Staying at one resort for 7-9 nights vs two separate resorts for 4-5?

[atlbraves49]

We are considering a long stay (7-9 nights). It seems it may be challenging to find a reservation to rent for such a long period. We will be traveling with a few small children; would it be an issue at all to instead switch to two shorter stays back to back? Apparently bell service will transfer the luggage for us?

Option 1: Stay at DVC near contemporary for duration of stay (7-9 nights). Monorail and bus to epcot/hollywood studios. Will we be able to find a reservation to rent for this duration?

Option 2: Stay at DVC near contemporary for 3-4 nights (for magic kingdom), then switch to DVC near Epcot for 3-4 nights (for epcot/HS)

Preferred approach? Planning ahead for the 11-month out point, for xxxxxx (details removed)

 

[EatMoreVeg]

Personally, I love doing split stays but they aren't for everyone. I like the change of scenery and changing resorts to be closer to different parks and will plan my park days around which resorts I'm at. Transferring luggage with Bell Services has always gone very smoothly for us, although I have heard others having issues with long waits for Bell Services to pick up your bags, or missing bags between transfers and bags not arriving at your next hotel until late into the evening. We've never had any of these concerns but it is a possibility. We also be sure to tip both when the bags are picked up and when they get dropped off so there's a small cost to this.

You also have to think through the logistics of packing up in the middle of your vacation, and being "homeless" between 11 AM - 4 PM (or later). If this works for your family and worth the hassle, then I would say, go for it!

 

[pianomanzano]

We are considering a long stay (7-9 nights). It seems it may be challenging to find a reservation to rent for such a long period. We will be traveling with a few small children; would it be an issue at all to instead switch to two shorter stays back to back? Apparently bell service will transfer the luggage for us?

Option 1: Stay at DVC near contemporary for duration of stay (7-9 nights). Monorail and bus to epcot/hollywood studios. Will we be able to find a reservation to rent for this duration?

Option 2: Stay at DVC near contemporary for 3-4 nights (for magic kingdom), then switch to DVC near Epcot for 3-4 nights (for epcot/HS)

Preferred approach? Planning ahead for the 11-month out point, for xxxx

Both options are doable, with pros/cons for each. Staying at 1 resort is easiest if you like to unpack and have a lot of things for the small children. When we go, we like to unpack and we have an owner's locker with things like a brita filter, bottle rack, inflatable toddler bed, inflatable shower tub, etc. Those things take time to pack and unpack/setup. Specifically for renting, you'd have to find a renter who has enough points to accommodate the rental. You can take full advantage of the advance booking period for ADRs, which can be crucial for securing some of those hard to get reservations.

For option 2, wIth small children the biggest challenge is being "homeless" for the day you switch resorts, especially if you need a place to nap. But you'll get a fresh new room, change of scenery, and efficiency in travel to the parks.

 

[Jasmine9828]

I believe September is a low season for DVC, so you might actually have luck with the single resort stay if that’s your preference.

 

[HarvardAce]

If we are staying for about a week, we usually try to do a split stay between our home resort (BLT) and one of the Epcot resorts. We try and do AK and HS while we are at the Epcot resort, and then MK while we are at BLT (with Epcot convenient from both places and often a park hop destination). We also make sure to do the Epcot fireworks while we are at the Epcot resort, so we avoid the packed monorail. You can easily save several hours of transportation time by doing the split stay that way, which for us more than makes up for the hassle of the move day.

We've never had an issue with bell services moving bags, although it is true that the bags might not get to the resort until late afternoon/early evening. We also usually bring the bags ourselves down to the bell services desk, as we usually try to rope drop and don't want to have to wait for bell services to get to us. With small children that may be harder to do, so be sure to budget 10-15 minutes or more for bell services to get to your room to pick up the bags if you go that route.

The biggest concern is not having a room to go back to mid-day if that's something you often do. That said, you could still go back to either resort mid-day and relax in the common areas or the Community Hall.

One note that won't be an issue if you're looking at DVC: The Swan and Dolphin aren't integrated with the Disney bell services, so I don't believe they'll move your luggage for you.

 

[disney-inspired]

I believe September is a low season for DVC, so you might actually have luck with the single resort stay if that’s your preference.

Not necessarily - a lot of DVC owners go during that time because points are the lowest of the year and F&W festival is still going on.

 

[Sandisw]

Removed your dates regarding travel so this is not seen as a reservation for rent wanted post. I like split stays and we did them a lot, even with our little ones.

The day we switched resorts, we slept in, enjoyed the pool, and didn't check out until we had to...then, we would do a lunch somewhere, many times at DS...and then head to the park or the resort. By the time we did all of that, it was usually close to check in time....

 

[Cfabar1]

For 7 days I wouldn't bother. For 9 days maybe, two weeks, that sounds nice.

For me, I think about all the mental effort and packing time that goes into packing and unpacking the room, the drive time, etc. Now, the change of scenery would be nice, as would the optimal location for each place. But, I still go back to, I'd rather be in one place.

plus, your plans if you stayed at MK the entire time wouldn't be too limiting as you can just hop on the monorail to EPCOT. Or stay at the EPCOT resorts area the entire time and hop the monorail to MK in the afternoon with the park hopper which might be better as you could walk to HS and EPCOT that way.

 

[GoingSince1990]

I LOVE unpacking and settling in when we arrive, knowing we will not have to pack until the end of the trip. And for me that goes double when traveling with young children. So I would never do a split stay unless forced. But I realize from this board that opinions on this issue differ quite a lot!

 

[atlbraves49]

I guess a follow up question... how likely are we to find a reservation for 7 nights? 8 nights? 9 nights? (when putting request in at one of the DVC sites, 11 months out)?

If the probability is high, than we'd probably just do the single resort stay, as yes, with several small ones, it would be easier to just unpack and not worry about repacking/unpacking again.

Maybe this question warrants its own standalone post, but figured I'd ask here just in case.

 

[tom1944]

Our first few visits we plan to stay for 7 days at a MK resort and the next year do an 8-day split stay with 4 days at 2 different resorts. It will be a rotation of selecting among AKV-Jambo or Kidani, BCV/BWV, or BRV/ CCR or SSR/OKW.

I think if we stay at Jambo we would book BRV and if we stay at Kidani we would book CCR initially, so we get a feel if we like to stay at a resort with a busy lobby or with a quieter lobby.

The 7-day trip would most likely be a monorail resort.

 

[Sandisw]

I guess a follow up question... how likely are we to find a reservation for 7 nights? 8 nights? 9 nights? (when putting request in at one of the DVC sites, 11 months out)?

If the probability is high, than we'd probably just do the single resort stay, as yes, with several small ones, it would be easier to just unpack and not worry about repacking/unpacking again.

Maybe this question warrants its own standalone post, but figured I'd ask here just in case.

If the agency has owners who own at your resort of choice (and thank you for not sharing that or dates as we don't allow them when asking questions regarding renting), and those owners have enough points to book your trip, then getting something at the resort right at the 11 month window is fairly easy.

There are some exceptions to this in that it may be difficult to get things that are hard to get, like AKV Value and CL, along with BW and BLT SV rooms, especially if one is looking for a studio.

 

[puffkin]

We have done both and I much much much prefer staying in one spot. We save SOOOOO much time. I like "moving" in and being organized for the whole time and not tripping over suitcases and stuff. We tend to do a big shop when we arrive (or have delivered) so not having to move cases of water, cold items, etc OR doing a second shop is nice. We just get into a nice routine with everything too.

My suggestion is to pick the location that is best suited for the bulk of your plans. For instance, we just returned from a 9 night trip and stayed at Saratoga. We were doing Sea World, Busch Gardens, Discovery Cove as well as a few days in the Disney parks so it was a great location and very close to Sea World. We also liked having Disney Springs nearby for our rest days. If we are doing a more Disney heavy trip I like Bay Lake, Copper Creek or the Epcot resorts to be in the thick of things. Winter trips I like AKV because we can spend more time in the cooler weather animal viewing.

 

[Chili327]

I guess a follow up question... how likely are we to find a reservation for 7 nights? 8 nights? 9 nights? (when putting request in at one of the DVC sites, 11 months out)?

If the probability is high, than we'd probably just do the single resort stay, as yes, with several small ones, it would be easier to just unpack and not worry about repacking/unpacking again.

Maybe this question warrants its own standalone post, but figured I'd ask here just in case.

If one resort is preferred then try for that, if it seems to be a problem then switch it up & divide it into 2.
Both of your plans sound great, I was contemplating the same stuff, but ended up doing 3 resorts for 10 days (2/3/5), but I'm also exploring WDW for the first time so my priorities are different.
Either way it will be great!!

 

[sndral]

I guess a follow up question... how likely are we to find a reservation for 7 nights? 8 nights? 9 nights? (when putting request in at one of the DVC sites, 11 months out)?

If the probability is high, than we'd probably just do the single resort stay, as yes, with several small ones, it would be easier to just unpack and not worry about repacking/unpacking again.

Maybe this question warrants its own standalone post, but figured I'd ask here just in case.

One thing to be aware of is that when you are making 11 month reservations on the day the window opens you can only reserve your first 7 nights, you have to log back in to add your last couple of nights a few days later, it’s NBD, but as a renter you’ll need to find an owner willing to do this for you if you’re booking at 11 months out exactly.
When you say you want ‘near the Contemporary’ I assume you want BLT? If you’re thinking studios, the BLT studios are small, not sure I’d want 9 days in one.
We do long stays (10-14 days) but go for 1 or 2 bdrms. & I prefer to stay put, maybe because I fly cross country so am always adjusting to the time change in the beginning & then the days at WDW always seem to fly by so fast.

 

[Cybertruck]

When the kids where still at school/college we went for two weeks in May before Memorial Day. We always did a split stay a week at each resort. We have stayed all WDW resorts. Part of our adventure was deciding what resorts we stay at the follow year.

Now that everyone is in the real world we spend a week for Food & Wine and Christmas.

We are locals now and need more points to hit all the EPCOT festivals.

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

I guess a follow up question... how likely are we to find a reservation for 7 nights? 8 nights? 9 nights? (when putting request in at one of the DVC sites, 11 months out)?

If the probability is high, than we'd probably just do the single resort stay, as yes, with several small ones, it would be easier to just unpack and not worry about repacking/unpacking again.

Maybe this question warrants its own standalone post, but figured I'd ask here just in case.

Depends on the room category/view. 1 bedroom lake view at Bay Lake Tower? Definitely going to get it. I don’t own at BLT and have had no problem getting 8 nights in a BLT 1 bedroom Lakeview at multiple different times of year at the 7 month mark, let alone the 11 month mark. Studio Standard view? Maybe not. With a range in between those two.

 

[atlbraves49]

Depends on the room category/view. 1 bedroom lake view at Bay Lake Tower? Definitely going to get it. I don’t own at BLT and have had no problem getting 8 nights in a BLT 1 bedroom Lakeview at multiple different times of year at the 7 month mark, let alone the 11 month mark. Studio Standard view? Maybe not. With a range in between those two.

It would be for a 2-bedroom (any view).

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

It would be for a 2-bedroom (any view).

Easier to get than a studio, harder to get than a 1 bedroom. Still though, a lake view 2 bedroom dedicated at bay lake tower should be fine at the 11 month mark, assuming you have someone with BLT points to rent from.

 

[bbeagle]

Split stays dont work with kids sometimes.

Kids don’t adjust to the same plans you have. You might decide that the first 5 days when you're close to Magic Kingdom that you'll do Magic Kingdom. Your kids will decide they don’t like Magic Kingdom, only Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom.

Then when you switch parks to near Epcot, they’ll fall in love with Magic Kingdom all of a sudden and want to go there every day.