? about driving to the parks

[kennyssenorita]

Can someone let me know how much time to allow to drive from the allstar movies resort to AK, MK, and MGM? We will have our own car.

thanks!!

 

[WVParkfan]

The drive from the All Stars to the Parks isn't very long, but it is the "finding" a parking spot, the "walk" to the park entrance, and then the "walk back" to the car that take so much time. Since you are staying on-property, why not take the bus? They are quick, frequent, FREE, and take you to the gates of each park. We drive to WDW every year, but park our car at the resort and take the Disney transportation everywhere we go. It is much quicker, and even when the busses are crowded, it is still a part of the "magic" of being at WDW.

 

[kennyssenorita]

What time should we leave the resort so we can be at the gates at opening? I need to know how many minutes is the drive. Is it quicker to take the buses? Do you know how often the buses leave the resorts to take us to the parks?

 

[WVParkfan]

I'm sure there are others on the board who are much more informed than I am. I can only speak from experience. We were at the Caribbean Beach Resort this past July (busy time of year). Due to the size of our resort, there were 5 stops. Busses came very often, and the most we ever had to wait was 10 minutes for a bus to the park that we wanted (other busses came to our stop, but were going to other parks). The longest part of our bus ride was always circling CBR. Once the busses left our resort, it was a straight shot to the parks, and we were never on a bus for more than 15 minutes (once leaving the resort). By staying at the All-Stars, which only have one bus stop location, each, you won't have to deal with the 5 stops that we had to. That will make your bus trip 15 minutes shorter than ours was.

We had a character breakfast at the Magic Kingdom at 9:15 am one moring, and I was worried that we would be late and miss our seating (as this was a very difficult reservation to get). We left our room at 8:00 am to walk to the bus stop. I won't bore you with the details of the trip, but when we walked-up to Cindy's castle, I looked at my watch. It was 8:30 am, and we were WAY early for our breakfast. This was in July, one of the crowded times of year, and we were traveling to the MK which is the farthest park from our resort. We made it from our room to the steps of the castle in 30 minutes. For others who have been there, they'll appreciate how quick that was for a July morning!

If you feel that you must be at a park at a certain time, I would say that going to your bus stop 30 minutes prior to that time would be more than enough. And again, you can't beat the fact that the busses take you right to the front door (well, as close as you can get) of each park. Remember, this is a "perk" only for guests staying on Disney property. That means that very many of the guests at the park will not be able to ride the bus.

If you still feel that you must drive your own car, I would leave 1 hour before you want to get there (90 minutes if you are going to the MK because even if you drive, you still have to take a boat or the monorail from the parking area, through Ticket & Transportation Center, and then get to the gate). There's no direct way to drive to the MK. Only the busses go directly to the MK.

Hope that helps... and I hope people with more information respond to give you a better answer to your questions.

 

[agbyrom]

We've stayed at the All Star Resorts during Peak Season several times and have always utilized the Bus. The buses run frequently and many people can pile on the bus! It is much quicker to take the bus and less stress on you....no driving Have Fun!

 

[kydisneyfans]

I would estimate drive times from ASM as follows:

AS Movies to AK-5-7 minutes.
to MGM-10-12 minutes
to Epcot-10-12 minutes
to Magic Kingdom-15 minutes

We gave up on the bus system after we got in line an hour and 20 minutes before MK opening and ended up at the park after the opening ceremony. We waited 40 minutes to return from the MK-then ended up taking an AS Sports bus back and walking to the Movie resort.

After a tired day in a park, I also like to sit for my ride back.

If you are there early, you will park close-plus all parks run the tram system. We actually saved ALOT of time by driving instead of using the bus.

The only park that really is a hassle is the MK since you have to enter through the travel and transport center. Our son likes to ride the monorail to the park-the look as the monorail gets closer to the MK is priceless.

 

[ducklite]

What time should we leave the resort so we can be at the gates at opening? I need to know how many minutes is the drive. Is it quicker to take the buses? Do you know how often the buses leave the resorts to take us to the parks?

The only park we ever drive to is the AK, and that's only when we're going to be there very early for a ADP at Donald's before the park opens (not even sure they do that anymore). Otherwise in our experience it's always faster and easier to take the bus/monorail/boat.

Anne

 

[kennyssenorita]

Thanks for all the responses!!

 

[goofyfordisney]

We plan on driving to AK, MGM and Epcot from POFQ.

Anyone know how much time to allow?

Thanks in advance!

 

[betterlatethannever]

We plan on driving to AK, MGM and Epcot from POFQ.

Anyone know how much time to allow?

Thanks in advance!

About 10 minutes for Epcot and MGM.

About 15 minutes for AK

about 30 minutes for MK (to get to the gate)

Ed

 

[goofyfordisney]

About 10 minutes for Epcot and MGM.

About 15 minutes for AK

about 30 minutes for MK (to get to the gate)

Ed

Thanks so much!

We are planning on taking the bus to MK.

 

[laurabelle]

We always take the bus to MK since you are dropped off right at the front gates instead of at the TTC to park then shuttle, then monorail/boat over.