Bus transportation

[dgagnon519]

What does time do the Disney buses start running? We will be at POR and want to try to get to Chef Mickeys as early as we can using Disney Transportation.

 

[Joseph Robinson]

I can't seem to find the start times for the bus service, but I imagine that it is no later than 8am, and probably as early as 7am. A taxi for $10-15 or the Lynx 50 link at nearby Downtown Disney might be better options. (they start running around 6am, or at least they do over here by UCF)

You're going to need to transfer from the Magic Kingdom bus to get to the Contemporary (if you don't use a taxi or the 50), so make sure that you allow time for this!

Chef Mickey's is a ton of fun, I've done the dinner a few times and spent more time at the dessert station than I would like to admit .

 

[tobikaye]

Buses should start around 6:30 a.m. to go to the park, but do not run as frequently. I have also heard they are not always there at 6:30 am and it is more likely to be 7:00 am before they actually show up and start to run more frequently. So, if you have a reservation before 7:30 am or are trying to walk up before then, I would plan to get to there by a different method. It might even be worth it to plan an alternative to the buses for anything before 8 am.

 

[MADnNOLA]

Bus Info:
http://www.wdwmagic.com/transportation/bus-transportation.htm

 

[Robo]

Bus Info:
http://www.wdwmagic.com/transportation/bus-transportation.htm

Sorry, but that info is incorrect.
It repeats the tired old story of the buses starting an hour before the park opens.

Resorts to Parks

Bus transportation service within the Walt Disney World Resort operates from resort to parks every 15 to 30 minutes.
Service from resorts begins 1 hour prior to park opening.

That start-time info is simply not true.

But, it gets repeated and repeated so often that many (including some Disney CM's)
assume that it must be true.

The facts:

The resort-to-park buses begin running (as was said earlier) at about 6:30 AM, every day of the year.

And, if MK is open for AM EMH extra-extra early at 7AM near busy holidays, those buses will roll out even earlier.

 

[Fire14]

My personal experience is:
Don't book ADR prior to 7:45a when using disney transport to get there. Sometimes the MK bus will drop off folks at MK stop than make rounds to MK resorts during early hours. Otherwise you get off at Mk and hoof it to Contemp or monrail stop and ride rail to contemp.

 

[Robo]

-
Sometimes the MK bus will drop off folks at MK stop than make rounds to MK resorts during early hours. Otherwise you get off at Mk and hoof it to Contemp or monrail stop and ride rail to contemp.

Agreed.

When boarding the park bus in the morning, be sure to tell the driver to which resort
you are headed for breakfast.
(S)he will often take you directly to the resort before or after the park stop.

 

[andyman8]

As PPs have stated (well, most of them), bus transportation begins around 6:30am.

Your best bet is to get there around 6:20am or so and just wait. This would guarantee you are on the first bus to MK. From there, walk to Disney's Contemporary Resort and head up to the Grand Canyon Concourse to get to Chef Mickey's.

Then again, you probably could get there earlier (and directly) by taxi.

Out of curiosity, though, are you trying to get there early as a walk-up or because you have an early ADR.

 

[Fiveisaparty]

I am in the same boat but Ohana from POR for an 8:10 adr. I am just going to get a taxi, seems like it is too much trouble to do buses that early plus the monorail after the bus.

 

[dgagnon519]

It would be an ADR. I am a control freak and plan everything. Although I am doing some down time this trip. I planned the downtime so I don't know if that counts. Well, I am trying.
We have not made the ADR yet. We can't officaill y make ours until December.
It does not look like their will be EMH morn the day we are planning. We were thinking an 8:30 ADR.

 

[dgagnon519]

If we wanted to try the taxi option and do an earlier ADR, do you arrange the taxi the night before? If not, how far ahead do you call the taxi that morning?

 

[Robo]

If we wanted to try the taxi option and do an earlier ADR, do you arrange the taxi the night before? If not, how far ahead do you call the taxi that morning?

Taxi's are always available at the resorts.

We have been making trips to WDW for decades without a car.
We are early-risers and get up early for early-morning reservations of all kinds.

We have never once needed to use a cab.

 

[geckodani]

I use a cab for breakfast ADRs. Just walk up to the bell services at the front of your resort and there are usually several standing by. Well worth the $10 - $15 IMO.

 

[Miskey]

While staying at All-star sports in September, we had a 7:30 breakfast ADR at O'hana. We went to the bus pick up spot at 6:45, and a bus pulled up immediately. The bus driver told us that buses start running at 6:30 specifically for early character breakfasts. Since we were the only people on the bus, he dropped us off directly at Poly. My back-up plan was to find a cab if a bus didn't show, but glad I gave a bus a chance and saved some money

 

[Wistraveler]

While staying at All-star sports in September, we had a 7:30 breakfast ADR at O'hana. We went to the bus pick up spot at 6:45, and a bus pulled up immediately. The bus driver told us that buses start running at 6:30 specifically for early character breakfasts. Since we were the only people on the bus, he dropped us off directly at Poly. My back-up plan was to find a cab if a bus didn't show, but glad I gave a bus a chance and saved some money

I wish I had thought of that when we had a 7:30 ADR at Ohana's and were staying at POR. Took the earliest bus we could get, then the Monorail, but still didn't get there on time. Had to wait a bit for a table.

 

[MarineVet]

We are staying at Art of Animation now (Oct. 26) and wanted to do rope drop for EMH at MK yesterday at 8 am. When we checked in at AoA on Wednesday night, I asked what time the early bus left in the morning and the CM said 6:45, then every 20 minutes or so after that. Since we had the military tickets, we needed to get them activated at Guest Relations (which we learned does not officially open until 7:45, but they did open a few minutes early.)

We boarded the 6:45 bus, and it was full. The driver went straight to the Contemporary and all but two couples got off the bus. I went up to the front and asked if he was going to the MK, and he said he was taking the couples to the Poly. He seemed surprised we would be on the bus and not be going to breakfast, so that first bus from the AoA seems to only go to the resorts.

 

[goofy4tink]

We are staying at Art of Animation now (Oct. 26) and wanted to do rope drop for EMH at MK yesterday at 8 am. When we checked in at AoA on Wednesday night, I asked what time the early bus left in the morning and the CM said 6:45, then every 20 minutes or so after that. Since we had the military tickets, we needed to get them activated at Guest Relations (which we learned does not officially open until 7:45, but they did open a few minutes early.)

We boarded the 6:45 bus, and it was full. The driver went straight to the Contemporary and all but two couples got off the bus. I went up to the front and asked if he was going to the MK, and he said he was taking the couples to the Poly. He seemed surprised we would be on the bus and not be going to breakfast, so that first bus from the AoA seems to only go to the resorts.

That's crazy!!! The buses, leaving the resorts, go to parks, unless the resorts are normally stopped at along the way. And if you're staying at either AoA or Pop, your bus makes no stops.
I have to say that in all my times taking early buses, I have never, ever seen a close to full bus. Now, your bus could have had more people due to the park opening at 8, for EMHs. But for a bus driver to say that he was surprised you were on the bus?? That's ridiculous..it was the MK bus...not the CR or Polynesian bus, for crying out loud. To the best of my knowledge, the bus drivers are supposed to go to the designated park, in this case MK, first. Then, if there are any guests that wish to go to the CR or Polynesian, the driver will often offer to drop them off on the way out of the MK area.
The buses do go to the parks...for the driver to say otherwise is completely wrong!!!

In fact, the one issue with the transportation system is the problem of getting from resort to resort for early morning ADRs!!! It is very difficult to get from one resort, via the buses, to another resort unless that resort is very close to a park.