Where to buy... BLT, BCV, BWV

[Ray LeBlanc]

I've been consuming a lot of these DVC boards lately and have now decided to jump in with our situation...

DW & I are ~30, DS is 4, DD is 7 months. We're looking at a future full of Disney, and we are very excited about it.

We live in Nebraska, so it's about an even split between DL and WDW for us. We just returned from our first big DL trip in June. Stayed at DLH and loved it, but said 'next time we're doing the Grand Californian'. Needless to say, GC is extraordinarily expensive. That got me seriously thinking about DVC... we like staying in nice places and think the payoff is there for us.

So my question now is where to buy.
- Since we will be splitting time between the two coasts, we are looking at a minimum of two contracts.
- We will likely take a trip every 8-9 months or so... 3 trips every 2 years, 4 trips every 3 years, etc.
- We are 'sold' on resale points, though we may add 75 direct points at a future resort if it interests us... CCV & Aulani do not.
- We are generally interested in studios, though I'm sure as our children grow we will migrate to 1-bedrooms.
- Our schedule is a little tight, so I'm concerned about being able to book what we want. We both teach and have somewhat strict travel windows. For Florida, our preferred times are end of December/first week of January (most likely Jan. 1-5/6/7 depending on the school calendar) and spring break (for us, the 2nd/3rd week of March). We have the entire month of June off, but we avoid Florida in the summer. That would be our preferred VGC time, as well as a possible trip to Aulani once the kids are a little older.

Contract #1: VGC: this is a no-brainer, as it seems to be the only way we can book out there. I know it's extraordinarily expensive, but we'll be there every other year (at least).

Contract #2: In Florida, we are considering BLT, BCV, and BWV.
- These are the 3 that appear to have the tightest availability of Studios at 7 months out. While we'd like to also stay at VGF & Poly, it looks like we should be able to book those from time to time (at least in mid-March).
- BCV & BWV have the best location for us, even with young kids... walking to 2 of the 3 major parks we care about (can take/leave AK) is huge. Enormous.
- BCV's pool area looks spectacular (wouldn't use it much in Dec./Jan., but would in March, and/or other trips we might squeeze in here & there). While I haven't stayed there, I've always loved the vibe when eating there or passing through.
- Having said that... the Contemporary has always been my favorite resort, and BLT looks amazing. The "cool" factor is undeniable. Being on the monorail and steps to MK are definite 'pros' here.

In either case, I suppose we're only bussing to one of our three preferred parks... but walking still beats the potential monorail hassle (as cool as the monorail is).

Another note about BCV/BWV: Having "only" 23-24 years left doesn't really bother me... imagining my children being legally old enough to enter a bar is so far from reality right now, who knows where we'll be then. If we feel the need to 'buy in' again, we'll do it... but that's a long time from now.

Basically, we want to buy where the 11-month advantage is most valuable, though we would still like the ability to stay at the other resorts (of course).

Can anybody provide some guidance on Contract #2? Feedback on the overall plan?

 

[Ginger R]

I've been consuming a lot of these DVC boards lately and have now decided to jump in with our situation...

DW & I are ~30, DS is 4, DD is 7 months. We're looking at a future full of Disney, and we are very excited about it.

We live in Nebraska, so it's about an even split between DL and WDW for us. We just returned from our first big DL trip in June. Stayed at DLH and loved it, but said 'next time we're doing the Grand Californian'. Needless to say, GC is extraordinarily expensive. That got me seriously thinking about DVC... we like staying in nice places and think the payoff is there for us.

So my question now is where to buy.
- Since we will be splitting time between the two coasts, we are looking at a minimum of two contracts.
- We will likely take a trip every 8-9 months or so... 3 trips every 2 years, 4 trips every 3 years, etc.
- We are 'sold' on resale points, though we may add 75 direct points at a future resort if it interests us... CCV & Aulani do not.
- We are generally interested in studios, though I'm sure as our children grow we will migrate to 1-bedrooms.
- Our schedule is a little tight, so I'm concerned about being able to book what we want. We both teach and have somewhat strict travel windows. For Florida, our preferred times are end of December/first week of January (most likely Jan. 1-5/6/7 depending on the school calendar) and spring break (for us, the 2nd/3rd week of March). We have the entire month of June off, but we avoid Florida in the summer. That would be our preferred VGC time, as well as a possible trip to Aulani once the kids are a little older.

Contract #1: VGC: this is a no-brainer, as it seems to be the only way we can book out there. I know it's extraordinarily expensive, but we'll be there every other year (at least).

Contract #2: In Florida, we are considering BLT, BCV, and BWV.
- These are the 3 that appear to have the tightest availability of Studios at 7 months out. While we'd like to also stay at VGF & Poly, it looks like we should be able to book those from time to time (at least in mid-March).
- BCV & BWV have the best location for us, even with young kids... walking to 2 of the 3 major parks we care about (can take/leave AK) is huge. Enormous.
- BCV's pool area looks spectacular (wouldn't use it much in Dec./Jan., but would in March, and/or other trips we might squeeze in here & there). While I haven't stayed there, I've always loved the vibe when eating there or passing through.
- Having said that... the Contemporary has always been my favorite resort, and BLT looks amazing. The "cool" factor is undeniable. Being on the monorail and steps to MK are definite 'pros' here.

In either case, I suppose we're only bussing to one of our three preferred parks... but walking still beats the potential monorail hassle (as cool as the monorail is).

Another note about BCV/BWV: Having "only" 23-24 years left doesn't really bother me... imagining my children being legally old enough to enter a bar is so far from reality right now, who knows where we'll be then. If we feel the need to 'buy in' again, we'll do it... but that's a long time from now.

Basically, we want to buy where the 11-month advantage is most valuable, though we would still like the ability to stay at the other resorts (of course).

Can anybody provide some guidance on Contract #2? Feedback on the overall plan?

Well we just purchased BWV in April and just came back from our 1st stay there at the end of June in a 1 bedroom. We absolutely fell in love with it. Very vinvenientt getting to Epcot and DHS and also convenient for food options. We are staying at BLT in January and haved friends that are dvc members there and love it. We've never stayed at BCV but went there to go to breakfast at Cape May Cafe and that looks great too. I know I'm not being very helpful lol but seriously we did love the BWV. Good luck with whichever you choose. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the choices you listed. Happy shopping!

 

[intertile]

My suggestion would be a Oct or December UY.
BLT has a great location, as far walking to MK. You'll probably be going there more given the age of the kids, but as the grow up HS and Epcot will be more interesting. I haven't stayed at BLT, but from what I read it is already showing signs of age. This is due more to the decor than anything else. The modern furniture doesn't wear well, while the more classical furntiure in the other resorts hide the wear and tear more. Someone who owns there can confirm this. BCV/BWV both have amazing locations. Not just for walking to the parks, but for walking around the area. Lots to see and do, even outside the parks. If possible I would rent points to stay at these resorts before deciding to buy there.

ETA - We own at SSR and VGF, stayed at BWV July 4th week and have decided to sell SSR and are in ROFR for a BWV contract.

 

[Henwen88]

BLT has quite possibly my favorite one bedroom in all of DVC, but I've been able to pretty consistently book there with my SSR points. Have tried the studio there and were not impressed - actual living area is small and very underwhelming (especially compared to the awesomeness of the 1 bR lol).

We own at BCV specifically to book studios for myself and hubby during Food and Wine. We bought there after being unsuccessful using our SSR points. I think the spring is more forgiving about 11 mo booking in general, but I think all bets will be off once Star Wars Land opens.

You will get more bang for your buck with BWV's value studios, but will need to be prompt about your booking window at certain times of year. Again, don't forget about star wars land!!!! I think either of the epcot resorts will be a great purchase, and second the idea of renting points to try them out. We are totally a BCV family, but you never know until you try!

 

[Ray LeBlanc]

Thank you for all the replies. It sounds like zeroing in on BWV or BCV makes good sense for us. While we've never stayed over there, we love the vibe of the entire area. And Epcot/HS are our favorite parks, so the ability to walk to each is worth a lot to us. Once Star Wars Land opens it will be even better (and more important to have home resort privileges over there). We can still book BLT, VGF, and Poly when we want/need to.

I'd love to try both BWV & BCV, but that would take a few years. We are visiting in January, but we've already tried renting points for the trip and the only availability was a 1BR at SSR. We aren't interested in doing that. We are currently booked at Pop, and I'm considering moving to a regular room at Beach Club or Boardwalk to spend more time in the area, but that would triple our hotel cost (yet another reason we are looking at DVC).

I suppose we could still spend some time at each resort without staying there, but I'm leery about waiting a couple more years to make this decision. The points keep increasing in price, and I'd like to have things locked in over there before SWL opens. I realize prices could/will fall in a recession, but I don't see that happening soon. And even when that happens, it won't be the calamity of 2008/2009. As expensive as the points are now, I see them continuing to rise.

So between the two resorts, it seems like the best 11-month advantage is BWV, as it is harder to book at 7 months than BCV. That pushes us towards Boardwalk. BUT, every time we've visited Beach Club for a meal or just walked through it, we've loved the vibe. Thought it was amazing and dreamed of staying there. It just felt like us. So that pushes us towards Beach Club, even though the 7-month availability there isn't quite as dire as Boardwalk. Hence the dilemma, and me writing these posts trying to figure it out. Ideally we would try both, but again that will take years... Is spending some time at each resort without staying there a decent substitute?

One additional question: any chance that these resorts get the chance to add on years to their contract like OKW did? I'm not as well schooled on that, don't know the history, timing, rumors, etc.

 

[Ray LeBlanc]

Also, thanks for the UY suggestion!

 

[lovin'fl]

OKW extended their contracts and it wasn't received well so they likely won't do it again.

I'd suggest you buy BLT for the longer contract life. And I say this as a BWV owner. My kids are all college aged though. Yours are still young and you will get use out of all those extra years at BLT. Dec/Jan trips can be chilly (we just had one over NYE and froze) so you may nit be able to use BCV pool as comfortably as you'd like. BLT 1BR villas have the extra bath and the sleeper chair as well as sofa (so both kids could have their own). And it's best to own BLT to get the standard view to save points. Also a good resort for stroller use. The negative is the studios are tight but you may not be in a studio for long...plus you could also try for BCV or BWV studios at 7 months.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

The other reason to doubt a BCV or BWV extension is because both resorts have low points for their rooms, but are insanely popular. An extension would not allow them to re-value the units and add points. Adding points at either is several million dollars of easy profit.

 

[CarolMN]

Given what you're be posted re trip timing, my advice is to go with your heart and buy BCV. Plan to spend the December/ early January trip there and plan to book when your 11 month window opens. IMO, you should be able to move around for your March trip (but still book when the 7 month window opens).

BWV preferred/garden studios should be available for spring break periods at 7 months. BCV studios will usually be more of a challenge for that time. Note that at this time, DVC members may hop to the BWV pools, but not to the BCV pools.

Also, standard view villas at BWV are a challenge to book even at 11 months year round. They are very difficult in December - the first full week of January. You'll still need to book BCV studios at 11 months for that time, but they are not the challenge the standard view villas at BWV can be.

If you go with BWV, plan the contract size based on the preferred/ garden view point chart. Getting standard view is just a plus, not a guarantee.

 

[Ray LeBlanc]

Dec/Jan trips can be chilly (we just had one over NYE and froze) so you may nit be able to use BCV pool as comfortably as you'd like. BLT 1BR villas have the extra bath and the sleeper chair as well as sofa (so both kids could have their own). And it's best to own BLT to get the standard view to save points.

The Dec./Jan. weather was a concern I mentioned about BCV; we may not be able to use the pool then, but would be more likely to use it in March and/or long weekend trips in the fall. As for the BLT view, if we stayed over there we would try to splurge on the park view. That's a big part of the Contemporary/BLT for me. Again, one of the reasons we are looking at DVC... rack rates for Park View rooms at the Contemporary make the initial buy in of DVC look much more reasonable. But again, MK is not our top priority... we do love it, but the ability to walk to 2 of our favorite parks will trump this more often than not, even with the age of our children.

The other reason to doubt a BCV or BWV extension is because both resorts have low points for their rooms, but are insanely popular. An extension would not allow them to re-value the units and add points.

Thanks for this; this is exactly what I did not know!

Given what you're be posted re trip timing, my advice is to go with your heart and buy BCV. Plan to spend the December/ early January trip there and plan to book when your 11 month window opens. IMO, you should be able to move around for your March trip (but still book when the 7 month window opens).

BWV preferred/garden studios should be available for spring break periods at 7 months. BCV studios will usually be more of a challenge for that time. Note that at this time, DVC members may hop to the BWV pools, but not to the BCV pools.

Also, standard view villas at BWV are a challenge to book even at 11 months year round. They are very difficult in December - the first full week of January. You'll still need to book BCV studios at 11 months for that time, but they are not the challenge the standard view villas at BWV can be.

If you go with BWV, plan the contract size based on the preferred/ garden view point chart. Getting standard view is just a plus, not a guarantee.

I am leaning towards BCV and appreciate you taking our personal preferences into account, especially the timing, which seems to be of the utmost importance with DVC (I did not know/realize this when I first looked into things, but am starting to get the hang of it). I did note the BWV preferred/garden rooms had more availability, which was encouraging. If we bought into BWV and couldn't book a standard view at 11 months, I'd be pretty disappointed. So again, your comments are very helpful!

 

[beourguest2009]

Contract #2: In Florida, we are considering BLT, BCV, and BWV.
- These are the 3 that appear to have the tightest availability of Studios at 7 months out. While we'd like to also stay at VGF & Poly, it looks like we should be able to book those from time to time (at least in mid-March).
- BCV & BWV have the best location for us, even with young kids... walking to 2 of the 3 major parks we care about (can take/leave AK) is huge. Enormous.
- BCV's pool area looks spectacular (wouldn't use it much in Dec./Jan., but would in March, and/or other trips we might squeeze in here & there). While I haven't stayed there, I've always loved the vibe when eating there or passing through.
- Having said that... the Contemporary has always been my favorite resort, and BLT looks amazing. The "cool" factor is undeniable. Being on the monorail and steps to MK are definite 'pros' here.

Not that it should affect your decision but I think that in the next year AK will become more appealing. My kids are 5 & 7 and LOVE it! Not just for the few rides they will go on but all the exploring they do as Wilderness Explorers!

So between the two resorts, it seems like the best 11-month advantage is BWV, as it is harder to book at 7 months than BCV. That pushes us towards Boardwalk. BUT, every time we've visited Beach Club for a meal or just walked through it, we've loved the vibe. Thought it was amazing and dreamed of staying there. It just felt like us. So that pushes us towards Beach Club, even though the 7-month availability there isn't quite as dire as Boardwalk. Hence the dilemma, and me writing these posts trying to figure it out. Ideally we would try both, but again that will take years... Is spending some time at each resort without staying there a decent substitute?

One additional question: any chance that these resorts get the chance to add on years to their contract like OKW did? I'm not as well schooled on that, don't know the history, timing, rumors, etc.

I think you have it backwards but someone will correct me if I am wrong but much harder to get BCV at 7mo as it is MUCH smaller than BWV. We LOVE BCV but typically book a 1 bedroom so have been fairly lucky booking that category but we do not go during Food and Wine, yet. When we do, we will look at adding on a small contract there.

Good luck - some great choices!!

 

[beourguest2009]

PS - we were at BCV this January and it was FREEZING (20!!! - this coming from a Bostonian!!) in the morning but up to 80 in the afternoons and the kiddos were swimming!

 

[Ray LeBlanc]

I think you have it backwards but someone will correct me if I am wrong but much harder to get BCV at 7mo as it is MUCH smaller than BWV. We LOVE BCV but typically book a 1 bedroom so have been fairly lucky booking that category but we do not go during Food and Wine, yet. When we do, we will look at adding on a small contract there.

Please let me know if I'm incorrect here! I'm basing most of my availability assumptions on the very helpful post over in the DVC Member Services forum... https://www.disboards.com/threads/p...-studios-1-bedrooms-june-2018-update.3689931/

 

[beourguest2009]

Please let me know if I'm incorrect here! I'm basing most of my availability assumptions on the very helpful post over in the DVC Member Services forum... https://www.disboards.com/threads/p...-studios-1-bedrooms-june-2018-update.3689931/

My apologies - I think the Standard view, studio, that is hard to get without the 11 window if that is what you are going for.

 

[billsfan12345]

We had the exact same dilemma and ultimately settled on BLT because our kids were 7 & 4 at that time. We felt like the majority of our time was going to be spent at MK so it was easier to be able to walk back and forth. Now that they are getting a little older we are staying at BW/BC for one week per year and the other 1/2 weeks at BLT. If you move up to a 1 bedroom you can almost always get those two locations at exactly 7 months. With Galaxy Edge opening next year I suspect that to change though.

 

[DduzDis]

We own at BLT and love it. We have two DDs 5 and 2. (We will likely treasure the extra bathroom in the 1br when the girls get older). We stayed in BCV this past March to use the pool, but it just never warmed up enough on our designated pool day. So, as a result we hung out over at BWV. I have said if we ever add on it will be there. We loved the location and I walked through the one bedroom they have as a model. There is so much more there to do for all of us than BCV (other than the pool) imo.

 

[ELMC]

I would go with BCV because of the things you said are important to you. It's the smallest of the three resorts you are looking at, which means that if you own there you can likely stay at all three, but if you own at BWV or BLT you may not be able to get into BC. I know you said you don't travel to WDW in June, but can you make that guarantee for the next 20 years? I ask this because buying DVC has changed just about everyone's travel patterns. Once you experience Stormalong Bay you will be planning June trips just to stay at BC and swim there. Trust me on that.

Also, quick tip, if Theme Park View is important to you at Bay Lake Tower, you can always request one of the Magic Kingdom facing Lake View rooms. It will be an angled view, but you will still be able to see much of the park. You can check the hotel room views portion of www.touringplans.com to see what I'm talking about. To that end, the views from BCV rooms are not good, so if that is important to you then you should consider that. But even given that....Stormalong Bay.

One last thing to think about...you could choose not to buy a WDW DVC property. If it's the Epcot "area" that you are interested in, you could always look at staying at the Swan and Dolphin. I know, it's not "Disney", but the rates are very competitive, the quality of the rooms is at/above the DVC rooms, and booking there is much more flexible. This doesn't help you at BLT, but if you do the math it could all equal out in the end.

Good luck with your decision, keep asking these great questions and you'll figure it out!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

A BCV studio at 7 months is hard year round. A BWV Pool view is more possible in lower season.

 

[disneynutz]

What you think you know and what others will post won't end up being your reality later. The only way for you to decide on a resort is to spend time visiting the resorts and staying at your top choices. We bought BLT based on posts and excitement during the pre-sale period without staying there. Others will post that they love BLT, we don't. Too much like staying at any hotel not Disney enough for us. Renting reservations might be a way to try resorts out for yourself but don't get caught up in the pixie dust, it will blind you. You also might want to think about DL. We grew up at DL and since vacationing at WDW we haven't been back since. The expanse of WDW, the number of resorts, parks, restaurants, things to do make WDW the best value and the better experience IMO.

Bill

 

[mikebb]

Another note about BCV/BWV: Having "only" 23-24 years left doesn't really bother me... imagining my children being legally old enough to enter a bar is so far from reality right now, who knows where we'll be then. If we feel the need to 'buy in' again, we'll do it... but that's a long time from now.

Some great advice from others, and especially agree that only you can truly determine what your needs are. However, I would urge you to think about the above as at least a small part of your consideration on where to buy, as IMHO a longer contract has benefits regardless of where you may find yourself later in life.

On one hand, it's entirely possible that life or your interests may change in such a way that selling your DVC may be something you may consider. If that ever becomes the case and you want or need to sell in, let's say, 18 years when the kids are out of the house, a contract with 24 years left is going to have a lot more resale value than one with only 6.

The flip side of that is that if you end up hanging on to your contract until the end, do you want it to expire when you are 54 and your kids are 24 and 28? Or go for the longer contract and have it through retirement (think empty-nester trips to WDW or taking the grandkids...)