ME to POR-Riverside

[NeverBeen2DW]

I have heard different stories about how many stops to POR-Riverside. Has anyone recently been there? How many stops did you have before getting there? I read on here it was sharing a bus with Epcot resorts now rather than DTD resorts and the ride was 2 hrs!!!! I hope that is not the case! We are arriving on 12/15. TIA!

 

[maxiesmom]

During my trip to Disney World last month POR was the first stop for ME, much to my suprise. A couple of years ago it was the last of 4 stops. There is no way to say for sure which stop you will be, so just keep your fingers crossed.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Buses going to resorts in a single zone can have up to four stops. Buses going to resorts located in more than one zone can have up to three stops.

The actual length of time from airplane to resort is seventy to ninety minutes, but this of course depends on numerous factors including, but not limited to: how long the Guest takes to get from the plane to the Welcome Center; whether the Guest brings their checked luggage to the bus; if a bus has just departed; how many Guests bring luggage to the bus/how much stuff the driver has to stow underneath and pull at each resort; traffic; routing; time of day.

 

[CleveRocks]

I have heard different stories about how many stops to POR-Riverside. Has anyone recently been there? How many stops did you have before getting there? I read on here it was sharing a bus with Epcot resorts now rather than DTD resorts and the ride was 2 hrs!!!! I hope that is not the case! We are arriving on 12/15. TIA!

The reason you've heard many different stories is because there ARE and always have been many different stories.

There are no pre-set groupings of resorts. There's just no such thing. They like to group them by geographic zones, but when it makes sense to mix zones, they do so. In other words, if no other resort in the DD zone has arrivals expected around the same time as yours, and if there aren't enough POR guests to justify giving the resort its own DME run, then for that block of time they'll put POR with one or two other resorts from a different zone.

It all depends on what will be most efficient at that time. For obvious geographic reasons, if they are expecting a similar amount of guests to EVERY Disney resort at the same time, then of course they'll tend to group POR with POFQ, Saratoga Springs, Old Key West, and/or Fort Wilderness. But because they know about how many people are arriving at what time and ging to which resorts, they can group buses for optimal efficiency, rather than grouping them by some static rule.

And regarding the ORDER of drop offs ... the driver is told what resorts are on the bus, but then it is 100% up to the driver what order the stops will be in. Disney DOES NOT tell the drivers what order to do the stops in. (with the only exception of Grand Floridian and Polynesian, but that's not important here).

So, in other words, there is NO WAY you can plan on what resorts will be on your bus, and what number drop off you'll be. You can read stories about peoples' experiences every day for the next year, but please understand that their experiences have NOTHING to do with what your experience will be.

 

[goofy4tink]

When we went to BW in April, and my dd joined us in August, the DME bus went to PO first, then headed to BW.
I have heard of two hour times, but they are just NOT the norm..not in any case. They are a true worst case scenario. I have used DME many, many times....only one time was my trip 90 mins...we were the last stop of three, there was a ton of luggage to be off loaded at each resort and the wait for the bus, at MCO, was longer than my usual wait.
The vast majority of my trips have been about 70 mins...give or take a few mins either way.
Because the routes are not 'etched in stone' there is no way to tell you what your particular route is going to be.