How big a pain will it be to switch rooms after 1 night?

[DSLRuser]

Have 3 nights booked for Christmas, still need a 4th (1st night). We have a 2br lockout at Saratoga, and there is a standard 2br now open for out 1st night.

We arrive late from MCO at 10:00pm, and would just sleep there and not really unpack. Cant decide if it is worth the hassle or not. Vs getting 2 cheap hotel rooms off property and the just checking in the next morning.

 

[SleeplessInTO]

I’d just stay at the Hyatt at the airport if I’m arriving at 10pm. Would check in the next morning.
If I had points I needed to use up, then i might book SSR. Otherwise, the Hyatt.

 

[kes601]

Have 3 nights booked for Christmas, still need a 4th (1st night). We have a 2br lockout at Saratoga, and there is a standard 2br now open for out 1st night.

We arrive late from MCO at 10:00pm, and would just sleep there and not really unpack. Cant decide if it is worth the hassle or not. Vs getting 2 cheap hotel rooms off property and the just checking in the next morning.

You could also book the standard 2 br and waitlist the 2 br lockoff. Between now and then I would suspect it would come available. If it does then MS can merge the reservations.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I like to get on property and be there even for 1 night. I'd book the 2BR and waitlist for the lockoff. Or else waitlist the 3 nights in a lockoff for dedicated.

 

[DebLovesPooh]

Another vote for the Hyatt. I would rather us get a good night's sleep than to get onsite. The next day will be much happier and more productive that way.

 

[Sandisw]

We have never had a problem doing this. We just pack a bag that we know will be just that night.

It was nice being on property, storing the luggage..except that one bag,, with bell services when we arrived, and then made it easy in the morning.

 

[OliviaB]

Same question, different circumstances. We would like to spend a few days at Kidani but have heard AK is the furthest from the other parks.

How inconvenient would it be to spend a few nights at BLT or DWL and then transfer to KV?

Appreciate your feedback.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Same question, different circumstances. We would like to spend a few days at Kidani but have heard AK is the furthest from the other parks.

How inconvenient would it be to spend a few nights at BLT or DWL and then transfer to KV?

Appreciate your feedback.

Will all of your BLT time be spent at MK? Then maybe not so bad. Otherwise you'll spend just as much time getting from BLT to all other parks as from Kidani to parks plus you'll have the time of moving so it would pretty much even out.

 

[npatellye]

It shouldn’t be bad at all! We did a one night stay at Jambo last week due to flight changes. I had everyone pack one change of clothes and a swimsuit in their carry ons (I had everyone’s toothbrushes and a travel size toothpaste) so our luggage just stayed with bell services. We checked in but never unpacked, went to AK, went back to sleep, did our morning thing, and checked out to head to the next place.

 

[Sandisw]

Same question, different circumstances. We would like to spend a few days at Kidani but have heard AK is the furthest from the other parks.

How inconvenient would it be to spend a few nights at BLT or DWL and then transfer to KV?

Appreciate your feedback.

We split stay every trip so that we can capitalize on parks close by. For me, I love doing it and even when staying only 3 nights!

 

[Marionnette]

Have 3 nights booked for Christmas, still need a 4th (1st night). We have a 2br lockout at Saratoga, and there is a standard 2br now open for out 1st night.

We arrive late from MCO at 10:00pm, and would just sleep there and not really unpack. Cant decide if it is worth the hassle or not. Vs getting 2 cheap hotel rooms off property and the just checking in the next morning.

Everyone is different. I happen to dislike split stays but if necessary, I find that doing a single night at one resort is easier than getting settled in a room and then moving after a couple of nights. I prefer to be onsite for that one night, giving my luggage to bell services in the morning and heading off to a park rather than staying offsite.

 

[limace]

I always think-well, do you ever stay at a hotel for one night when traveling elsewhere? We do it all the time-one day trip somewhere, on road trips, etc. Sure, we’d love to stay longer in one spot typically but it’s not a big deal.

 

[gharter]

Not a big fan of split stays, but sounds like you'll have one, the only question is where to stay.
If cost is an issue, I would stay off site.
If cost doesn't matter, I would stay onsite. The next morning, bell services will move your luggage for you. Staying on site, you can probably get to the parks earlier than if you were off site (I know we would).

 

[KPeterso]

I have done it. Got in super late (after midnight by the time I made it to the resort) and booked a value for the first night. Did not unpack and pretty much collapsed into bed. Only pulled a couple items out to sleep in and get ready the next morning. And I had packed so those items were right on the top and handy. So super easy and then Disney moved the bag for me when I was ready.

 

[OliviaB]

Will all of your BLT time be spent at MK? Then maybe not so bad. Otherwise you'll spend just as much time getting from BLT to all other parks as from Kidani to parks plus you'll have the time of moving so it would pretty much even out.

OK. Splitting our hotel stay may not be the best idea for us....
Taking into consideration the thoughts/experiences shared made me realize my plans may not be in line with my goals.

I had to ask myself, what’s my intent? To have a magical (for my 4yo), as stress free as possible (for me), affordable (for the Hubbie) family vacation to Disney World.

At my sons age, is the magic of Disney mostly centered around MK? The other parks will be great experiences too, but is the magic/awe/wonderment that comes to mind mostly centered around the experiences and shows in the magical kingdom?

If so, maybe I should select a hotel more easily accessible to that park? (Initially we intended to relax on our day of arrival at AKL, spend 3 full days touring the parks and then have a leisurely day to rest before returning home.) Instead, maybe we should spend 2 days at MK, 4 days total at the parks? Possibly base our trip at BLT for proximity and convenience? (All of which are more expensive )

So many new questions to sort out.
1-How much time will we actually spend at our hotel. (Naps? I had assumed we would nap (and enjoy the mid-day view) but at AKL it would not be logistically advisable. At BTL- No problem)
2- To rope drop? Or not? (Trying to stay ahead of long lines with an impatient preschooler. Rope dropping from AKL is challenging for a first timer)
3- After reviewing the list of attractions and wait times for the parks, is MK the one park likely to need additional time?
4- If we only tackled 1/3 to 1/5 of the attractions at MK, would we be disappointed we didn’t allocate more time at Disney?

Sorry if this is a lot, or possibly not the right forum. The discussion about splitting nights made me consider the strategic planning of our trip in a way I had not previously considered.

 

[Shellyred8]

Have 3 nights booked for Christmas, still need a 4th (1st night). We have a 2br lockout at Saratoga, and there is a standard 2br now open for out 1st night.

We arrive late from MCO at 10:00pm, and would just sleep there and not really unpack. Cant decide if it is worth the hassle or not. Vs getting 2 cheap hotel rooms off property and the just checking in the next morning.

This might be a chance to try out a WDW hotel that you've never tried before. Always been curious about AoA but didn't want to commit to an entire trip there? This might be a good time to give it a try. If you don't like it, it's only for one night.

 

[Shellyred8]

OK. Splitting our hotel stay may not be the best idea for us....
Taking into consideration the thoughts/experiences shared made me realize my plans may not be in line with my goals.

I had to ask myself, what’s my intent? To have a magical (for my 4yo), as stress free as possible (for me), affordable (for the Hubbie) family vacation to Disney World.

At my sons age, is the magic of Disney mostly centered around MK? The other parks will be great experiences too, but is the magic/awe/wonderment that comes to mind mostly centered around the experiences and shows in the magical kingdom?

If so, maybe I should select a hotel more easily accessible to that park? (Initially we intended to relax on our day of arrival at AKL, spend 3 full days touring the parks and then have a leisurely day to rest before returning home.) Instead, maybe we should spend 2 days at MK, 4 days total at the parks? Possibly base our trip at BLT for proximity and convenience? (All of which are more expensive )

So many new questions to sort out.
1-How much time will we actually spend at our hotel. (Naps? I had assumed we would nap (and enjoy the mid-day view) but at AKL it would not be logistically advisable. At BTL- No problem)
2- To rope drop? Or not? (Trying to stay ahead of long lines with an impatient preschooler. Rope dropping from AKL is challenging for a first timer)
3- After reviewing the list of attractions and wait times for the parks, is MK the one park likely to need additional time?
4- If we only tackled 1/3 to 1/5 of the attractions at MK, would we be disappointed we didn’t allocate more time at Disney?

Sorry if this is a lot, or possibly not the right forum. The discussion about splitting nights made me consider the strategic planning of our trip in a way I had not previously considered.

The first question that came to mind is this: will this be your only trip to WDW? Or will you have future trips? If you will have more trips, look at the list of attractions and see which ones you want to accomplish this trip and know that if you don't get to everything, there will be next time. Realistically, you can't do all of WDW in a 5-7 day trip, especially with a toddler.

Does your son like the zoo or animals in general? If so, I would recommend doing MK and AK for this trip. 2 days at MK and 1 day at AK. The other two parks aren't quite as "magical" for a toddler at this time, at least not a full day's worth anyway. HS and EP both have a few things a toddler would enjoy, but not as much as MK and AK.

In regards to the split stay, we usually plan our park days by where we are staying. So, you could do a few days at BLT or WL and do your MK days while you are there. Then switch to AKL and do you AK day(s) while you are at ALK. The bus ride from AKL to AK (and vice versa) is AWESOME! It's only about 5 minutes!

I found rope drop to be super valuable at MK. You can get lots of non-headliners done in that first hour or two. Just make sure you plan those first couple of hours wisely though. Don't waste time criss-crossing the park to get to your rides. Do all the rides in one land at a time, then move on to the next land. If you think you will want to do Jungle Cruise, do that one first. That line seems to get long fast, and stays that way for most of the day.

 

[drusba]

Same question, different circumstances. We would like to spend a few days at Kidani but have heard AK is the furthest from the other parks.

How inconvenient would it be to spend a few nights at BLT or DWL and then transfer to KV?

Appreciate your feedback.

From what I have seen Disney makes it fairly easy to switch resorts. All that is really required the day of change is for you to get luggage to Bell Services for transfer to the next resort. Otherwise checking out and checking in has mainly become an easy process that does not even require a visit to the front desk. Your ability to get your room at the second resort or get your luggage once you are at the new resort, may not be until the latter part of the afternoon, but you avoid any such issues when switching by simply going to a park the day of change and returning to the second resort later in the day. For a split stay, many could thus easily do BLT and Kidani, while being sure to do MK when at BLT and AK when at Kidani.

Thus, as I view it, doing a split resort trip really depends on an evaluation of the persons traveling with you. I generally do not do split resort trips. That mainly has to do with the fact that ones I travel with consider packing and unpacking an exercise that always requires at least a few hours to complete, including because it is something that can be done only when they have absolutely nothing else to do at the time, such as watching TV, eating snacks, texting messages, listening to music on their iPhones, or just sitting out on the balcony. The usual response, during those hours, that I get when asking whether they have completed their packing or unpacking is "almost."

 

[maytagatjc]

We stayed at Hilton across the street from SSR for two nights. We had a rental car and moved our stuff over to SSR, left bag with computers at Bell Hop and parked in the area we like to stay at SSR. Jumped on a bus and visited a park.
Other trips we stay at Pop Century before moving to SSR or AKL and have Disney move our stuff while we are at a park. I like the skyliner better than the busses.

 

[DSLRuser]

This might be a chance to try out a WDW hotel that you've never tried before. Always been curious about AoA but didn't want to commit to an entire trip there? This might be a good time to give it a try. If you don't like it, it's only for one night.

LOL...thats funny.....we have tried them all (except the values). sorry.....cant do it