When I went to Disney World last year, my family and I found ourselves with a need to change resorts in the middle of the trip. This meant we stayed at one Disney resort for part of our trip and another resort for the rest of the trip.
This is often referred to as a “split-stay.”
When we were prepping for the trip, I did some research looking for information on how this process works. Would Disney move our bags? Would we lose park time because of this move? etc. I found very little out there on the topic.
Because of that, it felt very important to me to do a post on the subject.
So if you’re going to Disney World and want to split your stay or find yourself in a situation where you have to split your stay, here’s what you need to know and how that process works.
What Disney will do
Here’s the bottom line: Yes, Disney will take your luggage from one resort to the next and deliver it to you new room at no cost to you.
And you shouldn’t lose anymore than 5-10 minutes of park time, which if you time it right, can really be waiting-for-the-bus time.
Why you might want to change resorts
Before we really dig in, let’s consider why you might want to or have to do this.
First you may choose to change resorts mid-stay. This may be a good choice for you and your family or group if you want to experience a Deluxe resort, but don’t want to pay the high cost for the whole trip.
Or if you plan on spending some downtime at the resort, you may want to change over to a Moderate or Deluxe resort with a better pool and other amenities for you resort days. You can then change over to a Value resort and save money on park days when you really just need a place to sleep.
The second reason to do this is out of necessity. Maybe you’ve had a change in plans (this was my family), or simply can’t get in the resort or room you wanted for your entire trip.
In that case, you can book part of your stay at the resort you really want to be at so you don’t miss out, and then change over another resort for the rest of your stay.
What to do
Keep essentials with you
Keep anything you’ll need in the parks with you.
It can take hours/most of the day for the transfer to happen, so plan on not accessing the luggage you’re transferring until the end of the day when you get to your second resort.
This means making sure you remembering anything you’ll absolutely need before you get back to your room (like medicine, sunscreen, etc).
Take your bags to bell services
When you check out of your first resort, take your bags to bell services. If you can’t find bell services at your resort, asking a Cast Member at the front desk (it’ll likely be close by).
When you get to bell services, you’ll be given a luggage tag ticket for each of the items you’re transferring. On that tag, you’ll write your name, the resort you’re moving too, and a handful of other details to help your luggage get to the right place.
(And I believe you keep a perforated portion of that luggage tag in case you need to track down your luggage later, though you likely won’t need to worry about this).
Then you hand your luggage over to Disney and they take it from there. The whole process takes about 5-10 minutes.
Go enjoy your day!
Once you turn your luggage over, you can go on living your best Disney life and enjoy your day at the parks!
When you’re finished your day, hop the bus (or your preferred transportation method) to your new resort.
Getting your luggage
When you make it to your new resort, head straight to your room and you should find your bags there. It’s really that simple!
Side note: This may be for online check-in only, so make sure you check-in online with the My Disney Experience App before your transfer!
If this is the case, and you don’t check in online, you should be able to get your bags at your new resort at bell services before heading to your room. The Cast Member checking you in can direct you.
What happens if your luggage isn’t there?
If you get to your room and find your luggage isn’t there, call the front desk. It’s possible (and likely!) that your bags made it to the resort, but just weren’t delivered to your room. This could be because of timing or because your room wasn’t ready until later.
In this case, your bags will be pulled from bell services and promptly delivered to your room.
If your bags truly didn’t make it to your resort, guest services should be about to help you locate them and get you essentials for the night. (This isn’t something I’ve personally experienced, nor does it seem like a common occurrence. However luggage does get misplaced from time to time, and this has been other people’s experience).
My Experience
My family did a split stay out of necessity. We booked our Disney trip first and then went to book airfare. It turned out to be more cost effective to leave a day earlier and add night to our trip.
We’d already booked at PopCentury, but they were full for the extra night, so we ended up staying at All-Star Movies for the night, then jumping over to Pop for the rest of our stay.
We had two rooms, and the first room went very smoothly! We went right to the rooms after the parks and found our bags there.
The bags weren’t delivered to the second room, but they were in storage and promptly brought to us when we called. (It couldn’t have taken more than fifteen minutes).
I think the issue with the second room was a result of a magic band/check-in snafu.
We had a hard time checking in on the app and it turned out there was an issue with our magic bands linking up to the reservation. We had to check in with the front desk so they could iron that out and give us our room. I think because we weren’t officially checked in, they didn’t deliver our bags.
It’s also worth noting that logistically this meant we had two separate reservations and confirmation numbers–one for each stay–so that’s something to keep in mind.
Do I recommend this?
I’m someone who likes to get settled and stay in one place, so I can’t say I would choose to change resorts again. But if I found myself in a position where I had to, I would absolutely do it. And I would recommend it to anyone who may have to or may want to.
There were some members of our group who were a little leery about our luggage reaching its destination. At one point, we even considered moving it ourselves, but the logistics of that were a little complicated and we would have lost too much time in the parks.
I’ve always let Disney claim my luggage at the airport when I arrive, and they’ve always been great at getting it where it needs to go. Even with the small issue at the end of our Resort switch, I’d trust them with my luggage in a heartbeat.
For more Disney World tips and tricks, check out the other Disney World Posts!
Sound off: Have you had experience changing resorts in Disney World? Tell us about it in the comments!