(For the first page of this review of Disney’s BoardWalk Villas, see this.)
GRAND VILLAS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS
GRAND VILLAS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS
Grand Villas at Disney’s BoardWalk Villas sleep 12.
They have three bedrooms (one with a king, and two with two queens) plus a sleeper sofa.
They also have a kitchen, dining room, living room, balconies, and 3 baths.
There are seven Grand Villas at the BoardWalk. Five of them have the single-story layout shown in the above floor plan, and those five are what this review discusses.
Going right to left, the first two spaces are bedrooms, each with a private bath, two queen beds and balcony access. Each of these rooms is about the size of a “normal” hotel room–though note that the hall to the right-most room means the other bedroom is smaller.
Note also in this hall the additional door to the hotel hallway.
Next comes the kitchen and dining space, and after, a living space almost twice as large as that found in two-story Grand Villas, with a stately entry hall.
Off of the living room space you’ll find a small hallway with a door to the laundry room, another to the master bath, and a third door to the master bedroom.
The master bath serves both the master bedroom and those who may be sleeping on the living room couch, or visiting, and can be entered from the master bedroom as well as the hallway.
The master bedroom includes a king bed and an expansive divided bath, with a large whirlpool tub.
These single story Grand Villas at the BoardWalk Villas have the second-best floor plan of any Disney World Grand Villa, bettered only by those in the Villas at the Grand Floridian. (For an extensive discussion of Grand Villa design choices, see this.)
This is because the BoardWalk single story Grand Villas are unique in offering a single living room space large enough to seat all the guests they will sleep.
(To the capacity of 12, you can add one more kid under 3 at time of check in who sleeps in a crib.)
THE THEMING OF DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS
Disney’s BoardWalk Villas are described on Walt Disney World’s website as capturing
“…the charm, whimsy and elegance of turn-of-the-century Atlantic City. These Villas, along with adjacent hotel Disney’s Boardwalk Inn, put Guests in a prime location to enjoy the carnival sights and ragtime sounds of the BoardWalk, along with the glittering waters and recreation of Crescent Lake.”
This “Atlantic City” claim is a bit of a crock.
The BoardWalk complex has multiple theming points, unified by the concept of “eastern resort town.”
The BoardWalk entertainment area perfectly matches the Atlantic City theme.
But the BoardWalk Inn, according to its architect Robert A. M. Stern, “takes its architectural cue from rambling colonial revival-style hotels of New England.”
And the Villas, again per Stern, bring to the “resort town” concept the Bungalow Style:
“The Disney Vacation Club [BoardWalk Villas], in keeping with the sense of the BoardWalk as a resort town, consists of a series of interconnected small scale buildings facing the [BoardWalk] lakefront.
Beyond the lakefront, where the vacation club faces a canal, the building takes on a larger scale with wide roof overhangs and bold horizontals reflecting the early 20th century American tradition that combined classicism with vernacular cottage architecture to create the Bungalow Style.
Here the historical timeline of the resort town’s development is brought to its conclusion by an architecture that suggests the incipient modernism of the early twentieth century.”
The overall theming of the BoardWalk complex as a “resort town” is a tour de force, with fun on the BoardWalk itself, and true loveliness in the BoardWalk Inn.
The theming and architecture of the Villas are neither so fun nor so lovely, but work well enough.
The BoardWalk Villas opened in July 1996 as the second of the Disney Vacation Club (“DVC”) resorts. Its floor plans set the basic pattern for the group of DVC offerings that followed–the Villas at the Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club Villas, and Saratoga Springs.
Much smaller than the spaces at Disney’s Old Key West Resort, its floor plans are still larger than most of the next group of DVC resorts.
The BoardWalk Villas share the lobby, shops, and services and amenities of Disney’s BoardWalk Inn; you can find more about the BoardWalk Inn here.
Disney’s BoardWalk Villas strengths for first time visitors are this livability (which carries over into all of its room types), and its convenience to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Disney’s BoardWalk Villas principal negative is the absence of any real kid appeal compared to alternatives like The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas–Jambo House.
EXTERNAL LINKS FOR DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS:
PAGES: Previous | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
MORE ON WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD
- For where to stay, see this
- For your next best choices, in order, see this
- For picking your resort based on appeal to kids, see this
- For picking your resort based on convenience, see this
- For where not to stay, see this
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- For what you get in each resort price category, see this
- For Walt Disney World resort price seasons, see this
- For resort reviews, see this
- For the value resorts, see this
- For the moderate resorts, see this
- For thedeluxe resorts, see this
- For suites at the deluxe resorts, see this
- For the Disney Vacation Club (“DVC”) Resorts, see this
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- For a (geeky) overview of comparative room size, see this
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- Military/DOD families should look at this
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- Families seeking the most comfortable place to stay should see this
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