Disney/Universal Split Stay Suggestions Needed

[have2getaway]

Our current plan is to stay at Beach Club at Disney for 4 nights, then transfer to the Polynesian for 3 nights, but first, stay 1 night at Universal’s RPR. It was suggested to us that, since we are already doing a split stay and checking out to move this might be the best time to visit Universal as we may be able to have Bell Services hold most of our luggage for a day in between. I am now wondering if we would be better off doing US at the beginning or end of our trip and not right in the middle? I’m questioning our plans and here are all the concerns for either plan: 1–loss of dining credits while we transition to Universal, 2–it seems like it’s more shuttle trips this way, 3–better vacation flow, 4—ending at Universal during MLK weekend will allow us to avoid lines more as we will have EP, 5–more settled in at Disney if we start our trip at Universal, 6–more energy for what is new to us at Universal, 7–loss of Magical Express if we start at Universal. *sigh*

For those that have done any of these plans—-either start at Universal, end at Universal, or go to Universal mid-trip, what would you do and why?

TIA. Side note—I am also posting this on the Universal forum. Sorry for the duplicate post, but I’m starting to panic as I need to make dining plans soon.

 

[Planogirl]

It's really a matter of personal preference imo. I find the Universal part of our trips more relaxing which can be nice before going home but then there is something to be said for a break in the middle of the trip too. I've never done a split Disney stay along with an off-site part so this is interesting.

Magical Express is nice but I don't that it's all that important with so many other shuttles available. All of that said, I'd be tempted to end at the place I know I like.

 

[quandrea]

Are the room changes at Disney essential? It’s a lot of moving. And a lot of time packing up, checking in, checking out. Disney does make the split stay as painless as possible. I generally work the day out so I leave my room as close to check out time as possible. Minimises my time as a “nomad.”

So, having said all that, I’d put Universal first. I’m not fond of the place and “getting it over with” so I could get to the good part of my vacation would be important. Tony Hinds provides excellent service from the airport to Universal and from Universal to Disney. We’ve used him for years now.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Now matter how you slice this, you have to shuttle to Universal twice - either airport to Universal to WDW, WDW to Universal to airport or WDW to Universal back to WDW - so I'm not really getting the losing Magical Express component? Is it due to the ME luggage delivery and airport check-in services?

I've done two WDW/Uni splits and I've always put Uni at the end. It was fine. I'm not a huge Uni fan (only went for the WWoHP attractions) and Uni, IMHO, does not compare to WDW as an overall resort in terms of theme immersion, dining and entertainment options. Others differ though (lots of Uni lovers out there!), so I don't know how you will feel about it. Personally, for the trip you are planning, I would either want to start there or do it in the middle. I would much rather want to end my trip at Poly than RPC.

If ME is that important to you, put RPC in the middle. In terms of luggage, I would suggest simply packing what you need for Uni at the top of one of your suitcases. Bring all of your luggage to Uni and just have RPC bell services hold what you don't need for the night. I wouldn't count on Poly holding the luggage for you and I would not want to show up at Poly only to find your luggage has been misplaced. As for dining credits, I would just plan carefully so none go to waste or perhaps drop the dining plan if you think you will leave money on the table?

 

[Lalabubbles]

Following along, we are doing our first visit to Universal July 2019 and then headed to Disney after. We are going to do Universal first because I want to end at a place I know I love. We will use a town car service or Uber to get to Universal from the airport and then over to Disney, we have done that in the past with getting to Disney and it works out well. We did a BC/Poly split stay last summer and it was great. BC is our favorite resort but we wanted to try out the Poly. The rooms are huge at the Poly and we enjoyed having the monorail so close but the BC is still our favorite. I think we are going to stay at HRH as we have 4 adults and 1 child so that Deluxe room would be nice for our party size.

 

[Hopefully]

A 3 way split in an 8 night trip is a lot of packing/unpacking that I just wouldn't do.
Personally, I would skip Universal completely on this trip. As others here have said, I do not like it very much.
If you are going to do it, I would do it first and get it out of the way.

 

[supitscarrie]

Haven't you posted this same thread in this forum a few times now? Probably better to bump existing threads than to keep creating new ones...

In any case, I'd agree with what other people are staying - do it at either the start or end of the trip rather than trying to cram it in the middle.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Nah, just twice: current thread and https://www.disboards.com/threads/split-stay—changing-hotels.3692242/, and on a different forum https://www.disboards.com/threads/disney-universal-trip.3692810/

 

[gillep]

I would do it at the beginning. We liked Universal but were happy that we had a few days in Disney after we went as we much prefer Disney.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

The thing I’m struggling with is only 1 night at Universal. But, unlike many of the posters above, I like Universal as much (if not more) than Disney.

I think you need to move Universal to the start or the end. Which of the two would depend on when you are planning to arrive and leave Orlando. I would want as close to two days in Universal as possible to make use of the express passes and see both parks properly.
If you fly out of Orlando late on the last day, that would work best in my eyes, as you could head over from BC early in the morning, spend 2 days at Universal using express passes to combat MLK crowds, and then Uber to the airport at the end of the second day.

The split stay at WDW is easy. I’ve done it before (going from BW to AKL) and would do it again. If you’re living out of your suitcases anyway, you just zip them up, deliver them to the front desk, go spend a day in a park and then return to the new resort. I found it added hardly anytime to my day and came with the benefit of trying 2 different resorts. Plus the time we saved on transport (visited EP and HS while we stayed at BW, and AK while we stayed at AKL) made the small inconvenience of moving resorts worth it.
In saying all that, adding Universal into the middle makes things quite different. I can see how this shift could be much more inconvenient.

 

[Spunky946]

We are doing a split stay in July. Pop for two nights, contemporary for 2 nights, yacht club for 3 nights and 1 night at Royal pacific at universal. We are doing universal at the end because dh is coming down in the middle of the trip, and he wants to do universal. I’d do it at the beginning or the end and not the middle.

 

[have2getaway]

Haven't you posted this same thread in this forum a few times now? Probably better to bump existing threads than to keep creating new ones...

In any case, I'd agree with what other people are staying - do it at either the start or end of the trip rather than trying to cram it in the middle.

Yes, Sorry! I did create two, duplicate threads. I do post fairly frequently, but I’m sadly not familiar with “bumping” threads. How would I do that so I’ll know for future posts?

 

[dansdad]

Yes, Sorry! I did create two, duplicate threads. I do post fairly frequently, but I’m sadly not familiar with “bumping” threads. How would I do that so I’ll know for future posts?

By replying in the thread. Then it bumps to the top because there's a new post in the thread. You can just put "bump" then hit post.

 

[fab1976]

We are doing a split Disney/Universal trip in February. Initially I was going to do Universal at the end, rethought that and realized we are zapped by the end of a week at Disney. So we are doing 2 nights at universal to start. Also staying at RPR, but doing club level so we have a nice leisurely stay there with relaxing drinks and appetizers/desserts in the evening. Then on to the Polynesian after. I wouldn’t do that split with universal in the middle, seems like too much back and forth for me.

 

[HairyChest]

Ive done all three. Disney first then universal, universal first then Disney, and universal in between. part of the Disney magic is having your luggage delivered and going on the magical express. My favorite has been doing 1 or 2 nights at Disney, go to universal for 1 night, then come back to Disney for the rest of my vacay. If I were you Id do the beach club first then universals royal pacific and then end with the Polynesian.

 

[have2getaway]

Ive done all three. Disney first then universal, universal first then Disney, and universal in between. part of the Disney magic is having your luggage delivered and going on the magical express. My favorite has been doing 1 or 2 nights at Disney, go to universal for 1 night, then come back to Disney for the rest of my vacay. If I were you Id do the beach club first then universals royal pacific and then end with the Polynesian.

Thank you for this! I was second and triple guessing myself, but every time my husband and I discussed it, we came to this same end result exactly as you described. One question, though, we currently have 4 nights beach club, 1 night Universal, and then 3 nights Poly, which equates to 2 full MK days. Should we instead do 3 nights BC, 1 night Universal and 4 nights Poly, since we know we love that resort, or do 3,2,3, for 2 nights at Universal, or just leave it as is? Thanks so much!

 

[jerseygal]

The thing I’m struggling with is only 1 night at Universal. But, unlike many of the posters above, I like Universal as much (if not more) than Disney.

I think you need to move Universal to the start or the end. Which of the two would depend on when you are planning to arrive and leave Orlando. I would want as close to two days in Universal as possible to make use of the express passes and see both parks properly.
If you fly out of Orlando late on the last day, that would work best in my eyes, as you could head over from BC early in the morning, spend 2 days at Universal using express passes to combat MLK crowds, and then Uber to the airport at the end of the second day.

The split stay at WDW is easy. I’ve done it before (going from BW to AKL) and would do it again. If you’re living out of your suitcases anyway, you just zip them up, deliver them to the front desk, go spend a day in a park and then return to the new resort. I found it added hardly anytime to my day and came with the benefit of trying 2 different resorts. Plus the time we saved on transport (visited EP and HS while we stayed at BW, and AK while we stayed at AKL) made the small inconvenience of moving resorts worth it.
In saying all that, adding Universal into the middle makes things quite different. I can see how this shift could be much more inconvenient.

I agree. Have done Universal either beginning or end of trip, we make the most of the Express Pass at either HRH or RP, try to check in early to get a full 2 days in . We always do split stays at Disney, when it is just DH and me, we prefer to experience 2 different resorts. Yes, although Disney will deliver your luggage to the next resort, it may not arrive till after 5pm, so we typically just take a cab to the next resort, check in very early, hit the parks, then usually have a text that our room is ready by about 1 or 2pm. We find it to be very easy. We enjoy "split stays" so much that on our recent Aruba vaca, we split resorts after our 5th night, last 2 nights was at another favorite; it was DH, DS, and me and we all enjoy experiencing different resorts. Personally, would never do Universal in the middle of a Disney split stay, too cumbersome! ENJOY!

 

[jerseygal]

Thank you for this! I was second and triple guessing myself, but every time my husband and I discussed it, we came to this same end result exactly as you described. One question, though, we currently have 4 nights beach club, 1 night Universal, and then 3 nights Poly, which equates to 2 full MK days. Should we instead do 3 nights BC, 1 night Universal and 4 nights Poly, since we know we love that resort, or do 3,2,3, for 2 nights at Universal, or just leave it as is? Thanks so much!

You will certainly enjoy Poly and BC, two of our favorite resorts! ENJOY Stormalong Bay!

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did split stay last year, RPR at Universal for three nights then a day off to move to Disney then three night nights at POP. We were paying for two rooms as we treated son, daughter in law and granddaughter so splurged on RPR for the included fast pass. She is a Harry Potter fan so had to do US. Loved how easy and relaxing it is to walk to the park or take the boat. And the dining options at City Walk didn’t seem quite as overpriced as Disney.

It worked out great but to me packing up, moving, checking in, etc. is a hassle so one move in a trip is more than enough for us!!

 

[have2getaway]

We did split stay last year, RPR at Universal for three nights then a day off to move to Disney then three night nights at POP. We were paying for two rooms as we treated son, daughter in law and granddaughter so splurged on RPR for the included fast pass. She is a Harry Potter fan so had to do US. Loved how easy and relaxing it is to walk to the park or take the boat. And the dining options at City Walk didn’t seem quite as overpriced as Disney.

It worked out great but to me packing up, moving, checking in, etc. is a hassle so one move in a trip is more than enough for us!!

Thank you! The two moves is actually where we were stuck. We really have to try Universal, because our boys really want to see HP, but we aren’t so sure we have to split our Disney stay. I think it will be okay. We plan to only use one bag for RPR, so it will mean much less to unpack there. I’m really hoping we don’t regret moving twice. Our original plan was to pay for the room at the Poly while staying at RPR, but we couldn’t justify paying for the room plus dining plan. In total it is close to $700 that we would be throwing away and could put toward our Universal trip.