Mikki, we have two "hatches" (as you mention) to access separate areas of the layout. One of the ways I stay in shape is accessing the areas by crawling under table...lol! We had caroet stripes leftover from what was installed upstairs, so I cut out two runners for the pathway under the table to make the journey easier on the knees.
By the way, now that you mention coming up with a name for your layout, we still have not named ours...now that we're finishing up, maybe it's time to give it a name...