Stay at New Hotels? Or Stick to What I Know?

[CoachBeard]

I'm considering booking myself another solo trip for next January and I'm on the fence about what to do for hotels. My recent trip this past november had me split staying at the Dolphin, Boardwalk Villas, Bay Lake Tower, and Animal Kingdom Villas. I'm looking at renting DVC points again and while I do know if I did a split stay this time I'd only stay at 2 hotels. I can't decide if I should try a new spot or not? I was quite spoiled by the proximity I had to HD and Epcot which is where I spend the most time. Do I try Beach Club this time?

I stayed at Wilderness Lodge in a 1 bedroom villa about 15 years ago and really enjoyed it there but I'm not planning to go MK all the time. I want to check out Riviera but it's a little pricey but at least it has the Skyliner. I just don't know what to do. Part of me wants to be different from the last time but then I also loved Boardwalk. How much of a pain is it also if I were to book a less expensive option at say, Saratoga? Will I be sitting on a bus for hours a day?

 

[PhillyBear]

We always love staying at the boardwalk villas. I think it’s harder to rent points at the beach club. We tried last time, but they ran out of availability. Luckily we were able to get in to the boardwalk.

 

[Marthasor]

Beach Club Villas is my absolute favorite due to its location. If you can find something there, I would book it in a heartbeat. RIV is just too expensive for what it is, IMHO. It's lovely, but has too few dining locations for the size of the resort and, if the Skyliner goes down, only buses will be available. I, personally, wouldn't do SSR unless you are planning on going to DS. If you are renting DVC and want to split resorts, I would do BCV or BWV with a AKV or BRV/CCV split. Bonus that BRV is almost done with its room renovations! Personally, if you don't have to split, I would just stick with BCV or BWV.

 

[VicarJT]

I love trying new resorts. We do split-stays and our second stay is always longer and at a place that we know and love.

 

[CoachBeard]

I love trying new resorts. We do split-stays and our second stay is always longer and at a place that we know and love.

That sounds like a good plan, I hadn't thought to do that route. Dabble in a new hotel and put my feet up where I know I'll be comfy. I'm so indecisive since I've only been to WDW a few times and if I can make this trip work it'll be the first time it wasn't 10+ years between. It's a weird FOMO sensation.

 

[loves to dive]

I like to try new resorts and split stays are perfect for that. I've stayed at just about every resort except SS, RIV and WL so can't help you there. Before I started staying in different resorts I'd take an afternoon and just hop on a bus to a resort I hadn't been to yet and walk around the resort to see if I was even interested in the vibe. I almost always stay at Dolphin now days, but have stayed at BWI, YC and BC many times. My fav. is YC. I've found Dolphin fits my budget and I love Epcot and HS so it's perfect. Unfortunately, I've only been able to rent points once but that's because I just don't plan my trips far enough in advance for any to be available and I went through a rental company because I could get a refund from them.

 

[maxbuffmelvin]

I have an alternative opinion because I'm not too fond of split stays, but I love visiting other resorts. I always have a car rental and drive to any resorts I want to see. If the resort restricts parking, then I will book a dining reservation. I always stay at MK resort because I spend most of my time there, it's easy to drive to the other parks, and MK is inconvenient because of the extra step of parking at TTC.

 

[CoachBeard]

I have an alternative opinion because I'm not too fond of split stays, but I love visiting other resorts. I always have a car rental and drive to any resorts I want to see. If the resort restricts parking, then I will book a dining reservation. I always stay at MK resort because I spend most of my time there, it's easy to drive to the other parks, and MK is inconvenient because of the extra step of parking at TTC.

This trip I’m leaning towards only one split, if any. I had to leave some good steak behind since I couldn’t transfer perishables and it was kind of annoying to pack up several times. I just didn’t know when I’d ever be back so over the course of the 9 months waiting for the trip I tacked on a couple extra days. I think I should dedicate a day to solely resort hopping this time. I did a little last time but it wasn’t enough.

I’m just so indecisive lol

 

[Wood Nymph]

If I was taking only one trip a year, then I would stick with the one I loved.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I’d split 1 I loved, 1 new.

Trying new resorts is how I fell in love with current fave Riv- but trying new resorts is also I how I found out POFQ is not for me and I was glad I only had a few days there.

 

[kylenne]

I’d split 1 I loved, 1 new.

Trying new resorts is how I fell in love with current fave Riv- but trying new resorts is also I how I found out POFQ is not for me and I was glad I only had a few days there.

This! In hindsight I really wish I had split with another resort when I stayed at POFQ on my first solo trip because I learned it was not for me either. The main reason I enjoy splits is they're like 2 vacations in one. But I also really enjoyed splitting between MK and EP resorts for the transportation aspect, it is so convenient not needing the buses except at AK because you can walk to 3 of them.

 

[Once.Upon.A.Time]

I’m kind of into trying new resorts. So far I’ve stayed at CBR, CSR, and FQ. Next stay with at OKW.

 

[kboo]

I second the one old, one new...
You could add borrowed points and stay somewhere blue (BCV)?

 

[CoachBeard]

I second the one old, one new...
You could add borrowed points and stay somewhere blue (BCV)?

Haha I like that. No more wedding things for me again.

I am quite curious about riviera but the room is so tiny! I feel like my head would be next to the front door. But I love the sky liner and new experiences.

I’m still waiting for my dates to open up on the rental site… and my annual bonus. So there’s time to think and plan.

 

[kboo]

Haha I like that. No more wedding things for me again.

I am quite curious about riviera but the room is so tiny! I feel like my head would be next to the front door. But I love the sky liner and new experiences.

I’m still waiting for my dates to open up on the rental site… and my annual bonus. So there’s time to think and plan.

Are you talking about the tower studio or the regular studios? The regular studios are large - our family of 4 stays in them quite a bit. The tower studios are unlikely to be available unless you rent points at 11 months. If you're a park commando, the tower studio would be fine but still I'd have it at the beginning of your trip so you move to something larger, later. But if you're looking at a standard studio, it will be plenty large.

 

[fla4fun]

I agree with trying a new resort for a few nights at the beginning of your trip and then moving for the bulk of your vacation at a resort you love. Worst case, you find you don’t like the new resort, but you aren’t there long. Best case, you love the new resort and now you have an excuse to book another trip!

 

[keahgirl8]

I'll let you know! I've stayed at the same place every year for the last decade. This year, I am doing a split stay at 3 different places, two of which I've never tried and one I've only stayed in for one night before.

 

[CoachBeard]

Are you talking about the tower studio or the regular studios? The regular studios are large - our family of 4 stays in them quite a bit. The tower studios are unlikely to be available unless you rent points at 11 months. If you're a park commando, the tower studio would be fine but still I'd have it at the beginning of your trip so you move to something larger, later. But if you're looking at a standard studio, it will be plenty large.

It’s the one with the pull down bed. I can’t really afford the larger rooms… I think. I’m a coke back in the afternoon for a cool down guy. However, I’m planning to go in January so I may not need more than a rest of the feet this time.

I’m planning to rent points at 11 months

 

[CoachBeard]

I appreciate all the advice so far, keep it coming!

For more context I’m planning maybe a 5 night stay. Solo adult and I typically fly by the seat of my pants there and this time want to hit the little things I neglected on the last trip since there was an 11 year span between visits. Now I don’t feel compelled to have to do it all and I’m a magic key holder at DL so the galaxy’s edge stuff isn’t a focus over there in FL for me.

 

[Pyxie]

I'm personally big on trying a new resort every time. I'd eventually like to stay at (or at least hang out at) every Disney resort. I've even planned trips to stay at previous resorts that I love, but I've always ended up switching to something new before the trip happened. At this point, I've never actually stayed at the same resort twice.