Spliting stay between two resorts

[Popovich]

We are planning a trip for next October and will be traveling with our two children, ages 3 and 5, grandma and grandpa as well as my brother in law, his wife and their two girls, ages 5 and 2. We will be staying 8 nights.

I'm looking for advice on whether to spend the whole time at BWV or split the stay between BWV and VWL so we will be close to Magic Kingdom for the days we are going there. Since we will have 4 young kids we will be coming back to the hotel mid-day and going out again in the evening. We are reserving a two bedroom and a studio.

I think we will go to Magic Kingdom 2 or 3 days, MGM 1 day, Animal Kingdom 1 day, stay around the resort 2 days and Universal Studios 1 day.

Is it a lot of trouble to change resorts? Would the bus ride from BWV to Magic Kingdom be cumbersome with 4 strollers twice a day?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience!!!!

 

[Granny]

I'm not familiar with the bus situation between BWV and MK, but I will toss in my two cents....I hate to change accommodations during a stay.

Having said that, the boat is a nice way to easily get between VWL and MK and it is easy to get back for those afternoon rests.

My dislike of changing resorts would override the convenience potential of VWL. With a group your size, I think you might lose some time, and packing and unpacking refrigerated goods doesn't sound too appealing either.

 

[Dumbo]

You can always drive your car over to the Magic Kingdom on those days. Changing resorts can be a pain with such a large family.

Or you can take a slow stroll through Epcot, exit out the front entrance, than take the monorail to MK.

Dumbo

 

[scott.campbell]

I personally would just stay at the one resort, I did not find the bus journey with stroller much of a problem. Plus I think the packing and unpacking to move a few miles to another resort would distract from the vacation.

However if the change was more to experience the other resort instead of just the convenience to the Magic Kingdom. Go for it!

Boy now I'm confused!

 

[janiejo]

I agree with staying at one resort for the entire stay! If your only reason for staying at WL is for the convenience of getting to MK, I probably wouldn't go for it. Have you considered renting strollers on the days you go to MK? You could rent double strollers, thus only needing two. The rental is good all day at any park, so you can turn the strollers in when you leave and get another when you return. If, however, you want to stay at WL, that is another matter all together. Both are beautiful resorts!

 

[Mickbee]

I'm on the band wagon too; I would recommend staying at one resort. Our trip in August we were splitting our stay between VWL and OKW. We were dreading the switch, not because we didn't like OKW, rather the hassle of the switch. The day we were checking out they had availability for us to stay. It was a huge relief.

My $.02 on location would be a vote for VWL for the entire stay. Simply from a convenience standpoint (I think it is a great resort as well, but that's another story for another day). It sounds as though you are taking a good size group of multiple ages and MK is one of your more frequently visited parks. IMHO to stay at BWV and walk to the monorail at Epcot just to go to MK will leave you with tired kids and less time for fun. The boat from VWL can get to MK in as little as 10 minutes. This is great when you want to retreat for lunch or a nap.

The location may not matter much of you plan to travel by car/cars.


As always, JMHO. Good luck and ENJOY!

 

[Candace]

A dissenting vote here - I do not mind changing resorts if I am there for a week or more like you will be. BWV is one of my home resorts, but after staying at VWL in Sept. of this year, I would highly recommend it for your group. Bell services will move your luggage for you, and even store the refrigerated items until you arrive at your next resort. You just call them, they come get it and tag it for you, or you can take it to bell services, get the claim tickets, then go do your thing for the day until time to check in at the next resort. MK will be so much easier for mid-day breaks if you are at VWL, and the same goes for your days at MGM if you are at BWV. Be sure to do the walkway to Fort Wilderness to visit all they have over there. Your kids will love it. And don't forget to book Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary for when you are at VWL. Staying at two resorts, even though a bit of a hassle, is like having two different vacations. Enjoy!

 

[ahoff]

We just got back from a great week at WDW, staying at two resorts, BW and WL. They are both fantastic, and offer two different aspects of a vacation, the hustle and bustle of the BW and the quietness of WL. Changing was pretty painless using the bell services to store your luggage. They will even move it over for you if you don't have a car. The bus service from BW to MK can be a problem, sometimes we hit it just right, and sometimes we had to wait what I thought was an excessive amount of time. Maybe it just felt that way, but we were trying to make a PS for Chef Mickey's

 

[Popovich]

Thank you all for your input!!! There are advantages to not changing locations.

How is the kiddie pool and is there a play area for little ones at WL/VWL?

 

[Dean]

I'd agree that staying at WLV or BW for the entire time makes sense. However, you may still want to consider 3-4 days at BW at the end of your trip. This would give you some more adult time and BW and WLV do have the kids center though I don't know their age cut offs. For your trip, I'd say WLV makes more sense for a one place stay but you can't go wrong with either.