WWYD on check in day at BWV

[kniquy]

We (me and a co-worker) are heading to WDW for a conference in april. Our arrival day we should hopefully be at BWV for 10:30am (flight arrives around 9am) and be heading to Epcot for 11am. I know we probably won't be able to get our room until the afternoon, so our plan is to head right to Epcot after checking in.

I was originally was planning on touring the park and then heading back to the resort around 3:30-4pm. getting settled in and then heading back to do the countries around 5:30pm and dinner at spice road at 7:05

We are pretty active people so walking around is not an issue. I have never stayed at one of the Epcot resorts so I am not sure how much time we would waste actually walking back and forth from Epcot -> BWV -> check in and then freshen up and head -> Epcot.

I am kind of allotting about 2 hours to go back check in and head back to park (so from 3:30 to 5:30) - is that really reasonable?

If it is a real waste of time i might push up our dinner reservation to 5:00 and then just do the countries before dinner and a few after dinner and call it a night at 8pm and go to check in then.

From those experienced with going back and forth from Epcot and BWV - What do you think would be the best plan to make the most of our park time?

 

[Best Aunt]

My experience at BWV has been that I have never gotten a room early, and at times it has been after 5:00 pm. Of course it's possible that your room would be ready around 3:30, but I wouldn't count on it. (I have had better luck with my room being ready early at other DVC resorts.)

If you are active people, you will find the walk from the Epcot entrance/exit to BWV to be quite easy.

However, if you made if half-way around Epcot and want to go back to BWV from there, it's going to be a bit of a hike to get back to the Epcot entrance/exit.

I personally would want to go back and check in to make sure everything is ok with my room. I would not wait until after a 7:00 pm dinner to do it. I probably would hang out at Epcot until 5:00 or so, and then head back to check in. I personally wouldn't make a dinner reservation for that night because I would be wiped out. I would grab something at the Boardwalk To Go, assuming it's open, or the Boardwalk Pizza Window. If I had a ton of energy, I would go to Tangierine Cafe in Morocco, which is quick service so you don't have to worry about having an ADR.

If your flight gets in at 9:00 am, how early will you have to wake up that morning to catch your flight?

I'm sure other people will pipe in and disagree with me, to give you other opinions.

 

[DebbieB]

Never know. My room was ready at 1:00pm when I checked in on my October trip. My luggage was coming on DME so I just checked out the room and headed to Epcot. My friend was arriving around 6:00pm so I returned and my luggage was not there yet. I called, they said it was on it's way to the resort. We went for dinner after she arrived, it was there when we went back to the room after 7:00pm. We then went to Epcot for a Frozen fastpass. Her luggage was not there when we returned around 10:00pm. Called and they said it was delivered. We said it's not here. Just then a knock on the door, it was a guy from across the hall, it was in his room! They wrote the room # on the tag so that's how he knew. Thinking twice about my December trip, I think I will pick it up myself.

 

[Ensusieasm]

Never know. My room was ready at 1:00pm when I checked in on my October trip. My luggage was coming on DME so I just checked out the room and headed to Epcot. My friend was arriving around 6:00pm so I returned and my luggage was not there yet. I called, they said it was on it's way to the resort. We went for dinner after she arrived, it was there when we went back to the room after 7:00pm. We then went to Epcot for a Frozen fastpass. Her luggage was not there when we returned around 10:00pm. Called and they said it was delivered. We said it's not here. Just then a knock on the door, it was a guy from across the hall, it was in his room! They wrote the room # on the tag so that's how he knew. Thinking twice about my December trip, I think I will pick it up myself.

Lucky he wasn't the guy with the broken toothbrush, or he would have held your luggage hostage!

 

[loves to dive]

I'd check in when I arrived, that way they know you are there. Then head over to Epcot, F&G is happening while you are there so I don't think I'd made an ADR for that night, just wing it. When you get the text your room is ready, if it's after when you luggage is supposed to arrive, I'd head back and check out the room,maybe unpack. Then back to Epcot I'd go. If you want to eat at a TS, Spice Road almost always has walk ups available or you can hop on MDE and see if something is available. Personally, I'd just hit up a few more booths. We go during F&G and with the exception of breakfast, 75% of our food comes from the booths.

 

[Ensusieasm]

We (me and a co-worker) are heading to WDW for a conference in april. Our arrival day we should hopefully be at BWV for 10:30am (flight arrives around 9am) and be heading to Epcot for 11am. I know we probably won't be able to get our room until the afternoon, so our plan is to head right to Epcot after checking in.

I was originally was planning on touring the park and then heading back to the resort around 3:30-4pm. getting settled in and then heading back to do the countries around 5:30pm and dinner at spice road at 7:05

We are pretty active people so walking around is not an issue. I have never stayed at one of the Epcot resorts so I am not sure how much time we would waste actually walking back and forth from Epcot -> BWV -> check in and then freshen up and head -> Epcot.

I am kind of allotting about 2 hours to go back check in and head back to park (so from 3:30 to 5:30) - is that really reasonable?

If it is a real waste of time i might push up our dinner reservation to 5:00 and then just do the countries before dinner and a few after dinner and call it a night at 8pm and go to check in then.

From those experienced with going back and forth from Epcot and BWV - What do you think would be the best plan to make the most of our park time?

Do online check in, skip the front desk, drop your bags at bell services and /or Magical Epress will take care of them, and head to Epcot. When you get a text that your room is ready you can then decide to take a break or stay in Epcot through dinner.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We stay at BWV/BWI a lot and usually spend our first day in EP. I, personally, wouldn't walk all the way back to BWV in the afternoon. That's a lot of back and forth, IMHO. I would do the second option you listed, head into EP, plan an early dinner at Spice Road Table (which we go to a lot and almost always just do as a walk-up) and then head back to BWV on the early side. That is our typical arrival day! We then usually hang out on the Boardwalk, get some ice cream and watch the entertainment.

 

[loves to dive]

We stay at BWV/BWI a lot and usually spend our first day in EP. I, personally, wouldn't walk all the way back to BWV in the afternoon. That's a lot of back and forth, IMHO. I would do the second option you listed, head into EP, plan an early dinner at Spice Road Table (which we go to a lot and almost always just do as a walk-up) and then head back to BWV on the early side. That is our typical arrival day! We then usually hang out on the Boardwalk, get some ice cream and watch the entertainment.

This is going to be different for every person. We always stay at one of the Epcot resorts or Swan/Dolphin. We have been known to walk back and forth between HS, the resort, Epcot,, the resort and the park again a number of times in a day. I'm 60 and my son is grown but has nerve damage in his spinal cord and we have no problems going back and forth. It's only about a 10-15 walk from the IG, heck I've been known to run over to Epcot for something to eat and take it back to the resort, then back over to Epcot for a drink.

 

[AllieBoo]

I think your original plan sounds great! I don't think you would be wasting time by going back to the room before dinner, it's an easy walk.