until 2:30 AM, so we both pretty beat by the time we fell into bed. No hassles with check-in though, which we were grateful about.

The studio itself was in great shape, and we had no complaints sinc we simply wanted to sleep. I actually got up 3 1/2 hours later to play golf at LBV, but the overall fatigue I felt may me slow down and enjoy the fact that I was on vacation.


2. For those who have not tried it yet, I highly recommend a meal at the Wave at the Contemporary. Both my wife and I were very much surpirsed at how good our meal was since we both felt we were settling by eating there. Service was excellent and the portion size was just right for the two of us. We ended the evening by going to the TOTWL for the evening fireworks. I was expecting a mad rush of people, but it was not overly packed at all. We chatted with a very nice family from Chicago, and we were both surprised at how light he crowds were, relatively speaking.


3. We ran into our share of tour groups, but the overwhelming majority of them were very well-behaved. I wanted to throttle a couple of girls who were infront of me at Buzz Lightyear, but that was about it. Many of the groups had CM's assisting with supervision and direction, and it seemed to have worked pretty effectively.


4. We moved into the 2BR on Sunday as my wife's family began to come in. I cannt say enough great things about our villa! It was in great shape, had a nice view of the quiet pool, and was very comfortable for three couples. We had one minor issue with the toilet in the studio, but it was repaired while we were in the parks without any problem.


My wife and I both enjoyed this trip immensely, but we both agreed that we may take a bit of a break from coming to WDW. While we had a lot of fun, having her family down had us on the go from sunup to sundown. I think we may try either Disneyland of perhaps Hilton Head for next getaway.

There were so many other details, so please feel free to ask any questions!

 

[Lisann]

I'm very interested in staying here, but have always been on the monorail line. Do you feel that you miss the monorail?

 

[softballmom3]

Hi! glad you had a good trip. We are seriously considering here but I wondered if you used the bus system any? I've been reading stories about how long the waits are. We've stayed value and moderate before and didn't have any trouble. I know you take the boat to Epcot and DHS unless you want to walk. Thanks!

Also...with the studio did it seem dated?

Thanks!

 

[natebenma]

I'm so happy to hear you had a nice trip. Now, hope you are able to relax from your vacation in the next day or two!

 

[Moms]

Glad to hear from someone who loves BWV as much as we do! We love the space (there are only two of us), the kitchen (great for breakfasts!) and the washer and dryer! We don't miss the monorail at all ... two of the four parks are an easy walk from the resort and truth be told we have experienced no problems with the busses. Our waits have been reasonable and although there are other resorts sharing the ride we haven't flet inconvenienced in any way.

Will be there again in December for our first Christmas break trip ... the week between Christmas and New Year ... I know ... we're steeling ourselves for the crowds! But should be a blast!

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm very interested in staying here, but have always been on the monorail line. Do you feel that you miss the monorail?

I own at both BWV and BLT...so have used the monorail extensively. No, I don't miss it. It isn't my favorite mode of transportation at WDW!!!

Hi! glad you had a good trip. We are seriously considering here but I wondered if you used the bus system any? I've been reading stories about how long the waits are. We've stayed value and moderate before and didn't have any trouble. I know you take the boat to Epcot and DHS unless you want to walk. Thanks!

Also...with the studio did it seem dated?

Thanks!

I have stayed at many different WDW resorts. The best bus service was at Pop Century!!! Seriously. I had the worst bus service at the Polynesian. Yes, the buses that serve BW also stop at the Swan and Dolphin..usually. There have been times when I have quietly cheered when we didn't make that left turn toward the Swan, and just continued on to our park!!! Not often, but it has happened. And as far as stopping at the YC/BC? Sometimes the bus does make those stops. I have been on the bus to AK and it has stopped at all four of the other resorts, other times, it hasn't. Same with MK. I 'think' that they combine all five resorts if it's not a busy bus time..,midday for instance.

I really have never had a bad bus situation at BW. I also seldom take the boat to either Epcot or DHS. The walk to Epcot takes under 10 mins. The walk to DHS, under 20.

As far as the villas being outdated?? They were just rehabbed recently. I have had all rehabbed studios for the past 18 months or so.

 

[softballmom3]

Thanks for the info!! I read about a rehab after I posted the question lol.

 

[roydavid7771]

I'm very interested in staying here, but have always been on the monorail line. Do you feel that you miss the monorail?

Believe it or not, we encountered the most transportation problems with the monorail! One of the trains went down so it screwed up the entire loop. As far as the rest of the transportation goes, we didn't experience any major issues.

Hi! glad you had a good trip. We are seriously considering here but I wondered if you used the bus system any? I've been reading stories about how long the waits are. We've stayed value and moderate before and didn't have any trouble. I know you take the boat to Epcot and DHS unless you want to walk. Thanks!

Also...with the studio did it seem dated?

Th only bus issue we encountered was going to/from Downtown Disney (shocker!). We waited about 15 minutes for the bus, which wasn't so bad except for the fact that we saw three buses for AK go by before we got he DTD bus. Coming home kinda sucked since they lumped the YC/BC/, S/D, and BW all onto one bus, and of course the BW was the last stop. Just as an aside, DTD was more packed than any of the parks combined! I attribute it to the fact that none of the parks had evening EMH the night we went, but it was hopping!

The studio was in great shape and did not feel dated at all. I t was nicely appointed and was quite comfortable for the two of us.

Glad to hear from someone who loves BWV as much as we do! We love the space (there are only two of us), the kitchen (great for breakfasts!) and the washer and dryer! We don't miss the monorail at all ... two of the four parks are an easy walk from the resort and truth be told we have experienced no problems with the busses. Our waits have been reasonable and although there are other resorts sharing the ride we haven't flet inconvenienced in any way.

Will be there again in December for our first Christmas break trip ... the week between Christmas and New Year ... I know ... we're steeling ourselves for the crowds! But should be a blast!

I'm sure the crowds will be nuts then, but I was pleasantly surprised that the parks did not feel crazy busy. As long we always had a fastpass on deck, we were good to go.

 

[roydavid7771]

I'm so happy to hear you had a nice trip. Now, hope you are able to relax from your vacation in the next day or two!

Thanks Dee! Kinda weird not having a vacation planned to look forward to, but we'll be thinking about one very soon!

And just so you know, we had lunch at Beaches and Cream twice, so we made our pilgrimage to the BC as well!

 

[lsenquiz]

Hi! glad you had a good trip. We are seriously considering here but I wondered if you used the bus system any? I've been reading stories about how long the waits are. We've stayed value and moderate before and didn't have any trouble. I know you take the boat to Epcot and DHS unless you want to walk. Thanks!

Also...with the studio did it seem dated?

Thanks!

We stay at the BWV atleast once a year and love it. I would not stay anywhere else. I know you can take a boat to EPCOT but can not imagine anyone doing that. The walk is literally 5 minutes. We do take the boat to DHS because the walk is about 20 minutes and can be alot for little ones. However we usually get on and off at the swan/dolphin which is the last stop. We do the same for the buses. Although transportantion is a big part of why we stay at BWV we also love the energy of the resort. There is always something to do and see even when you are not in a park. We love it!