Split Stay Opinions needed...please

[LandonDunes]

So we were going to just do 5 nts Poly CL and call it a day. Now, I’m thinking about doing 3 nights Poly CL and then using cc points to do BWI deluxe CL for the last 3 nts.

We have 3 kids (12,9,6) and definitely want to do the Poly but not sure if we should pull the trigger on the BWI. Thoughts on BWI? I think it would be a nice change after 3 nts at Poly. Thanks!

 

[Happy2BGoofy]

IMHO if you can swing it I would. Both resorts are completely different in theming and ambiance. Poly is quiet while the BWI is vibrant and comes alive specially at night. Also the Concierge Lounge on the BWI is a great place to watch illuminations.

 

[LandonDunes]

IMHO if you can swing it I would. Both resorts are completely different in theming and ambiance. Poly is quiet while the BWI is vibrant and comes alive specially at night. Also the Concierge Lounge on the BWI is a great place to watch illuminations.

Thank you! That’s what I was hoping to hear.

 

[Happy2BGoofy]

Thank you! That’s what I was hoping to hear.

My pleasure and enjoy your vacation!

 

[kwdw]

Are you an "unpack" family - or everything "stays neat in your bag" family? With three kids 12 and under - how much TIME are you going to spend on the packing up/moving/finding stuff again?

Moving with myself/as a couple - easy. Moving with a couple of my common traveling companions - that would be like wasting 5-6 hours of prime park touring time.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

For me, it would really depend on how much park touring you are doing and how much time you want to spend at the resorts. Three nights at one resort is not enough time, IMHO, to tour parks and enjoy a resort. I don't like to split unless I'm doing at least 4 nights at each resort.

 

[PPFlight75]

Hi!
BWI is great! We are doing a BWI 4 night/Poly CL 5night split this summer.
We plan on doing EP and HS while at BWI. We love walking to EP in the evening for dinner or Illuminations. It's so much fun and the Boardwalk nightlife is lively and family friendly ( we have 3 kids too 15,13,9).
We will then move to Poly for MK and AK and we plan on watching HEA from the lounge, pool and the park in the evenings.
I think it is totally doable and will be lots of fun! Have a great time whatever you choose!

 

[LandonDunes]

Thanks to everyone. We can move pretty readily so packing and unpacking won’t be a big issue. We plan on doing a lot of park touring but will Also spend time at the pools. I figure that Disney moves your luggage while you are at the parks so it shouldn’t be too bad.

 

[NYCgrrl]

Thanks to everyone. We can move pretty readily so packing and unpacking won’t be a big issue. We plan on doing a lot of park touring but will Also spend time at the pools. I figure that Disney moves your luggage while you are at the parks so it shouldn’t be too bad.

In planning for our first split stay @ WDW this summer I'll be sending my annual information overload email to parents that will include that they should put clothing for a 2-3 day stay in a separate oversized ZipLoc bag w/i the suitcase so Noonie/AuntieNYC's life is easier when we move from one hotel to another. The one parent who has nooooooo idea how to pack a suitcase will have their confusion taken care of since I'll pack/repack for her child. This info is not that different from our years of camping so most of the adults will get it.

 

[mdelano4]

Without commenting on the locations I will say we will only do split stay as an absolute last resort. Have done it twice. Once from WL to AKV with 3 kids aged 12 to 19. Second time it was just DW and I. We were at BWV and only changed rooms (so I guess it wasnt really a traditional split stay). Both times it was a pain with most of a day lost. Its not for me.

 

[dansdad]

So we were going to just do 5 nts Poly CL and call it a day. Now, I’m thinking about doing 3 nights Poly CL and then using cc points to do BWI deluxe CL for the last 3 nts.

We have 3 kids (12,9,6) and definitely want to do the Poly but not sure if we should pull the trigger on the BWI. Thoughts on BWI? I think it would be a nice change after 3 nts at Poly. Thanks!

We love split stays and you are doing our favorite kind, MK area and Epcot area. To us they are super easy and zero wasted park/fun time when we have Bell Services move our luggage, coolers, etc.

BWI is our favorite WDW resort. We love the theme, location and it has THE best slide on property.

 

[rlk]

We have done several split stays without giving up our park time. We have even made rope drop on our moving day.

 

[dansdad]

We have done several split stays without giving up our park time. We have even made rope drop on our moving day.

Yeah, we are at rope drop on every moving day. We stay until 4 or 5, head to resort #2. Once in our room, Bell Services brings our stuff and we shower before heading out to dinner.

 

[Haley R]

We did a split stay last year between POR and AKL. Our ultimate goal is to try all of the Disney resorts so it was fun for us to experience two different resorts in one trip. However, we have no kids and when we switched to AKL we were done doing parks at Disney.

 

[DisneyArkie]

I know a lot on here like split stays but we do not like them. Feels like you can never relax for your whole vacation because you know you will be moving soon. JMO

 

[CalifLynn]

Last June was our first real WDW vacation. I couldn’t decide on a resort so we did 3 resorts in 7 nights with no problems whatsoever. We did have a car so we moved our own luggage. We did 2 nights at GF, then 3 nights at YC and last 2 at AKL, it was great and we concentrated on parks based on our resort.

This year we only have 6 nights and we are doing 3 at BWI followed by 3 nights at Poly! I have no hesitation about a split stay.

 

[Turn the Page]

We have done a split stay twice. I mean it's fine. We wouldn't not go if the only option was a split stay but we wouldn't intentionally plan for a split stay either. It's more hassle than it's worth to us but a lot of people like them. I suppose if you're doing more of a resort trip than a park trip it may make more sense.

 

[vinotinto]

Your kids are old enough that moving should not be an issue. They can put their stuff away in the luggage. The only issue is that you won't have a place to rest during the afternoon on your change day. While I've had the experience that my room may be ready early to check-in, I've also had the experience that the room is available at 3:00, and a couple of times, it has been ready after 4:00 pm (YC and AKL, I'm looking at you!). So, the only thing I would make sure to do is to have a plan for resting that day (long, late lunch?) and plan to go to resort #2 around 4:00 - 5:00 pm.

 

[Shellyb84]

We like split stays but only for longer trips. For that short of a trip I would just stick with one resort.

 

[LandonDunes]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I kind of agree with both sides, TBH. While I know it could be a bit of a hassle-more for that time in the afternoon when we come back from a park and don’t have a room to rest in-it will likely be our last time to do Disney really big (if you want to call it that). I ended up booking the 3 nts at Poly CL and 3 at BWI Deluxe CL and we are pumped! The ability to book 3 nts in a deluxe CL at BWI for only a little more points than 2 nts at the Poly solidified it for me.

We’ll head to a park the morning of the move and then likely head to BWI that afternoon...maybe even in the evening. I really just wanted to get the kids a new experience since we have only done monorail resorts in the past. Boy, are they going to be in for a rude awakening the next time we stay at a Fairfield Inn with no view! Thanks again!