Lots of questions about Fort Wilderness Transportation

[APB513]

I am thinking about staying at a cabin in Fort Wilderness next summer. I am trying to get a better understanding of how to get around the Fort.

I don't think I'll be renting a golf cart so we will be relying on Disney Transportation. My main concern is being able to be at the parks in time for rope drop.

1. Do all of the loops have cabins? If not, which loops have cabins? Do all of the loops have bus stops?

2. To get to MK and EPCOT, I know we can take the boat at the Marina. Depending on our cabin loop, we would either walk to the Marina or take the settlement bus to the Marina.

We would then just walk to the entrance of the MK or board the EPCOT monorail to get to EPCOT? Is this correct?

If so, what is the approximate travel time from cabin door to MK and to EPCOT?

3. If I understand correctly, to get to DHS and AK we would need to take a settlement bus to the outpost and then take a bus from the outpost to the parks. Is this correct?

If so, what is the approximate travel time from cabin door to DHS and to AK?

Thanks!

 

[Disneylitch]

First off, welcome and you will love The Fort.

1. you can take a bus or walk to the marina for MK. the buses run approximately every 20 minutes, but we were there this past August I they were running much more frequently than that. as far as walking goes, it just depends upon how much of a walk you consider too much. i'm guessing it would be about 3/4 mile.

2. EPCOT, AK, and DHS have a bus that departs from the outpost. from the cabins, you could definitely walk to the outpost. as far as I know, you don't have to go to settlement first.

3. the buses for EPCOT, AK, and DHS, and the boat from the marinia for MK, run about every 30 minutes.

4. for MK, you can also get the boat that goes to The Comtemporary and catch a monorail or walk to MK.

We usually stay in the 1700 loop and have found the transportation great. Most of the time we ride our bikes or walk, not because we don't like the buses, we just like our bikes or walking.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

Whoa! That is a lot of questions.

But we are here to help.

First of all, you need to take a look at a FW map.

Here is one:

The cabins are located in loops 2100-2800.

There are three internal bus routes at FW. Two of them, the orange and purple routes, travel through the cabin loops. The orange route also travels by the Meadow Trading Post and some of the camping loops. The purple route bypasses the main road. All of the internal bus routes travel between the Settlement and the Outpost bus stops.

Now, let's take a stab at your questions:

1. Do all of the loops have cabins? If not, which loops have cabins? Do all of the loops have bus stops?

As stated above, the cabins are located in the 2100-2800 loops only. There are no campsites in the cabin loops, and there are no cabins in the campsite loops. There are two VIP cabins in the 100 loop, but those are not available to reserve (although there are Disboard members who claim to have stayed in them).

If you look at the map, you can see little symbols that look like buses at the entrances of certain loops. Those are where the bus stops are. See how they made it easy for us?

2. To get to MK and EPCOT, I know we can take the boat at the Marina. Depending on our cabin loop, we would either walk to the Marina or take the settlement bus to the Marina.

Yes and No. Correct for the MK. Partially correct for EPCOT. To get to EPCOT by this method, you will need to get to the Transportation and Ticket center. There are two monorail routes. The MK route does not go to EPCOT. The EPCOT monorail travels between the Transportation and Ticket Center and EPCOT. You can get to the TTC by taking the MK monorail from either the MK or Contemporary Resort.

We would then just walk to the entrance of the MK or board the EPCOT monorail to get to EPCOT? Is this correct?

If so, what is the approximate travel time from cabin door to MK and to EPCOT?

As stated, the EPCOT monorail departs from the TTC, not the MK. So to get there from a FW cabin, you are talking bus, boat, monorail, just to get to the TTC. Depending on your luck in catching the bus, boat and monorail and then the EPCOT monorail, you are talking about an hour to hour and a half on average.

3. If I understand correctly, to get to DHS and AK we would need to take a settlement bus to the outpost and then take a bus from the outpost to the parks. Is this correct?

Yes. And, there is also an EPCOT bus leaving from the Settlement.

If so, what is the approximate travel time from cabin door to DHS and to AK?

I would say allow an hour. You could get lucky and find buses waiting for you at the bus stop, and get there in a lot less time. Or, you could be unlucky and just miss your buses as you arrive at the bus stops, and it could take more than an hour. It will all even out eventually, so don't stress, and have fun.

Any more questions?

TCD

 

[APB513]

First off, welcome and you will love The Fort.

1. you can take a bus or walk to the marina for MK. the buses run approximately every 20 minutes, but we were there this past August I they were running much more frequently than that. as far as walking goes, it just depends upon how much of a walk you consider too much. i'm guessing it would be about 3/4 mile.

2. EPCOT, AK, and DHS have a bus that departs from the outpost. from the cabins, you could definitely walk to the outpost. as far as I know, you don't have to go to settlement first.

3. the buses for EPCOT, AK, and DHS, and the boat from the marinia for MK, run about every 30 minutes.

4. for MK, you can also get the boat that goes to The Comtemporary and catch a monorail or walk to MK.

We usually stay in the 1700 loop and have found the transportation great. Most of the time we ride our bikes or walk, not because we don't like the buses, we just like our bikes or walking.

Thanks for responding Disneylitch! We won't have bikes so I guess I need to prepare for a lot of walking.

 

[polkadotsuitcase]

Whoa! That is a lot of questions.

But we are here to help.

Dude, totally thorough answer!

 

[APB513]

Whoa! That is a lot of questions.

But we are here to help.

First of all, you need to take a look at a FW map.

Here is one:

The cabins are located in loops 2100-2800.

There are three internal bus routes at FW. Two of them, the orange and purple routes, travel through the cabin loops. The orange route also travels by the Meadow Trading Post and some of the camping loops. The purple route bypasses the main road. All of the internal bus routes travel between the Settlement and the Outpost bus stops.

Any more questions?

TCD

Thank you for answering my questions. Yes, I had a lot of them and I will probably have more in the future

And thanks for the map. Now that I know which loops have cabins I'll need to figure which loop I want to request (even though I know there is no guarantee that I will get my request).

 

[shafke]

Whoa! That is a lot of questions.

But we are here to help.

First of all, you need to take a look at a FW map.

Here is one:

That 120 on the map wouldn't by any chance be one of those aforementioned VIP cabins that certain board members claim to have stayed at now would it?

 

[zannyscott]

May I hijack this thread if it's moderately related? OK. Thanks! Do you recommend driving to any of the parks? We'll have our own car and wondered if we should drive to Ep, AK and HS. (We're staying in the cabins in June '11.) Susanne

 

[Memph1s]

We drive everywhere except MK. We like to park hop and having our own vehicle with a cooler lets us get a cheap snack and cold drinks. Plus we keep our swimming stuff and change of clothes with us in case we want to hit a water park for a hour or two. I try very hard to avoid Disney busses at park closing time. They are always packed full and you may have to wait on 2 or 3 before you get to the front of the line. However, the busses are great if your group wants to split up and go to different places.

 

[clkelley]

Yes. And, there is also an EPCOT bus leaving from the Settlement.

The Epcot bus leaves from the Outpost.

Also, another piece of advice. If you really, really truly want to be at Magic Kingdom at rope drop and want to be there toward the front of the line, do the following, get to the boat launch at Fort Wilderness no later than 7:30 am and take the "small" boat that goes to Wilderness Lodge and Contemporary. Then get off at Contemporary and walk to Magic Kingdom.

The "big" boat that goes directly to Magic Kingdom doesn't start till around 8am, so there will be folks that have walked, monorailed, and bused to MK long before the "big" boat starts running.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

That 120 on the map wouldn't by any chance be one of those aforementioned VIP cabins that certain board members claim to have stayed at now would it?

Good catch.

The Epcot bus leaves from the Outpost.

Whoops! TCD made another mistake. I always get the names mixed up. Carol is right, the Epcot bus (along with the other buses traveling to the parks) leaves from the Outpost bus stop.

My bad.

TCD

 

[chartle]

May I hijack this thread if it's moderately related? OK. Thanks! Do you recommend driving to any of the parks? We'll have our own car and wondered if we should drive to Ep, AK and HS. (We're staying in the cabins in June '11.) Susanne

For any resort, people generally say its quicker to drive to a park except for the MK because resort transportation, whether bus or boat, drops you off at the front gate.

If you drive to the MK you have to park, tram to the TTC and then monorail or ferry to the gate.

Its even better for FW and monorail resorts because of the quicker non bus transportation.

Also at the Fort, your car is right outside your door not at the end of a huge parking lot.

 

[kimber23ks]

this might be a stupid question,,,,but where IS the Outpost? Looking at that map, and other, I can't seem to find it? Presuming it is up by the Settlement, etc???

 

[clkelley]

this might be a stupid question,,,,but where IS the Outpost? Looking at that map, and other, I can't seem to find it? Presuming it is up by the Settlement, etc???

If you look at the map above, there is an X at the bottom of the map. That is the front check-in building. Just above that X, all three colors of the bus routes converge and form a loop. That is the Outpost Bus Stop.

I think of it this way. "Settlement" is inside the campground. So you "Settle" in. "Outpost" is at the Exit of the campground, so you are going "Out" to exit the campground.

 

[kimber23ks]

...aaahhhhhh, now I got it, lol, lol....please forgive,,,,this will be our FIRST time and lots to learn

 

[SCCamper]

this might be a stupid question,,,,but where IS the Outpost? Looking at that map, and other, I can't seem to find it? Presuming it is up by the Settlement, etc???

They mean the Reception Outpost located at the main entrance to FW.

 

[APB513]

The Epcot bus leaves from the Outpost.

Also, another piece of advice. If you really, really truly want to be at Magic Kingdom at rope drop and want to be there toward the front of the line, do the following, get to the boat launch at Fort Wilderness no later than 7:30 am and take the "small" boat that goes to Wilderness Lodge and Contemporary. Then get off at Contemporary and walk to Magic Kingdom.

The "big" boat that goes directly to Magic Kingdom doesn't start till around 8am, so there will be folks that have walked, monorailed, and bused to MK long before the "big" boat starts running.

If you look at the map above, there is an X at the bottom of the map. That is the front check-in building. Just above that X, all three colors of the bus routes converge and form a loop. That is the Outpost Bus Stop.

I think of it this way. "Settlement" is inside the campground. So you "Settle" in. "Outpost" is at the Exit of the campground, so you are going "Out" to exit the campground.

Thanks, clkelley!

 

[ftwildernessrick]

Drive ver. bus.
Driving is quicker for Epcot, DHS, & AK. We still do the bus sometimes when we are in the mood.
If we do drive and go to a park that stays open late, then we get to that park early, so as to park close, then take the bus back to FW for our afternoon break. Then return by bus to that park and drive back when it closes.

When the buses are running more than normally scheduled or you hit the transfers just right, it is a quick trip. Sometimes, though rarely, I have been stuck waiting for a bus, usually from Epcot to FW, for 45 or 50 minutes rather than the normal 25 minutes or so. Sometimes, I guess, the buses either get their spacing or timing apart, or the bus dispacher is not juggling the buses correctly, or other unforeseen problems occur.

 

[Magicbus]

I guess, the buses either get their spacing or timing apart.

The internal buses at the Fort are self timed so that they don't have one bus behind the other, but the external buses are not.

the bus dispacher is not juggling the buses correctly

Except for the times when they go on manual dispatch, the rest of the time, the dispatcher just relays whatever the automated dispatch system says. Blame the computer or the resort, or both.

 

[ftwildernessrick]

The internal buses at the Fort are self timed so that they don't have one bus behind the other, but the external buses are not.

I never had a problem with the internal buses.

Except for the times when they go on manual dispatch, the rest of the time, the dispatcher just relays whatever the automated dispatch system says. Blame the computer or the resort, or both.

It always seems that every time I have had a problem, it is usually with the bus leaving from Epcot to return to FW, and I don't know why. Maybe it is just a coincidence, but it just seems like every trip we make, we get stuck at Epcot at least once for an extended period of time. I wish they would reopen the route permanently from Settlement to TTC and just catch the monorail as an option.