Planning a trip for Aug. 2022. Which resort?

[tara595]

So, plans have changed and our April trip is now rescheduled to mid August. (So hot!) It will be me, DH, DS (7) and DD (5). We'll be going to the parks everyday but also spending lots of time at the pool.

These are the resorts I'm leaning towards:

BLT - never stayed there, but love the proximity to MK, but haven't heard great things about the pool.
BWV - stayed there 10 years ago and loved it.
BCV - would also love to stay here but would worry about my kids in the pool as I've heard it's hard to keep track of little ones in the pool.

We'd be staying in a 1-bedroom.

What do you all think?

 

[han22735]

My vote would be BWV...Great location and an awesome pool without worrying about where the kids are. Your concern with BCV and watching the kids is exactly why we choose BWV for most trips.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

If you asked me to rank all of the one bedroom villas at Walt Disney World for kids, those would be my bottom three. Their theming is nice but has no "wow" factor for kids. Saratoga Springs and Old Key West are equally dull, but Saratoga Springs just got a MAJOR refurbishment and the Old Key West villas are enormous.

With kids, I would go Animal Kingdom Villas, Boulder Ridge Villas, Copper Creek Villas, or Polynesian Villas (studio only, but it's a big studio) before any of those three.

 

[tara595]

My vote would be BWV...Great location and an awesome pool without worrying about where the kids are. Your concern with BCV and watching the kids is exactly why we choose BWV for most trips.

That's what I'm leaning towards!

 

[tara595]

If you asked me to rank all of the one bedroom villas at Walt Disney World for kids, those would be my bottom three. Their theming is nice but has no "wow" factor for kids. Saratoga Springs and Old Key West are equally dull, but Saratoga Springs just got a MAJOR refurbishment and the Old Key West villas are enormous.

With kids, I would go Animal Kingdom Villas, Boulder Ridge Villas, Copper Creek Villas, or Polynesian Villas (studio only, but it's a big studio) before any of those three.

We've stayed WL and AKL and loved both. I would love to stay at the Poly but I don't think we'd be comfortable in a studio for a whole week. I'm more concerned about the location of the resort and the pool.

 

[DeeBee3]

I have a newly turned 8 year old and almost 4 year old. We just finished a trip this past August and were at Boardwalk for 1st part and Kidani for 2nd. We loved both, but the location at BWV was great because of proximity to Epcot and HS. We never had an issue with a bus to MK. Being that little my kids loved both pools and didn't care. However, we also live in NY and we have no pool here.

We also LOVED Kidani. My kids loved looking at the animals. We scheduled our trip in such a way that 1 day we did take the bus to MK (almost 20 mins) and then the next was AK.

BW was lovely because we needed the break from heat and humidity and my kids just kept begging to go to the pool. We also spent 2 days at Epcot because we all love it, even the littles.

I think it depends on if your kids are used to having pools where you live or if you know they will need a break from the heat. Even though we have terrible humidity here, I'm not normally walking around a million miles in it. I needed a break for sure.

I do think BLT would be great - it's definitely on our list to try soon. Now that the monorail is open to Epcot, we would find that appealing too.

I do think Wilderness Lodge is amazing - food options are good. Pools are nice - not fancy like Stormalong bay - but 2 to choose from and the Lodge itself is amazing. Plus, the boat to MK is just neat.

Good luck!

 

[CaptainAmerica]

We've stayed WL and AKL and loved both. I would love to stay at the Poly but I don't think we'd be comfortable in a studio for a whole week. I'm more concerned about the location of the resort and the pool.

Do you spend a disproportionate amount of time at Magic Kingdom? Bay Lake Tower is obviously extremely convenient to Magic Kingdom but it's probably the least convenient resort to everything else.

 

[tara595]

I have a newly turned 8 year old and almost 4 year old. We just finished a trip this past August and were at Boardwalk for 1st part and Kidani for 2nd. We loved both, but the location at BWV was great because of proximity to Epcot and HS. We never had an issue with a bus to MK. Being that little my kids loved both pools and didn't care. However, we also live in NY and we have no pool here.

We also LOVED Kidani. My kids loved looking at the animals. We scheduled our trip in such a way that 1 day we did take the bus to MK (almost 20 mins) and then the next was AK.

BW was lovely because we needed the break from heat and humidity and my kids just kept begging to go to the pool. We also spent 2 days at Epcot because we all love it, even the littles.

I think it depends on if your kids are used to having pools where you live or if you know they will need a break from the heat. Even though we have terrible humidity here, I'm not normally walking around a million miles in it. I needed a break for sure.

I do think BLT would be great - it's definitely on our list to try soon. Now that the monorail is open to Epcot, we would find that appealing too.

I do think Wilderness Lodge is amazing - food options are good. Pools are nice - not fancy like Stormalong bay - but 2 to choose from and the Lodge itself is amazing. Plus, the boat to MK is just neat.

Good luck!

Thank you! Such good info! We're from NY too and we don't have our own pool and kids love to swim. I'm definitely leaning towards BW. I stayed there once (pre-kids) and loved it. Did you stay in a one bedroom? What view? I'd love a boardwalk view but I don't know if I'll have enough points for it so I might have to do a standard view.

I'm planning for the 13th to the 20th of August so I'm hoping for the crowds to be a little less. When do you go?

Thanks again for all the great information!

 

[tara595]

Do you spend a disproportionate amount of time at Magic Kingdom? Bay Lake Tower is obviously extremely convenient to Magic Kingdom but it's probably the least convenient resort to everything else.

Good point.

 

[kilik64]

Have you thought of doing a split stay? Could do BLT and BWV, BLT for a couple days for that sweet sweet walk to MK then move to BWV for better pool area and proximity to Epcot and HS for those park days?

 

[DeeBee3]

Thank you! Such good info! We're from NY too and we don't have our own pool and kids love to swim. I'm definitely leaning towards BW. I stayed there once (pre-kids) and loved it. Did you stay in a one bedroom? What view? I'd love a boardwalk view but I don't know if I'll have enough points for it so I might have to do a standard view.

I'm planning for the 13th to the 20th of August so I'm hoping for the crowds to be a little less. When do you go?

Thanks again for all the great information!

We actually went at a very similar time: 12-19! We stayed in a 1-bedroom Garden/Pool view. We also had a grandma along . We happened to be on the 1st floor looking at the pool directly. It was very close to outside exit to pool, Boardwalk area, and path to HS. Also the elevator if you needed to go to lobby. We liked that convenience.

We mainly took the boat to HS, but my husband walked home 1 night from HS with them in the stroller. I took the boat haha. Otherwise, we walked to Epcot.

I hear Standard view is hard to come by but not sure if that is just studios.

 

[HappyDisneyWife]

I’d stay at Bay Lake if you plan to spend the most days at MK, or BCV if you plan on more days between EP&HS. I’d have a hard time choosing!! But BWV would easily be my last choice of those 3, bc I think BLT has the best room setup & BCV has the best pool.

Side note: I wouldn’t worry at all about the kids at BC’s pool since you’ve only got 2 who are 5&7yo- and they would LOVE it! You’ve got a 1:1 parent-kid ratio, there are rafts, and there are soooo many lifeguards (around every corner). I’ve got several kids myself & I wouldn’t worry until you’re outnumbered

The biggest differences btw the 3 resorts are: location (obviously), pools (all 3 are fun, but nothing compares to Stormalong Bay)… and bathrooms!!! Not only do BLT 1-beds offer 2 full bathrooms, but both BCV & BWV have a pretty awkward bathroom setup in those rooms… we’re talking, they must’ve held a contest to see who could add the most doors- and then make some of them lock on the wrong side… I think the winner was drunk!

 

[Yinn]

So, plans have changed and our April trip is now rescheduled to mid August. (So hot!) It will be me, DH, DS (7) and DD (5). We'll be going to the parks everyday but also spending lots of time at the pool.

These are the resorts I'm leaning towards:

BLT - never stayed there, but love the proximity to MK, but haven't heard great things about the pool.
BWV - stayed there 10 years ago and loved it.
BCV - would also love to stay here but would worry about my kids in the pool as I've heard it's hard to keep track of little ones in the pool.

We'd be staying in a 1-bedroom.

What do you all think?

Those just happen to be my last 3 stays - all within the past year. Here are my opinions..

BLT -
1) LOVE the convenience to magic kingdom. The monorail to Epcot is also a piece of cake. It is absolutely unbeatable. What isn't talked about a lot is also the convenience to food and shopping over at the contemporary.
2) The pool is...severely lacking. IMO with kids of similar ages. It's easy enough to watch them go up and down, but it's a bit small and cramped. The kids also commented that the slide doesn't go as fast with my kids getting stuck frequently. I'm not sure if the water pressure/flow was low that day or what. What is nice is the outdoor games that are available as well. We abandoned the pool after maybe 30min to 60 min and then played cornhole, connect 4.
3) The rooms were perfect for us in terms of arrangement. Sleeper sofa + sofa bed worked well for our kids.

BWV -
1) Was not as convenient as we would have thought. Easy enough walk to HWS and Epcot, but the food options weren't all that wonderful in the immediate resort vicinity, especially in august when it is raining and you have to go outside.
2) Hands down our favorite pool. We were able to relax in the pool while having full view of our kids going up and down the slide. There's enough space for them to splash down w/o feeling like you're backed up against someone. It was also the kids favorite slide.
3) The rooms in a 1BR will mean your kids share a bed. If you go down to a studio, you lose the kitchen. Decisions decisions...

BCV -
1) Overhyped? Convenient to Epcot...not so much to HWS. The food accessibility is better here than BWV, only because you can stay almost completely indoors - or at least covered when a hurricane/tropical storm rolls through.
2) The pool was...pretty terrible with younger children. We as parents didn't get any down time. If your kids like the slide and you want to keep an eye on them, you'll be going with them. Or walking between the slide exit and entrance as you watch your kid go back and forth. If your younger one doesn't want the slide, and wants to play on the beach area, then you'll also split up and take one child each. It forces you to either watch your kids or relax. Sure you can bring them into the normal pool area with you, but then it's no different than any other pool and you're not enjoying the cool things that make storm along bay awesome. With older kids or if you trust them to be on their own, this wouldn't be an issue.

Depending on length of stay, you may even want to do a split stay. If we absolutely positively had to pick one and only one...we would do BLT is we were going to the park every day but BWV if we planned on some resort days mixed in with our park days.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

The monorail to Epcot is also a piece of cake. It is absolutely unbeatable.

The monorail to Epcot is horribly inconvenient.

Estimated travel time from the Contemporary to Epcot is 34 minutes. Estimated travel time from Animal Kingdom Lodge, the place that everyone cries and complains is too far from everything, is 17 minutes.

Yes, the monorail is fun/neat/nifty/cool/unique, but it isn't the fastest way to get where you're going unless you're staying at the Poly and can walk to the TTC. From the Grand Floridan and the Contemporary, it adds quite a bit of time over the bus-only resorts.

 

[tara595]

Those just happen to be my last 3 stays - all within the past year. Here are my opinions..

BLT -
1) LOVE the convenience to magic kingdom. The monorail to Epcot is also a piece of cake. It is absolutely unbeatable. What isn't talked about a lot is also the convenience to food and shopping over at the contemporary.
2) The pool is...severely lacking. IMO with kids of similar ages. It's easy enough to watch them go up and down, but it's a bit small and cramped. The kids also commented that the slide doesn't go as fast with my kids getting stuck frequently. I'm not sure if the water pressure/flow was low that day or what. What is nice is the outdoor games that are available as well. We abandoned the pool after maybe 30min to 60 min and then played cornhole, connect 4.
3) The rooms were perfect for us in terms of arrangement. Sleeper sofa + sofa bed worked well for our kids.

BWV -
1) Was not as convenient as we would have thought. Easy enough walk to HWS and Epcot, but the food options weren't all that wonderful in the immediate resort vicinity, especially in august when it is raining and you have to go outside.
2) Hands down our favorite pool. We were able to relax in the pool while having full view of our kids going up and down the slide. There's enough space for them to splash down w/o feeling like you're backed up against someone. It was also the kids favorite slide.
3) The rooms in a 1BR will mean your kids share a bed. If you go down to a studio, you lose the kitchen. Decisions decisions...

BCV -
1) Overhyped? Convenient to Epcot...not so much to HWS. The food accessibility is better here than BWV, only because you can stay almost completely indoors - or at least covered when a hurricane/tropical storm rolls through.
2) The pool was...pretty terrible with younger children. We as parents didn't get any down time. If your kids like the slide and you want to keep an eye on them, you'll be going with them. Or walking between the slide exit and entrance as you watch your kid go back and forth. If your younger one doesn't want the slide, and wants to play on the beach area, then you'll also split up and take one child each. It forces you to either watch your kids or relax. Sure you can bring them into the normal pool area with you, but then it's no different than any other pool and you're not enjoying the cool things that make storm along bay awesome. With older kids or if you trust them to be on their own, this wouldn't be an issue.

Depending on length of stay, you may even want to do a split stay. If we absolutely positively had to pick one and only one...we would do BLT is we were going to the park every day but BWV if we planned on some resort days mixed in with our park days.

Great information! I'm leaning towards BWV. Planning on going for 7 days with both park and pool days.

 

[Yinn]

The monorail to Epcot is horribly inconvenient.

Estimated travel time from the Contemporary to Epcot is 34 minutes. Estimated travel time from Animal Kingdom Lodge, the place that everyone cries and complains is too far from everything, is 17 minutes.

Yes, the monorail is fun/neat/nifty/cool/unique, but it isn't the fastest way to get where you're going unless you're staying at the Poly and can walk to the TTC. From the Grand Floridan and the Contemporary, it adds quite a bit of time over the bus-only resorts.

Having both AKL and PVB as my home, I’m very familiar with those stats. While they may have been true several years ago, it certainly was not true my past trip on Aug - a month ago.

They had a lot of monorails running this last Aug. much more than I’ve seen in years past. Avg wait time for a monorail at BLT was less than 5 min. A majority of the time a monorail was already there waiting. It took us 15-20 min on average to get to Epcot, which was quite an unexpected surprise as we are typically accustomed to budgeting 45min for that trip.

The monorails were running so frequently, at one point I actually wondered whether it was faster to walk to MK or to take the monorail to TTC then switch back to MK. We never attempted it, but it was a very pleasant surprise. Quoting myself: “This is how the monorails SHOULD be!”

I’m not sure if it’s temporary or not, but it seems they’ve lifted the restrictions on the number of monorails operating at the same time to keep it from packing up. While it hasn’t been true in the past, this past trip the monorails were hands down our favorite transportation option. Whether it will last…who knows.