Bus system virgins going all the way!

[OhioDisneyDad]

I'm a bus snob - I'll admit it. My family and I have only ridden the bus once at WDW and that was when we were staying at the Hilton in DTD. We've always either rented a car or drove our own car. We're flying down on 10/25 and will be staying at Pop for 7 nights. This is our FIRST value resort stay and our FIRST time trying the QSDP (56 snack credits for F&W!).

After much discussion we've decided to give the bus system a go (NO RENTAL CAR - God help me). I've always heard that Pop has the best buses. Plus, we're going at a slower time of the year. We've been to WDW many times before so we're looking forward to a nice relaxing trip. We'll be hitting F&W alot (park hoppers) and doing MNSSHP. We like to do rope drop too.

From what I've read, if we want to do rope drop we should line up for a bus at least an hour before we want to be there. If we close a park we'd be better of just hanging back and letting the exiting crowd disperse. If we want to go to DTD it appears that there's no good way to get there and we'll need to be prepared for a long journey. Since we're going the QSDP I don't foresee doing any resort to resort trips. I've only made one ADR which is at Cape May for my son's b-day dinner (he loves crab legs).

Are there any other tips or gotchas that I need to be aware to make our bus experience as good as possible? Is Pop the best resort to try using the buses? We're also doing ME from and to the airport so that's a new one for us as well. I'm figuring if worse comes to worse we can grab a taxi or, dare I say it, snag a rental car.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

I would post this over on the Transportation board too and see what answers you get there as well. They may have more info for you over there since that is their specialty... buses=transportation Also try the resorts board since you are wanting to know which resort has the better bus service.. personally, I think they are all about equal. The plus with Pop is that it doesn't share

 

[nytimez]

The plus with Pop is that it doesn't share

The minus is the reason it doesn't share: It's one of the largest hotels in the entire country. Close to 3,000 rooms. The bus lines can get long, especially heading back at the end of the day.

 

[Sweettears]

I can usually deal with the buses without much issue. But having said that I usually stay deluxe which has other transportation options to certain parks. BC/YC/BW Epcot and HS, Monorail resorts MK and the TTC so it breaks it up. Buses only ? You are a brave soul.

I would be sure to walk around with sufficient taxi money so that when frustartion sets in you have an option. It would take alot of taxi fares to equal a car rental. At least you could set that as your threshold.

 

[cglaura]

The minus is the reason it doesn't share: It's one of the largest hotels in the entire country. Close to 3,000 rooms. The bus lines can get long, especially heading back at the end of the day.

Agreed. We stayed at ASMu a few times, and took the Sports or Movies bus occasionally. It was just a 5 minute walk to our resort from them. I go off season, so maybe that is why they don't share? I've never had multiple stops, it just went straight to ASMu. But if our bus wasn't there, and a sports/movies was, then we hopped over instead.

Other than that, I'd say just go into it knowing you might be waiting, knowing you might be standing....go with the flow. Life is too short to be angry on vacation over things you have no control.

I'd rather be waiting/standing for a bus in Disney that at home working, cleaning, etc any day Use the time to have fun with the family, word games, verbal daily journal, what you are looking forward to next day. Makes the time go by and all the bitter angry folks around you will wonder shy your family is so darn chipper and what kool-aid you've been drinking !

 

[A Mickeyfan]

The minus is the reason it doesn't share: It's one of the largest hotels in the entire country. Close to 3,000 rooms. The bus lines can get long, especially heading back at the end of the day.

I know, but when they share, there are times if you aren't on the first pick up, you don't get on that bus .... They are nearly filled by the time they get to the second resort..

I really hadn't had much of a problem with Pop.. it was the AllStars that I would..

 

[A Mickeyfan]

I can usually deal with the buses without much issue. But having said that I usually stay deluxe which has other transportation options to certain parks. BC/YC/BW Epcot and HS, Monorail resorts MK and the TTC so it breaks it up. Buses only ? You are a brave soul.

I would be sure to walk around with sufficient taxi money so that when frustartion sets in you have an option. It would take alot of taxi fares to equal a car rental. At least you could set that as your threshold.

While they have other options to certain parks, they still have the bus only (unless you are driving) to the other parks... and they all share a bus.. the Epcot resorts share (or they did when I stayed) and the MK shared... so either way, staying at those resorts still put you in the same "boat" at some point... unless you drive yourself.

 

[Sweettears]

While they have other options to certain parks, they still have the bus only (unless you are driving) to the other parks... and they all share a bus.. the Epcot resorts share (or they did when I stayed) and the MK shared... so either way, staying at those resorts still put you in the same "boat" at some point... unless you drive yourself.

That was my point. At least in minimizes the need to take a bus never suggested it eliminates it. The buses at Epcot resorts are the worst for sharing but my point was that I can deal with it when necessary as long as its not the only option for the entire stay.

 

[matt and beth]

Beware the bus. 3000 or more people, yikes. add Brazilian tour groups and chanting and it gets worse. We stayed at AsMu once and it was bad. Standing room only with babies. After parades or fireworks was horrid.

Add this to the mix

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ct2O-YfktRU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

 

[Sarahleigh]

We just returned from a 7 night stay at Pop and we never had a problem with the buses. We never had to wait more than 20 minutes for a bus except for one time at MK closing. The line was through the entire queue and beyond but they kept the buses coming and mostly arriving 2 at a time so it went by very quickly. I think we were in line for MAYBE 30 minutes that night.

Yes, Pop is a larger resort but I feel that their bus system is set up to accommodate for the large number of people staying at Pop. So don't let the size of Pop scare you

I did have some experience with deluxe resort bus transportation during our stay and hey, maybe it was a freak occurrence but after waiting 40 minutes for a bus from the Boardwalk to DTD, seeing 5 Magic Kingdom buses come & go and not one bus to DTD or any other park (at 7:30/8pm) I was not impressed. So I do believe Pop has the best bus transportation.

As a for a tip? Buses going to DTD have two stops. Marketplace and then Pleasure Island/Westside. When leaving DTD to go back to your resort I highly recommend boarding the bus on the Marketplace side. It has been my past experience when waiting for the bus on the Pleasure Island side that the buses often came already packed from people boarding on the Marketplace side. This mostly applies to late at night when DTD is busier with people after park closing and especially on Fridays and Saturdays with the locals coming in.

 

[crazycatlady]

If I remember correctly, you are always such a strong advocate for renting a car!

We'll be at POP at the same time as you are (20th to 31st) for my DD's 15th birthday (26th). We are renting a car, as always, but may try using the bus a couple of times to MK when we are not staying until closing time.

Good luck and have a great trip!

 

[goofy4tink]

I"ve been to WDW 30+ times, I own DVC at both BLT and BWV, and I routinely stay at POP....about 6 times to date. I have stayed at just about all the other resorts. Pop truly does have the best bus service. Yes, it is a huge resort, but it has more buses running to and from so you really don't get the feeling of long wait times.
Yes, at park closing you are going to have to wait for the bus. So, either leave just before closing time, or hang out at the park for about 30 mins and enjoy yourselves and then head to the bus lines...much shorter by then. I had one wait, at MK, for the Pop bus that was almost 30 mins. It was park closing and I decided not to wait for the lines to clear, but just left with the hordes. I waited through 4 bus cycles.....so basically a bus came every 10 mins or less..not so awful.

If you are heading to YC/BC to eat at Cape May, and you aren't at a park prior to that ADR, but at Pop? I would just take a cab over. It costs about $10, and is about a 5 min ride...much better than using Disney transport.

 

[mariethecat]

I stayed at POP for two weeks in January 2011 and the bus service was very good. I rarely waited more than 10 or 15 minutes for a bus. Even after park closing there were buses coming quickly so the line moved fast. You can always wait for the next bus if you dont want to stand. In the two weeks I only stood once and that was after Magic Kingdom had closed. I have stayed at the All Stars several times and much perferred the bus service at POP. There are always taxis available at POP if you want to get somewhere more quickly.

 

[skier_pete]

We have stayed twice fairly recently and agree the bus service there is better than most.We also way prefer the buses over a car, even if they sometimes take longer. Most of what you state in the OP is true though. The best is to have a mellower attitude about getting somewhere, leave yourself enough time that if the doesn't show up for 20 minutes, you won't get stressed. Enjoy the rides and talk to your fellow park goers - I've had some great conversations on the buses.

More details.
- We usually try to make the bus stop between 8 and 8:10 AM for a 9 AM rope drop. (Understanding most parks let you in through the turnstyles by about 8:50 AM.)
- Leaving the parks the lines can be long - but I don't get the whole concept of hanging back and waiting for the crowds to leave. Yeah, you might have a shorter line at the bus stop, but why wait around in a closed park. We usually take the opposite tack, and try and position ourselves best to beat the crowds (watch wishes from Main Street, Illuminations from the Future World end) and then hightail it right to the bus stop. We almost always get on the first bus back that way, occasionally having to wait for the 2nd. Usually right at closing they send a lot of buses, if you wait an hour, you might wait 30 minutes for a bus to show up.

- The lines for the MK buses from POP were consistently the worst. I don't know if this is because its the farthest resort, or because of the size of the hotel.

- Getting to DTD is not at all a problem. There is a bus that goes directly there (also stops at Typhoon Lagoon). I wouldn't say it takes 10-12 minutes. In fact, POP is pretty centrally located and the bus rides aren't real long anywhere with the exception of MK which is probably closer to 15-20 minutes.

- Resort hopping is a pain, but it generally is from any hotel to hotel. Consider a cab should you decide to do it.

Note once the Art of Animation opens, they might start sharing buses, and things might change a lot here - but it won't affect you this trip.

 

[OhioDisneyDad]

If I remember correctly, you are always such a strong advocate for renting a car!

We'll be at POP at the same time as you are (20th to 31st) for my DD's 15th birthday (26th). We are renting a car, as always, but may try using the bus a couple of times to MK when we are not staying until closing time.

Good luck and have a great trip!

You're right! I'm a big rental car advocate and I did hedge my bet a bit and I do have a rental car reserved (shhhh) . My wife and I were just thinking that since we've been so many times and had just gone earlier this year that maybe we could save the money and give the bus a try.

By the way, we'll be celebrating my son 15th birthday on 10/28 while we're there! He's currently single ya know.

 

[TDC Nala]

Really, the only information that makes sense to give is to make sure you give yourself enough time to get where you want to go and always anticipate that it will take longer than you think it will. If you're early to wherever you're going, great...at least you are there. But if you're rushing to get to something that is never fun. At least you won't have to worry about making it to ADRs.

Yeah, you might have a shorter line at the bus stop, but why wait around in a closed park.

So you can sit on a bench enjoying park atmosphere rather than spend all that time standing in a crowd of people at a bus stop. I plan to hang back at Epcot when my parents are with me at the park, they won't be into standing for a long period of time waiting to get on a bus. There are few if any seats at bus stops.

 

[LauraLouLovesPooh]

I just got back from an 11 day 10 night trip at Pop just last night. My boyfriend and I used the bus transportation system everyday! Like everyone has said since Pop is such a big resort and since it's farther away from all the others they tend to have more buses than other resorts. Don't get discouraged if at the end or beginning of the day the line to or from whichever park is long. Pop gets sometimes up to 4 buses to transport everyone! We did not get to do the rope drop but we did experience the bus system from other resorts and found it less than convenient. Pop has the best bus system hands down! Hope your son has a great Birthday and you enjoy your stay at POP!

 

[Brian_WDW74]

I've moved this thread to the Transportation board.

 

[ols386]

We stayed at Pop once and never had a problem with bus transportation, but you can run across bad bus transportation at any resort.

Once we started renting a car, we never went back to not renting. We just liked the flexibiliy of having a car, but it is more costly to rent.

Although I wouldn't be opposed to doing the busses vs. rental car at some point in the future.

I would guess the main difference is that you will need to allow more time to get to your destinations, but if you only have one ADR, that shouldn't be difficult.

Good luck! Hope everything goes smoothly for you.

 

[lakeman]

I've stayed at Pop 3 times and 2 moderates and Sports. I would say by far the buses at Pop are the best. We drive in from Tennessee and never use the car until we leave. Can't wait until Dec. when we will be back with 4 of our family that have never been to WDW.