Considering a split stay but need opinions

[Dis703]

We are going back to Disney in May and have booked 8 nights at POFQ for me, DH, and our 3 boys who are 5, 2 and 2 (twins will be close to 3). It's likely to be our last trip for a bit as its going to get quite expensive once the kids are all over 3. So I want to do what I can to make it special.

I'm considering doing a split stay and moving to a deluxe the last three nights of our stay but I'm having trouble deciding on the best resort.

I thought of AKL mostly because by next trip we will be too big for most of their rooms and with discounts we could do CL for the same cost or less than standard rooms in some of the other deluxes. But with limited transportation I'm not sure we'd utilize the lounge enough to make it worthwhile. Of course AKL does have the view of the Animals and the option of the Sunrise Safari too.

CR is the most expensive option but perks would be close proximity to MK, particularly convenient on our last day, and with TPV we could watch the fireworks from our room. The resort itself otherwise holds no particular appeal. And CL is likely out of reach costwise.

Middle of the road price wise are the Boardwalk area resorts even doing CL. The resorts themselves are appealing. But with MK as our typical last day park the convenience of location would only be for one or two of those three days. Since we already did BC CL last year it wouldn't really be a new experience.

Any of the above options are about $560 to $750 more to out trip for those three days. But since we have our APs that are about to expire not buying tickets has us $1500 under our annual vacation budget so I have room. Not that I have to spend it but I have the itch to, lol.

What would you do in our situation?

TIA!!

 

[jperrot1]

Well you have experienced CL so you know what kind of experience you would be giving up. CL is incredible..... Right?

I think I would go with Contemporary because of children ages and that close proximity to MK will be great for your daytime naps/resort breaks.

 

[ArwenMarie]

If you definitely want to do MK as your last day then the Contemporary will be awesome. I love the theming, but even if you don't, being able to walk back and forth to MK is amazing. You will be able to really make the most of the last days of your trip from there.

TPV is neat, but lake view is really nice too. So if there is a huge price difference, give lakeview consideration as well. The lake is so pretty during the day, much prettier than the view from the other side. And you get to see the Electrical Water Pageant at night in Bay Lake.

 

[Dis703]

Is the CR CL the one where you can watch the fireworks or is that the Poly? I remember reading one of the lounges pipes in the music too.

 

[shannonstar]

I wouldn't do a split stay with kids that young. I would consider doing some extra activities with the money instead.

 

[Happyjen27]

I would probably not do a split stay. Every family is different, but I'm sure a split stay for ME would involve DH taking the kids somewhere so I could pack the entire room we've been living in for 8 days. Only to unpack for 3 more days, and pack the entire room AGAIN. I think with older kid who can self entertain, split stays might be worthwhile, but, I think with littles I would stay and enjoy the room at POFQ the entire time.

If you've got a good handle on the packing situation , I would do AKL at CL. Like you said, you're going to "grow" out of the rooms soon, and I think you can do CR with 5 people.

 

[Dis703]

Thanks for the input. I'm really not all that concerned about packing. We don't really unpack everything when we go on vacation we just live out of our suitcases so I don't think it's too big of a deal. Other than moving cold stuff from the fridge.

I was starting to lean towards CR, but the fact I'd be looking at a standard room vs. CL at AKL just hurts to consider. We ended up at BC CL over Poly for the same reason last year. Poly looked great and monorail sounded cool, but I couldn't wrap my brain around paying the same for just a standard room when we could get all the amenities of CL elsewhere.

 

[kappyfamily]

Savannah view at AKL is amazing! Yours kids will love it. Also stayed at BLT and LOVED that too. We do split stays every trip. Have fun!

 

[bopper]

Who are you making this special for?

For you and your DH?

For the kids?

If for the kids, would they be excited about seeing animals out their window?
or would they be more excited to ride the monorail?

Then again, you could stay at the original resort and just go for a monorail ride.

Would the effort of packing and moving be worth it to you?

If it is to make it special for you, which resort appeals to you?

Or would it be better to save the extra money from the upgrade and put it toward another vacation when the kids are bigger?

 

[Autumnslight]

We did a split stay at AoA and AKL with our 7 and 3 year olds, and it was awesome for all of us. From the choices you gave, I'd go for AKL. It's a really amazing resort!

You didn't mention Wilderness Lodge, but that would probably be my favorite choice in your case, even over AKL. It looks to be an awesome resort, about the same cost as AKL, and super convenient to the Magic Kingdom. You can watch Wishes from the beach, or from some rooms at WL too!