By Okay, we’re going to discuss split stays, also known as Resort Hopping, and then we’re going to tell you something honest. “Don’t even think about it!” This one’s for seasoned pros.
What Is Resort Hopping?
When you visit Walt Disney World, you’re likely to spend time at all four theme parks. For this reason, you’ll spend an inordinate amount of time on Disney transportation, which isn’t ideal.
Meanwhile, you’re reading all these wonderful things about every Disney World hotel in this guide. So, you’ll experience a bit of FOMO over the fact that you must pick one of them, thereby missing out on the rest.
Well, that’s not quite true. Technically, you can stay at a different hotel during every night of your vacation. We call that Resort Hopping, and we’ve done it MANY times.
The joy of Resort Hopping is that you get to experience multiple Disney hotels during your Disney visit. Sometimes, they’re as much fun as the theme parks, at least when you want to relax, shop, and eat.
Also, you’ll discover a spectacular benefit to Resort Hopping. You’ll spend much less time on Disney transportation, presuming you choose the right hotels. Here’s an example.
Let’s say that you’re spending our recommended five nights and six days at Disney World. You can Resort Hop your way to an amazing vacation by doing the following.
On the first day of your trip, you choose a hotel right by EPCOT. Disney’s Beach Club Resort and Disney’s BoardWalk Inn are right by the International Gateway, the rear entrance to the park.
So, guests at these hotels can strut right into EPCOT and be at the World Showcase in a matter of minutes. It’s a decadent way to vacation at Disney.
On day two, you can hop on the Disney Skyliner, which is right by the International Gateway. The gondola will carry you straight to the front gate at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Technically, you’re not avoiding transportation this way, but you could if you wanted to do so. The walk from BoardWalk to Hollywood Studios takes about 10 minutes, with Beach Club adding another five minutes. We’re suggesting the gondola since it’s more relaxing.
On day three, you could go back to EPCOT to experience more of the park. Once again, you’re walking back and forth to/from your destination.
Then, on the morning of day four, you pack all your luggage and call for Bell Services to come get it. Don’t worry! Your vacation isn’t over yet. You’re merely Resort Hopping elsewhere.
You’re ready to visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Conveniently enough, Imagineers built Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge right down the street from it.
While you’ll need to take the bus from the hotel to the park, it’s a quick drive that takes just a few minutes. More importantly, you’re staying right by the park you’re visiting that day.
You can spend as long as you want at Animal Kingdom. Then, when you’re ready to return to your hotel, you can call Bell Services to bring your bags to your room..
Bell Services will transfer your luggage from one hotel to the other, saving you the aggravation. So, you’re not really experiencing any inconvenience from Resort Hopping.
You’ll be without your luggage throughout the day, but you’re visiting a theme park anyway. You really don’t need it, presuming you don’t experience any sort of emergency like forgetting something.
Also, you can pack a go-bag to take with you to the park anyway. Therefore, you should have everything you need during your park visit.
Meanwhile, you’ve gained the benefit of better logistics during your park visit. To wit, let’s talk about day five. Now, you’re done with Animal Kingdom and ready for Magic Kingdom.
By Resort Hopping to a Magic Kingdom area hotel, you once again stay at a place close to the park. If your budget allows it, you could choose a monorail resort for the final two days.
On the morning of day five, you’ll pack your belongings and once again hand them to Bell Services. And they’ll dutifully transport your luggage to your next hotel.
At some point that afternoon, you can go back to your new hotel and call Bell Services to have your luggage delivered to your room. Remember that you should tip the person handling your luggage. We detail tip guidelines in a different section.
We treasure the ability to keep bouncing from hotel to hotel to be as close to the theme parks as possible. From that perspective, Resort Hopping is full of win.
So, why don’t we recommend it? We’re operating under the assumption that you’re not a seasoned Disney pro. If you are, Resort Hop! It’s awesome!
Those of you who are relatively new to Disney don’t want the aggravation, though. You’ll likely return to your hotel at some point during the day.
When you do, you’ll remember that you don’t have a room yet, as Disney check-ins typically occur in the afternoon, sometimes as late as 4 p.m.
Theoretically, you can go to your hotel, realize you don’t have a room, and you don’t have luggage. That’s suboptimal. Sure, you’ll find plenty to do at every Disney resort, but that’s not the point.
Resort Hopping adds a level of complexity that you don’t need during your visit. If anything, you want to reduce the potential aggravations during your Disney vacation.
We’ve Resort Hopped as many as four times during a Disney World visit. To be honest, we’ve pretty much stopped doing it, though.
While we’d rather avoid Disney buses whenever possible, we consider the aggravation of packing and unpacking after a couple of days decidedly grueling.
Kim has mastered the art of quick and efficient packing and unpacking, but there are hidden snags to Resort Hopping.
For starters, you’ll need to wait for Bell Services to come to your room to pick up your luggage. In the mornings, Bell Services is quite busy helping guests leave for the airport. You could face delays.
In the afternoon, you’ll also have to call Bell Services and wait for them to deliver your luggage. If they’re busy, it can take quite a while. Plus, you don’t know when you’ll receive your room number for your hotel.
We’ve had our room ready as early as 9 a.m. in the past, but it’s mostly been closer to the official 3 p.m. check-in time in the 2020s. That’s a lot of time to go without your luggage.
For these reasons, we’ve gravitated away from Resort Hopping after spending more than a decade being vocal evangelists for it. Those of you who visit often and have never thought of Resort Hopping are encouraged to try. You may find it incredibly useful, as we once did.
For first-time or first-time-in-a-while Disney World vacationers, we consider Resort Hopping a non-starter.
The Other Definition of Resort Hopping
What we’ve just described is the traditional definition of Resort Hopping, also known as the split stay. We didn’t use the latter term much to avoid confusion as much as possible.
However, some people describe Resort Hopping as something else, and it’s something you should do. When you’re at Disney, you can visit any of the official hotels whenever you want.
Theoretically, you should probably visit before, say, midnight, but that’s a nitpick. The point is that no matter where you’re staying, you’re always welcome at Disney hotels. You just won’t have a room there.
Disney resorts offer some of the finest restaurants, lounges, activities, and theming you can find in Orlando…or the East Coast, really. So, you’ll want to visit as many hotels as you can.
When you bounce around the various hotels, you’re participating in a different kind of Resort Hopping. Now, you’re visiting rather than planning to stay the night.
This kind of Resort Hopping is wonderful, and you’ll notice that we encourage it frequently throughout this guide.
Places like the monorail resorts and Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort offer remarkable seasonal activities. So, you shouldn’t think of the theme parks as the only interesting places to go at Disney World.
In fact, we spend nearly as much time outside the theme parks as we do in them these days. So, we constantly Resort Hop by this definition, just not the one synonymous with split stays.
Feature Image: Disney