Opinions on Bonnet Creek please

[jflorczak]

We are currently booked at a disney deluxe resort standard room for our November 13-22 (9 night) vacation and have considered moving to art of animation family suite or trying Bonnet Creek for more space and a seperate bedroom.
We just stayed at the Dolphin a few weeks ago in a standard room for a week as DH had a convention and DS and I went along to have fun in the parks, and it was just too small for that long of time with a small child.

A few things up front. We have annual passes for the parks and the Tables in Wonderland Card. We will also be renting a car.

How is Bonnet Creek compared to a Disney Resort??? Is it as nice as the disney resorts??
Who have you rented from? anyone I should avoid? Is there a room type I should requrest? I am thinking a two bedroom but we could certainly make due with a one bedroom.
The complex looks huge is it bigger then a Disney resort?
We have never rented a time share from an individual owner before, so we are a little nervous.
I have always stayed at Disney resorts or the Swan and Dolphin when hubby is there for work.

Any advise would be much appreciated!
Thank you!

 

[AeroKU]

I have stayed at the Swan and Dolphin, All Star Movies, Saratoga Springs (2 BR Deluxe Unit) and Bonnet Creek (2 BR Deluxe Unit). Bonnet Creek is on Par or better than Saratoga Springs for the deluxe units. The price for Bonnet Creek cannot be beat. Last time we stayed, it was $690 for 7 nights at BC. This was in November of 2012. This year we are staying in a 4 BR Presidential unit at BC for 7 nights = $1750. Last time, the park shuttles from BC were free, so it was really great. They are now charging for shuttle service and I've read that they have decreased the ammount of trips between resort and parks. If you will have a car, that shouldn't be an issue. For my money, I will never stay on-site again. Yes, when you are on-site, you get that extra magic that you don't get when staying off-site, however, with the ammount of money you save, you can make your own magic.

 

[jaykorf001]

We are currently booked at a disney deluxe resort standard room for our November 13-22 (9 night) vacation and have considered moving to art of animation family suite or trying Bonnet Creek for more space and a seperate bedroom. We just stayed at the Dolphin a few weeks ago in a standard room for a week as DH had a convention and DS and I went along to have fun in the parks, and it was just too small for that long of time with a small child. A few things up front. We have annual passes for the parks and the Tables in Wonderland Card. We will also be renting a car. How is Bonnet Creek compared to a Disney Resort??? Is it as nice as the disney resorts?? Who have you rented from? anyone I should avoid? Is there a room type I should requrest? I am thinking a two bedroom but we could certainly make due with a one bedroom. The complex looks huge is it bigger then a Disney resort? We have never rented a time share from an individual owner before, so we are a little nervous. I have always stayed at Disney resorts or the Swan and Dolphin when hubby is there for work. Any advise would be much appreciated! Thank you!

We have stayed at AKL and just returned from a stay at WBC Presidential. It was fabulous. It is easier to get around than a Disney resort because you park right next to your building. I didn't find it difficult at all to get around. Short walks to pools at the other buildings.

It's perfect for you since you have APs and won't have to pay to park at the parks. I would try and get a "presidential" vs "deluxe", although I hear the deluxes are nice. We had 10 foot ceilings, a huge balcony, tile floors, and a beautiful kitchen. If I could figure out how to post pics on this site I would.

We used Vacation Upgrades to rent. People on this board also highly recommend Vacation Strategies.

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[AeroKU]

We have stayed at AKL and just returned from a stay at WBC Presidential. It was fabulous. It is easier to get around than a Disney resort because you park right next to your building. I didn't find it difficult at all to get around. Short walks to pools at the other buildings.

It's perfect for you since you have APs and won't have to pay to park at the parks. I would try and get a "presidential" vs "deluxe", although I hear the deluxes are nice. We had 10 foot ceilings, a huge balcony, tile floors, and a beautiful kitchen. If I could figure out how to post pics on this site I would.

We used Vacation Upgrades to rent. People on this board also highly recommend Vacation Strategies.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

We will be staying in a Presidential in November. Which building were you in? Did you use the WBC Shuttles to get to the parks? If so, what was your experience with that? Last time we were there, the shuttles were still free so it was great.

 

[jaykorf001]

We will be staying in a Presidential in November. Which building were you in? Did you use the WBC Shuttles to get to the parks? If so, what was your experience with that? Last time we were there, the shuttles were still free so it was great.

We stayed in building 6. I think all the 1 & 2 BR Presidentials are in building 6. I am not sure about the 3 BR Presidentials but I know the 4 BRs are spread out. Building 6 is next door to the Wyndham hotel. It also has the pirate pool and is next door to building 5 that has one of the lazy rivers.

We did not use the shuttles. I didn't even pay too much attention to the schedule sheet. Sorry I'm not more help.

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[fireman17]

We are staying at BC next week and this will be our second time there my DW got us a 7 night stay for $650 in a two bedroom. Now, we were DVC owners but due to financial reasons we had to sell it. When we first stayed at BC I loved it and said to my wife that it was in fact larger than our DVC. We rented a car for the first time in our many trips and was so glad we did and didn't do it sooner as it was so nice to come out of a park with tired children, put them in the van and be back at our resort quickly.
You won't regret your choice in staying at BC.

 

[ideascubed]

The secret is out, so I will add my 2 cents. We love bonnet creek. More space, laundry in room, hot tub, refrigerator, microwave, space, lazy river! Anything that needed to be taken care of was fixed immediately. (We got a room that had just been painted and upgraded. Paint fumes were overwhelming!)

I get my reservations through Chuck Davis. C w Davis jr at yahoo dot com. No spaces of course. Amazing service, I email him, ask for dates, quick response! I get a copy of the reservation within minutes if there is a room available. Sadly, room hasn't been available.

BC is two minutes from downtown dis, riverside, port Orleans, driving to the parks is a piece of cake because of our annual passes. The value to stay on site isn't there for us right now. We have stayed two delightful times at BC. Looking forward to more stays. I will be using Chuck Davis again, I loved working with him. And you know how scary it is to try a new thing like renting a timeshare for the first time, Chuck made it easy Peasy. Checking in wasn't a prob either. I didn't pick up the parking permit the 2nd visit, and 1st visit I said there was no way I was going to invest in a timeshare. They were very nice about it, too.

PS, tell Chuck Terry referred you!

Have fun and enjoy your stay

 

[sbozek123]

Really looking forward to our first stay in October. Tips/hints/tricks for newcomers? This is our first ever resort stay, and my husband and kids first Disney trip!

 

[lindaprvs]

Our family has stayed 2x at BC and have a 3rd trip booked for October this year.

The first time we stayed we were in Tower 6.. great view of parkinglot and fireworks. the shuttles were free to disney then and we used them and loved them!
The second time we stayed we were in tower 3 with a lake and fireworks view! It was perfect!! The second time we stayed we only went to Seaworld and the beach so watching the fireworks was a bonus!!

The pools are amazing and the rooms have always been nice. My kids love to pool hop throughout the resort and its a quick walk to any of them from any tower.

We have never had a issue with the timeshare pressure-- but we never answer the in room phone and tell them upfront at parking that we aren't buying as we have access through our grandfather who is a owner.

I hear the shuttles have gone down fast there, so we plan to use our car this trip. Really hate to pay parking but its cheaper than the shuttles, and the last shuttle schedule I saw was very spaced out.

Have a wonderful time! You won't regret staying at WBC!

 

[sb682]

We stayed in a 2 br Deluxe in September and loved it so much! We went to the Publix off 192 in Celebration and bought stuff to make breakfast and deli food for dinner the first night (also made a stop at the liquor store next door ). We loved having so much space, having a view of Illuminations and Wishes (we requested a high floor with a fireworks view, got one in Tower 4), going over to the fort pool at Tower 5 and using the lazy river, and being basically on-property the entire time. So much space, our unit was very clean, and our only problem was a broken blender, which we discovered on Day 1 and they had replaced by that afternoon. I wish we could've stayed there for our upcoming trip in June but it is just out of our price range at that time of year. We are a family that needs a little time apart (and separate sleeping spaces) each day to fully enjoy being together the rest of the time.

We booked through Vacation Strategy and we were very happy. Even my WDW-averse DH loved WBC and would love to go back.

 

[Calle&Jakesmom]

Just booked 3 nights for New Years Eve. We've never stayed at BC before and have been spoiled by lots of Disney Resort stays. Our favorites are Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club, and Boardwalk. Sounds like we will be happy with the space at BC. I'd love to hear more opinions and experiences!

 

[Brian Noble]

How is Bonnet Creek compared to a Disney Resort??? Is it as nice as the disney resorts??

I have stayed at Bonnet Creek as well as OKW (3x), VWL (2x), BCV, BWV, and BLT. We thought our Bonnet stay was very comparable in terms of overall vacation enjoyment to our OKW stays. There were some things we liked about OKW more, and some things we liked about Bonnet more. Bonnet's units are generally much more functional and better furnished than DVC units (with the possible exception of BLT.) The pools at Bonnet are better than those at pretty much any Disney resort, including Stormalong Bay. We liked OKW's more laid back vibe a bit more, but prefer Bonnet's location.

The other DVC resorts have location advantages, and I'm a sucker for VWL's vibe, so all things being equal I might prefer them. But, I don't like the unit layouts at VWL, BCV, and BWV at all. They devote too much space to the second bedroom and too little to the living room, even in the dedicated units where the 2nd BR doesn't need to function as a standalone studio.

For our upcoming Christmas trip, I have a 2BR booked at Bonnet Creek. I also have an RCI search for a DVC exchange, but that's something of a longshot. If it does not match, I'll be perfectly happy at Bonnet.

I am thinking a two bedroom but we could certainly make due with a one bedroom.

We think of a 2BR/2BA as the minimum size for the four of us. I would only consider the 1BRs at AKV or BLT, where there is both a sleeper chair so the kids don't have to share a bed, and a second bathroom. Bonnet's 1BR doesn't have either. But, having a common space where no one sleeps is a nice bonus for us---we have a mix of early birds and night owls, and the living room lets everyone do their thing without worrying about waking up others.

The complex looks huge is it bigger then a Disney resort?

It's really quite compact, with high-rise towers. It's right next door to CBR, and the timeshare part of Bonnet is about the size of one and a half or two of the villages there. The lake around which the resort is built is maybe half the size of Crescent Lake in the Epcot Resort area; that should help give you a sense. I don't know how many units though.

 

[Calle&Jakesmom]

I have stayed at Bonnet Creek as well as OKW (3x), VWL (2x), BCV, BWV, and BLT. We thought our Bonnet stay was very comparable in terms of overall vacation enjoyment to our OKW stays. There were some things we liked about OKW more, and some things we liked about Bonnet more. Bonnet's units are generally much more functional and better furnished than DVC units (with the possible exception of BLT.) The pools at Bonnet are better than those at pretty much any Disney resort, including Stormalong Bay. We liked OKW's more laid back vibe a bit more, but prefer Bonnet's location.

The other DVC resorts have location advantages, and I'm a sucker for VWL's vibe, so all things being equal I might prefer them. But, I don't like the unit layouts at VWL, BCV, and BWV at all. They devote too much space to the second bedroom and too little to the living room, even in the dedicated units where the 2nd BR doesn't need to function as a standalone studio.

Great info. Thanks!

 

[SqueakyMouse]

Just checked-in to our 2-bedroom deluxe 30 minutes ago. Still getting settled. Plenty of room. Very good condition -- some slight wear (small pull in carpet and a few small marks on walls) and tear but definitely NOT as much as we've experienced on-site. Love the space!!! 13 yo ds doesn't want to leave our rooms. I'll post more as we get out and about in the resort.

 

[divearnd]

With regard to Bonnet Creek I would ask if you have booked at the hotel or in a timeshare unit?

 

[AC7179]

I don't see the extra fees for the Presidential on the website. Is is much more expensive?

 

[jetengines]

I looked up BC and there is Wyndham BC, Hilton BC, and then Vacation Strategies BC. Can someone tell me the difference? We are a family of 6 and the rooms and space are a bonus. Would also like to have a full kitchen for meals but cannot tell if this is possible at BC. Thank you for your help.

Kimberly

 

[divearnd]

Wyndham BC, with the exception of the Wyndham hotel on the site, is a timeshare resort with one to four bedroom suites all with full kitchens. These suites can be rented through Wyndham at their Extra Holidays web site or one of many other sites such as Vacation Strategy, red week, etc. Do not know anything about the Hilton but would assume it is a hotel

 

[jaykorf001]

I looked up BC and there is Wyndham BC, Hilton BC, and then Vacation Strategies BC. Can someone tell me the difference? We are a family of 6 and the rooms and space are a bonus. Would also like to have a full kitchen for meals but cannot tell if this is possible at BC. Thank you for your help. Kimberly

Along Bonnet Creek there are two "compounds". One is the Wyndham which includes The Wyndham Grand (hotel) and Wyndham Bonnet Creek (timeshare).

The other is across the road and includes the Hilton BC (hotel) and the Waldorf Astoria (hotel).

We stayed at The Wyndham Bonnet Creek (timeshare) in March. We loved it. The condos are huge and include a full kitchen. I recommend you rent thru Vacation Upgrades or Vacation Strategies if you are interested in WBC. You'll get a better deal than renting through Wyndham directly.

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[GotLabradors]

I know that most people on the DIS sing the praises of WBC, but reading the reviews and looking at the photos on tripadvisor has made me pause a bit before shelling out for what seems to be really bad customer service and a lot of bugs.