First solo trip -- want to golf while there -- need help planning

[mustinjourney]

Hi everyone,

I'm going to be going to WDW for 5 nights in late october on a solo trip -- and I was hoping to get in 36 holes. I'll be staying at BCV for the 5 nights. Got a few questions -- and as always -- any advice you can add would be appreciated.

Plan will be to arrive at MCO around noon and catch DME. I like the convenience. My plan is to bring my own set of clubs. I will likely have one other checked bag and a carry on. Yes -- I'm a light packer.

First -- are there any issues in bringing your own clubs via magic express? Would I be better off not yellow tagging them and picking them up myself?

I've never golfed at Disney -- but from what I can tell, you get a free shuttle from your hotel to the course, and it looks like they'll store your clubs and transfer them to another course if you'd like. If I'm only playing twice -- not sure if this will be that useful for me, since I'd likely head back to the room and shower/change before hitting the parks.

Is that accurate? Other than convenience of not handling the clubs myself, are there any advantages to having them store the clubs?

Regarding the actual courses themselves (only on property -- I don't like leaving the WDW bubble)...Any recommendations on which of the three courses I should play?

How busy are the courses typically? Are certain times of the day busier than others?

There is currently a $35 deal for DVC members to get a hot breakfast and play the back 9 at LBV or Magnolia (or play Oak Trail), so long as you tee off between 7 to 8:30 am. Seems like a decent deal, considering a full round of 18 is around $72 -- so this is less than half and includes some sort of "hot" breakfast.

If you were to play a full 18, how would you set up your day? Do you golf in the AM and do resorts/parks in afternoon evening or vice versa? Any preferences either way? Do many of you golf on arrival day? I'll probably not get to the hotel until around 1 or 2 pm if I take the DME -- and in October, getting a full 18 might be difficult after 3 pm. Has anyone tried this?

Any other thoughts? Which of the three main courses are your favorite? How is the Oak Trail course? It looks to be quite short -- more akin to a nice juniors course?

 

[mustinjourney]

A little bit of background -- I'm 36, married and have two DDs (4 and 2). We are DVC members and we also have APs for at least this year. This will be my first solo trip -- but I'm not too worried about the solo aspect as I have traveled a decent bit for work as a solo.

My past trips were:

Feb 2016 -- wife and kids (non-DVC stay -- POR/GF). First visit in 13 years. Didn't plan nearly enough. We still enjoyed it -- and we bought a couple DVC resale contracts at VGF and then a small add-on direct at BCV to get access to AP discounts.

Nov. 2016 -- (BLT/AKV/BCV) had extra points from resale contract, so DW and I took a trip without the kiddos to F&W. Had an absolute blast. Much easier to navigate parks without toddler and baby. 4 nights in three hotels was a little extreme -- but it was nice checking out the different resorts.

Feb. 2017 -- (BCV/VGF) week trip with family and in-laws. Maxed out planning and did it about as efficiently as possible. Although everyone seemed a little worn out (even with 4+ hour rests in the middle of the day the last 3 days).

Oct. 2017 -- (BCV) My solo trip (had BCV points from the direct purchase that must be used or rented out -- with the AP, I figured a solo trip would be fun). I was actually hoping DW would join me on this one -- but with two other trips already scheduled for WDW in 2017, she didn't want to spend ALL of her vacation days at WDW. Crazy -- I know.

Dec. 2017 -- (BWV/VGF) week trip with family and my parents (still trying to plan this one out)

Jan. 2018 -- 4 or 5 nights with just me and oldest DD (she'll be turning 5) -- going to plan on doing all the princess stuff or whatever else she wants to do. Currently booked at VGF -- but I think we'll switch to PVB.

That's probably way too much information -- but it at least gives you an idea of where I'm at. I've still yet to go to Disney Springs, so that is on my wishlist for this trip. I'm also planning on doing the express transportation thing so I can easily park hop. Even if you can't comment on the golfing aspect -- I'd love to hear opinions on potential loose itineraries for what you might do with 5 nights at BCV during F&W.