Split stay with AKL??

[karpy111]

We are going to Disney for 8 nights in September, 2 kids 9 and 6. Right now we are staying at the AKL with a savanna view. We have never been to any DVC resorts. Do i need the whole 8 nights to experience everything AKL has to offer, or do you think we should do a split stay with another DVC resort?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[disneynutz]

Split stays are nice to experience other resorts but moving is disruptive. Unpack, pack, transfer luggage and food, check in, wait for room till 4:00, call for luggage, unpack.

I wouldn't do a split for a short stay but 4 nights each isn't so bad.

Bill

 

[ontheuptick]

We are going to Disney for 8 nights in September, 2 kids 9 and 6. Right now we are staying at the AKL with a savanna view. We have never been to any DVC resorts. Do i need the whole 8 nights to experience everything AKL has to offer, or do you think we should do a split stay with another DVC resort?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe

I would split stay for sure. But that's a personal thing. I want to see and experience all the resorts. And, packing back up isn't that big of a hassle to me.

 

[Kidanifan08]

We have done a few split stays -- BLT/AKV twice, BCV/AKV, BWV/GF. It is a nice way to see other resorts, but the more we do them, the less I like them, mostly for the reasons that Bill pointed out. With an 8 day stay, you could do a 4/4 split and it may not be too bad. Your kids are old enough to tolerate it and it would give them a different pool to try out.

We try to do a water park on our switch day. That usually keeps us busy for most of the day and we never get too hot.

The rooms at AKV are quite large, with 2 bath in the 1BR and 3 in the 2BR, so depending on what resort you split with, it may be a little disappointing to move into smaller quarters. You may want to end at AKV, which is a nice, relaxing way to end the trip and it's a beautiful resort.

 

[carlbarry]

I have stayed at AKL twice, both times for 7 days. There are enough activities there and things to see that you can stay there for a week without going to the parks.
Last year I did my first on-site split stay. In fact, in 10 days I stayed in 3 resorts. My conclusion was that it was fun, but due to the unpacking, packing, and loss of time for the move, it detracted from the relaxation aspect of the vacation. And I'm a solo traveler--doing it with 2 kids I would think would add to the effort.

 

[mousestruck]

We have done a split stay twice, and while the change in experience is fun, we really hate being "homeless" for a day. You have to check out by 11 and usually can't check into your new room until much later in the afternoon. It's not a big deal if you'll be at the parks anyway, but it can be drag when you want to come back to the room and swim or relax during the day. I also don't like packing and unpacking multiple times.

 

[jerseygal]

We have done a split stay twice, and while the change in experience is fun, we really hate being "homeless" for a day. You have to check out by 11 and usually can't check into your new room until much later in the afternoon. It's not a big deal if you'll be at the parks anyway, but it can be drag when you want to come back to the room and swim or relax during the day. I also don't like packing and unpacking multiple times.

We are doing a split stay 2 night AKV Jambo and 2 nights VGF! It will just be DS.and me so I think it is easier than with kids...packing up should be a snap.

 

[DenLo]

Packing is much easier if the first segment is a short stay of 2 days and the second is longer (5 or 6 nights), but you don't get the feel of the first resort--4 and 4 would work better. I like the idea of having AKV as the second resort as it is more relaxing and easier to ignore the parks. At VGF you can see MK as you walk out of the building (and sometimes from your room) so the park is in your face so to speak.

Having done splits stays for a few years, I am looking forward to the fact that for the next two reservations they will NOT be split stays. Being homeless that one day is a pain IMO and distrupts our usual schedule of mornings at the park and afternoons at the resort with a short trip to the pool and the rest down time or time to explore the resort and join in on the activities until we head to a park in the evening. Especially if the weather is really hot sometimes I want less time at the park during the day. And it just seems you just start to relax and it's time to move resorts or pack for home. I decided it was silly that we are trying to check out all of the resorts since we have many years left on our contract(s) which will give us plenty of time to explore other resorts. So unless we are changing villa size, I see no reason to change resorts.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Being homeless on change day is a big pain to me. I'll unpack and stick until it is time to go home. Especially if I have stuff in the refrigerator and freezer. It's bad enough to unpack the refrigerator to go home, but to do it twice is a real pain to me.

 

[Dean]

We are going to Disney for 8 nights in September, 2 kids 9 and 6. Right now we are staying at the AKL with a savanna view. We have never been to any DVC resorts. Do i need the whole 8 nights to experience everything AKL has to offer, or do you think we should do a split stay with another DVC resort?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe

For us personally we would not do a split stay in this situation. However, for those who are less experienced with DVC, will not have/use a car and are more park oriented, a split stay would likely be best or a stay at a different DVC resort and not at AKV. AKV is a little more isolated with more transportation time that most if using the Bus system.

 

[Nanajo1]

We do split stays 7/7. We plan moving day as a day to do other things, like mini golf, go to DTD. I would do AKV second. It is a very relaxing resort with a great pool play area for kids. We do not find the travel time to the parks very excessive. Not after the 5 stops when we are BWV.