Buses at OKW

[Emagine]

We check in Sat (yeah) We are staying at OKW for the first time and have recently heard about the buses and not in a friendly way. I have even read some reviews online about the large wait times. Is this true?

We have 2 special needs boys (not in chairs but will require seats) so going to the last pick up really does not always work in our favor. We have seen ppl saying that it takes 1 hour plus once boarded to get to the park because of all the OKW stops, time there and boarding. I am not familiar with how many stops there are there and now wondering if we should really drive to the parks?! We have not attempted this either so I do not know how much a bother this would be for parking etc.

Can you tell me about this and anything else I may need to know of?

TY kindly

 

[bringmethathorizon]

we have stayed at okw 3 times and only had problems a couple of times.
there are 4/5 stops.dw is working on remembering them now.
the hospitality house is last.
with okw as well as ssr there will always be someone on the bus except early in the morning.when you get on the bus where ever you load at you have people getting off and getting on at every stop.if it is standing room only maybe at the next stop someone will get off and you might get a seat.
the time to the parks are not that bad.dhs and epcot are the closest ones.from start to finish in guessing 30 mins.mk and ak of coarse are a little longer.
now if at one of the stops there is someone who is in a chair or scooter some people have to move out of those seats.we just dont sit in those seats unless we are loading at the last stop. okw is a very nice resort and we are staying again this june.sometimes you may have busing problems but no more than any other resort.

 

[WDWMom]

Not sure where you heard all this negativity from but it is certainly untrue. We have been going to OKW for 13 years and not once have we had a major issue.

We usually get on the bus at the last stop. Very rarely is it full and can't get a seat. Now on the way back to the resort from a park is a different story. Buses are full at most resorts going back at the end of the day so this is not OKW exclusive.

A trip through the resort should not take more than 10-15 minutes unless they have to board a wheelchair at every stop and people ask the bus driver for questions at each stop. I doubt this happens. Usually we notice as a bus leaves the resort, one is coming in. Now that can fluctuate some depending on traffic around the world and the time of year. We mostly go the first week of April for our spring break. Some years that coincides with Easter and premier season. Never had problem then either.

As far as drive time to the parks - once you leave OKW EPCOT and DHS I think are less than 10 minutes, MK is 15 and AK probably less than 20, but closer to 15.

I truly think you will be fine going to the parks with your kids. My BFF has a son who is autisic and other one on the spectrum. There is so much to see while on the buses that you can keep them occupied. When you leave the parks, if the bus has no seats, then I would just wait for the next bus and let the people behind you get on. Usually if there is a line, another bus will come soon enough. You will have to gage your kids to know what they can handle.

 

[RobDoc]

OKW has 5 bus stops within the resort and it takes about 15 minutes to make the loop to all 5 - depending on whether there are HCA vehicles to load or unload.

The trip from OKW to Epcot and DHS takes about 10 minutes max, about 15 minutes to MK and 20 minutes to AK (including the stop at BB either coming or going).

We always use the OKW buses even when we have a car with us and have never had to wait an hour in our almost 18 years staying at OKW. The typical wait is about 20 minutes - sometimes a little longer, sometimes a little shorter. We generally allow an hour to get to another resort (by going to a park or DD and transferring) and allow 45 minutes (plus time to walk to the restaurant) if we have a dining reservation in a Theme Park - just to allow for the unexpected delay.

Years ago, there was a published schedule (posted at each bus stop) with pickup times throughout the resort but that was discarded a long time ago in favor of the 20 minute goal. In recent years, we've found OKW bus transportation to better than the Epcot resorts since they all share buses to AK and MK and even the boats to Epcot and DHS can take as long as the bus from OKW to those parks. AKV has it's own dedicated buses with stops at Jambo and Kidani and BLT also shares buses with Poly and GF (and also WL?).

Our experience has been great using buses over the years.

 

[Kathi OD]

Joining the club who has never had an issue with the buses at OKW in 11 years. While I'm sure there must have been a time or two we waited more than 20 minutes, I surely can't remember it. More often our wait times have been between 5 & 10 minutes.

We usually have a car with us and have only ever used it to get to dinner ressies at another resort, and only because I don't want to deal with the hassle. I'd do the same if we were staying at any resort.

 

[Emagine]

TY all! You have calmed my bus fears

 

[dmoore22]

TY all! You have calmed my bus fears

That being said, our only issue has been returning from the parks late at night.

 

[dcamdad]

That being said, our only issue has been returning from the parks late at night.

That would include all resorts served by bus only, not just OKW.

 

[dmoore22]

That would include all resorts served by bus only, not just OKW.

Oops! Thanks for adding what I forgot to include!! Now that I think about it, at its worse the wait for returning to OKW is still better than most of the other DVC resorts.

 

[Mississippian]

From my personal experience I would have enjoyed my stay at OKW a lot more if we had been near the Hospitality House. Some people claim there is a parking problem, but since you only need to park your car once, and it should never have to move the whole time you are at WDW, I don't see the issue.

We stayed at the back of the resort, and I think we must have been the first to get on the bus, because it seemed like we went everywhere. It was annoying to me, and it annoyed me that the HH was so far away that there was no way to get there except by bus. So my kids couldn't go on their own.

The buses came regularly, I just found the drive around the resort annoying. Really no different from Port Orleans. Worse, in my opinion, than the BWV, BCV spokes, but maybe not. And if you get on and off at the HH stop, you won't have to worry about any of that, as you will head straight from there to the parks.

You will have a fine stay. Stay near the HH and you will have a much better stay.

 

[WDWMom]

Not sure how old your kids were, but the walk from the back of the resort to the front is about 10 minutes tops; depending on how fast you walk. Our kids have been doing it since they were about 10.

Also, getting off the bus at HH is the worst thing you can do coming back from the parks, it's the last stop. You would be driving through the whole resort and probably driving right by your villa just to make the trek back there. The only variation is the DTD bus. It stops at HH first as an internal bus and then goes through the whole resort.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Mississippian, the only stop that would have you riding throughout the whole resort would be if you got on at Peninsular road (first stop). There really is NO reason for ANYONE to get on there unless they are using an ECV. The smart thing to do from Peninsular Road would be to walk across to HH and get on the bus right before it leaves the resort.

If you were at South Point, you would have to ride through 2 additional stops before reaching HH, and Turtle Pond would mean 1 additional stop before HH. I have never felt either of those were bothersome. Of course, if you stay at Miller's Road, you are the stop before HH, so also not an issue. I always like to stay at either South Point or Miller's Road. South Point means you are get home quickly when coming back from the parks, and If you stay at Miller's Road, Peninsular Road or Hospitality House, you can get off at Peninsular and be "home" in a fairly short walk. There are a couple of buildings you wouldn't want to do that to though....Specificly 22.

We have stayed in all areas of OKW over the years, and I find walking to be one of the best parts of it. We can always walk to HH from any spot at OKW in less than 10 minutes...Even from buildings 22 and 49.

 

[rlovew]

I have stayed at South Point most of the times we have stayed at OKW (we had the HH category 1 time becuase the CM insisted- I won't do that again I loved being in South Point). I have only once had to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus to come to get to a park and while there were a few stops the total time to get to a park was rarely more than 40 minutes after leaving the villa- the 1 time it was longer was when someone had a medical emrgency and the buses were backed up because of the ambulance- personally I understood the problem and didn't worry about getting to the park at that moment.

 

[dmoore22]

I could not have said it any better than Diane and rlovew.