We loved our recent trip - our 2nd split stay, and I thought I'd share some learnings in case others are thinking of a split stay. In a nutshell: if you can pack light and pack/unpack quickly, go for it- it's amazing! but be prepared for less downtime.
Who are we: myself, DH and DD8. Generally early risers & rope droppers. Love to travel, including road trips with our dog where we do a lot of single or two night stays along the way. Dog stayed back in California for this trip...
Split stay summary:
In 2014 we did our first split stay when DD had just turned 4: 3 nights at AKL and 4 nights at the Poly. Loved: theming at both, monorail service from poly and short walk to TTC, hated: long bus waits at AKL, high prices booking through Disney site
This year: we rented DVC points with an original arrival of 4/13: 2 nights BWV, 3 nights BLT, 2 nights AKK. We originally wanted to do 4 nights Beach Club, 3 nights BLT but could not find availability renting points 7 months out. I loved what we ended up with. Then flights were cheaper 4/12 so we changed our arrival to 4/12 and I booked offsite for the first night. A few weeks before our trip, I noticed our same DVC rental agency had a sale on points that were going to expire so we ended up staying at OKW that first night for the amazing rate of $152 (and reminder, DVC renting includes any and all taxes so this was probably closer to a $110-125 rack rate equivalent- we stayed 1 night at Portofino Bay hotel for rack rate of $362 and the total w/ tax when we checked out was $424!). Did all studios - if we had the budget I would have loved to do 1BR. White noise apps are a life saver to keep all of us in the room sleeping soundly. Maybe someday we'll do the 1BR... Renting points at BLT, BWV and AKL for our dates averaged $300-$325/night including all taxes. Definitely a value. Had an amazing view of EP from our BCV top floor room, pool view for BLT and Savannah view at AKK.
Overall strategy: most days: rope drop to closest park(s) in the AM, ADR for lunch in the park of choice, FP's 60 days out (which meant a 3:55am wake up since we are PST), leave afternoons open, back to a park in the evening. Avoid buses when possible, walk when we can.
Transfer day strategy: Do online check in so you get your room number texted to you when at your park of choice. Drop bags at bell services for transfer, go to closest park at or a little after rope drop, later transfer to park near our destination resort, go to that park, then walk back to new resort (direct to room, DH would go to bell services for bags), chill in room a little, then to another walkable park in the evening.
Resorts:
OKW: hated it. tiny room was as far from Hospitality House as possible (but at $152 not surprising), we hauled our carry-ons from the Magical Express bus and our Magicbands were not working (in fact, at the airport, I was scanning as my daughter, DD as my husband and he as me). Called number that had been texted to us w/ our online check in room number and they could not fix it so a CM came out to let us in the room. CM on the phone gave us a $50 statement credit. Then CM took our Magic bands for an hour or so to get them fixed but also gave us 3 FP+ each to use at EPCOT the next day (avail for all rides except Frozen which we already had a FP+ for). Enjoyed taking boat to Disney Springs, no wait at T-Rex due to our Lanrdy's Select membership, LOVED T-Rex (again - went in 2014- but this time it was paid for w/ our $50 credit + a Landrys award I had previously earned). The next day we waited nearly an hour for the EP bus which was very frustrating but a CM gave us another FP+ for us to use on TestTrack. So on that EP day, with all our extra FP+'s we were able to do Frozen, Soarin', TT, SE, The Land and Mission Space all on FP+, plus make our ADR at Coral Reef for lunch - and we didn't even get to the park until 11am (sleeping in a little our first day since we were still on Pacific time). And were out by 4:30 for the 5 min walk to BWV.
BWV: loved it. if I was up for buying DVC I'd totally buy BWV (have not tried Beach Club - no availability). Walk vs boat options to/from EP and DHS was fantastic. Loved overall feeling at resort & the pool and waterslide.
BLT: also loved it - proximity to MK can't be beat and we also did Hoop Dee Doo one night and Chef Mickey's at CM before our final xfer to AKK. Rented a car one of our BLT days to go to Kennedy Space Center to try to see a rocket launch (which was scrubbed at the last minute, but we did see it from the AK parking lot 2 nights later). Rental car center is a 10 min drive and Alamo had a shuttle to pick me up and drop off after return.
AKK: simply magical place. And this time bus service to AK was quick every time we needed it. (0 to 10 min wait tops).Definitely prefer DVC studios to regular rooms w/ the kitchenette extras (microwave, etc.).
Packing strategy: we pack light- we had 1 suitcase for the 3 of us: shared toiletries, each had 1 reusable shopping bag of clothes we would tie on top and put in the suitcase. At each resort we were responsible for our stuff and had a shared laundry bag. Plan was do do laundry 3 times but ended up doing it twice. Brought enough socks and undies for 5 days but only 3 days of outfits + 1 swim suit. DVC laundry rooms are free (brought our own detergent pods, mesh bags and dryer sheets). BVW laundry has bad ratios - 4 washers which run for 38 min and 2 dryers which run for 1hr (although we only needed like 35 min but still had to wait several hours to get a washer and then wait again for a dryer). AKL had the right ratio (3 washers, 6 dryers, if I remember right). But this alone would be a reason I'd consider a 1BR for at least wherever we stay in the middle of the trip since 1BR has an in room W&D. We also each had 1 small carry on for the plane - but on xfer days we were down to 1 backpack and 1 cooler bag and transferred the rest via Bell Services.
We will hopefully be back in 4 years and my ideal stay would be:
3 nights BWV (or Beach Club if available)
3 nights BLT
2 nights AKL
Best meals:
CRT (so glad I got that ADR 183 days out)
Saana
Tiffins
Coral Reef
T-Rex
Fun times:
Star Wars Dessert
HEA Dessert
Best times:
MK: Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, HEA, Space, BTMR
EP: Frozen (even got a FP+ same-day on our EP evening)
DHS: Jedi Training (walked from BWV to be there 1 hr prior to rope drop- brought Uno cards to play in line which Donald Duck kept coming over to play w/ us), Star Wars Fireworks show
AK: FOP, EE, Safari, DD doing all of the Wilderness Explorer badges
AK strategy: planned AK days at end of trip so we could get FOP, went to AK first in PM w/ FP+'s starting after 4pm, returned the next day for more. So we had FP+'s for FOP for both days. First night ride was down but they converted our FOP FP+ to an anytime FP good through our 2nd day. On day 2, rope dropped Navi (walk on), then did our FOP FP+ for the day before, still made our 9am Safari FP, then back to FOP for our actual FP+ for that day.
Surprises: 7DMT was cute but nowhere as fun as BTMR (always a favorite of ours). On our BWV->BLT xfer day we went to MK late morning into mid afternoon. Rain was pouring down mid-afternoon, delaying (possibly canceling -we went to BLT) parade. But we went back around 6pm for our 7DMT FP+ and the park was EMPTY. Virtual walk on for everything except 7DMT and Space. So very fun - wore our ponchos as the rain was still coming and going but very light. HEA dessert party went on and was able to sit at front of lawn for the perfect view.
Biggest surprise was being so darn close to EP and DHS at BWV and so close to MK when at BLT meant all the breaks I had planned ended up being more like "hey- let's run over to ..." so we had far fewer breaks than I had planned. In fact, for the first time ever I experienced being "theme park-ed out" on park day 7- we then had 2 days at Universal and we were all pretty spent.
We had hoppers (with plus option) and made it over to Winter Summerland on one transfer day and Typhoon Lagoon on another. Cant' believe that wave pool -I've been in many but nothing prepared me for that wave. It amazes me people are not drowning in that wave pool daily. Seriously. But DD8 could not get enough.
I'd be happy to answer any questions about the above but I wanted to mainly focus on the split stay aspects.
Who are we: myself, DH and DD8. Generally early risers & rope droppers. Love to travel, including road trips with our dog where we do a lot of single or two night stays along the way. Dog stayed back in California for this trip...
Split stay summary:
In 2014 we did our first split stay when DD had just turned 4: 3 nights at AKL and 4 nights at the Poly. Loved: theming at both, monorail service from poly and short walk to TTC, hated: long bus waits at AKL, high prices booking through Disney site
This year: we rented DVC points with an original arrival of 4/13: 2 nights BWV, 3 nights BLT, 2 nights AKK. We originally wanted to do 4 nights Beach Club, 3 nights BLT but could not find availability renting points 7 months out. I loved what we ended up with. Then flights were cheaper 4/12 so we changed our arrival to 4/12 and I booked offsite for the first night. A few weeks before our trip, I noticed our same DVC rental agency had a sale on points that were going to expire so we ended up staying at OKW that first night for the amazing rate of $152 (and reminder, DVC renting includes any and all taxes so this was probably closer to a $110-125 rack rate equivalent- we stayed 1 night at Portofino Bay hotel for rack rate of $362 and the total w/ tax when we checked out was $424!). Did all studios - if we had the budget I would have loved to do 1BR. White noise apps are a life saver to keep all of us in the room sleeping soundly. Maybe someday we'll do the 1BR... Renting points at BLT, BWV and AKL for our dates averaged $300-$325/night including all taxes. Definitely a value. Had an amazing view of EP from our BCV top floor room, pool view for BLT and Savannah view at AKK.
Overall strategy: most days: rope drop to closest park(s) in the AM, ADR for lunch in the park of choice, FP's 60 days out (which meant a 3:55am wake up since we are PST), leave afternoons open, back to a park in the evening. Avoid buses when possible, walk when we can.
Transfer day strategy: Do online check in so you get your room number texted to you when at your park of choice. Drop bags at bell services for transfer, go to closest park at or a little after rope drop, later transfer to park near our destination resort, go to that park, then walk back to new resort (direct to room, DH would go to bell services for bags), chill in room a little, then to another walkable park in the evening.
Resorts:
OKW: hated it. tiny room was as far from Hospitality House as possible (but at $152 not surprising), we hauled our carry-ons from the Magical Express bus and our Magicbands were not working (in fact, at the airport, I was scanning as my daughter, DD as my husband and he as me). Called number that had been texted to us w/ our online check in room number and they could not fix it so a CM came out to let us in the room. CM on the phone gave us a $50 statement credit. Then CM took our Magic bands for an hour or so to get them fixed but also gave us 3 FP+ each to use at EPCOT the next day (avail for all rides except Frozen which we already had a FP+ for). Enjoyed taking boat to Disney Springs, no wait at T-Rex due to our Lanrdy's Select membership, LOVED T-Rex (again - went in 2014- but this time it was paid for w/ our $50 credit + a Landrys award I had previously earned). The next day we waited nearly an hour for the EP bus which was very frustrating but a CM gave us another FP+ for us to use on TestTrack. So on that EP day, with all our extra FP+'s we were able to do Frozen, Soarin', TT, SE, The Land and Mission Space all on FP+, plus make our ADR at Coral Reef for lunch - and we didn't even get to the park until 11am (sleeping in a little our first day since we were still on Pacific time). And were out by 4:30 for the 5 min walk to BWV.
BWV: loved it. if I was up for buying DVC I'd totally buy BWV (have not tried Beach Club - no availability). Walk vs boat options to/from EP and DHS was fantastic. Loved overall feeling at resort & the pool and waterslide.
BLT: also loved it - proximity to MK can't be beat and we also did Hoop Dee Doo one night and Chef Mickey's at CM before our final xfer to AKK. Rented a car one of our BLT days to go to Kennedy Space Center to try to see a rocket launch (which was scrubbed at the last minute, but we did see it from the AK parking lot 2 nights later). Rental car center is a 10 min drive and Alamo had a shuttle to pick me up and drop off after return.
AKK: simply magical place. And this time bus service to AK was quick every time we needed it. (0 to 10 min wait tops).Definitely prefer DVC studios to regular rooms w/ the kitchenette extras (microwave, etc.).
Packing strategy: we pack light- we had 1 suitcase for the 3 of us: shared toiletries, each had 1 reusable shopping bag of clothes we would tie on top and put in the suitcase. At each resort we were responsible for our stuff and had a shared laundry bag. Plan was do do laundry 3 times but ended up doing it twice. Brought enough socks and undies for 5 days but only 3 days of outfits + 1 swim suit. DVC laundry rooms are free (brought our own detergent pods, mesh bags and dryer sheets). BVW laundry has bad ratios - 4 washers which run for 38 min and 2 dryers which run for 1hr (although we only needed like 35 min but still had to wait several hours to get a washer and then wait again for a dryer). AKL had the right ratio (3 washers, 6 dryers, if I remember right). But this alone would be a reason I'd consider a 1BR for at least wherever we stay in the middle of the trip since 1BR has an in room W&D. We also each had 1 small carry on for the plane - but on xfer days we were down to 1 backpack and 1 cooler bag and transferred the rest via Bell Services.
We will hopefully be back in 4 years and my ideal stay would be:
3 nights BWV (or Beach Club if available)
3 nights BLT
2 nights AKL
Best meals:
CRT (so glad I got that ADR 183 days out)
Saana
Tiffins
Coral Reef
T-Rex
Fun times:
Star Wars Dessert
HEA Dessert
Best times:
MK: Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, HEA, Space, BTMR
EP: Frozen (even got a FP+ same-day on our EP evening)
DHS: Jedi Training (walked from BWV to be there 1 hr prior to rope drop- brought Uno cards to play in line which Donald Duck kept coming over to play w/ us), Star Wars Fireworks show
AK: FOP, EE, Safari, DD doing all of the Wilderness Explorer badges
AK strategy: planned AK days at end of trip so we could get FOP, went to AK first in PM w/ FP+'s starting after 4pm, returned the next day for more. So we had FP+'s for FOP for both days. First night ride was down but they converted our FOP FP+ to an anytime FP good through our 2nd day. On day 2, rope dropped Navi (walk on), then did our FOP FP+ for the day before, still made our 9am Safari FP, then back to FOP for our actual FP+ for that day.
Surprises: 7DMT was cute but nowhere as fun as BTMR (always a favorite of ours). On our BWV->BLT xfer day we went to MK late morning into mid afternoon. Rain was pouring down mid-afternoon, delaying (possibly canceling -we went to BLT) parade. But we went back around 6pm for our 7DMT FP+ and the park was EMPTY. Virtual walk on for everything except 7DMT and Space. So very fun - wore our ponchos as the rain was still coming and going but very light. HEA dessert party went on and was able to sit at front of lawn for the perfect view.
Biggest surprise was being so darn close to EP and DHS at BWV and so close to MK when at BLT meant all the breaks I had planned ended up being more like "hey- let's run over to ..." so we had far fewer breaks than I had planned. In fact, for the first time ever I experienced being "theme park-ed out" on park day 7- we then had 2 days at Universal and we were all pretty spent.
We had hoppers (with plus option) and made it over to Winter Summerland on one transfer day and Typhoon Lagoon on another. Cant' believe that wave pool -I've been in many but nothing prepared me for that wave. It amazes me people are not drowning in that wave pool daily. Seriously. But DD8 could not get enough.
I'd be happy to answer any questions about the above but I wanted to mainly focus on the split stay aspects.
