The I Love BWV (yes, Hallways and Clown Pool too!) Thread

[zackiedawg]

I'm definitely happy to have the corn dog stand - as simple as it seems - just hope it stays open until at least 11pm, and opens before lunchtime. Cake Bake I'm a little more dubious on - just not sure it will be a big addition for dinners/foood, and may not be a late-night spot coming back from the parks - It may be a good bakery and even have decent food, I just wonder if it will be open past 9-10pm. Big question will be what becomes of the Big River spot - if they could cram in some kind of bar/pub/quick serve joint (burgers, salads, sandwiches, bowls, hot subs, etc) that runs from breakfast through 11pm, that would address a very big hole.

 

[tom1944]

While I said that there were good food options nearby, I don't disagree with this at all. I've been staying at BW for many, many years. The area is a shell of itself in a number of ways, however, I'm hoping it will improve going forward.

Could the previous Boardwalk crowd now be going to Disney Springs instead?

 

[patty57]

Could the previous Boardwalk crowd now be going to Disney Springs instead?

Maybe? Honestly, I don't know. ESPN Club used to draw a crowd, the brew pub used to be pretty busy, so that's two closed restaurants that haven't been replaced yet. The entertainment has changed after covid. There are definitely less reasons to visit the Boardwalk if you aren't staying there. I still love the area, and will be there beginning in three days, but it isn't what it used to be. I stay there mostly for access to Epcot.

 

[nekonekoneko]

Cake Bake I'm a little more dubious on - just not sure it will be a big addition for dinners/foood, and may not be a late-night spot coming back from the parks - It may be a good bakery and even have decent food, I just wonder if it will be open past 9-10pm

I've been to The Cake Bake Shop in Indianapolis. It's quite good. The food I'd say is better than Cheesecake Factory. It's not going to win any Michelin Stars, but it's tasty. I do like their cakes. But it's not suited for a late-night "burger and beer" type place at all.

 

[CarolynFH]

Could the previous Boardwalk crowd now be going to Disney Springs instead?

That’s quite possible, and given the parking difficulties in the BW lot, as a BWV owner who usually has a car, I’m happy to see it. The BoardWalk was originally promoted as a destination, but Disney has moved away from that in recent years.

 

[ParrotBill]

At BWV for a week. Construction update: on the Villas side the farthest wing (near tennis courts) is closed off on all floors, windows blocked out, lifts outside. That is the only area with work. I am in a 1BR floor 2 overlooking the quiet pool. My fridge is so new I had to take tape off the drawers.

On the Inn side the rooms overlooking the carport are scaffolded and some are under construction while others look done and occupied.

 

[CarolynFH]

At BWV for a week. Construction update: on the Villas side the farthest wing (near tennis courts) is closed off on all floors, windows blocked out, lifts outside. That is the only area with work. I am in a 1BR floor 2 overlooking the quiet pool. My fridge is so new I had to take tape off the drawers.

On the Inn side the rooms overlooking the carport are scaffolded and some are under construction while others look done and occupied.

Are they still working on the exterior of the Crest o’ the Wave section or other exterior sections along the Boardwalk itself?

 

[disneylover81]

We just got back last night from our first stay at BWV. I didn't give DH any info about it before we arrived. He lets me do all of the vacation planning. The first thing he said was "these hallways are way too long". I knew from reading all the posts that they could be long depending on your room location. We were in room 5019 and it was quite a ways from the elevator. The room was nice, the view wasn't great. It was basically a tree right in our face so we didn't spend any time out there. The mousekeeping people were quite worrisome. One day, we went to our room to take a nap and they kept beating on the door. DH yelled for them to come back later. Then a few minutes later, they were calling on the phone. He told them we were sleeping and to come back at 5:30. Then the very next morning, we were at the park and they were calling my cell phone wanting to know if they could come do a room inspection. I told her they were just there the previous night, but to go ahead. We like to leave the room occupied sign on the door for our entire visit and not be bothered with anyone coming in and out of our room. If we need towels, we call and ask for them. This just felt like a whole extra level of intrusion on their part. Other than that, everything was great. We liked the pool area, the slide was fun, we didn't eat any of the food there. We have now stayed at BC and BWV this past year, and we have decided we are just MK resort people. The distance to Epcot is great from these resorts though, especially for the Early Morning Hours. We went yesterday and arrived at 8:20 am. We rode both Remy & Frozen by 9:00 am so that was definitely a win. And also we enjoyed just walking over and scanning our MagicBands right before 1:00 pm so we could get in the VQ for Guardians. We did that twice. We had another one for yesterday, but unfortunately, they didn't call our group before we had to leave for the airport. It was also nice to just pop over to Epcot for the DVC Lounge if we wanted a drink and a snack. DH said he isn't opposed to staying here again, but only if we have a room near the elevator. lol.

 

[elgerber]

We just got back last night from our first stay at BWV. I didn't give DH any info about it before we arrived. He lets me do all of the vacation planning. The first thing he said was "these hallways are way too long". I knew from reading all the posts that they could be long depending on your room location. We were in room 5019 and it was quite a ways from the elevator. The room was nice, the view wasn't great. It was basically a tree right in our face so we didn't spend any time out there. The mousekeeping people were quite worrisome. One day, we went to our room to take a nap and they kept beating on the door. DH yelled for them to come back later. Then a few minutes later, they were calling on the phone. He told them we were sleeping and to come back at 5:30. Then the very next morning, we were at the park and they were calling my cell phone wanting to know if they could come do a room inspection. I told her they were just there the previous night, but to go ahead. We like to leave the room occupied sign on the door for our entire visit and not be bothered with anyone coming in and out of our room. If we need towels, we call and ask for them. This just felt like a whole extra level of intrusion on their part. Other than that, everything was great. We liked the pool area, the slide was fun, we didn't eat any of the food there. We have now stayed at BC and BWV this past year, and we have decided we are just MK resort people. The distance to Epcot is great from these resorts though, especially for the Early Morning Hours. We went yesterday and arrived at 8:20 am. We rode both Remy & Frozen by 9:00 am so that was definitely a win. And also we enjoyed just walking over and scanning our MagicBands right before 1:00 pm so we could get in the VQ for Guardians. We did that twice. We had another one for yesterday, but unfortunately, they didn't call our group before we had to leave for the airport. It was also nice to just pop over to Epcot for the DVC Lounge if we wanted a drink and a snack. DH said he isn't opposed to staying here again, but only if we have a room near the elevator. lol.

Housekeeping is required to enter every room every day. This is at all resorts. It started after the shooting in Las Vegas several years ago. Even with the occupied sign, they still have to enter.

 

[AstroBlasters]

So, our new BWV contract showed up on DVC today and my plan is to call MS tomorrow to load the points…. but the BW View 2BDs just disappeared for the weekend we wanted to start our trip in late March 2025 and now I guess we are going to have to PV/GV.

Any recommendations on which PV/GV 2BDs would be preferable for a family doing their first ever stay at Boardwalk as new owners?

I’m on touringplans.com but always open to other owners suggestions…..

 

[mrsap]

Some Construction Updates:

So I saw a current guest at BW post on FB that scaffolding on the building closest to the conference center has started to be removed from the exterior.

They also posted this picture below, showing construction that has just begun. It is located in the hallway that stretches from the elevators, walking past the gym and out to the pool, on the lower level. They were not sure what was being worked on. Someone said painting of the gym, another said they saw wallpaper replacement.

 

[BlueGreen5]

So, our new BWV contract showed up on DVC today and my plan is to call MS tomorrow to load the points…. but the BW View 2BDs just disappeared for the weekend we wanted to start our trip in late March 2025 and now I guess we are going to have to PV/GV.

Any recommendations on which PV/GV 2BDs would be preferable for a family doing their first ever stay at Boardwalk as new owners?

I’m on touringplans.com but always open to other owners suggestions…..

Worth noting that there's no such thing as a true 2BR at BWV. Only LOs.

That site you reference only does half the work, IMO. The issue with BWV on the PV/GV side is that the balcony situation varies GREATLY. Some rooms will have a full balcony that stretches across the bedroom and living room (think VGF style), while others will only have one small balcony off the BR and nothing off the living room (think BLT style). The studios are all going to be the same, so, for a LO, you're really just looking for the 1BRs that you want. And that site isn't going to give you that level of detail in this respect. The best I have been able to do over the years (other than just making vague requests) is use something like Google Maps to figure out which rooms likely have our preferred balcony style.

You will love BWV though. The proximity and points chart is unmatched anywhere else and, now with the refurb, it's definitely the best bang-for-your-point resort at WDW (the owners in this group probably hate that I'm advertising this fact, haha!)

 

[CarolynFH]

Any recommendations on which PV/GV 2BDs would be preferable for a family doing their first ever stay at Boardwalk as new owners?

When we have P/G view booked, I ask for a view of the quiet pool, because the afternoon activities at the Luna Park pool can be exceedingly loud and completely ruin a nice afternoon nap. If napping is not an issue for your family and you don't mind that noise, you can request a view of the Luna Park pool.

Unfortunately, there are no 2BR villas with the lovely Village Green view. That's mostly dedicated studios, with a single dedicated 1BR on each floor.

 

[AstroBlasters]

When we have P/G view booked, I ask for a view of the quiet pool, because the afternoon activities at the Luna Park pool can be exceedingly loud and completely ruin a nice afternoon nap. If napping is not an issue for your family and you don't mind that noise, you can request a view of the Luna Park pool.

Unfortunately, there are no 2BR villas with the lovely Village Green view. That's mostly dedicated studios, with a single dedicated 1BR on each floor.

We are definitely go back to the room during the afternoon people.

 

[ShaneDJ]

You will love BWV though. The proximity and points chart is unmatched anywhere else and, now with the refurb, it's definitely the best bang-for-your-point resort at WDW (the owners in this group probably hate that I'm advertising this fact, haha!)

Shhhh! Don't tell anyone!

 

[Sunshine11]

Worth noting that there's no such thing as a true 2BR at BWV. Only LOs.

That site you reference only does half the work, IMO. The issue with BWV on the PV/GV side is that the balcony situation varies GREATLY. Some rooms will have a full balcony that stretches across the bedroom and living room (think VGF style), while others will only have one small balcony off the BR and nothing off the living room (think BLT style). The studios are all going to be the same, so, for a LO, you're really just looking for the 1BRs that you want. And that site isn't going to give you that level of detail in this respect. The best I have been able to do over the years (other than just making vague requests) is use something like Google Maps to figure out which rooms likely have our preferred balcony style.

You will love BWV though. The proximity and points chart is unmatched anywhere else and, now with the refurb, it's definitely the best bang-for-your-point resort at WDW (the owners in this group probably hate that I'm advertising this fact, haha!)

Have a one-bedroom P/G view for November and it's our first stay in BWV, as we have only stayed in the Inn side in prior trips. Looking for suggestions for rooms for close to elevator (have my elderly mom with me) as well as the full balcony as that is what my mom enjoys most! If I request "full balcony" would that not do it? Anyone have any one-bedroom room numbers they would suggest I request that are not the furthest from the elevatory. I would love the village green area but know there is like one one-bedroom per floor. Any help is appreciated!

 

[BlueGreen5]

Have a one-bedroom P/G view for November and it's our first stay in BWV, as we have only stayed in the Inn side in prior trips. Looking for suggestions for rooms for close to elevator (have my elderly mom with me) as well as the full balcony as that is what my mom enjoys most! If I request "full balcony" would that not do it? Anyone have any one-bedroom room numbers they would suggest I request that are not the furthest from the elevatory. I would love the village green area but know there is like one one-bedroom per floor. Any help is appreciated!

For "close to elevator" there are free sites - one of them mentioned by @AstroBlasters above - that give you floor plans with room numbers. For a small fee, some of these sites - like the one mentioned by @AstroBlasters above - will even put in the request for you. But, making a "close to elevator" request - without specifics - is more likely to result in a preferable room than requesting "Room 2074," without context.

I have had success making a somewhat vague request like "full balcony" or "close to elevator." But, I did it in-person after we got our room assignment. The CM was able to let me know which rooms were available with the balcony layout we wanted and gladly moved us to one of them. Note that some "full balconies" are covered by an awning, while others are not. Some are enclosed (meaning they are surrounded by a half-wall and roof, rather than a rail), while others have see-through railing. Which brings me back to my original point: it feels like no two rooms at BWV are the same! You'll want to be as descriptive as possible about what you want. In my experience, they can't always fulfill requests, but they do try to accommodate them as much as possible.

In our case, I requested a second floor room through one of "those sites" because we wanted an enclosed balcony for a couple of reasons (which, evidently, is not a popular choice, so we were in luck!) -- turns out they thought they were giving us a "better" room by putting us on the third floor in a room with a full-length balcony, a nice view, and nothing overhead. The CM told me I should have just let them know from the beginning that I really wanted a room with an enclosed balcony, not necessarily a room on the second floor.

Good luck! November will be here before you know it!

 

[disneymomof2boyz]

Any news as to what they're planning on adding in place of the Big River Grille & Brewing?
I would love a quick service dining at that location, but realistically I don't think they have the space for that.

 

[CarolynFH]

Any news as to what they're planning on adding in place of the Big River Grille & Brewing?
I would love a quick service dining at that location, but realistically I don't think they have the space for that.

My thoughts are that the closure came as somewhat of a surprise, given that it was the parent company that declared bankruptcy and closed it, rather than Disney closing it or not renewing the lease, etc. So they may still be figuring out what their options are. I too hope they manage to improve the QS options on the Boardwalk, especially with indoor seating!

 

[BlueGreen5]

but realistically I don't think they have the space for that.

Really? We never went into Big River Grille & Brewing, but it seemed pretty big. There are some small QS options -- Roaring Fork at WL comes to mind. Is it really not even that big?

A QS option would be amazing! It would eliminate one of the very very few drawbacks to staying at BWV.