Boardwalk villas

I am wondering if anyone has experience renting DVC points and staying at the Boardwalk Villas. It seems like a steal, for the week I am targeting it would be like $1500. I am also considering Beach Club, Bay Lake Tower or I might chicken out in the DVC altogether and do Port Orleans. Those options are all a little more expensive so I am just wondering what folks think about Boardwalk (or any of the others). I haven’t done DVC rental before, but from what I have read on here it seems like a good deal going through one of the brokers.

We did it last Halloween. I’m literally going to bed right now, but I’ll say this. It was a great deal, and we loved the hotel and it’s location. Would definitely do it again. Any specific questions I can reply tomorrow.

We stayed at BW Inn (regular hotel room) years ago (2001, I think) and love the location, the pool and the general ambiance of the resort. The only negative for us was the layout which was confusing at times. Another thing that might bother people: the quick service dining options at the resort are limited.

We have a split stay booked at Boardwalk Villas and Bay Lake Tower using DVC rental points for this May. If you want to book a standard view studio (for BW or BLT), make sure you put in your reservation request in before the 11 month mark. These studios fill up as soon as the 11 month window opens due to their low nightly rates and limited supply. Both broker companies that we have worked with (David’s and DVC Rental Store) allow customers to put in their requests in up to 12 months in advance of the check-in day.

The major disadvantage of renting points is that you cannot modify or cancel your reservation after booking it. DVC Rental Store does have a points protection plan that you can buy (which is like insurance) that allows you to make changes; however this doesn’t allow for any coverage of costs if you have to modify a day before (like one might if a hurricane rolled in). You would need to purchase insurance to cover the cost of a last minute cancellation.

Our first experience with renting points:
Last May, we stayed in studios at Animal Kingdom - Kidani, Boulder Ridge and Old Key West using point brokers. We used David’s and DVC Rental Store. Both companies were great. David’s was $1 less per point so we booked our initial BR reservation there. We put in the request with David’s at 12 months out so that they could try to secure our preferred resorts/room as soon as the 11 month booking window opened. Our choice was a AKL value studio (these are virtually impossible to book as there are very few). David’s was unable to secure the reservation because they didn’t have an owner with the points and the value studios were booked by the end of the day. They were able to modify our request to one of our other top choices (BR, Beach Club, Boardwalk). We opted for BR because they had the points to book it that day. Plus, we had never stayed at WL and really wanted to give it a try.

Several months later, we extended our trip on both the front and back ends. We need 2 extra night before BR and 2 after BR. For both these reservations, we wanted studios. The total cost for 2 nights was under 50 points. David’s does not handle stays that are <50 points a night. DVC Rental Store does. They charge a $1 more per point for these reservations, but the nightly rate was still under what our regular Disney alternatives. We were between 4 and 5 months from checking date at this point so we didn’t have to pay the home resort premium. Options were somewhat limited, but we were able to secure reservations at AK - Kidani savanna view studio.

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I haven’t stayed at Boardwalk, but want to for our next trip. I have used David’s twice and love them!

We rented points last year for a 2 bedroom at OKW. We used the DVC rental store - was such a smooth process. Looking at renting again for our next trip. Can’t decide if we want the space and laid-back feel of OKW again, or the location of BWV or BCV…

We have used DVC Rental Store twice, first at BCV and then BWV. Both were for early April, and we booked at 8 months out. Both requests were filled quickly. We had no issue either time with the DVC Rental Store, Katrina is our agent and she is great to work with. The location of BWV is lovely, we had a top floor room with a view of the waterway to HS and the Swan Hotel across. It was quiet and a greal location. The hallways are very long at BWV though, that was probably the only negative there.

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Thank you all for the feedback, that is very helpful

We had a great time staying at BWV. For a simple layout it can be confusing, especially because my DD was in a wheelchair so we had to use elevators instead of stairs. I love that you can walk to Epcot and HS or take the boats and now the skyliner. For the boats we always caught the boat from the Swan and Dolphin since it is the last stop on the way to HS.

Foot-wide there is some QS, just not all in one place, rather your options are scattered around the Boardwalk. Loved the night time boardwalk entertainment and Epcot fireworks.

We also made good use of the community center. Great place to chill away from the parks, especially if some.in your group are napping.

While the water slide is great, I am not a huge fan of the pool, I find it too small.

All the said, for the price I paid renting points, I thought BWV was a steal!

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We rented points through David’s and stayed in a studio at BWV last July. The location was fabulous! I loved being able to walk or boat to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Not having to take buses to 2/4 of the parks was the main reason we booked there, and I have to say it was so worth it! The lobby of BWV is beautiful, and we also enjoyed being on the Boardwalk. We don’t use the quick service at resorts, anyway, so this wasn’t a negative for us. Boardwalk Bakery is also a nice place to stop, and is open early and closes late.

The only negative for us was our actual room. It was confusing to get to (you had to exit the building and go back in in order to reach it, and we got lost the first night). I also wish I had made a request for an upper level room because we were put on the ground level, and if I’m paying for deluxe I want a balcony. But that was my fault. Our room was also dark with mismatched lighting (yellow light and white light coming from different fixtures), and the shower area was tiny and badly in need of an update (the showers at both values I’ve stayed at recently were much nicer). But I booked BWV through David’s again for June, so overall I still highly recommend it. It’s indeed a steal for the rental price!

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