Our First Family Trip as DVC Members

[SamR]

From January 24th-28th, we spent a wonderful (albeit cool) long weekend at the world, with all but the first night being in a one-bedroom villa at our home resort, the Beach Club Villas. We joined DVC last March, and while my wife and I had a brief stay in a BCV studio in September (at the end of a week during which I was in Orlando on business), this was our first trip as a family, and our first time to stay in a one-bedroom villa. Most of our trips the last few years have been during Spring Break week, and in fact we have had reservations since June for the upcoming Spring Break. However, we really wanted to make a trip (even if it had to be a brief one) during a time that traditionally has lower crowds.

So, last October we decided to plan a long weekend in January to take advantage of lower crowds and cooler temperatures. (OK, so we got a little more than we bargained for on that "cooler temperatures" part! )

The quick summary: We were thorougly pleased with the BCV and with our decision to join DVC.

A few quick observations:

• Our villa was immaculate, and very comfortable.
• We were in room 365, which faced Epcot and was between the canal and the famous "oval". You could only barely see a couple of the pavilions through the trees, but there was an excellent view of the fireworks at night. (It should be noted that I didn't even request a particular view...but I was pleased with the result!)
• After a long day at the park with our kids, we really enjoyed the opportunity to wind down with dinner in our villa, as opposed to dragging the kids into a restaurant every night. After this experience, we are now planning to "eat in" for at least four of the six nights on our next trip.
• The proximity to Epcot (my favorite park) is just wonderful. To be any closer, you'd have to have a room in Spaceship Earth!
• I also enjoyed the short walk over to the sweet shop on the Boardwalk. Uh...Just for treats for the kids, of course. Yeah, that's it...Just for the kids.
• It was too cold to hit Stormalong Bay, but we're looking forward to it for next time!
• Great ice cream at Beaches and Cream.
• Nice character breakfast at Cape May with good character interaction. I'm hoping to try the evening meal (clam bake) there on our next trip.
• All of the BC CMs and bell staff I dealt with were top-notch.

For anyone interested, my trip report can be read by going to:

Fun at the BCV! - January 24th-28th

 

[Credit Man]

Thanks for the link to your report. Sounds like you had a great trip.

 

[Dancind]

Enjoyed your report and your pictures, thanks for posting! Brought back a sweet memory - my DD at about the same age ( a little younger) loved Goofy's Barnstormer at DL. We were there on a very light day, and I remember chasing her repeatedly from the exit to the entrance while she kept yelling "again"! Looks like IOA is in your future, she's going to want to go for the big thrills!

 

[JOC]

I enjoyed reading your trip report. From what vantage point did you take that nighttime picture of EPCOT? It's a nice picture.

 

[sheryl0521]

Great post, can't wait to get back home!

Also - your kids are adorable!

 

[spiceycat]

A great trip report and a lovely family!

thanks!

 

[SamR]

From what vantage point did you take that nighttime picture of EPCOT? It's a nice picture.

Thanks! While my memory is a bit fuzzy, I'm pretty sure that I took the picture from the waterfront in Germany. I didn't have a tripod or even a monopod with me, so I held the camera against the railing by the World Showcase Lagoon (trying to minimize camera shake during the long shutter opening). Since I don't have a remote for the shutter release, I used the self-timer so as not to induce any extra jitter when the shutter release was pressed.

 

[Verandah Man]

Enjoyed your trip report and the photos, Great Job!!!

 

[SheriB]

Great trip report. I loved your pictures! May you enjoy many more (not so cold) WDW vacations!

Sheri