Personal Vehicle vs Resort Shuttles

[Gentry2004]

For us there is enough waiting at the parks themselves. We don't need to stand in a bus line on top of it all. We always drive. But we are also early rope droppers so we get good close parking at all of the parks.

 

[yulilin3]

Pros and Cons to everything
I like having my own car because:
It saves time
You are in your car, not sandwiched between people, in a crowded bus, with crying babies, smelly odors...This is especially true at the end of the day. Also after the night time spectaculars, depending on how fast you get out, you have to wait for a second bus and sometimes a third bus to come around

I like taking the bus:
You don't have to worry about driving
If you don't have a designated driver, you can enjoy adult beverages until park closing
Don't have to worry about parking and taking the tram to the entrance or walking

The only exception for me is MK, I don't like the fact that you have to take a monorail or ferry to the MK

 

[bryanb]

I like boarding the monorail or ferry to visit Magic Kingdom park. The ride across the lake, with the castle in the distance, feels like I'm being transported out of the real world and into a far off place. It is a wonderful moment of anticipation, reflection, and excitement.

But it can be a real slog back at the end of the night, wait in line for the monorail or ferry, then stand shoulder to shoulder when you're already exhausted, then have to wait in line for the tram. Then board the tram. Then finally find your car. Then drive your car back to the hotel.

 

[finedice]

We are car people. We love having some personal items, snacks, and cold beverages in a cooler just outside the gates in the trunk, the solace and quiet of our time together on the short drives around the world, and the ability to quickly change plans on the fly and go or stop anywhere we want easily and at the drop of a hat. Having tried the busses on occasion, I think a car is much quicker too. I do agree with others about the bus to MK though, mostly because of the exit bottlenecks over extra time getting in, however, there can also be long waits for resort busses at MK closing time, in addition to ferries/monorails.

 

[PollyannaMom]

We went from being car people, to being bus people, to a mix.

The first couple of times we went, we stayed offsite, so we drove. But it was kind of stressful for DH driving in an unfamiliar area.

Once we began staying on Disney property, we went carless and loved leaving it all to the professionals!

The last couple of trips, we've stayed on property, but had a car because we spent a few days with relatives in Tavares before heading to Orlando. - It was great to have options! We took the car to the Waterpark, to a couple of ADRs at other resorts, and to HS on our last day (checked out, half day at park, late flight). The rest of the time, we happily took the busses.

 

[melanielll]

We stay at The Contemporary - so we walk to the MK. But - we take our car (or our rental if we have flown) everywhere else. We only have problems when we are going to different parks that aren't MK. Then - the person with the smaller group (usually my husband - his tastes are a bit different that the rest of us) is on the bus. On our last trip it took him over an hour to get to Hollywood Studios from The Contemporary and almost an hour and a half to get to Animal Kingdom from the hotel.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

We consider taking the buses as part of the experience!

 

[GillianP1301]

We always drive around WDW property. The only exception I've had so far is MK from WL because the drive to the TTC would take longer than the bus ride + I really like the water taxi. This year we are staying at CR, so we will drive everywhere except MK because we'll have the resort monorail available to us.

For me personally, I just don't like waiting for a bus or being crowded onto a bus. Countless mornings I pull out of a resort parking lot in my car and pass by long lines of people waiting on a bus that is nowhere in site knowing that I will more than likely arrive at my destination before they are even on their way.

 

[stazmatic]

Two great reasons to take the bus: going to MK for anything/going to Epcot to drink.
Any other time I would drive my own car.

 

[tsme]

We always use Disney transportation even though we drive there. It's just easier not to have to worry or have the added stress of driving to the parks, etc. In the case of a dining reservation, where taking the bus would take too long, we take a cab. It's worth it to be stress free.

 

[scrapquitler]

Bus is easier/faster for MK because the parking lots are not near the park and you need to take a tram to the transportation center then either the monorail or a ferry to the park. At the other parks, your own car will likely be faster.

 

[disneyvoice]

We greatly prefer to drive to the parks. However, lately we seem to be taking the buses more because there are many more opportunities for an adult beverage in all the parks. We aren't getting smashed or anything but it is nice to not have to worry about whether or not we can have a drink that looks interesting because we have to drive back to the resort. Often times, however we end up taking a cab or Uber back to the resort. When we are tired at the end of the day waiting for 20 minutes in yet another line is the last thing we want to do. But it frustrates me when we get to the bus stop at the resort and the bus has JUST left. More and more my DH is starting to lean towards a cab or Uber to from the parks.