Just thought of an improvement for future studios

[SleepyatDVC]

Since the studio portion of the 2 bedroom was always for guests or kids, the 2 queens or queen/sofa was never a problem.

We are downsizing from a 2 bedroom to a studio for the second week of our trip in April/May 2005 so that we could save points for another trip in the fall. So, we will finally get to stay in the studio. The bed set up is still o'kay for our family of 4 (2 small kids).

The newer Marriott units that I have stayed at seem to have king beds in their studios plus the sleeper sofa. This set up was really nice.

Obviously, DVC will never switch out the queens for kings. However, I was just thinking that wouldn't it be great if they put in king beds plus a sleeper sofa in the studios when they build the next DVC resort?

I still like the option of 2 queens in the dedicated 2 bedrooms. So, maybe they can keep the 2 queens for dedicated 2 bedrooms and the king/sleeper for lock off studios.

Just a thought.

Of course, DVC will probably jack up the points for this type of studio since it will have "better" ammenities (bed) than the other DVC studios as well as a little bigger to acommodate the larger bed. So, maybe people will reserve the 1 bedrooms instead since you would then get the full kitchen, etc.

Studios range from 12 to 19 points a weeknight. Would you pay 14 to 22 points a night for a studio if DVC offerred the king bed instead?

Personally, I WOULD if the next DVC resort was at let's say the Contemporary. If the next DVC was similar to SSR, such as the on-hold Eagle Pines, I would definitely throw in a few extra points a night and just stay in a one bedroom at OKW!

I just think that the timeshare industry seems to be really improving the studios. Some of them are really feeling like minisuites. It would just be nice if DVC can follow the trend of the competition.

But then I think DVC's real competition are the Disney on-site resorts, as well as the suite hotels right outside WDW. It might not make economically sense to improve the studios too much and still make it "points wise economical" in the DVC family.

After all, who else can buck the trend of larger, more luxurious timeshares by actually making the units smaller?!!

Personally, I think that DVC built OKW to orginally compete against the outside timeshares resorts. But I think the newer DVC resorts are actually competing against all the other hotel suite resorts springing up. Who wants to stay in a regular hotel room or suite when you can stay DVC on site?

Don't think the king in the studio will ever happen but it's nice to dream.

What do you all think?

 

[Doctor P]

With due respect, I think it is a bad idea. A king bed will take up more floor space (which is precious in most studios), plus it will make the difference in beds glaring (two people get a king and the others get a full sized sleeper sofa? NOT!) Having two queen beds in more of the studios (ie., those outside of OKW) might not be a bad idea, but given the need to accomodate four people (and the infeasibility of having some two person studios, IMHO), I just don't think it is a good idea to move to a king bed.

 

[kweaver]

I think it's a great idea. I'm actually surprised that they didn't put king beds in to begin with. It's pretty rare to find a hotel room with one queen bed (usually a king or two queens/doubles).

We've been considering inviting my mom and her husband to join us...but she wouldn't be happy with one queen bed. She travels all over the country and is the Westin Heavenly Bed princess.

The difference in bedding between the king and a full sized sofa doesn't wash with me. Most people I know would only have their kids with them in a studio (who can easily handle a full sized sofa)...rather than two more adults.

 

[SleepyatDVC]

Originally posted by Doctor P
With due respect, I think it is a bad idea. A king bed will take up more floor space (which is precious in most studios), plus it will make the difference in beds glaring (two people get a king and the others get a full sized sleeper sofa? NOT!) Having two queen beds in more of the studios (ie., those outside of OKW) might not be a bad idea, but given the need to accomodate four people (and the infeasibility of having some two person studios, IMHO), I just don't think it is a good idea to move to a king bed.

The Marriott studios have a king bed and, I think, a queen sleeper sofa.

I agree that it would be a bad idea if the size of the studio stayed the same.

That's why I assumed that the studio would have to be built a little bigger and thus, the probable increased points per night. That's also why I didn't think it would be very likely at all.

But like I mentioned, it's nice to dream...

 

[Doctor P]

What about a party of two unrelated people who wish to sleep in separate beds? I beg to differ, but king sized rooms in hotels are not generally billed as sleeping four people, and therefore are not an appropriate comparison. This is what hotels would call a double room, in which there are many single queen beds with a sleeper sofa if there are not two real beds. I stand by my original opinion.

 

[Doctor P]

I want to make it very clear that we usually stay in studios and I would much rather sleep in a King size bed, but I just don't think it is appropriate for DVC studios. BTW, I have been spending an average of 35 nights a year in hotels, and I try to get a king bed when I am alone without the family--more and more hotels are going the queen bed with a sleeper sofa for their "single" rooms. I have been surprised.

 

[kweaver]

Sleepy, I agree...it is nice to dream! I, too, think the studios would have to be a bit larger than the current size to handle a king bed.

Doc, I understand where you are coming from. With two adults who want to sleep separately, one has to use a sofa bed in the current setup anway. Is there really much harm in making the bed a King instead of a queen? Maybe the adults can take turns.

However, there are few adults I know that would want to sleep on a standard sofa bed anyway (regardless of the fact that it is queen or full sized). The new SSR sofa beds are a different story...very comfy. It seems that two queens would be the ideal set up for the situation you described.

I've been in very few hotel rooms with kings + a sleeper sofa...which is a reasonable way to accomodate four people...especially two adults and two kids.

 

[SleepyatDVC]

Originally posted by Doctor P
What about a party of two unrelated people who wish to sleep in separate beds? I beg to differ, but king sized rooms in hotels are not generally billed as sleeping four people, and therefore are not an appropriate comparison. This is what hotels would call a double room, in which there are many single queen beds with a sleeper sofa if there are not two real beds. I stand by my original opinion.

Oh, I totally agree with your objection with a double room!

I do like the 2 queen configuration for 4 people. But DVC seems to have definitely moved away from the 2 queens in the new DVC studio lock offs.

In my "daydream," I was just assuming that DVC would keep the same sleeper sofa they have now and just increase the bed size to a king - BUT obviously NOT keeping the same room size. You are right it would make the room too small! The room would have to get bigger and thus I factored in the increased point cost to compensate the increased room size.

The newer Marriott studios (btw, I'm talking timeshare - NOT hotel) sleep 4 just like the DVC studios. They just seem bigger even with the king bed and queen sleeper. I think the sleeper was a queen. The third person sleeping on the sleeper sofa was too lazy to open it up - he just put the bed linens on top of the unopened sofa and slept on it that way! So, I assume if it was long enough to lie full length on, it would must likely be a queen sleeper sofa ( at the Marriott).

But I concede, this was just a daydream. I doubt the increased points per night would be enough to compensate for the increased costs to DVC to offer more room and a bigger bed.

 

[mikayla'sMom]

I love your dream! We always look for a king with seperate sleeping area for my daughter. We like to be able to watch TV and read after she is in bed. No way she will sleep if we are all together. This is why we bought DVC in the first place after paying cash on trips!

 

[Muushka]

I agree 100%

If they had a king size bed in the studio-we would not have had to do an add on!!!! We sleep in a king at home, we are not about to sleep in a queen on vacation!

 

[Dean]

I too prefer the King and pull out but was thinking the ones I'd seen with a King had a double and not a queen pull out. They also have real plates, utensils, pots, etc. Something DVC should definitely do.

 

[kweaver]

Originally posted by Dean
They also have real plates, utensils, pots, etc. Something DVC should definitely do.

I totally agree with this. Add the real plates and a few utensils to a studio setup. Seems like it would be less expense in the long run, too.

 

[d-r]

it would probably only lead to people being mad and not getting what they wanted, but if they had a resort with enough units (like SSR), I wouldn't mind seeing some studios with a king + sofa, and some studios with two queen beds. That way, when you want to go on just a solo trip with your spouse you could book a king, and if you find yourself having along guests that don't want to share a bed you could book a double queen. I would like the options, but it wouldn't work very well in places like wlv or bcv where there aren't many rooms.

 

[BEACHCLUBVILLAS]

I just got back from SSR and we thought the same thing. I even think they can put them in the rooms as they exist now with a double sofa. We spent a week in a 1 bedroom and rarely used the kitchen. The use we did get from the kitchen could have been satisfied with the kitchennette in the studio. We used the jacuzzi once, because we felt we should. We loved the King bed and were debating if we could go to Disney and not have the King bed. We have a queen at home. If the studios had kings, we could save a lot of points, visit more often or stay longer and find lots of ways to spend more money.

 

[DrTomorrow]

DW and I sleep on a king at home but have no trouble with a queen on the road. As empty-nesters, we really like the queen-sofa layout of the SSR Studio: gives us a lot more room, and feels a bit more like a suite....

 

[patsal]

As long as we are wishing and dreaming, I'd like studios to have bunk beds so that the dreaded family of four with one child of each sex issue could be resolved! Sure would make the extra trip int he middle of AP's in a studio much more pleasant!

 

[Lesley]

To be honest, while the studio does not work well for us now, I look forward to using the studios once dh and I can travel alone again. I think the bed/sofa combo is really nice for couples. But I do totally agree on the real dishes in the studios! I hate having to bring my own. The 2 bed studio situation at OKW works better for us as a family....but I like the amenities of a 1br better.

What I'd rather see is the 1br have a second real bed instead of the sleeper sofa....like a murphy bed, or even just a real daybed/trundle (not like the studio plus at BWV). Like the original suggestion, I don't think this is something that could be implemented into current DVC accomodations...but could be done in future DVC resorts if there are any.

I can just see where a 1br would no longer work for my family in a few years....even if we didn't have the baby...simply because there is no real second bed.

Then again, we purchased DVC as it is....so we're more than happy to work with what we have!

 

[SleepyatDVC]

Originally posted by BEACHCLUBVILLAS
If the studios had kings, we could save a lot of points, visit more often or stay longer and find lots of ways to spend more money.

And that might be one reason that DVC won't ever use king beds in the studios for future developments!!!



Afterall, they want to sell as many points as possible and will try to "push" people to use the higher points 1 or 2 bedrooms.

But I agree with your point! I too will probably use the studios more if it was an option!

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

kid studios.... OMG the bunk bed idea is great IMO!!!!!! Actually a king with bunk beds would be really great for people with 2 kids.... I think Holiday Inn does something like that.

 

[3DisneyNUTS]

I just thought of something else. To save on space but still make a studio roomy for a couple have Murphy beds!. Those who would rather have the space can leave it in the wall and those who need an extra bed can just pull it out. Aren't they more comfortable than the sofa sleepers anyway?