Parking at another resort

[mrsbono]

On our last day at Disney, we have a reservation for dinner at the Polynesian. We're staying at Pop Century. My plan is to park at the Polynesian in the morning, take the monorail or boat to MK for the day, take the monorail or boat back to the Polynesian, and leave to drive home from there.
So, my question is, will I have a problem parking at the Polynesian?

 

[baler31]

When you check in at the guard station for the poly they will have your name on the dining reservation list and issue you a 3 hour dining parking pass. If you want to park for longer you will need to pay for valet parking.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

I agree that in your situation it's best to Valet Park because there isn't a 3 hour parking limit. Plus this way you won't need to take up a self parking spot from someone staying at the Polynesian.

 

[glocon]

Is there a charge for valet parking or just a tip? What is a normal tip amount?

 

[minnie mum]

I can't remember the exact amount but I thought it was either $12 or $14. Plus tip. So you're not really saving any money by parking at a monorail resort instead of parking at the TTC with everybody else who drives to MK.

 

[catne]

it is $12 to valet park, then you give a tip to the guy who brings your car when you pick up ($2 is common tip amount) There is no time limit on the valet parking, unless you leave your car overnight...then they'd charge another $12
.
We often use valet parking for the convenience of it...in exactly the circumstances you're talking about (going to MK, with a dinner reservation at a monorail resort.) Works like a charm, and is worth the cost to us (we would have free parking, anyway, since we stay at Disney hotels and have annual pass...both of which give free parking at the theme park lots.)

If you're eating at the hotel, you can do the 3-hour parking for free...but the problem is they usually check your name off the reservations list at the monorail resorts (to discourage people from parking there and going to the parks.) And, we have stayed at both the Contemporary and the Polynesian and watched them tow cars from the lots, so at times they actually do enforce the no-parking-ban. There have been times when we have seen them turning people away at the guard kiosk (you either had to be on the list of restaurant reservations, or a hotel guest at the Polynesian or they told you to turn around, no admittance. That was on a Saturday night, last spring, not a busy weekend.)

But if you're paying for valet parking, they don't care (the valet parking spots do not take away from people who are staying at the resort...the valet guys told us they just keep parking further away if they over-flow the valet spots.)

Your other option if you want free parking is of course to just park at the Transportation & Ticket Center, if you're checking out of a Disney hotel that morning, you'll still have a free parking card for your window. Then you take the boat or monorail to MK for the day...take monorail or boat to the Polynesian for your dinner reservation and then you can either take the monorail back to the Transportation & Ticket Center if you're really tired...or it is just a short walk (maybe 10 min) from the Polynesian to the Transportation & Ticket Center

 

[M5ward]

The Contemporary, the Polynesian and the Beach Club give guests not staying at those resorts a 3-hour parking pass to allow shopping or dining at these resorts. Parking at any of the resorts to gain access to the theme parks is not allowed. Disney resorts may ask for a photo ID before allowing entry. Some Disney resorts may also ask for an Advance Dining Reservation number from guests who are dining at the resort before allowing access to the resort parking lot.

We stayed at Bay Lake Tower in January and saw a security (?) guy in the parking lot checking vehicless (for parking passes, I guess.). This was followed by a tow truck that removed a couple of cars. We saw this guy ( or his counterpart) going through the lot on more than one occasion.

 

[mrsbono]

Thanks for the great info everyone! I guess we'll just wait and see how tired we are by our last day, to make our decision.

 

[camandjacksmom]

We were there in February and were not given a parking pass nor asked where we were dining. We had reservations for dinner at Ohana one night and Kona on the other. We were parked for 5 hours both times without problems. I just dont think I would try all day unless you plan on eating there twice like breakfast at Ohana and dinner at Kona!