3 Resorts- 6 Nights= Crazy??

[KimTinVA]

Hi all! Trying to figure out what I should do. Traveling Jan 1-7 with my two DD14. Originally booked POP, hoping that I would be able to rent points to go Epcot area DVC (that never happened). SO... disney visa discount comes out and I am only able to piece together days. I have done yearly trips to WDW since my twins were babies and have been able to stay or visit most resorts on property. We love staying at Epcot resorts because enjoy walking to HS and Epcot. Have never been to AKL. We now live in California so this will probably be last WDW trip for a long while.

My Options at this point (still stalking website to see if more Visa discount rooms become available)

1. 4 days AKL last 2 days POP
2. 2 days AKL 2 days YC 2 days POP
3. 3 days YC 3 days POP

So confused at this point. We haven't done a split stay let alone a triple split stay. Anyone have any experience?? Would I go crazy switching resorts?

Thanks for any and all thoughts/advice.

 

[KimTinVA]

Just saw option 4. 4 days AKL and 2 days Swan or Dolphin (which just opened up for my dates). Puts me a bit above budget but might be best??

 

[Marionnette]

Hi all! Trying to figure out what I should do. Traveling Jan 1-7 with my two DD14. Originally booked POP, hoping that I would be able to rent points to go Epcot area DVC (that never happened). SO... disney visa discount comes out and I am only able to piece together days. I have done yearly trips to WDW since my twins were babies and have been able to stay or visit most resorts on property. We love staying at Epcot resorts because enjoy walking to HS and Epcot. Have never been to AKL. We now live in California so this will probably be last WDW trip for a long while.

My Options at this point (still stalking website to see if more Visa discount rooms become available)

1. 4 days AKL last 2 days POP
2. 2 days AKL 2 days YC 2 days POP
3. 3 days YC 3 days POP

So confused at this point. We haven't done a split stay let alone a triple split stay. Anyone have any experience?? Would I go crazy switching resorts?

Thanks for any and all thoughts/advice.

The only way that I would do a 3-way split in 7 nights would be if the first stay was a single night before checking into my main resort and the last stay was one night at an airport hotel just prior to an early morning departure. I did it once with 1 night @BCV, 3 nights @AKV and then 3 nights @YC and I never felt settled in at any of the resorts.

If you could switch the order, I would go with POP first followed by the Deluxe Resort just because I think going from Deluxe to Value is going to be a letdown. Which Deluxe you choose would be up to personal preference. AKL is a truly unique experience and if you're not going to be back at Disney for quite some time, this might be the time to try it.

 

[KimTinVA]

That's what I was thinking. Sounded appealing to be able to get a "taste" of everything but the stress of having to get luggage down to front desk every couple days might be too much. Thanks so much for the advice. Thanks also for pointing out the uniqueness of AKL-- that might be the way to go as we have done the other resorts. I might just bite the bullet and budget and do 4 days AKL and 2 days at Swan as that has just opened up. Everything is sold out for marathon wknd. Just hate not taking advantage of the discounted rate at YC-LOL. Oh well, worth saving my sanity.

 

[Shellyb84]

A split would be fine but I wouldn't do a 3 resort split with only 6 nights.

Have you ever stayed at Pop? If so you will have your expectations set accordingly so I don't think it would be too bad to go from Deluxe to Value. It's not ideal to move down tiers and I wouldn't typically recommend it, but as long as you know you like it I think it would be fine.

I would choose YC over AKL any day, so out of your options I vote for option 3.

 

[Yarbogash]

I would do 3 resorts in 6 days if it was just me but with family no. In December we are doing 5 days Pop, 4 days Dolphin and 5 days OKW and that's as tight as I'd want to get with kids in tow.
I think 4 days AKL, 2 days Swan would be fantastic.

 

[KimTinVA]

Great!! Thanks for advice. Not going to do 3 stays. Think I will go AKL and Swan so at least I will still get to be in Epcot resort area for a couple of days. Also won't go too far over budget.

 

[AngiTN]

We are in the process of a 6 night, 3 resort stay right now.
2 nights at YC
1 night at WL
3 nights at SSR

Originally was 5 nights and 3 resorts but we added a night. At least YC had a room
Ours is for a variety of reasons. Availability is just part of it. But Disney makes moving easy. I’m not one bit worried

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We've done splits but never a 3-resort split. Our rule of thumb is we have to spend a minimum of 3 nights at the resort, otherwise, it's too much packing and moving around. I think the AKL/Swan split is a good one. You'll have 4 nights to settle in and enjoy AKL and then 2 nights to focus on the EP/DHS area. Just a note, you won't be able to take DME from Swan back to the airport if that's a concern at all. Also just want to make sure you checked Swan availability directly through the resort or the Swan/Dolphin website. They typically have better availability and better discounts if you book directly.

 

[dkrauss]

Personally my wife and I really enjoy the YC...........plus the pool which your younglings will LOVE!!! I vote YC/Pop

Doug

 

[KimTinVA]

Thanks for the note on magical express. My girls love taking it from the airport ( it's their official start). Not so much leaving - actually think it might be better to take uber from swan so I don't have to leave as early as DME has us go to airport.

 

[KimTinVA]

Thanks for all advice! Booked AKL for 4 and swan for 2. My goal is To see if YC opens up for the weekend where I could just do a split between AKL. We are originally from Cape Cod- so YC has always been one of my favorite resorts!

 

[katmatry]

I like AKL and Swan/Dolphin option best. I would only do an option with POP if it was at the beginning of the trip.

 

[monica9]

Hmm. Well in your case going with just a teenager, it might not be as hard as others who have younger kids. You can pack 3 small bags one for each resort to make it easier. Online check in and the previous resort will bring your bags for you. I don’t think it’s too bad an idea.
We are going 8 nights but will be me dh, dd9 abd dd 13 months. We booked 2 nights ASsp and 6nights akl. I was originally thinking to do 2 nightsASsp, 4 nights akl and 2 nights bc when promotions came out and couldn’t get one for akl for the full 6 nights but decided against it because it would be too much for our family.
But for you, I’d go with it if you aren’t doing a meal plan.
If you decide not to, I’d go with choice 1. If you will never be back at wdw, I’d go with the ak theme since you will never get that at Disneyland

 

[hakepb]

I would now only do 3 and 3

I once had a trip ending with (3) 2 night stays (I think it was POP, BLT then 2 nights at the ocean)
On 2 day stays you are unpacking on night 1 and repacking (to leave the next day) on night 2...never fully relaxed in the hotel.

 

[Disneytam]

Not crazy at all. My husband and I are staying at three different resorts for 8 nights. We are doing both Disney and Universal and our main goal at Disney is F&W festival. So three nights at a one bedroom BC DVC, then one night at Wilderness Lodge so that we can spend a day at MK before we head over to PBH at Universal for 4 nights. On our last trip of 10 nights we did a three way stay again between Disney and Universal and it worked fine. I think for us the key was taking our bags with us when we checked into the next resort instead of having Disney move them for us. The one time we had Disney move them it seemed like a lot of wasted time waiting around for our room to be ready and then waiting again for our bags to arrive. Have a great trip.

 

[Babsy]

I agree with the 4 day AKL and 2 day Swan option!! Great choice!

I know that you like the YC, but the Swan is really a great resort - I think that you will be very happy there if the YC doesn't work out. We often book the Swan or Dolphin for the end of our trips. WE are not big fans of DME to return to MCO. We like to grab an Uber or Taxi when we are ready to go and at the time of our choosing. With DME you may be circling other resorts for pick ups on the way to the airport. I like to know that when I get aboard I am headed straight to MCO. I can get a bit antsy about time, otherwise.

The Swan's grotto pool is really nice if you luck into warm weather, dining options are great, the price (even with fees) is usually less than the YC and the Epcot location is wonderful (just as good as the YC, IMO).

You will really enjoy the AKL, I expect, as well. It is great that you will get to stay here since you haven't before. The lobby is amazing, the animals cool, activities are great, the pools are lovely and the dining delicious!!! WE stay at least a few nights here on most trips to WDW. When we don't stay, we still go for dining at Boam, Jiko or Sanaa.

Sounds like a lovely trip!!! Enjoy!

 

[kandb]

Last 2 years we have done split stays with only 2 resorts and we stay for a total of 9 nights. I would never do a split stay with 3 resorts. I don't mind checking out/in once in between but would not want to do it twice.

 

[AngiTN]

Not crazy at all. My husband and I are staying at three different resorts for 8 nights. We are doing both Disney and Universal and our main goal at Disney is F&W festival. So three nights at a one bedroom BC DVC, then one night at Wilderness Lodge so that we can spend a day at MK before we head over to PBH at Universal for 4 nights. On our last trip of 10 nights we did a three way stay again between Disney and Universal and it worked fine. I think for us the key was taking our bags with us when we checked into the next resort instead of having Disney move them for us. The one time we had Disney move them it seemed like a lot of wasted time waiting around for our room to be ready and then waiting again for our bags to arrive. Have a great trip.

I didn't even include our universal stay counting that we have 4 resorts in 8 nights

 

[Sue M]

I’d go AKL/Swan. Def wouldn’t do 3 resorts. If you can’t get discounts for 1 resort for all 1 days, this is best option. Never go from deluxe to value.