Tell Me Yes or Tell Me No

TinyTGO

Member
I am wondering if a studio that sleeps 5 is fine for our needs now, then increasing to a 1 or 2 bedroom as we are able to add more points. A 300-400pt just isn't in the cards right now. My son likes the drop down beds, and the baby will be in a pack n play for the next few years. We have always stayed in studios at WDW, never 1 bedrooms, so we have nothing to compare to. But also have never had trouble with space in the studios, granted we were just a family of 3. I am not sure how adding a 4th person will make us feel in terms of being cramped, or if it won't be as bad as I'm fearing.

I would say 9/10 times we will be booking at the 11 month mark. Are Poly studios hard to get into at 7 months? For example this winter we are planning a trip over Thanksgiving and the week after. I'd imagine we might need that 11mo benefit for something like that, but possibly not for a spring trip (not over Easter). I guess I am trying to weigh if it would be more beneficial to own at Poly since it's our favorite resort, or somewhere like CCV or AKV in case we want a 1 bedroom.
If you are thinking studio bookings to start, then 150 can work but 200 would be ideal and give you flexibility.

As far as sleeps 5 studio availability goes, Poly is the easiest of the rooms to get followed by Boardwalk garden/pool view. That said, the room capacity is set by the fire dept and not the sqft. For example, OKW studios are the second largest rooms on property (the only DVC room on property with 2 beds) and are only a sleeps 4.

If you are going to be looking at 1 bedrooms, you don't really have to worry about AKL. As they are typically the last rooms to go, you should be good. CCV is half the size, so harder.

Of your 3 options (CCV, Poly, AKL), CCV is the most difficult in terms of availability followed by Poly.
 

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
That said, the room capacity is set by the fire dept and not the sqft.
Room capacity is determined by number of beds... what does the fire department have to do with anything? The rooms that sleep 5 are not because the fire department says they can, it's be cause they have either a sleeper chair or one of the fold-down child beds.
 

nickys

Premium Member
Room capacity is determined by number of beds... what does the fire department have to do with anything? The rooms that sleep 5 are not because the fire department says they can, it's be cause they have either a sleeper chair or one of the fold-down child beds.
Or because the studio sleeps 5 so members can also put 5 in a 1-bed but without a bed for them.
 

Jdn0018

Member
A few things that I've not seen mentioned when skimming through the posts. If your main travel months are December (Christmas decor) and May-ish (for Flower and Garden), I would strongly suggest buying at Copper Creek. CC and Poly are difficult to book at 7 months in December, but CC is difficult to book almost all year. Poly sees decent availability at 7 months a few times each year, with May being one of those times.

So, for instance, if you buy at CC, you can book it at 11 months, which is close to the only you are getting 8 nights there any time of year. There are periods, especially if you are flexible, that you are likely to get 8 nights at Polynesian at the 7-month mark. The same is true for Animal Kingdom Lodge--you should have a chance at a few different times of the year to get 8 nights at the 7-month mark.

The other note, which has been mentioned but just to highlight it again, Polynesian does not have 1BR. All Poly studios have the 5th sleeper in the form of a small fold down bed.


 

aliceismad

Well-Known Member
If you haven't already, I would highly recommend doing a cost analysis to see when your breakeven would be. It's entirely dependent on whether you are financing, if not financing what you would otherwise do (invest?) with that upfront funding, the cost of your normal lodging for vacations, what types of rooms you stay in, etc.

When I did that for my family's situation, it led me to realize that only some DVC contracts would be a reasonable breakeven scenario. Of course, a breakeven point doesn't take into account the emotional ties to owning a small piece of WDW.
 

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
When I did that for my family's situation, it led me to realize that only some DVC contracts would be a reasonable breakeven scenario.
If you're lazy or just don't know how to do financial modeling... from a strict financial perspective, Saratoga Springs almost always comes out as the best option.

For full disclosure: I have access to 50% Cast Member room discounts and Saratoga resale *still* made sense financially.
 

Nala06

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
If you haven't already, I would highly recommend doing a cost analysis to see when your breakeven would be. It's entirely dependent on whether you are financing, if not financing what you would otherwise do (invest?) with that upfront funding, the cost of your normal lodging for vacations, what types of rooms you stay in, etc.

When I did that for my family's situation, it led me to realize that only some DVC contracts would be a reasonable breakeven scenario. Of course, a breakeven point doesn't take into account the emotional ties to owning a small piece of WDW.
Do you have a good spreadsheet for that?
 

aliceismad

Well-Known Member
Do you have a good spreadsheet for that?
I don't have the one I made available at the moment. I just pulled a couple from the internet and tailored to my family's situation. I'm not sure if we're allowed to link to those here? I think I just googled DVC spreadsheet and went from there.
 

TinyTGO

Member
Room capacity is determined by number of beds... what does the fire department have to do with anything? The rooms that sleep 5 are not because the fire department says they can, it's be cause they have either a sleeper chair or one of the fold-down child beds.
false. room capacity is determined by the fire dept.
 

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
false. room capacity is determined by the fire dept.
The fire capacity and the published room capacity are not the same thing. For example, there are many villas that you are TECHNICALLY allowed to put 5 people in, but Disney doesn't sell or market those rooms as rooms that sleep 5.

For example, the 1BR villas at Boardwalk, Boulder Ridge, and Hilton Head technically allow five people, but Disney does not sell them that way, and the points charts do not present them that way.
 

TinyTGO

Member
The fire capacity and the published room capacity are not the same thing. For example, there are many villas that you are TECHNICALLY allowed to put 5 people in, but Disney doesn't sell or market those rooms as rooms that sleep 5.

For example, the 1BR villas at Boardwalk, Boulder Ridge, and Hilton Head technically allow five people, but Disney does not sell them that way, and the points charts do not present them that way.
How do you explain Poly studio vs AKL studio? or Poly vs BLT?

Call Disney and ask? It's based on fire dept. Go do your homework
 

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
How do you explain Poly studio vs AKL studio? or Poly vs BLT?

Call Disney and ask? It's based on fire dept. Go do your homework
What are you talking about? The Poly studio has beds for 5 so it sleeps 5. Bay Lake Tower and AKL studios have beds for 4 so they sleep 4.
 

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
false. Same layout except bathroom.


#everythingDVCisa3hourargumentandaJerrySpringerfistfight
Dude you're just wrong.

Poly: Queen bed, pull-out sofa bed, fold-down 5th sleeper bed
BLT: Queen bed, pull-out sofa bed
AKV: Queen bed, pull-out sofa bed

This fold-down bed does not exist at Bay Lake Tower or Animal Kingdom Villas studios:

1616099027248.png
 

aliceismad

Well-Known Member
How do you explain Poly studio vs AKL studio? or Poly vs BLT?

Call Disney and ask? It's based on fire dept. Go do your homework
Just curious. I know NFPA 101 specifies 200 gross square feet per person (i.e., to include common spaces) for hotels. What other codes determine the actual occupancy for each individual room?
 

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