VWL Groupies & Lovers Thread (Special Collectors Edition 2.5) updated 2 February 2025

[Flossbolna]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANNY!!!!​

 

[sleepydog25]

HOPE YOU HAVE A GRAND BIRTHDAY, GRANNY!!!!!

 

[sleepydog25]

For the couple of people that asked here are a few pictures I had of different MB's I've done for myself and family in the past 2-3 years:

I'll see if I can get Luv to post pics of her past blinged-out bands. They looked really good!

 

[ArielSRL]

For the couple of people that asked here are a few pictures I had of different MB's I've done for myself and family in the past 2-3 years:

For DH - the Boston sports fan:

View attachment 231102

Other Misc friends and family bands:

View attachment 231103

Our Christmas season bands from the last year of Osborne lights - had to reuse that one again this year in memory:

View attachment 231104


View attachment 231105

Last Years F&G with my DSis (Twins fan) and niece who wanted a classic Mickey theme:

View attachment 231106

Those are great! I am so non-crafty so I just buy the decals.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Those are great! I am so non-crafty so I just buy the decals.

Thanks Renee!

 

[catfan98]

Hi! I stumbled upon this thread as I was researching everything Wilderness Lodge. We just returned from a fabulous Disney vacation! We stayed, for the first time, on rented points at BCV. We were wowed, loved BC and BCV, it's a very pretty resort especially at night, we just couldn't imagine anywhere better...until we had dinner at WL. We just fell in love with the peaceful, rustic, beautiful place, my husband especially. We have been discussing buying DVC and after our stay, I think we have narrowed it down to BWV and WL(BR), but we are leaning more towards WL(BR). We absolutely loved BCV, and my son loved SAB, but he is almost 14 and I feel that SAB will eventually lose it's appeal for him. And our daughter is almost 21, so with the kids getting older and doing their own thing, it will be less family trips and more just me and my husband trips until grandkids come along (several years down the road). We would definitely do resort only trips, with maybe just a day or 2 at the parks when it's just me and him. With those thoughts, I feel like we should pick the resort that best suits for me and him. And while BCV was great, the cost (even resale) is a bit high. We did like that we could access Epcot easily from BCV, and that is why we are looking at BWV...but the hallways seem so long, the clown slide - nuff said, and I feel we would tire of the hustle and bustle of the area. We really liked how WL was so peaceful, and the new bar/grille out by the lake is gorgeous. And it is a boat ride away from MK! I would love to hear your thoughts on why WL(BR) is a great choice to buy at. We aren't hurrying into buying DVC, we want to take our time, study the resorts, and make the right decision for us. We are planning a trip next year to look at the resorts more, too. Thanks!

 

[Flossbolna]

@catfan98! BWV and VWL (BRV now) are my two home resorts, both bought via resale. I love both of them for exactly the reasons you mentioned and think that they complement each other very well. However, I have noticed that VWL has become the resort that I am more wanting to return to. For me it has much more of a resort feel. I love the ability to walk over to Fort Wilderness through the woods. So, I have become more protective of my VWL points and am trying more to keep those together for stays at my home resort. My BWV points are the ones that I find it easier to use for other resorts as well.

Depending on how many points you think you want, for me having two home resorts (many have even more) works quite well. With banking and borrowing, it is easy to have more points one year at one resort and then the next year at your other resort. For example in 2016 we used our 2016 VWL and our 2017 VWL points for a lovely long Christmas stay at VWL. I banked our 2016 BWV points into the 2017 use year and was able to book a long stay at BWV for October 2017.

 

[catfan98]

@catfan98! BWV and VWL (BRV now) are my two home resorts, both bought via resale. I love both of them for exactly the reasons you mentioned and think that they complement each other very well. However, I have noticed that VWL has become the resort that I am more wanting to return to. For me it has much more of a resort feel. I love the ability to walk over to Fort Wilderness through the woods. So, I have become more protective of my VWL points and am trying more to keep those together for stays at my home resort. My BWV points are the ones that I find it easier to use for other resorts as well.

Depending on how many points you think you want, for me having two home resorts (many have even more) works quite well. With banking and borrowing, it is easy to have more points one year at one resort and then the next year at your other resort. For example in 2016 we used our 2016 VWL and our 2017 VWL points for a lovely long Christmas stay at VWL. I banked our 2016 BWV points into the 2017 use year and was able to book a long stay at BWV for October 2017.

Thank you!! I hadn't thought about 2 different resort contracts! We may purchase one and then another later. We want enough points that we can take a couple of smaller vacations each year, but we also want to be able to rent a 2br villa if needed, for when the kids go, or if extended family (MILs) want to go, or in the future if and when we do have grandchildren, we take the kids and grandkids. I'm not even sure how many points we should buy. We were thinking a larger contract, but with the bank and borrow option, I don't know. We are getting to where we really like the relaxing vacations so VWL(BRV) just seems so perfect for that!

 

[horselover]

Thanks Julie! I am looking forward to seeing yours! My artistic drawing is really 'nil and painting with nail polish - well DH's New England band was an early try and encouraged me to not do that again! The flowers - really super easy - mostly dots. I really like just doing up a shiny, sparkly band.

Here they are. I feel like I'm missing some though. I did go through them last year & tossed out a bunch of the original style bands. I wonder if I threw out a couple of the custom ones? FYI if you get to have too many they do fall off your MDE list eventually.

Seeing them all lined up I'm kind of impressed with myself. The purple band on the far left top was my first band. I've come a long way since then. The stripe ones took the longest. The nail polish sometimes does flake. I've heard the new gel nail polish doesn't do that but I haven't tried it yet. My favorites are my winter snowflake band (it matches the Frozen Micky Ears exactly & that was not planned! ) & the pale green bling flower one. I love the color on the newest lilac one but the bling turned out to be a little more than I was expecting. I got a lot of compliments on it last month though.




Ok now we need Luv's bands!

 

[ErinC]

Thank you!! I hadn't thought about 2 different resort contracts! We may purchase one and then another later. We want enough points that we can take a couple of smaller vacations each year, but we also want to be able to rent a 2br villa if needed, for when the kids go, or if extended family (MILs) want to go, or in the future if and when we do have grandchildren, we take the kids and grandkids. I'm not even sure how many points we should buy. We were thinking a larger contract, but with the bank and borrow option, I don't know. We are getting to where we really like the relaxing vacations so VWL(BRV) just seems so perfect for that!

We have 2 contracts both at WL. I sometimes wish we had bought the 2nd one at a different resort, just to have the additional 11 month advantage at another DVC. But as our life is right now, we don't plan too far in advance to where that is working out. We are just taking what we get at a few months out. Good luck with your decision. You can't go wrong with either choice in my opinion.

 

[Friendlyadvice2]

For the couple of people that asked here are a few pictures I had of different MB's I've done for myself and family in the past 2-3 years:

For DH - the Boston sports fan:

View attachment 231102

Other Misc friends and family bands:

View attachment 231103

Our Christmas season bands from the last year of Osborne lights - had to reuse that one again this year in memory:

View attachment 231104


View attachment 231105

Last Years F&G with my DSis (Twins fan) and niece who wanted a classic Mickey theme:

View attachment 231106

Here they are. I feel like I'm missing some though. I did go through them last year & tossed out a bunch of the original style bands. I wonder if I threw out a couple of the custom ones? FYI if you get to have too many they do fall off your MDE list eventually.

Seeing them all lined up I'm kind of impressed with myself. The purple band on the far left top was my first band. I've come a long way since then. The stripe ones took the longest. The nail polish sometimes does flake. I've heard the new gel nail polish doesn't do that but I haven't tried it yet. My favorites are my winter snowflake band (it matches the Frozen Micky Ears exactly & that was not planned! ) & the pale green bling flower one. I love the color on the newest lilac one but the bling turned out to be a little more than I was expecting. I got a lot of compliments on it last month though.

View attachment 231151


Ok now we need Luv's bands!

Very, very nice ladies!!! Those look awesome. I wish I had skills like that as it would be neat to have a Star Wars themed band for race weekend next week.

 

[ArielSRL]

Here they are. I feel like I'm missing some though. I did go through them last year & tossed out a bunch of the original style bands. I wonder if I threw out a couple of the custom ones? FYI if you get to have too many they do fall off your MDE list eventually.

Seeing them all lined up I'm kind of impressed with myself. The purple band on the far left top was my first band. I've come a long way since then. The stripe ones took the longest. The nail polish sometimes does flake. I've heard the new gel nail polish doesn't do that but I haven't tried it yet. My favorites are my winter snowflake band (it matches the Frozen Micky Ears exactly & that was not planned! ) & the pale green bling flower one. I love the color on the newest lilac one but the bling turned out to be a little more than I was expecting. I got a lot of compliments on it last month though.

View attachment 231151


Ok now we need Luv's bands!

You guys are all so creative! These are truly amazing!

 

[horselover]

And Kathy I'm now definitely envisioning a seahorse MB! Seafoam green maybe with a couple shells or maybe a few tiny pearls. The hunt is on for the right bling!

 

[Flossbolna]

Thank you!! I hadn't thought about 2 different resort contracts! We may purchase one and then another later. We want enough points that we can take a couple of smaller vacations each year, but we also want to be able to rent a 2br villa if needed, for when the kids go, or if extended family (MILs) want to go, or in the future if and when we do have grandchildren, we take the kids and grandkids. I'm not even sure how many points we should buy. We were thinking a larger contract, but with the bank and borrow option, I don't know. We are getting to where we really like the relaxing vacations so VWL(BRV) just seems so perfect for that!

You said that you are not in a hurry to buy, so take your time and research all the different options. It took me 18 months until I was finally ready to buy my first contract. The DVC boards here on the DIS were really great. Nearly every question gets asked regularly. So just read along, ask questions and you will get an understanding of what is best for you. Everyone has different wants and needs (and those might very well change over time), so what works for one person might not work for the other. For example home resort is more important if you can plan 11 months out. There are some great threads on the DVC Member Services board about availability and how it changes during the year, which room types go first (studios) and such. This will give you a better understanding of what you need. Also, look at point charts to understand how many points you want. I did exactly what you mentioned, I started out with 150 points and then added on another 150 points. The advantage of that is that if I decide that I have too many points, I can sell one of my contracts again and still keep the other. You just should make sure that all your contracts are in the same use year. And then there is the issue of both BWV and VWL expiring in 2042, so you only get another 25 years of use out of your contract. One of the other resorts could give you more years.

I don't want to confuse you, just point out that there are so many things to think about! But it is also a lot of fun to learn about the ins and outs of DVC ownership!

 

[catfan98]

You said that you are not in a hurry to buy, so take your time and research all the different options. It took me 18 months until I was finally ready to buy my first contract. The DVC boards here on the DIS were really great. Nearly every question gets asked regularly. So just read along, ask questions and you will get an understanding of what is best for you. Everyone has different wants and needs (and those might very well change over time), so what works for one person might not work for the other. For example home resort is more important if you can plan 11 months out. There are some great threads on the DVC Member Services board about availability and how it changes during the year, which room types go first (studios) and such. This will give you a better understanding of what you need. Also, look at point charts to understand how many points you want. I did exactly what you mentioned, I started out with 150 points and then added on another 150 points. The advantage of that is that if I decide that I have too many points, I can sell one of my contracts again and still keep the other. You just should make sure that all your contracts are in the same use year. And then there is the issue of both BWV and VWL expiring in 2042, so you only get another 25 years of use out of your contract. One of the other resorts could give you more years.

I don't want to confuse you, just point out that there are so many things to think about! But it is also a lot of fun to learn about the ins and outs of DVC ownership!

Thank you! Yes, we plan to take our time. We are going to go back next year and look at the resorts that intrigue us before we buy anything. I am also looking at AKV as the contract is longer and the resort intrigues me. It also seems perfect for a resort only stay. And the pool areas at both Kidani and Jambo look fabulous for adults and little ones. My husband isn't totally on board with that one yet, but he definitely wants to stay there and give it a try. He says if I like it, then he wants to look at it. And AK is his favorite park, so... We have lots to think about and research, that is for sure! I will definitely research the DVC forum as the DIS boards have always been so helpful!

 

[DenLo]

Happy Birthday Granny!

 

[DenLo]

Regarding the discussion of making MBs inactive when not using them and reactivating them before you leave for WDW. We had so many MBs that we finally took in all the ones that had started to look dirty no matter what I did to clean them. I am beginning to think sunscreen was the culprit. So I took in around a dozen MBs to the check in desk and asked them to remove them from our account. At the time they were the only ones that were inactive, so I knew when the CM took them off. That was around the same time they began letting us decline an MB for a trip. Disney says they will see that they get recycled, but I wanted them off our accounts too. It looks much cleaner IMO. Now we only order a MB for a new color, or the new style, to replace an old one. When we do split stays during a trip, we order only one set and decline the others for the other reservations.

 

[bianca]

Hi! I stumbled upon this thread as I was researching everything Wilderness Lodge. We just returned from a fabulous Disney vacation! We stayed, for the first time, on rented points at BCV. We were wowed, loved BC and BCV, it's a very pretty resort especially at night, we just couldn't imagine anywhere better...until we had dinner at WL. We just fell in love with the peaceful, rustic, beautiful place, my husband especially. We have been discussing buying DVC and after our stay, I think we have narrowed it down to BWV and WL(BR), but we are leaning more towards WL(BR). We absolutely loved BCV, and my son loved SAB, but he is almost 14 and I feel that SAB will eventually lose it's appeal for him. And our daughter is almost 21, so with the kids getting older and doing their own thing, it will be less family trips and more just me and my husband trips until grandkids come along (several years down the road). We would definitely do resort only trips, with maybe just a day or 2 at the parks when it's just me and him. With those thoughts, I feel like we should pick the resort that best suits for me and him. And while BCV was great, the cost (even resale) is a bit high. We did like that we could access Epcot easily from BCV, and that is why we are looking at BWV...but the hallways seem so long, the clown slide - nuff said, and I feel we would tire of the hustle and bustle of the area. We really liked how WL was so peaceful, and the new bar/grille out by the lake is gorgeous. And it is a boat ride away from MK! I would love to hear your thoughts on why WL(BR) is a great choice to buy at. We aren't hurrying into buying DVC, we want to take our time, study the resorts, and make the right decision for us. We are planning a trip next year to look at the resorts more, too. Thanks!

You're on the right track by thinking of future use. Our kids are now 26 and 28 and we are taking our first "grandparents" trip in October. We are just finishing up the addition of a VWL contract to our other two contracts and should close next week. We love VWL and it was simply getting harder to get in there without ownership. With 3 contracts, we can easily get into our favorites. Buy where you want to stay, as it IS getting harder to book at the 7 month window.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Here they are. I feel like I'm missing some though. I did go through them last year & tossed out a bunch of the original style bands. I wonder if I threw out a couple of the custom ones? FYI if you get to have too many they do fall off your MDE list eventually.

Seeing them all lined up I'm kind of impressed with myself. The purple band on the far left top was my first band. I've come a long way since then. The stripe ones took the longest. The nail polish sometimes does flake. I've heard the new gel nail polish doesn't do that but I haven't tried it yet. My favorites are my winter snowflake band (it matches the Frozen Micky Ears exactly & that was not planned! ) & the pale green bling flower one. I love the color on the newest lilac one but the bling turned out to be a little more than I was expecting. I got a lot of compliments on it last month though.

View attachment 231151


Ok now we need Luv's bands!

Awesome Julie!!! Very nice!

I've used some of the quasi gel nail polish and it does work pretty well and seems to last better than regular nail polish. Funny but my newest band I'm doing I've gone thru a couple of color options and had just settled on a lilac color that is going to get something floral on it!!! A groupie thing?!

 

[TCRAIG]

Happy Birthday Granny!

Happy Birthday Granny!!