POLL: WL Transportation

[*Fantasia*]

In your honest opinion...

 

[loubelou]

It's been almost 2 years since we've been at the WL, but we did not encounter any real transportation problems. We had a late seating at O'hana one evening and had to go to the TTC to catch the WL bus back to the resort and had to wait 15-20 minutes at the TTC. Other than that everything was a 10 minutes or less wait. This was during November and the hotel was not very full. Also we didn't really try to get to any of the parks at opening. So, I don't know how bad those first few buses of the day were.

 

[Cindy B]

You don't have a vote for POOR! That is why I couldnt vote. If there was this option I would vote Boat between fair/good (would be excellent if we didnt' stop at FW), and Busses POOR!

We just returned from WL and let me tell you , the bus system was POOR! We are public transportation vets (we commute every day for work), but this was horrible...

The boat was a notch above good, but not exactly excellent. We never had to wait for a boat more than 10 minutes, but it did make me nervous waiting around there with kids near all the loose area near the docks.. my kids are older, but if you had a small kid or stroller.. watch out!

We did stop by boat at FW once, most of the times we caught the Magic Kingdom express boat, it was about a 10 minute boat ride



Busses to everywhere but Epcot were horrible...


We waited over 45 minutes for a Downtown Disney bus, and it never came. 12 other busses came, but not this one. After waiting that long, we just decided to take a Ticket Tran bus and go over to Epcot.


Leaving Animal Kingdom back to WL was horrible as well. Waited over 25 minutes, to a FULL bus (sharing with Grand Floridian), then going to Blizzard Beach (making it an overfull bus), and then going to WL! (it took over an hour)

If we were going to MGM, Animal Kingdom or Downtown Disney area/Water Parks, we drove.

WL truly needs its own bus loop, not sharing with GF, or FW or anyone else for that matter.

 

[SuBeat]

It always gives me a chuckle to see how much attention transportation at the WL gets around here. I guess I just don't see what all the fuss is about. I know everyone's experience is different, but I think a lot of it boils down to a different perspective on the whole issue. I'm not in a huge rush when I'm on vacation, if we have a special time to be somewhere we allow for it. Getting there is half the fun to us.

My DH will probably never want to try another resort simply because of the boat ride, he loves it that much. We never waited more than 10 minutes for a boat, if that, either way. When we had to stop at Ft. Wilderness it never took more than a couple of minutes.

Riding the buses was like, well, riding buses. Most of the time they were there very promptly. The only exception was the one to Downtown Disney, which we waited about 45 minutes for, then saw 3 come back to back. Buses to the parks were frequent. As for the stops along the way, I would have been much more aggravated if I was staying at the GF and had a full bus pull up every morning with standing room for only a few more. We enjoyed the ride, took in the scenery, and made conversation with our fellow travelers. If having to go a few minutes out of the way bothers you, you might prefer to drive yourself.

It seems there are sacrifices to be made no matter where you stay. You either have to share with another resort or have multiple stops within a resort. I've read plenty of complaints about all the stops at CBR. We've stayed there too and didn't find it to be a big deal either. Like I mentioned before, it all comes down to your own expectations and perspective. For us, the transportation at WL suits us just fine, YMMV.

 

[*Fantasia*]

Thanks loubelou and Cindy B for your input. Cindy, I didn't add the "poor", ' cause I didn't think it anyone would say that the transportation would be that bad. Sorry your experience was not good as far as the transp. I am debating whether to stay at WL or not. Transportation is important to me. Any more comments are welcome!

 

[NotTooGoofy]

My family are staying at WL in Dec and it will be interesting to see the results of this poll. Fortunately, we are driving down so we'll likely drive to DD versus waiting on the bus.

We've stayed at a number of on-site resorts and it always seemed that other resort busses arrived more often than the one for our resort.

 

[dpic]

Boat to Magic Kindom was fun. For Epcot, we used the boat to Contemporary then Monorail. Used a car for other places. Never tried the bus. Our experience when we stayed at Fort Wilderness on our last trip was that it was too slow, so we didn't bother when we stayed at Wilderness Logde this trip. Car was very easy to use and much faster.

 

[Peter Pirate]

You didn't list my choice! Boat= fair, bus=deplorable.

 

[skiwee1]

Didn't have my vote either. I vote POOR for both bus and boat!

 

[NoodlesTheRabbit]

We had No problems with the transportation for our trip. We never had to wait more than a few minutes for a boat. We also really enjoyed the ride...quick but scenic! The buses were fine...we only had to wait a while (15 mins) for a bus to DTD. By the way, WL is incredible!

 

[Antiguan]

I just stayed a week at WL and I had no problems with either the boat or the bus. We never waited more than ten minutes for either to anywhere. When we were tired or in a hurry the other hotel stops were a pain, but if you know they are there then you sit back and enjoy the drive. I have young kids and they bus ride was all part of the fun for them

 

[rampfive]

Just returned this day Saturday Sept. 6th from WL. Lodge was less than 40% full according to CMs. Transportation to all parks was very good. Transportation to and from Downtown Disney
takes a long time with one stop going and two stops on the return.

 

[timC]

Having a boat as a transportation alternative is excellent, no matter how long the wait. I'm sure they are more expensive to operate than buses, so having WDW maintain this mode as a primary option to WDW's best theme park is a real plus. Excellent!

As for buses... I've stayed at a number of resorts, moderates, deluxe, and DVC... Honestly, I really don't notice a difference. IMO it's simply a matter of circumstance as to whether you have a long wait or not. The buses are clean. The drivers are friendly. They are complimentary. Excellent!

 

[mep319]

You have boat & bus fair...and boat fair/bus fair...wasn't sure where to vote. Personally I'm for boat fair/bus poor! I overall was not pleased w/ the transportation at WL...I do not like that they share with the campground.

 

[crystalb]

The service was very good for us, with a MINOR exception of getting to DTD. But I have yet stayed at any WDW resort where transportation to and from DTD was above par.
I think Disney proimotes DTD very well. They just don't get guests there and back in a timely enough manner to really make it worthwhile, unless you spend a lot of time there.
The only resort we experienced POOR bus service was POR. And that does make a big impact on a trip. Seems simple and nit picky. But it does makle a big difference in attitude.

 

[*Fantasia*]

Thank you all for replying and voting. Sorry I didn't include the word "POOR" and I know there's a few double-double there.

 

[Sanchez]

This is my favorite (in a strange way) topic. We love WL and will be there again in November. Nevertheless, the transportation is the worst we have experienced at WDW. This is a deluxe resort and thus the transportation should be much better. The problem is that WL does not have its own bus loop. I am not politically correct in saying that guests at WL are paying far more than AS guests but are receiving much less in transportation amenities.

We are lucky to be within driving distance of WDW and will drive to DTD. Mk is ok with boat travel. EPCOT, AK and MGM are slow - be prepared for a 45 minute trip.

In February our bus driver told us that all drivers are now dispatched to needed areas. Since WL is somewhat out of the way it does not always get priority.

If you are heading to a park early you should not have a problem. Mid-morning and afternoon are problematic.

Overall, WL is a wonderful experience. We have always visited during less crowded times when transportation is not critical.

 

[TooBoyz4us]

Thankyou for this thread Fantasia !

WL Transportation is one of the areas we have been reading alot about recently.And and area I need to learn more about before we make our resort choice for our next trip.

 

[girlsx2]

We were at the WL the last week of value season in Feb and never had a problem with the bus or the boat. There was only one time that the bus was so crowded that some people had to stand, but other than that, all was fine.

 

[Bear Necessities]

We just got back on the 24th and we never had a problem at all with either the busses or the boat. One of the things we enjoy so much is the boat rides to/from the contemporary and to MK> All 5 of us including the 2 yr old enjoyed it and he never complained a bit. We never waited for a boat for more than 5 minutes, and more often than not there was one waiting for us. Yes the ride to your destination is slow, but really isnt that the point?? If I had wanted a speed boat I would have rented a watermouse. LOL As far as the busses go, we never waited more than 10 minutes for one either --to ANY destination. The bus drivers were great too, one in particular was very informative, as one of the days we were there we had a tornado warning and apparently one had touched down (possibly a water spout) anyway, he was very informative and updated us on temp, conditions and everything so we were informed also. More info than we had just recieved from the Monorail only 1/2 hr before. Hope this helps .