Should You Do a Split Stay with Toddlers?
Split stays can be polarizing. Some people find them fun since they get to experience more than one resort during a single trip, while others find them inconvenient since you have to check in and out multiple times. If you are traveling with a little one, is a split stay worthwhile?
Go For It
Take Advantage of Your Location and Transportation Options
Prioritizing location and transportation options with your split stay can make heading to and from the parks a breeze. For example, you can strategically create a split stay with a Magic Kingdom resort like Bay Lake Tower and an EPCOT resort like the BoardWalk. This way, you are walking distance from 3 of the 4 theme parks throughout your vacation!
Walk or take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom while you are at Bay Lake Tower, and walk or take the friendship boat to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios when you are at the BoardWalk. Neither the monorail nor the friendship boat requires strollers to be collapsed prior to boarding.
Explore All That Your Resorts Have to Offer
Each of the DVC Resorts offers a variety of activities for the whole family! Some activities are unique to certain resorts, so a split stay allows you to try more of them out. For example, you can go on a scavenger hunt at Riviera, speak to animal keepers at Animal Kingdom Villas, watch a sideshow at the BoardWalk, or go on horse-drawn carriage rides at Fort Wilderness, just to name a few. Be sure to build in some resort days into your schedule so you can enjoy all the amenities.
Organization Can Go a Long Way
When traveling with toddlers, you also travel with all their gear from extra wipes and pull-ups to plenty of snacks. A little planning in advance can help you avoid unpacking and repacking for each leg of your stay. Some guests like to use packing cubes to sort out which items are needed for which stay. Others pack one suitcase per resort so that only one suitcase needs to be unpacked for each stay. Whatever your method, there are ways to make packing and unpacking more manageable.
Maybe Wait Until They’re Older
Checking in More Than Once Can Be Bad for Naps
If you have a toddler who thrives on a consistent schedule, split stays can be hard, especially if your child doesn’t nap well in a stroller. With DVC rooms, you need to check out by 11am, but since check-in doesn’t officially begin until 4pm, you can spend a good part of the day without a room. You may need to find another place to go for a midday break.
Not All Rooms Have the Same Amenities
While rooms across the DVC Resorts are similar, the amenities aren’t always identical. For example, the Resort Studios at the Grand Floridian only have a beverage cooler, which isn’t ideal for keeping anything perishable like milk or snacks. There are also some rooms that have showers instead of tubs, which can make bathtime harder. When planning a split stay, it helps to do your research so you know what to expect in each room.
Perishables Are Hard to Transfer
When traveling with a toddler, snacks are key! However, if any of your toddler’s favorite snacks require refrigeration, split stays can get tricky. Although Bell Services helps with transferring luggage between split stays, they no longer help with transferring perishables. If you need to bring perishables with you, you’ll need to have your own car or take a rideshare to transfer them yourself.
Start planning your next Disney vacation by booking a stay at a DVC Resort! Browse the confirmed reservations, or request a free quote to rent DVC points and save up to 65% compared to booking directly through Disney.
