Combining Hilton Head & WDW on next trip?

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Is this a crazy idea?

We have 3 boys (11-14) who I think would love Hilton Head. DH & I went there (though not to the Disney resort) for part of our honeymoon.

Looks like it would mean about a 5-hour drive from Orlando in a rental car. (We are flying from MN & normally don't rent a car.) We go to WDW about every 2-3 years & stay about 10 nights because there's so much to do.

Now, because I've heard such amazing things about Disney's Hilton Head resort I am thinking of a 4-night stay there during a trip to WDW next spring.

We would probably see Savannah too (on the way or for a day outing).

I'd appreciate any feedback on whether this would be a good idea. We would have about 7 or 8 nights for the WDW portion of the trip, and are doing a split stay so would probably put Hilton Head in the middle.

This basically means taking away from our WDW time, which we love, but I think a mini road trip like this would be nice too. Anyway, I think I do need a reality check...

Thanks in advance!

 

[bobbiwoz]

We did a 5 night HHI stay after a 7 night WDW stay this past May! It was wonderful. The only thing I would not do again was take a day trip into Charleston from HHI. The round trip ride took too much of the day, although Charleston was worth seeing.

In the past we flew into Savannah, saw that city sights and went to HHI. This was our first time combining WDW with HHI, but it was the first time we were driving. The next time we drive, we will stop in Charleston after HHI.

Savannah is closer to HHI than Charleston.

 

[DVC Jen]

I have thought about doing something very similar. We just got back from our first stay at HHI and LOVED it. The only thing with your plan that may be a hassle is doing the HHI trip in the middle. I personally wouldn't want to break up my WDW time. Can you do it at the front or end of your stay instead?

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

We did a 5 night HHI stay after a 7 night WDW stay this past May! It was wonderful. The only thing I would not do again was take a day trip into Charleston from HHI. The round trip ride took too much of the day, although Charleston was worth seeing.

In the past we flew into Savannah, saw that city sights and went to HHI. This was our first time combining WDW with HHI, but it was the first time we were driving. The next time we drive, we will stop in Charleston after HHI.

Savannah is closer to HHI than Charleston.

.

Thanks for sharing about your experience! We went to Charleston (on our honeymoon) and loved it, but agree it's not a great idea for a trip like this.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

I have thought about doing something very similar. We just got back from our first stay at HHI and LOVED it. The only thing with your plan that may be a hassle is doing the HHI trip in the middle. I personally wouldn't want to break up my WDW time. Can you do it at the front or end of your stay instead?

Glad to hear you loved HHI!

The reason I was thinking of doing HHI in the middle is that we were going to do a split stay at WDW anyway (DH has a conference the first few days of the trip, so we'd be at the Swan/Dolphin for that). If we did HHI in the middle I was also thinking we'd get to use Magical Express back to the airport at the end, which is nice (but not a big deal if we can't).

That said, if we did HHI at the end (after two hotels at WDW) that might work... Except I would not want to have to drive all the way from HHI to Orlando the day we catch our plane home.... So, I guess middle of trip it is... Hmmm. I see what you mean; kinda makes the WDW part choppy.

 

[PartOfYourWDWorld]

Loved HHI last summer! My 4 year old keeps asking when we're going back

I always say I need a vacation after WDW, so I would definitely do it at the end of the trip. I would fly into MCO, drive to HHI and then fly home from an airport nearby.

 

[KristiMc]

I also would do HHI at the end of your trip and fly home from that area instead of driving back to MCO.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Loved HHI last summer! My 4 year old keeps asking when we're going back

I always say I need a vacation after WDW, so I would definitely do it at the end of the trip. I would fly into MCO, drive to HHI and then fly home from an airport nearby.

I also would do HHI at the end of your trip and fly home from that area instead of driving back to MCO.

Thanks so much for sharing your suggestions! I like the idea of moving HHI to the end, but one concern I would have is the expense. I can do some checking, but I would expect there would be a 1-way rental drop off fee & the plane tickets would more? Hmmm. Otherwise, I do now think it would be better...

 

[lovin'fl]

We did 4 nights at HHI in 2009. We drove down from MD. Then, because we had extra points, I added 3 nights at OKW but we didn't buy Disney park tickets. Instead we bought a 2 day pass to Seaworld. We had a really nice beach stay at HHI and then drove to OKW. I thought it was a shorter drive but it was close to 5 hours. But we spent some time at Downtown Disney, ate at Cape May and Ohana, used the OKW pool and then spent 2 days at Seaworld. It was way more chill than our usual Disney park commando trips.

But I agree, you could do HHI at the end of the trip and then fly home from Savannah. We have been to Savannah too and it's a great town and not too far from HHI. We'll be at HHI for NYE weekend and plan a day trip over to Savannah.

Just some advice...you need to be on top of booking HHI. If you have to do it at 7 month window, do it first thing (online 8am at 7 month window exactly). From May-Aug it is tough to book at HHI. That's why we added on points there.

 

[sleepydog25]

Agree with lovin'fl. HHI is tough to book from spring through summer as it is a prime beach destination for many DVCers. In fact, you might have to go on a waitlist and hope that it comes through which might wreak havoc on your planning. Beyond the logistics of sandwiching a trip to HHI between front and back end stays at the World, I think you'd love it. However, for me, I'm not sure the headaches of arranging what amounts to a split-split stay would make it worthwhile. Still, this is your vacation and if you think it would work for your family, i say go for it!

 

[DVC Jen]

Glad to hear you loved HHI!

The reason I was thinking of doing HHI in the middle is that we were going to do a split stay at WDW anyway (DH has a conference the first few days of the trip, so we'd be at the Swan/Dolphin for that). If we did HHI in the middle I was also thinking we'd get to use Magical Express back to the airport at the end, which is nice (but not a big deal if we can't).

That said, if we did HHI at the end (after two hotels at WDW) that might work... Except I would not want to have to drive all the way from HHI to Orlando the day we catch our plane home.... So, I guess middle of trip it is... Hmmm. I see what you mean; kinda makes the WDW part choppy.

Do what works for you and your family. Sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do.

 

[MNtwinsplus1mom]

Thanks so much for all the input! I actually am not a DVC owner, so would be doing a cash (really credit card, of course) reservation. Because it sounds like the resort is so popular at the time we'd be going, I ended up making a reservation just now in the phone (couldn't book that far out online). We got a 1-bedroom in the middle of the trip (between the separate WDW hotel stays) for 4 nights. I'm thinking 4 nights at each place, so 12 nights total.

I'm still in discussions with my DH about it, but hope we can make it happen. Didn't want to risk waiting to reserve & not getting a room!

Thanks again!

 

[bobbiwoz]

It's a wonderful resort, and I hope you enjoy your visit!