What are the BADS of BWV,...

[starbox]

Who has a shot of what those creepy chairs in the lobby look like that I keep reading about?

Here's my DD and Stitch being brave enough to sit in the creepy chairs . Hopefully, someone has a shot of the chairs alone so you can appreciate how brave she was!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Some room service trays and trash bags in the hall, but that was quickly remedied.

I have a question about the trash bags (I'm not a DVC owner but getting close to buying). Is that because there isn't daily housekeeping service so if you have trash you need to get rid of before your service on the 4th day then you set it out in the hallway for "curbside service"?

 

[crisi]

No curbside service - you need to take it down to the trash room yourself - we just leave it in our room for four days and seldom fill a trash can - we don't have a lot of trash in a hotel room and it doesn't tend to be smelly trash. However, I suspect some people believe there to be curbside service, so leave it there for the next maid cart. Also, I think on occation the maids themselves leave trash bags out in the halls during cleaning.

 

[goofy4tink]

the biggest problem I have is morning bus service. They need dedicated bus service in the A.M. that doesn't share at the end of the bus route to the other 4 resorts. You usually can't put anyone on the buses when they stop early because they are already full from beach club/yacht club/swan/dolphin. We end up last. I have waited almost 2 hours in the past and had many buses to MK stop and pick up maybe 1 or 2 people max(or not stop at all).

The morning buses tend to go to S/D after stopping at BW. The buses in the morning, going to MK, and AK, seldom share with YC/BC...those two resorts have their own bus.
Yes, the buses do get a bit crowded at the busy times of day. And, the bus tends to go to all 5 resorts midday! But, in all my trips to BW, I have never had an issue with not being able to get a seat on a bus in the morning..nor have I ever waited more than 30 mins for a bus. And that time I was waiting for a bus to DTD..they are notoriously bad!!
I'm not trying to be argumentative here..I agree that the bus service at the Epcot resorts could use some retooling. But, I just want others to know that the buses aren't all 'that' bad.

 

[ktbugsmom]

We stay at BWV every year. Our kids are 8 and 13 - and we have been staying there since the youngest was 3.

We LOVE the location - being able to walk to Epcot and DHS is very important to us. We love the clown slide and were terribly sad it was closed on our recent trip.

The "grab and go" food is limited - but there are options as noted. And, when we are desperate/lazy - we grab a pizza at Spoodles take out window. However, we usually try to eat before we are back at the room for the evening - especially since we love the choices at Epcot.

Re-fillable mugs can be an issue - but we normally only use it for coffee in the morning - so the Bellevue Lounge works perfectly - and you don't have to go outside! The bakery can have long lines in the morning...

The hallways are long - but I think it is a longer walk at BCV. With BCV you leave the main building and go WAAAYYY far away. The walk to SAB then is crazy long - and with kids in wet suits - it is horrible. (But, we still love it there too!)

The only thing that does annoy me is the bus service when the buses stop at ALL of the Epcot resorts. Every day coming back, BWV is the LAST stop and it takes forever. But, if I were not so lazy - I would get off at the Dolphin and walk... maybe next year! But, that being said, the wait times for buses in January were not bad at all - 5 minutes at most. The buses were not crowded - always got a seat.

So for us - BWV is our favorite. However, we are trying AKV Concierge for 4 nights next January... but I still think the location of BWV will win my heart.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

No curbside service - you need to take it down to the trash room yourself - we just leave it in our room for four days and seldom fill a trash can - we don't have a lot of trash in a hotel room and it doesn't tend to be smelly trash. However, I suspect some people believe there to be curbside service, so leave it there for the next maid cart. Also, I think on occation the maids themselves leave trash bags out in the halls during cleaning.

Thanks for clarifying the situation for me. I couldn't understand all the complaints about the trash out in the hallways.

 

[Buzzsgramma]

Our home resort is BWV....actually leaving Chicago area this am and heading down for wk after Easter with DD and 2 Gr D's and hubby.....First time in a 2 bd rm......all in all the pros outway the cons for us ...LOCATION to Epcot and H.Studios and entrtainment in eve, are the best for this resort.....

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I hate that there is no coffee table in the studio, but even if if have to put one in my suitcase and fly it from home, I would still stay at BWV. I love the option of being able to book SV and BW view and the location. -- Suzanne

 

[Kathi OD]

Not for me. It's often available when I try to get BCV at 7 months.

Last August, it was the ONLY resort that still had a 1BR available for the last weekend of F&W, which BTW was also Jersey Week and Soap Weekend, and that was only 3 months out. Go figure!

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I hate that there is no coffee table in the studio, but even if if have to put one in my suitcase and fly it from home, I would still stay at BWV. I love the option of being able to book SV and BW view and the location. -- Suzanne

I bet someone makes a folding coffee table, I was wanting to purchase one myself. If I find one, I will post!

 

[DISNEYFOS]

The location is definitely key which is why we are at BCV. Lots of dinner options in Epcot!

We have stayed at the Boardwalk Inn in the past. I didn't like the setup of the elevators with a stroller and trying to get outside.

And even though you get great views of Illuminations, you get great views of illuminations Stinks when you or your kids are exhausted and trying to sleep. But of course there are worse things that could happen to you

In terms of counter service and quick bites to eat, We actually walk over to the boardwark for the bakery in the morning from BVC. And they do have those Kiosks now for afternoon/evening burgers and hot dogs which I think was a good addition. Its hard to find lunch in that area in general.

 

[Chloe'sMom]

We bought the BWV sight unseen and we love it. The only issue I have with the Boardwalk is the lack of grab and go food. This became a major issue for us as we were traveling with at 15 month old who liked naps! So we would go back to the resort - lay her down and send one of the adults off to get food - you can only do the pizza window so many days. And for us, we didn't like the offerings at the Bakery. (DUCKS FROM THE FLYING OBJECTS OF THE RABID BAKERY FANS).

The Kiosk was a hassle because it was cash only - and we never travel with cash.

I have learned now about options at the Dolphin and Swan that we will be taking advantage of.

-The long hallways, we loved them. Being somewhat nervous first time parents the hallways was the one place we could put our daughter down and let her run her little legs tired to the room.

-The Clown slide, is a blast! FAST! Much faster then I expected and so much fun. Makes you forget clowns are scary.

-The smell, didn't have an issue with this.

~Amanda

 

[JoeEpcotRocks]

79 more days and I will be at the boardwalk!!! If it smells or not I cant wait!!!

I'll be there in 81 days.

Smells like vacation!

 

[WALTSAGOD]

Didn't mind the smell, or didn't notice a smell?

 

[Chloe'sMom]

Didn't mind the smell, or didn't notice a smell?

Didn't notice a smell.

 

[eva]

I sure miss Richyams! By now he would have chimed in on all the advantages of BWV. Like the room is so small that you can get a beer from the fridge without leaving the balcony. Or that the rooms at BWV are very green because you can clean an entire two-bedroom with only one paper towel. As you can tell, he was quite the OKW fan and was continuely finding humerous ways to put down BWV. I think he would be quite surprised to find that the size of the rooms at BWV is now the norm for DVC resorts.

BWV is not my favorite resorts. But to be honest, I haven't stayed at a resort that I really didn't like. Each one has it's advantages. BWV has a great location. But if I were chosing between BWV and BCV, I would choose BCV. I like the views and pools better at BCV. I'm with the person that didn't like the views of the Swan and Dolphin. I like resorts to be a bit more laid back like OKW and BCV. Other than that I can't think of a real reason to dislike BWV.

 

[WALTSAGOD]

So the bads don't really seem to be so bad after all.

 

[mouse]

Love the BWV's. Stayed there a couple of times and always had a room near the end of the hallway. The very long walk was not a problem, but the very cold air conditioning was almost unbearable during our stays. Also, if you have a car, the parking can be an issue. Otherwise, love the location, atmosphere, and restaurants in the area.

 

[jekjones1558]

the very cold air conditioning was almost unbearable during our stays

For what it's worth: I have also noticed frigid hallways, but when I was on the 2nd floor a couple of weeks ago, the hallway was not at all cold. Don't know if it was because the a.c. was not yet turned all the way up (early in spring) or if only the 2nd floor hall was warmer. But it was MUCH different from my many previous stays.