More questions...

[estherhead]

Hi all, me again, the electricity girl from a week ago. We are now three weeks away and trying to figure out if we should bring bikes for the kids. Normally when we camp we do bring bikes, just to ride for fun. Because there are so many of us, we would only have room for the children's bikes in our vehicles so we can't use them for practical uses, like getting to the pool.

We are planning on being in the 2000 loop (hopefully) and are wondering if it is safe for our little kids (preschoolers-elementary) to ride their bikes on the loop road just for fun.

If not, then we think we may skip the bikes altogether and just walk or take the internal buses. My understanding from scouring this board for info is that you can walk to the Meadows from the 2030-2040 sites over a bridge to the 900's and that it takes about 10 minutes OR you have to take a purple bus and transfer? Is it also the purple bus to get to the marina?

If we were to stay on site 2031 what is the best/shortest way to get to the marina at 7:30 a.m.? We have an early ressie at the MK on our first day and need to be there at 8:00 a.m.

So to sum up:

Bikes for preschoolers or not?
How easy is the walking with a double stroller?
How to get to MK early in the a.m.?
Is it easier to walk around than take buses from the purple zone?

 

[mkrober]

Yes-
Absolutely on the bikes. My daughter learned how to ride without training wheels at FW. There are sidewalks that connect all of the loops, including the meadow pool and settlement outpost(marina). Just use common sense about crossing roads and bus stops. The loops are generally safe to ride in, but be mindful of golf carts and occasional camper traffic. The golf carts are usually being driven faster than campers.

All buses eventually go to the marina, they just use different routes to get there.

There earliest way to get to MK in the morning is to take one of the smaller boats (they launch on the right side of the marina dock) to the Contemporary Resort. This first boat arrives at the FW marina at 6:45am. Walk through the Hotel, past the bus stop and parking lot, following the sidewalk to the Magic Kingdom. This is about a 8-10 minute walk from the dock to the gates of MK, or the equivalent of walking from Space Mountain to POTC.

 

[estherhead]

Thanks. So I think we'll bring the three kid bikes but not ours. And we'll walk to the pool and campfire and ride the bus to the marina. We'll just drive to the other three parks.

 

[Born 2 Fish]

Of course the part about "safe to ride bikes" on the loop is to be done with due respect for traffic. I wouldn't let my young ones to bike up and down the roads UNLESS I was with them and watching them.
WAY to many times while driving a loop I've had young ones dart out in front of me and parents no where to be seen.

FW is a campground with traffic, lots of parents think well it is Disney and simply turn their children loose once the arrive. Children always need to be watched, even at Disney.

this post isn't intended to be negative, just want our youngns to be safe,

 

[retired and happy]

I would take the busses to the other parks too. There's lots to see along the way and the drivers know their stuff. We never drive to ANY of the parks.

 

[skyp4WDW]

You can also rent bikes ($18. per day) at the Bike Barn. Then you could ride around with your kids.

 

[estherhead]

I would take the busses to the other parks too. There's lots to see along the way and the drivers know their stuff. We never drive to ANY of the parks.

If we have a car, we normally will drive to the other parks even when staying on site. It's just faster and I figured with having to transfer buses it would be even faster with our own car. I like staying on property as our family can split up and the ones who stay at the park can take the buses home while the ones who go back to the resort after lunch can take the car. But generally in the a.m. we drive.

How long would you say it takes to get from a campsite via Ft. Wilderness bus to Settlement to a DHS bus to actually get to DHS. 45 minutes? And how long would it take to drive and tram/walk to the front?

 

[marclichon]

Of course the part about "safe to ride bikes" on the loop is to be done with due respect for traffic. I wouldn't let my young ones to bike up and down the roads UNLESS I was with them and watching them.
WAY to many times while driving a loop I've had young ones dart out in front of me and parents no where to be seen.

FW is a campground with traffic, lots of parents think well it is Disney and simply turn their children loose once the arrive. Children always need to be watched, even at Disney.

this post isn't intended to be negative, just want our youngns to be safe,

Agreed; we brought our bikes a few weeks ago and enjoyed many early-morning rides and exploration (looping). Actually, I couldn't imagine not camping with bikes

But, as stated above, while The Fort seems to be safer than other campgrounds (due to available internal transportation, which your average CG doesn't have) it still has real roads and within the last year or two a boy died at FW on his bike so it can happen . It seems that, not just at The Fort but all over the resort, people think that Disney is a giant daycare with walls and don't provide the same level of oversight that they would at a public park.

 

[2goofycampers]

How long would you say it takes to get from a campsite via Ft. Wilderness bus to Settlement to a DHS bus to actually get to DHS. 45 minutes? And how long would it take to drive and tram/walk to the front?

We always allow 1 hour of travel time when using WDW bus transportation from our site to the park entrance.