Questions about Parking and Transportation

[SweetLittleAngels]

In 3 weeks my family will be visiting WDW for the first time in about 8 years. I was hoping you can help with some transportation questions that I can't seem to find answers to.

We are staying in our timeshare outside WDW and renting a car. My main question is how the parking situation and fees go. Do you pay some kind of parking fee at the main gate to enter the entire complex, or do you pay to park at a specific park? If we go to multiple parks in one day, do we move the car and pay each time? Or, do we just park at the first park and use WDW transportation within the complex.

Here's an example of on of our days. 7:50am breakfast at Chef Mickey's then remainder of the day at Epcot. What is our best option for that day. Is it best park at the Contemporary and then move the car to Epcot?

Sorry for all the questions. It's been so many years since I've visited that I just don't have bearings anymore for how the setup is. Also, this is my first time not staying at a WDW property, so I'm a little overwhelmed with the whole car idea, especially since we have 2 small kids. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[CleveRocks]

In 3 weeks my family will be visiting WDW for the first time in about 8 years. I was hoping you can help with some transportation questions that I can't seem to find answers to.

We are staying in our timeshare outside WDW and renting a car. My main question is how the parking situation and fees go. Do you pay some kind of parking fee at the main gate to enter the entire complex, or do you pay to park at a specific park? If we go to multiple parks in one day, do we move the car and pay each time? Or, do we just park at the first park and use WDW transportation within the complex.

It goes by individual park. WDW is not a gated complex. I'm fairly certain that you pay to park for each DAY, not each park. That is, I'm pretty sure if you paid to park at MK and then want to go to MGM later that day, you can show a receipt or something and not have to pay a second time that same day.

As long as you have park tickets, it's totally kosher for you to use Disney Transport, if you wish. This might be especially convenient to go between MK and Epcot via the monorail.

 

[LoraJ]

If you park at the Contemporary, you would get a 3 hour pass for your car. Then you could drive over to Epcot and park there for the remainder of the day.

Or, you could park at TTC, take the monorail to Contemporary. Then take the monorail back to TTC and then on to Epcot.

 

[betterlatethannever]

...We are staying in our timeshare outside WDW and renting a car. My main question is how the parking situation and fees go. Do you pay some kind of parking fee at the main gate to enter the entire complex, or do you pay to park at a specific park? If we go to multiple parks in one day, do we move the car and pay each time? Or, do we just park at the first park and use WDW transportation within the complex.

Here's an example of on of our days. 7:50am breakfast at Chef Mickey's then remainder of the day at Epcot. What is our best option for that day. Is it best park at the Contemporary and then move the car to Epcot?...

You pay for parking at the first park you go to on any given day. Keep the receipt and show it to the CM at the next park toll booth.

You can use WDW transportation to get around but it generally takes more time.

For your example, you would need to drive to the Contemporary. The monorail doesn't start until 7AM and you would miss your ADR. YOu would then need to move your car and I would suggest driving to Epcot after your ADR.

If you decide to park in one place and use WDW transportation, the rule of thumb is to park at the park you are ending your day at. Now this may not be possible if you are going to a park early for EMH. There MAY not be transportation available that early.

List your itinerary and you will get more specific answers.

Ed

 

[goofy4tink]

For that Chef Mickey's day....park at the TTC, then you can walk over to the Polynesian, and hop on the resort monorail. It starts at 7:00. The express monorail (runs from TTC directly to MK) won't start until an hour before park opening. Then, after breakfast, you could hop back on the monorail, and do one of two things....grab your car and drive to Epcot and leave it at Epcot for the rest of the day. Or, take the Epcot monorail to Epcot, leaving your car at the TTC. Then you can take the monorail back to TTC after you are done at Epcot.
As far as the rest of your stay..if you have park passes, you are welcome to use any and all of WDW's transportation.

 

[Lewisc]

The OP has an ADR for breakfast at CM. Why wouldn't they just park at the Contemporary? Three hours should be more than enough time to finish breakfast.

For that Chef Mickey's day....park at the TTC, then you can walk over to the Polynesian, and hop on the resort monorail. It starts at 7:00. The express monorail (runs from TTC directly to MK) won't start until an hour before park opening. Then, after breakfast, you could hop back on the monorail, and do one of two things....grab your car and drive to Epcot and leave it at Epcot for the rest of the day. Or, take the Epcot monorail to Epcot, leaving your car at the TTC. Then you can take the monorail back to TTC after you are done at Epcot.
As far as the rest of your stay..if you have park passes, you are welcome to use any and all of WDW's transportation.

 

[goofy4tink]

Lewisc....I was just figuring that perhaps they might want to leave the car in one place for the day. If they are just going to eat at CM's and then head to Epcot and want to drive the car there, then sure, park at the CR. But, we love taking the monorail over.

 

[SweetLittleAngels]

List your itinerary and you will get more specific answers.

Ed

Thanks for all your ideas. There are definitely a lot of options and you have given me a lot to think about. Here's more of our itinerary.

Sun 11/5 - MK all day and night. ADR at Tony's.
Mon 11/6 - ADR at CM. Epcot
Tue 11/7 - MGM. ADR Playhouse Disney lunch at Hollywood and Vine. Not sure about the evening yet.
Wed 11/8 - AK daytime. 6:30pm ADR at DD Rainforest Cafe. Evening in Downtown Disney
Thurs 11/9 - Probably repeat either MK or Epcot for part of the day. 6:30 Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This one definitely concerns me with trying to figure out what time to leave in order to get there, park and pick up tickets 30 minutes prior. Any thoughts?
Fri & Sat - Still up in the air.

Any other thoughts/suggestions/ideas you may have are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Kim

 

[LoraJ]

Sun 11/5 - MK all day and night. ADR at Tony's. Park at TTC
Mon 11/6 - ADR at CM. Epcot Park at Contemporary for breakfast, drive to Epcot.
Tue 11/7 - MGM. ADR Playhouse Disney lunch at Hollywood and Vine. Not sure about the evening yet. Park at MGM, if you go to another park, show your receipt
Wed 11/8 - AK daytime. 6:30pm ADR at DD Rainforest Cafe. Evening in Downtown Disney Park at AK then drive over to DTD. Parking is free at DTD.
Thurs 11/9 - Probably repeat either MK or Epcot for part of the day. 6:30 Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This one definitely concerns me with trying to figure out what time to leave in order to get there, park and pick up tickets 30 minutes prior. Any thoughts? Not sure what advice to give for this since you're not sure which park you'll be at. Probably just leave your car at that park and allow yourself at least an hour to take the bus or boat to FW.Then again, not sure how late the transportation goes back to where your car would be. So maybe just drive to FW.
Fri & Sat - Still up in the air

 

[betterlatethannever]

...Thurs 11/9 - Probably repeat either MK or Epcot for part of the day. 6:30 Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This one definitely concerns me with trying to figure out what time to leave in order to get there, park and pick up tickets 30 minutes prior. Any thoughts?
Fri & Sat - Still up in the air.

Any other thoughts/suggestions/ideas you may have are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Kim

Let's do the easy one first. If you are at Epcot, drive to FW.(if you need directions please post). You will park at the Outpost and need to take an internal bus (any one will do, there are three - Orange, Yellow, Purple) to the Settlement (opposite end of FW). You then follow signs to the BYBBQ. REturning, reverse the process. (Time from starting your car at Epcot to arriving at the BYBBQ - 35-50 minutes)

If you are MK, if MK is open late that night, park at the TTC.
From the MK, take the boat to FW. It drops you off right near where the BYBBQ is held. After the event, reverse the process. (Time from MK entrance to the BYBBQ - 30-45 minutes)

If you are at MK and the park will be closed before BYBBQ is done, there is no easy option. I would suggest driving over to FW (not very easy). If you take the boat over, you would need to take a bus to WL/TTC. The trams will have stopped for the night and you would need to walk to you car. (time from starting your car at the TTC to getting to BYBBQ - 45-60 minutes)

Ed

 

[SweetLittleAngels]

Wow...great, detailed information. Thanks Ed! Yes, if you could post directions to FW that would be wonderful. I'm glad I asked because I would not have thought that driving times between locations could take up to 60 minutes.

Thanks again,
Kim

 

[betterlatethannever]

Wow...great, detailed information. Thanks Ed! Yes, if you could post directions to FW that would be wonderful. I'm glad I asked because I would not have thought that driving times between locations could take up to 60 minutes.

Thanks again,
Kim

Those times are not just the driving times, for example:
driving to FW from MK:
drive to FW from MK- 15-20 minutes
wait for bus - 5-10 minutes
bus ride - 20 minutes (longest route)
walk to BYBBQ - 5-10 minutes

Directions to FW from Epcot:
As you leave the Epcot parking lot, follow signs for MK/MK resorts.
As you approach the MK tollbooth, stay to the right. The rightmost lane is for busses, so take either of the next two. Tell the CM that you are going to FW. The CM will direct you.
After the tollbooth, bear right and take the exit lane (i.e. follow the WDW busses) (leads to the MK resorts).
TAke the first right (there will be signs for FW)
Drive about 3/4 mile. FW will be on your left. You will see a sign for FW checkin. DO NOT TAKE THAT ENTRANCE. Take the next one. There willl be a sign for HDDR parking. YOu can park anywhere in that section of the lot.
YOu then need to take an internal bus to the other end of FW.

Directions to FW from MK:
As you leave the MK parking lot, stay in the left lane.
Near the toll booth, there will be a turn around in the median strip.
You can take the turn around and follow the directions above.
If you miss the turnaround (I usually do ), take the exit for the Epcot resorts/MGM, take a left at the light, and then another left at the next light (did a U turn) and get back on the road (to the MK toll booths).

The directions from MK aren't really that bad. I don't do it very often (tried 3 times over the years, was successful once) The secret is to find the turnaround. You're in the left (high speed) lane looking for the turnaround. It will probably be dark. Easy to miss (at least for me).

Ed

 

[WillCAD]

Sun 11/5 - MK all day and night. ADR at Tony's. Park at TTC
Mon 11/6 - ADR at CM. Epcot Park at Contemporary for breakfast, drive to Epcot.
Tue 11/7 - MGM. ADR Playhouse Disney lunch at Hollywood and Vine. Not sure about the evening yet. Park at MGM, if you go to another park, show your receipt
Wed 11/8 - AK daytime. 6:30pm ADR at DD Rainforest Cafe. Evening in Downtown Disney Park at AK then drive over to DTD. Parking is free at DTD.
Thurs 11/9 - Probably repeat either MK or Epcot for part of the day. 6:30 Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This one definitely concerns me with trying to figure out what time to leave in order to get there, park and pick up tickets 30 minutes prior. Any thoughts? Not sure what advice to give for this since you're not sure which park you'll be at. Probably just leave your car at that park and allow yourself at least an hour to take the bus or boat to FW.Then again, not sure how late the transportation goes back to where your car would be. So maybe just drive to FW.
Fri & Sat - Still up in the air

I agree with everything LoraJ said.

I have one big recommendation - since you are spending Wednesday at AK anyway, switch your dinner to the Rainforest Cafe at AK instead of the one at DTD.

The Rainforest location at AK has always been far better in my experience - less crowded, better service, and slightly better food. Since you're going to be at AK anyway, switch your ADR and just walk out the park entrance to the RFC when the time comes. In fact, there is a park exit that leads directly to RFC - as you approach the exit from the park, go to the far right (ask if you can't find it, a CM will help you). The park exit empties into a charming little courtyard with giant mushrooms, flowers, gysers, and butterflies that leads into RFC. It's a nice photo op with the kids.

 

[SweetLittleAngels]

I agree with everything LoraJ said.

I have one big recommendation - since you are spending Wednesday at AK anyway, switch your dinner to the Rainforest Cafe at AK instead of the one at DTD.

Thanks for the thought. That was our first thought too, but when my stepmom tried to make the reservation they said they couldn't seat us (8 of us) until 8pm. So we changed the plans to go Downtown that night. It'll work out okay. We'll get to have dinner and then go walk it off while shopping.

Thanks for the directions Ed. I really appreciate it!

Kim