POR bus service

[irish dancer]

Not sure if this belongs here or on the resort board or budget board but here goes. We are planning out Aug vacation and trying to keep the budget down. Eliminating the rental car will save us a couple hundred dollars, we would use ME and then on-site transportation. What do you think? How is/would bus service at POR be like in mid-August. We have always had a car so I'm afraid we'll miss the convenience.

 

[the kabuki]

IMO, keep the rental car. This past Jan was the 1st time we ever rented one, and I'll never do without it again. Just loved not having to wait in line, especially at the end of the night, being able to go off site for dinner and souveneirs, no standing in the bus aisles, holding sleeping children, folding strollers, carrying packages.

We stopped at Walmart's and bought all of our breakfast food along with water, and snacks for the week, saved enough not buying that at the resort or parks to just about pay for the rental(we're a family of 5 so that stuff adds up)

As for ME, have not been reading good things about it here on the boards.

 

[SAWYERMAW1]

In the past we've rented cars and never moved them from the parking lot. IMO it's so much easier to take the bus. That's part of the Disney experience for my family. And, of course, staying at POR you have the bus to DTD which is really a fun thing to do.

 

[crow11ad]

You will miss the convience. We took the bus in April of 04 and got a rental car for December. Now for October we are getting one. We are flying into Boyenton Beach to visit my dad and then 7 days at disney. Good thing we can drop off the car in Orlando. But hey 7 day car rental with unlimited miles...for 150.00. I will take it...oh wait.. We did...

 

[KayakDaddy]

We are always driving our own car when we are at Disney, because our trips are combined with visits to my parents in Florida. Typically, we park the car when we arrive, and do not see it again until we check out and leave. I have nothing but good things to say about Disney's transportation system in general. I love that the busses drop you off right at the front door and you don't have to worry about long walks or waits for trams in from the parking lots. The only time I prefer driving our own car is if we are doing a water park.

As for you specific question about POR, we've stayed at POFQ and have not problem with the bus system. It is wise to use common sense and not travel when everyone else will be on the buses, cause they get crowded at park closings, etc. The bus to and from Downtown Disney surprisingly took forever, but the theme park buses were not that bad.

 

[kjs1976]

We liked the bus service at POFQ because we were usually the first on and off and always got a seat...THEN we would go to at least 3-4 bus stops at POR and pick up them! I'm glad we DIDN'T stay at POR because of the bus service! Even when we got on the bus first, it was a 1/2 hr. average ride to a park after picking up at POR. IMHO..I'd switch to POFQ because it's smaller and has better bus and boat service...but that wasn't your question, was it??!

 

[VickiVM]

We were at POR this time last month and we used ME from and to airport and wegoshop.com for grocery delivery. You'll be fine on the buses. They are not always shared with FQ - it depends on demand, I believe, because sometimes our bus back from parks said Port Orleans and sometimes it said Riverside.

If being in the parks within 15 min after walking out your door is important - get a car. We always got to our depot early in the morning. I don't think we had waits at the depot that ever exceeded 15 min going to parks the whole time we were there. Coming back the waits sometimes were 20-30 minutes, but we weren't particularly bothered with this.

 

[jcemom]

We were at POR earlier this month and never waited for a bus more than 10 minutes coming or going. We do not like to drive on vacation. We rented a car once, last February, and it was a total waste of money.

 

[Lizzybee]

We were there over Spring Break which is supposed to be a very busy time and we only had one day where we waited more than 5 mins for a bus. It was a Saturday early EMH at AK and we waited a bit under 30 mins that time. There was also a long wait to leave AK that day because there was a torrential downpour that lasted quite a long time so lots of people left. We didn't actually wait for a bus that time though, we hopped a bus to CBR then from there took the next bus going to any park, which ended up being MGM, then back to POR. Of our 7 days, that was the only day we had problems. Overall the bus service is great. I figure this was a fluke.

 

[melanie03ok]

We've used Disney transportation and our car. I much prefer to use my own car or rental. Not only is it quicker, but after a long day in the parks, I just want a little more space and not have a 20-30 minute ride with other hot, tired, and crabby people. I must be getting grumpy in my old age.

BTW, my oldest dd is an Irish Dancer too. We missed GP and Marysville last weekend, but have heard that they were great. Now we just have to get ready for this weekend with the Dayton/Cinci pair.

Do you think we could ever convince someone to hold a feis at Disney? I know several years ago Nationals were in Orlando, but we weren't in ID at the time.

 

[LittleMermaidsMom]

We just got home Tuesday from a week stay at POFQ... we've always rented a car in the past but this time I thought we'd try using the transportation. The ME went smoothly and we were at our resort about an hour after our plane landed, but by the third day of using the buses I couldn't stand it anymore and we ended up getting a rental car.

Maybe we just had some bad luck with the transportation, or maybe I was just used to the convenience of having a car, but I would NEVER go without renting a car again. The buses were almost always crowded and we had to stand (not an easy thing to do with just me and my 4-year old and her stroller); we missed our PS at Chef Mickey's because it took almost an hour and a half to get there; we tried to use the ferry twice to DTD but both times we stood in line for about 20 mins. and then they stopped the ferry service because of thunderstorms; then one night leaving the MK we tried to get to the Poly for dinner but the monorail was having "technical difficulties" and we had to wait about 30 mins. until it started running again.

If you are planning on doing a lot of dining at the resorts, I would definitely keep the rental car - it's just my opinion and I know a lot of people feel otherwise, but it seems like we wasted several hours a day using the transportation; once we got the rental car, we could get almost anywhere on property within 10-15 mins. and the parking and trams were really not a problem.

You could always go ahead and try using the buses and if it's not for you, it's very easy to rent a vehicle from the MK Car Care Center, which is what we did.

 

[Catrin]

I agree with the poster above.

This was my first WDW vacation without a car. It was just my 10 yr old and me.... we used DME from the airport, and the busses all week.

I missed the car! DH would always drive.. so I am not sure how I would do driving.. but it seemed we wasted so much time waiting for busses all weekend.
The worst was when I had dinner at 'Ohana. I waited almost 20 mins for the bus to MK, then the monorail to Poly. I read where it said give yourself an hour to get there... and that is what it took!

We only went for four nights, but if I stayed a week again, there is no doubt I would rent the car.
Catrin

 

[BANNISTER]

I'll cast my vote for NOT getting the rental car if you want to save that money. We drove down from Maryland several years ago and over the course of one week moved our car one time to drive to Chef Mickey's for dinner. We could have used Disney transportation, but we were running extremely late that evening. Otherwise, we took the buses everywhere. We return this summer, just a few weeks away now, and this time we are flying down. We have no plans to rent a car. Using ME and then Disney transportation all the way.

 

[the kabuki]

We just got home Tuesday from a week stay at POFQ... we've always rented a car in the past but this time I thought we'd try using the transportation. The ME went smoothly and we were at our resort about an hour after our plane landed, but by the third day of using the buses I couldn't stand it anymore and we ended up getting a rental car.

Maybe we just had some bad luck with the transportation, or maybe I was just used to the convenience of having a car, but I would NEVER go without renting a car again. The buses were almost always crowded and we had to stand (not an easy thing to do with just me and my 4-year old and her stroller); we missed our PS at Chef Mickey's because it took almost an hour and a half to get there; we tried to use the ferry twice to DTD but both times we stood in line for about 20 mins. and then they stopped the ferry service because of thunderstorms; then one night leaving the MK we tried to get to the Poly for dinner but the monorail was having "technical difficulties" and we had to wait about 30 mins. until it started running again.

If you are planning on doing a lot of dining at the resorts, I would definitely keep the rental car - it's just my opinion and I know a lot of people feel otherwise, but it seems like we wasted several hours a day using the transportation; once we got the rental car, we could get almost anywhere on property within 10-15 mins. and the parking and trams were really not a problem.

You could always go ahead and try using the buses and if it's not for you, it's very easy to rent a vehicle from the MK Car Care Center, which is what we did.

Where is the MK car care center located and which rental companies are there?

 

[eeyore45]

BTW, my oldest dd is an Irish Dancer too. We missed GP and Marysville last weekend, but have heard that they were great. Now we just have to get ready for this weekend with the Dayton/Cinci pair.

Do you think we could ever convince someone to hold a feis at Disney? I know several years ago Nationals were in Orlando, but we weren't in ID at the time.

My dd is also taking Irish Step Dancing, her teacher told me they are going to Disney, next year,or the year after!!

Glad for all the difrerent experiernces, I'm having to change my POFQ ressies to get our free dining!!

 

[LittleMermaidsMom]

Where is the MK car care center located and which rental companies are there?

It's located near the MK (near the boarding kennels)... there is a free shuttle that will pick you up at your hotel and take you to the rental counter... the agencies are Alamo and National... we got a 5-day rental from National for $57 for a midsize car.. well worth it.

 

[irish dancer]

Hey melanie03ok and eeyore45 irish dance is a great way to travel around. Have been in it for a long time and now have DD8 that dances. There are a few feiseanna in Fla, DH took DD to one in Feb over Pres weekend and fit it a couple of days at WDW. Nationals has been in Orlando and it was a blast, won't be back there for a while though next year San Diego, then Ottowa and back to Nashville. I think WWoS would be a great place, like those cheer comps they have there.

Thanks everyone for the transportation input. We're now going to Sarasota for a day to visit my dad who will be there while we're there so I guess we'll go the car route.