Disney’s Boardwalk Resort & Villas: A Review of Function Following Form
There is an architectural expression that “form follows function”. But in our recent stay at Disney’s Boardwalk & Villas, we found that the unique form that creates Boardwalk’s turn-of-century charm can sometimes stand in the way or at least make one forget that function does really matter. We’ll look at different elements of a stay, from arrival and check in, to rooms themselves. We’ll explore restaurants, shopping and entertainment along the boardwalk. And we’ll look at transportation issues, meetings & conventions, and its position inside the entire Walt Disney World complex.
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Arrival/Check In
- Valet or Hike
- Small But Gorgeous Lobby
- Online Check In: Convenient But Not Helpful
Rooms
- Location: Painful
- Deluxe Studio Villas: Spacious
- First Floor Patio: Cool–Even Efficient
- Deluxe Studio Villas Queen Bed: Not!
- Biggest Problem: All Function/No Form
Resort Transportation
- Magical Express: Going Away
- Disney MinnieVan: Unavailable
- Vehicle Parking: Distant
- Disney Buses: Not Efficient
- Disney Skyliner: Fun but Not Efficient
- Boats: Fun but Not Always Efficient
- Walking: Very Efficient
Food & Beverage
- Trattoria al Forno: Available Breakfast & Dinner
- Boardwalk Bakery: Available All Day
- Pizza Window: Available Noon Through Evening
- AbracadaBar: Available Late Afternoon/Evening
- Leaping Horse Libations: 11:00 Through Evening
- Flying Fish: Unavailable
- Big River Grille & Brewing Works: Unavailable
- ESPN Club: Unavailable
- Funnel Cake Cart: Unavailable
- Boardwalk Joe’s Marvelous Margaritas: Unavailable
- The To-Go Cart: Unavailable
- Belle Vue Lounge: Unavailable
- Ample Hills Creamery: Gone
Recreation
- Pools: Open & Improved!
- Ferris W. Eahlers Recreation Hall: Open
- Fishing/Tennis/Jogging: Available
- Surrey Bikes: Unavailable
- Arcade: Available
- Muscles & Bustles Fitness Club: Available
Shopping & Entertainment
- Disney Character Carnival, Screen Door, Thimbles & Threads: Open
- Wyland Gallery: Unavailable
- Jelly Rolls: Unavailable
- Atlantic Dance Hall: Unavailable
- Nightime Streetmosphere/Entertainment: Unavailable
- Side Show Games: Unavailable
Conference/Conventions
- Not Big But Beautiful
- Only One Entrance
- Outside Walkway
- Great Access to Parking
Property Position
- Epcot: Walking Distance
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios: Walking Distance
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom: Not Bad/Not Great
- Magic Kingdom: Monorail Maybe
- Disney Springs: Not Bad/Not Great
Summary
- The arrival experience is not customer-friendly.
- The lobby is gorgeous but unnecessary.
- Rooms are fairly functional but not fun
- The Boardwalk offers 18 features that require going outside of the hotel.
- 14 of Those 18 features on the Boardwalk are not available
- The boardwalk still offers great recreation.
- The property is sandwiched well between two important Disney parks.
- The conference/convention facility is accessible to visitors, but not those staying on property.
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