Moderate vs Deluxe - bus service

[3gr8boys]

I have been mulling over the possibility of going deluxe on our next trip....the trade off would be space. I was leaning toward a CSR junior suite until my husband said "Aren't there hotels with monorails?" Mind you, he is envisioning a hotel that, for not much more $$ than the standard CSR reservation we had recently, will provide speedy monorail service to all the parks. I know better....but it did get me thinking. Do we stay at a Deluxe.....perhaps BWI so we can walk to HS and Epcot......or do I use $ for more space at CSR and perhaps some other splurges (ETA: left out that DH's monorail comment led to him sharing that he doesn't really like the buses (again, he doesn't really know what the options actually are))

Here is what I am specifically wondering at the moment- is the bus system better (faster? More frequent? Less crowded? Whatever better may mean) at Deluxe Resorts???

Note that my husband has zero intention of ubering and I don't like the idea of driving because I like hopping on a whim. I also should point out that we didn't really have any bus issues during our recent CSR stay - just a couple of "long" waits and a few trips without seats.)

 

[Sue M]

Busses are not any faster, more freq. They may be less crowded as the deluxe have less rooms than moderates (except POFQ). Epcot resorts have the advantage of walking to 2 parks. Or boat to DHS.
But....the deluxe do share busses. BC/YC share and the Monorail resorts share. GF shares with WL, Poly & CR share depending on what park. Poly has good transportation because you can walk to the TTC to get Epcot monorail.
BWI will share with Swan/Dolphin to get to MK and AK.

 

[3gr8boys]

Busses are not any faster, more freq. They may be less crowded as the deluxe have less rooms than moderates (except POFQ). Epcot resorts have the advantage of walking to 2 parks. Or boat to DHS.
But....the deluxe do share busses. BC/YC share and the Monorail resorts share. GF shares with WL, Poly & CR share depending on what park. Poly has good transportation because you can walk to the TTC to get Epcot monorail.
BWI will share with Swan/Dolphin to get to MK and AK.

Great info- thanks!

 

[Wild4Walt]

That's a tough one. The monorail hotels ( unless part of a special ) are going to be quite high in comparison. Now something you could look into is renting points for one of the DVC rooms at GFV, Poly or BLT. They are extremely hard to come by, but you may get lucky.

If you are both EP and HS fans and think you would spend a lot of time at those parks, then BWI or YV/BC may be worth the extra money. Keep in mind that the rooms at BC, not all have your typical balcony so when booking make sure you are requesting the correct room type.

Unless the theme at one of the other Deluxe was a driving, ( meaning the animals at AKL or you like the look and vibe at WL ) then I would stick with more space.

 

[3gr8boys]

That's a tough one. The monorail hotels ( unless part of a special ) are going to be quite high in comparison. Now something you could look into is renting points for one of the DVC rooms at GFV, Poly or BLT. They are extremely hard to come by, but you may get lucky.

If you are both EP and HS fans and think you would spend a lot of time at those parks, then BWI or YV/BC may be worth the extra money. Keep in mind that the rooms at BC, not all have your typical balcony so when booking make sure you are requesting the correct room type.

Unless the theme at one of the other Deluxe was a driving, ( meaning the animals at AKL or you like the look and vibe at WL ) then I would stick with more space.

I do like the theming/environs at CSR and would be trying a Deluxe just for any transportation benefit ..... Will have to consider whether being able to walk to a couple of parks or monorail to a couple of parks is worth the trade-off.

 

[Lynne M]

I have been mulling over the possibility of going deluxe on our next trip....the trade off would be space. I was leaning toward a CSR junior suite until my husband said "Aren't there hotels with monorails?" Mind you, he is envisioning a hotel that, for not much more $$ than the standard CSR reservation we had recently, will provide speedy monorail service to all the parks. I know better....but it did get me thinking. Do we stay at a Deluxe.....perhaps BWI so we can walk to HS and Epcot......or do I use $ for more space at CSR and perhaps some other splurges (ETA: left out that DH's monorail comment led to him sharing that he doesn't really like the buses (again, he doesn't really know what the options actually are))

Here is what I am specifically wondering at the moment- is the bus system better (faster? More frequent? Less crowded? Whatever better may mean) at Deluxe Resorts???

Note that my husband has zero intention of ubering and I don't like the idea of driving because I like hopping on a whim. I also should point out that we didn't really have any bus issues during our recent CSR stay - just a couple of "long" waits and a few trips without seats.)

The moderates and deluxes don't have separate bus systems - it's all one transportation system that's dispatched to serve the theme parks, resorts, water parks and Disney Springs. So no, there's no difference in that sense. Same buses, same drivers.

There are aspects to transportation that vary from one resort to another, and that's what's best to focus on when making your decision. For instance, as you mentioned, some resorts are within walking distance to one or more parks. Some offer several different modes of transportation (buses, monorails, boats). Some have one bus stop for the entire resort (like GF), some have multiple stops within the resort (like SSR). Some resorts tend to share buses with other resorts, some tend not to.

 

[IrishNYC]

You really have to look at where you'll be and whether the additional transportation option is worth the additional cost for what your plans are. We're doing a split stay on our next trip - 2 days at Pop while we do Epcot and HS, then moving to the Poly while we do 2 days at MK and a day at AK. I was originally going to choose BC or YC over Poly, but it makes no sense for us to be there then we're not going to be at either of the nearby parks while we're there. When DH and I go back next year without DD we plan to do Epcot and AK, so we'll stay in an Epcot resort.

 

[Babsy]

Something else to think about:
Consider booking at the Swan/Dolphin where you might be able to book for about the same as a moderate (with a discount) and still have the advantage of being able to walk to DHS and Epcot (or take the boat to either).

 

[Smittolis]

Have a look into some of the site sponsored TA special rates, I've had great luck booking through them. I just swapped out 3 nights at the Contemporary for the Polynesian and saved even more money over the great price we got in the first place. So sometimes, if you can work and find the right people (and your vacation is at the right time), moving into the Deluxe resorts isn't necessarily all that more expensive than moderates. The price on our Poly is the cheapest I have ever seen or heard of.

 

[AdamEfimoff]

The real advantage with some of the deluxe is that you can walk close to the parks like Yacht Club. Like the Contemporary is there is literally adjacent to magic kingdom. You could walk to it. I am not sure if you have to uber to downtown Disney/disney springs. Or if that is only a four seasons thing

 

[3gr8boys]

Something else to think about:
Consider booking at the Swan/Dolphin where you might be able to book for about the same as a moderate (with a discount) and still have the advantage of being able to walk to DHS and Epcot (or take the boat to either).

I will check it out. Any idea if the walking distance is similar to that of BWI?

 

[AdamEfimoff]

you could just use the mini vans or the more exclusive bus service or am I making things up again? or vip tours

 

[3gr8boys]

You really have to look at where you'll be and whether the additional transportation option is worth the additional cost for what your plans are. We're doing a split stay on our next trip - 2 days at Pop while we do Epcot and HS, then moving to the Poly while we do 2 days at MK and a day at AK. I was originally going to choose BC or YC over Poly, but it makes no sense for us to be there then we're not going to be at either of the nearby parks while we're there. When DH and I go back next year without DD we plan to do Epcot and AK, so we'll stay in an Epcot resort.

Interesting strategy....I have never really been attracted to the idea of split stays...but also never considered that it would be a way to change transportation options.

 

[3gr8boys]

The real advantage with some of the deluxe is that you can walk close to the parks like Yacht Club. Like the Contemporary is there is literally adjacent to magic kingdom. You could walk to it. I am not sure if you have to uber to downtown Disney/disney springs. Or if that is only a four seasons thing

I had thought about the Contemporary too....as we will visit MK multiple times. Though I do like the idea of being able to walk to a park (or two) from a Deluxe, I am now thinking it will make more sense to spend the $ for more space instead of trying to go crazy guessing which transportation options will be most efficient/least cumbersome.

 

[MomOTwins]

I really disagree with the posts that say bus service is the same at a deluxe and a moderate. The "catch" is the amount of time spent getting from the resort entrance to your room. When we were at POR, the bus went around the ENTIRE resort loop before it stopped at the main building. This meant (1) when we were waiting to be picked up at the main building, we often saw already-full buses whizzing by and leaving us behind, and (2) when returning tired late at night we had to wait, and wait, and wait again at each stop until we reached the one closest to our room (we once tried getting out at the first stop and walking -- bad idea; it was a 30 minute walk to our room! Deluxes are pretty much one and done: there is only one bus stop, and the rooms are all a VERY short walk from it.

 

[IrishNYC]

Interesting strategy....I have never really been attracted to the idea of split stays...but also never considered that it would be a way to change transportation options.

I wasnt into split stays either until I had to do one last year because we needed to add a day and only a different resort was available. It was honestly so easy that I’ll do them again for longer trips. Our 2 value + 4 deluxe is costing less than 6 moderate nights last year did and we’re going the same exact dates.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I have been mulling over the possibility of going deluxe on our next trip....the trade off would be space. I was leaning toward a CSR junior suite until my husband said "Aren't there hotels with monorails?" Mind you, he is envisioning a hotel that, for not much more $$ than the standard CSR reservation we had recently, will provide speedy monorail service to all the parks. I know better....but it did get me thinking. Do we stay at a Deluxe.....perhaps BWI so we can walk to HS and Epcot......or do I use $ for more space at CSR and perhaps some other splurges (ETA: left out that DH's monorail comment led to him sharing that he doesn't really like the buses (again, he doesn't really know what the options actually are))

Here is what I am specifically wondering at the moment- is the bus system better (faster? More frequent? Less crowded? Whatever better may mean) at Deluxe Resorts???

Note that my husband has zero intention of ubering and I don't like the idea of driving because I like hopping on a whim. I also should point out that we didn't really have any bus issues during our recent CSR stay - just a couple of "long" waits and a few trips without seats.)

The bus system is the same but based on usage of lines. For instance, there are probably less overall buses that go to TTC as a destination from the monorail hotels because those hotels also have other transport methods. With ongoing traffic pattern studies and Disney knows how many buses to assign to each area.

Much of the pricing differences between deluxe, moderate, and value hotels is based on quantity and ease of transportation. As my grandmothers used to say you pay with money or time and sometimes both.

All our WDW vacs have been spent at monorail hotels to date and it's been a breeze getting everywhere excepting AKL. So since we are only going for a week this 4th of July we too decided that a split stay would give us the best use of time. 1st part of trip will be at the Contemporary for an easy walk into MK and bus ride to AK. 2nd part will be @ YC for ease to get to HS, Epcot and DS. No cars needed or parking costs.

 

[Sarahslay]

Busses are not any faster, more freq. They may be less crowded as the deluxe have less rooms than moderates (except POFQ). Epcot resorts have the advantage of walking to 2 parks. Or boat to DHS.
But....the deluxe do share busses. BC/YC share and the Monorail resorts share. GF shares with WL, Poly & CR share depending on what park. Poly has good transportation because you can walk to the TTC to get Epcot monorail.
BWI will share with Swan/Dolphin to get to MK and AK.

Whenever we stayed at WL the only time we shared a bus with anyone was coming back from AK and sharing a bus with CR. Other than that we never have had to share a bus, I found that the buses were less crowded than at moderates (especially at larger ones like POR), and only once had to wait an extended length of time for a bus probably because we just missed a bus. I do enjoy the monorail resorts for their ease of getting to and from all the parks but AK, but they are pricier.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

How many are in your party? If you are willing to spend more money, why not look into a 1 or 2 bedroom villa at a MK or EP resort. Swan/Dolphin also offer larger rooms for families at a lower cost, typically, than a standard deluxe room. Yes, you can walk to DHS and EP from Swan/Dolphin.

 

[Nancyg56]

I do like the theming/environs at CSR and would be trying a Deluxe just for any transportation benefit ..... Will have to consider whether being able to walk to a couple of parks or monorail to a couple of parks is worth the trade-off.

My family tends to stay Deluxe now, and transportation is one of the main reasons. WE look at that parks we will spend the most time at and choose a resort based on that decision. I also look at how much time we will spend at the resort and how the family will spend that time. Pool time is one of the draws for us, as is dining. We like to have restaurants at or near our resort. Personally, we tend to choose the monorail resorts more often (my family thinks the monorail is the best attraction in WDW)