MK from BWV - Will This Work?

[wendydarling826]

I've been reading with concern the thread about the bus service from BWV. Would it be faster to get to the Magic Kingdom by walking into EPCOT then taking the monorail to the TTC and then changing monorails to MK? Have never used the monorail so I'm not familiar with how its trip time compares with the buses.

 

[PamOKW]

I think the bus will still be your best bet. You have to walk the entire length of Epcot and you'll have to wait for two different monorails. It won't be faster and it could be much longer.

If you are already in Epcot, you might want to take the monorail route.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I suspect it might be shorter time and less walking to take the walkway to MGM and a MK bus from there.

 

[slp87]

No, it would not be faster to go through Epcot. I personally had no complaints about bus service during my stay at BWV. Hopefully you will have the same experience! Have a great trip!

 

[crisi]

Also, if you plan on getting their for opening, you can't cut through Epcot - it isn't open yet.

Another option is to try the bus - and if the bus doesn't come promptly - catch a cab. A cab will run you $10 or so - but may be cheaper than a rental car.

 

[Chadm]

Originally posted by dianeschlicht
I suspect it might be shorter time and less walking to take the walkway to MGM and a MK bus from there.

Why would anyone want to walk 20 minutes to MGM to take a bus when there's a bus stop right outside the BWV door? I know the service at BWV isn't the greatest on property (even though I've never had any problems with it), but that just doesn't make sense.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I didn't say I would do it, I only said it was an option. I think the buses at Disney work well, but we are usually at OKW, so I don't know how long the wait would be from BWV.

 

[jennymouse]

I had most of my problems going to AK. EE for AK and no bus, but early buses to MK. What I will do next time if I have the same problems, is walk over to Swan/Dolphin to catch the bus. When I went, I think the problem was that since the bus stopped at Swan, then Dolphin, then YC, then BC before getting to BW the buses would fill up and go on to thier destinations leaving BW to wait for another bus to come along. If you walk over to the Swan or Dolphin, you'd catch it before it filled up.JMO

 

[Chadm]

It seems that the original poster asked her question because of the complaints on this board about the BWV bus service. In my opinion, those complaints are overblown. That's usually the case on message boards. The negatives will be magnified and blown out of proportion by a few folks and give others a misguided perception of the situation.

That's not to say, that the BWV (actually, all of the Epcot resorts) bus service is the best on property. It's just not as bad as it has been made out to be on these boards. I just can't imagine why anyone would even consider walking all the way from BWV to the monorail at Epcot or the bus stops at MGM (a 20-30 minute walk either way) when there is a bus stop right outside the BWV lobby.

My personal advice (and my opinion only) is that you are much, much better off just catching a bus from BWV. In my experience, it's not even close. If you are in a huge hurry, take a cab.

 

[Zurg]

I haven't had that big of issues with BWV bus service, yeah some times it isn't as fast as you would want but if the issue is opening at MK we have never had a big issue.

Later in the day it can be a little wait but our experiance is not as bad as it seems from these boards. (also we tend to try to do MK early and move on as it gets crowded.)

 

[Chadm]

Originally posted by jennymouse
I had most of my problems going to AK. EE for AK and no bus, but early buses to MK. What I will do next time if I have the same problems, is walk over to Swan/Dolphin to catch the bus. When I went, I think the problem was that since the bus stopped at Swan, then Dolphin, then YC, then BC before getting to BW the buses would fill up and go on to thier destinations leaving BW to wait for another bus to come along. If you walk over to the Swan or Dolphin, you'd catch it before it filled up.JMO

Now that's a much better idea than walking to Epcot or MGM.

 

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by Chadm
In my opinion, those complaints are overblown. That's usually the case on message boards. The negatives will be magnified and blown out of proportion by a few folks and give others a misguided perception of the situation.

Whew! I'm sooo glad to hear that that 1 hour wait for an AK bus that was already too full to hold more than 5 or 6 people on June 24, 2003 was just my imagination overblowing it. But, it sure did feel real. I feel sooo much better now. I bet that long trip home from the parks, stopping at Swan, Dolphin, YC, BC before it got to BW was just a figment of my imagination too! What a relief!

I know, I know! I missed my DVC Koolaid that morning and was hallucinating!

 

[Eeyore2U]

Overall we've not had major issues with busses at BWV. The only route that has given us trouble is DTD. The other thing is that we never are in a rush. But I guess that's just us. I can't remember the last time we were at a park opening.

 

[DeeP]

It is very interesting that the people that stay at BWV a lot are the ones saying they have had little or no problems with bus transportation and the ones that have either never stayed there, stayed only once or have stayed at BWV on a sporadic basis are the ones complaining about the bus service and stating how horrible it is.
Interesting, very interesting.

 

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by DeeP
It is very interesting that the people that stay at BWV a lot are the ones saying they have had little or no problems with bus transportation and the ones that have either never stayed there, stayed only once or have stayed at BWV on a sporadic basis are the ones complaining about the bus service and stating how horrible it is.
Interesting, very interesting.

So, are you saying that just because I've only stayed there once that my experience is invalad? Very interesting indeed.

 

[JVL1018]

Originally posted by DeeP
It is very interesting that the people that stay at BWV a lot are the ones saying they have had little or no problems with bus transportation and the ones that have either never stayed there, stayed only once or have stayed at BWV on a sporadic basis are the ones complaining about the bus service and stating how horrible it is.
Interesting, very interesting.

I stay at BWV for the most part and I am not at all impressed with the bus service..however it is not bad enough to go hiking across Epcot to take the monorail! I will continue to take the MK bus from the BW bus stop

 

[DeeP]

Not saying your experience was invalid just that it was the exception rather than the rule.
From someone that stays at BWV all the time, approx 4 or more trips per year, I can vouch that their bus transportation is fine.
As for the multiple stops, most of the resorts share buses i.e MK & Epcot resorts, value resorts, POFQ & POR, the resorts that do not share buses like OKW, CBR, etc it is because they make just as many stops as the resorts that share and the trips take just as long as the resorts that share, it is just that they make their mulitple stops all at one resort rather than at different resorts.
You might be a lot happier if you rent a car and drive yourself during your next trip.

 

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by DeeP
You might be a lot happier if you rent a car and drive yourself during your next trip.

I've stayed at several different resorts from the value to deluxe and BW was my worst experience in bus transportation. But, as you reassure me, I will certainly try BW bus transportation again in hopes of a better experience.

Just my thoughts, as far as the multiple stops at the different resorts goes. I think the difference between the "several stops at one resort" vs "several stops at different resorts" is that it takes longer to get from one resort to another, all the way around the lake & stop signs/lights, etc., than it takes to just go to a different cluster of buildings at say CSR, POR, etc.

Maybe, since, as you admit, you most always stay at BW, you don't have enough recent experience at the other resorts to be able to compare? Just a thought, I'm probably wrong though.

 

[TerriBelle]

Chadm,

We usually use the monorail for transportation once or twice while staying in the EPCOT area because the kids enjoy it, not because it is faster! During our last trip we used it to get home from the MK and we got to sit up front. When we got to Epcot we hit a few rides on our way back to our room. This can work great because in the afternoon/evening lots of people have moved towards WS. We were able to get right on most of the EPCOT rides (except TT - broke again!) We have also used this when MK closes early but EPCOT is still open.

We have also gone this way if we were heading to one of the monorail resorts for dinner. We hit a few rides in EPCOT, get on the monorail, and eat at the resort. Yes, it takes longer but we enjoy the monorail and walking thru EPCOT.

I would give this a try!

 

[Chadm]

Originally posted by JVL1018
I stay at BWV for the most part and I am not at all impressed with the bus service..however it is not bad enough to go hiking across Epcot to take the monorail! I will continue to take the MK bus from the BW bus stop

That's what I've been trying to say all along.