Official SHADES OF GREEN Information - Page 55 - The DIS Discussion Forums

mom2jcc · 04-30-2008, 01:20 PM

Thanks for those pictures. I LOVE seeing pictures of our home away from home

I chuckled at the cheeze-its...we fed the turkeys the same thing

The bus situation was unfortunate. So many of us depend on this transportation. For EMH mornings to HS or AK they should be on the ball. Thanks for the heads up!

hildarumpole · 04-30-2008, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maine-iac

We only had one problem with the buses. We got down to the bus stop before 7:30am to catch the bus for 8am EMH at HS. 7:45 came and no bus driver. (there were at least 4 buses sitting there running with no drivers). People started going in and asking. Finally an SOG employee came out and said that no bus drivers could be found so we should walk over to Poly and catch the bus there.

Yeesh! Where could 4 bus drivers have wandered off to at SOG? Were they on the links playing a round of golf?

I got the impression that SOG employees have almost no control over the buses and drivers. We had an incident with a missing bus one morning. SOG people were running around, looking worried, talking on cellphones. The bus drivers weren't exactly full of personality, especially one guy who appeared to be the head driver. When people complained about the situation, he got very sarcastic and the message was, "if you don't like it, find your own way to the parks." I filled out an SOG comment card on his surly attitude and received an apology from the resort manager. He said he'd speak to the bus contractor about it. I understand SOG wants to keep costs down to keep the rates reasonable, but I'd be willing to pay a few more bucks a night for nice reliable buses and drivers.

Briggidge2 · 04-30-2008, 02:14 PM

Would you all say that it would be in our best interest to walk to the Poly to catch the bus/monorail there if we had an early ADR? I don't want to miss my ressie just because the bus drivers decide they don't want to work.

Briggidge2 · 04-30-2008, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maine-iac

SOOO instead of ducks to feed, there are turkeys? LOL! My kiddos will love that! (but we use goldfish instead of cheez-its)

Mrsjvb · 04-30-2008, 02:31 PM

I agree that the WORST part of SoG is the bus system overall. we too were left High and dry on EMH hours(morning) for AK our first full day at the parks. the drivers are NOT DoD or MWR employees, they are contracted out, and with ONE exception( the evening DTD lady driver) they were, to a person, grumpier than a dwarf.

after that fiasco, we opted for the Poly for all transport except coming or going to DTD. The walk wasn't that terribly inconvenient, and the Poly walkway is very pleasant.

and our Turkeys used our patio to hide from the thunderstorm. The Bullfrog tried to get in the room and the lizard critter thought it would be amusing to slip into the sliding glass door track and refuse to budge even when we wanted to close the door. The bunnies were fearless, the birds noisy and No alligators to be found, much to my profound disappointment.

gibsontrio · 04-30-2008, 03:07 PM

how reliable / easy is the golf cart that takes you to the end of the driveway?? Seems like that would be easier than waiting for the bus

mom2jcc · 04-30-2008, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gibsontrio

how reliable / easy is the golf cart that takes you to the end of the driveway?? Seems like that would be easier than waiting for the bus

We actually never saw the famous golfcart. I guess it is a hit or miss thing.

We walked to the Poly and caught the monorail every morning except for AK and HS days. We drove to those parks as they were EMH mornings. We had no idea what the bus service would be, but thought driving would be easier with our double stroller.

Maine-iac · 04-30-2008, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hildarumpole

Yeesh! Where could 4 bus drivers have wandered off to at SOG?

We all wondered the same thing. With gas prices the way they are........ there are your tax dollars at work.

There were many "volunteer bus drivers" will to drive everyone to HS.

Maine-iac · 04-30-2008, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Briggidge2

Would you all say that it would be in our best interest to walk to the Poly to catch the bus/monorail there if we had an early ADR? I don't want to miss my ressie just because the bus drivers decide they don't want to work.

Yes, if you have an ADR or you want to be up front at a park for the rope drop then you should walk to the Poly and catch their bus. The buses from SOG started at 7:30am for 8:00am EMH. We just wanted to get there at opening (did not care about being the first ones) so we used the buses for all parks.
The buses are usually not crowded even at night and if they are everyone is so nice about giving up their seats and even helping get strollers on the bus. That is a plus. You don't find that on Disney buses.

Maine-iac · 04-30-2008, 04:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gibsontrio

how reliable / easy is the golf cart that takes you to the end of the driveway?? Seems like that would be easier than waiting for the bus

It was there for us when we wanted it and we saw it in use a lot. It will only hold 5 people besides the driver. So with 7 of us 2 had to walk, but we were only going to the Luau.
Don't forget to tip the driver.

Maine-iac · 04-30-2008, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrsjvb

and our Turkeys used our patio to hide from the thunderstorm. The Bullfrog tried to get in the room and the lizard critter thought it would be amusing to slip into the sliding glass door track and refuse to budge even when we wanted to close the door. The bunnies were fearless, the birds noisy and No alligators to be found, much to my profound disappointment.

That must have been funny. Chasing away the wildlife.
We saw an alligator in the pond on the right just as you start driving onto the drive to SOG (by the gazebo). We saw it the morning after we had walked back from the Luau at 10:00pm. We had been laughing about how full we were and wouldn't we make great meals for an alligator. Especially since we were so full that we could not run. I was so full that it hurt to laugh and BIL kept me laughing. Yep if only we had known that there really was an alligator there. That as the only time we saw him.

Sleepy · 04-30-2008, 05:25 PM

When it comes to transportation, we just roll with the punches and have an out at all times. We start out by deciding if we are on a time limit. If so and the buses are not available, we don't hesitate to either walk to POLY or request the golf cart. When options are available, sitting around and waiting just doesn't make sense.

gibsontrio · 04-30-2008, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maine-iac

Don't forget to tip the driver.

didnt even think about that!! Thank you for the reminder, how much did you tip him?

Sleepy · 04-30-2008, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gibsontrio

......how much did you tip him?

We tipped the golf cart driver 2 bucks. No real math used to figure that one out. Doesn't matter if there is only one passenger or 4, the cart does the same amount of work. It was an easy tip. All he did was drive us to the end of the drive. No luggage involved, etc. If you only want to give $1, that would be fine too in my opinion.

Sleepy · 05-01-2008, 05:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mom2jcc

We actually never saw the famous golfcart. I guess it is a hit or miss thing.

You probably won't see it out in the open. You have to go to where they load and unload your luggage and request it.

04-30-2008, 01:20 PM	#811
mom2jcc Castle Suite Memories Forever! Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Mississippi Gulf Coast Posts: 822	Maine-iac Thanks for those pictures. I LOVE seeing pictures of our home away from home I chuckled at the cheeze-its...we fed the turkeys the same thing The bus situation was unfortunate. So many of us depend on this transportation. For EMH mornings to HS or AK they should be on the ball. Thanks for the heads up! __________________

04-30-2008, 02:14 PM	#813
Briggidge2 Mouseketeer Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Boondocks, MD Posts: 101	Would you all say that it would be in our best interest to walk to the Poly to catch the bus/monorail there if we had an early ADR? I don't want to miss my ressie just because the bus drivers decide they don't want to work. __________________ DH: ME: DS (12)DD(7) DS(6) ANd of course--Kit Jax First visit: AUG08 SOG/POLY! Second trip: APR 3-8 09 BWI!!!

04-30-2008, 03:07 PM	#816
gibsontrio DIS Veteran Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: "Home is where the Army sends us" Germany ! Posts: 637	how reliable / easy is the golf cart that takes you to the end of the driveway?? Seems like that would be easier than waiting for the bus __________________ ME! , Hubby , Cameron , Willow , Roselynn

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04-30-2008, 02:31 PM	#815
Mrsjvb DIS Veteran Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Pasadena MD Posts: 1,699	I agree that the WORST part of SoG is the bus system overall. we too were left High and dry on EMH hours(morning) for AK our first full day at the parks. the drivers are NOT DoD or MWR employees, they are contracted out, and with ONE exception( the evening DTD lady driver) they were, to a person, grumpier than a dwarf. after that fiasco, we opted for the Poly for all transport except coming or going to DTD. The walk wasn't that terribly inconvenient, and the Poly walkway is very pleasant. and our Turkeys used our patio to hide from the thunderstorm. The Bullfrog tried to get in the room and the lizard critter thought it would be amusing to slip into the sliding glass door track and refuse to budge even when we wanted to close the door. The bunnies were fearless, the birds noisy and No alligators to be found, much to my profound disappointment.

04-30-2008, 05:25 PM	#822
Sleepy I'll have to remember that one Maybe I should start watching the news Join Date: Mar 2000 Location: Naples, Italy Posts: 5,644	When it comes to transportation, we just roll with the punches and have an out at all times. We start out by deciding if we are on a time limit. If so and the buses are not available, we don't hesitate to either walk to POLY or request the golf cart. When options are available, sitting around and waiting just doesn't make sense.