On 9/29, we checked in to Port Orleans Riverside for one night and got a room in the Alligator Bayou section for our first night after the drive down. It was nice (and cheap with the AP discount). But it’s not a DVC 1-BR villa!

The next morning, we checked out of POR and went over to Old Key West. We were happy to find our room was immediately available when we checked-in at 10:30am.

We enjoyed the large size of the 1-BR at OKW, as well as the quiet, lushly landscaped setting. It was also nice to have our car parked just outside of the room. This was our first time with our car at WDW. We drove everywhere and didn’t rely upon Disney transportation at OKW.

OKW is simply too large and spread-out for us, and we missed the amenities at the DVC resorts we own at (air-conditioned indoor hallways, room service, valet parking, great restaurants). We feel the same way about SSR (which we visited and had lunch at).

DVC left us voicemails about adding on points at OKW (good through 2057), but we prefer the resorts attached to a deluxe resort rather than the condo-style resorts of OKW and SSR. To each his own, I guess.

We decided to go over to Epcot on 10/1 for the 25th anniversary festivities. We enjoyed the opening ceremonies and picked up some limited-edition retro Epcot gear. My wife also picked up a bunch of limited-edition 25th anniversary Epcot pins. We also ate (and drank) our way around World Showcase for the Food & Wine festival.

Amazingly, on this trip, we spent very little time at the parks. We spent most of our park time at Epcot, 3 hours at AK and just 2 hours at Disney Studios. This was the first trip we’ve been on where we never stepped foot in the MK. We spent most of our time relaxing at the resort we were staying at, or visiting the other DVC resorts.

On Friday, we checked out of OKW and went over to the Villas at the Wilderness Lodge. Again, we were surprised to find our room was immediately available. Ah, we love this resort! We only spent one day here, but it was the best day of our trip. We just enjoy the magnificently rendered theme of the WL, and the peaceful and romantic setting.

The only negative of this trip was that it was hot (low 90’s) and very humid and it rained a lot.

We had absolutely some of the best dining experiences we’ve had at WDW, with great meals at Artist Point, Yachtsman Steakhouse, Jiko, Flying Fish Café, and Spoodles.

The whole time, we didn’t read a newspaper, watch TV or connect to the Internet. Upon our return home, we were pleasantly surprised to find out about the new Oahu resort Disney announced during our vacation.

We’re excited to be going back to WDW this Dec 1-9 to stay at the AKV with a savannah view. We’ll probably spend several mornings gazing at the animals and spent every evening gazing at all the Christmas decorations and lights at the parks and resorts. I can’t wait!
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I agree with you, We've tried all of the DVC resorts (except AKLV) and there just seems to be something more magical in the ones attached to the deluxe hotels. I noticed you have several home resorts. Have you ever had any trouble combining your points to make one reservation? ex-if the time frame windows for booking fall in different months, etc. just curious, we are thinking of adding on, but not sure how it would work using points from 2 different home resorts.

I agree with you, We've tried all of the DVC resorts (except AKLV) and there just seems to be something more magical in the ones attached to the deluxe hotels.

I noticed you have several home resorts. Have you ever had any trouble combining your points to make one reservation? ex-if the time frame windows for booking fall in different months, etc. just curious, we are thinking of adding on, but not sure how it would work using points from 2 different home resorts.

I book all my DVC reservations at the 11-month window to ensure I get the ressie I want. For my trip next Oct, I'm booking 5 nights at BCV and 3 nights at BWV.

The main reason I own multiple resorts is that I want the 11-month booking advantage of the Home Resort Priority Period in order to make it easier to get the resort I want, at the time I want, with the accommodations I want. This reduces any possible frustration at the 7-mo window, or having to “settle” for another reservation while missing out on the one you really had your heart set on.

I want a better chance of getting VWL at Christmas, and BCV and/or BWV during the F&W festival. Thus, I purchased points at those resorts. This won't guarantee me a reservation, but it does guarantee that when I do try to book at the 11-month window, I am only competing with other owners and not every single DVC member to get a prime reservation.

So if you are in the 11mo window for lets say, bcv and want to stay 8 nights in a 2 bedroom during a peak season, would you have to borrow ahead from next years BCV or would they allow using 50 from AKV to make up the balance? Or would the stay have to be split between the two?

So if you are in the 11mo window for lets say, bcv and want to stay 8 nights in a 2 bedroom during a peak season, would you have to borrow ahead from next years BCV or would they allow using 50 from AKV to make up the balance? Or would the stay have to be split between the two?

You would have to borrow points from next year.

If you have more than one home resort, all vacation points being used to make a reservation during the Home Resort Priority Period must be associated with that home resort. That is, you cannot combine points from multiple resorts to book one resort during the Home Resort Priority Period. You may combine all the points you have at all your home resorts and book any DVC resort only at the 7-month window.<O:p</O:p

Thanks! thats exactly what I needed to know!