Pop Century to Magic Kingdom early AM

[aeg42]

Will be at WDW with my son next Fri-Sun and staying at Pop Century. Have character breakfast reservations at Crystal Palace on Sat and Hollywood & Vine on Sun. Both are at 8:15. What time would people recommend we get on the bus each day to make it to the park a little before breakfast so we can get some cool pics in the empty park?

Thanks much in advance!

 

[minnie mum]

Crowds will be heavy all that week, and lots of people will be there for the early rope drop (DHS has morning EMH on Sun.) I'd go as early as possible. Buses will start running around 6:30. You definitely will want to be at the bus stop by 7:00.

 

[aeg42]

I thought the EMH on the 30th are in the evening? Did I read the schedule wrong? And do I really need to get there that early if the park opens at 9 and I have an 8:15 breakfast res?

 

[minnie mum]

I thought the EMH on the 30th are in the evening? Did I read the schedule wrong? And do I really need to get there that early if the park opens at 9 and I have an 8:15 breakfast res?

You are right of course. I should know better than to read those calendars after midnight, when I'm tired.

You will still want to get to the bus stop early. You need to allow extra time in case you just miss a bus. And allow time to get through security and into the park. Plus, they recommend that you arrive 15 minutes before your ADR. Who wants to be running down Hollywood Blvd because they're running late, when you could be strolling, taking in the scenery, and grabbing some low crowd photos? They will probably start admitting early ADR guests around 7:45, if not earlier.

 

[Anri]

I would still plan on getting there pretty early. I agree that trying to head to the buses at 7/7:15 seems ideal. There will most likely be lines starting to form for the buses because people like to arrive early (sometimes an hour or more ahead of time) for rope drop, especially when the crowds will already be very high. I don't have the schedule in front of me, but if there is a morning EMH at Hollywood Studios you may want to head over there even earlier. It's also going to take time to get to the park, and then to get from the bus to the actual gate. The bus for POP is one of the farthest buses from the actual park gates so, though it is not that far, can still take a bit of a walk, especially if you have a little one in tow.

 

[aeg42]

How long is the actual bus ride from Pop Century to Magic Kingdom and/or Hollywood Studios? Pop Century has its own buses that don't stop anywhere else, right?