The Great Resort Debate

[shantay1008]

I'm new to the boards, but I've noticed that there always seem to be several threads at any given time about which resort is the best. I've been reading a lot about VWL and wondering why, given so many people's affection for the place, I wasn't getting more fired up to stay there. But then, I thought, glancing out my window, that maybe it's because it's too much like home. We're in rural Wisconsin, and we're surrounded by trees. So, instead, what gets me all excited, vacation-wise, is a view of a lake or the lights of the Boardwalk or Downtown Disney.

Does anyone else find that they want to experience a "home" different from your actual home? Or do you like to stick with what you're familiar with?

 

[aDVCwannabe]

we look to travel someplace that is 180 degrees opposite where home really is. we live in a summer resort area and have had it with putting up with tourists and the traffic and slowdowns that they bring every day. we bought our first vacation home in the pine trees and lakes region of maine - where life is lived the way it was meant to be! and we bought dvc so that we can stay for a while every february to get away from the frozen wasteland we live in each winter. we feel like we are getting the best that all of our little workds have to offer.

 

[Wendy1953]

It's all up to the time of year for us......VWL in the heat of the summer.....cool mountain air(or you magically dream it's cool).....BCV in the middle of the winter (it's beautiful with sun, sand and beach makes you feel like it's summer time!)....SSR is anytime of the year (horse racing pretty much goes year round ...NY is home to Belmont, Saratoga, Aqueduct...so SSR is like being at home also)....OKW summertime again!....Boardwalk-like taking a walk along Coney Island...no matter what time of year it is...Coney Island has lots of memories....vacationed in the Catskills...so much like VWL! I guess I'm lucky....I live in a state and area where all of these amenities are part of home....so going to any of the DVC resorts is definitely my home away from home!!!!!

 

[bsusanmb]

Come to think of it, I guess you're right, OP. Spent all of my summer vacations at the NJ shore on the boardwalk when I was a kid. Been there, done that. DH and I love the WL and the VWL. Just the lobby, the logs, the music, the pines, everything about it is pleasureable.

 

[wingkng]

I was thinking of the same thing. I just became a DVC member this weekend and bought SSR. I lived in Long Island for 5 years, and I can see that many of the DVC resorts have a flavor very much like the real thing (i.e. the Coney Island Boardwalk, Saratoga Springs,NY; Cape May, NJ; the Poconos in PA). The only place I have never experienced personally is going to a national park lodge like the one in Yosemite. I think that ultimately, the DVC vision is to give us that "Disneyfied" version of the real thing--how those places were or might have been many years ago. In a sense, going to the DVC resort is a step back in time, to a safer, simpler, and more idealized place and time. In one word, nostalgia.

So, for me, even though I have personally been to Saratoga Springs, I don't mind going to SSR, to experience the Disney version.

 

[RweTHEREyet]

Welcome Wingkng, we are true neighbors, at SSR and Raleigh as well.

Just wanted to say welcome to the DVC community.

 

[zillow]

Well, yes, I'm looking out at a lot of pine trees myself but unfortunately, my house looks nothing like the Wilderness Lodge. I do think that all the trees makes it not seem quite so hot at the WL which is nice when it really is hot. I'm anti-suntan so I'm a little afraid at the open sky which seems to surround BCV and Boardwalk. It does seem though that some people don't feel as though they're in Florida at the VWL - to me, that's a good thing and I just love that Adirondack(sp?) style. Unfortunately our VWL points are up for sale . It's still my favorite place though.

 

[shantay1008]

I'm sorry to hear that your points are for sale...I hope you will still get to have some great vacations at VWL in the future.

Don't get me wrong...I thought the WL was wonderful when we stopped in for dinner and to walk around, gosh, 7 years ago already now when our oldest DS was just a baby. It really was a wonderful "Disneyfied" version of the parks my family had visited when we did the big National Parks tour when I was 14. It brought back great memories from that trip!

If I could take two months, with unlimited funds and points, and just visit all the DVC properties, I'd think I'd died and gone to heaven...they're all so creative and unique. But when I have to choose just one or two places to visit in a week or so, I seem drawn to the beach scene. Plus, it's snowing buckets here right now, so I'm sure that influences our decision-making!

 

[Muushka]

Snip.....
Does anyone else find that they want to experience a "home" different from your actual home? Or do you like to stick with what you're familiar with?

Pphhheeewww. At first I thought this was going to be one of 'those' threads!
Happily,it is not .

So, to answer your question, we lived in S FL when we first started visiting WDW. We loved WL because it did not look anything like FL. We subsequently moved to NC, but we still had that aversion to FL decor and still loved WL. So when it came time to buy DVC there was no way we would buy at OKW and we didn't care for BWV atmosphere, so VWL was the logical choice for us. We are staying at BWV in 3 months and I am sure we will like it very much. We have stayed at OKW, and like it there also. We stayed at BCV this past Dec and really liked it there. But VWL is our true love.

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

Does anyone else find that they want to experience a "home" different from your actual home? Or do you like to stick with what you're familiar with?

We stick to what we like the most. We own a summer home on the coast of Maine but also own at the BCV and BWV too. We love the ocean and everything nautical. To be at one of those resorts in the winter makes us think of our summers at "the beach".

HBC

 

[LisaS]

My house is surrounded by lots and lots of pine trees so I had that same issue with staying at VWL -- it's too much like home with all those pine trees! But we decided to give it a try anyway. We just returned from our first stay there and we will definitely be going back because we learned that VWL is much more than a resort surrounded by pine trees.

Back in 2002 DH and I spent 2 weeks at Waterton Lakes (in Canada), Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks. We stayed at two beautiful old lodges on that trip and toured 2 or 3 more and just loved every one of them. Staying at VWL brought back a lot of wonderful memories of that trip. The theming throughout WL/VWL is very well done right down to the background music and flickering lantern lights along the walkways.

So, yes, I'm definitely drawn to the resorts that look different from my home and that caused me to be less enthusiastic about VWL than say BCV or BWV or OKW. But now that we've stayed there, we've been completely won over by the lodge feeling of the place and are considering adding on points there. So I learned something this trip: don't judge a resort by its trees!

 

[iankh]

I think that for us we definitely are attracted to an opposite. I grew up 1 block from the Brighton Beach/Coney Island boardwalk. A boardwalk doesn't hold that much attraction for me (although the location of BWV does).

Growing up next to a sand beach, ironically I hate sand and beaches.

I live in Chicago with the El running right behind my house (literally) so the hustle and bustle of DTD doesn't appeal.

Maybe that's why I fell in love WL and then naturally with VWL.

 

[KelNottAt]

We chose our BWV home (and the BC/YC area) because it reminds us of what Ocean City, Maryland used to be...the way it was when I was growing up and spent the summers with my grandparents. Now OCMD is so over crowded it has completely lost its charm.

When I come to WDW I get a little taste of some favorite childhood memories. I don't love it cuz it's someplace different, I love it cuz it's (nearly) the same.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I'm new to the boards, but I've noticed that there always seem to be several threads at any given time about which resort is the best. I've been reading a lot about VWL and wondering why, given so many people's affection for the place, I wasn't getting more fired up to stay there. But then, I thought, glancing out my window, that maybe it's because it's too much like home. We're in rural Wisconsin, and we're surrounded by trees. So, instead, what gets me all excited, vacation-wise, is a view of a lake or the lights of the Boardwalk or Downtown Disney.

Does anyone else find that they want to experience a "home" different from your actual home? Or do you like to stick with what you're familiar with?

ABSOLUTELY! As you will notice from my signature, I live in "Wilderness Lodge", so when I go to Florida, I want it to feel like I am in Florida, and that's why I love OKW so much. I want palm trees, pastels, and vacation home, so that's why OKW is my favorite. By the way, I think VWL is a lovely place, albeit a bit dark. I go to WL every trip to visit Artist point and view the lobby.

 

[bobbiwoz]

It's the National Park Lodge look that wins me over. As soon as the WL was built, I knew it was THE place for me to stay. DH doesn't have the memories of NPs that I do, but he seems fine with the choice. A Colorado Rockies theme would suit him just fine.

I've sat on a rocking chair, looking at the lake and I've seen a Bald Eagle flying, heck, it made me want to sing John Denver's "I am an Eagle." Since there's a line "I live in high country" you can tell my imagination does soar when I'm at VWL!

Bobbi

 

[jade1]

I'm new to the boards, but I've noticed that there always seem to be several threads at any given time about which resort is the best. I've been reading a lot about VWL and wondering why, given so many people's affection for the place, I wasn't getting more fired up to stay there. But then, I thought, glancing out my window, that maybe it's because it's too much like home. We're in rural Wisconsin, and we're surrounded by trees. So, instead, what gets me all excited, vacation-wise, is a view of a lake or the lights of the Boardwalk or Downtown Disney.

Does anyone else find that they want to experience a "home" different from your actual home? Or do you like to stick with what you're familiar with?

We travel to central Fl because of WDW. Which ever resort gets us closest to the parks is our favorite (hate relying on buses for every park). Second is ammenites, valet parking, bell services, lots of food at all hours and great pools (it is Fl). 3rd is themeing (lets face it they are all great). Last is size of accomodations (can always get more rooms or larger rooms).

 

[Simba's Mom]

One of the reasons I love BCV is because it reminds me of where I used to live, near Cape Cod, and I (more than a little) miss the area. Yet, when I did live in that area, I toured Y&B and was totally not interested in ever staying there. I still consider myself a Massachusetts person at heart.
The main reason I had no desire to ever stay at Coronado Springs is that it reminds me so much of my present home area. But who knows-maybe someday, when I move out of South Texas/North Mexico, maybe I will want to stay there. Nah-I'll still love BCV!

 

[shantay1008]

I was wondering how the Fort Wilderness cabins compare to the VWL. Have any of you ever stayed at one of those? Is it the same sort of experience, or do the cabins feel more like you're (sort of) camping? More rustic, maybe?

 

[bobbiwoz]

We stayed in Ft. Wilderness cabins in the 80's and 90's with our two DS's and we loved them. DH however wasn't as thrilled about being there, because of the busses, it does take a long time to get somewhere if you are walking, or if you use the internal busses. I suppose if you rent a golf cart, it wouldn't be too bad.

There is a full kitchen, with dishwasher, and there is mousekeeping every day. In the living room there is a murphy bed and DH and I used it and our sons slept in the bedroom in the back. I remember bunk beds and maybe another twin bed in that room, but I could be wrong. There is only one bathroom.

Each has a deck with a grill, and it was definitely like camping for us, my parents had a trailer for summer use in Lake Laurie outside of Wildwood, and that's the kind of camping we did. At Ft. Wilderness, you can easily get to the campfire program that is held every night, there is a sing along, and a Disney movie. There are s'more kits to buy if you want.

Now our family has agreed to try VWL with us, we expect to rent bikes and "visit" our old "most favorite place in the World"!

Bobbi