we last stayed at POR and loved it. I am wanting to try a deluxe this time but not sure if the price difference is worth it. my husband doesn’t think so. three kids 8,6,3. we take mid day breaks, they love the pool. I am looking at yc/bc, WL studio and possibly Poly studios. would it be more beneficial to do a split stay to try it out for next time.
If the cost is a big stretch for you I would recommend a split stay. It will very likely convince you to either do deluxe from then on or never again lol. I would recommend AKL, it’s almost always the least expensive option and personally I love everything about that place. We decided we are most definitely deluxe people and feel like it’s absolutely worth the money.
As long as you aren’t stressed out by the process of switching resorts (e.g., having to pack everything up to either have bell services transfer it or move luggage yourself), I think a split stay would be great for you. Depending on time of year, a split stay with YC/BC might work well so that you could enjoy the pool time at Stormalong Bay.
Or like mentioned above, AKL is awesome – great pool and water play area over at Kidani and the animals are amazing.
If you’re doing a split stay, make sure to do the less expensive resort first and then move up.
I am going to give one more vote for AKL. With the 35% off discount, it really is the best value. The pool is very nice and honestly, I think the buses are so much better than POR ( and since they are not shared with another deluxe, very easy). There are activities for the kids, and the animals!
If I do split stay do I have two different adr dates?
The most recent answer to this I have seen is yes, two dates . For a while people were reporting if you called you could book the whole stay at the start of the first reservation but some liners have recently posted on chat they were not allowed to do this. my personal experience was always two adr dates.
My family of five has stayed at the Poly and Cont. We have loved them both. We stayed here because you cannot beat their location for transportation, especially the Poly - on the monorail to MK and a ten minute walk to TTC where you can take a bus directly to the other parks, not stopping to load more hotel guests. For us the convenience was worth the extra cost. If you take midday breaks, the convenience of being close to transportation may be worth it. On our upcoming trip we will be staying at CBR. Since my children are older now and we are renting a car, we felt we could try something new. I’m hoping we will not be disappointed. One possible issue with AKL and WL is that although they are beautiful, with a family of 5 you will start at the suite level and go up from there. Cont., Poly, GF, BC, YC, and BW all have rooms that can fit a family of 5, so they should be less expensive.
Do studios not fit five ( I have never booked DVC)?
Only wilderness lodge, poly, GF, AKL.
Sorry, didn’t mean to imply the studios were not large enough, just that single rooms can be cheaper than the studios & suites.
Oh! I guess I just always assume either someone owns or are renting DVC!
We’re in the some position as you - we’re a family of 5 that has always stayed at POR. Our kids got a glimpse at Stormalong Bay last trip & their eyes about popped out of their heads. Our plan for our next trip is to try CBR for most of it, and end the trip w/ two nights at Yacht or Beach. We’ll plan lighter park days and give them lots of time to enjoy the pool. We’re an open to close park family, so going deluxe for the full trip isn’t worth the cost for us.
I am contemplating a possible split stay but am nervous now about getting ADRs for the last two days. I feel it would be a nice compromise to get to try both without the price tag of a deluxe for 7 nights.
Book your full stay at the first resort and then once you’re within 180 days of your last day call and change the reservation and add the split stay. That way you can still book all of your ADR’s at 180 days but still get your split stay.
Have there been recent rumors of a change fee for that? @DarthDopey, did that apply to this change? I thought you posted on lines about this?
Yes.
@krist315: new policy changes won’t allow you to do what @Outer1 suggests. Well… you could try, but you may risk losing any discount/promo attached to your reservation.
It’s not ideal, but I’d rather have 2 ADR days rather than pay an extra 20-35% on my reservation.
I did it this morning, but it was a room only reservation, not a package which may be harder. My first reservation spanned the length of both legs of the split stay. After the 180-day window passed, I reduced the first trip. I got a credit back of $33, and it did not mention a fee. Packages may not be so simple though. Dining wasn’t my goal. In fact, I clarified the dates of my trip and actually DID book the last meals on the second resort. I cannot see how it changed anything. Both show up in my itinerary the same way, whether the first resort or the second. Booking under both was not a hassle at all. They all go to the same location. So, unless you are trying to book dining early or something, dining with a split stay was very easy to book, and I accidentally stumbled across the ease of reducing the first leg once reservations were made and saw all my dining remains the same. I fully expected to need to rebook stuff today when I changed resort dates. It was a pleasant surprise. I almost feel like I should cancel and rebook anyway just to be honest, but they still have availability, so I guess it’s okay.
yeah. you won’t lose your ADR’s when changing your resort reservations.
But more recently, they’ve been more aware of people doing extended stays just to get their ADRs, hench the possibility of losing your discount.
I’ve been warned many times when I’ve tried this for clients. They still did it because it was genuine, but they’ve made it very clear that they are aware and could ding people.