Anyone regret buying before staying? Leaning Poly now...

[TexasChick123]

We have three kids—a girl, nearly 16 and boy girl twins 10. We bring a travel cot, which the kids fight over. That way each gets their own bed. Their favourite resort is Boardwalk, which doesn’t even have a fifth sleeping surface!

Tell me about it! We’re doing 2 nights at BCV in a 1BR and 3 at BLT in a 1BR this summer. My kids will think it’s an upgrade staying at BLT with the extra sleeping surface. We have some late nights planned for the 2 BCV nights, so our hope is that they’ll pass out as soon as we get back instead of fighting/arguing.

 

[DadDVC]

We are also in a similar situation family wise. We have a 7, 4, and newborn. We have stayed at Poly, BLT and Copper Creek with BLT and Poly being our favorites. I am currently in the process of closing on two BLT contracts totaling 320pts. I did this with the idea that it would get us a 2BR at BLT for a week and/or two studios at Poly should we ever need them. I should point out that it is probably overkill at this point based on our kids ages, but I like planning ahead.
I love the fact that both are MK resorts and on the monorail. We have no issue taking it to Epcot or taking the bus to AK/HS.

 

[€lairebear]

Like what Texaschick123 said. No one can tell you where is the best place to buy. We bought ccv sight unseen and worst is we have never been to wdw before. We are a family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids). We have only been to Disneyland prior to purchasing dvc. It was random after staying at aulani I picked up the phone one day and bought ccv over the phone did research because the architect for grand cal is the same, watched tons of videos and read many forums before buying ccv in 2018. We had our first welcome home stay and first wdw trip ever on dec 2019. We loved it! I was nervous at first because I second guess what if it’s true that I should’ve bought on a monorail resort. We resort hopper but still love ccv best for mk. What might work for us may not work for others as everyone have diff likes and dislikes and that’s ok! So thankfully ccv worked out for us. I also ended up buying grand Californian on the resale market last November and added on at riviera. Personally for us we just love the vibe of the wilderness lodge and location (love taking the boats and we don’t care for the monorails but we love the skyliner). So it’s purely up to you plus I’ve always loved the rustic feel of things and my husband loves the woodsy lighting of ccv. If we do stay on the monorail our pick would be the poly love the food and I guess compared to grand Floridian and blt, we liked the decor at poly best. What our preference and logic for purchasing at a home resort may not be the same for others. I know riviera decor is unlike wilderness lodge however I love the room layout and how spacious it is, length of contract and proximity to Epcot and hs via skyliner (I know some folks will disagree on my take but that’s just my opinion and I don’t expect everyone to feel the same way). The good thing about dvc is that they have resorts to cater for everyone! Hopefully you can fig our what you think your family like to call home.

 

[pineapplepalms]

Another option is to buy a more economical resort like SSR resale and target staying in 1BRs or larger, since at this point you should have good options during spring and summer. You could try out different DVC resorts using that contract and see if there's somewhere else you might want to add on. If you dislike owning SSR, you could resell it later and buy where you really want.

We bought a good amount of SSR resale points and have used them at various resorts (mostly at VGC in 1BRs), and we also recently stayed in a renovated SSR 2BR in Congress Park. I really enjoyed our stay and loved the proximity to DS, so I definitely wouldn't mind being "stuck" there.

As for buying before staying... I guess we've done a mix for our home resorts:

CCV: Took advantage of a DVC promo for prospective members to stay in a 1BR at a discounted rate as long as we attended a tour. Loved our stay and bought in during the tour. With incentives the price made sense to us, and WL all decked out for Christmas basically sold itself.

SSR: Didn't stay before buying. Bought it since it's an economical option if you want to try out all the resorts over time like we do.

BWV: Had stayed on the hotel side at BC and BW before and the Crescent Lake area is our favorite, so we knew we wanted to buy a BWV contract. Have since stayed several times on the DVC side in 1BRs and a GV and love it!

VGF: Stayed in a 1BR using our CCV points and fell in love, so added on there too. So far it's turned out to be necessary to own there when we stayed in early December.

RIV: Haven't stayed there yet and bought with incentives before the resort even opened! Have since visited a bunch and love it, and have our first stay coming up soon.

We stayed at Poly and really loved the resort (pool, restaurants, fireworks, Dole whip!), but didn't love the room since we bought DVC for the larger villas. We've been mostly staying in 1BRs with our 1 and 3 year olds, and we especially love the 1BRs with the Murphy bed which has been perfect for our 3 year old. The kitchen and in-room laundry have been amazing. So many messes that need cleaning at this age, and it's nice to not have to wait for a machine (when we stayed at Poly, a bunch of machines were down and it was a pain to wait for a free one). Having the kitchen means we can order groceries and have some meals in the room at a dining table with a high chair. Plus it's great to not have to tiptoe around in the dark after putting them to bed since they're sleeping in a separate room.

We stayed at AKV-Kidani for the first time recently, and I have to say people aren't joking when they talk about those never-ending hallways! If we stayed there again I think we'd stay at AKV-Jambo instead even if it means missing out on the extra bathroom, especially since most of the amenities are in that building. Savanna view is great and we love the restaurants, so I can definitely see why many love it even though it's not our favorite.

 

[mamaofsix]

I'd only request connecting studios at Poly. I've heard they are virtually guaranteed, especially if you book at 11 months. Virtually all of their studios connect so it's not a difficult request.

And that's the main reason I don't like most 1 bedroom options. Most one bedrooms are three sleeping surfaces for 5 people. My kids do not sleep well together. They kick and toss and turn. And because of their sex/age difference, it makes it even trickier. Oldest is a boy, followed by a girl three years later, followed by another boy 3.5 years after that. I don't think my older two will be as comfortable sharing a bed when they get older, and the two boys are 6.5 years apart so that's a little weird too.

I agree with you that a 2 bedroom or connecting studios is best! Funny how many people are trying to sell you on a 1 bedroom even though you've stated several times that it's not what you want. 1 bedroom is way too crowded for 5 people in my opinion.

We have 6 kids and even a grand villa seems tight for us. My kids are not great at sharing beds, lol...

 

[_auroraborealis_]

The problem with virtually guaranteed is ..it is not guaranteed. No booking category. No contractual promise.

Relying on virtuality through multiple management changes over even 10-15 years, let alone 40+, has hazards.

 

[Hopfather28]

Not an owner but a prospective buyer here. My wife and I have been bouncing between Poly, AKV, BLT or Riv direct as our potential buys. We rented for 9 nights at Poly this past summer. We have 2 kids. Daughter is 4 and son was 7 at the time. We brought my MIL along as well.

I think if we were staying in the room more the studio would have been small. But I will say even with 3 adults and 2 kids at Poly it wasn't bad. Laundry was a pain being outside the room. And obviously it would have saved us some money on food having a full kitchen. That said we like to eat out on vacation so I'm not sure we would have benefited that greatly. All that said with kids growing we are leaning toward more points so we can stay 1BR or even 2 BR in future stays. We are planners so for us we will almost always be booking right at the 11 month window so availability isn't our biggest concern. If I wasn't a planner I'd already own at AKV because of resale market price and point per night price.

 

[BuzzLightyearDad]

We have 4 kids that are older teens now but we bought at BCV when they were little ... enough for a 2 bedroom every other year or so. Then we added on BLT when it was built ... again enough for a 2 bedroom every other year. We loved both and I would definitely not want studios like Poly with that many kids. The full kitchen, laundry and common space is just so much better and relaxing especially as they get older and need more room. We’ve stayed at the Grand Floridian before and loved it and frankly would now pick it over BLT for a monorail resort. But it’s definitely more expensive in terms of both price per point and points per night.

My personal favorite is still BCV because we love being near Epcot in the evenings for dinner. But when the kids were little, that walk to the MK and back at the end of they day to BLT was key.... especially when the transportation was clogged.

 

[MrsP833]

Check out BLT or GFV. This way, you're still close to Poly but with way more room layout options. We own at BLT (bought before staying there), and we are a family of 5 with three young kids (8, 5, 3). I've got to tell you that in-room laundry is clutch and a separate space for dining is great.

I hear ya. I love Poly too, but at BLT or GFV you're just a walk or monorail stop away, and with much better room choices. Good luck choosing!

 

[bananapepper]

Check out BLT or GFV. This way, you're still close to Poly but with way more room layout options. We own at BLT (bought before staying there), and we are a family of 5 with three young kids (8, 5, 3). I've got to tell you that in-room laundry is clutch and a separate space for dining is great.

I hear ya. I love Poly too, but at BLT or GFV you're just a walk or monorail stop away, and with much better room choices. Good luck choosing!

I do like GFV but the amount of points I’d need to stay there a week is a lot! I also just don’t think the theme is as fun for kids as the poly or AK.

 

[TexasChick123]

I do like GFV but the amount of points I’d need to stay there a week is a lot! I also just don’t think the theme is as fun for kids as the poly or AK.

My kids were way less excited about the animals at AK than I was. Also, my kids loved the pool at Poly, but they couldn’t care less about the theming. Mine love the pools and slides at all the resorts simply because they are pools and slides. Again, each family is different, but I wanted to let you know that you may be disappointed with their reactions as I was.

ETA: I think my kids favorite rooms they ever stayed in were at Portifino Hotel at Universal in the Minions bedroom and beds. The Hawaiian or African theme is lost on a lot of kids, I think. Mine need in your face Art of Animation-type room theming to get excited.

 

[Simba's Mom]

We bought without staying at the resort and really regretted it after our first stay. We bought at the WLV (don't know what they're called these days) and we'd stayed in WL, but not in the Villas. We actually did the sell/buy elsewhere in order to own at a different resort, after we stayed elsewhere. The main reason we switched was so that our yearly dues would go to a resort we loved rather than one we regretted.
However, having stayed at AKV-Jambo, I can say that we'd buy there in a heartbeat if we were in the market for (another) add-on.

 

[GCorbett]

We recently closed on a Poly contract. While I've stayed at the Poly, I've yet to stay at the villa portion. My situation is somewhat similar to yours, except, I expect I will be traveling with my two young children (2.5 y.o. twins) and my sister and her two older children (10 and 13 presently). I may also travel with other friends and their kids, as my husband did his one Disney trip and says there is no way he will set foot in another Disney park. In my case, I got enough for two studios. While connecting studios are not guaranteed, I believe I read that all but two of the 360 studios connect. While you could certainly have an issue, as anything is possible, that sounds like you would be almost as likely to be struck by lightening while walking into the lobby.

Beyond my love for the Poly, one of the reasons that I didn't hesitate is that this is really I think the sweet spot for buying Poly contracts. It's long enough since it originally sold out that a fair number of owners have decided to sell (according to a couple of resale agents I spoke to, this is a typical lifecycle of a DVC resort). So, the prices are pretty competititve (my research indicated that the price is $7-10 less on average since last year at this time). The other thing is that DVC is not buying any back right now. That could of course change at any time. But if you really think you want Poly, you may regret buying somewhere else and then trying to add Poly on later. That is obviously total speculation, but it helped me in my decision. We don't even have our points yet. So, I guess it could be a hell hole, but I'm feeling pretty hopeful.

 

[striker1064]

We bought Poly sight-unseen about 2 years ago. Thought we would love it - Epcot is our favorite park so the TTC proximity was great, decent dining options, good contract length, dues aren't super high, and we have no children so studios-only aren't a problem.

We stayed once and didn't like it. Didn't hate it, but it just wasn't for us. We didn't really care for the theming, Poly is big and spread out, and the monorails are so-so. We sold it and bought AKV after previously staying there because we love the animals, and we also have CCV for a fixed week because we love the resort and theming.

 

[sethschroeder]

Do you think two connecting Poly rooms is sufficient for a family of 5?

I would not count on connecting rooms at Poly. Main reason we removed it from our list and settled at BWV which we have always loved.

AKV got removed because of the terrible bussing and how far removed it was. It would be another 6 or 7 years before we wouldn't have to pay for Minnie vans because of the kids needing car seats.

 

[TexasChick123]

I will say that if you have a car when you go to WDW, then that makes AKV a much more desirable option than without a car for us. While the buses were more frequent than many of the other resorts, the fact that I could not get to any park without using a bus was annoying. If I'd had a car, then I wouldn't have cared.

When we drove to WDW a few years ago and stayed BLT, having a car was amazing when going to any park except MK obviously. We drove to all of them except MK. Getting in a nice, air conditioned car and not being reliant on the Disney buses was pretty great. This was a summer trip, thus the mentioning of air conditioning.

 

[Coffee66]

I will say that if you have a car when you go to WDW, then that makes AKV a much more desirable option than without a car for us. While the buses were more frequent than many of the other resorts, the fact that I could not get to any park without using a bus was annoying. If I'd had a car, then I wouldn't have cared.

When we drove to WDW a few years ago and stayed BLT, having a car was amazing when going to any park except MK obviously. We drove to all of them except MK. Getting in a nice, air conditioned car and not being reliant on the Disney buses was pretty great. This was a summer trip, thus the mentioning of air conditioning.

Driving around Disney is a pain. Stayed at Disney and found that a car is not necessary.

 

[TexasChick123]

Driving around Disney is a pain. Stayed at Disney and found that a car is not necessary.

Agree to disagree. We actually prefer a car to the buses. It's just my opinion and personal preference.

 

[sndral]

I thought I would love the Poly, I’d visited, eaten there, etc.. Then I stayed there and was disappointed. This was a regular room, but the resort is hectic, the longhouse hallways were long and dark, the lobby small and over run with visitors, etc..
I stayed at BWVs in a 1 br. when it was on my list of maybes. I’d stayed at the YC and visited the BW, so thought it would be perfect - but, again I was underwhelmed, we had a villa at the very end of a winding narrow hall w/ low ceilings, there was always a crowd and wait at the one bank of elevators, etc.. I did love the spacious 1 br. villa.
So I would hesitate to buy before staying somewhere based on my personal experiences - but I’m picky, I like what I like and for that kind of money I need to really like what I’m buying.
I own at AKV. I stayed there in a regular room and in a 1 br. at Jambo before I bought there. I love the 1 br.s for 3 of us. I love the choices, value to save points (very tough to get,) club for a splurge (very very tough to get,) standard view at Jambo where you’ll be over the pool or partial savanna view, or savanna view, or Kidani 1 br. if you want 2 bathrooms...and these are real extra bathrooms, unlike the Poly which took up a lot of the sleeping area of the converted hotel rooms to create the split baths - which still only have 1 commode. That said, I wouldn’t recommend AKV sight unseen because many people don’t like things about AKV.
I also own at VGF, and stayed there using my AKV points before I bought, even though I’d previously stayed in a regular GF room & knew I loved the resort. The VGF villas are my favorite. I’ve yet to have a villa where I was unable to see the monorail glide by & this January we watched HEA from our standard view balcony . The open multistory lobby w/ the penguin fountain is a favorite of mine. VGF was a total new build, unlike the Poly which was a redo of the existing longhouses. While I personally love the ambiance of the GF, others find it too stuffy or formal.
If you opt to buy, you’re not wedded forever to that contract, if you find it doesn’t suit, then you can sell and buy elsewhere once you’ve slept around on the points you bought, lots of people have done that. Others buy, decide DVC isn’t right for them, and sell. I bought half the points I needed to start, focusing on a loaded contract, banked and borrowed to get me through and to try out some other options, then bought my second set of points.
Resale is much safer than direct in one sense because you’re risking less cash upfront.
Personally, I’d be a bit cautious at the moment because of the market’s recent hiccup, last recession the value of DVC resale dipped quite a bit.

 

[bananapepper]

I would not count on connecting rooms at Poly. Main reason we removed it from our list and settled at BWV which we have always loved.

AKV got removed because of the terrible bussing and how far removed it was. It would be another 6 or 7 years before we wouldn't have to pay for Minnie vans because of the kids needing car seats.

As PP said, all 350 except maybe 2 studios connect so it’s not something I’m worried about. Especially at 11 months. Maybe last minute booking I’d be worried.