I didn't realize the buses won't take you to a park after it closes

[Masonmj84]

On our recent trip, we had a dinner in the AKL that ended a couple of minutes after 8.

We were staying at BC, didn't have park hoppers, and had gone to AK that day. So I'd planned to get back to BC by taking the bus to HS and then walking back to BC (via the Boardwalk). HS closed at 8, so I assumed there'd be lots of empty busses returning to the park after taking guests back to the resort.

However, because the park had already closed, the bus driver wouldn't allow us on (even though he was returning to HS with a totally empty bus). Since we couldn't go through Epcot, he told us that our only options were to take the MK bus or the DTD bus and then transfer from there to a BC bus. We thought both of those options sucked, so we sprung the $20 for a cab (which was $20 well spent as it got us back to BC in about 10 minutes).

Anyone know why the bus drivers are not allowed to take people back to a park after it closes? (as our case indicates, there are legitimate reasons why someone would want to do this)

 

[Lewisc]

I wonder if the answer would have been different if you told the driver you drove to DHS, took Disney transportation to the AKL and wanted to get back to DHS in order to retrieve your car.

Maybe Disney has more then enough departing guests to fill the buses and doesn't want to bus more guests to a closing park. Can't be that many guests wanting to transfer at a closing park. I'm surprised the CM didn't make an exception.

 

[crashbb]

We found the same thing. We were wanting to transfer (dining at a resort and wanted to get back to POP, while avoiding needing to use Downtown Disney). Happened twice - once we did use Downtown Disney and once we just grabbed a cab.

And yes, in both cases the bus was going back empty (and was picking up passengers, so clearly there were still people there and we would have had a bus we could take to POP).

 

[North of Mouse]

It's just their policy. Why would they transport you to a closed park? There are people with all sorts of excuses (not saying yours was not legitimate) but they have never taken anyone to a closed park at night to my knowledge.

 

[Lewisc]

It's just their policy. Why would they transport you to a closed park?

It would make sense if the guests car is parked in the lot of a closing park. It would make sense if the guest was staying at a resort which easily accessible from the closing park. Guests staying at the Contemporary might want to take a bus to the MK and guests staying at an EPCOT resort might want to take a bus to DHS.

I think Disney would probably make an exception for a guest who parked at a closing park.. You can't get a bus from DTD to a park--even if the park is open.

Disney can have their policy but there are valid reasons why guests might want to be transported to a closing (or closed) park.

 

[sam_gordon]

I wonder if the answer would have been different if you told the driver you drove to DHS, took Disney transportation to the AKL and wanted to get back to DHS in order to retrieve your car.

That's what I was thinking too, but how often would that happen? Why would someone drive their car to a park, then take buses to another resort? Wouldn't it make more sense to bring their car to the resort?

 

[Lewisc]

That's what I was thinking too, but how often would that happen? Why would someone drive their car to a park, then take buses to another resort? Wouldn't it make more sense to bring their car to the resort?

Probably not often. Assume you're at the MK and have dinner in AKL. Might be easier to take a Disney resort bus rather then take boat to TTC then parking lot tram. Now assume your dinner is running late you time it so you think you'll be able to catch one of the buses dropping off guests from the MK.

You're leaving DHS and you see an AKL bus pulling up ( I don't remember the load order at DHS so my example might require a different resort). You decide taking the bus to the resort will be faster then taking a tram to your car.

Works with any park if you plan on going back to the park for one last ride and your dinner is delayed.

 

[North of Mouse]

It would make sense if the guests car is parked in the lot of a closing park. It would make sense if the guest was staying at a resort which easily accessible from the closing park. Guests staying at the Contemporary might want to take a bus to the MK and guests staying at an EPCOT resort might want to take a bus to DHS.

I think Disney would probably make an exception for a guest who parked at a closing park.. You can't get a bus from DTD to a park--even if the park is open.

Disney can have their policy but there are valid reasons why guests might want to be transported to a closing (or closed) park.

I did say they had a legit reason. But why would anyone park at a place they know would be closed (or at least ask) and expect to go back later and pick up their car (not the OP, just a scenario from your post). We can't assume that a way will be made just for us.

We often go to AKL for dinner from AK knowing we will have to find a different route home after our dinner. There are no direct buses/transportation between resorts, so we go to a park that's open, then catch our connecting transportation to our resort.

A little inconvenient, yes, but not enough to make a deal of - rules are usually made for *their* reasons (which I understand) even though any one rule may be an inconvenience to some. We just go with the flow, and accept what policies/rules that they are entitled to implement (doesn't have to make sense to us lowly guests ).

 

[LilyWDW]

Honestly, I never would have even thought that there was any chance they would take you to a park that was already closed. Never would have crossed my mind. Park closed = no transportation (to my mind at least).

 

[Lewisc]

We know park buses take guests back to their resorts 30-60 minutes (maybe even more) after park closing. It would never occur to me that one of those buses wouldn't take me to a closed (or closing) park in order to retrieve my car or access a resort within walking distance of the park.

 

[crashbb]

We know park buses take guests back to their resorts 30-60 minutes (maybe even more) after park closing. It would never occur to me that one of those buses wouldn't take me to a closed (or closing) park in order to retrieve my car or access a resort within walking distance of the park.

Yes, this is where we went wrong. It's not like we trying to get to MK 3 hours after it closed - actually, I don't think it had even closed yet (but it was within about 10 minutes of closing - so I get that no one would be taking the bus to MK to actaully go to MK). Buses were definitely coming/going from the park still.

I get the rule, but I we were just caught by surprise at how early they'd stop bussing people to the park.

 

[marmar]

When parks are closing they are trying to get buses to where they are needed most. Just because the bus came from DHS doe not mean it is going back, or the dispatcher won't change his mind and send the bus to a different park when he is halfway there because the MK needs a bus to go to AoA more.

We were on a bus once that said boardwalk/swan/dolphin and picked us up at that queue at the MK. But the disatcher told the driver to go to the yacht/beach club. The driver thought it weird when no one got off the bus at the yacht club. When he had the same result at the beach club, he called the dispatcher and said all the passengers had decided to go to the Boardwalk instead.

 

[Lewisc]

The posters asked and was told the bus was going to the theme park for pickup. I didn't think of situations where the bus could be dispatched to a different location in route.