Bus system vs renting car at OKW

[luv4mouse]

It has been 3 years since our last wdw trip and 10 years since staying at OKW. We used to love the Disney transportation system and not having to drive if we didn't want to ( we used to drive 900 miles to get there). But a friend who was at wdw last fall told us that the bus system has really gone down hill and it took them forever to get anywhere. I've also read several post about people using uber vs the buses to go to the parks.
We got a great last minute opportunity to book a trip for next week April 19-22. We really want to max out our time as this is a first time trip for some of our guest. We were not able to get many fast passes and none for any of the newer stuff, So we plan to be in the parks for rope drop, but we don't want to have to be up crazy early to do it. We have a 5 year old who doesn't nap and is good at getting up early, but we live in a time zone that is 3 hours behind wdw so that could affect how well he does.

We will be using uber to and from the airport as mde can be time consuming and I don't want to check in at 3-4 am for a 7 am flight when we could sleep an extra hour or so. So that means 4 uber fairs that will cost approximately the same if not more than a rental car so the rental fee is virtually mute.

Also it is star wars half marathon weekend. I don't know about wdw but whenever DL has any kind of special event traffic and parking are severely impacted. So that is something to take into consideration as well.

After all that I've heard about the slow bus service, but taking into account all the other factors I'm trying to decide if we should rent a car vs using Disney transportation. Any imput on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Chuck S]

The last two trips I've taken I have relied almost entirely upon Disney transportation at OKW. I found the bus transportation adequate to from the parks. I do like that they have added real time bus info at the bus stops. But for Resort-to-Resort travel, I'd recommend a car or uber/lyft. Special events may impact bus as well as car travel times, simply because of traffic issues. That is true at any resort, except perhaps those with monorail access. I would not rent a car just to avoid the busses. If you are driving to WDW, it may be convenient. If you're flying, I find the bus transportation just fine.

 

[luv4mouse]

Thanks for the advice. Like I said it's been awhile since we've been. Uber is so much easier to and from the airport rather than dealing with a rental car, but the rest of the trip convenience is more important.

 

[disneynutz]

The reason that the bus services seems to be going downhill is because Disney is great at increasing attendance. More people to move, more people in the parks, longer wait times for everything.

Bill

 

[loves to dive]

We drive down and always use the Disney transportation, always. We have driven to the parks twice in over 30 years of going, both times to AK on a split stay move day. I used the buses when I stayed at OKW. My room was on the first road that looked toward the pool. The bus stop was the first stop so I'd watch from my deck in the morning and when the bus to the park I wanted to go to stopped at my stop, I'd get ready and walk over to the main building, which is the last stop. On the way back from the parks it was the first stop so easy. I haven't really noticed any difference in the buses, there have been good and bad service but it's always been that way.

 

[Chuck S]

I have driven to Animal Kingdom occasionally as well. Last trip, the busses were running well, and I used busses to AK twice during my stay.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I've been going to WDW for a long time but specifically in the past 10 years I have not felt there's been any difference or significant changes to the bus system. There's always the chance for some snafu to happen but that was there 10 years ago to. The schedule is approx every 20 minutes as it's been for a long time.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We take the buses to the parks. It's just more relaxing. We're not on a timetable any more.

 

[beccasmom]

Not having to drive on vacation is a treat for me. However, you can park right outside your door at OKW, which is nice too.

 

[DenLo]

There is road construction all over WDW so if your resort is near construction you could be impacted. For that matter so would you be if you drove yourself. I have found that the vast majority of the drivers know all the shortcuts to bypass as much construction as possible and get you to the resort or park in the shortest amount of time. BTW, Uber and Lyft drivers now have to drop off guests for MK at the TTC, a Minnie Van can drop you at the MK bus loop.

 

[Pluto80]

We found the buses at OKW to be excellent last summer. Never waited more than 20 minutes for a bus. We went over to FQ after that and ended up renting a car as the buses there were horrendous! I look forward to using the buses again this summer at OKW.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

Not having to drive on vacation is a treat for me. However, you can park right outside your door at OKW, which is nice too.

and that's exactly what I do, I park it in front of my villa when I arrive and it's there waiting for me when I'm ready to leave.. OKW buses are just as timely as any other resort bus! Even when arriving just as the bus drove by (should have gone immediately to Hospitality House, could have caught it there had I been using my brain instead of schmoozing ), the next bus came within 15 minutes of the last one, and that was at 9 the morning. And I've found the board announcing bus arrival times to be either spot on or earlier than advertised. IMO, you'll waste more time in your car back and forth, with all of the traffic and construction.

 

[Dano1182]

We always have rental car.
We ussuallly stay off site before we go to DVC.
This year we used uber and lyft several times and they were very good each time.
One driver even got slightly lost one night and despite only taking us 5 minutes out of the planned route .
We were not charged for ride.

It was about 10 bucks from Grand for Dian to Disney springs.