Split Stay: Deluxe and ????

[nancy drew]

ok, i know split stays arent exactly popular around here, but here is the deal. i am a single (divorced) mom, my kids (almost 4yo and 2yo) are obsessed with all things disney, and they have been to disney at least once a year since birth. i want to continue the tradition. i cannot afford a deluxe for our entire trip, but i like the luxury of being within walking/monorail/boating distance of the parks. so im thinking about splitting our trip so we can maximize our park time and minimize our travel time. plus im a snob and ive only stayed in deluxe resorts and am afraid of staying in mods or budgets.

so what should i do?

im thinking about staying at a mod that is walkable to epcot/hollywood (or at least a short bus ride) for the first half, then switching to a deluxe where we can ride to the MK. ***BUT*** i want the dining plan. from what i have read, this is difficult. yes? no? can you do the dining plan on a split stay without lots of hassle? and if so, where should we stay for the first part of our trip? a moderate? a budget? im not at all afraid of being in close quarters with the kids, last year our vacation was the most restful time of my life (going to bed at the same time as my kids = lots more sleep for me!!!). im fine with any deluxe but im not so confident on the moderates. if we could walk to epcot and/or hollywood studios, that would be awesome. i know we have to ride to AK and thats fine. but walking or riding (easily) to the other non-MK parks would be awesome.

suggestions?

thanks!!!!!!

 

[Selket]

I can't answer the ? about the split stay and the dining plan and park tickets (seems like you'd have to start over with the 2nd half of your stay making the park tickets more expensive than staying in the same place all week.)

I don't think any of the values or mods are in walking distance of any of the parks so you are out of luck there.

Because you are more used to the deluxe hotels I'd suggest trying a moderate for your split stay if you go that way. I've stayed at POR, POFQ, and CSR and all three are nice - beautiful grounds and the pools are nicely themed. Just pick the one that appeals to you the most. I'm not sure what the closest mod to Epcot/DHS is but the bus ride isn't bad to any of the parks from the mods. I just use it as time to get the stuff in my bag straight, talk to the kids about what we're going to see, etc.

 

[Allison]

There are no moderates you can walk to a park from. The moderates are wonderful resorts. I have stayed at 4 deluxe resorts (Poly, Beach Club, Boardwalk, and AKL) and 3 moderates (POR, POFQ, CBR). The moderates are very nice resorts and have a lot of charm. We have always enjoyed our stays.

The dining plan does not work well with split stays as you will have to book 2 different packages as a package will be required at each resort. This means you have to buy at least a one day ticket for each person for each package. This is more expensive than one set of tickets covering the entire stay. One set of tickets could saved for the future but if you are on a budget, you probably don't want to tie that money up.

 

[G8r4evr]

Im not sure about a split stay/dining...but CBR is a beautiful resort and is very close to Epcot=)

 

[AmyAllan&Eve]

Both of those resorts are Deluxe, but they are much less expensive than the Polynesian or Contemporary.

I do have to brace myself whenever I stay at a Moderate. In 2003, my room at CBR was a bit of a shock. I had always stayed Deluxe. The room at the CBR was like staying at a Best Western or a Holiday Inn. That was okay--but not great. Now, outside the room, it was lovely. The grounds are beautiful. (My room at CBR was worn, with a stained chair and dirty carpeting, too, and that was part of my shock. We tried to get a new room, but it was the week of July 4th and nothing was available.)

I did stay one night at Coronado Springs Resort before checking into the WL in August 2006. This time the room was not worn. I found it to be clean, but I was still jarred by the difference between a Moderate and a Deluxe.

The air conditioning unit always seems more prominent and noisy in the Moderates. And of course, the room is smaller. And I miss having a private balcony and an inside corridor to enter my room. But that's okay. I am prepared to stay Moderate (or maybe even Value) on my next trip.

In fact, I think it might be fun to stay at a Value for a few days and then move up to a Deluxe. During the Value days, I could spend more time in the parks. My daughter would love the theming of the Value Resorts. I am sure of it. And then the savings would afford a short stay in a Deluxe, where we could spend more time in the room and pool.

I highly recommend the Animal Kingdom Lodge, too. When we visited for an afternoon with my 2 year old daughter, she went crazy. She loved looking at the animals from inside the lodge. We even went out to a porch with rocking chairs and watched the Savannah. Eve was beside herself with joy. I stayed there before she was born, and I think it is my favorite resort of all. I loved it.

 

[ElizabethB]

As a previous poster said, the dining plan doesn't work well with split stays because you have to buy a package at each hotel. Each package requires purchase of a ticket for each member of the party. What we've done is buy a one-day ticket as part of the package for our second hotel. We simply hold onto that ticket and apply it as a credit toward whatever ticket we buy next time we go to WDW. The problem is the next time we went, we bought a package again, so couldn't use the credit from the leftover ticket for that trip. Upshot, we still have unused one-day tickets to use for a credit at some point.

As a single mom with two under 5 I agree that a monorail resort would be great. Alternatively, we've stayed at Coronodo Springs with a car and found that to be very convenient. You can park the car close to your room and the resort it gorgeous.

 

[ktink]

We will be doing our first split stay this year. And if you want to do the dining plan you do have to purchase at least a 1 day base ticket for the second package, and that can add up.

We are staying at a value the first part of our stay w/ DDP then moving over to WL or possibly Polynesian the second part. I'm purchasing 7 day tickets on the ASMu package and having a room only for the deluxe. So we will be paying OOP for our food on that portion. The way I look at it is we'll be staying at ok accomodations and eating like a king and then sleeping like a king to eating ok. It's a trade off I'm willing to make.

 

[fairestoneofall]

We are splitting our stay in November. I'm dealing with the DDP this way--I'm staying for five nights at a Mod and two nights at CR MK view. I'm getting our tickets and the DDP on the Mod ressie. Since the DDP expires at midnight on the day you check out, I have six days to spread out my DDP credits. Then, I'll just have the one day to pay OOP.

 

[LoveKermit]

I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest no dining plan.....

Get park hoppers for the length of your stay (if you want). Even rent a car if you'd like (we paid $42 or something for 5 days last August).

But the dining plan is so much food! Especially for a 4 year old. I'm assuming the 2 yo is eating off your plates. But if you can all agree on something, there might be nights where all 3 of you split one meal. You could even eat dessert somewhere else--hotel, DTD (Ghiradelli), etc. That's way cheaper than even the dining plan's per night amount. And it's more flexible if you snack a little or someone gets too tired and you never really get to your TS for dinner.

Just a thought and then you have no, at least fewer, worries.

 

[MickeyNicki]

I would stay at the Swan or Dolphin, that gets you a deluxe resort at a pretty good price (they offer lots of discounts) at a great location but you cannot get the dining plan

 

[RivaLJ]

I did a split stay this past summer between the WL and the Poly. We had the dining plan. I had a 10 day MYW + dining ticket at the first hotel, and had to buy a 1 day base ticket for the 2nd hotel to be eligible for the Dining Plan. It did mean walking around with 2 different KTTW- one for the park tickets and one for the 2nd resort room. It was less expensive to put 10 days on one card than do 5 and 5. The only downside of this is that I have an unused 1 day base ticket and I like the dining plan. But at least that ticket will never expire!