Car vs Disney Transport

[JP-STL]

In another thread, a someone mentioned that they chose to drive from their WDW resort to the parks, rather than using Disney Transportation. Which is generally quicker?

I realize that people have different temperments...some can't stand to wait for a bus and hate relying on someone else to drive them, while others view driving and parking as huge hassles.

But I just want to know what is the quickest, most efficient way to get from your resort to the theme parks -- driving your own car or riding Disney Transport.

Tom and Bill are staying at Port Orleans. Each departs his room at precisely 9:00 a.m. to go to the Magic Kingdom. Tom takes the bus, and Bill drives his car. Which one walks through the gates of the Magic Kingdom first?

 

[MAGICinMYHEART]

Tom would arrive first because if traveling to the Magic Kingdom Bill has to drive then park, ride the trams to TTC, where he then has to wait on either the Monorail or Ferry.

The next morning if they repeated the same scenario only visiting the Animal Kingom Bill would arrive at the gate first.

Each park is different.

 

[JP-STL]

Thanks. Can you tell me more? Is MK the only resort where Disney Transport is quicker, or are their others? Is the difference significant?

We are planning a trip for June of 2006, and are wondering about driving or flying down from the midwest (St. Louis). The biggest determining factor will be cost (we have a family of 7, so flying is very expensive). But I also want to consider other things...like are there big advantages to having a vehicle at the resort with you.

 

[Kaybee]

I prefer to drive. Always seems much faster to me. Although I do agree it is easier to take a bus to the Magic Kingdom so you don't have to take a monorail or boat to arrive at MK. But overall it is much faster to drive yourself. If you are a resort guest you get to park free, they just wave you through at the gate. If it rains or you are tired and want to leave now, you just hop on the tram which drops you off near the end of the row where you parked and you are on your way out. No waiting in lines for the bus to fill and leave. Same goes with going to the park. No other stops, just go straight to the park. Late at night when the parks close and there are a mass of people heading to the bus line, you just hop in the car and drive away.

 

[Princess Mindy]

Magic in my heart I love your Sailormoon pic!

I had a question too..Does anyone know how much it is to take a cab in WDW? Are they pretty easy to find? I was thinking of taking one from CBR to GF for breakfast because the travel timer on allears said it would take 40 minutes by bus.

 

[MAGICinMYHEART]

Thanks. Can you tell me more? Is MK the only resort where Disney Transport is quicker, or are their others? Is the difference significant?

We are planning a trip for June of 2006, and are wondering about driving or flying down from the midwest (St. Louis). The biggest determining factor will be cost (we have a family of 7, so flying is very expensive). But I also want to consider other things...like are there big advantages to having a vehicle at the resort with you.

Will you be staying at Port Orleans, because which resort your staying at can also make a huge difference. With 7 people would you have one vehicle large enough for everyone if you drive? Do you know the Disney area driving can be confusing?

Sometimes we drive to Animal Kingdom if we are going to be there at opening and arrive early enough to park close to the entrance so we don't have to take a tram, same for MGM . We never drive to EPCOT or Magic Kingdom.

Most trips we never even see the car until it's time to leave. We use Disney Transportant remember your on vacation.

Beckie

 

[MAGICinMYHEART]

Magic in my heart I love your Sailormoon pic!
I had a question too..Does anyone know how much it is to take a cab in WDW? Are they pretty easy to find? I was thinking of taking one from CBR to GF for breakfast because the travel timer on allears said it would take 40 minutes by bus.

Princess Mindy

Thanks, Taxi's are usually available at the front of every resort or can be called for by Bell Services, just check at your resort. Most trips are around $10.00 but you can also check on price before you actually use one. I agree with allears a cab would be the most time efficient way but you would always just jump on the bus to the Magic Kingdom then catch the boat to the GF.

Have a Great Trip.

 

[stacy6552]

To MK, Tom will definately get there first. The buss will drop him off very close to the gate. Bill will have to park, then get on the monorail or boat to get over to the MK.

 

[Michael623]

The other variable is the bus schedule. If you just missed a bus and you're at the first bus stop at your hotel meaning that you may have to wait 20 minutes followed by several stops around the resort I would say that driving would be quicker maybe even to MK. If you're at the last stop at the resort and you walk right up and board the bus then the bus would be quicker to MK the other 3 parks would be a push. For me it is more important having the bus waiting for me at the end of the day when my feet are killing me.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

ON AVERAGE, both the bus and the car will be EQUAL. This is of course assuming an average wait time for the bus of 7 minutes, and both vehicles travelling the speed limit.

For the Magic Kingdom, on average the bus will be much quicker. It can take up to 30 minutes to get from your car to the Magic Kingdom itself. I know this, because I did this every day in order to get to work when I drove buses out of the MK.

 

[DisneyJen0504]

We prefer to use the disney transportation-buses, monorails etc. One year when our friends went as well, they rented a car b/c they thought it would be faster and more comfortable. Well, they were never on time to meet up with us b/c it always took them longer to get to the parks or restaurants we were dining and they constantly complained about things we didnt experience-hot car, traffic (who notices when you arent driving) and other things. Halfway through their trip they ditched the car and used transportation with us. So just seeing their experience made us never want to bother with a car on our trips to WDW.

 

[lonegungirl]

On my last trip, I used the transportation for the first day until my rental was ready. I found it was very fast to get to parks...but took forever to get back. Every time I tried to get a bus to leave someplace, there was a huge line--coming back from MK, I had to wait for 1 bus to load, drop off, and return 3 times before I could get on (took about 1 hour.) To get from AK at closing to Downtown Disney took about 1 1/2 hours, as there was no direct bus, requiring me to wait to get on a bus, get off, and then wait for another bus at a random resort.

Once I got the car I was much happier. Going at odd hours ensured that I almost always got a parking space within walking distance to the entrance, and if I got lost or experienced traffic, the irritation paled in comparison to waiting out in the heat, standing up for hours. I may just be an impatient control freak however, so your mileage may vary.

 

[jarestel]

I think generally, driving yourself will be faster than the Disney transportation. How much faster is another question. We don't care whether we get to the park where we are going at 10:00 or 10:10. Others may find this "lost" 10 minutes to much to cope with. Of course, taxis are an expensive alternative that may not end up saving any time at all, since you have to wait for them to arrive at your resort, though usually it's not much of a wait. But when you're waiting for your taxi to Epcot to come and get you and you see the Epcot bus pulling out of your resort, you see those dollar bills with wings on them flying away from you.

I think Disney transportation is usually pretty good, and that's what we always use when going to/from the parks. Of course, if anything short of having Scotty beam you to your destination will be too long, driving is probably best. As I said, you won't usually get there more than a few minutes faster, but you'll feel like you're beating the system.

 

[JP-STL]

Thanks, guys, this has been very helpful. My conclusion: If we get good airfare, we'll take it and not worry about being without a vehicle. If no good airfares come available, we'll drive to WDW but the van may sit unused in the resort parking lot much of the time.

 

[Okiemom]

We thought the WDW transportation was very good. I loved not being in a car, stuck in a line for the 5 days we were there. It was a great stress buster not driving , and figuring out where to go.

 

[bugbugmom]

JpSTl...another st louisan here. We drove to DW Sept 2003. Drove our car to Mk only once. The rest of the trip we used DW buses. Sept 2004 we flew SW for 59.00 each way..Be sure to sing up for Ding thru SWA and keep checking there site ..you might find it more affordable than you think. Also, 16 hour drive vs flying for 2.5 hours..... DH said fly

 

[bjkj]

Thanks for all of the tips. It sounds like where you are staying and which parks you are going to make a big difference. We will be staying at Fort Wilderness, hitting the parks in them morning, taking an afternoon break and then heading back for fireworks ect. We are going in Sept. Which transportation do you think is best?

 

[JP-STL]

Sept 2004 we flew SW for 59.00 each way..Be sure to sing up for Ding thru SWA and keep checking there site ..you might find it more affordable than you think. Also, 16 hour drive vs flying for 2.5 hours..... DH said fly

At today's oil prices, I think the days of $59 airfare from St. Louis to Orlando are over. We have 5 kids, so with my wife and I that makes a total of 7 airline tickets we'd have to buy. Fare is going to have to be awfully low to make that possible. But when SW posts their fares for June, we'll start watching carefully.

One thing we're considering is having my wife fly down with our two youngest (who cause the most difficulties on a long drive), while I drive down with the three oldest. In order to make it fair to those kids who get stuck driving with Dad, I might leave a couple of days early an find a spot to do some camping on a beach with the older ones. That way they get some "pay-back" for sitting through the 16-hour drive.

I'm looking at a state park near St. Joe, FL, as a possiblity. Anyone camped there?

Ah, I miss the good ol' days when my wife worked for TWA and we flew for free all over the world.

 

[marc1477]

Disney Transport. You might have a little wait for the bus, but they will drop you off closer to the entrance gates that you can with a car. Best of all, no parking lot hassles.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Speed-wise--Tom gets there first most times. But there is more to it than just that.
All depends on whether or not Tom can actually get on the first bus, or has to wait for another. And if Tom might not mind standing up the entire trip, or listening to some clod using their cell phones to discuss next-weeks shopping trips.
And if Tom is at the MK and suddenly decides a round of mini golf at
Fantasia gardens is in order--Bill will probably be finished playing before Tom even gets there.