Magic Kingdom's Inaccesibility

[AC7179]

We are in Orlando now and having a wonderful time.

I'd consider Disneyland my home park, but we make it to FL every 3 or 4 years and enjoy ourselves here as well.

One thing that has stood out for me this trip, and I remember feeling the same way on one of our last trips, is the bottleneck and what a pain in the butt it is to get to the MK. I almost never hear anyone complain about it, which is interesting because it's been such a negative in our experience. We've stayed at POP and WBC. yestersay morning at 7am, it took just under an hour to get from my hotel to inside the gates. Last night, I'd say it was closer to an hour and a half.

Am I doing something wrong? Is that normal? Whenever I hear people mention the trek to the MK, it's always with a positive spin about how removed from reality it is, but trust me, I felt plenty of reality on the way back to the TTC tonight on a standing room only monorail with a sleeping 2 year old in a stroller.

Anyway, we like the MK, but when comparing the MK and Disneyland, the fact that you can walk to your hotel room from the main gates makes a huge difference to me.

Does the MK feel removed from reality enough for you that you don't mind the trek to get there, or did Walt miss the mark, by not allowing any parking nearby and accessibility by foot?

 

[tchrrx]

The ease of transportation was our favorite thing about DL. Well, that and Carsland. ;-)

When we travel to WDW we try to stay at a resort that allows us to walk to at least one park. Transportation time really cuts into our play time!

 

[sharona]

Our first trip we sort of considered the ferry and monorail rides to be part of the charm. Now it's just a pita.

 

[Jennasis]

The monorail, boats, and ferry are part of the charm for us. We own DVC at BLT and love being able to walk to our hotel from MK at days end. We drive to the other parks. Never had a problem with getting to a park. We always stay on property. The only trips that were difficult were the few we took where we stayed off property.

 

[sharona]

Well...if you're walking to your hotel from MK then you're not really experiencing the "charm" of getting to/from MK using the ferry and monorail from the TTC.

 

[Stlhawkeye]

Are you driving yourself from the resort? I've never done that before, we rely purely on Disney transportation. It's part of mentally "checking out" on vacation.

As soon as we leave the hotel room and head to the bus, boat, etc, our park day has started.

To me having your own car would feel more like work, but maybe that's just me. I've never stayed at Pop before, so I don't know what their system is like. We've done
POR, Coronado, BWV, and WLV shortly.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

The transportation has never bothered me.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Well...if you're walking to your hotel from MK then you're not really experiencing the "charm" of getting to/from MK using the ferry and monorail from the TTC.

Just because it is walkable, doesn't mean BLT/CR guests don't use the monorail.

 

[staceyeileen]

I complain about it every time I go! I think many on these boards stay at Disney resorts, and those buses drop you right off at the gates so it's not an issue for them.

 

[Hopefully]

Transportation to the MK has never bothered me., As others have said, getting there is part of the fun of the day for us. Walt did NOT miss the mark. WDW is way more than the MK. And I wouldn't want to walk off Main Street and into a huge parking lot.

 

[justgot2havefun]

Honestly haven't ever been bothered by it. We use the time on the way there to apply sunscreen, talk about what we want to hit and get excited(*read: wake up) and on the way back the kids are usually so tired they sleep the whole way, while my wife and I think about the blessings of the day. Of course we haven't hit DLR yet, so we'll see how that spoils us...

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Honestly haven't ever been bothered by it. We use the time on the way there to apply sunscreen, talk about what we want to hit and get excited(*read: wake up) and on the way back the kids are usually so tired they sleep the whole way, while my wife and I think about the blessings of the day. Of course we haven't hit DLR yet, so we'll see how that spoils us...

I have only been to DL once in the early '90s. I rather missed the monorail.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I
There is a multi transportation systems and the removal of the park from the things around it is all part of the magic. Walt hit the mark dead on.

A noisy and nasty parking lot detract from the overall Disney experience.
AKK

 

[Tissa]

It has never bothered me and we always drive and usually take the ferry since I find the monorail to be a pain with a wheelchair. I guess it is what you are used to.

 

[JanaDee]

We're dropped at the front gates, so no, it has never bothered me.

 

[sharonabe]

If you're staying onsite, then you're doing it wrong. Most people on here will tell you that if you want to drive your own car, you'll be okay driving to all the parks EXCEPT MK. Next time you're there, take the Disney bus to MK and you'll see how nice it can be!

 

[JimmyV]

Anyway, we like the MK, but when comparing the MK and Disneyland, the fact that you can walk to your hotel room from the main gates makes a huge difference to me.

Does the MK feel removed from reality enough for you that you don't mind the trek to get there, or did Walt miss the mark, by not allowing any parking nearby and accessibility by foot?

Hmmmm. Let's see now. This....?

or this........?

Am I doing something wrong?

If you are staying at POP and doing anything other than taking a bus to the front entrance of the MK, then yes, you are doing something wrong. We rent a car almost every time we go and drive it most of the time. But for visits to the MK, we take a monorail (or walk) if staying at a Seven Seas Lagoon resort, and we take a bus from any other resort. Driving from a Disney resort to the TTC, and then taking a monorail from there is highly inefficient.

 

[cakebaker]

When we went to DL, one the things we loved was the private entrance to the park at the GC. DL has both the curse and blessing of being smaller so you can feel like you're in the magic all the time. One of the main reasons we stay on site is so we don't have to deal with the outside world getting to the parks. I do not like the TTC and haven't been there in many, many years. I enjoy the internal transportation a great deal. I actually rode the monorail with my grandson in a loop from the MK and back just so he could ride it. At 2, he thought it was another attraction ride- it's all a matter of perspective I suppose.

 

[mom2rtk]

Another vote for "The bus to the MK is a must!" The other parks are fine to drive to. But once you are dropped right near the gates of the MK by bus, there is no going back.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I don't think it's adds that much more time, even if you are driving. If you drive to the other lots, you usually still need to take the tram anyway. I guess you are adding a ferry ride but you have to see it as part of the fun I guess.

I hear your point though, sometimes it's not as magical as one would hope...Especially at the end of the day!

I do think that the large bus depot at the front detracts from the "magic" and was not what Walt intended but I can see why they put them there.