Prefer short stays vs. extended stays at WDW

crewsline

Crewsline
Joined
Oct 16, 2007
I just returned from my second trip to WDW in September.
Labor Day weekend in the Bora Bora Bungalows (WOW!) at the Polynesian with
Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party thrown in.
Returned to WDW for Moonlight Magic at Hollywood Studios on 9/26.

Planning my first two solo trips to WDW to break up another New England winter.
January 18-21 at the Grand Floridian and February 21-24 at the Dolphin.
My daughter cancelled because she just took a new job, so I may be the only dad
running in the Princess 5K at the Magic Kingdom in February without his princess.

Otherwise, parks, rides, dining and golf….and warm weather!

Have a Magical Day!
 
That sounds like an awesome trip!

I tend to like a mixture of both, with some shorter stays and one longer sty in a year. If I am solo I will tend to do shorter trips as well.
 
I’m beginning to enjoy shorter stays a bit more than the longer ones. I feel like a quick 3-4 days just to get a “fix” is the perfect amount of time. I just spent 8 nights at Old Key West, and while I never tire of the place, I was definitely ready to come home. But I was also there for another 4 nights two weeks prior.
 


the advantage of longer stay is it's easier to get FP for FoP and SDD. I also prefer shorter stay. dont want to be in the bubble for too long because it will be harder to get over the post disney depression
 
First, :welcome: to DISboards!

After our first short trip to WDW DW and I quickly settled into the longer, 7 to 10 day trip, mode for many years. We decide that if we were going to invest in the travel we would stay for more than a few days.

I totally understand your New England winter getaway trips. So much so that we combined the idea of longer trips and winter getaways and became Disney snowbirds.
Wishing youpixiedust: visits!
 
First, :welcome: to DISboards!

After our first short trip to WDW DW and I quickly settled into the longer, 7 to 10 day trip, mode for many years. We decide that if we were going to invest in the travel we would stay for more than a few days.

I totally understand your New England winter getaway trips. So much so that we combined the idea of longer trips and winter getaways and became Disney snowbirds.
Wishing youpixiedust: visits!
Thansk NH-FL!
I like the idea of being Disney snowbirds.
That works for me!
 


That sounds like an awesome trip!

I tend to like a mixture of both, with some shorter stays and one longer sty in a year. If I am solo I will tend to do shorter trips as well.
That sounds like an awesome trip!

I tend to like a mixture of both, with some shorter stays and one longer sty in a year. If I am solo I will tend to do shorter trips as well.

Brian,
We did Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party on Labor Day Weekend last month. It was a little early for Halloween, but the parade and the smaller crowd was well worth it!
 
Prefer longer stays; the longer the better--longest for me to date has been 10 days when the new Copper Creek Villas opened--loved being the first one to stay in a room! Generally I go 5 to 7 days, 2 or 3 times a year. This year was 2 (May and October); next year will probably be 3 (Late Jan, Late Apr, and early Dec).
 
Most of our stays are 7 days or under. Planning a little longer one in March 2019 - 9 nights (5 in a treehouse and 4 at Beach Club). Cannot wait since it will be the end our busiest season at work! :)
 
I can't see myself enjoying a weekend trip. Way too much effort in prep and travel for a few days. I wouldn't go for less then a week normally. My next trip is Jan. 15 - 21. 5 Full days feels like about as short of a trip as I want to take.
 
I love short stays. 3 nights is perfect, and even 2 nights has been a great break from the stresses of work. With these short trips, I do minimum planning. There aren't major checklists of must-dos, because there's no chance to covering even the highlights of WDW. Instead, its about getting away for a weekend or so, checking out one or two new things, and having a few good meals and drinks.

Just the idea of walking around Epcot, Boardwalk, or Animal Kingdom with a frosty beer or ice cream in the cooling evening air is a thought I can look forward to for months in advance. Thinking about that is enough to reduce the stress of the daily grind. No real prep. Just show up and enjoy the world. Even spending a few hours looking at the theming is fun in this kind of trip. And same-day fastpasses fill in any gaps in my planning for anything I decide later that I want.

Luckily I have an annual pass for the time being, which takes a lot of the pressure off to do anything. Instead, I just need to figure out how to get there more often. I live in California, and although it's a long flight, it's nice to go to bed on a redeye and end up across the country upon waking.
 
I like both types of trips. 2011, I spent a total of 21 days over three trips. That’s when I finally bought into DVC. Lol

This year I broke it up. Doing one night a few times ( but I now reside in FL so it’s easier) but mostly three to six nights. I did a two week stay a few years back and it rocked!!! When you get to that seventh day and realize you have a whole week left, you really start to enjoy the days more. Less parks, more resort activities and resort hopping. Discovered all the amazing things open to you. I never knew there was a horse ranch! Even bought a Mickey balloon because I knew it would last my whole trip not just a few days.
 
I love short stays. 3 nights is perfect, and even 2 nights has been a great break from the stresses of work. With these short trips, I do minimum planning. There aren't major checklists of must-dos, because there's no chance to covering even the highlights of WDW. Instead, its about getting away for a weekend or so, checking out one or two new things, and having a few good meals and drinks.

Just the idea of walking around Epcot, Boardwalk, or Animal Kingdom with a frosty beer or ice cream in the cooling evening air is a thought I can look forward to for months in advance. Thinking about that is enough to reduce the stress of the daily grind. No real prep. Just show up and enjoy the world. Even spending a few hours looking at the theming is fun in this kind of trip. And same-day fastpasses fill in any gaps in my planning for anything I decide later that I want.

Luckily I have an annual pass for the time being, which takes a lot of the pressure off to do anything. Instead, I just need to figure out how to get there more often. I live in California, and although it's a long flight, it's nice to go to bed on a redeye and end up across the country upon waking.

This sounds like my ideal trip. We try to make the trip around a goal (Halloween/Christmas/Birthday) and then go with the flow. We have a couple of must do's, but other than stroll and enjoy.

Like staying onsite because it is easier, but still have a car for the convenience. We live in CT now so it is quite easy. When we lived in the UK we would plan for at least 10 days, we even did Disney from Asia (That was a long trip). Next year my wife and I are both celebrating our 50th so we have rented a house for 2 weeks and told the family they can turn up whenever they want.
 
I prefer shorter trips 3 nights or so (Thu-Sun is the go to). I have never had a problem getting all the ADRs and FP+ that I want (including FOP).

For me, vacation/PTO is the biggest obstacle to travel. I like to save most of my vacation days for large trips to places I have never been and plan a trip or two to WDW in the margins. I have found that multiple shorter trips to Disney broken up by many months has been more fulfilling to me as it allows me to build the excitement up multiples times.
 
Making my shortest trip to date this weekend (12/9-12/10)! For some reason I felt as though I needed to take in Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party this year.

I have a 6am flight Sunday morning with a reservation for dinner and desert duirng MVMCP Sunday evening. A leisurely Monday by the pool, lunch at Disney Springs and maybe a park,
with a 9pm return flight Monday night. Back to work Tuesday morning! Good thing I can fall asleep on airplanes.
 
I live in the UK and with the cost and length of flights (9 hours) resulting in jet lag, stays of 10 to 14 nights are best for me.
 
I love to travel in general so I split my time off from work between Disney (which for me is true vacation) vs destination travel. To maximize my time off, I tend to do around 4 weekend focused trips a year- leave on a Thurs or Fri, home on a Sun or Mon so I'm only taking a day or so off work. Plus, like others have said, it gives me something to look forward to throughout the year knowing a Disney trip is usually just a couple months away. Although I skip trips in summer where the heat and humidity is too much for me.
 

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