Just returned: Not enough resort buses

[AustinTink]

We had the same experience with the buses last week at BC. I stood almost every time. There simply weren't enough of them. Also, please don't flame me for this.... But, why does it take so long to load and buckle in people with scooters. I swear the drivers took their time just to aggravate me. Also, most times the people stayed on their scooters while the bus was driving. But, one time they parked two scooters, buckled them in and then the riders got off and took seats on the very crowded bus. I counted, with the scooters space plus seats for them and their relatives they took up 12 seats!!! For two scooters, come on. The drivers should call for another bus in a situation like that. The whole situation took close to an a hour between loading and driving and we still didn't make it to our hotel. We got off at the YC and ran to the BC.

Sorry, I had to get that one of my chest.

 

[shellybaxter]

We had the same experience with the buses last week at BC. I stood almost every time. There simply weren't enough of them. Also, please don't flame me for this.... But, why does it take so long to load and buckle in people with scooters. I swear the drivers took their time just to aggravate me. Also, most times the people stayed on their scooters while the bus was driving. But, one time they parked two scooters, buckled them in and then the riders got off and took seats on the very crowded bus. I counted, with the scooters space plus seats for them and their relatives they took up 12 seats!!! For two scooters, come on. The drivers should call for another bus in a situation like that. The whole situation took close to an a hour between loading and driving and we still didn't make it to our hotel. We got off at the YC and ran to the BC.

Sorry, I had to get that one of my chest.

Wouldn't it have been nice for the driver to request another bus? But please don't blame the ECV people. The tie down process is time consuming because it must be done right for the safety of everyone. And it is not safe to stay seated on an ECV when the bus is in motion. Disney encourages people to move to regular seats if they can.

 

[leighe]

I have always thought the bus service at the Epcot resorts was ridiculous - especially at deluxe prices.

 

[AustinTink]

Wouldn't it have been nice for the driver to request another bus? But please don't blame the ECV people. The tie down process is time consuming because it must be done right for the safety of everyone. And it is not safe to stay seated on an ECV when the bus is in motion. Disney encourages people to move to regular seats if they can.

No, not at all, I'm don't blame them one bit. They looked mortified at how long it was taking. I would hate to be in their shoes. But, disney transportation could be way more on the ball to accommodate the extra time it takes. My mother will be in a wheelchair when she comes with us next year, I will gladly stand next to her to allow a seat for others who have been waiting for so long. That part got me when kids/teens and able bodied men who were traveling with the ECV passengers got seats while we all waited outside the bus.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

Wow, lots of different things going on here that I need to comment on.

First, the bus situation at the Yacht & Beach Club. In my experience, it sucks. Sure you only have to take a bus to 2 places. But those 2 bus rides are horrible! The busses are always packed, and the ride to both AK and MK ends up being over a half an hour long after you make all of the resort stops. I would never stay at the Y&B again without having my own car.

Second, the busses from POR. Yes you do have to bus to all 4 parks. But the bus rides are all pretty short. For me the main selling point of the Beach Club was being able to walk into Epcot. But from POR Epcot is only a 5 minute bus ride away. The Magic Kingdom is 15 minutes away. I have stayed at POR 3 times, and the Beach Club once. I never rent a car staying at POR, it has much better bus service than the Beach Club.

Third, transportation to/from Downtown Disney. Taking a bus to/from DTD is an exercize in patience, no matter which resort you are staying at. DTD is not a good place to use as a switching point, and I think Disney does it on purpose to keep people from parking there and using Disney transportation. they want the parking lot full of the cars of people shopping, not of people switching to busses or boats.

I love using the boats at POR to get to DTD, but yeah, the boats are not very big.

If I want to get anywhere at Disney in a hurry I take a cab. Disney transportation is great if you take it for what it is. A free way to get around. But in most cases it is not fast.

I can't agree with you more... If I can't use a park, preferably DHS, as a transfer point it's time for a cab. DTD transfers take FOREVER!

 

[kapoof]

We just spent a week at the Yacht club. It was a great week and the resort was fantastic. My only complaint was the amount of buses that Disney has available for the resorts. We have been to Disney many times over the years, but the buses seemed to have gotten worse this time. As many of you know they only use one bus to cover the Swan / dolphin, Yacht club, beach club and boardwalk. That is just way too many people to be covered by one bus. Disney needs to split up the resorts. All week the buses were overcrowded.

It was a great week other than that. I hope Disney make adjustments to their bus schedules.

Thanks for listening Bill

thats was my complaint about the epcot resorts which i LOVE but come on, 5 resorts for 1 bus!! i totally feel your pain. hopefully disney will soon make some adjustments.

 

[ashleyrm]

Just when I had decided to use Magical Express for my Mother's Day four day weekend stay at the Beach Club, you all had to mess with my mind...

I'll be staying there for 5 days next week and will have a rental car for the first four days. I'll have to try to assess the bus situation before I make a final decision for the May trip...

 

[madalex]

First, the bus situation at the Yacht & Beach Club. In my experience, it sucks. Sure you only have to take a bus to 2 places. But those 2 bus rides are horrible! The busses are always packed, and the ride to both AK and MK ends up being over a half an hour long after you make all of the resort stops. I would never stay at the Y&B again without having my own car.

I have stayed at YC and BC on more than a dozen occasions. It has not been my experience that the buses are always packed (at peak morning times they sometimes are, but that is true of buses at many resorts and does not happen at all hours of the day). Similarly, it has not been my experience that the ride to the parks takes over a half hour (stops at one or two other resorts certainly do add some time to the trip, but it is generally only a few extra minutes). Besides, driving to MK will still take significantly longer than that, since one must park, tram to the TTC and then take either a boat or monorail to the MK front gate.

 

[shellybaxter]

Has it changed or do the individual hotels still make decisions about their bus schedules instead of a centralized bus department? I was always told that the managers of the hotels schedule the buses based on their current occupancy. Because of this I have addressed busing concerns to the manager at the hotel in the past

 

[goofy4prez]

I stayed at the YC in January 09. I loved the resort and the location but I have to agree with many on here that the bus situation at the YC/BC/BW was a freaking nightmare.

If my memory is correct(?) the buses to the parks stopped at the three Disney resorts. The buses to DTD stopped at the three Disney resorts and the Swan/Dolphin. Either way it was pathetic and I'm sorry for those who think that WDW can do no wrong(for the most part they are awesome), but there was no excuse to always being packed the way they were(real safety issue as well) and to run as seldom as they did. In the future if I stay at this resort again I will get a rental car.

 

[goofy4prez]

Sorry double post.