If you think studios are really meant for 2 people.....

[4luv2cdisney]

Do you / have you never booked regular hotel rooms?

I'm asking because it seems a lot of DVCers comment on studios really only being for 2-3 or "cramming into a studio" etc. I admit to only staying at SSR so far but I found it very comparable to a regular hotel room - felt more spacious actually. We WERE only 3 for that stay, but 4 adults (teen children) would not have been a problem.

So, I guess I'm just curious as to whether many have just become accustomed to larger accommodations and now can't "go back" or if you have just never been a 1 hotel room kind of traveler.

(and it seems consensus is that BLT is really smaller than the others - so I guess I'm excluding BLT from the conversation)

 

[bwvBound]

Yes, I grew up hoteling with the entire family in normal hotel room. But timeshare, in my opinion, is not meant to compete with hotels. It is set up to provide "home away from home" accommodations which includes kitchens, laundry, etc. They are intended to be more upscale (a luxury) than hoteling.

My other points-based-timeshare allows only two persons in most of their studio configurations. Even so, their studios are larger than Disney studios and most include in-room laundry and a pretty workable kitchen. Their studio rooms are far more functional than those of DVC.

FWIW, I consider DVC to be off-base. Given the point values (1BR being roughly 2x studio), I feel that studio occupancy should have been restricted to 2 or 3 persons with the 1BR sleeping 4 or 5. That would have been a more balanced foundation.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Only book hotel rooms with the kids when forced, or when it is really seriously only a single night, or it's the Super 8 in Wausau or something. So the night before my last cruise, yeah, we were in a suite (2 queens and a double sofa), for that single night.

 

[keaster]

We are a family of three so we have no problem "fitting" into a studio or hotel room.

However, we bought DVC for the purpose of booking 1-bedrooms. We like the space and privacy you don't get in a DVC studio or regular hotel room. We also love the fact you have more bathrooms (no waiting when people are up and getting ready) and the ability to make some simple meals when you just don't feel like going out. We will book a studio if it's a one night stay before/after a cruise or if it's just DH and I.

 

[bwvBound]

They are intended to be more upscale (a luxury) than hoteling.

Clarification, on later thought. 'Upscale' was not the best word for my intentions. I did not intend upscale in the context of granite countertops, gold faucets, costly fabrics (etc) ... but really meant that in terms of expanded functionality (especially kitchen, laundry, & bath).

 

[icc2515]

I think that it is all in what you are used to. We used to stay at the All Stars and would fit 4 of us into a room. So if their are 4 or even 5 of us we will still get 1 studio at the BWV. I think that people complain about the room size are owners who are used to the 1 bedrooms that Disney used to pitch as the home away from home. I would say the newer owners are more studio oriented as the price per point and the number of points per night climb.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

I totally agree with the analogy of the hotel room. When my daughters were small our family of four could easily fit in a hotel room with 2 double beds. We can still share a studio with one or more of my daughters and it works fine.

But, say you are with another couple. Would you double up with them in a hotel, or would you get your own room? If you would get your own room, you would probably not share a studio with them either.

 

[LSchrow]

We were fine with a studio (only 2 people) for years. Like you said, they are like a hotel/motel room.
BUT as the refrigerators got smaller (no freezer), the drawer space became barely existent, and we received less & less paper plates/bowls & plastic cutlery, we decided to add more points so we could get a 1 bdrm.
If we only stayed a week or less at a time, a studio probably would still be fine, but almost 2 weeks in a studio (especially when stuck in the room during a hurricane) just didn't feel relaxing anymore.

 

[jarestel]

It's nice having the different room size options. Sometimes a studio is all that's required and other times we need a grand villa. I can appreciate studios for what they are in DVC, but there's no way I can see them as anything more than hotel rooms. Still, for families with young children they provide a very affordable way to stay at Disney.

 

[aoconnor]

I think the difference is really the bed situation. No matter how you slice it the sofa bed is never going to be as comfortable as a real bed and for that reason I feel the studios are best for two adults and
children on the younger side who won't notice the difference/ can sleep anywhere.

Even the value resorts are now getting two queen beds (Pop Century renovation and now coming to All Stars). Would be great if DVC started working those queen murphy beds into the next round of refurbs...

 

[Bing Showei]

I can see how people might only reserve studios for 2 people (a couple, for example). For me, with a small child who has a standard bedtime, being in a studio (or hotel room - which I would equate to studios) ends the evenings pretty early. The last few trips we've been on, my wife and I have avoided hotel rooms/studios for this reason. With a 1BR, conversations/interactions can still take place after a child goes to bed.

And as you suggested, once we started staying in 1BRs, we knew we would need enough points to be able to do that when we bought into DVC.

 

[lovin'fl]

The way I look at it is that we bought DVC for more condo like rooms. If we wanted to continue to stay, as a family of 5, in hotel like rooms we wouldn't have bought DVC and would just book POR and call it a day. JMO.

 

[kboo]

We still stay in hotel rooms when we do our split stays with the Swolphin. Our kids are still small, though, so 2 bed in a room are mostly fine. Although they go to sleep before we do, they tend to be fairly deep sleepers, so the sleep fine with us on the balcony, coming in and out to do laundry, or doing work on surfing on our devices or laptops. I can see it being more of a pain when they get older, or if DH and I want some more ... private time. Usually when we are at WDW, though, we are all so wiped out that we are falling asleep not much later than they are.

We have stayed in studios at VGF and BCV, but both times were when DD2 was still in a crib, so we were able to keep the couch folded up. If we had teens who had more stuff and left it lying around, I think I'd be more annoyed at having to share a room with them.

 

[culli]

Yes, I grew up hoteling with the entire family in normal hotel room. But timeshare, in my opinion, is not meant to compete with hotels. It is set up to provide "home away from home" accommodations which includes kitchens, laundry, etc. They are intended to be more upscale (a luxury) than hoteling.

My other points-based-timeshare allows only two persons in most of their studio configurations. Even so, their studios are larger than Disney studios and most include in-room laundry and a pretty workable kitchen. Their studio rooms are far more functional than those of DVC.

FWIW, I consider DVC to be off-base. Given the point values (1BR being roughly 2x studio), I feel that studio occupancy should have been restricted to 2 or 3 persons with the 1BR sleeping 4 or 5. That would have been a more balanced foundation.

I also see other "timeshares" don't offer studios - smallest is usually a 1 bedroom. I know there are exceptions which are mostly hotels in big cities that got converted to timeshares. From my experience the "studio" for DVC is fairly unique and really is just a hotel room.

We love the studios for our "adult" only trips or if we take 1 or 2 of the kids on a solo parent trip. We have 4 kids so we are in the 2 bedrooms, even 2 studios is a disaster if we go as a family. As far as hotel goes, we use them when it is a day or 2 but if we are going for an extended time we always look for a condo or home rental if we don't have a timeshare rental.

 

[bwvBound]

I also see other "timeshares" don't offer studios - smallest is usually a 1 bedroom. I know there are exceptions which are mostly hotels in big cities that got converted to timeshares. From my experience the "studio" for DVC is fairly unique and really is just a hotel room.

Might be matter of interpretation/title. Worldmark, a very large points-based timeshare started in the very late 80's, offers a defined 'studio' unit at most of their properties, especially the older locations. Many other timeshare locations I'm familiar with also offer a 'studio' although sometimes they are referred to as the 'lockout' (the smaller portion of a 2BR unit) and might not have a 'studio' title. But the configuration is very 'studio' in its size, sleeping arrangements, and in-room amenities.

 

[hakepb]

When DVC started, OKW was about $50/point and had a 260 point minimum. For the reasonable $13,000 buy in and the nice OKW point charts, a family staying in a 2 BR for a week in Dream Season (or less) was no problem..even for those with minimal contracts.


Now we are in the $20,000 to buy 100 points territory... barely enough for a studio.
Now, a 2BR Dream season in Copper Creek takes 318 points..for a $58,000 buy-in.
(And if Rivera is closer to VGF points, 412 points is $76,000 at $185/point or $82,000 at $200/point)

With their pricing increases, DVC has pushed more and more families into studio stays.

 

[culli]

Might be matter of interpretation/title. Worldmark, a very large points-based timeshare started in the very late 80's, offers a defined 'studio' unit at most of their properties, especially the older locations. Many other timeshare locations I'm familiar with also offer a 'studio' although sometimes they are referred to as the 'lockout' (the smaller portion of a 2BR unit) and might not have a 'studio' title. But the configuration is very 'studio' in its size, sleeping arrangements, and in-room amenities.

Yes good point! The lock-offs, forgot about those and they seem to be more of the older units. We have Wyndham and unless it is an old resort I believe a majority the smaller are 1 br.

On a total separate note I just checked DVC resale and I'm kicking myself for not buying more points. I still remember getting too greedy during the great recession and had DVC ROFR my BWV contract...$59 pt I was so happy but if I would have just paid probably even $1 more a pt it would not have been ROFR

 

[LittleFishy101]

We are new DVC members and have only stayed in DVC accommodations once, but our family of 4 (2 adults and 2 kids 15 and 18) have no problem fitting in a standard hotel room. I do admit, we are very cramped in moderates, so we do stick to deluxe if we can find a good discount, but we don’t think we will have a problem with a studio for the 4 of us. This is just our family though.

 

[bwvBound]

Yes good point! The lock-offs, forgot about those and they seem to be more of the older units. We have Wyndham and unless it is an old resort I believe a majority the smaller are 1 br.

Yeah, Wyndham locations and unit types are tricky. Generally, the lock-off side still sleeps four and has a defined bedroom ... thus they call it a 1BR unit. The 2BR unit, in effect, has both a "small 1BR side" and a "regular 1BR side" each with similar occupancy limits. Trying to figure out which is which when trading into a Wyndham can be a real head-scratcher while interpreting the occupancy vs privacy numbers.

 

[gillep]

I don't travel with children, but if there are going to be more than 2 adults we book two rooms if we are staying in regular hotel rooms, even if that means we have to eat the costs, as we personally don't find it comfortable to travel with more than two adults in a regular room or studio. The one time we took two other adults to WDW with us using points we booked a Kidani 1 bedroom so that we would at least have two bathrooms, if no 1 bedrooms with 2 bathrooms had existed, we would have booked two studios, just our preference. We have been like this since before DVC, basically once we could afford larger accommodations that became our preference.