Does Anyone Do This?

[disneyworldgal13]

Does anyone staying offsite use the free parking at DD and take the buses to the parks to avoid having to pay for parking? Not saying that we would, but it has crossed my mind...

 

[mesaboy2]

There are no direct buses between DTD and the parks for this reason.

 

[mom2rtk]

Buses no longer run between DTD and the parks for this very reason.

You have an answer. Now turn and walk away. You'll know why soon.

 

[ZoZo]

There are no buses to the parks from DTD. For that very reason - too many people would try to avoid paying for parking that way. To get to a park from DTD, you have to go to a resort first, then transfer to a bus, monorail, etc. to get to a park. It would take you so much time it wouldn't be worth it.

 

[Figment43]

Boy, that's opening a can of worms on this site.

The buses don't start running until maybe 9:30-10 am and no buses go directly to any of the parks. You'd have to take a bus to a Resort and transfer to a bus to the park. It would be close to lunchtime before you even got to the park. You'd lose a ton of time in the parks, so you're better off just paying the $14.

Since you're asking this, I'm assuming you're staying offsite.

 

[dbrn]

We didn't, and I wouldn't recommend it. I think it would be more trouble than it's worth. It would significantly lengthen your time traveling to and from the parks, because you'd have to travel to a resort first. The wait times, extended travel time, and often standing room only on the bus make it not worth it to me. Also, I'm not sure what time the buses start operating between DD and the resorts, but I'm pretty sure you wouldn't make it for park opening, if that's something you're planning.

It's so quick to travel to and from the parking areas when off-site, and it's so nice to go out to your car instead of waiting in long lines to get on a crowded bus. Even with the parking fees, our costs renting a condo offsite were significantly less than the onsite costs. I was happy to pay the relatively reasonable parking fee for the convenience it afforded me.

Have a great trip, whatever you decide.

 

[rwdavis2]

If you can afford to go to WDW then you can afford the $14/day parking.

 

[stargazertechie]

I've done it, but only because the friend we were staying with passed DTD on his way to work and he wasn't willing to drive us to the parks.

It took roughly 2 hours in the morning to get to the parks... Not enjoyable at all. We had to bus it to a resort, and then transfer to a park bus.

 

[kaligal]

Of course people thought of it. And they did it. And it clogged up the already limited parking at DTD, so Disney makes some attempt to curtail it.

 

[BBandDisney]

 

[MomofKatie]

We have done this once on a girls-only trip in 2009. We spent the morning at DTD shopping, then wanted to head to MK for the afternoon/evening. We decided to take the bus instead of driving- we looked at it as an adventure. We got to the Marketplace bus stop and got on the first resort bus that came. It was a Contemporary bus, and it was pulling up just as we got to the stop, so no wait. We got off at the resort, then boarded the monorail to the gate. We did the opposite when leaving- monorail to Contemporary, then bus to DTD. We waited about 10 mins for the bus to arrive at the resort, then rode back to DTD.

Overall, it was on OK option, but I would have just gone directly to MK and paid the parking fee if we needed to get there first thing in the AM. Since we were in no hurry, we decided to leave the car at DTD and take the bus. It definitely took longer than it would have to just drive directly there.

We don't usually do this, and pay the parking fee gladly on every other trip. It wouldn't be worth time and hassle to save a little $$ to do this all the time.

 

[heyitsmejosh]

ive never had to pay for parking because i have a pap. that being said it can be done but people on message boards get very mad about it for some odd reason. pretty much you just take a bus to TTC then the monorail to epoct or MK and its kinda doable but not really worth saving 14 bucks imo and really not worth it for AK or HS.

 

[goofyernmost]

No, not really...most of us feel that their time is worth something, and spending it catching buses that may or may not run on time and then having to get back after dark is just plain not worth the $14.00. I cannot speak for others but that amounted to a very small percentage of my hourly work wages before I retired.

My time is worth way more than that, but if you feel that you can waste what it cost for a day ticket in the parks just riding around and standing waiting for buses, then by all means...go for it. Disney will not try and stop you, but you are going to pay a real price for the decision.

 

[carrie1626]

If you can afford to go to WDW then you can afford the $14/day parking.

and I was called out for being blunt on my last job eval!!!
:

 

[goofyernmost]

ive never had to pay for parking because i have a pap. that being said it can be done but people on message boards get very mad about it for some odd reason. pretty much you just take a bus to TTC then the monorail to epoct or MK and its kinda doable but not really worth saving 14 bucks imo and really not worth it for AK or HS.

Don't mislead here...there are no buses from DTD to TTC direct and buses to MK go directly from resorts to the park (no TTC) or directly to Epcot (no TTC). I don't get mad, if someone wants to waste their whole day to save $14.00 why would I care. I will already have been on a boatload of attractions before they even get to the parks. In fact, I wish everyone would do it. They could do away with FP...wouldn't be needed.

 

[heyitsmejosh]

Don't mislead here...there are no buses from DTD to TTC direct and buses to MK go directly from resorts to the park (no TTC) or directly to Epcot (no TTC). I don't get mad, if someone wants to waste their whole day to save $14.00 why would I care. I will already have been on a boatload of attractions before they even get to the parks. In fact, I wish everyone would do it. They could do away with FP...wouldn't be needed.

yes there are buses from DTD to TTC i take them often when i stay at shades of green to avoid having to take the shades of green bus to DTD which doesnt run often enough to DTD.

edit: i mean i could be wrong but i swear i did it last july.. either that or we walked to poly

 

[Art 1]

Surprising how often this sort of thing is asked. As bad as asking how hot will it be in July.

 

[stargazertechie]

yes there are buses from DTD to TTC i take them often when i stay at shades of green to avoid having to take the shades of green bus to DTD which doesnt run often enough to DTD.

edit: i mean i could be wrong but i swear i did it last july.. either that or we walked to poly

Nope, no buses from TTC to DTD. Did you take the Lynx bus?

 

[justtobeme2]

If you can afford to go to WDW then you can afford the $14/day parking.

This was quite rude and not always true.

I remember when I was 18 and saved and saved so that my girlfriend and I could go to Disney. We had to watch every single $. We deserved the right to go even if we had to do it on a budget. We never once ate anything in the parks or got a drink (water). We had a GREAT time. We stayed for 7 days (offsite) and spent a total of 600.00 between the two of us. We paid for parking but it was nowhere near the 14.00 it is today. It's a total RIPOFF!

 

[CarolineB]

Even taking the bus between DTD and a hotel is not always that convenient. On Easter Sunday, I wanted to take my DS to see the chocolate Easter eggs at the Grand Floridian and called the hotel about parking and was told the parking would be limited (or restricted to guests with dining reservations.) I was planning on eating something at GF but didn't have reservations.

I decided to park at DTD and take the bus to Grand Floridian. The buses at one of the stops (Pleasure Island) where I parked my car didn't even start running until 11:00 a.m. and we were there at 10:00 a.m. so we just played at the Lego store and waited until 11:00 a.m. We could have walked to the Market Place bus stop to leave earlier but for some reason I wasn't actually sure where it was.

Well, it took 45 minutes to get to GF. The bus stopped at Typhoon Lagoon, Wilderness Lodge, and then Grand Floridian.

We weren't in any great rush but it was time consuming.