How to Plan a Split Stay at Disney World | Resorts for Families
Planning a split stay at Walt Disney World can be a magical way to experience more than one Disney resort during your vacation! It can be an interesting way to tackle multiple trip goals in one trip. Moving from a resort near the Magic Kingdom to an EPCOT area resort for instance. Or if you simply want to explore more of what Disney has to offer, a split stay lets you enjoy the best of both worlds.
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I also refer to our split stay trips as doing “resort tours” (although that can mean just visiting and not staying the night in some contexts!) and keep in mind that this type of trip is different from resort hopping. Resort hopping is typically just visiting a number of resorts during a trip.
However you don’t actually move from resort to resort for where to stay when you resort hop.
During a split stay, you can stay at more than one resort. You can plan as many resorts as you think is feasible for your party. It is a bit laborious to pack everything up and move, so keep that in mind when planning the trip.
A split stay can be a fun and flexible option to make your trip a little different. It does require a little extra planning to make sure everything goes smoothly. In this guide, we’ll break down what a split stay actually is, how it differs from other types of resort visits, and share our favorite mom tested tips for making your Disney split stay stress free and enjoyable.
What is a Split Stay at Walt Disney World?
A split stay means dividing your Disney vacation across two or more resorts, staying a few nights at each one. For example, you might start your trip at Disney’s Pop Century Resort and finish it with a deluxe stay at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort.
This allows you to experience different resort atmospheres, dining, and locations… all in one trip!
Here are some other resort related terms you might see:
- Resort Hopping: Visiting resorts during the day for shopping, dining, or just exploring without staying overnight.
- Resort Touring: May mean either a split stay or resort hopping! It can mean taking a look at different resorts with the intention of seeing where you’d like to stay on a future trip. And I sometimes refer to our split stay trips where we stay at a number of resorts as doing “Resort Tours”.
With a split stay, you’ll actually check in and stay overnight at multiple resorts, so it involves more coordination than just visiting. It’s a great way to check out multiple resorts, and if you have specific things you’d like to see while you’re at Disney World.
Why Do a Split Stay?
This type of trip will not be for everyone! You need to pack all of your items up and move from place to place. It also means you won’t have access to your items during that time between resorts.
So while it is a great way to see multiple resorts during your trip, here’s who we think will most enjoy a split stay at Walt Disney World!
Split stays are perfect for families who:
- Want to experience different level resorts in one trip.
- Plan to spend time in different areas of Walt Disney World (e.g., starting near Magic Kingdom and ending near EPCOT).
- Are trying to maximize their budget while still enjoying a deluxe resort for part of the trip.
- Love the unique theming and experiences of multiple resorts and don’t want to choose just one!
On our recent resort tour, we stayed at a number of resorts that all had recent room refreshes! This was a great way to see all of the room designs in one trip. You’ll also be able to rapidly compare the rooms back to back.
Our Recent Split Stay Plan
During our resort tour, we split our stay between four different resorts! We first checked in to Disney’s Port Orleans – French Quarter, then moved over to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. After our stay at those resorts, we headed to The Cabins at Fort Wilderness. As you can see, we had some completely different vibes happening during our trip!
To finish off our trip, we checked into Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa to see the newly refurbished Mary Poppins rooms. Doing a split stay between the four resorts let us see a number of rooms rapidly in one trip!
As a bonus, Disney is currently offering a complimentary water park entrance on the day you check-in to your Disney resort! So if you are checking into a resort mid-trip, that means you can visit a water park in the middle of your trip!
We took advantage of this perk and visited Typhoon Lagoon a few days during our trip. This promotion is running throughout the rest of 2025, and has been confirmed to be an offer during Summer 2026 trips as well.
How to Plan a Split Stay at Disney Resorts: Tips for a Smooth Experience
We’ve done split stays with our family multiple times and learned a few things along the way! Here are our favorite tips for making your split stay at Disney World seamless.
1. Use Bell Services to Transfer Your Luggage
One of the best perks of staying at a Disney resort is that Bell Services will transfer your luggage for you… free of charge! (Just plan to tip your bell services Cast Member. We tip on both the drop off and pick up sides.) Simply call or bring your bags to Bell Services at your first resort, and they will move everything to your next resort. It’s that easy.
Remember though, luggage transfers don’t happen immediately. Your bags are usually delivered mid to late afternoon at your new resort. So don’t expect to have access to them right away at your new resort. Which brings us to our next tip…
2. Keep Essentials With You on Transfer Day
Because you typically can’t check into your next resort room until after 3:00 PM, it’s important to bring a day bag with anything you’ll need while your luggage is in transit. This might include:
- MagicBands
- Sunscreen
- Swimsuits & Gear (if going to the pool or water park!)
- Electronics & Charging Equipment (like a portable charger)
- Medication
- Snacks or Water Bottles
Whether you’re heading to a park or just hanging out at the resort, being prepared will make transfer day much smoother.
Found in photo:
Beach Tote / Foldable Hangers / Wet Bags / Folding Organizer
Packing Cubes / Luggage Scale / Hardshell Luggage
We carried a bag with our water park essentials that I found on Amazon, and it worked perfectly to hold our swim gear like goggles, swimsuits, and water shoes!
3. Plan a Flexible Day Between Check Out and Check In
Transfer days can be a great time to enjoy a resort day, character dining reservation, or a park with fewer plans. Since you won’t have access to your new room right away, here are some of our favorite things to do on transfer days.
- Visit the water park, this complimentary perk is available to all guests checking in to a Disney Resort through the end of 2025! (They are bringing this perk back in Summer 2026, but the dates have not yet been announced.)
- Plan some resort activities, we loved visiting Tri-Circle D Range at Fort Wilderness and you can also do things like rent a pontoon boat at places like Grand Floridian or Contemporary Resort.
- Spend the day at Disney Springs.
- Enjoying the pool at your first or new resort (you can use pool facilities even before check-in)!
- Scheduling a table service lunch.
- Visiting a park with Lightning Lane options so you can make the most of your time before heading to the new resort.
The biggest thing you won’t be able to do is have a resort room to head back to in the middle of the day. So make sure you plan breaks either in the theme park or at the resorts that don’t include being in your resort room.
4. Use Online Check-In
Use the My Disney Experience app to check into your next resort in advance. You’ll get a notification when your new room is ready, which saves you a trip to the front desk!
Typically you can also let them know that you’re already on property and a lot of times we do get into our room a bit earlier… but just don’t count on it!
Split Stay Packing Tips for Moms
We recommend packing separate cubes or bags for each portion of your trip, especially if you’re staying at three or more resorts. This way, you won’t have to dig through everything to repack on transfer day.
Pack one cube for the first resort and another for the second, it makes transitions much easier! These are the packing cubes we use!
Also, on our recent trip I carried a mesh beach bag to hold all of our pool and water park items. This made it easy to visit the water activities on our transfer days and still have all of our essentials. Plus they fold down flat so they don’t take up much space when you’re traveling to get to Walt Disney World!
When Not to Do a Split Stay
Split stays aren’t always the best option for every family or every trip. Here are a few scenarios when you might want to skip it:
- If you’re traveling with young children who need a predictable nap and sleep schedule.
- On short trips where time is limited and every hour counts!
- If you dislike packing/unpacking or find transitions stressful.
- You want to exclusively visit one resort and see everything that it has to offer.
In those cases, resort hopping or resort touring might be better ways to explore new places without the added logistics.
We especially love resort hopping during the holidays to see all of the holiday decor. However since it’s a busy time of year, we prefer just to hop from resort to resort during one day of the trip.
Is Booking a Split Stay Worth It?
For many Disney loving families like ours, a split stay can add variety and fun to your vacation. It’s definitely not for everyone, but if you’re looking for a different type of Disney experience this can be a great way to change up your trip!
Found in photo: Magic Coordinator Shirt / Skirt
You get to experience more theming, more dining, and more of that magical Disney resort atmosphere! With a little planning and our helpful tips, you can make your split stay smooth and enjoyable for the whole family.
You may also find these articles helpful in your Disney planning!
Disclaimer:
** All opinions are unbiased and independent. This post contains affiliate links. Moms with Mouse Ears is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com
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