Just for fun: Favorite Split Stays

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

Tell me about your favorite split stays! Our last trip was our first split stay and we loved it so much we booked another split stay for 2022. I want to hear about all your favorite split stay combos, how you like to break down your days in each hotel, and really anything else you want to share. I just love Disney resorts and love hearing o everyone’s experiences.

 

[PPFlight75]

I love a MK and EP area split!! My favorite is BWI and Poly. We hit up HS and EP while at BWI and MK and AK at Poly. We like to slow down a little at Poly and have some sleep in -pool/patio days. 9-10 days is perfect for us and it feels kind of like 2 vacations in one!

 

[married2grumpy]

MK/EP split stays are the best of both worlds! My favorite was a split stay 3 nights at CR then 3 nights at YC. A split stay is also a great way to try a higher priced resort. A few days at a value or moderate and last 2 or 3 at a deluxe. It’s like 2 vacations in one!

 

[Disneylover99]

We’ve done lots of different resort combos over the years.

We prefer Pop/Poly or POFQ/Poly combo.

2 weeks at Pop or POFQ followed by 4 days at the Poly is our favourite split stay.

We just relax at the Poly. We may or may not go to MK or Epcot for an hour or 2.
No pressure, just relax.

 

[raddisneyfan]

I've never stayed at Pop Century, AOA, or Caribbean Beach. To check all of these off my bucket list all at once, I'm thinking of doing 3 nights at each next April...all on Skyliner too for the F&G!

 

[kinkin201]

My favorite split stay has been a 4 night SSR then 4 night AKL Concierge. My family loves SSR and it feels the most like home. It has the best fitness center on property, a good quick service restaurant and the easiest access to Disney Springs. The concierge level was great since we didn’t plan to do much at the parks so it made hanging out so relaxing. Fitness center isn’t bad but a little small, foods good and the pool is great.

 

[tlm345]

We did a Sunday-Thursday at Boardwalk Villas. Got all of our park days in. (Tweens love Hs and boardwalk is so close!) then we spent the weekend at Poly. No parks, just food and the pool. So relaxing before we drove the 17 hours home.

 

[Lehuaann]

In 2011, we did a split between AKL CL, FW Cabin, and Poly CL. Exhausting, but fun.

The only park time we did during the CL stays were for tours. This was back when the Premium and Platinum packages were available.

 

[TCRAIG]

October - 4 nights at 1BR at BLT for Halloween access to whatever MK has to offer - and 4 nights at 1BR Beach Club Villas to walk to Epcot Food and Wine.

 

[Laurieannc]

Yacht Club/Wilderness Lodge. Best of both worlds.

 

[LeslieLou]

We love split stays and do them all the time. I cannot remember the last time we did not have a split stay.
My favorite is beach club or yacht club (depending if we are on DVC points) or Swan/Dolphin for Marriott points and BLT

 

[loves to dive]

Before this year, we had done split stays for every trip for the last 6 years. This year I've been treating myself and just staying at the Dolphin the entire trip.

We drive down from Athens, GA, which is about a 6 1/2 to 7 hour drive depending on if I'm driving or my son is. We usually get there between 2 and 3 in the afternoon. Since we go directly to a park after dropping stuff off in our room (if it's ready), I don't like to pay deluxe prices for that first night. So, we stay at either a value, whichever one is less, or a moderate, whichever one is less for the first night or two. My thinking is you have to bus to AK no matter where you stay so day 2, which is the first full day, is spent at AK. When we get to the resort, we just go to the bus stop and hop on the first bus that arrives for that short arrival day. If we are staying two nights, 2nd full day is a MK day, since we stay at the Epcot resorts, we have to bus to MK anyway (I'm not a fan of the monorail when it is running) so we knock that one out while staying there.

On move day, we get up when we get up, which for me is usually around 7, pack up, eat breakfast and move the car to resort #2 and check in. Every once in a while the room is ready but rarely so we store our bags with bell service and head off to what ever park (AK or MK) we are doing that day. Sometimes we go to the room when we get the text it is ready, sometimes we don't. Just depends on what we are doing at the time. The rest of our time is spent at Epcot and HS, which the occasional couple of hour hop to AK or MK.

We have stayed at all the Epcot resorts, my favorite is YC but for the last 3 years, Swolfin has been our pick. It just depends on what resort I can find for the less during our stay.

 

[Brob2132]

Is there any down side to a split stay other than having an additional day of logistics to deal with?

 

[coolbrook]

Is there any down side to a split stay other than having an additional day of logistics to deal with?

You have to make your dining reservations at 60 days before each resort reservation instead of all at once, so you loose some early booking advantage.
You are "homeless" for some period of time usually while you wait for your next room to be ready. As long as you know this you can plan around it.

 

[epcotobsessed]

Four Seasons/BC. The cheapest Four Seasons room is usually comparable to a room at the BC/YC and everything about the FS blows BC out of the water, except proximity to the parks, so that's why we love split stay.

 

[DisneyMommy77]

All my stays are split stays, but this last trip was my favorite. Bay Lake Tower and Boardwalk!
Amazing!!

 

[tinabina919]

We love split stays. Mostly because we don’t really like using Disney transportation and love to be able to just walk back to the resort whenever we like. That being said, we usually do MK/Epcot reports like everyone else.

More recently we have even been throwing in a third resort for some relaxing no park time in the middle. Some of our favorites have been BLT to WL (during the holidays) to Dolphin and Poly to GDT CL to BWV.

So far for January 2022 we have BWV to GDT CL. We are thinking of a Disney Springs hotel to end the trip off this time and to take advantage of all the good food over there.

 

[pinkxray]

I love split stays! We have done so many I can’t remember them all.

Favorite so far have been splitting between an Epcot/MK resort. 2020 we did YC/GF and 2019 we did Dolphin/Poly. Love being close to the parks to avoid buses or driving.

I also love AKL but don’t love being so far from MK so we split that from BLT.

Our next trip has us splitting between Copper Creek and Hard Rock at Universal.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm not the biggest fan of split stays but at times they make sense for us.

We did a Poly/BC split for our first split stay. I loved having the best of both worlds with a MK and Epcot resort. We split our park days to accomodate where we were and it worked great.

We also did a POFQ/BWV split stay. I did this due to wanting to guarantee a DVC rental at the 11 month mark in November. They are hard to come by and I initially wanted 9 nights but I would have had to wait an extra two days since you can only book 7 nights up front then add on after that. (I believe that's what I was told). With it being F&W, Jersey week and an Epcot resort I didn’t want to chance it being sold out so I booked the 7 nights and then did POFQ for our first two nights. I realized how much I loved POFQ from that trip. It's a gorgeous resort.

The things I don't like about split stays is the packing and unpacking. I use a lot of bath, hair and skin products so there is no just pack what you need in one bag for the first part and another bag for the second part. It's just a pain for me. I don't like being homeless for part of the day since we are midday break by the pool people. We do not like changing or getting dressed in locker rooms so we don't bother with that. Plus if I'm done at the pool I want to go to my room. Not change again in a locker room.

Next trip if we have to do another split stay (debating on renting points) I will make moving day a relaxing, late morning. Check out exactly at 11 am and hit a park with a lunch ADR. Instead of our usual RD and then when our room isn't ready early we get a little crabby. I'm not a fan of DS (haven't been since it was DTD) so we don't do that. I would rather be at a park than out shopping. I hate shopping and my daughter would love to shop but she says she would rather be in the parks too.

 

[bakerworld]

We tried a few split says but it's not for us. We have to occasionally do them but I don't like how short our vacation feels when I have to pack up after a night or two to move and then not unpack fully because we're going home in a few days.