Split stay: is it worth it?

[Boopuff]

I read a lot of posts by people who do a split stay or move several times in a trip. I'm torn. We're going to OKW. I'm more of the settle in and enjoy type, but I'd love to try AKL. The thought of packing up and moving mid-trip gives me hives so it may never happen. Now with resorts not moving perishables, that adds yet another wrinkle. (btw we don't rent a car).

 

[Marionnette]

I read a lot of posts by people who do a split stay or move several times in a trip. I'm torn. We're going to OKW. I'm more of the settle in and enjoy type, but I'd love to try AKL. The thought of packing up and moving mid-trip gives me hives so it may never happen. Now with resorts not moving perishables, that adds yet another wrinkle. (btw we don't rent a car).

I'm also a "get settled in" type. The thought of moving leaves me ill at ease the night before the move. For me, a split stay is more likely to be at a low-cost hotel the night before we move to our DVC resort. Spending a few nights here and a few nights there is not relaxing for me. I know other people live it but it's just not me.

AKV is not difficult to book at 7 months most of the time. If you want to stay there for your entire visit, you stand a good chance of being able to do it.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We love split stays and do them often, but I understand that it's not for everyone. We've used it to experience some awesome resorts - in some ways, it's like getter a re-start on your vacation from a completely different room and theme. But I understand the anxiety. And if you're the type of family that buys drinks and perhaps breakfast foods or snacks, I understand how that part of the move can be challenging.

I could be wrong, but I believe Disney's policy now is that they won't store the perishables in a refrigerator, but they will move them to the new resort. It's possible you could consider a $4 styrofoam cooler, fill in some ice, and put your goodies in there for the 5-6 hours it would take to get to your new room. Even if you did have your own car, this might be something you'd want to consider. Or cut the perishable food orders into 2 - one for the beginning resort, and then head to the shop to reload once you get to AKL - just a thought.

I can tell you that OKW and AKL are 2 of our 3 favorite DVC resorts. If you have not yet had the chance to visit AKL, I would highly recommend it. The suggestion above about changing the entire reservation to AKL is also a good one - you won't have the split, but you would get to enjoy the most unique resort in Florida! Good luck with your decision, and have a great trip - whatever you decide!

 

[Heather07438]

It depends. We prefer to pick a place and stay there but will consider under the right circumstances.

It's more inconvenient to some than others. We've found moving interrupts our park day. I imagine the logistics get more challenging for some parties, not much of a problem for others.

Sometimes it can be worth the effort. We couldn't find availability for Boardwalk but made a trip work by doing a Poly/BC split. We only had 2 nights starting at the Poly so we didn't bother getting well settled in and planned moving day around being without a room that afternoon. Turned out BC had our room ready around 10:30am but had a back up plan because we couldn't rely on that happening and wouldn't know until the notification came through that morning. Early check-in isn't likely, our luck probably had alot to do with it being a slow time of year.

 

[Marionnette]

I could be wrong, but I believe Disney's policy now is that they won't store the perishables in a refrigerator, but they will move them to the new resort.

You've got it backwards. They will refrigerate your groceries that require refrigeration at bell services but they will not transport them between resorts. So, you could take an Uber XL to your next resort and take your groceries to bell services there and all will be okay.

 

[CarolynFH]

We don’t like split stays either, but we’ll do them if necessary. For instance, this coming January we’re doing 3 nights in a Kidani studio then 4 at BWV 1 BR because the 50% borrowing limit prevented a full week in a 1 BR! I agree with those who say you can manage moving the perishables, either by transporting them yourself via rideshare/taxi or by using up all the perishables during the first segment and then restocking for the second.

 

[travelingfam57]

I love split stays. It seems like two vacations in one!

 

[KittyKitty]

Is it worth it. Yes and No.

You can stay at a resort, close to one of the Parks or Restaurants. You can try out new places for a few days before going to the your favorite resort.
You can learn to pack light, because you have to keep packing and unpacking.
My next trip I am staying at 4 places. Pop, cheap and great transportation. WL my favorite resort, close to MK. BWV resort, close to Epcot and Beaches and Cream. OKW, want to try Olivia's chicken. Heard it was great.
Last trip I stayed in one place, Pop. It was great being in one place, but the food became boring. Mostly because of Covid restricting the menu.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

You've got it backwards. They will refrigerate your groceries that require refrigeration at bell services but they will not transport them between resorts. So, you could take an Uber XL to your next resort and take your groceries to bell services there and all will be okay.

Thanks - always learning new stuff out here. Appreciate the clarification.

 

[Skywalker3]

I love split stays, Hubby does not. He wants to unpack and stay put. I think it's the best way to try out all the different resorts, but not committing a whole trip to them. We usually go for a week or just a bit longer, and I love to do 2 resorts where we're there that long. We love our home BWV for location, but splits let us stay in the Epcot resorts area half the time, and plan HS on those days, and try other places and often plan parks closest to them. We do always have our own car though...so that helps a lot. We move all our own stuff. and we often have a LOT. Does make for almost a 'lost' day on moving day, but we just work around it.

 

[Sandisw]

We do it all the time so we stay in the MK and Epcot areas every trip and gear our park days around that.

When we went with family, I simply packed in a way so everything for stay one was in a suitcase or two and things for stay two were in another one or two,

Then, we completely unpacked the suitcases for just that first resort, and put the other ones away. As we used Things, we just put in the suitcases so that by the last night, we had very little to pack up.

We did laundry at the 2nd resort. We also make the move day a sleep in day, and then go to Epcot since it opens later or DS for shopping. We do a TS lunch and by the time we do a few things, and go to resort 2, most of the times the room is ready so we never really feel homeless

 

[Leight19]

As family with 2 small kids (and a third on the way) we love using split stays to have half trip in epcot resort and half in mk resort if possible. The extra disruption on the move day for is worth being able to avoid using transport and walking to parks.

 

[kes601]

We did a 5 BLT / 5 RIV / 7 BWV split stay this summer. While I enjoyed trying 3 different resorts I did feel like we never did get really settled in at 5 nights. I think our minimum for splits is now a 14 day stay w/7 at each resort.

 

[NuJoy]

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[loves to dive]

I'm not DVC but I love split stays and have stayed in OKW, AKV and BWV (renting points and paying cash). OKW and AKV were both split stays. We drive so that is easier but I would still do it. We never do a stay longer than 6 nights and have still done split stays. Usually it's one or two nights in resort 1 where we do MK and AK than the rest of the stay in resort 2 (usually an Epcot resort) where we do mostly HS and Epcot with the occasional hop to MK or AK. My son never unpacks so for him it's not a big deal at all. I do unpack but just use packing cubes so stuff for stay one is in one cube and stay two is in another. We go ahead and move early on move day because I'm an early riser. I go ahead and check out of resort 1 by either calling or going to the front desk then physically check into resort 2 just to let them know we are there. I store our bags at Guest Services and we head on to a park. No interruption in our day at all.

 

[BCVOwner2002]

Split stays depend upon who we are traveling with. If it's just DH and I, we will do a split stay if we can't get all of our days at our preferred resort. Many times, we will start out one place for just a day or two and hold off on having our groceries delivered until our second resort so we don't have to deal with moving groceries. Split stays are also nice when planning entertainment and activities at each resort or location.

 

[Novatrix]

Even though I mostly travel solo, I'm not a fan of split stays. My personal opinion is that I need a minimum of 4 nights at a resort to settle in, relax and enjoy the amenities and more is preferable.

If you want to try AKL, why not try to stay your whole trip there? Or plan that your next trip you'll spend there? Depending on the length of trips you typically take, though, I could see tacking on two nights at AKL just to make sure that you do enjoy stay there before, say booking 9 nights there.

 

[Stargazer65]

We drive and split stay with a car or van so it's easier. We don't usually split stay mid trip. We do a short stay that we travel light and and a long stay where we settle in. Planning next time: 3-4 days studio + 8-11 days villa. We may do a grocery run the day we move to the villa if we want perishables. When we stay in the studio we bring in minimal stuff.

 

[Boopuff]

OP here next question: do you feel like you miss most/all your day transferring resorts?

 

[NuJoy]

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