Reviews of Bay Lake Tower (Disney Vacation Club)
Reviewed by nlg0517 Review Date: 09/14/2014
Rating: (4) Recommended
This isn't my favorite resort. I've wanted to stay here for a while thinking it would be fun to be on the monorail line. That fun was gone our first morning to use the monorail as it was very crowded. The lobby in the Comtemporary was very noisy & crowded at almost all times of the day. I've never seen so many strollers in all my life!
The bed in master bed was sagging on one side & there was literally writing on the bathroom wall.
As for the positive, we had a party of 5 including a 15 yo girl, so 2 bathrooms were great! The California Grill was fantastic! It was great to see the fireworks from the resort. The staff was always friendly & helpful. A 5 minute walk to MK can't be beat. However, for the cost I'd rather stay at an EPCOT resort.
Pros:
Close to MKCons:
Crowded monorailReviewed by mzznlink Review Date: 07/28/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
With OKW as our home resort, we're used to larger studios, but you can't beat the view. This was supposed to be just my wife and I getting a 1-day jump on the family vacation. The rest of the family was arriving the next day to start a 2 week stay at OKW. At the last minute our youngest got time off from her summer internship and riding with us was cheaper than a plane ticket. For 2 people the studio is fine, but no more than 2.We had a theme park view which was great both day and night views.Took the boat over to Fort Wilderness to enjoy the Trail's End Buffett, well worth the ride & price.Went up to the Top of the World Lounge to watch fireworks. We were seated at the window and enjoyed a few drinks and snacks before it started. While we could see most of the fireworks, it was a little irritating when people arrived and lined most of the railing in front of us, blocking the view of the castle. I mean there's a lot of railing...
Pros:
The View!Cons:
Studio SizeReviewed by EpcotMom Review Date: 07/23/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
We are currently staying in a 3 bedroom on a six-night vacation. There are ten of us. The condo is very spacious, beds are super comfortable. Pool is great, and how can you beat a quick walk to the MK? The elevators closest to the walkway going to the Contemporary are always very crowded, however. Small thing, I guess. The biggest con is the food court at Contemporary. You have to order on a touch screen. If you want something modified (no gravy, different side dish, etc) you have to go to the register, have them note the change and pay, then get a beeper and wait for your food. Not very streamlined. Food is "ok", nothing to write home about.
Pros:
LocationCons:
Crowded elevators, food courtReviewed by disneyprincess1014 Review Date: 06/29/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
Bay Lake Tower is a great place to stay if you have little ones who love Magic Kingdom, which we do. We booked a 2 BR Lake View Villa, and upon arriving at noon, were told that our room would be ready at 3. We waited patiently, as we know check in is at 4, but it wasn't ready until 4:15 which was a bit annoying but at least we had the pool and Community Hall. The check in staff seemed clueless and couldn't answer questions about the room or transportation.
Now onto the positives. Our room was beautiful and had a great view of the lake and pool, as well as Epcot in the distance (Illuminations at night) and the water parade. We loved the view, especially in the morning while we ate breakfast and drank coffee on the balcony. The room was bright, clean, and in good condition. The pool area was a lot of fun, including the slide and the Mickey splash area too. The pool staff and campfire staff were wonderful with the kids.
You can't beat the location for walking distance to MK and monorail too, but on our vacation which was the last week in June (busy time) it didn't start running until 8:30 which was a bit puzzling. Buses were fine but for Epcot, it would have been nice to have a monorail a bit earlier to be there for opening.
Pros:
Location, bright rooms, pool, did I mention location?Cons:
Check-in, monorail not always runningReviewed by johnboywallnut Review Date: 05/24/2014
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
Room had trash in it on arrival, and need some repair work. Pool is small and loud
Pros:
easy to get to disney world and epcotCons:
Need repairsReviewed by Wendy Writes Review Date: 05/04/2014
Rating: (5) Recommended
Unfortunately, as I have experienced with other DVC locations it is showing wear and tear.
The carpet was stained and when we pulled out the sleeper sofa there was garbage behind the headboard area.
There were leftover items in the drawers in the kitchen.
They missed towel replenishment on day 4 and when we contacted them they said we would need to pay.
DVC is a wonderful idea but for the annual dues we pay we expect a fully cleaned room upon check in and top rate service, not second class. I wonder if anyone else in DVC feels that way about the upkeep.
Pros:
Great LocationCons:
CleanlinessReviewed by Geri604 Review Date: 04/19/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
Things started out shaky - the cast member who checked us in reversed two digits of the room number - finally realized it after 3 trips back to the desk. But once we got to the right room - WOW! We had booked a lake view and were on the MK end of the building (room 8204), so we had a great view of Wishes every night.
The room was surprisingly quiet too - the only time we heard any noise from our neighbors was when we were on the balcony. There was no noise through the walls or in the hallway. Having the 2nd bathroom (in a 1BR) was great. We ended up using the shower in the 2nd bath instead of the walk-in because it had a stronger spray.
The only downside was that there was no food or shopping in the building. And being at the far end of the hall (2nd to last room), it was a pretty long walk to get to the Contemporary. It didn't bother me, but my mom uses a walker and dad hurt his leg during the trip, so they'd have to take a break in the elevator lobby.
Pros:
beautiful view, locationCons:
far walk to food and shopsReviewed by WarEagleAuburn Review Date: 04/06/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
Bay Lake Tower is a beautiful hotel. We used our vacation points to book a 2 bedroom and were happy to find 3 full baths! Location just can't be beat--you can walk to Magic and take a monorail to Epcot. Negatives: loud music coming from the pool area that reached the 6th floor, even with noise cancelling fans. Cast members were using a very loud microphone, too, and this was during normal nap time for kids...1-3pm. The food court they share with the Contemporary is simply awful. Food was all sitting in steamer bins or microwaved.
Pros:
Beautiful hotel, fabulous locationCons:
Pool area noise travels, terrible quick food courtReviewed by mg0914 Review Date: 02/03/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
12/29-1/4 family of four in a studio with a theme park view.
This was our fourth stay at BLT. You can't beat this place for the location - within walking distance of Magic Kingdom! Everything about our stay was wonderful from beginning to end. We interacted with many cast members - front desk, bell services, restaurant workers, bartenders and others. They were all incredibly friendly, helpful & patient.
Bay Lake doesn't have a quick service restaurant it's true. But it's literally a five minute walk to the Contemporary so I'm not sure why this is even mentioned as an issue.
It's a beautiful hotel just to walk around at. You've got Bay Lake on one side and MK on the other. The monorail's going by overhead, you have a view of the Grand Floridian across the lake. There's no doubt about it - this is our favorite hotel.
We ate at the quick service, Contempo Cafe twice and the food is really good for a quick service restaurant. There's plenty of seats too. The gift shops have pretty much everything you're looking for (except for resort items - don't know why but Contemporary is one of the few hotels with no resort items).
Buses ran on time for us. It's always hit or miss when you're in WDW but we never waited long. It was tight at times in our little studio but that's okay. We're used to it. We usually get a studio to maximize our points - especially at Christmas time when points are at a premium!
Everything in the room worked well. Beds are super comfortable - as comfortable as any we've slept on at WDW. Bathroom setup isn't great but the "pantry" area has plenty of room - lots of draws and shelf space. While people packed MK on NYE we watched the fireworks from our balcony.
Awesome time as always at BLT!
Pros:
staff, location, roomCons:
n/aReviewed by simg1f Review Date: 01/13/2014
Rating: (6) Recommended
Between 10/12/13-10/19/13, my party and i stayed at Bay Lake Towers.
We have stayed at this hotel in the past and were excited to return.
The experience that we had at this establishment this time around was positive overall.
While some of the staff members at this resort were incompetent and the door handle to one of the doors to one of the rooms broke, the decor of this hotel was gorgeous and clean.
I'd definitely stay at this establishment again and would recommend it to others.
