Bitterly Disappointed in BC water Transportation

[FortCanadaGirl]

The transportation, unfortunately, can be a disappointment anywhere. We've missed the start of EMH at DHS too coming from Fort Wilderness. It was a couple of years ago, but I'm sure we were waiting for a bus at the outpost more than an hour ahead of time, and the bus came by maybe 15 minutes to opening. SO frustrating!!!

 

[ArwenMarie]

That's disappointing...

 

[Sammie]

The only advantage to staying at the BC, YC or BW and getting to Epcot and DHS is if you wish to walk. MK is ever worse.

I personally don't like the walk to DHS, in the heat, so to me the hype about it being so great and close is not as convenient to me as other resorts where the bus drops you right at the entrance.

 

[luv2sleep]

OP: what a frustrating situation. I don't rent a car when I go to WDW so this is great information. We stayed in the MK area and our bus toDHS arrived quickly to the CR and took only 20-25 minutes to get there. I've never stayed in an Epcot area resort but assumed people staying there were getting to DHS faster.

Are these boats slower than the boats on Bay Lake or the ones to DTD? Those semes pretty quick.

 

[LovintheLodge]

When we were there one year the boats didn't run because of fog. I totally understand that but no other form of transportation was offered. There were a few people who had to change plans as they were unable to walk to DS. We simply walked to the park. The fog didn't lift until around 11 am that day.

When the boats couldn't run due to storms during our last trip, they quickly provided buses back to Epcot resorts. Also, walking (to DHS) in the August heat is no fun. I did that one time and regretted it...had to spend awhile in the air conditioned stores haha! I'd rather take the longer boat ride.

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[Dis703]

Yeah, we have found the transportation from BC (area) to be awful. We always rent a car. My husband HATES the boat, thinks it takes way too long. The buses were bad too. Just too many stops, too many people and way too slow. I think your best bet is to walk to DHS if you don't have a car. I just wanted to say that I totally agree with you, you are not alone. Hope you have a great trip despite the bad transportation.

Enjoy The Magic!!!

We only stayed there once for 8 days and maybe were just lucky but we didn't have any transportation problems at all. The boat definitely wasn't as quick an option as I'd hoped but the plus side for us is we don't have to take the kids out of the stroller so we'd take it over the buses any day. A double stroller on the bus is just a pain.

Buses were maybe 20 minutes to MK and we never had a wait more than a few minutes and AK was more like 30 with the extra stop for the water park and extra resorts sharing the bus. We had our car with us but after using it the first time didn't find it any more convenient.

 

[goodferry]

For us we like staying at the Beach Club because we love the pool and because we can walk to Epcot and DHS, I like being the master of my own destiny lol. I am too type A to rely on someone else to get me there on time. I know how frustrating it can be to think you will be early and end up not being early because someone else dropped the ball.
I have found in general with the Disney boats (Epcot area and MK area) that they are great for getting us back to the resorts, but in the morning they never start early enough for me. Plus what everyone has said about the Epcot resort boats is true, they are soooo slooowww lol. We only take the boats if we are super tired coming home in the afternoon and we don’t care how long it takes because walking is most definitely faster.

 

[sndral]

OP: what a frustrating situation. I don't rent a car when I go to WDW so this is great information. We stayed in the MK area and our bus toDHS arrived quickly to the CR and took only 20-25 minutes to get there. I've never stayed in an Epcot area resort but assumed people staying there were getting to DHS faster.

Are these boats slower than the boats on Bay Lake or the ones to DTD? Those semes pretty quick.

Of the boats I've spent any time on the boats to/from MK to Poly and GF are pretty quick, IME. FW/WL take longer because they go further. DTD to/from POR/POFQ seems like a pretty but long ride.
IMO, what makes the Epcot/DHS boats seem slow is not so much the multiple stops (Swalphon, BW, YC/BC) but how inefficient each stop is - the boats have to maneuver around each other to dock, sometimes having to idle in the water for awhile waiting for the boat in front of them to leave before it's their turn to pull up to the dock, then they have to carefully back out from the dock when they leave, plus they are fairly big boats so each stop can take awhile while people load/unload. Meanwhile you can see your resort - so close, yet the boat is taking forever to get there. My son and I do the boat v. walking to YC race @ DHS closing often and he, the walker, wins every time.

 

[CNYDisneyFan]

I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. That's really not cool.

 

[cindym]

When the boats couldn't run due to storms during our last trip, they quickly provided buses back to Epcot resorts. Also, walking (to DHS) in the August heat is no fun. I did that one time and regretted it...had to spend awhile in the air conditioned stores haha! I'd rather take the longer boat ride.

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This was several years ago when the fog cancelled the boats. Maybe they got so many complaints that they started running buses when that happened. We went to the YC front desk and asked if there were any buses running and they told us no. Another family went to the YC bus stop and asked a cm there and they were told no also. I asked at the marina and they told me no also. I didn't mind walking but my sister wasn't happy!

 

[ArwenMarie]

So is Boardwalk better in terms of location versus BC? It seems more equidistant between the two parks? Or does it make a difference for walking?

 

[Haley]

So is Boardwalk better in terms of location versus BC? It seems more equidistant between the two parks? Or does it make a difference for walking?

Not really - just a little closer but then further to walk to Epcot.

 

[vinotinto]

They need better alternative transportation (buses) for when things are not working well. Not everyone can walk, even if it's only a mile. My mom has osteoarthritis in her knees and it would be tough for her to start a park day with such a walk. Also, when we went in Oct 2011, there were some serious rains around Columbus Day. We would have arrived soaked to DHS if we had to walk for a mile to get there. Sometimes it's just too hot or too rainy to walk.

 

[msd1776]

Wow thanks for sharing. To me the boat and proximity to two parks was an advantage of that hotel. It is a good reminder that these things happen.

I know there was 1 time on our last trip that we waited am inordinate time for the boat to MK from WL. Those things happen which is why a car can be a sanity saver.....

 

[wdwmom0f3]

Wow thanks for sharing. To me the boat and proximity to two parks was an advantage of that hotel. It is a good reminder that these things happen.

I know there was 1 time on our last trip that we waited am inordinate time for the boat to MK from WL. Those things happen which is why a car can be a sanity saver.....

You took the words right out of my mouth! A car can be a sanity saver. We were trying to leave HS once and we waited for ever for a bus. People were everywhere and the bus lines went on and on. We decided then that we would drive and not depend on Disney transportation again.

Now we can hop in our car and be at the gate in no time and when we leave we just walk to our car and we are back at our resort in minutes. The only time we take the bus is to MK because parking takes to long there. It just works for us.