It’s no secret among DVC Fans that Stormalong Bay at Disney’s Beach & Yacht Club Resort is one of the best pools on Disney World property which adds to the many reasons Beach Club Villas is such a well-loved Disney Vacation Club resort. Stormalong Bay is the main resort pool, but it’s more like a mini waterpark than a pool. Since we normally do resort and room reviews, I thought it would be fun for DVC Fan to do some pool reviews because who doesn’t love swimming in the Florida sun?
Before I give my opinions, I checked out Disney’s website and found these fun facts about Stormalong Bay.
- Stormalong Bay is three acres in size!
- The water slides sit atop a life-sized shipwreck replica.
- The Flying Jib slide is one of the highest hotel slides at Disney and is 230 feet long.
- The pool compex holds approximately 795,000 gallons of water!
Some other cool features about Stormalong Bay include a sandy bottom, lazy river, a sandy beach area, three whirlpool spas, and lots of unique areas from calm waters, to waterfalls, to areas where the water swirls around you.
One of the many entrances 
The pool is so big, there are a few bridges to help get around. 
There is no shortage of lifeguards here. 
One of the many entances 
Lots of places to sit around the edges 
Sandy beach area 
Lazy river 
Lazy river 
Area where the Flying Jib slide enters the pool 
One of the three whirlpool spas 
A secluded area
Even though we don’t own there, we have been lucky enough to stay at Disney’s Beach Club Villas three times. I do want to make note that for all three of these trips, we have had the rarity of never experiencing a busy Stormalong Bay. Our first stay was during Hurricane Dorian in September 2019, our second was in December of 2019 when it was too cold for most people to swim, and our third was just last month (October of 2020) with the hotel side of Beach Club closed. Those factors contributed to us never fully experiencing what a crowded Stormalong Bay might be like.
With that being said, Stormalong Bay is amazing. I really wish there were more resort pool complexes like this at Disney. It has something for everyone. The sandy beach area is great for children, the lazy river is a great place to float around and unwind, the overall size offers lots of little spots to hang out, and there are tons of ledges to sit along the pool and lounge chairs outside the pool. Stormalong Bay is only available to guests staying at Yacht or Beach Club. At the entrance, a cast member will scan your Magic Band and give you a wristband so it feels very exclusive to be there. At night, the pool area lights come on and create a beautiful setting. While I know it can get crowded during the day, arriving first thing in the morning or swimming later in the evening is usually a great way to avoid crowds. We have had a fantastic time every chance we have gotten to swim at Stormalong Bay. We usually arrive early in the morning and have oftentimes felt like we had the lazy river to ourselves. There are a lot of food options easily accessible from the pool as well. We have grabbed snacks from both Hurricane Hanna’s and The Market at Ale & Compass. You could also grab some to-go from the Beach Club Marketplace, Ale & Compass, or get a sweet treat from the Beaches & Cream walk-up window.
If there are any downsides to Stormalong Bay, there are very few. I know during peak times when we aren’t in the middle of a pandemic, it can get busy. Also, the place is a maze. It can be challenging (but fun) to try to figure out your way around. I did find the Flying Jib slide to be a little on the rough side, but it was still enjoyable. Those things are minor compared to all that Stormalong Bay has to offer. It’s hard not to love this pool and it’s a huge draw to choosing Beach Club Villas if you are lucky enough to find availability. As a DVC owner, we are looking to many more great adventures at Stormalong Bay.
We would love to know your thoughts on Disney’s Stormalong Bay Pool! Drop us a comment below and let us know what you think.
Always loved stormalong bay as a kid, but I will admit that the slide could be rough on your back if ridden multiple times in a row.
I finally experienced staying at the Beach Club Villas last month. And as a big-time pool guy, I can definitely confirm Stormalong Bay is far superior than to everything else on Walt Disney property. I’d still take Aulani’s pool complex in Hawaii. (that lazy river is ridiculously awesome), but nothing else in Disney’s Pool World comes close to Stormalong Bay.
Thanks for bringing back great memories.
We own at BCV because we fell in love with SAB. Although SAB can get busy, we’ve never found it to be too crowded. It’s like Epcot: it’s so big that you can always find room to spread out! It can be hard a pool chair if you’re very particular about where you sit. If you’re not, you can always find a few chairs together, especially if you look upstairs. The only other issue is that it’s so big, you have to keep a close watch if your kids are little and not swimming yet. However, if you’re not picky about where you sit and your kids are old enough to be independent at the pool, SAB is the best pool at Disney, and we’ve never regretted our decision to buy at BCV because of it.
It’s a great pool, if you can find a chair. Stayed at the Beach Club twice for 10 days each trip ( both in August). Unless we went to the pool early in the morning or in the evening, it was EXTREMELY difficult to find more than one lounge chair. We won’t stay there again because of this, even the quiet pools were crowded. We prefer Bay Lake Tower or Copper Creek/Boulder Ridge. Again, a great pool if it’s not crowded, otherwise it’s people on top of each other both in the pool and on the pool deck.
We own all our contracts at BCV and stay there almost every time. As long as it’s warm and sunny, we’re at SAB at some point every day. My wife made me buy the contract, but she was right… as usual. 🙂