Making a resort decision based on transportation! Help!

[Spanky2]

I am considering one of the 3 options for my Sept 2010 vacation. We are a family of 5 - 2 adults, kids 9, 7, and 5. First trip to WDW.

In order of preference:

1) Fort Wilderness Cabins
2) 2 rooms at either CBR or CS
3) One room at Contemporary

We plan on hitting the parks early in the morning, then going back for swim/nap in afternoon before returning for dinner.

Realistically, how long does it take to get from the parks to the Ft. Wilderness Cabins and or the CBR/CS and vice versa? I am a terribly impatient waiter, and I think that if bus after bus was passing me by whilst I waited - it would sour my Disney experience! The unofficial Disney guide suggest 1 hour to get to the parks from the resorts???

I'm not sure whether I want to give up a larger "living space" in order to gain time by accessing quicker transporation on the monorail.

Thanks so much for any help!

 

[ancestry]

Based on your analysis of yourself -- i.e. terribly impatient waiter....souring the Disney experience -- I would highly recommend that you stick with a monorail resort. At least with the monorail resort you can get to two of the parks without chancing much of a wait. However, there have been reports here on the boards of the monorail breaking down several times recently.

Personally, I have never had problems with the bus transportation at Disney. I don't mind waiting around 15 minutes or so for a bus nor do I mind having to stop at other resorts along the way. I use the waiting time to interact with my DH and kids and enjoy the fact that someone else is driving me around.

 

[WDWjen]

We had the same dilemma when booking our trips.. we have 4,6,8 yr olds and cannot fit in a regular room. We were torn between 2 rooms, a cabin, or a deluxe. Eventually we chose the Beach Club. We got the 4/3 deal so it was worth it

We hate waiting for buses too - at the Epcot resorts (BC, YC, BW etc) you can walk to Epcot, or take a boat or walk to the DHS. We might bring a stroller for the 4 yrold andwe wanted to be able to roll right on the boat.

My kids love the MK but we've done that so many times they are actually more excited to spend more time at Epcot and DHS anyway.

AK is still a bus to get there no matter where you stay so that wasnt a factor

Ft Wilderness cabins - I have never stayed but we stayed at the Wilderness Lodge and took the bus to go see it/pony rides etc.. I think there is an internal bus system for the cabins, then you switch and get on the bus to the other parks? Not sure about that, but if you dont have a car that might not be what you want.

 

[tjmw2727]

We stayed at CBR this August and had excellent bus experience, never waited and only stood a few times. However if transportation is that important then the Contemporary or an Epcot resort may work better.

As far as the Cabins - we just returned from the WL which shares buses with Ft Wilderness and the resort to park buses were also great. However you have to take an internal bus to get to the bus stop for the park and that can take quite a while You do have the boat to the MK but again you have to get from your cabin to the boat dock via internal bus. Not transportation related but since you mention an afternoon swim the pools at the campground don't have a pool slide while your other choices do.

Have fun deciding!

 

[PSUGuy]

We've stayed at Swan, Dolphin and BoardWalk three times each and one of the many benefits of being in the Epcot Cluster is that you can walk to 2 of the 4 WDW parks. Additionally, the BoardWalk is a source of entertainment inself. Not needing busses half the time makes up for a little waiting for the MK and AK ride.

Bill From PA

 

[Minniemama350]

If transportation will make or break your trip stay away from anything at the Fort. I LOVE the Fort, but the transportation stinks. It is the only place that you have to make transfers just to get to MK. We had to take a bus to get a bus to take us anywhere. We tried the water taxi, still had to transfer and got soaked. The COntemporary is your best bet based on your self-description.

 

[rubato]

I have to agree. If transportation impatience is #1, stay at the Contemporary. I will always pick the Fort when given that option, but only because of the laid back atmosphere there. We brought our camper last time and had the best Disney experience yet. This time, we're staying at CBR because it was cheaper to fly and stay moderate than drive our 8 mpg RV and camp.

You'll do what's right for you and your family.

 

[Spanky2]

You guys are just so awesome!!

OK, my next question is, what about the buses from CBR and/or CS? Would you say that travel to the parks from THOSE resorts would be faster than travel from Fort Wilderness? I am think it would be, just based on the fact that you don't have the bus to a bus scenario.

Just thinking that if I went with 2 rooms at the mod resort, at least I'm getting more room for the 5 of us.

 

[goofy4tink]

I am considering one of the 3 options for my Sept 2010 vacation. We are a family of 5 - 2 adults, kids 9, 7, and 5. First trip to WDW.

In order of preference:

1) Fort Wilderness Cabins
2) 2 rooms at either CBR or CS
3) One room at Contemporary

We plan on hitting the parks early in the morning, then going back for swim/nap in afternoon before returning for dinner.

Realistically, how long does it take to get from the parks to the Ft. Wilderness Cabins and or the CBR/CS and vice versa? I am a terribly impatient waiter, and I think that if bus after bus was passing me by whilst I waited - it would sour my Disney experience! The unofficial Disney guide suggest 1 hour to get to the parks from the resorts???

I'm not sure whether I want to give up a larger "living space" in order to gain time by accessing quicker transporation on the monorail.

Thanks so much for any help!

I'm not all that familier with the cabins. But they are roomy!!! And the area is lovely.
With both CSR and CBR, you are going to make multiple stops within the resort, before heading out to a park.
With the CR, you can walk, takes about 8 mins, to the MK. Or you can take the monorail, which will take you about 20 mins (not including any wait times). And you can take the resort monorail from the CR to the TTC where you will get the monorail to Epcot...but again, you can face wait times doing that as well. And buses to both DHS and AK, as well as DTD.
There is nothing more frustrating than being in a hurry to get to a park, and standing there, watching as 3 buses headed to DHS drive up and then away, as you wait for your bus to MK. But, if you want the bus to DHS, mulitple buses will come for MK...it's just the way it is...

You may very well want to look into a rental car. You are going to face waits at some point..no matter where you stay. Even at the monorail resorts, you have to wait for those buses to DHS and AK, and they can take a bit of time. I had, without a doubt, the worst bus service at the Polynesian. It was worse than any other resort..and I've stayed at a ton of 'em.
So..you have a few choices....
1. rent a car and come and go at your pace
2. just decide you are going to be waiting at some point
3. choose a resort that offers some bus alternatives....CR with a walk to the MK and monorail to Epcot for instance.

With three kids, I would think I would go nuts in one room with them...gets crowded with just three of us in a room, even a deluxe.

 

[goofy4tink]

You guys are just so awesome!!

OK, my next question is, what about the buses from CBR and/or CS? Would you say that travel to the parks from THOSE resorts would be faster than travel from Fort Wilderness? I am think it would be, just based on the fact that you don't have the bus to a bus scenario.

Just thinking that if I went with 2 rooms at the mod resort, at least I'm getting more room for the 5 of us.

Both those resorts have multiple stops within the resort...maybe 4 or so. You will get to both Epcot and DHS fairly quickly from them, and to MK a wee bit longer. AK is a hike from just about all the resorts, with the exception of the AllStars and AKL.
But, basically, CBR and CSR are a bit more central than FtW. If you can afford it, I would go with the two rooms....two tv's, two bathrooms, double the storage. Oh yeah...that's a good option.

 

[dacky041208]

Both those resorts have multiple stops within the resort...maybe 4 or so. You will get to both Epcot and DHS fairly quickly from them, and to MK a wee bit longer. AK is a hike from just about all the resorts, with the exception of the AllStars and AKL.
But, basically, CBR and CSR are a bit more central than FtW. If you can afford it, I would go with the two rooms....two tv's, two bathrooms, double the storage. Oh yeah...that's a good option.

I think CSR has 4 stops, and CBR has 7 if I remember correctly. Last summer we were at CSR, it was a very short ride to AK. Epcot and DHS were only a few minutes more, and MK was the furthest, but it was 12-15 minutes tops. I think both of these resorts are good with their transportation, but if that is the most important thing I'd still go with the Contemporary.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Transportation wise your best option would be the Contemporary.

 

[Mississippianna]

We were at CBR in Feb 2009, and I have to say it never felt like we took that long to make a couple in-resort stops before heading out to the parks. It's really centrally located, too. DHS and Epcot were quick trips. Those buses motor. PLUS, the pool there is awesome! Do not let the multiple bus stops deter you. All it means is that you never have to walk far before you can get on a bus. I had my doubts, but I would not say that factors in at all in a decision whether or not to stay there. If you are staying at the Contemporary, I'm pretty sure you have to share a bus with other resorts to get to DHS and AK anyway.

That said, those rooms at the CR are big, so I wouldn't worry about being all in one room at any of the Deluxe resorts.

 

[clkelley]

Not transportation related but since you mention an afternoon swim the pools at the campground don't have a pool slide while your other choices do.

Have fun deciding!

Actually, the main pool at the campground DOES have a brand new pool slide, kids splash zone, and hot tub!! The quiet pool near the cabins has a hot tub.

Stay at the campground and rent a golf cart!! That eliminates the internal buses.

 

[cruisingkat]

I would go with the two rooms especially for 5. That gives you two bathrooms so it is easier to get ready to go to the parks - get ready for bed at night. And the one thing that we like about Coronado Springs is that at three of the parks -MK, HS, & Epcot - the bus stop is one of the first that you come to when you exit the park. (Don't know about AK as we didn't go there when we stayed at Coronado Springs.) It is definitely a plus after walking around the parks all day - you don't have to walk an extra block or two (sometimes it feels like a lot more) for your bus.

 

[tjmw2727]

Actually, the main pool at the campground DOES have a brand new pool slide, kids splash zone, and hot tub!! The quiet pool near the cabins has a hot tub.

Stay at the campground and rent a golf cart!! That eliminates the internal buses.

Oh that's fabulous news - I am glad to be wrong.

My sil and I were considering the cabins for a trip in June because it won't be such a go go go trip but we were concerned about not having a "fun pool".

Sorry to go OT but thanks again for correcting me