Wilderness Lodge or Boardwalk Villas?

[tinkwishes]

My mother and I will be taking my 3 year old and 9 month old to Disney in June. I am trying to decide between the Wilderness Lodge Villas and the Boardwalk Villas. I have never stayed at either resort. Any comments or suggestions? Also, can you see MK from WLV?

 

[ErinC]

You really can't see MK from VWL from the Villa side of WL, unless the hurricanes have changed that since I was last there.

VWL is our home resort, so I'm probably biased, but I would pick it over BWV. With little children in tow, you will probably want to be closer to the MK, and it's just a short boat ride away from VWL. From my understanding the bus service from Boardwalk to MK can be a lengthy trip at times, and I wouldn't want to have to stand there and wait or be stuck on the bus at nap time. JMHO With boardwalk you could walk or boat to MGM, and Epcot. So it really depends on how you will spend your time. If this is more of a resort trip, WL has some great activities and Fort Wilderness is next door with the petting zoo, and pony rides. It all just depends on what kind of trip you are looking for.

 

[JimFitz]

Do VWL with young kids. We did VWL in September and it was great. We have 2 yr old twins and a 9 month old.

 

[5wdwnutz]

We are also trying to decide what resorts to stay at during 2 upcoming trips. One is a two nighter before Thanksgiving. The other is a family trip, I think there will be 8 of us for a week. We'll be making our decisions by mid-February of which resort we are staying at when so posts like this has been a great help to me and DH.

Missy

 

[bnlbebes]

For me it is all a matter of convenient location.

If you are planning on visiting the Magic Kingdom more, stay at the Wilderness Lodge and take the water taxi.

If you are planning on spending more time at EPCOT and MGM, then The Boardwalk is better with their water taxi or quick walking distance.

 

[DVCDawn]

Even though BWV is my home resort, with younger children VWL is probably a better choice. We chose BWV as our home resort because we believe in the long run we'd be more entertained with what surrounds the BW area (Epcot, the Boardwalk itself, etc.). I did, however, stay at VWL with my mom and my 2 kids, who were the same ages as your kids when we were there. Besides what many other posters have noted about easy access to MK, the Wilderness Lodge's kiddie pool is MUCH bigger than Luna Park's at the BW. In fact, on a later trip where we stayed at BWV, we pool hopped to VWL just to let the kids play in the kiddie pool there.

Hope this helps!

Have a magical trip,
DVCDawn

 

[senecabeach]

I ditto all of ErinC's comments !!
The children are young enough to really enjoy the MK and petting zoo @ Ft. Wilderness and the trip home...when everyone is exhausted is a nice boat ride !!
Enjoy...

 

[bongo59]

BW has it all.............th VWL are very ordinary unless you want proximity to the kingdom

 

[gracelrm]

I'll ditto what many others have said. If you want to be close to MK, there's nothing better than taking the boat to MK. That's where we spent the most of our time when our kids were younger and when we had two strollers - it was great to roll them straight onto the boat without folding them up. This Christmas we stayed at BWV, and we loved it. It was nice to be close to Epcot and MGM, but the bus ride to MK was a little long. So I'd vote for VWL. My youngest DS still loves the quiet pool at VWL better than any other pool we've been to. When he was 2, 3 and now 4, he just seemed more comfortable with that pool (maybe the size or the wide stairs).

 

[jaysue]

This is a tough one

Staying at the BWV (we stay at BCV) with the younger kids allows for fast and easy access to Epcot and Studios for a short park visit if desired (kids can fall asleep in the stroller). BWV is very central and there is always come neat stuff on the boardwalk as well.

VWL as others have stated is quite nice with close proximity to the MK and always a quick walk over to Ft Wilderness and has a nice ambience as well

We prefer BCV/BWV due to the central location and easy access - having said that if MK is a priority then by all means VWL is very nice

cheers
jaysue

 

[Granny]

I think this is an easy one, but I"m a VWL lover so take that into consideration.

I can see a 3 year old fascinated by the huge lobby and fireplace at VWL.

The rollicking fun at Whispering Canyon restaurant.

The intriguing and mysterious animal paw/hoof prints in the sidewalks all around the resort.

The nightly visit from Electric Water Pageant.

The afternoon duck races.

The Disney character totem pole.

A stream that starts from a magical spring right inside the lobby, and flows down to "fill" the swimming pool.

And of course, the favorite attraction of many....the boat ride over to Magic Kingdom...a fun ride even before you get inside the parks!


We own at BWV too. But for youngsters, VWL is the place for us. YMMV.

 

[debloco]

I agree with Granny and all other posters who gave reasons to stay at the VWL and would add one more: we love seeing the bunnies that come out to eat on the grass after the sun goes down. Your 3 year old might like them as well. They are quite used to people walking near them and if you move slowly and are reasonably quiet, you can get pretty close!

CLC Tiger Pom Mom