What is your favorite DVC resort and why?

amccu18007

DIS Veteran
Joined
Dec 22, 2008
DVC is all about having a home away from home. Please tell me what your favorite home away from home is and why? We are trying to visit all of the resorts at WDW and are trying to narrow down our next stay :) Our family is in a heated ( but friendly) conversation so I thought that I would ask the experts here their opinions. Thank you!
 
Hmmm... That's a difficult question because we've enjoyed all of the resorts we've stayed at. Our home resort is the Grand Californian at the Disneyland Resort since we live in Utah. We love the decor, the California Craftsman style, and the proximity to the parks can't be beat.

If we consider Walt Disney World, I'd say that my favorite resort are the Villas at the Animal Kingdom. We've stayed there twice and have absolutely loved the ambiance, the decor, and the great fun of sitting on your balcony watching the animals. Some people don't like the long distance to the parks, but we've used both the buses and taxis to get around.
 
Hmmm... That's a difficult question because we've enjoyed all of the resorts we've stayed at. Our home resort is the Grand Californian at the Disneyland Resort since we live in Utah. We love the decor, the California Craftsman style, and the proximity to the parks can't be beat.

If we consider Walt Disney World, I'd say that my favorite resort are the Villas at the Animal Kingdom. We've stayed there twice and have absolutely loved the ambiance, the decor, and the great fun of sitting on your balcony watching the animals. Some people don't like the long distance to the parks, but we've used both the buses and taxis to get around.
We are spending the night there at the beginning of our October trip. We are dining at Jiko and planning on spending the day at the resort to really get to explore. Thank you for your input :)
 
DVC is all about having a home away from home. Please tell me what your favorite home away from home is and why? We are trying to visit all of the resorts at WDW and are trying to narrow down our next stay :) Our family is in a heated ( but friendly) conversation so I thought that I would ask the experts here their opinions. Thank you!
I can list the ones I've stayed at and tell you what I liked and didn't like. We always stay in a one-bedroom for the two of us; studio the first night, though.
Bay Lake Tower: The good: theme park view and top of the world lounge if you don't have the view; the one bedrooms have two full baths and the sleeper chair in addition to the pull out couch; an easy walk from your car to the lobby; walk to the magic kingdom; easy walk to monorail to visit resort restaurants; easy walk to contemporary to use their watercraft. Easy walk to monorail to switch to epcot monorail; walk to the bus depot at magic kingdom and take a bus to any resort; the nice little beach beyond the hot tub; three different point categories. The bad: the pool always seems cold (the building casts a shadow) and there are not enough tables with shade; the hot tub is often filled with unruly kids with no parents around. The contemporary pool is a short walk...it is a little warmer.

BoardWalk Villas: The good: Location!! Walk to Epcot and Hollywood; the lobby is great for people watching; the rocking chairs on the verandah; the places to eat; the entertainment on the boardwalk, the CM's are the best in my opinion; the newly refurbished rooms are beautiful (finally have a makeup mirror); a very relaxing atmosphere; the quiet pool, the community hall by the quiet pool; some standard view rooms can see epcot fireworks or star wars fire works; some boardwalk views can get a really nice view of epcot fireworks and MK fireworks in the distance; the points for standard view are a great deal; I like that you can specifiy BoardWalk View (and I would not use the same amount of points for the pool view). The bad: a long walk from your car to your room; only one elevator; the bus service was legendary (and not in a good way) but we have seen improvement our last two trips but the bus stop needs better organization (i.e. a pushy family that just arrives and somehow gets in front of everyone...and then some have to wait for the next bus (usually MK buses are very crowded in the morning); Only one bathroom, but it is a split bath.

Wilderness Lodge: The good: A nice relaxing place; only stayed in a studio there but I found it very roomy; love the quick service place to eat; Artisit Point signature dining is always outstanding; the lobby is just stunning and I like to just relax in there; the fitness center is very nice, the pool was a little cramped but that has changed completely since I was there. The Bad: You need to take the bus everywhere or can use the boat for MK. Only one point category. Can't speak about a one-bedroom, as have not been in one.

Beach Club: The good: easy access to Epcot, storm along bay pool. The bad: only one point category and I don't like the views. I'm in the minority here, as I really didn't like the resort. Maybe because we stayed when the weather was cold and kind of rainy a good part of the time. It is a beautiful resort, though. We had a nice two bedroom with a deck that ran all the way. Lots of room.

Animal Kingdom: The good: Jambo House studio was huge, the standard view was a nice pool view; Kidani one bedrooms have two full baths and the sleeper chair and the rooms seem enormous (be aware that Jambo one bedrooms do not have two full baths); the pools are really nice; the quickservice food court has lots; the animals all around; lots of activities throughout the day; a lot of point categories. The bad: long hallways from bus stop...not too bad at Kidani if you have your car with underground parking; the walk from Kidani if you want the foodcourt. Some people don't like the remoteness, I thought it was great. I have to say that having to take the bus everywhere was not bad at all.

Polynesian: We only stayed there one night soon after it opened. I don't like the fact that you can only get a studio. We had a 3rd floor lakeview which was nice for the fireworks. Easy access to monorails.

Saratoga Springs: It's a nice location, but shopping is not my thing. a very relaxing resort, but I didn't like having to go to the other building for food and such. We have owned there since they opened, but only stayed there once. We've been using those points for Aulani.

My personal favorites are BWV, BLT and AKV. But everyone has their own favorites for different reasons. I still need to try Grand Floridian. I love BLT and AKV one bedrooms but I think BWV is my favorite....it was our first DVC 20 years ago. Have never been sorry for any of my DVC contracts.
 


I can list the ones I've stayed at and tell you what I liked and didn't like. We always stay in a one-bedroom for the two of us; studio the first night, though.
Bay Lake Tower: The good: theme park view and top of the world lounge if you don't have the view; the one bedrooms have two full baths and the sleeper chair in addition to the pull out couch; an easy walk from your car to the lobby; walk to the magic kingdom; easy walk to monorail to visit resort restaurants; easy walk to contemporary to use their watercraft. Easy walk to monorail to switch to epcot monorail; walk to the bus depot at magic kingdom and take a bus to any resort; the nice little beach beyond the hot tub; three different point categories. The bad: the pool always seems cold (the building casts a shadow) and there are not enough tables with shade; the hot tub is often filled with unruly kids with no parents around. The contemporary pool is a short walk...it is a little warmer.

BoardWalk Villas: The good: Location!! Walk to Epcot and Hollywood; the lobby is great for people watching; the rocking chairs on the verandah; the places to eat; the entertainment on the boardwalk, the CM's are the best in my opinion; the newly refurbished rooms are beautiful (finally have a makeup mirror); a very relaxing atmosphere; the quiet pool, the community hall by the quiet pool; some standard view rooms can see epcot fireworks or star wars fire works; some boardwalk views can get a really nice view of epcot fireworks and MK fireworks in the distance; the points for standard view are a great deal; I like that you can specifiy BoardWalk View (and I would not use the same amount of points for the pool view). The bad: a long walk from your car to your room; only one elevator; the bus service was legendary (and not in a good way) but we have seen improvement our last two trips but the bus stop needs better organization (i.e. a pushy family that just arrives and somehow gets in front of everyone...and then some have to wait for the next bus (usually MK buses are very crowded in the morning); Only one bathroom, but it is a split bath.

Wilderness Lodge: The good: A nice relaxing place; only stayed in a studio there but I found it very roomy; love the quick service place to eat; Artisit Point signature dining is always outstanding; the lobby is just stunning and I like to just relax in there; the fitness center is very nice, the pool was a little cramped but that has changed completely since I was there. The Bad: You need to take the bus everywhere or can use the boat for MK. Only one point category. Can't speak about a one-bedroom, as have not been in one.

Beach Club: The good: easy access to Epcot, storm along bay pool. The bad: only one point category and I don't like the views. I'm in the minority here, as I really didn't like the resort. Maybe because we stayed when the weather was cold and kind of rainy a good part of the time. It is a beautiful resort, though. We had a nice two bedroom with a deck that ran all the way. Lots of room.

Animal Kingdom: The good: Jambo House studio was huge, the standard view was a nice pool view; Kidani one bedrooms have two full baths and the sleeper chair and the rooms seem enormous (be aware that Jambo one bedrooms do not have two full baths); the pools are really nice; the quickservice food court has lots; the animals all around; lots of activities throughout the day; a lot of point categories. The bad: long hallways from bus stop...not too bad at Kidani if you have your car with underground parking; the walk from Kidani if you want the foodcourt. Some people don't like the remoteness, I thought it was great. I have to say that having to take the bus everywhere was not bad at all.

Polynesian: We only stayed there one night soon after it opened. I don't like the fact that you can only get a studio. We had a 3rd floor lakeview which was nice for the fireworks. Easy access to monorails.

Saratoga Springs: It's a nice location, but shopping is not my thing. a very relaxing resort, but I didn't like having to go to the other building for food and such. We have owned there since they opened, but only stayed there once. We've been using those points for Aulani.

My personal favorites are BWV, BLT and AKV. But everyone has their own favorites for different reasons. I still need to try Grand Floridian. I love BLT and AKV one bedrooms but I think BWV is my favorite....it was our first DVC 20 years ago. Have never been sorry for any of my DVC contracts.
Thank you so much!!! Such great point to think about.We own at Poly and just passed ROFR for a Boardwalk contract. We loved BWV(location, value), BCV( location, POOL) and Poly( location, access to some of our favorites restaurant without using buses). I am leaning towards BLT for a quick adults only trip with my husband and maybe a longer trip with the kids to AKV. I love the GF but it seems so point heavy. Maybe an anniversary trip? Thanks again for all of your views.
 
BWV is our favorite--easy walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios, enjoy the Boardwalk area, and the community hall. Love to stay here when there are events at Epcot--flower and garden, food and wine, and the Christmas season. Because it is an easy walk to 2 parks, we can easily go to a park the day we arrive/are leaving as we're not dependent upon bus transport.

We usually stay in studios if it's just our family of 4. We have gotten 2 bedrooms when traveling with family and friends and that's when we get to enjoy the 1 bedroom side. For 2 bedrooms we've stayed at BWV (4x) and BLT.

Hoping to try Poly next as we've never stayed there.

We really enjoyed our 1 stay at GFV, it felt so elegant and it was great to be on the monorail loop for a change.

BLT was fantastic partly due to the fact that we got a 2 bedroom on the 16th floor and could go to the Top of the World lounge whenever we wanted. I also liked having a community hall there, but enjoy the BWV one more. I don't like the point cost of all the Monorail loop ones though.

We enjoyed our stay at VWL, love the theming of the resort--reminded us of our National Park visits. We look forward to staying here again once all the renovations are done.

BCV, was nice to stay at once, easy walk to Epcot, but longer walk to Hollywood Studios. Nice to experience Stormalong Bay once, but it's not a 'must' for us.

Animal Kingdom--we really enjoyed our Kidani stay. Loved the animals, water play area for the kids, community hall, and all the cultural activities. If we had more of a resort visit vs. park visit planned, I'd love to stay here.

We dislike SSR--have stayed there twice and didn't enjoy it either time, don't like the buildings so spread out and don't like the theming. I'm glad that other people really enjoy this resort, but it does nothing for us.

OKW--we've only stayed once, our first DVC visit. I don't like the buildings all spread out (like SSR), but we DO like the theming here. I also like the 2 actual beds in the studio.

I do think you should try to stay at most of the resorts over time as you may discover you really enjoy one more than you thought you would--AKV is one of those for us. It's also nice to have variety...and nice to have a favorite to come back to that feels like 'home.' Enjoy your DVC membership!
 
I have three favorites, depending on the main focus of our trip. For the F&W or F&G, you can't beat BCV. We not only love the proximity to Epcot, we also enjoy the Solarium, the background music at that resort, and the fact that we can get to Beaches and Cream without getting wet, even when it's pouring rain. And we enjoy the food options-BCMarketplace, where we can eat indoors, Cape May Cafe's character breakfast and their Clambake dinner, and again Beaches and Cream nearby. OKW is enjoyable for a restful vacation-DH could sit for hours and watch the golfers. AKV is best when it's hot out, and we just want to spend all our time on the balcony or around the resort. OKW is better for theme park transportation. This is why DH loves OKW-

 


We like SSR because it is close to Disney Springs and we enjoy walking around there especially at night. Also the quiet pools are nice and quiet and close to where we stay. Our home resort is OKW and that's OK but we prefer not to have to take a bus to Disney Springs. And there are times we go just to enjoy the warm weather and not do Disney so this works for us.
 
BWV is our favorite--easy walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios, enjoy the Boardwalk area, and the community hall. Love to stay here when there are events at Epcot--flower and garden, food and wine, and the Christmas season. Because it is an easy walk to 2 parks, we can easily go to a park the day we arrive/are leaving as we're not dependent upon bus transport.

We usually stay in studios if it's just our family of 4. We have gotten 2 bedrooms when traveling with family and friends and that's when we get to enjoy the 1 bedroom side. For 2 bedrooms we've stayed at BWV (4x) and BLT.

Hoping to try Poly next as we've never stayed there.

We really enjoyed our 1 stay at GFV, it felt so elegant and it was great to be on the monorail loop for a change.

BLT was fantastic partly due to the fact that we got a 2 bedroom on the 16th floor and could go to the Top of the World lounge whenever we wanted. I also liked having a community hall there, but enjoy the BWV one more. I don't like the point cost of all the Monorail loop ones though.

We enjoyed our stay at VWL, love the theming of the resort--reminded us of our National Park visits. We look forward to staying here again once all the renovations are done.

BCV, was nice to stay at once, easy walk to Epcot, but longer walk to Hollywood Studios. Nice to experience Stormalong Bay once, but it's not a 'must' for us.

Animal Kingdom--we really enjoyed our Kidani stay. Loved the animals, water play area for the kids, community hall, and all the cultural activities. If we had more of a resort visit vs. park visit planned, I'd love to stay here.

We dislike SSR--have stayed there twice and didn't enjoy it either time, don't like the buildings so spread out and don't like the theming. I'm glad that other people really enjoy this resort, but it does nothing for us.

OKW--we've only stayed once, our first DVC visit. I don't like the buildings all spread out (like SSR), but we DO like the theming here. I also like the 2 actual beds in the studio.

I do think you should try to stay at most of the resorts over time as you may discover you really enjoy one more than you thought you would--AKV is one of those for us. It's also nice to have variety...and nice to have a favorite to come back to that feels like 'home.' Enjoy your DVC membership!
Thank you very much for your input. We do plan on trying them all once and since we are at Disney, we know we will be happy :)
 
I have three favorites, depending on the main focus of our trip. For the F&W or F&G, you can't beat BCV. We not only love the proximity to Epcot, we also enjoy the Solarium, the background music at that resort, and the fact that we can get to Beaches and Cream without getting wet, even when it's pouring rain. And we enjoy the food options-BCMarketplace, where we can eat indoors, Cape May Cafe's character breakfast and their Clambake dinner, and again Beaches and Cream nearby. OKW is enjoyable for a restful vacation-DH could sit for hours and watch the golfers. AKV is best when it's hot out, and we just want to spend all our time on the balcony or around the resort. OKW is better for theme park transportation. This is why DH loves OKW-

This view is one my husband would like too. Peace and solitude! Thank you so much for your input :)
 
We love all of the DVC resorts for different reasons. These are the ones we have stayed at over the last 10 years.

AKV - I could sit out on our patio forever watching the animals. My favorite themed resort. Jiko is our favorite restaurant at WDW.
BWV - Location. Quick walk or boat ride to Epcot or Hollywood studios. Love the Boardwalk in the evening.
BCV - Location. Quick walk or boat ride to Epcot or Hollywood studios. Stormalong Bay when we have our Grandson with us.
OKW - I just love the feel of this resort. We really enjoy the short boat ride to Disney Springs. We have stayed here more than any other DVC resort.
BLT - Quick walk to the Magic Kingdom.
Poly - Love the atmosphere here at night. I love the two bathrooms in the studios. Quik Monarail trip to the Magic Kingdom.
SSR - Close location to Disney Springs otherwise this is our least favorite DVC resort.
 
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They are all wonderful in their own way, and everyone should be able to find something to like about each and every DVC. So, I think it's pretty subjective, but to participate in the fun, I'll throw my rankings and brief observations out there.
1.) Grand Floridian (I'll be here in 78 days with my wife for an anniversary trip. It's the flagship of all Disney resorts and its elegance and beauty, dining, and not to mention location are unparalleled.)
2.) Polynesian (Theming and transportation. Dining not shabby)
3.) Beach Club (Pool and proximity to two parks and boardwalk)
4.) Boardwalk (boardwalk access and proximity to two parks)
5.) Bay Lake Tower (convenience to MK and monorail, but don't care for modern theming)
6) Animal Kingdom-Jambo then Kidani (love theming and super strong dining would be higher with closer locations)
7) Wilderness Lodge (really fun theming some good dining, close to campgrounds, boat to MK)
8) SSR (peaceful, really nice rooms and grounds, walk to Disney Springs)
9) OKW (least favorite of all due to location and the wear and tear that the resort is showing. Hopefully refurb will freshen everything up, because the grounds are beautiful)
Just did that for fun, but I love them all and would choose any of the above over each and every Moderate or value resort.
 
Have points at both BCV and OKW - love them for different reasons - while I never feel as if I am at Disney until I hit the MK my daughter and I love going to Epcot and just strolling around - grabbing something to eat or people watching - it is probably our most visited park - and BCV cannot be beat for the ease of getting in and out. OKW I think the transportation is pretty good - it takes a bit longer since you have to drive around the resort before you leave the grounds but hey, it is free and you can get where you want. We also like taking the boat to DS - again, not fast but pleasant. I was not thrilled at the Poly - the longhouse is a distance from the main building and in the heat I really did not appreciate the extra walking! Also, I had a MK view which was lovely but that also meant you heard the ferry horn while it was running - not a huge deal but if you have kids it might be a bit annoying to try to nap during the day...
 
IMHO, this is a very specific to each person question.
We have something we like about each resort we have stayed at:
AKV - Great views and different food.
OKW - My 2nd home, most room.
BCV - Walk to EPCOT/MGM.
SSR - Walking to DS (DTD).
BLT - Monorail.
BWV - Like decor and ditto BCV.
BRV (VWL) - Woodlands feel, walk to FWC.
VB - Different feel than WDW resorts.
HH - Area history and golf courses.
PVB - Love the rain shower.
 
BWV for my wife and I! Location, location, location. Can't beat it (or BCV for that matter). We just love how easy it is to get to so many different places simply by walking. Theme parks, food, shopping, mini-golf, everything! We just love everything about BWV (and now with the newly renovated rooms it's even better).

For us, BWV would be followed by BLT and BCV. Can't go wrong with any of the 3. As you can tell, we like convenience and avoiding buses whenever possible lol
 

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