Why DVC Members Stay at Beach Club Villas

Disney Vacation Club Beach Club Villas Sign

Whenever I book a Disney Vacation Club resort, I feel a strange combination of joy, satisfaction, and frustration. I know that I’ll have a magical time during my visit, but the frustration comes from that vague feeling of opportunity cost. Once I choose my resort(s) for that trip, I feel a pang of sadness that I’ll miss out on all the others in the area. 

So, I understand all too well how hard it is to decide where to stay. That’s why I’ve started this series of articles to help others simplify their decision-making. Here are five reasons why DVC members stay at Disney’s Beach Club Villas

The BoardWalk and Surrounding Area

Who doesn’t love a nighttime stroll across a sandy beach? You can do that every night at Beach Club, as Disney built this hotel’s campus to resemble a real beach. That’s not the remarkable part, though. 

You can walk a few hundred feet in one direction or another. Soon, you’ll discover a resort with an entirely different theme. Right beside Beach Club is the nautically themed Disney’s Yacht Club Resort. 

Should you venture across the bridge to the other side of the lake, you’ll discover something even more impressive. Disney has built an entire BoardWalk here, which you’ll overlook from Beach Club.

I warmly encourage you to visit BoardWalk regularly during your trip. It’s an ideal place to grab a bite to eat or nurture a beverage during the day. At night, the place comes alive as roving performers put on shows for the tourists. You’ll also find multiple nightclubs and Table Service restaurants here, including the popular Flying Fish and the new sensation, The Cake Bake Shop. 

Disney’s BoardWalk Villas is just up the stairs from these restaurants. So, when you stay at Beach Club, you have access to two other resorts, a pair of lovely walking areas, and a bunch of nighttime entertainment. 

The Disney Skyliner

At its core, Beach Club’s primary appeal stems from two specific amenities. One is logistics, as the hotel arguably offers the best location at Walt Disney World.

Riviera Resort Skyliner Gondola at Disney World

Courtesy of Disney Tourist Blog

When you exit the hotel, you’ll turn toward the bridge that connects to the BoardWalk. When you resist the temptation to visit that area, you’ll keep walking for a few minutes until you encounter a new development. 

For many years now, this area has hosted a boat dock where guests can travel to several hotels as well as Disney’s Hollywood Studios. More recently, Disney added a new feature that I consider far superior. 

The Disney Skyliner is an intricate gondola system connecting two Disney theme parks and six hotels. One of the stations sits parallel to EPCOT, and it’ll transport guests to Hollywood Studios. Along the way, you’ll discover stops at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort and Disney’s Riviera Resort. You can also keep traveling to Disney’s Art of Animation Resort and Disney’s Pop Century Resort. 

Basically, this gondola swoops you up into the sky where you look down at Disney from above and notice small details you’d otherwise miss. Even better, you skip all the traffic as you fly over the roads on your way to your destination. This is a revolutionary form of transportation for Disney, and it’s only about a five-minute walk from Beach Club!

The International Gateway

When you walk to the Disney Skyliner station, you’re also just a few steps away from the International Gateway. This is the less heralded back entrance to EPCOT. 

Frankly, that’s a downside of the Skyliner. In the before times, DVC members knew that they could enter EPCOT through the back door virtually nobody else used. Now that the Skyliner is there, exponentially more guests use the International Gateway. Our little secret is out!

Still, that doesn’t take away from its greatness. When you exit Beach Club and head to the International Gateway, you know one thing to be true. In a matter of ten minutes or less, you’ll be walking inside EPCOT’s World Showcase. That’s a happy realization at any time, but it’s that much better during an EPCOT festival.

Staying at Beach Club provides you with near-instant access to all the delicious foods and beverages on display at these exhibitions. Also, should you *ahem* overindulge, you’ll have a thankfully short walk back to the resort. 

The Table Service Restaurants 

When we discuss dining at Beach Club Villas, two restaurants spring to mind. The first is Cape May Café, a place I often joke that I can smell a mile before I enter. Yes, it’s a seafood place, but that’s only true at night. 

In the morning, Cape May Café hosts a delightful breakfast buffet named Minnie’s Beach Bash Breakfast. It’s the sunniest breakfast on property, as the colorful beachy pastels perfectly set the mood for your morning. Minnie and friends will come to your table and entertain you, while the buffet menu will allow you to pack protein before your park visit.

At night, Cape May Café switches to its seafood buffet, which costs $47 per adult and $27 per child. That’s surprisingly affordable for an excellent seafood meal.

Personally, I prefer a different restaurant, though. One of my family’s traditions is eating lunch at Beaches & Cream Soda Shop, an eatery styled to make it feel like you’re walking onto the set of American Graffiti. 

Photo Courtesy of DisneyTouristBlog.com

This place serves burgers and fries as entrees, but you’re really there for the ice cream. Beaches & Cream sells THE most decadent dessert item in Disney history, the iconic Kitchen Sink, whose ingredients you can read here. Yeah, it’s a lot.

One of the best parts of dining here occurs when someone orders the Kitchen Sink. Cast Members sound an alarm, and sirens go off as the server delivers a humongous bowl of ice cream. Watching this unfold is pure joy. 

Not coincidentally, Beaches & Cream is one of the most popular eateries among DVC members. That’s because we’ve all had so many happy moments here. 

Stormalong Bay 

The other reasons I’ve listed here are tremendous, especially the logistics. Even so, for decades now, there’s been one primary reason to stay at Beach Club Villas. It’s the exclusive access to Stormalong Bay, the best pool at any Walt Disney World hotel.

Stormalong Bay extends the theme of a beachy vacation to the pool area. When you swim, you’ll quickly realize your toes are curling in the sand-bottom floor. It’s that realistic!

Courtesy of Disney Tourist Blog

Honestly, calling Stormalong Bay a pool undersells it. You’ll often hear it described as closer in spirit to a small water park. It’s a spacious area that remains crowded due to its popularity. 

Thankfully, when it gets too crowded, ample seating allows you to grab a drink at Hurricane Hanna’s and enjoy a bit of sunbathing. Alternatively, you can just grab a raft and circle around the lazy river for an hour or two. 

This place is so popular that Disney enforces the “no pool hopping” policy more strictly here than anywhere else I’ve seen. Generally, another guest will just let you past the security at other DVC pools. At Stormalong Bay, Cast Members check MagicBands to protect the value of the amenity for hotel guests. 

This pool is amazing and justifies a Beach Club stay on its own, as you’ll see here:

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