1st time bwv

[Dj20411]

1st time at bwv studio garden view. Which area should we ask to be in at check in? Thanks for the help,
David

 

[lions1995]

I will say that BWV only has one set of elevators. So if you like to be on higher floors, and do not like to walk (or do stairs), ask to close to the elevators.

 

[LisaS]

1st time at bwv studio garden view. Which area should we ask to be in at check in?

I've never stayed in a garden view room so I can't help with location suggestions. Once you figure out what you want to request, call Member Services and ask to have your requests noted on your reservation. BWV pre-assigns rooms so if you wait until you get there to pass along your requests, it will be too late.

 

[Anal Annie]

I've never stayed in a garden view room so I can't help with location suggestions. Once you figure out what you want to request, call Member Services and ask to have your requests noted on your reservation. BWV pre-assigns rooms so if you wait until you get there to pass along your requests, it will be too late.

Really? They pre-assign rooms there? Is this the only resort that does this? Why do they do it there?? Would there be any reason to NOT get what you asked for then if you made the request 7 months out? I've asked for a boardwalk view and a higher floor. Do you think there's anything else I should add to my request (I have to call back sometime to change our flight info. for DME 'cuz United changed our arriving flight number). Since we had to spend the higher points for BW/Preferred view I sure hope we get what we asked for in this case!!

 

[jekjones1558]

1st time at bwv studio garden view. Which area should we ask to be in at check in? Thanks for the help,
David

I would request Village Green. That view overlooks the grassy area between the lobby and the boat dock and would be a partial BW view. These rooms are also very close to the elevators.

 

[jekjones1558]

Really? They pre-assign rooms there? Is this the only resort that does this? Why do they do it there?? Would there be any reason to NOT get what you asked for then if you made the request 7 months out? I've asked for a boardwalk view and a higher floor. Do you think there's anything else I should add to my request (I have to call back sometime to change our flight info. for DME 'cuz United changed our arriving flight number). Since we had to spend the higher points for BW/Preferred view I sure hope we get what we asked for in this case!!

If you have BW view, not just preferred, then really your only 2 considerations are floor and distance from elevator. The rooms further from the elevator actually have the best views of Illuminations. The upper floors have a slightly better view of Illuminations than the lower floors.
I don't think that the date you reserve/request has any influence on whether your request will be met. The room assignments don't take place until 10 days or less from check-in. Then it is a matter of how many check-outs there are for the room size/category you have booked. We often travel on Tuesday for cheaper airfares but the downside is that there are few check-outs that day so the room assigner has fewer options. And there aren't that many BW view rooms to begin with.

 

[Anal Annie]

If you have BW view, not just preferred, then really your only 2 considerations are floor and distance from elevator. The rooms further from the elevator actually have the best views of Illuminations. The upper floors have a slightly better view of Illuminations than the lower floors.
I don't think that the date you reserve/request has any influence on whether your request will be met. The room assignments don't take place until 10 days or less from check-in. Then it is a matter of how many check-outs there are for the room size/category you have booked. We often travel on Tuesday for cheaper airfares but the downside is that there are few check-outs that day so the room assigner has fewer options. And there aren't that many BW view rooms to begin with.

OK. I just looked at my confirmation again. It definitely says "Deluxe studio - Boardwalk View". Under the Resort Information it says "highest floor". I know I didn't specify highest but rather higher because I thought I'd read there were some drawbacks to the top floor balconies and I just knew I'd read that it can be noisy to be right above the boardwalk and that higher might lessen the noise. I can't remember now what I'd read about the top floor balconies...smaller maybe? Enclosed railing? No roof? I don't know... Our flight now lands at 10:09 AM on a Sunday so we should be there right after the 11:00 AM checkout time...hope that improves our odds?!

 

[DebbieB]

Really? They pre-assign rooms there? Is this the only resort that does this? Why do they do it there?? Would there be any reason to NOT get what you asked for then if you made the request 7 months out? I've asked for a boardwalk view and a higher floor. Do you think there's anything else I should add to my request (I have to call back sometime to change our flight info. for DME 'cuz United changed our arriving flight number). Since we had to spend the higher points for BW/Preferred view I sure hope we get what we asked for in this case!!

I think all the resorts do pre-assigning. It was posted about a year or so ago that it's now done by computer. The front desk has the authority to change the assignments if something else is available at check-in.

Everyone on the boardwalk side paid the same amount of points, everyone may not get what they requested. I always ask for top floor and only got it once. I usually get 3 or 4, one time I got 2nd. Only the 2nd floor had a noise issue, it was right above Big River. I always book at 11 months so there is no priority for that.

 

[LisaS]

Really? They pre-assign rooms there? Is this the only resort that does this? Why do they do it there??

DVC has experimented with different strategies in the past and not all resorts have used the same one. For example, "room ready" was used at some resorts for a while. With "room ready" they would just look for an available room at the time you checked in. I don't know if BWV ever used that in the distant past but starting from my first stay there several years ago it was clear that my room had already been assigned before I ever checked in. So I've always followed the advice here to have MS note my requests when I make my reservation so that the information is there at the time rooms are assigned.

Would there be any reason to NOT get what you asked for then if you made the request 7 months out? I've asked for a boardwalk view and a higher floor.

Boardwalk View is a booking category so you will know at the time you make your reservation whether you got it or not. As Jean said, they make the assignments about 10 days out so it's luck of the draw. It depends on what rooms will be opening up on or before your check-in day. They don't appear to take into account how far out you booked. The worst room we ever got was booked 11 months out. The best room we ever got was booked 8 or 9 months out which I think is the shortest time from check-in we've booked BWV.

Do you think there's anything else I should add to my request (I have to call back sometime to change our flight info. for DME 'cuz United changed our arriving flight number). Since we had to spend the higher points for BW/Preferred view I sure hope we get what we asked for in this case!!

BWV is usually fully booked so somebody is going to get the less than perfect Boardwalk View rooms, especially since there are far more "less than perfect" rooms than there are "perfect rooms". The only rooms I dread getting are the ones on the ground floor and fortunately we haven't been assigned one of those yet.

 

[ktbugsmom]

When we have booked boardwalk view rooms - I request high floor - WAY down the hall. I usually get the WAY down the hall part. You get a great view of Illuminations then - the higher floors are better for that view. The balconies have always been great. Some complain the railings are high. Also - the noise late at night "can" be a problem if you are a light sleeper. I usually wake up when the bars let out... my husband and daughter never do.

We reserved a "preferred" view for friends - and they put them on the same floor - way down the hall too. They had a nice view of the canal better than I had expected. This year, we booked late - and have a preferred view. I may ask for Village Green view - or close to the elevators.
Good luck!
Sue

 

[Dj20411]

Thanks for all the advice. 35 days and counting.