Most "Family Friendly" Resort Is....

[sne193]

My family is fairly new to DVC and have decided to book our first stay at BLT. Today I read mixed reviews, we have two small children 1 and 2 are concerned that this may not be the best or most family oriented resort. We would love to receive your thoughts and suggestions. I.e. Noise, Activites etc

 

[gonzalj1]

I believe a major travel magazine just voted the AKL as the top family resort in the country. Can't remember which...

But I would second that.

That being said, resort and vacation preferences are a very personal thing. What I love you may not and vice versa.

 

[Deb & Bill]

My family is fairly new to DVC and have decided to book our first stay at BLT. Today I read mixed reviews, we have two small children 1 and 2 are concerned that this may not be the best or most family oriented resort. We would love to receive your thoughts and suggestions. I.e. Noise, Activites etc

We stayed at BLT last October and had a one bedroom villa inside the C. We found the villa to be very noisy during the day with the poolside activities. Pool activities were very family friendly. And they have an evening movie outside between BLT and CR.

One of the best things about BLT is the ability to walk to MK.

You just don't want a BLT studio with your family. They are very small.

 

[disneymath]

I own at BLT and travel to WDW with my three nephews. Our first stay at BLT in August 2010 they were newly 3 years old and 18 months old (twins). They love it there. There is a VERY gentle kiddie slide at the main pool and a great splash pad too. We've been back once and tried OKW once ... while they liked OKW, they did specifically request that we stay at "their hotel" next time.

You can't beat the ability to walk to and from the MK (maybe 10-15 minutes at a leisurely pace), access to the monorail, and, if you are lucky enough, possible a room with a view of the MK fireworks or the EWP (nightly electrical water pageant on Bay Lake).

I've stayed at AKL (not villas) when the oldest was just over 1 yo, it's also a great resort, but relies entirely on bus transport and is not convenient if you need to return to the resort quickly for some reason (not quite as much of an issue if you have a car, we never do).

 

[hakepb]

I believe a major travel magazine just voted the AKL as the top family resort in the country. Can't remember which...

But I would second that.

That being said, resort and vacation preferences are a very personal thing. What I love you may not and vice versa.

It depends on the kid, but AkL can be an amazing experience. I remember sitting on the balcony with a savanna view and DS would toddle out, point and yell something at an animal, then run back into the room, them repeat
It was great having an the room being an attraction"!

BLT might be that way of you have a monorail view, too

But like a PP said, if you have an inside lake view room, the pool music is LOUD! At afternoon nap time. The rest of the time, the MK and monorail resort dining proximity is awesome!

 

[nifferearly]

There isn't a DVC resort that isn't "family friendly"! But BLT is a great choice with small children, since you'll be spending most of your park time at MK. Especially since they're young enough to still be in strollers, it's so convenient to just walk over.

We just stayed there on the pool side and I didn't think it was too loud for naptime. Only possible concern might be the fireworks if they are easily scared by loud noises. You can hear them/feel the vibrations from them in some rooms at BLT.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[sne193]

Thank you, we are very excited about trip and look forward to a trip filled with magic and memories.

 

[JWG]

I'd say AKV. They have the child care servcie onsite (Simba's something or other), various activities around the resort, etc.

BCV has the most popular pool for kids.

But as others have said all are familiy friendly obviously.

Now, full list including outside WDW? Aulani hands down. With Aunty's Beach House, the pools and lazy river, schduled activities (free and paid), you just can't beat that. However, you must supply your own theme park .

 

[Kidanifan08]

My family is fairly new to DVC and have decided to book our first stay at BLT. Today I read mixed reviews, we have two small children 1 and 2 are concerned that this may not be the best or most family oriented resort. We would love to receive your thoughts and suggestions. I.e. Noise, Activites etc

BLT is great with the little ones, since you can walk back and forth from MK with the strollers. When my son was 4, we could sit in the north elevator lobby and watch Disney buses monorails for hours. The splash area at the BLT pool is great for kids your age and the pool has a large shallow area at the end with the zero entry. If you are thinking of staying in a studio, BLT studios are pretty tight. As noted, if you are inside the "C", the pool noise is fairly steady through the day and the electric water parade is really loud at night.

AKV is also great with the animal viewing. It is a very quiet and peaceful resort if you have a savannah view. The halls are long, and you could end up doing a lot of walking if you are at the end of the necklace. But, if your kids can take stroller naps in the parks, that would be a good choice.

You have years to try all of the different resorts at WDW, so I don't think you can make a bad choice for your first stay.

Enjoy!

 

[Deb & Bill]

...BCV has the most popular pool for kids....

But only for kids who can swim and don't need to be watched all the time. It is really large and spread out. Plus there are very deep areas (8' deep) with swift currents that you can stumble on without knowing if you aren't already aware.

Oh, and at BLT, we heard the fireworks from our inside the C villa (but we couldn't see them at all).

 

[Upon a Star]

BCV does have a great pool but NOT for young kids. We're here now and very it very nerve racking keeping track of our three. Also we just came from AKL kidani and LOVED the pool area. We have a 7 year old, a 4 year old and a 2 year old. The negatives however are the LONG walks to and from your villas. Awkward layout all around actually and the lack of places to eat. We really enjoyed our trip last year at Saratoga. Great pool areas and decent food by the pool. We own at BLT but our first visit will be this October. Here's hoping it'll be our favorite!

 

[Sammie]

I think SSR is a fabulous resort for families. No interior hallways, so you are out of your room and outside quickly, really nice interactive pools and 4 pools. Tennis courts, basketball, fire pit, games and movies at the pools, bikes, great Community Center and close to Downtown Disney.

 

[ABE4DISNEY]

I think SSR is a fabulous resort for families. No interior hallways, so you are out of your room and outside quickly, really nice interactive pools and 4 pools. Tennis courts, basketball, fire pit, games and movies at the pools, bikes, great Community Center and close to Downtown Disney.

I would have to second this! We found SSR to be the most kid friendly resort we have stayed at so far! Next would be Kidani, but it is a pain not having a close counter service for food.

 

[jlsmith376]

I think with small children and it being your first DVC trip that BLT will be great. You can't beat the location or view. The pool at BLT doesn't have as many features in its splash area as some of the other DVC resorts, but when my kids were ages 1 and 2 they were just happy to play in the fountains so they wouldn't miss that part. In fact, like a pp mentioned about the Beach Club pool, it would probably be much easier for you at BLT since it is not so spread out you won't have to worry about chasing kids in all directions.

We stayed at BLT earlier this year and loved it Have a great trip!

 

[darkwing818]

I'd say AKV. They have the child care servcie onsite (Simba's something or other), various activities around the resort, etc.

BCV has the most popular pool for kids.

But as others have said all are familiy friendly obviously.

Now, full list including outside WDW? Aulani hands down. With Aunty's Beach House, the pools and lazy river, schduled activities (free and paid), you just can't beat that. However, you must supply your own theme park .

AKV & BCV get our vote as well.

 

[TosaTrio]

BCV does have a great pool but NOT for young kids. We're here now and very it very nerve racking keeping track of our three. Also we just came from AKL kidani and LOVED the pool area. We have a 7 year old, a 4 year old and a 2 year old. The negatives however are the LONG walks to and from your villas. Awkward layout all around actually and the lack of places to eat. We really enjoyed our trip last year at Saratoga. Great pool areas and decent food by the pool. We own at BLT but our first visit will be this October. Here's hoping it'll be our favorite!

Totally agree- BCV pool is could be difficult with multiple children of different ages. It is very busy. Frankly, I think the lazy river is just plain dangerous!

Kidini wins hands down in my book in terms of pool and the splash area however the new Pool at SSR is nice.

Can't beat BLT in terms of being able to walk to MK!

 

[JAG107]

Being that we have only stayed at our home BLT and AKL-Jambo (not including the values we stayed at prior to ownership) we hands down prefer BLT. The walk to MK is unbeatable, the kids (3 and 1) absolutely LOVE watching the monorails and trains, and hustle and bustle of MK right from the resort. The buses are uncrowded and we generally spent less time busing around WDW from BLT than when we stayed at AKL, which is a big plus when you're toting a giant stroller and 2 squirmers.
DD3 loved seeing the animals at AKL from the hallways and from our balcony, but she was also equally, if not more so excited about everything BLT had to offer.

 

[wishicouldgomoreofte]

BCV Stormalong Bay is not for 1 & 2 year olds.
Save that for when they are older, as someone said strong enough swimmers that you don't have to watch or worry about them at all, and old enough to go do things themselves. (Teens love it.)

 

[dsneygirl]

BCV does have a great pool but NOT for young kids. We're here now and very it very nerve racking keeping track of our three. Also we just came from AKL kidani and LOVED the pool area. We have a 7 year old, a 4 year old and a 2 year old. The negatives however are the LONG walks to and from your villas. Awkward layout all around actually and the lack of places to eat. We really enjoyed our trip last year at Saratoga. Great pool areas and decent food by the pool. We own at BLT but our first visit will be this October. Here's hoping it'll be our favorite!

I think the opposite of SAB and little kids. The sandy, zero entry area way over at the YC end is amazing for little ones. And really there is no pool where I am going to let my toddler/pre schooler be more than an arms length away from me at all times.

This is my oldest at 10months at the SAB beach

We have stayed at BC many times with our young kids and never had an issue.

We are staying at BLT next trip and I think it's pool is pretty weak compared to others.

 

[Murron]

I had to think long and hard on this....but for family friendly children oriented ... my vote is AKV. Children + animals = success. And the CMs at AKV are beyond all expectations. To show that I'm not being crazy biased, my favorite resort with DH is BWV. But when grandnieces and nephews are along, it's definitely AKV. That being said, AKV is away from everything else and (my personal rant) ... you'll need a rental car and skip the Disney transportation which is a minus for most people.