My first time here....please help!

[momtobe98]

My family is planning on going to WDW in January and we're looking at The Villas At Disney's Wilderness Lodge Resort. It would be me, my husband, our 3 kids (at that time will be 3, 5 & 7) and my sister (who's helping us with the kids.) Can anyone tell me what would be the best room for us? My middle child, who is 4 now, is autistic and we can't have a room with a balcony. Would I need special consideration for that or when I make my reservation would I tell them I need the ground floor?

Also, since I've never purchased points before I'm not sure exactly what to do. Any help/suggestions would be great as this is our very first vacation as a family. Thanks to all!

 

[ceejay13]

It sounds like you are either interested in renting or paying cash for the room, is that correct? If this is a one time trip then buying points for you is not the way to go. Buying points is essentially a real estate purchase much like a timeshare, although Disney is different than most timeshares. If you were to buy points from DVC, it would be a minimum of 150 points at whatever the going rate is - I believe it is close to a $100 per point. You then get those points yearly to use for vacation purposes. I have never rented out my points but there is a rental board here if you want more information on renting.

As to the size of the room, I would think a 2 bdr is what you are going to need, and you would need to ask for a ground level room as they all have balconies on the upper floors.

I would really recommend, if you are not very familiar with WDW, purchasing a guidebook or two or even going to your local bookstore and spend some time reading, in addition to spending time of these discussion boards. There are some great books that will help tremendously in planning your trip. You are really smart in trying to get as much information as possible. It will make your vacation much more enjoyable.

 

[Poorman]

If you do rent points , ask the person making the reservation to put first floor, medical reasons, and have him/her explain the reason.
They will make every effort to give you what you want.

Good luck.

 

[Dean]

You would need a 2 BR for this. Since there are no way to guarantee requests, I don't know of a way to know for certain you don't have a balcony. You would likely be better off getting 2 units at one of the moderates that does not have balconies or maybe someone else will know the regular Disney rooms better to make suggestions for you. You could also call Disney and/or go to the resorts board to find out more about non DVC options. I'd concur about the guidebooks as well and suggest Passporter and the Unofficial guide. But if you absolutely can't have a balcony DVC is not for you either renting or buying.

 

[momtobe98]

Thank you all for your help! I will definitely seek out some guides to help me along the way.

Also, I didn't mean to write "purchase" points, I meant to rent. Since this is a one time thing and probably won't happen for a VERY long time I want to make it the best possible for my family.

I'm going to call the DVC places to see what the best options are on rooms without balconies and if there are any available during the time that we're going. I don't only fear for my 4 year old but my 3 year old as well who has no fear of climbing!

Happy Easter to all and thank you again for your help!

 

[Disney Doll]

Size-wise, you would need a 2BR unit. As far as the balcony thing, you can request a ground floor room. If you plan to rent points form someone, instruct them to put in a request for a groud floor room for medical reasons, and have them explain that you have an autistic child and a upper room with a balcony can be a huge danger to your child with regard to falling and you'd hate to have something happen that could be prevented by the simple request of a ground floor room.

 

[Dean]

Thank you all for your help! I will definitely seek out some guides to help me along the way.

Also, I didn't mean to write "purchase" points, I meant to rent. Since this is a one time thing and probably won't happen for a VERY long time I want to make it the best possible for my family.

I'm going to call the DVC places to see what the best options are on rooms without balconies and if there are any available during the time that we're going. I don't only fear for my 4 year old but my 3 year old as well who has no fear of climbing!

Happy Easter to all and thank you again for your help!

Just to be clear, I don't think there's any way to guarantee not having a balcony at DVC. Your only option would be to look at room types that don't have balconies at all.