Bay Lake Tower Owners Thread

We purchased our BLT contract using DVC Resale Market (Thanks guys!) last summer. We will be checking in for our first time in three weeks. Being a first timer, I have so many questions about general logistics, such as what's in the kitchen versus what I should order from Publix. I feel silly asking...
Is there salt and pepper in the room? Are there coffee filters or any condiments? Should I pick up ketchup or butter? If we have a bottle of wine, is there a corkscrew in the room?
I guess I'm looking for a listing of what to expect to be in the villas?

We will likely only eat breakfast and snacks in the room.

Thanks to DVC Fan. I've watched a ton of their videos and we are so excited to step foot into our DVC room for the first time.

Welcome home! No condiments, no salt and pepper , no coffee filters. Kitchen is stocked with cooking utensils, cups, pots pans etc but no food based consumables(they will supply coffee pods but I always bring some filters and ground coffee). They will supply you with paper towels hand soap, dish soap etc. we find cooking anything more than some microwaveable hotdogs or nuggets for the kids to be too much a chore but some love it. The market store will have some eggos and other similar simple breakfast options for the room.

Thank you. That helps a ton with our planning.

Welcome Home! just gotta add, We always rent a car and hit the grocery store on the way to WDW. Usually pickup breakfast stuff, condiments, bottled water, snacks, etc. Sandwich fixens are also great as is hot dogs, pot pies, frozen pizza and the like. Having the option of coming to the room for a snack and a snooze before heading back to the parks in the evening is priceless. We almost always go for a 1 br because of the kitchen and laundry. Not to mention the space. Feels much more like home.

We also really love BLT. We bought sight unseen. Must say we were really disappointed when we first walked into the lobby. Not much there. The hallways were also a bit bland. HOWEVER, that soon disappeared. It is a short walk to the Contemporary for meals and shopping. Very short walk to MK. Rooms are fantastic and very spacious. In the 2 br units there are 3 bathrooms! A real boon to mankind. We have had lake view and theme park view. Can't go wrong with either. Did I mention the short walk to MK? I just dont see what all the hate is about. Enjoy!

We will be stopping at Publix to get breakfast items, snacks, and some soft drinks. I'll add coffee filters to my list.
I'm so excited for the walk to MK, but maybe more excited for non-bus-waiting-in-line walk home after the MK closes.

All SO good to know, thank you for asking the questions Chris K! Hadn’t even really thought about those things and our first DVC stay in a one bedroom ANYwhere is in 4 weeks. Will be cheering, watching, and learning right behind you!

If you get coffee filters, you should get coffee as well. They provide coffee in filter packs, but those only make 8 cups not 12. The coffee maker is a 12 cup maker, Go Figure. I used 2 filter packs to make a whole 12 cup pot. Worked pretty well. I can't remember if the coffee makers also use Keurig pods as well. You can always get more coffee sent up from the front desk. Or just get your own coffee and filters.

BLT is one of our favorite resorts. Very spacious 1br villas, easy walk to MK. What is not to like! It is a real oasis. People don't like the understated theming. I get that, but the rooms after refurb are great. I also love the monorail to Epcot. Much better ride than the bus!

Hope you love it as much as we do. and Welcome Home!!!

Had a great stay at BLT last weekend. Just DW and I. We had a resort review room (7306) but we could see Space Mountain to the left from our balcony and the water straight out. So peaceful just having the balcony door open.

We were just settling in when we heard the fireworks going off the first night. Went on to the balcony, timed up the music on a youtube video and watched the fireworks. Wonderful moment for our trip.

Location was great. Although it does take a bit to get to Epcot using the monorail.

I have been looking at buying a second contract resale and we are now really considering paying a bit more to get a BLT contract.

That sounds like a wonderful stay! Not sure if you knew, but you could get the fireworks soundtrack on the TV. I believe it’s channel 105.

I always loved the restaurant mix at Bay Lake / Contempo ... Especially since they replaced the Wave with Steak 71. Great mix of quick service / high end / character dining. Plus - California Grill is one of my favorite lounges anywhere to just hang-out in.

Thank you for that info! Didn't know that but will definitely take advantage next time we are there.

You're welcome! It's easier than syncing a YouTube video from your phone!

Access to MK and Monorail make it #1 to me!

NEW Refurbished Bay Lake Tower 2-Bedroom Villa Tour! (2026)

We’re back at Bay Lake Tower and this time we’re stepping inside a FULL 2 bedroom villa 👀

After touring the studio and 1 bedroom, we had to see how the refurbishment carries over and this one might be the biggest upgrade yet. Perfect for families or larger groups looking to stay just steps from Magic Kingdom 🏰

Would you book this for your next Disney trip?

Watch the full tour here:

Such a big fan of the Joey Chou art! BLT is on our short list for our next contract!

It's easy to forget how close BLT is to WL, but I now realize BLT has a decent view of Lakeshore Lodge too!

Just booked my next BLT trip and am excited to have snagged a Resort View Studio! For 45 points, I got 3 nights in May along the monorail loop--not shabby at all. You definitely can't do that with the VGF or Poly points chart.

We Love BLT! Great Points Chart, Great Location, Fantastic Refurb, What is not to love. Our next trip is in October for MNSSHP. Doing a split stay with BWV. MK at BLT and Epcot/HS at BWV. Usually go with our grandkids to BLT in a 2 bedroom, this is our first trip solo in a 1 BR. Only thing we dont like about the refurb is they took away some seating and the Murphy beds are terrible couch!

That sounds wonderful! BLT/BWV is one of my favorite split stay combos. Gotta agree about the Murphy beds though--as much as I like the bed part, especially for my son, the couches are never particularly comfortable at any of the resorts.

It really shows how much LSL changes the shoreline and skyline. Not for the better. I really wonder how transportation will be impacted with 900+ rooms coming on line. When we stay at BLT, we generally just go to MK. No Disney transportation required. We do take the Monorail over to the other resorts, but not a peak times. The Bus to AK is not all that bad, and we have done that as well. The Contemporary does (or did) share a bus with WL. Is this going to change? It really remains to be seen I guess.

I'm pretty sure that WL will not share a bus with LSL if it's nearly comparable in size to SSR, which gets its own buses.

I was not implying that it would, sorry if I gave that impression The size of the resort will make transportation interesting at the least. More busses and more boats for sure. I dont think it will impact BLT directly. just everything over all.

Ah, sorry for misreading. Yes, more buses and boats for sure, especially now that we see LSL will have its own dock.

I dont know about most people, but when we stay at BLT we tend to avoid the busses. The Contemporary with BLT is around 950 rooms. The Bus situation to AK or HS can be a mad house first thing in the morning. We generally just visit MK or take the Monorail to Epcot. Occasionally we will take a bus to AK. but generally leave that park to when we stay at another resort. We almost always do split stays so we plan park days around where we stay. BLT -> MK, BWV-> Epcot/HS, AKV -> AK. That cuts down on bus travel. We dont always do a three way, so we do bus to AK from BLT or BWV in that case.

Dont get me wrong. I think Disney does a fantastic job moving people around and the busses are well run. But I could start a thread on how the Busses have changed over the years and not for the better. Too many scooters and strollers. I dont like the "new" parameter seating and prefer the old standard type bus seats, etc.

I wonder if LSL will share buses with the WL? I assume the bus route for LSL will go down the access road that currently exists which means they will go right past the WL. Since the WL and Contemporary sometimes share buses (as does FW and the WL) this is not as crazy as it sounds.

I just hope that the bus stop has multiple bays like they do at AKV Jambo and not a single bay like at the contemporary and BWV. With just a single curbside pickup things can get really chaotic. At BWV, for instance we had to wait for a MK bus to load 3 or 4 wheel chairs and scooters before the AK bus could even enter the stop. They finally loaded us at the convention center as there were 3 other buses queued to come in.

I'm sure at times there will be shared routes, but with over 900 rooms and little other transportation options, they may not.

The bus is still going to WL as well, or at least it was when we were there in June.

We bought BLT in Jan 2009 before it opened. We've loved the 1BRs for the size, the windows and the off-center MK views. We also love the short walk to the MK and the monorail access to other resorts.

Ironically when we first bought, BLT was a "high points" stay for us. But since our other (newer) favorites are now Riviera and VGF, BLT is our "budget" stay...unless we're at OKW. 😂

Any tips or tricks for BLT? I'm assuming all dining is in the Contemporary but are there shops or arcades at BLT? The closest I've been to it is the lobby after walking from Magic Kingdom to get an uber.

How is monorail traffic during opening and closing? Is it difficult to get to the TTC during the morning?

Yes, all the dining (minus TOTWL) is in the Contemporary, as are the shops and arcade. I don't often travel during peak times for opening and closing, but here are a few other tips and tricks that may be helpful if you haven't stayed at BLT before.

As @LDLC12 said, all dining and shopping is in the Contemporary, but it's such an easy walk. I love the vibe in the Contemporary.

We find ourselves walking to the MK, because BLT is closer to the park entrance than the Contemporary anyway. Plus the Resort Monorail goes away from the MK when coming from the Contemporary. And then you get off at the monorail station and still have to walk a bit to security. So we find it simpler just to walk straight from BLT. Also, we're fresh and full of energy at that point. We often ride the monorail back when leaving the park 🫠

Another thing about dining and shopping is how easy it is to pop into the MK, the Poly, or GF (or even Wilderness Lodge or FW) for a meal. BLT is very well connected in that sense.

Completely agree! We stayed at BLT all the time when our kids were little. It was so nice not to have to fold up the stroller!

We love being able to walk to MK. Contempo Cafe is just a short walk away. Our kids love watching the monorails go by.

I really like the Joey Chou artwork too!

Wow late to this party.. We took our grandkids and their parental units (our DD and soninlaw) to BLT in a newly refurbished 2 bedroom theme park view. It was a big step up from pre-refurbishment. Love the new hard surface floors,, everything is nice and fresh. The wall art is fantastic.

Couple of things that were not so great. The Murphy beds are pretty great beds, but suck at being a couch. They took away some of the seating to put in both of the fold down beds. That was pretty disappointing. Also the sliders in the living room and bedrooms to the balconies were very hard to open. Almost impossible to operate.

The updated lobby was also a big step up. Very open and fresh. The old lobby was felt a bit cramped to me.

Over all we are really happy with BLT. We also own at AKV and BWV. We love all our home resorts. Each one has its own vibe and life. Really happy we bought there.