Category — d. Where to Stay at Walt Disney World

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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 ON 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.

MORE ON DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

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MORE ON DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

Disney’s BoardWalk Villas is one of 8 official Disney Vacation Club resorts at Walt Disney World.

However, I have come to count them as ten, because two of the resorts–Saratoga Springs and the Animal Kingdom Villas–have two very different areas.

In order of their appropriateness for first time family visitors to Walt Disney World, they are:

1. The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
2. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas–Jambo House
3. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas–Kidani Village
4. Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort
5. The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa
6. Disney’s Beach Club Villas
7. Disney’s Boardwalk Villas
8. Disney’s Old Key West Resort
9. Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa, main resort
10. Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort, Treehouse Villas area.

Disney’s BoardWalk Villas comes in 7th on the list. These resorts are available to anyone to reserve through the regular Walt Disney World website or the resort reservations phone number at 407-939-7675.

They also are available to the general public at great discounts through renting points from a Disney Vacation Club member.

All Disney Vacation Club resorts have studio rooms, One-Bedroom Villas, and Two-Bedroom Villas.

Most have Grand Villas as well.

Disney’s BoardWalk Villas has all room types, and floor plans of all its standard room types except Grand Villas are on this page. Grand Villas will be covered on the next page.

STUDIOS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

At Disney’s BoardWalk Villas, Studios sleep four and have a microwave and mini fridge.

The microwave is one of several ways Studios are different from regular rooms at the BoardWalk Inn.

• A second distinction is that the second bed is a full fold-out couch, rather than a queen.
• A third is that these rooms sleep one fewer person, and have one less sleeping space, than BoardWalk Inn rooms with two queens and a convertible couch.
• The studios have about 40 more square feet than standard rooms at the BoardWalk Inn, but most of this extra space comes in the entryway and bath area (because of the choice of where to put the closet, which lengthens this area by a couple of feet), not the bedroom.

These studios go for the same price or a even few dollars less than regular standard view five person BoardWalk Inn rooms, but even at those prices, I’d prefer the rooms at the Inn, unless you really need the microwave. The increased flexibility that comes from the Inn’s extra sleeping space, and the greater charm of the Inn, outweigh the microwave.

ONE-BEDROOM VILLAS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

One-Bedroom Villas at the BoardWalk have a master bedroom with a king bed.

They have as well a full kitchen/dining/ living space, a washer/dryer, and sleep 4 in about twice the space of a studio.

The two additional sleeping spots are on a fold-out couch in the living room space.

The bath is shared, with access to it from both sleeping spaces. The kids don’t need to enter the master bedroom to get to this bath.

One-Bedroom Villas are among the most comfortable ways to stay at Walt Disney World.

Those at the BoardWalk Villas are more comfortable than those at several other DVC resorts, because they are larger.

See the chart.

The additional space, full kitchens, and living and dining furniture are hard to beat, even though if you are following one of this site’s itineraries you won’t be in your room much to enjoy them!

Depending on the price season, these villas are only 25-40% more expensive than a standard BoardWalk Inn room, for twice the space.

They aren’t for everyone…but the value is there if you can afford it.

TWO-BEDROOM VILLAS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

Two-Bedroom Villas add a second bedroom with a queen and a full sleeper sofa, and another balcony, to the amenities of a One-Bedroom, and sleep 8.

Two-Bedroom Villas can be either cramped or comfortable, depending both on how you use them and what you are comparing them to.

Like many DVC Two-Bedroom Villas, in Disney’s BoardWalk Villas Two-Bedrooms there isn’t enough seating space in either the living room or in the dining spaces for all the people these rooms will fit.

(Old Key West Resort, Kidani Village, Bay Lake Tower, the Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian,  and the Treehouse Villas are exceptions.)

The living room chairs will seat four to five people, with two more chairs available at the dining table, and two more at the kitchen’s breakfast bar.

The dining table will seat at most four, taking the two chairs from the breakfast bar and adding them to the two chairs the table comes with.

So if you are filling a two bedroom with 8 people, things can get awkward, especially compared to the ease with which One-Bedroom Villas fit the people they can sleep.

Moreover, these two bedroom villas at the BoardWalk share a design problem with the same room type in The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

The connecting door between the four-person bedroom and the central shared space is deep in the living room.  This can create some awkwardness for people leaving and entering the four-person bedroom if others are sleeping on the fold-out couch.  More recent DVC villas have corrected this flaw, and moved the connecting door to the other end of the kitchen space.

These space and circulation issues are part of the reason why these rooms are only about 40-75% more expensive than One Bedroom Villas, even though they have double the sleeping capacity.

On the other hand, depending on the price season, a Two-Bedroom is between the same price and $170 more than two standard BoardWalk Inn rooms, but provides 50% more space, and, compared to those rooms, all that extra kitchen/dining/living space and furniture.

If your family’s sleeping needs will fit in the bedrooms–that is, if you don’t need to use the fold-out bed in the living space–Two-Bedrooms are a particularly comfortable option.

(To each of the capacity figures above, you can add one more kid under 3 at time of check in who sleeps in a crib.)

GRAND VILLAS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS

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OVERVIEW: DISNEY’S BOARDWALK VILLAS FOR FIRST TIME VISITORS

Most room options at Disney’s BoardWalk Villas (an Epcot resort, and a Disney Vacation Club resort) are wonderful places for returning visitors to Walt Disney World to stay.

For typical first-time visitors, I don’t recommend the Disney Vacation Club resorts.

That said, these “DVC” resorts can be a great choice for first time visitors with large families, needing extra sleeping spaces, or looking for a more comfortable place to stay.

Among the Disney Vacation Club resorts, Disney’s BoardWalk Villas ranks seventh-best overall for first-time visitors.

THE DISNEY VACATION CLUB RESORTS

[Read more →]

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THE THEMING OF DISNEY’S BOARDWALK INN

Disney’s BoardWalk Inn opened in July 1996, and in 2009 completed a major renovation.

According to Disney World’s website, the BoardWalk Inn

“…captures the charm, whimsy and elegance of 1940s Atlantic City. Sitting along a boardwalk packed with amusements, the Resort offers dynamic views of activity below and of the glittering waters of Crescent Lake.

Take in lively sights and sounds of midway games and performance artists all along the quarter-mile, Coney Island-style boardwalk. The striped awnings and saltwater taffy-colored facades lend themselves to a friendly carnival atmosphere.”

Well, that’s about half right. 

The BoardWalk Inn has two very different sides.

The overall Boardwalk complex includes the BoardWalk Villas, a Disney Vacation Club resort, on the left side of the map, and the BoardWalk Inn in the right center.  The two are joined by a lovely central lobby.

On the lake side of both facilities is Disney’s Boardwalk (top left on the map. curving along Crescent Lake), a combination of restaurants, shops, entertainment venues, carts, and other stuff fun for adults and kids.  This area best matches Disney’s “Atlantic City” description.

However, the architecture of the BoardWalk Inn itself, and especially the areas surrounded by the hotel wings–top center on the map–has a very different and much more peaceful heritage. [Read more →]

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MORE ON DISNEY’S BOARDWALK INN

There are currently 8 official Disney owned and operated deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World.

In their recommended order for first time family visitors, they are

1. Polynesian
2. Wilderness Lodge
3. Animal Kingdom Lodge
4. Contemporary
5. Grand Floridian
6. Beach Club
7. Yacht Club
8. BoardWalk Inn

Many of these also offer Disney Vacation Club (“DVC”) studios and villas, all for rent to the general public–see this for more on the Disney Vacation Club resorts.

ROOMS AT DISNEY’S BOARDWALK INN

[Read more →]

OVERVIEW: DISNEY’S BOARDWALK INN

Our most recent stay confirms that Disney’s BoardWalk Inn, one of the Epcot resorts, is the eighth best deluxe resort at Walt Disney World for first time family visitors.

You can have a wonderful visit at any Walt Disney World resort hotel.

However, this site recommends that first time visitors to Walt Disney World who can afford it should stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a deluxe resort, and that those who can’t should stay at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, a value resort.

(It also suggests that first time visitors should avoid the moderate resorts, while noting that these resorts are wonderful for visits after the first. See this for why.)

Compared to other Walt Disney World owned and operated resorts, the deluxe resorts are distinguished by having (on average) the most amenities, nicest views, best dining options, best transport options, largest rooms, best service, and highest prices.

Many are also paired with Disney Vacation Club (DVC) resorts.  For a review of the BoardWalk Inn’s sister DVC resort, Disney’s Boardwalk Villas, click here.

Among the deluxe resorts, Disney’s BoardWalk Inn has a lot of positives.

• It has a fun pool, though not as good as the one its Epcot neighbors the Yacht Club Club and Beach Club share
• It shares with the Yacht Club and the Beach Club Inn convenient access to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and
• It shares with these resorts a short walk to dozens of interesting table service dining options located in these resorts, at the Swan and Dolphin, on the BoardWalk, and in Epcot.

It also has a couple of negatives, also largely shared with the Yacht and Beach Clubs.

It’s thin on kid appeal compared to other options, is not as convenient for this site’s itineraries as some alternative resorts, and has limited counter service in general and especially limited breakfast options.

The breakfast issue is better than it has been in the past…see the image…but it’s still not as good as many guests would expect.

(See this for much more on resort distinctions by price class–value, moderate, deluxe, etc.) [Read more →]