Resale - Should I go with BWV or OKW??

[Michigan RN]

I'm thinking of purchasing a resale and not sure whether to go with OKW or BWV. We don't have a tendency to travel often during Easter and Christmas and I always plan our trips far in advance. Should I go with OKW because the prices and the maint. fees are less?

 

[tor]

Also with okw the rooms are almost twice the size and the points are less but you cant beat the location of the boardwalk and the entertainment on the boardwalk. maybe it is my impression but it seems like there is more availability at okw??

 

[Granny]

If you think that you will like the theming, location and ambiance of OKW, then that's the place to purchase. The difference in maintenance fees is not worth giving up a purchase at the place you like best, IMHO.

By the way, the rooms are larger at OKW but "almost twice the size" is nowhere near accurate.

As long as you'd be happy staying at OKW, that would be a good purchase. On the other hand, if you want to have a good shot at Standard View (less points) or Boardwalk Preferred View rooms at BWV, you would be much better off owning there.

Remember..there are 37 years left on these contracts. Just because you don't go during the busier seasons now doesn't mean that you won't want to do so later on in your life.

Good luck in your decision. Both are great resorts!

 

[JimC]

OKW will cost less and has larger villas. But you need to like the themining and location for that to matter, in my view. We love OKW so the larger villas and lower costs are just extras.

We have yet to be disappointed with a WDW resort.

 

[dianeschlicht]

If you have never stayed at or visited either, I suggest you do that first. There is no way for the rest of us to tell you which is best for you. For me, it is OKW all the way. We had a choice between those two when we first purchased, and I am very glad we did it the way we did.

 

[tor]

yes maybe not twice the size but okw 1 bedroom is just over 1016 square feet and boardwalk one bedroom is 712 a 2 bedroom at okw is 1322 and at boardwalk is only 1071 wich in both cases is over 300 square feet more or just about the size of the studio. The studios are close but okw is still 20 sq ft bigger As far as buying in just for the themeing I dont see it I would venture to say that the typical DVC member tries new resorts each time and doesnt feel obligated to there home resort that would defeat the entire purpose of the point system not being strapped to one week or hotel

 

[SoCalKDG]

BWV owner here. Visited OKW for dinner, and its nice. If I was going to have 8 people and wanted a 2 bedroom, this is where I would stay for the xtra sq. ft. Otherwise I'll stay at BWV which is walking distance to Epcot and Disney Studios, or you can take a boat to either one which is very pleasant.

The advantages of BWV are a huge selection of places to dine, plus nightly entertainment. Since you'd be a BWV owner, you could reserve the standard view rooms which cost about the same as OKW. Or pay a bit more and get the best view available of all DVC units, the BW view. You also get the main pool with less than a 3 minute walk from any room as well, can't do that at OKW.

Additionally there are more places available at OKW so booking there is easier than booking at BWV at the 7 month or less time.

 

[lllovell]

I think I would be more of an OKW than BWV person, BUT my first instinct when you posted this was to say buy at BWV. Your chances of getting into BWV at 7 months are less than your chances of getting into OKW at 7 months (strictly due to size) so if you have interest in staying at BWV, I would purchase there. You would still have the flexibility to use one of the other resorts on site, but your chances of getting standard views at BWV are pretty low at 7 months.

 

[zurgswife]

I would pick BWV....my fav..

 

[jnrrt]

We had the exact same issue - started looking at OKW, ended up buying at BWV.

OKW you can buy a little cheaper and the maintenance is lower. The rooms are bigger.

BWV is, in my opinion, an awesome location because you can walk to 2 parks. Standard view is about the same points cost as OKW.

We chose BWV because we wanted to be able to take advantage of the standard view points levels and didn't think we could do that at the 7 month window. It did seem to be totally possible to get into OKW at 7 months though, so we didn't think the 11 month window was such an advantage there.

If you thought you'd use a lot of OKW GV's then having the booking window is great. Other than that, though, we thought you could usually get in there. And we don't mind if we don't always get where we bought - we like to see everything. We thought we'd use the SV at BWV a lot more. And since the first DVC room we stayed in was at the BW, we thought it was huge anyway, so we know the room size will be adequate.

You just need to really evaluate how you are most likely to travel, and remember that it really might change over time.

 

[Muushka]

Snip.... As far as buying in just for the themeing I dont see it I would venture to say that the typical DVC member tries new resorts each time and doesnt feel obligated to there home resort that would defeat the entire purpose of the point system not being strapped to one week or hotel

Well this DVC member bought for the theme of the resort (VWL)! And location. We did not buy at OKW because of the theme. We have yet to try three other on-property resorts. We don't feel obligatied to our home resort, just prefer it. We did stay at OKW because we needed a lot of room and it was an expensive time of year. This is our 5th year of ownership.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Well, we DID buy at OKW not only because of the extra space there, but because we love the themeing! I live in a log home "up north", so when I am in Florida, I want it to look like Florida, and what better themeing for Florida than Key West?

 

[Tamar]

We own at Hilton Head...have since 2001, but we've never stayed there. We have, however, stayed at both BWV and OKW. Unless you traditionally plan your vacations 7+ months out, there's no reason to purchase BWV over OKW. We have booked 2-3 months out and still been able to get BW rooms (just not standard view).This isn't true of every season, but we've stayed there 3 times in the past 4 years without owning BVW points.

If you do plan your vacations more than 7 months out, and/or you'd want those hard-to-get standard view rooms at BWV, then that's the place to buy.

I know lots of people say to buy where you want to stay, but I think that's not always the right decision. Our HH points had a much better incentive than the BVW points that were available when we purchased, plus lower maintenance, so that's the route we went.

 

[SalandJeff]

We own at BWV, but stayed at OKW in 2003. Both are nice, but since owning at BWV, we've been spoiled by the location. You can walk to Epcot (or take a short boatride), short boat ride to MGM, walk to the Yacht & Beach club, Swan & Dolphin which gives you a large selection of restaurants to choose from. And it so nice along the boardwalk, we love it. We go during slower times of year, so huge crowds are not an issue for us. OKW is nice, but isolated from everything else and very quiet. But every family is different. I'm sure you'll love either

 

[thelobstershanty]

I would pick BWV for all the reasons already stated. Having the 11 month booking advantage is a lot more important at BWV then it is at OKW. Particularly if you want standard view or boardwalk view villas, and during the Christmas/NY holidays, the Flower and Garden Show and the Food and Wine Festival. The holidays and the 2 festivals take up about 3 months of the year, where booking at BWV can be much harder to get at the 7 month mark then OKW will be. The difference in the dues is really not much and the gap seems to narrow as the years go on. Also BWV's resales generally sells for a higher price then OKW, if you should ever decide to or need to sell.

 

[RLevy29]

Have you stayed at OKW or BWV? It sounds like you are people who like to book your vacations in advance. It is difficult to advise you which one to buy without knowing if you have a resort preference. It boils down to the 11/7 month reservation priority so if you have a preference it would be easier to advise you.

 

[MiaSRN62]

I'm an OKW kind of person. We love the themeing/ambience there, having stayed at both BWV and OKW. I feel the choice of dining is good at OKW too. It's just a 10-15 min boat ride away to all the restaurants at DD, as well as Olivia's restaurant right on site. BWV is nice if you like to walk to Epcot and prefer a hotel-feel. OKW is more like a neighborhood feel. I feel the resale amounts on these are pretty similar with BWV being slightly higher (as well as higher maintenance fees). But I'm like others who suggest you check out these resorts in person if you can. You can really get a feel for a place that way. Best of luck in your decision.

 

[Michigan RN]

Thanks for all the good info - we put our deposit down yesterday for 200 pts at BWV. My brother owns at BCV so we thought the location would be the best. We stayed at OKW before and liked it, but felt like it would have been nicer to walk to things. I'm really excited about the purchase, we've been thinking about it for a few years - we have stayed at Disney several times - should have done it a long time ago!!

 

[Kick it up a notch!]

Well I bought at both. My wife likes the Boardwalk, I like OKW. We alternate each year so we can have longer stays and bring people if we want. I like BWV too, but the rooms are larger and laid out better at OKW.

I think you should stay at both before you buy, you should stay in a room the size you want to buy your points for and then add about 25%. So if you think you need 200 points, buy 250. You will want more points and you will appreciate having the extra points if you wanted a longer trip or an extra trip on occaision.

They are different and you will know which one you want after you stay there.

 

[robinb]

Thanks for all the good info - we put our deposit down yesterday for 200 pts at BWV. My brother owns at BCV so we thought the location would be the best.

Congratulations! I think you made the right choice for your family. I happen to own at both OKW and BWV. I bought BWV especially for NYE, since we like to walk back from Epcot on NYE night. We use our OKW points for Grand Villas with friends . Both resorts are used primarily in the 11 month window.