Reviews of Boardwalk Villas (Disney Vacation Club)
Reviewed by thenardier1500 Review Date: 09/23/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We had a really lovely 2 bedroom preferred view villa from 8/23 - 8/30. The room was quite nice, although I think I definitely prefer the room layout at Bay Lake Tower, our home resort. There were only 4 in our group, so having 2 bathrooms between the 4 of us wasn't a major deal. With a full villa, though, I could foresee problems. My other issue with the bathroom was the way they were laid out. I took the master bedroom, and shared that bath with my friend in the middle room. Not having a door between the bedroom and the vanity area caused a bit of a privacy issue one night, when the shutters were open by the whirlpool tub.
The location here is great. The walk to EPCOT was as easy as you could imagine. We didn't try the walk to Hollywood Studios, but opted for the boat. It felt a bit tedious, with 2 stops between us and Hollywood Studios, but it was otherwise ok. The busses were much the same, having to always stop at Swan and Dolphin or Yacht and Beach. But, for me, the transportation at WDW is always a recurring issue. So many stops along the way most times.
The atmosphere was great at the Boardwalk. The entertainment was wonderful. We ate at Kouzzina, which I always recommend. We tried the Bakery twice. The first time, the service was absolutely terrible, and one cast member was about as useless as you could imagine. The 2nd time was much improved.
All in all, I definitely recommend the Boardwalk Villas. It wasn't my first choice for the past trip, but we won't hesitate to return.
Pros:
Location, Room Decor, TransportationCons:
Lack of counter service options, bathroom setupReviewed by tjcat98 Review Date: 08/27/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
We arrived at 2pm told our room would be ready in 1/2 hour, never notified us by phone like they said, had to go to the reception desk to get our room keys at 4:00! staff was nice and room was excellent, will not try to check in before 4 pm again and won't use their phone notification that the room is ready they didn't use it!
Pros:
Very nice accomadationsCons:
did not notify us when the room was readyReviewed by jdnwebster Review Date: 08/21/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
I was really concerned about staying here with the mixed reviews. I absolutely loved this resort. We "resort hopped" 3 times on this trip and this place was my favorite. May consider buying points here in the near future. Wish we had more than one night here. Only complaint was the noise at bedtime, easily fell asleep to be awakened at 4:30 by what sounded like either an empty garbage container or laundry cart being moved. Earplugs would solve this and I'd be willing to wear them for this location!
Pros:
Location, view, ambience, cleanCons:
a bit noisy on the BoardwalkReviewed by Peglmt Review Date: 08/11/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
Stayed here on rented points in Sept of '12. We are used to staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a Savanna view room so we were worried if we would be happy at the Boardwalk. We worried for nothing we LOVED the Boardwalk Villas! The room had a nice homey feel with plenty of room for my husband and I and we enjoyed having the kitchenette for a quick breakfast. Our room was directly over Wyland Galleries which to the left gave us a view of the boat dock Crescent Lake and the Yacht and Beach Club resorts. Loved having the option to either walk or take a boat to Epcot and Hollywood Studios.
As much as we loved the resort it isn't without its flaws. For me the worst was having to share a bus with the Yacht & Beach Club and Swan & Dolphin resorts. For the price people pay to stay at these resorts to be packed onto a bus like cattle is inexcusable.
I have to agree with other posters who noted the lack of a counter service restaurant within the resort as being a con. Yes there are numerous dining choices on the Boardwalk itself but it would be nice to be able to get a quick bite to eat without having to go outside and walk a bit.
For my husband and I the pros of this resort far outweigh the cons and we will be staying here again next year.
Pros:
Location, room size, dining options, kitchenetteCons:
5 resorts sharing 1 bus, size of main pool relative to size of resortReviewed by jdduncan Review Date: 06/28/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
My family of three stayed at the Boardwalk Villas at for four nights at the end of June, 2013. We have never stayed at the Epcot ring of resorts before, opting for the Polynesian when we can, but we were all pleasantly surprised by this place. The atmosphere is unlike any other resort on Disney property with the boardwalk always having something going on. We loved the Coney Island-style decor, and the rooms were bigger than expected.
The best part of this resort is the boardwalk, which stays busy through the night. You have a large selection of restaurants to choose from, and even their quick service at Boardwalk Bakery was better than many other resorts. You have great views across the lagoon to the Beach and Yacht Club resorts, and a quick ten minute walk gets you into Epcot.
We loved this spot, and will absolutely stay here again. Some of the best photos we've ever taken at Disney are from the boardwalk at night, which is lit up perfectly for great shots.
Some complain that the noise is a problem here, but we did not experience this. That may be because we are odd, though, because we love hearing the Disney sounds during our trip. Either way, the sound did not keep us up. We took naps in the afternoon so that we could stay out late on the boardwalk before calling it a day. I'm ready to go back!
Pros:
Location, Decor, Beautiful BoardwalkCons:
Uh, only that we can't move in!Reviewed by disneymom211 Review Date: 06/17/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
This is the third time we have stayed at the Boardwalk. There were four of us in a studio and even though it was a little close for comfort we made it work. We stayed here from 5/19-5/22. This resort offers everything. The pool and bar are great and you couldn't ask for a better location. The new and improved Boardwalk bakery is awesome. We love being able to walk to Epcot and taking the boat to Hollywood Studios. You couldn't ask for a nicer resort.
Pros:
great locationCons:
—Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
Stayed in a studio for 5 nights in late May. We arrived at hotel around 3pm and our room was ready. We had to switch rooms after first day due to separate reservations. Our second room was ready before 10am and received a prompt email notification as requested.
We did have issues with our key cards when trying to use the dining plan. When we tried to eat QS lunch at MK it would not accept PIN. Had another problem getting snacks. Snack kiosk said it was a PIN problem. Checked with front desk and they said PIN was ok, but the dining plan was not set-up at check-in correctly? Not sure what the problem was but it was fixed after that and we had no further problems.
Main problem with the Boardwalk is the parking lot. Self parking is a long way from the front door of hotel.
The other issue is the feature pool area. The hot tub was not working very good. The water jets were not all working and the ones that did had the force of a garden hose. Also, only one hot tub in Luna pool area. Most of the time it was swamped by kids because the hot tub is right next to the entrance to the coaster slide. Boardwalk needs to have a second hot tub for the amount of people. They could also use more tables/umbrellas at pool. Only a handful of tables/umbrellas around pool.
They have no self-use refillable mug station at pool! Not very convenient to have to walk to Boardwalk or ask bartender for drink refill.
The resort is located in one of the best spots. Five minute walk to Epcot or 15 minute walk to HS. We used the bus to MK twice and first bus arrived about 1 hour before MK opened. Bus is either shared with Beach Club or Swan/Dolphin. Not too bad if you get on an early bus. The water taxi from HS to Boardwalk can be very slow since you stop at Swan and Beach Club first. We get off at Swan and walk the 3 min to Boardwalk.
Overall it is a nice resort in a good location. Some areas are starting to show their age though. If you enjoy Epcot and HS then this is the place to stay. Other than the location I am not sure the Boardwalk is worth the money when compared to other DVC resorts. if I had to pay cash I would probably not stay here. Until I stayed at the Yacht Club later in our trip I would have gave the Boardwalk a 8 or 9.
Pros:
LocationCons:
ParkingReviewed by 1283alex Review Date: 05/29/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
This is our home resort vacation club but have only stayed here twice. Good location, but need to have an inside casual food place to get a snack, fill up drink mugs, instead of having to walk out onto the boardwalk. Still a nice resort. Boardwalk used to have more entertainment, but that seems to have decreased over the years. Rooms are very nice & overall I would recommend this resort.
Pros:
location to Epcot/Hollywood StudiosCons:
lack close restaurants - counter serviceReviewed by travelwiseotown Review Date: 04/19/2013
Rating: (2) Not Recommended
When checking in, be sure to get keycard pins for all those in your room using the Disney Dining Plan, even your 5 year old. Not charging privileges for kids, just pins for their keycards. We were told teens pins did not work when they tried to use my pin at 3 eateries. These quick service locations should have called the Boardwalk in order to contact us. Took our entire stay to get it straight thanks to the CM who didn't tell us this at check-in. We even asked if it would be a problem with DDP with no charge privileges or pins-the CM replied "no". Should retrain. Concierge could not add park tickets to our key cards after we checked-in. She didn't ask for supervisor help either so we had 2 sets of cards instead of 1 card. Poor training.
Shower did not drain well and finally clogged leaving us in 2 inches of standing water. Fortunately maintenance arrived quickly and solved the problem at 10:30 at night. Maids could easily check showers during room clean-up. House keeping repeatedly referred to guest as "Mama". Very derogatory. Should retrain. Had to battle foreign speaking concierge just to get a supervisor. She couldn't understand the problem we described to her.
Bellman unpacking us cold and unfriendly on arrival. Lots of job seekers can at least force a smile. He should look for noninteracting position like grounds keeping, etc. but even the grounds keepers and maintenance employees tried harder to be friendly.They couldn't speak English well but they knew how to smile and be friendly to guests.
Elevator out several days, jacuzzi at main pool not working and Boardwalk Bakery closed for remodeling during Spring Break. Overnight "guests" either pay $15/day for valet parking or park at the lot closest to employee parking, quite a distance away from guest rooms. Poor Imagineering.
We are DVC members and will stay elsewhere next time, even though Boardwalk is our home resort. With the Downtown Disney remodel, more people may stay at SSR and the Boardwalk can concentrate on being the $600/night Disney resort it should be. Maybe they'll pay a little more to front desk employees who can properly perform their job, problem solve quickly and in a friendly manner. We did find one employee who could do this, so it is possible. If you're not happy with your experience, Disney or otherwise, the best way to bring about change is by saying so.
Pros:
Epcot Resort LocationCons:
Cast Member Training and AttitudeReviewed by stenson4 Review Date: 04/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Stayed in a deluxe studio from March 24th to the 31st. View was of the village green which was very nice but a bit noisy at times. We were able to watch the Easter Candy Scramble on the green on Easter morning right from our balcany. The room was in good condition. This is our DVC home and we love the location as it is a very easy walk to and from Epcot International Gateway. Boardwalk Bakery was under construction so that limited our dining options but we still enjoyed the ESPN club and Kouzina. Only complaint during our stay was only one working elevator at times which left a long back up on the first and second floors. Another issue was the bus from Downtown Disney stopped not only at the Swan and Dolphin but also the Yacht and Beach then the Boardwalk on the way home - long ride and full bus. We will continue stay at this resort and love to call it our home.
