DVC Resort Stay for MLKJ's Day Weekend

[Jack Kerouac]

My wife and I are taking our boys (8, 6, and 3) to WDW in January for a long MLKJ's Day Weekend. We currently have our home resort (Poly) booked for the 12-15th. By the time we take this trip, we will have stayed at Poly, AKV-Kidani, and OKW. I imagine there will be availability at 7 months for OKW, SSR, and possibly AKV-Kidani. I would likely consider booking BWV, BCV, OKW, or SSR for the full stay if available. If just a night or two happen to be available at BWV, BCV, or VGF, is it worth the hassle of a split stay during such a short trip to get to experience these resorts? We want to stay at different resorts to see which ones we like best and to give the boys a different pool experience (although we do have pool hopping privileges). Thank you in advance!

 

[kes601]

You will get varying opinions, for me the shortest we will do a split is if the trip is a total of 10 days. I hate constantly unpacking. BWV / BCV will be very difficult to get at 7 months over Presidents Weekend.

 

[RoseGold]

Depends on how many nights you are staying. It's too cold to swim (IMO), so maybe SAB isn't so appealing.

BW 1BR only sleeps 4 so you'd have to bring an air mattress. But there's a lot of them, and it might be bookable at 7 months. You could waitlist for half of your stay,

 

[Jack Kerouac]

We are only staying for three nights to escape the Chicago cold and take advantage of some DVC points and APs. Not sure if the kiddos will be up for swimming if its in the 60s or below. Part of me wants my three year old to get a bit older before we go to SAB, but maybe it's not a big deal.

 

[Traveling on cc points]

I wouldn’t do a split stay for a long weekend, especially with 3 kids and all their stuff.
I would keep your stay at the Polly and do 2 waitlists for he entire weekend or jus stay at the Polly.
There are worse places to be “stuck”
Have a great trip!

 

[Jack Kerouac]

I wouldn’t do a split stay for a long weekend, especially with 3 kids and all their stuff.
I would keep your stay at the Polly and do 2 waitlists for he entire weekend or jus stay at the Polly.
There are worse places to be “stuck”
Have a great trip!

Thank you! I'm leaning towards all-or-nothing for the resort stay. I just like to get information from others who have been doing DVC a lot longer than I have.

 

[E2ME2]

Depends on how many nights you are staying. It's too cold to swim (IMO), so maybe SAB isn't so appealing.

BW 1BR only sleeps 4 so you'd have to bring an air mattress. But there's a lot of them, and it might be bookable at 7 months. You could waitlist for half of your stay,

Too cold to swim, in a heated pool ? Are you from a warm weather state ??

 

[Sandisw]

We do split stays all the time, even when only 3 nights.

We pack in such a way that we have one suitcase for njght one and the other ones for the longer stay. This way we unpack for just that night and it’s pretty easy since we just shove dirty clothes back in when we get ready for bed.

Then, on the split day, we sleep in, enjoy the resort, do a TS lunch, and head to DS or a park..might resort hop or do mini golf..and by the time we do that, and head to our new resort, the room is usually ready.

 

[RoseGold]

Too cold to swim, in a heated pool ? Are you from a warm weather state ??

I've been to SAB three times when it is "heated" and no one was in it. Absolutely no way me or my kids were getting near it. Depends on how cold it is, and FL swings wildly in winter.

 

[CarolynFH]

With three kids the ages of yours, I agree with avoiding a split stay when it’s only 3 nights. And to us it’s really hard to get to know/enjoy a resort with fewer than 3 nights/2 full days. I also agree with the suggestion of putting in all-or-nothing WL for two of the resorts you’re interested in, maybe BWV (P/G view) and BCV since you won’t have stayed near Epcot yet. You never know, one might come in!

 

[Jack Kerouac]

With three kids the ages of yours, I agree with avoiding a split stay when it’s only 3 nights. And to us it’s really hard to get to know/enjoy a resort with fewer than 3 nights/2 full days. I also agree with the suggestion of putting in all-or-nothing WL for two of the resorts you’re interested in, maybe BWV (P/G view) and BCV since you won’t have stayed near Epcot yet. You never know, one might come in!

You make perfect sense! I really would like for my boys to experience SAB during a longer stay when we are staying during the warmer months. But I think you're right. We need to be all or nothing for this visit.

 

[john7994]

We did a four night stay for precisely that reason - to sample a few resorts. In the end analysis, the juice wasn't worth the squeeze for that purpose. I spent way too much mindshare contrasting and comparing the two resorts (favoring one over the other) and it felt like I had half a vacation that was satisfying. Now, we book all or nothing as you say, and if we want to get a feel - we bother the DVC people at the other resorts.

 

[ark101]

I think you meant MLK day since our short trip overlaps yours and you made me double check lol. There should be better availability than presidents day but agree with most that I wouldn't split a 4 day trip with kids in tow.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

For that short of a trip, not sure we'd do a split stay - and we do split stays a lot. Something to keep in mind, though - you mention if the original post here that you have pool hopping privileges. I'm not sure any pool hopping privileges have returned since pre-Covid, but I could be wrong - but you absolutely can't go to the Beach Club pool without staying at the YC/BC/BCV - there's never been hopping there. But I don't think any pool hopping is allowed right now. As for the weather? We've had many days mid-Jan suitable for swimming, and we've had trips where we needed hats and gloves. The weather might be nice enough to swim, but you can't count on it!

 

[Jack Kerouac]

I think you meant MLK day since our short trip overlaps yours and you made me double check lol. There should be better availability than presidents day but agree with most that I wouldn't split a 4 day trip with kids in tow.

You are absolutely right. I will get that edited. Thank you!

 

[Jack Kerouac]

For that short of a trip, not sure we'd do a split stay - and we do split stays a lot. Something to keep in mind, though - you mention if the original post here that you have pool hopping privileges. I'm not sure any pool hopping privileges have returned since pre-Covid, but I could be wrong - but you absolutely can't go to the Beach Club pool without staying at the YC/BC/BCV - there's never been hopping there. But I don't think any pool hopping is allowed right now. As for the weather? We've had many days mid-Jan suitable for swimming, and we've had trips where we needed hats and gloves. The weather might be nice enough to swim, but you can't count on it!

Our DVC member card mentions it, but then again, DVC can both giveth and taketh away.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Our DVC member card mentions it, but then again, DVC can both giveth and taketh away.

They tooketh away many of the pools pre-Covid, and all during Covid!! Others can probably fill in with current details, but I think pool hopping is not a thing right now. But SAB has been strict all the time - they require proof you're a guest at BC/YC/BCV before giving you entry (and a wrist band). So if that pool is a must-try for your kids, you'll need a reservation.

 

[Mle8308]

I also thought pool hopping was a thing of the past.

 

[kilik64]

I think id shoot for BWV. With SSR close second.

Pros for BWV, less points (standard37 vs 57, more realistic, 47 for b/p vs 57), walking distance to epcot (i know you said resort stay but if you got AP, be nice to pop in through IG and grab some food or hit a couple rides etc at night), pool is pretty decent if you can swim, and has a nice looking play area for smaller kids in the pool area.

Pros for SSR, paddock pool is really quite nice, has a GREAT little play area, good slide, nice bar. Easy to get to Disney Springs. SSR i think is great for a resort only stay because of proximity to DS and the plethora of food options.

Con for SSR is youd have to get a 1 bed room which would be 82 points, which is a decent chunk more than Poly but way more than BWV if you manage to snag a standard. Granted with the higher cost of the 1br you do get the extra space, so could be a wash because of how you value that if you got the points to use anyways.

 

[Jack Kerouac]

I think id shoot for BWV. With SSR close second.

Pros for BWV, less points (standard37 vs 57, more realistic, 47 for b/p vs 57), walking distance to epcot (i know you said resort stay but if you got AP, be nice to pop in through IG and grab some food or hit a couple rides etc at night), pool is pretty decent if you can swim, and has a nice looking play area for smaller kids in the pool area.

Pros for SSR, paddock pool is really quite nice, has a GREAT little play area, good slide, nice bar. Easy to get to Disney Springs. SSR i think is great for a resort only stay because of proximity to DS and the plethora of food options.

Con for SSR is youd have to get a 1 bed room which would be 82 points, which is a decent chunk more than Poly but way more than BWV if you manage to snag a standard. Granted with the higher cost of the 1br you do get the extra space, so could be a wash because of how you value that if you got the points to use anyways.

I think I was quite unclear in my post. My apologies. We want to stay at resorts we have not stayed at before, but we will be going to the parks. I think we currently have park reservations (may not be needed now after the announcement) for MK on the 12th, DHS on the 13th, MK on the 14th, and EPCOT on the 15th. Let me know if that changes your suggestions. Thank you!