Best park-hopping strategy

[Piglet99645]

I'm not a lover of hopping because of the time involved.

Is it generally accepted that the easiest two parks to hop between would be DHS and Epcot, because of the boat option? Or because of another option?

Or are there secrets I don't know to make park-hopping more efficient?

In a related matter...... for park-hopping between other park combinations, do you still have to take a bus to the Ticket and Transportation center, and then get on another bus (or monorail), or do they have direct busses now between parks?

Thanks in Advance!

Six days until our vacation!!!

 

[parkhopping]

I'm guessing you won't have a car, but on the chance that you will - driving is the fastest way to get around WDW. DHS and Epcot are easy to hop between using WDW transportation (boats) or just by walking. MK and Epcot are easy, too - just take the monorail from MK to the TTC and then get on the line to Epcot (or vice versa).

 

[Piglet99645]

I'm guessing you won't have a car, but on the chance that you will - driving is the fastest way to get around WDW. DHS and Epcot are easy to hop between using WDW transportation (boats) or just by walking. MK and Epcot are easy, too - just take the monorail from MK to the TTC and then get on the line to Epcot (or vice versa).

We WILL have a car! I have never heard this......

So perhaps we will consider driving to Animal Kingdom on our AK day (although AK is so close to the All STar resorts, I recall the bus also being very quick).

 

[parkhopping]

I would also suggest that if you are hopping between parks that have simple WDW transportation between them, park at the one you will visit second/last. I have learned the hard way that at the end of the day when you're tired and have achy feet, it's nice to be able to get to your car quickly So now, for example, if I'm going to Epcot and then MK, I will park at the TTC and just take the monorail to Epcot. Then take the monorail to the TTC, switch lines, and go to MK.

 

[Piglet99645]

I would also suggest that if you are hopping between parks that have simple WDW transportation between them, park at the one you will visit second/last. I have learned the hard way that at the end of the day when you're tired and have achy feet, it's nice to be able to get to your car quickly So now, for example, if I'm going to Epcot and then MK, I will park at the TTC and just take the monorail to Epcot. Then take the monorail to the TTC, switch lines, and go to MK.

That's a great suggestion! Thanks!

So it seems that three parks in one day really is doable, starting at DHS at rope drop for 4 big rides (the only things we want to do there), then boat over to Epcot for Food and Wine for most of the day....... then monorail to MK for fireworks and parade?

Realistic?

the next day would be Animal Kingdom only, so more relaxing......

 

[MrsDuck]

I'd drive. MUCH faster than Disney bus transportation.

 

[TowMater92]

That's a great suggestion! Thanks!

So it seems that three parks in one day really is doable, starting at DHS at rope drop for 4 big rides (the only things we want to do there), then boat over to Epcot for Food and Wine for most of the day....... then monorail to MK for fireworks and parade?

Realistic?

the next day would be Animal Kingdom only, so more relaxing......

If you're doing that don't drive use the bus to DHS then use the boat to Epcot then the Monorail to MK and then take the bus back to your resort. You'll spend more time moving your car then its worth and depending on what time DHS closes you might not be able to take a bus back to your car if you don't move it. Even if you can your spending more time on Disney transportation and driving yourself then's necessary.

 

[parkhopping]

If you're doing that don't drive use the bus to DHS then use the boat to Epcot then the Monorail to MK and then take the bus back to your resort. You'll spend more time moving your car then its worth and depending on what time DHS closes you might not be able to take a bus back to your car if you don't move it. Even if you can your spending more time on Disney transportation and driving yourself then's necessary.

I disagree. In my experience, the Disney buses take much longer than driving. If you park at DHS in the morning, there should still be a bus to take you there after MK. Once, with a friend, I parked at Epcot and took the monorail to MK. MK was open for a few hours later than Epcot, and the Epcot monorail line closed before we left MK, but we were stil able to take a bus from the TTC to our car at Epcot. In this case, it would have been far better to park at MK and take the monorail to Epcot as previously mentioned. We were so exhausted and disliked having to wait for the bus.

OP, if that is your plan for the day, you can park at MK in the morning and take the monorail to Epcot, then walk or take a boat to DHS. The way you described it is also realistic. I have done the equivalent of 4 parks in 1 day, but it was technically 3 - we did the 3 parks you mentioned but did DHS twice. So yes, you can follow that plan

 

[Sweettears]

That's a great suggestion! Thanks!

So it seems that three parks in one day really is doable, starting at DHS at rope drop for 4 big rides (the only things we want to do there), then boat over to Epcot for Food and Wine for most of the day....... then monorail to MK for fireworks and parade?

Realistic?

the next day would be Animal Kingdom only, so more relaxing......

I do this sort of thing all of the time and I never have a car.

 

[Piglet99645]

I'm finding this discussion extremely helpful. Thank you!

 

[Piglet99645]

When you say "Park at Magic Kingdom" is that different than parking at the TT center?

I thought maybe we would park at the Transportation center, bus to DHS, boat to epcot, monorail to MK, then bus back to Transportation center. But I guess that seems silly..... we could just bus each way in the morning.

All I remember is I got stranded at Animal Kingdom Lodge last time after we ate at Boma b/c there were no busses going anywhere..... I had to call a cab!

 

[nkereina]

When you say "Park at Magic Kingdom" is that different than parking at the TT center?

I thought maybe we would park at the Transportation center, bus to DHS, boat to epcot, monorail to MK, then bus back to Transportation center. But I guess that seems silly..... we could just bus each way in the morning.

All I remember is I got stranded at Animal Kingdom Lodge last time after we ate at Boma b/c there were no busses going anywhere..... I had to call a cab!

Parking at MK is the same as parking at TTC. MK does not have a separate parking lot - TTC is the parking lot. This is why it makes most sense to bus to MK and drive to all the other parks, if you have a car. Buses drop you off right at the MK gate so you can avoid the ferry or monorail.

IMO, the boat between DHS and Epcot can take just as long as a bus. There's the wait for the boat plus the boat moves at a snail's pace. That being said, it's a nice ride.

Also IMO, it's not that much of a hassle or time consumer to park hop. You can catch a bus (or monorail or boat for that matter) to another park from the park, so it's no different than if you were going to catch a bus, boat, or monorail to your resort. I don't think there is a bus between Epcot and DHS due to the boat.

 

[TowMater92]

I disagree. In my experience, the Disney buses take much longer than driving. If you park at DHS in the morning, there should still be a bus to take you there after MK. I thought you would drive to avoid buses? Also I have never seen or heard of buses going to other parks that have been closed, I may be wrong there may be buses that do that but I haven't seen it in 15 trips and even if you can you're adding even more travel time and taking a bus anyways. Once, with a friend, I parked at Epcot and took the monorail to MK. MK was open for a few hours later than Epcot, and the Epcot monorail line closed before we left MK, but we were stil able to take a bus from the TTC to our car at Epcot. In this case, it would have been far better to park at MK and take the monorail to Epcot as previously mentioned. We were so exhausted and disliked having to wait for the bus.

OP, if that is your plan for the day, you can park at MK in the morning and take the monorail to Epcot, then walk or take a boat to DHS. The way you described it is also realistic. I have done the equivalent of 4 parks in 1 day, but it was technically 3 - we did the 3 parks you mentioned but did DHS twice. So yes, you can follow that plan

Really? So you're saying its faster to drive and park at the TTC, walk or take the Tram to the Monorail, then take the Monorail to Epcot(BTW just doing those two things will take longer then it takes to ride the bus form any resort to DHS) then they are supposed to enter Epcot, walk all the way through Epcot to the International Gate(not a short walk) then ride the boat to DHS or walk(again a very long walk) and after doing all that you're saying it is faster then riding the bus straight to DHS?

Lets break this down my way to get to DHS 1 bus. Your way 1 car, walk or tram, then Monorail, then walk through the second largest park, then Boat or long walk.

After that everything will be exactly like I said Boat to Epcot from DHS then Monorail to MK. But then when they leave they will have to wait for the Monorail or boat to get to the TTC then either walk or ride the Tram out to there car. Or they can just wait for the bus which will take about the same amount of time(maybe a few minutes less or a few more) depending on the lines for the Monorail-boat/Bus. Overall you are adding a lot of walking or travel time.

 

[Piglet99645]

Parking at MK is the same as parking at TTC. MK does not have a separate parking lot - TTC is the parking lot. This is why it makes most sense to bus to MK and drive to all the other parks, if you have a car. Buses drop you off right at the MK gate so you can avoid the ferry or monorail.

Good to know.

IMO, the boat between DHS and Epcot can take just as long as a bus. There's the wait for the boat plus the boat moves at a snail's pace. That being said, it's a nice ride.

Yes, I was kind of viewing the boat option as "part of the experience" rather than just transportation. I remember we did it last time and we enjoyed it.

 

[Piglet99645]

Really? So you're saying its faster to drive and park at the TTC, walk or take the Tram to the Monorail, then take the Monorail to Epcot(BTW just doing those two things will take longer then it takes to ride the bus form any resort to DHS) then they are supposed to enter Epcot, walk all the way through Epcot to the International Gate(not a short walk) then ride the boat to DHS or walk(again a very long walk) and after doing all that you're saying it is faster then riding the bus straight to DHS?

Lets break this down my way to get to DHS 1 bus. Your way 1 car, walk or tram, then Monorail, then walk through the second largest park, then Boat or long walk.

After that everything will be exactly like I said Boat to Epcot from DHS then Monorail to MK. But then when they leave they will have to wait for the Monorail or boat to get to the TTC then either walk or ride the Tram out to there car. Or they can just wait for the bus which will take about the same amount of time(maybe a few minutes less or a few more) depending on the lines for the Monorail-boat/Bus. Overall you are adding a lot of walking or travel time.

I think Parkhopper was suggesting I do the parks in a different order than I originally suggested.

In any event, even tho there is some disagreement, it is very helpful to me to know there are various options. I never considered driving my car at all once we got to the property! (Except to go to dinner at Boma!)

 

[TowMater92]

I never considered driving my car at all once we got to the property! (Except to go to dinner at Boma!)

The three places I always drive to are Ak(buses stop a BB so it takes a while and its the furthest park for most of the resorts), DTD(bus stops at TL and the all three DTD stops, plus its easier to put things you buy in a car then carry them on a crowded bus) and any other resort I have an ADR at or want to go to for any reason.

 

[Q-man]

Pretty sure that due to its' size your resort has direct buses to all parks. I would take the bus to DHS then either walk to Epcot's international gate, ride the boat, or take the bus from DHS to the Beach Club and walk to the international gate from there. Walking is likely the quickest but keep in mind pacing yourself for a full day of walking. Then when leaving EP walk back out the international gate to the Beach Club and take a cab to MK(not sure MK has cab drop off in which case take a cab to the CR and walk next door to MK) should be $10-15 in fare or the BC bus to MK. Then the the bus from MK back to your resort.

 

[parkhopping]

I thought you would drive to avoid buses? Also I have never seen or heard of buses going to other parks that have been closed, I may be wrong there may be buses that do that but I haven't seen it in 15 trips and even if you can you're adding even more travel time and taking a bus anyways.

Really? So you're saying its faster to drive and park at the TTC, walk or take the Tram to the Monorail, then take the Monorail to Epcot(BTW just doing those two things will take longer then it takes to ride the bus form any resort to DHS) then they are supposed to enter Epcot, walk all the way through Epcot to the International Gate(not a short walk) then ride the boat to DHS or walk(again a very long walk) and after doing all that you're saying it is faster then riding the bus straight to DHS?

Lets break this down my way to get to DHS 1 bus. Your way 1 car, walk or tram, then Monorail, then walk through the second largest park, then Boat or long walk.

After that everything will be exactly like I said Boat to Epcot from DHS then Monorail to MK. But then when they leave they will have to wait for the Monorail or boat to get to the TTC then either walk or ride the Tram out to there car. Or they can just wait for the bus which will take about the same amount of time(maybe a few minutes less or a few more) depending on the lines for the Monorail-boat/Bus. Overall you are adding a lot of walking or travel time.

Sorry, I should have been more clear as to what I was responding to with my statements there. First, I was disagreeing with your suggestion that they take a bus to DHS, because in my experience driving is faster than buses. Secondly, you stated that there may not be a bus to take them back to their car at DHS if they drove there. I was explaining that, from my personal experience at MK/Epcot, there should be one. I do agree that going that route would take more time and I don't recommend it; see my explanation in the rest of that post and my recommendation to park at the final park of the day. I apologize for the confusion.

Generally speaking, I have found driving to be faster than the Disney buses. However, this is just a generalization and there may be cases where it doesn't hold true. I did not realize that the buses drop you off at the MK front gate instead of at the TTC, and that is definitely something to take into consideration. I also agree that trying to hop between 3 parks by parking at one and using transportation between the others can actually be more tedious and add more travel time. The strategy of parking at the last park works better when you're only talking about 2 parks that are easily/simply connected by Disney transportation.

To the OP - I'm sorry there has been so much miscommunication on your thread and hope you can still glean some useful information for what will work best for you and your family

 

[Piglet99645]

No worries at all! I have learned a lot!

My current strategy is to have an optional third park most days in case one of the first two is crazy crowded or something, and I'll gauge whether to go to number three based on how our party is doing. So we will probably stick to busses most of the time. But good to know the options.

Still will be driving to Boma!!

 

[Reb23]

When I was at WDW back in March, I visited all 4 parks in one day (just to hit my favorites). I drove to each park instead of waiting for buses or monorail.