Beach Club Resort versus Boardwalk Inn versus Villas at Wilderness Lodge

pbrsaau

pbrsaau

Member
Original Poster
Planning a family trip for November 12-19, 2016. Family of 5 - mom/dad and three boys (13, 11, and 5). Looking to stay somewhere new to us. We have stayed at WL numerous times, it's our favorite resort, but we haven't stayed in the Villas before. WL construction could still be ongoing as well. We've never stayed at any of the Epcot Resorts. I know the pool and slide at BC is the best of the bunch, but the weather could be hit or miss in mid-November. My curiosity is the rooms - how spacious and recently renovated - can anyone chime in on their recent experience. Thanks and Merry Christmas!
 
lostpro9het

lostpro9het

Well-Known Member
Of the three, BCV is our favorite. While it shares the same general location as BWV the pool is amazing and something I could see three young boys really enjoying during a mid day break from the parks.
 
Little Green Men

Little Green Men

Well-Known Member
I recently stayed at the villa at the Boardwalk and found the rooms much smaller than The Beach Club. Also, The Beach Club rooms were updated recently, while the Boardwalk still has 90's decor. Epcot resorts are great for convenience. You can walk or take a boat to DHS and Epcot. I've never stayed at WL villas but have stayed in the resort a couple of years back and found it nice, but the transportation is lesser than a monorail or Epcot deluxe resort.
 
harryk

harryk

Well-Known Member
Transportation from all 3 is limited to bus and boat. VWL has access to monorail via boat to Contemporary Resort (or buss to MK and then pick up monorail. BWV and BCV mostly have travel by bus to MK but can take boat to both EPCOT or HS. (or walk). This is up to personal preferences. How much time do you actually spend in the rooms - size really does not matter if it is for sleeping only. All three offer in room laundry if that makes a difference. All three offer full kitchens it that makes a difference.
If you are pool people - BCV has the best offer. VWL presently only has the main pool to offer in that they are building cabins along Bay Lake. This has not interfered with the Villas - we just returned from there on 22 Dec 2015. Now it just depends on what type of entertainment you are seeking for the boys.
 
sgtmgd

sgtmgd

Well-Known Member
Boardwalk is our favorite resort however we just stayed at the BCV 13-19 December and i was very nice, we did that to have access to Stormalong Bay and the kids loved it...we but 2 days of down time more or less and the pool was a nice place to relax and still have the Boardwalk just a short walk away. You can walk to Epcot or DHS in a mater of minutes or ride the Boats, a wealth of dining options including Yachtsman, Cape May, Flying Fish, Beaches and Cream to name a few...just a lot going on there and well worth the stay.
 
pbrsaau

pbrsaau

Member
Original Poster
Thanks for the replies! My gut says Beach Club is the way to go. Size of the room matters and it sounds like BW is smaller than BC. Just to mix it up I'd like to stay in the Epcot area instead of the MK area. We really enjoy the Flying Fish and Beaches and Cream. It will be nice to be able to walk to the Studios and Epcot as well (weather permitting + fingers crossed!)
 
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
DisneyDukie said:
We are definitely pool people - so I have to ask what makes BCV the best in this respect?
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In addition to the slide mentioned by @harryk , Stormalong Bay has a sand bottom and various "sections" in which to play: a whirlpool, bubble jets, rapids, a quiet grotto with a waterfall, and a large little kids play area for sand castles, etc. Sometimes there is a net up for water volleyball. Lots of things to do/explore!
 
ekutchey

ekutchey

Active Member
harryk said:
Transportation from all 3 is limited to bus and boat. VWL has access to monorail via boat to Contemporary Resort (or buss to MK and then pick up monorail. BWV and BCV mostly have travel by bus to MK but can take boat to both EPCOT or HS. (or walk). This is up to personal preferences. How much time do you actually spend in the rooms - size really does not matter if it is for sleeping only. All three offer in room laundry if that makes a difference. All three offer full kitchens it that makes a difference.
If you are pool people - BCV has the best offer. VWL presently only has the main pool to offer in that they are building cabins along Bay Lake. This has not interfered with the Villas - we just returned from there on 22 Dec 2015. Now it just depends on what type of entertainment you are seeking for the boys.
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Both offer bus, boat directly and monorail access. From WL you can tea the MK boat or bus to grab the monorail to Epcot or the other three monorail resorts. Or grab a boat to Contemporary or Fort Wilderness for other adventures. You can take a bus to all parks. For BC and BW you can walk or take a boat to Epcot or HS. Your have the use of the international gateway into Epcot which is quite a nice feature. You can then walk through Epcot to access the monorail to the three resorts or MK. Or you can take busses as needed to locations. In my opinion all three resorts offer a great variety of transportation to different locations.
 
CaptainAmerica

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
Are those your only options? With that party size and the fact that you want space and recent renovations, I'd take a long look at the Fort Wilderness cabins. They're being renovated as we speak. You could probably even get two whole cabins for the price you'd pay for a one bedroom villa at the Epcot resorts.
 
MaryJaneP

MaryJaneP

Well-Known Member
If we may suggest a different way to look at things, perhaps where the OP+family will be spending most of their time comes into play with where they should stay. If, as we suspect based upon the ages of the young ones, the MK will probably play a major role in their plans, perhaps closer hotel is desirable. As such, maybe a deluxe MK resort makes more sense. As a frequent CR family, we can attest to the huge convenience having a local resort to take our tired children to each night and that we were able to do so rather quickly.
 
pbrsaau

pbrsaau

Member
Original Poster
CaptainAmerica said:
Are those your only options? With that party size and the fact that you want space and recent renovations, I'd take a long look at the Fort Wilderness cabins. They're being renovated as we speak. You could probably even get two whole cabins for the price you'd pay for a one bedroom villa at the Epcot resorts.
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I didn't think about the Cabins. I never had much interest in Fort Wilderness.
 
pbrsaau

pbrsaau

Member
Original Poster
MaryJaneP said:
If we may suggest a different way to look at things, perhaps where the OP+family will be spending most of their time comes into play with where they should stay. If, as we suspect based upon the ages of the young ones, the MK will probably play a major role in their plans, perhaps closer hotel is desirable. As such, maybe a deluxe MK resort makes more sense. As a frequent CR family, we can attest to the huge convenience having a local resort to take our tired children to each night and that we were able to do so rather quickly.
Click to expand...
Location isn't a priority. The 13 and 11 yr olds will be fine. The 5 year old may tucker out though in the evening.
 

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