Boardwalk vs the Beach Club

[JTT]

I'm looking into renting vacation club points. Two properties that I am considering are the Boardwalk Villas and the Beach Club Villas. I've never stayed at either one.

I've been to the Board Walk and it's very nice. I love the area and it seems better located if you want to walk to EPCOT or Hollywood Studios. The clown at the end of the water really creeps me out.

I've never been to the Beach Club but it's been highly recommended. The sand floor pool seems really cool.

Let me know some pros & cons of either one. Who has the best counter service? Bus service? Which one is quieter?

 

[1023]

I'm looking into renting vacation club points. Two properties that I am considering are the Boardwalk Villas and the Beach Club Villas. I've never stayed at either one.

I've been to the Board Walk and it's very nice. I love the area and it seems better located if you want to walk to EPCOT or Hollywood Studios. The clown at the end of the water really creeps me out.

I've never been to the Beach Club but it's been highly recommended. The sand floor pool seems really cool.

Let me know some pros & cons of either one. Who has the best counter service? Bus service? Which one is quieter?

Beach Club is great! Boardwalk is Great! You almost have a dead heat.

Beach Club's pool is great. Food is great. Beach's and Cream is legendary. Rooms are reported to be quieter here.

Boardwalk is cheaper points wise. It's fun to be closer to DHS and still be close to EPCOT. The Hess is a walk across the parking lot for cheaper cases of water, etc... Big River Grill has great food and microbrew.

You can't really go wrong....

*1023*

 

[NeedMoreMickey]

I've stayed at BCV a few times and I like it a lot. You already mentioned the location making it easy to get to Epcot and HS. You are also right about the pool it's great. I like how you can stay out of the rain if you want to walk down to BC market place and also to the restaurants at YC. Sorry but I can't help with staying at Boardwalk haven't tried it yet but it is on my list.

 

[hsisthebest]

We stayed at the BWV once in 2011. It was really nice, but with a couple of drawbacks. First, the night life can get rather rowdy- with pleasure island gone it seems that a lot of the big drinkers come out to ESPN zone and Jellyrolls. It may have been especially rowdy since we were there for Epcot's food and wine, but there were literally people falling down drunk on the Boardwalk at night. So you may want to avoid if you have kids/teens that like to explore at night. It idn't ruin our trip because our kids were little and in bed, but it was a little less than magical. The other drawback is the quick service option. You have to leave the Villas/Inn and go to a tiny bakery to get mug refills or a very limited selection of food. Otherwise the resort is great and the Villas are really nice, I have never stayed at BCV but would not hesitate to stay there on a later visit.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Beach Club has the best pool on property so if you like to use the pool I'd stay there. You are still close to the Boardwalk to enjoy its atmosphere.

 

[RedDad]

For me, it would depend on whether you have kids, and whether the quality of the room itself matters. With kids, BC wins hands down because of SAB. Our 3yo would've stayed in the pool all week if we'd let her! Without kids, I would choose BW.

The rooms in the BC villas honestly need a refurb. (The rooms in the regular portion of BC have been recently redone, but not the villas) We stayed in a studio in June and it was no nicer than a Hampton Inn. With that said, I still felt our stay there was worth every penny, and we will stay there again.

The rooms in BWV are much nicer. However, the pool is nothing special, and for smaller kids, that clown slide is downright scary.

 

[irmonkey]

We have stayed at both and loved them both although we liked the BC more. This last trip to BW was met with some transportation annoyances and so I'm trying to change our next trip to either BC or BLT because of that.

Due to the sprawling nature of BW, you're best to request a room near the elevator. We were placed in the last room and had to request a room change due to the haul down to the room (2137, I believe). Also, there were support pillars along the outside walls and so the furniture didn't really fit in the room. They changed us to a room four doors down from the elevator.

As for the pool comparison, BC has the better pool but BW has elephants. My two year old would choose the elephants time and time again.

 

[Spikerdink]

I have stayed at both, and enjoyed both....

That being said, here were my pros and cons:

Beach Club:

Pros:

The Pool!
Quieter room - removed from the main arteries of the resort
Good selection of restaurants (disclaimer - did not do quick serve while at BC)
Close to the bus stop for MK or AK
Such an easy to walk to Epcot

Cons:

Looking out the room is nothing special


Boardwalk:

Pros:

Great entertainment on the boardwalk at night
Excellent selection of restaurants along the boardwalk
Easy walk to HS or Epcot
Most of the rooms have a great view - either Boardwalk (I stayed) and Garden/Pool
Easy to get to Hess if you want to pick up some beverages, etc

Cons:

The pool has a clown as a slide ending and it freaks some people out. (Like me)
Some rooms can be noisy depending on location
If you are at the far end, the walk from the elevator is endless
Bus stop is far if you also have to walk to elevator and then to lobby and out....

Really, you can't go wrong with either. How much time do you spend by the pool? If it is every day, then BC should be your choice. Since BW is just a hop away, you can still enjoy the entertainment there and stroll back to BC....

 

[NoWayJose]

For me, it would depend on whether you have kids, and whether the quality of the room itself matters. With kids, BC wins hands down because of SAB. Our 3yo would've stayed in the pool all week if we'd let her! Without kids, I would choose BW.

The rooms in the BC villas honestly need a refurb. (The rooms in the regular portion of BC have been recently redone, but not the villas) We stayed in a studio in June and it was no nicer than a Hampton Inn. With that said, I still felt our stay there was worth every penny, and we will stay there again.

The rooms in BWV are much nicer. However, the pool is nothing special, and for smaller kids, that clown slide is downright scary.

Completely agree with this. Think you nailed it. I actually like the rooms and BW resort as a whole better than the BC. Rooms feel quite a bit more spacious, as mentioned above. Plus I think the theming is actually a bit better (especially if you visit during a holiday season). Feels a bit more magical to me, IMO.

However, the BC main draw is the pool. We are a huge pool family, so we usually stay at the BC. Additionally, I like the easy access to a few of the restaurants (Yachtsman in particular). You don't have anything in hotel like that over at the BW. Someone mentioned above that they like that they can walk in covered areas all around the YC and BC hotels and restaurants, during any type of weather. Completely agree. This is often an overlooked little bonus of the BC/YC.

On the whole, you cant really go wrong either way. Obviously they are a 5-10 min walk away from each other, so its not a major difference. The main thing is deciding how your family will spend their time on vacation. Once you figure that out, you should have a better feel for which one to choose.

 

[pixargal]

If you are staying at the BW villas, I believe you have access to the community house. It has video games, board games, and arts and crafts. On our last trip, my 14 year old son and his cousins spent many hours hanging out there.

 

[boilerpicc]

I've stayed at both, and just got back from 10 days in BWV. It's pretty close to a toss up.

Counter Service - Beach Club. They have a better selection than the Boardwalk Bakery in my opinion
Location - Boardwalk. It's an easy walk to both Epcot and DHS from there. On the Epcot boat route, BW is the last stop before Epcot and the first stop coming out of Epcot. From DHS, you can get of at the Swan/Dolphin and walk 3 minutes back to the Villas. Bus service from both is fine.
Amenities - BEACH CLUB. No pool on the property can touch that pool. The BW has some cool acts at night, but you can walk over from the BC and check them out.
Quietness - Tie. We didn't have any problem with noise or drunk people at either resort. At the BW, many of the villa rooms look out on creepy clown pool. You can hear what is going on at the pool from your room. If you want a super quiet place to nap during the middle of the day, this might not be ideal. You can hear the pool activities very clearly from the balcony, but it's not too bad with the door closed. I actually liked sitting on the balcony and listening to the name that tune game.

 

[Stitch_Fan_NJ]

Boardwalk! Great restaurants steps away and great nightlife... Can't really go wrong either way but Boardwalk would be my recommendation

 

[DisneyJoe]

I give the edge to Beach Club