Downtown Disney parking issue

[samoyed]

OK.. have a wedding at the Swan then need to get to Downtown Disney for reception at 12:30pm... any suggestions? Heard parking is a nightmare..

 

[Paging Tom Morrow]

While parking isn't great it should be manageable around that time of the day unless you are going during a major holiday period. If you are truly scared, hire a cab or take the Disney bus.

 

[samoyed]

the wedding is the week before thanksgiving. I have no problem walking but my mom is another story I needed to get close for her.

 

[bumbershoot]

I would hire a car and driver to drop people close to the venue.

 

[samoyed]

Since I am attending the wedding and not having it I would rather not rent a car and driver. Anyway I can get close enough to drop the older folks off and then I can go and park in the lot, or should I try to take the boat from Port Orleans to the Pleaseure Island stop? Afraid the boat may not be a good option due to the nature of getting the older folks in and out of it.

 

[grimley1968]

Since I am attending the wedding and not having it I would rather not rent a car and driver. Anyway I can get close enough to drop the older folks off and then I can go and park in the lot, or should I try to take the boat from Port Orleans to the Pleaseure Island stop? Afraid the boat may not be a good option due to the nature of getting the older folks in and out of it.

This is a very pleasant ride, and might actually be a nicer way to get there than any other way. There should be no problem getting older people on or off the boats. Also, this is the smallest of the resorts that share the DtD waterway, so it's the easiest to walk through to get to the dock.

Your problem in this scenario will be getting to POFQ from the Swan. If you have vehicles, this is not so bad, though you might need to contact POFQ before hand to make sure they allow parking for a situation like this. If you don't want to drive, then the best WDW transportation scenario would be to boat over to DHS and then bus to POFQ.

Having said all that, I honestly think this might be more pleasant and less hassle than trying to drive to DtD and parking. Parking is extremely limited and the walking from the car to DtD shops is extensive.

 

[samoyed]

How far is the walk from the Pleasure Island Boat dock to the Portofino, if the boat dock is open during construction. Otherwise how far is the bus stop to the restaurant. I need the least amount of steps to the Portofino as possible to get the older folks there. It looks like walking from the parking lots will be impossible with all the lots they closed. Is there a handicap Lot for downtown Disney?

 

[figment_jii]

Since I am attending the wedding and not having it I would rather not rent a car and driver. Anyway I can get close enough to drop the older folks off and then I can go and park in the lot, or should I try to take the boat from Port Orleans to the Pleaseure Island stop? Afraid the boat may not be a good option due to the nature of getting the older folks in and out of it.

How many people are you talking about? A couple? Dozens?

Are you staying at POR? I ask because you cannot park at POR to go to DTD. POR parking is for guests enjoying the amenties of POR (shopping, dining, looking around, etc.).

If it's only a few people, I would probably opt to park at the Swan (self parking is paid $17 per exit, so I would think you could park there all day if you wanted) and then take a taxi over to DTD for dinner. That is probably the least walking option. If it's more folks, you might want to rent a van or large vehicle to ferry folks from the Swan to DTD.

 

[bumbershoot]

Since I am attending the wedding and not having it I would rather not rent a car and driver.

Aha.

When you said you "have a wedding" I assumed you were the bride or groom.

 

[mikehn]

I never had a problem finding parking at the casting center across the street.

 

[samoyed]

i have just one car load of people.. 4 people, but one is elderly and walking from the casting is not an option. I heard the bus no longer stops at Pleasure Island stop only at the far end of Downtown Disney that is also too much walking. One of the family members is staying at the Port Orleans so I can visit with them and go on the boat to the wedding with them. The reception is at 12:30 in the afternoon and from the website it says the busses from the parking areas do not run until 4pm...... Ahhhh... I'm not sure how to handle this...so confused...

 

[grimley1968]

i have just one car load of people.. 4 people, but one is elderly and walking from the casting is not an option. I heard the bus no longer stops at Pleasure Island stop only at the far end of Downtown Disney that is also too much walking. One of the family members is staying at the Port Orleans so I can visit with them and go on the boat to the wedding with them. The reception is at 12:30 in the afternoon and from the website it says the busses from the parking areas do not run until 4pm...... Ahhhh... I'm not sure how to handle this...so confused...

Since one of the family members is a guest at POFQ, that person can provide a parking pass to park at POFQ (if not an actual vehicle), but that person will need to be the one to get the pass from the POFQ front desk. Once you have the pass in your vehicle, you can drive from Swan to POFQ, park there, and take the boat to DtD. In this scenario you should be able to avoid WDW buses, and parking at DtD, entirely.

To help with walking, just drop off the guests who can't walk far in front of the POFQ lobby, park the car, and meet them at the boat dock.

A little coordination with the POFQ guest should solve most of your issues.

 

[ChipnDalePals]

Since one of the family members is a guest at POFQ, that person can provide a parking pass to park at POFQ (if not an actual vehicle), but that person will need to be the one to get the pass from the POFQ front desk. Once you have the pass in your vehicle, you can drive from Swan to POFQ, park there, and take the boat to DtD. In this scenario you should be able to avoid WDW buses, and parking at DtD, entirely. To help with walking, just drop off the guests who can't walk far in front of the POFQ lobby, park the car, and meet them at the boat dock. A little coordination with the POFQ guest should solve most of your issues.

I just left DTD yesterday. Parking is a nightmare! The buses do not drop off at Pleasure Island but at the far end of the marketplace. It is a LONG walk to Portofino. You might consider getting a wheelchair for your elderly friend. It is a long walk even from the boat dock. Can you call the Portofino directly for suggestions or maybe customer service? Hopefully it will not be too busy when you are there!

 

[Traveliz]

I just left DTD yesterday. Parking is a nightmare! The buses do not drop off at Pleasure Island but at the far end of the marketplace. It is a LONG walk to Portofino. You might consider getting a wheelchair for your elderly friend. It is a long walk even from the boat dock. Can you call the Portofino directly for suggestions or maybe customer service? Hopefully it will not be too busy when you are there!

I would pay to valet - they have it near Cirque and near the World of Disney. You can drop your people off near the restaurant first and then circle back around to valet park unless you see something close by. I was there quite a bit around July 4 (so a busy week) and never had a bit of trouble getting parking up until 1:30-2:30.

I would not do the boat from PO. Weather can cause it to be down and often the line is VERY LONG. Also the boat does not go from PO to the Swan -- it sounds like you were inferring that is possible?

Liz

 

[danjoan14]

Does anyone know how long the parking nightmare will be going on for?

 

[jcvalenti]

This whole situation just angers me. My wife and a few others in our party of 20 LOVE DTD and really want to go during our trip next week, but I hated the parking situation before the construction, and I absolutely don't think I can deal with this crap, so I doubt we're even trying to get there this year. I go on vacation to get away from the stress of rush hour traffic

 

[njmom76]

We had to walk, but had no problems finding parking in the end of June at dinner time. I think if you cannot walk a distance though, a wheelchair or taxi are your best bet.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[jcvalenti]

Out of curiosity, how is the valet situation ? I have TiW, and I thought there used to be free valet at DTD as well (though I don't think I ever used it). Is it still there ? Is there a limit on time down there if we chose to dine somewhere in DTD while shopping ?

 

[Lewisc]

This whole situation just angers me. My wife and a few others in our party of 20 LOVE DTD and really want to go during our trip next week, but I hated the parking situation before the construction, and I absolutely don't think I can deal with this crap, so I doubt we're even trying to get there this year. I go on vacation to get away from the stress of rush hour traffic

You hated the parking situation. Disney is building parking garages so they can expand DTD and offer adequate parking. Makes sense. My guess is you'll DTD even more after it's completed. Also makes sense parking will be bad during the construction.

Isn't Disney running shuttle buses from remote parking? I'd do that rather then fight for spots.

 

[jcvalenti]

You hated the parking situation. Disney is building parking garages so they can expand DTD and offer adequate parking. Makes sense. My guess is you'll DTD even more after it's completed. Also makes sense parking will be bad during the construction.

Isn't Disney running shuttle buses from remote parking? I'd do that rather then fight for spots.

Yes - the definitely needed to address the parking issue at DTD ... but the way they have done it is ridiculous. Just listen to this weeks podcast ... I agree with everything in Pete's rant. He's dead on with this one - terrible planning, terrible construction plan, and terrible lack of consideration for guests.