Leaving for our first trip home 2/20, resort hopping, need some advice please...

[palmtreegirl]

We're leaving for our first trip home on 2/20 and just yesterday we decided to fly down instead of driving. We got a great rate of 620.00 for all 4 of us from Jet Blue and have arranged transportation to WDW through Fl Tours.

Once we're down there we're going to doing a bit of resort hopping. We start out with 2 nights at the Dolphin(through Hotwire), then we're off to the BCV to meet up with DH's extended family for 6 nights. How do we get our stuff over to the BCV, should we just roll it over or will they transfer it for us? Then after the family leaves we're off to the BWV for 6 nights for some family time of our own.

When we booked we thought we'd have our car so now I'm a tad stressed out since we won't. Any tips you could give us on how to resort hop with the least amount of chaos would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your help!

 

[BWVDee]

Luggage transfers can only be made from one Disney resort to another, so during your transfer from Dolphin to BCV, you are on your own. You can roll your own bags over if you don't have a lot of bags OR you can get a cab, which should be very cheap since you are only going a very short distance. For your transfer from BCV to BWV, Disney will move your luggage. Disney's luggage service is very convenient. The only slightly negative with luggage service is the luggage is not guaranteed to be at the next resort until 3 PM. This is only an issue if you want to go to the pool or will need something from your luggage before afternoon. If you want to go to the resort pool you should pack a bag with your bathing suits and pool supplies.
We resort hop all the time, we love staying at all the various WDW resorts. Disney makes it very easy to resort hop and many guests do it, so they(Disney) have it down to a science!. I always check into the new resort first thing in the morning. If the room/villa is ready we get settled in then go about our day. If the room is not ready we check our luggage with luggage services and then either go to a park or the resort pool etc and then in the afternoon just go to our new room!
Have a wonderful trip!

 

[travelbug]

Actually, I had a different experience transferring from Dolphin to BWV when I was there in December. On checkout day, I went to the bell captain and explained that I was moving over to BWV and did not have a car at my disposal. I asked, "Is there any possibility that you can help me with that?" (Pretty much a direct quote, so you know how I worded it) He readily answered, "Oh sure. Let me get a towncar to take you and your luggage over to BWV." I asked what the charge would be, and he said that it would be complimentary. He said that it's just something they do when people request that kind of help. He also offered that they would just drive the luggage over if I wanted to go somewhere else and not go to BWV myself until later. But I wanted to check in early anyway, so I went with my luggage.

He called the valet desk, asked them to bring up a towncar, and gave me a voucher to give to the driver. The driver helped with my bags and took me right to the BWV entrance. I tipped him well. It was worth it to have help making the transfer, since it would have taken me more than one trip to move my stuff on foot.

By the way, it was a Mears towncar. I didn't know that Mears had towncars, but they evidently do. It was sitting there at the Dolphin already, so I had no wait.

It worked out great, and I was really impressed that the Dolphin afforded me that nice perk. So in your case, I think it's worth a try to ask the bell captain when checkout day arrives. Good luck!

 

[chris1gill]

Have you tried using Priceline to get a car for cheap? Maybe you'll get really really lucky? Other than that, you'll have to roll your luggage over to the Villa's from the Dolphin (but it will only take a few minutes anyways)

 

[BWVDee]

travelbug,
You are the first person to ever post this. That is great to know. Thanks for the info!

Edited to add:
It is interesting that the Dolphin will provide this service to their guests and yet Disney does not reiprocate with the same service for their guests (that I know of). Maybe this is something that should be brought to Disney's attention.
I agree, that was excellent customer service from the Dolphin.

 

[rocketriter]

Once you begin transfering between DVC locations, Disney will even keep your refrigerator-based groceries cool during the transfer.

 

[travelbug]

BWVDee - You're welcome. I had never seen this info posted on here either, so I figured it was a long shot at best when I asked the bell captain if they could help in any way. But I figured that it couldn't hurt to at least ask, and I was really glad I did.

Hopefully others will benefit from knowing that Dolphin does provide luggage transfer for those who ask for it. It's maybe best to ask the bell captain, rather than at the front desk.

 

[palmtreegirl]

travelbug- Thank you for the tips, I'll definitely ask someone to help us out at the Dolphin!

rocketriter- Thank you, that's great to know about the groceries!

chris1gill- I've never used Priceline for car rentals. Being that we're there for 2 weeks it probably wouldn't be cheap enough but thanks for the idea anyway!

BWVDee- Thank you for the tips!

 

[travelbug]

Palmtreegirl - You're welcome! Be sure to let us know how it goes for you. Have a wonderful trip! 2 weeks sounds heavenly.

 

[Cruise04]

Actually, unless this has changed, I did a transfer twice in December of 2002. I started out at OKW, transferred to the Swan, then transferred back to OKW. I had no problems. HOWEVER, I had called OKW before I arrived to see if the transfer could be done to the Swan and they said yes, I got the persons name just in case there were problems. When I got to OKW I called the morning I was transferring and they said no they didn't do that, I told them I called on XXX day and talked to XXX and they told me they would. And they did graciously. I had NO problems doing the transfer from Swan to OKW.

Oh...and I didn't have to use a towncar.

 

[wdwsos]

Just to confirm what others have said, I checked with Bell Services at the Swan this past Monday. The bell captain even pulled out the sheet showing me the destinations, and said that they've always transferred luggage to the Disney resorts. He also said that the opposite was not true - that the Disney resorts would not transfer luggage to the Swan or Dolphin.

I don't need the service until April when I'm staying at the Swan for a few nights before going to the VWL. Sure is nice to know I don't have to pay for a taxi!

Dotti

 

[gopherit]

WOW! That really is good info to have! We were actually looking at a wkend night or two at either swan or Dolphin but decided nah, too much hassle moving the bags. Right now we have a 1br and a studio on DVC-discount at BCV. I'd reconsider now, but we have our hearts set on 2 days at SAB! But I will DEFINITELY remember this for future reference... Swan and Dolphin put out some really good rates sometimes, and with the new check in / room assignment situation, we have sort of modified our vacation to include an extra night or two pre-DVC to save on pts and then check-in early at the DVC resort. (Or at least, that's the reason I'M using... it's probably just an excuse to add an extra day or two to our stay! )

Thanks for the tip! I can see Disney not wanting to reciprocate (stingy, ain't they?!?) They want everyone at a Disney resort, 100%! But knowing the market -- especially the DVC market that is equally stingy when it comes to wkend pts -- Swan / Dolphin should advertise this feature, especially to DVC members... (hmmmm, come to think of it... maybe they just did?!?)