Originally Posted By RoadTrip I've mentioned Services and Dining at the Bay Lake Tower in the "Epcot EMH" thread, so this review will concentrate on the units themselves. The primary thing you are paying for at Bay Lake is "Location, location, location". It is really nice being short walking distance to the MK; and having monorail transportation to the MK, Epcot and the other monorail resorts. It made me really wish Disney would add a monorail loop to the Studios with a single stop serving the Epcot Resorts. It wouldn't add greatly to the beam, and would instantly transform the Epcot Resorts to the "upper tier" of WDW Resorts. Oh well, it is a dream but I know it will never happen. The style of the rooms didn't seem all that contemporary to me... more contemporary-ish. Maybe "soft contemporary". I prefer the mid-century modern contemporary style... probably more similar to the original Contemporary Resort. The living room furnishings seemed more based on function than style. The sofa converted to a double bed and the chair converted to a twin bed. Have you ever seen an anything-bed piece that looked that great? Me neither, and I still haven't. The main advantage of the two-bedroom units compared to other DVC two-bedrooms that I've seen is that they had three full baths with both tub and shower. The master bedroom had a bathroom with a jetted tub and vanity, and a separate room for a walk-in shower (with dual heads) and a toilet. There was a shower/tub combination off the second bedroom, and a full bath with a shower/tub off the entry hall. I imagine the third bathroom would be very useful if you were utilizing the full 9-person capacity of the unit. For just the three of us it really wasn't necessary, but it was still nice having a bathroom we could get to without having to walk into a bedroom. Another advantage is that for the first time since Old Key West there was an actual Laundry ROOM and not just a Laundry Closet. Besides housing the laundry equipment, it also got the vacuum cleaner, high chair and "pack and play" infant bed out of the master bedroom closet. That change was most appreciated! Of course that space had to be taken from somewhere, and it was taken from the kitchen. The kitchen was quite small compared to other DVC units, but still contained all the usual full-size appliances. The large peninsula counter with seating for three on one side was replaced by a relatively small island with no seating. but the dining area included a table that would easily accommodate 5-6 people, so the counter seating was not missed. The only time we used the kitchen anyway was for breakfast and snacks, and it was more than adequate for that. Overall, it was probably a very smart re-allocation of space. Overall, it was a very nice resort with a convenient location. If you are looking for luxury furnishings and finishes you won't find them there. Actually, Saratoga Springs is about the best I've found in that area. But what's there isn't bad at all, and if your primary interest is the MK it is certainly the place to be. My primary interest is still Epcot, so my favorite DVC Resort is still The Boardwalk.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>The style of the rooms didn't seem all that contemporary to me... more contemporary-ish<< When it first opened, the pictures I saw reminded me of a generic business hotel, rather than something especially contemporary/futuristic. As for the pull-out sofa and chair, I've always thought they're the worst of both worlds: they're pretty ugly when they're folded up, and not very comfortable when unfolded. It's sounds good on paper, but never quite materializes in real life Having 3 bathrooms sounds great! That's always the bottleneck when you're trying to get out the door in the morning, so it makes a lot of sense to have the extra one. Not that we've been in a particular rush, but there are certainly times that I've wanted another bathroom at POR during my recent stays there; even with the separate sink space, it can be tough to manage with 4 people I've always wondered how many people really use the kitchens. It makes sense to do a quick breakfast, but I just don't see too many people cooking full meal while they're on vacation, especially if they have to go find *all* the ingredients for something. At most, I'd guess they occasionally get used to heat up a frozen lasagna. Do they even have ingredients for making a proper meal in the on-site stores? Sounds like this kitchen was still plenty big for that, so it makes sense to have a bigger laundry space
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Do they even have ingredients for making a proper meal in the on-site stores?>> No, they don't... you would have to go off site to find anything like fresh veggies, fruit, meat, flour... basically anything other than breakfast stuff and frozen meals. But as you said, who wants to cook when they are on vacation anyway? We liked being able to grab a quick breakfast in our room before leaving for the day. It was usually a pastry or English muffin, juice and coffee. It saved time and about $8 per person per day. We would also snack on cheese, meat and crackers (all purchased off-site) late in the evening when we returned. But actually cook a full meal while we are on vacation at WDW? No way. I'd maybe heat up a frozen pizza or the lasagna you mentioned, but that is about it. The microwave came in useful though to re-heat leftovers from Nine Dragons! I do appreciate the real glasses, cups and dinnerware. I absolutely detest eating off paper and plastic stuff. The dishwasher came in handy for cleaning up... we ran it twice during a five-night stay.
Originally Posted By DouglasDubh <But as you said, who wants to cook when they are on vacation anyway?> We do, and that's something I love about DVC. We often go back to the room at lunch or dinner for a meal. We run out to Walmart at the start of our stay to stock up. It's nice to have water and soda and snacks in the room.
Originally Posted By Mickeymouseclub Hi RT Sounds like you had a lot of space for your trip using a lot of points. My first stay at that building when it was the Contemporary and I loved the futuristic bathroom. I still remember the curve of the shower door and the metal rail around the bathroom sink... When I now stay there the metal railings around the trees in the courtyard by the pool doors remind me of the metal in those bathrooms so I have nicknamed the metal forest. I hope you took the time to check out the artwork on every floor by the elevators... Very modern collages of Snow White and Evil Queen and another of Goofy's silhouette but with cartoons as his features. Those are two of my favorites. But every floor is different. I will be there for the" location" and convenience for Holiday week. NYE on the Top of the World!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip MMC... I have a fairly large number of DVC points to use every year. My late wife and I had both worked for the University of Minnesota so many years that we accumulated 6 weeks of vacation per year. We had enough points to stay in a 1-bedroom standard view at the Boardwalk during the time of the year we always went for two weeks or a studio standard view for a month. My current wife gets much less vacation than that, so we can splurge during our shorter vacations. The last several years we have been using most of our points on Disney Cruises.
Originally Posted By Mickeymouseclub Nice I just have 300 points and was excited about the Poly conversion but the bungalows will be way too point costly. So you can book it with your points and have an LP meet!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip Do they even have large LP meets anymore? I was to the one in DL Dec 2009, but there has been nothing since. Don't know how many folks would show up at WDW anyway since most LP'ers are DL folks in CA... many of whom wouldn't be caught dead in Orlando. Oh well, the group would likely be so small I could afford to buy drinks for everyone!! LOL
Originally Posted By dagobert Just out of interest, is it possible to stay at a DVC hotel without being a member?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >>Nice I just have 300 points and was excited about the Poly conversion but the bungalows will be way too point costly. So you can book it with your points and have an LP meet.<< From what I've been hearing, I think 300 points could get you about 2 and a half nights in the bungalows. Not bad for a quick trip I guess! If you guys pool your points to get one for an LP meet, I'm sure I'd find a way to make it down there : ) >>Just out of interest, is it possible to stay at a DVC hotel without being a member?<< Yes, Disney rents a certain percentage of the DVC units for cash like a regular hotel room, but they're generally very expensive ($600-800/night). There are also several websites out there that specialize in matching people up with DVC owners to rent points from; those prices usually end up being about $200-300/night for a studio, which is much more reasonable
