SSR or AKV?

[NemoMOm]

I know this has been asked before but I just wanted to other's thoughts on this. DH and I own 150 pts. at SSR. Now we love SSR and I understand that they are having an add on promo right now. However, we are thinking of AKV. We think that it is kind of far from some of the parks (namely MK) and it is more $$ to add on AKV pts. BUT, we have a 2 yr old and are praying for more. DS LOVES the animals so we really think that when they are really young staying at AKV.

So, we are really torn about where to add on. You guys always have some good thoughts so I thought I would ask.

Thanks!

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I don't see where you can go wrong adding at AKV. With banking and borrowing you can plan to use both resorts for some really great trips.

I also think it's a myth that AKV is so far from everthing. I doubt it's any farther from MK than the other DVC's (except VWL obviously).
It is true that the transportation is not as convienent, as a bus is the only option to get anywhere unless you have a car.

The minimal extra cost spread over 50 years would not come into play for me, especially if I thought my kids wanted the animals.

Just my opinion, but I think owning at different resorts is the way to go!

MG

 

[NemoMOm]

Thanks MG! It is nice to hear what others think when you can not make up your mind!

 

[Tdisney]

Is AKV an add on to the resort or did they convert room they had?

 

[byoung]

We will stay there but not buying now.

 

[ADP]

I would go with AKV for 3 main reasons.....

1. It will give you points at another home resort. Having the 11 month window will help you book at AKV during busy times of the year.

2. The artists rendering of AKV look awesome!!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1386436
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1379462

3. This is more speculative on my part, but I honestly believe the western edge of Walt Disney World will be more developed over time. AKL/AKV may seem far away from other attrations now, but in 5 or 10 years it will be close to new Disney developments (maybe even another theme or water park).

Good luck with your decision!!

 

[drakethib]

Just a matter of choice.

I really don't think I will be spending any time at AKV, but others can't wait.

 

[Dean]

Given that one can easily reserve SSR with any points essentially any time and any unit other than possibly a 3 BR, it seems an easy choice to me. I am confident that the long term value of AKV will far out strip the current pricing difference.

 

[tjkraz]

If you're going to add-on, I think it's very wise to acquire an additional home resort.

I would question your stated motivation in this sitaution, though. If you buy AKV points, you're potentially making a 50-year commitment to THAT resort. I think it's a mistake to buy points there solely because your 2yo son likes animals.

I'd suggest making a decision based upon what is best for you and your spouse. If you have a strong dislike for the style of the resort, location, or any other feature, then I think it would be foolish to make such a long-term commitment. Regardless of where you own you will have plenty of opportunities to book at AKV while the kids are still young. IMO, you should think more about where YOU would be happy staying 10 or 20 years from now. If the answer is AKV, so be it.

 

[BroganMc]

I also think it's a myth that AKV is so far from everthing. I doubt it's any farther from MK than the other DVC's (except VWL obviously).

It's not a myth. You add another 4-5 minutes drive time to your journey from AKL compared to any of the other DVCs, including SSR and OKW. One advantage is that you have direct busses, so it may end up being quicker than from BCV/BWV area though the drive time is more.

OP, what exactly are you trying to achieve with your add-on? Longer stays, bigger accommodations, special access to certain features?

AKV ownership is necessary if you want to reserve Concierge rooms or Grand Villas. Perhaps for Value and Standard rooms as well. But points there can't be used at to enhance your SSR trips until 7 months. Since the resort is planned to be large enough and mostly Savannah view, I doubt you'll need to own there to stay once '09 roles around.

Probably the best use I've seen of add-on points not at your home resort was specifically for a set stay at that resort. Like buying enough points for 3 days a year in 1 bedroom at AKV, or 6 days every other year. Some folks have equal numbers of points at home resorts and do the every other year technique to switch resorts.

My strategy has been to add-on at SSR so I could afford longer stays and larger accommodations. Any other resort add-ons (I'm saving for a CRV) will be for an annual 3-4 day stay as an adjunct to my trips. I passed on AKV because I figured I would be able to get a Savannah room eventually, and frankly it's just a tad too remote for me. Usually my AKL visit day is my AK day, once per two week trip.

 

[BroganMc]

Is AKV an add on to the resort or did they convert room they had?

Both. 130-some rooms are being converted in the existing Lodge now. They'll be the ones owners can book the first 18 months. All the Concierge rooms and we think most if not all the Value rooms.

In 2009, they're scheduled to open a separate AKV building that will house another 300-some rooms. That's when many of us presume availability will open up more to general membership.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

It's not a myth. You add another 4-5 minutes drive time to your journey from AKL compared to any of the other DVCs, including SSR and OKW.

Can you tell me how you derived this info?
We have never actually timed it, but we have driven this numerous times and never thought of it as lengthy. On the other hand, driving from the Downtown area to VWL seems like it takes forever.

Either way, in my opinion, to describe an extra 4 minutes as "far" is not an accurate derscriptor.

MG

 

[JimC]

It's not a myth. You add another 4-5 minutes drive time to your journey from AKL compared to any of the other DVCs, including SSR and OKW. ....

Never measured it nor researched it on MapQuest, but even if accurate is it meaningful? I'm not sure if 4-5 minutes difference in my daily commute when I lived in PA would have been important, let alone on a vacation. Any one of the following random events affects your day more than that -- miss a bus or a monorail or a boat; catch the traffic signal timing wrong; drive up to the valet when several cars arrive to check-in; walk in to a ride right after a flag group. I think we get too deep into the analysis sometimes (myself included) and miss the larger picture. Just my 2 cents.

For us adding not adding on at SSR was merely a decision based upon not needing additional points or years of membership. Adding on at AKV was driven by our love of AKL -- it being possibly the best executed immersive theme on property (althought WL and Poly rank up there as well). So even though we still do not need the extra points or the extra years we wanted
the 11 month booking advantage there.

 

[starbox]

I think that the location of AKV and transportation is a big potential issue. It remains to be seen what will happen with the busses. IF they dedicate busses to the villas, I think the remoteness of the location (coupled with the fact that the only park it is near closes in the early evening - so park/resort/DTD-hopping will be a very real need for most people taking any sort of extended vacation) won't be an issue. If, however, the villas share busses with AKL - that's a potential nightmare for people who rely on Disney transportation. Personally, we won't add-on until the villas start to open and we can see what the reality of the situation is, and if the resort works for us.

 

[DVC Grammy]

IMO, the idea of having more than one home resort is appealing. It's a guarantee of different vacation experiences with the extra booking window.
I like all the DVC resorts, but at this time, I'd choose AKV because of it's longer contract and it's very unique theme. It seems to be almost another "park" by itself, with the feeling of being within a zoo. (I know, it's "NATAZOO" ). Also IMO, as long as there are those animals to see, AKV will become a destination in itself, which will add to its desirability.

 

[pilferk]

I'd choose AKV, and here's why:

1) SSR is larger and seems to have more units available at the 7 month window than any other resort, so even if you needed to use the AKV points for an SSR stay, you could. The reverse MAY not be true for AKV...we'll have to see.

2) AKV has a slightly longer contract length (2057 vs 2054).

3) Having the 11 month booking priority at more than one resort would be a larger benefit than just having more points at SSR.

4) You say you're looking to grow your family. I'm not sure how "large" you're looking to grow, but a nice benefit of AKV is that 1 BR sleep 5 (as opposed to 4 at SSR) and 2 BR sleep 9 (as opposed to 8 at SSR). The extra size might be worthy of consideration. It was for us.

 

[tjkraz]

As far as transportation goes, I don't know how distances between AKL and the theme parks compares, but the one destination that really concerns me is Downtown Disney. We're big fans of DTD, usually visiting it at least once per day. We'll go there to shop or browse in the evenings after the parks have closed or so that the kids can hang-out at the LEGO store or even for a meal. We recently split a trip betwen AKL and OKW. Moving from AKL to OKW was like relocating from an off-site resort to on-site in terms of access to DTD.

OKW, SSR, BWV and BCV are all within fairly close proximity to one another. We've stayed at all 4 and compared to our days at AKL, the lodge DID feel as if it was out in the middle of nowhere.

 

[Miz Diz]

Animal Kingdom is my favorite resort for the theme - not location. We also own at SSR and decided to add on at AKV - but a small add on - just enough to go once every other year.

 

[Anthony1971]

I just did/doing an add on at SSR
I did like the idea of AKV and said I would buy in last year......
When I thought about why I was buying more points and the times I stay SSR was right.
I never book at the 11 month window so that did not matter I also never had a problem getting a room and the size (no GV) I wanted at any time -- not to say the resort I wanted but I do not care where I stay as I like all the resorts.
Lastly and most important I was only adding on 25 points which now turned into 50.....
Owning 50 points at another resort just was to much work between banking and borrowing and to actualy be able to stay there it would be almost 2009 by the time have I would have enough points to stay a week... Besides the reported problems of MS using the AKV points when boking other stays....
This is my reason and I am not disappointed where ever I stay unless they converted the Poly

 

[NemoMOm]

Wow, thanks everyone for the responses. I think we have decided on AKV.

1. Our children will love it. We only have DS but hopefully we will have more in the upcoming yrs which =many yrs at AKV.

2. 2nd HR. (Thanks eeryone for pointing that out)

3. We could always use our AKV pts. at SSR since it is so large and we LOVE SSR.

4. The extra yrs. We were just there and DH remarked how cool it was that as DVC owners we could come back to WDW alone when the last one goes off to college. WDW will take away some of the pain of having an empty nest. (or so we tell ourselves)

Thank you everyone. Next is to determine how many pts.