Any Experts On Resort Switching...

[disneybound05]

we're planning our Universal/Disney trip for next year and are strongly considering splitting our time between resorts. hoping to hear from DISers who have done the same. what are the pros/cons? is it an easy transition? any special things to keep in mind? thanks to everyone in advance.

in case it matters... we are debating between Portofino/Royal Pacific for 2 nights, then switching to Grand Floridian/Yacht Club. any suggestions in helping us decide between these resorts will also be greatly appreciated. we are 3 adults/1 child. much thanks.

 

[zippehsmom]

Whenever we go to Universal we switch resorts. FOTL is so worth the trouble of changing resorts. I also love the flexibility of being so close to the parks when we stay at onsite at Universal. It makes me feel like we're having two vacations for the price of one.

I can't really help you with your resort choices. We have stayed at RPR before and we loved it. Good luck with your decision.

zippehsmom

 

[JessicaR]

We split a stay last December. We stayed at AKL then moved over to HRH. It had been a while since we stayed at Disney so we stayed 5 nights there and 2 nights at USO. Usually we stay at least 5 nights at USO so it was a quick trip but weve been many times.

We had a town car p/u at airport and then again to make the change mid trip. All went smooth. I would do it that way again. It was nice for us to finally relax once we hit USO, its so NOT like we are in fast forward at USO. I am absolutely not a commando tourist! Not waiting on lines was a huge bonus too! I gotta have my down time.

I agree with zippehsmom, its 2 vacations in one!

 

[Motherfletcher]

We have done it as well. The biggest tip is to go to WDW first. FOTL would spoil you the other way around and WDW would be frustrating.
As for hotels- if you stay at GF you will probably like PBH better.

 

[*Fantasia*]

I have done it many times. We usually stay at RPR. Sometimes we use FTours and sometimes we rent a car. Splitting is easy, just like if you would split your stay at WDW, except no one is going to transfer you luggage.

If you are a die hard fan of Disney, my suggestion is start with Universal and end your trip in a "magical" way with Disney style. I love Universal and WDW, so it doesn't really matter to me which is first or last.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We split a stay last year with HRH/GF. This year we're doing Nick Hotel/GF/HRH. It wasn't any problem at all. We used a towncar service and everything went very smoothly. Last year we did 3 nights at HRH and then moved over to GF for 8 nights. THis year we're doing 2 nights at Nick Hotel, 11 nights at GF, and 4 nights at HRH. It makes it seem like 2 vacations when you switch from Universal to Disney. I tell everyone when I go to Disney - I stay at Disney, when I go to Universal - I stay at Universal. It just makes sense.

 

[savs]

We split our vacation this year between the two places too. We had a town car take us to the HRH and stayed there 2 nights and then the town car picked us up again and took us to Disney for 7 nights and then we used the Magical Express for the trip back tot he airport.
**Staying at the Universal resorts is so worth it to have the FOTLA!!


The one thing that made things so much easier is.....I split our clothes into 2 or 3 suitcases. That way you only have to open one clothes suitcase at the 1st hotel and then pack that one back up to move to the next hotel. It saves on having to repack all of the suitcases again. We also did the clothes in a ziplock bag things and it worked out great and saved on space.

 

[JessicaR]

We split our vacation this year between the two places too. We had a town car take us to the HRH and stayed there 2 nights and then the town car picked us up again and took us to Disney for 7 nights and then we used the Magical Express for the trip back tot he airport.
**Staying at the Universal resorts is so worth it to have the FOTLA!!


The one thing that made things so much easier is.....I split our clothes into 2 or 3 suitcases. That way you only have to open one clothes suitcase at the 1st hotel and then pack that one back up to move to the next hotel. It saves on having to repack all of the suitcases again. We also did the clothes in a ziplock bag things and it worked out great and saved on space.

So did you pack an outfit per ziploc? I have heard about doing this but I could only fit the kids clothes in ziplocs?

 

[savs]

yes, I packed my 3 ds clothes all in Ziplocks and my dh and I just put our in like normal. They do sell 2 gallon ziplocks that would fit adult clothes in, but I have not tried that yet.

It was just nice that every morning I could just toss them a bag that had everything in it that they needed and then could do the rest all by themselves. It saved us a lot of time in the morning, once i got out fo the shower they were all dressed and ready to go.

 

[macraven]

since 1993, i have split our trips between the two parks.

i wouldn't dream of being in orlando and NOT doing both disney and universal.


for the last five years, we start at disney value resorts and switch to hrh for five nights. staying at a value makes it possible for us to be at hard rock.

leave disney at 8:30 in the morning by taxi ($30) or towncar ($35)
arrive at hard rock by 9, check in, have luggage stored, get room key FOTL and hit the parks. call hrh at 2 for room number, have bags placed in room and your hotel key is set up for your room. no need to go to the desk lobby for any info. you can ask any employee at ioa or us to call the hotel for the info.

we do disney first if it is in the fall in order to receive the value season rates. then go to universal thurs to jump start the weekend and attend halloween horror nights.

 

[Hilary]

We usually split our trips between at least two resorts and agree with those who have already said it's like having two (or more) trips in one

Yes, the packing up can be a bit of a pain, especially if you're the one left doing it for the whole family, but I still think it's worthwhile for the added dimension you get from experiencing different resorts.

Staying on-site at WDW and Universal both have their own advantages and I'm sure you'll have a great time at any of the resorts you've mentioned.