bus transportation from Boardwalk villa

[KANSAS]

while at DVC, for the last two weeks.
DVC members complained to me that transportation, from Boardwalk villas, was not good, except, for Disney MGM AND EPCOT, but all locations, they were unhappy

They said, they were always the last to get on the bus, to go to WDW parks and always the last to get off the bus, when coming back from the WDW PArks and coming back to BOARDWALK Villas

They stated over and over again.
because they bus, goes to SWAN, DOLPHIN, BEACH CLUB, YACHT CLUB AND then BOARDWALK,
always overcrowded and hard to enter the bus, from wait point at BOARD WALK.

if anyone has a strong opinions to agree with this or disagree with this, pelase post

Thank you in advance.

 

[DebbieB]

That's why we always rent a car.

 

[KANSAS]

DEBBIE

you are a DVC Member and you still take on the additional cost of renting a car????????

 

[dianeschlicht]

And that's why we stay at OKW. Bus service there is just fine. I know when we go from MGM to the Boardwalk or to Epcot, we have taken the water taxi, and it took more than 35 minutes because of all the stops! We walked it once and left just as the Freedom was leaving the MGM dock. We arrived at World Showcase and the Freedom was not past the Dolphin yet!

 

[KANSAS]

DIANE

I stayed one week at OKW AND one week at BEACH CLUB

it seemed like, that even though, many more bus stops at OKW

There were also many many many more bus's and then when bus, left the OKW, went straight to my theme parks

I never had one crowded bus at OKW

do you agree??

 

[dianeschlicht]

Yes, usually, because we are often there in January. The only crowded buses I see at OKW are after Illuminations or Fantasmic. We have even done a demonstration after Illuminations once when we had guests along. Some drove to Epcot and took the car back after Illuminations, and the rest of us took the bus. The bus people arrived at the villa before the car people! That was a surprise to me, but the car folks had to take the tram etc. It really bolstered my faith in OKW buses!

 

[kathleena]

Last Dec at BW and then at BCV we didn't have a problem with the buses, although I did wait at BCV for 45 minutes for a DTD bus.

I have stayed at BW before and not had a problem with the buses.

 

[DebbieB]

Originally posted by KANSAS
DEBBIE

you are a DVC Member and you still take on the additional cost of renting a car????????

It is really not much of an additional cost. My week long rental in May was $121 (National Car Rental full size, Disney Club discount, $15 Entertainment coupon). The cost of a towncar from the airport would be around $100 roundtrip with tips (I'm not dealing with Mears). We like having the car to go grocery shopping, go to outlets, sometimes go to offsite restaurants. It makes for a much more relaxing vacation. We rarely take the WDW busses, don't want to wait, squeeze on and have to stand, plus the multiple stops. We do sometimes use them to MK but that's it. When we stay at BWV, we do usually take the boats to Epcot & MGM, they are rarely crowded. Alot of people say they don't want to drive on vacation, but I'm the opposite. I love driving there, the roads are much better than ours here in Pittsburgh, I love cranking up the AC and the radio and going directly where we want to go.

 

[ncligs]

I also agree that having a

is a lot more convenient. It amazes me that people pay $100-$120 for Towncar service and for $25-$50(for the week) more you have the luxury of going when and where you want to go. This way if somebody in your party wants to go shopping,DD, etc you still have the option to use the busses to go to a park and the luxury of having a car.
We also use it for restraunts and resort hopping.

 

[Lisa F]

Originally posted by dianeschlicht
We arrived at World Showcase and the Freedom was not past the Dolphin yet!

You must walk REALLY fast and have some REALLY amazing vision. It is 7 minutes from MGM to the dolphin (which is the first stop going from MGM to Epcot) on the FRIENDSHIP boat and at least a 15-20 minute walk from MGM to Epcot (if you are really truckin along). In either case, the boat dock at the dolphin is not visible from the world showcase. This "your resort is far inferior to mine" is ridiculous enough without adding hyperbole into the mix.

Lisa

 

[Disney Doll]

My Lisa...a little testy this morning, arent' we? I'm thinking what Diane meant is that when she was walking form MGM to Epcot, when he got to the top of the hill as you are entering the International Gatyewya toward the World Showcase, she saw the boats. Probably more a matter of semnantics than hyperbole.

To the original question...I have stayed at BWV, and don't recall a lot of difficulty with the bus service. It is the last stop oin the "Epcot Resorts" run, but I am usually zoning out, playing with a cute kid, or gabbing to the bus driver, so I guess I just don't notice stops. One of the nice things about the DVC member ship is I don't feel compelled to worry so much about times, and how much time things take etc, because I am not in the "commando tour" mode anymore. The way I figure it, withe the DVC, I KNOW I'll be back relatively soon, so if I don't get to something on this trip, I'll get to it on the next trip. I rush around on a time schedule enough when I am home. I choose not to be so time-conscious when I am on vacation.

 

[Lisa F]

Not testy, just impatient with the "why you're an idiot if you own at any resort other mine" attitude that seems so rampant on the boards lately with SSR coming on board. The boats do take a while to make the complete run from Epcot to MGM but being able to walk from MGM to Epcot before the boat makes its first stop on the same route is hyperbole, not semantics.

Just like the monorail, we consider boat transportation to be part of the experience, not mere transportation from one point to the next. I enjoy the boat trip from MGM to Epcot if I don't have somewhere to be at a certain time, just like I enjoy a stroll through Epcot to catch the monorail to ttc and then the monorail to MK. Likewise, if I need to be somewhere at a certain time for a PS, there are faster alternatives.

I'm not sure why all kinds of members complained to Kansas about being unhappy at BWV. Maybe it's just me and maybe I'm just crazy, but if something is wrong on my vacation, I don't waste precious vacation time bellyaching to people who can't do anything to fix it. I let someone at Disney (or whoever is running the thing that I am upset about) know and go on with my day.

Lisa

 

[cewait]

Sorry Lisa, but when you are staying at a resort that is at the end of the bus route at peak times, it gets a little frustrating to watch the busses pass by full. I think that is what Kansas was speaking about and from what I saw, folks were commenting on. I have stayed at several resorts on property over the years and I shy away from those who share busses with other resorts. Most of the time there are no transporation isses; however, peak times are frustrating especially when DD was young.

I don't think others were dog piling on the Epcot resorts, rather, I think they were relating their frustrations, offering input to the contrary or offering OPINION on why they stay elsewhere. Isn't that what a bb is all about?

For the record, you can see the Dolphin boat dock from the International Gateway. I have a photo somewhere of the resort from the IG Area.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Originally posted by Lisa F
Not testy, just impatient with the "why you're an idiot if you own at any resort other mine" attitude that seems so rampant on the boards lately with SSR coming on board. The boats do take a while to make the complete run from Epcot to MGM but being able to walk from MGM to Epcot before the boat makes its first stop on the same route is hyperbole, not semantics.

Just like the monorail, we consider boat transportation to be part of the experience, not mere transportation from one point to the next. I enjoy the boat trip from MGM to Epcot if I don't have somewhere to be at a certain time, just like I enjoy a stroll through Epcot to catch the monorail to ttc and then the monorail to MK. Likewise, if I need to be somewhere at a certain time for a PS, there are faster alternatives.

I'm not sure why all kinds of members complained to Kansas about being unhappy at BWV. Maybe it's just me and maybe I'm just crazy, but if something is wrong on my vacation, I don't waste precious vacation time bellyaching to people who can't do anything to fix it. I let someone at Disney (or whoever is running the thing that I am upset about) know and go on with my day.

Lisa

I am really sorry you feel like you are being put down for owning at BWV. That was not the intent of my statement at all. I think you are being overly "sensitive and defensive about all this. The discussion is about transportation issues at ALL the DVC resorts. Did you not notice my first "tongue smile" when I first stated staying at OKW???? Lighten up! Oh, BTW, it took us 15 minutes to walk from MGM to the International gateway at Epcot, and YES we COULD see the boat dock from there!

 

[dianeschlicht]

We also always rent a car for the convenience. We usually go to the grocery store more than once, and like the car for visiting a restaurant at one of the other resorts. I find the transportation between resorts to be very frustrating. This is especially true at OKW, because we are so close to DTD, but the bus seems to take forever from there. Even the water taxi takes at least 25 minutes. I can walk that one in about 10-12 from CDS to the back of building 55. Can't see the boat docks though!

 

[KAMLEM]

Originally posted by KANSAS
DEBBIE

you are a DVC Member and you still take on the additional cost of renting a car????????

Why is this so shocking? We always rent a car. It seems like we always have a reason to run out to the grocery store or pharmacy after arrival and I cannot stand to be inconvenienced.

 

[Lesley]

I don't think this is entirely a DVC problem....its a bus problem with most of the deluxe resorts. In the Epcot area all the resorts share one bus route and in the MK area all those resorts share one bus route. Honestly, this has ticked me off a lot more when paying premium rates to stay at the Polynesian and having worse bus service than at the Moderate Resorts.

We really have only had full bus problems with the DTD route....and we were even boarding at the BC! The bus was so full when it got there (after we had waited 45 minutes...) that the driver was not going to let us on. After I mentioned the length of our wait, he said he had room for 3...and my mom, dd and I got on. But then we stopped at BWV...lots of folks waiting there too and no room.

I have always found the DTD bus routes less than adequate....and I think they do it on purpose to discourage folks from parking at DTD and taking the busses to the parks to save on parking. Honestly I wish they'd improve the busses and start charging the same for parking at DTD as at the parks (offer a validation or something for those actually shopping or dining at DTD...)

 

[dvcdudes]

We usually go during Presidents week. It's usually crowded but I never have a major problem with the busses at BWV. We drive from NY so I have my car but I park it when we check in and pick it up when we check out. I use Disney transportation exclusively. Like Lisa said, The boat ride is part of the experience as is the bus ride. I love the fact that I can sit back and relax for those few minutes on the bus. I also don't mind the wait for the bus at BWV... We sit down and talk about what we are going to do and set out a plan for the day while waiting. I've learned not to be in such a rush. Ya Know, Don't worry, Be happy!

 

[KANSAS]

LESLEY

your post, seemed to sum up, what DVC members, told me that stayed at BOARD WALK VILLAS

 

[TerriBelle]

We try and be creative about the busses & boats when staying at BWV. Sometimes we will get off at the S/D stop and walk to the BW or we will get off at the BC and have a meal there. If Grandma & the kids are tired at Epcot or MGM, they take the boat while we walk and meet them.

We also try and use the parks to catch other resort or DD busses. For example, we went to MGM and got busses to AKL and DD from there. This seems to work better than getting a bus directly from BWV or BCV.

I believe that all the resorts have transportation issues. It would be great if they could improve this area.