Should I drive from FW to the Parks?

[suezb]

I read somewhere that the travel time to get to 4 different parks was quite a bit longer if you took the buses or boats, than if you drove yourself. We will be driving down, so I was wondering what people who have been there thought! What's the best way to get the 4 different parks: Driving yourself, or taking the public transportation? We have AAA, so we'd be able to park in the AAA Parking, which is closer. We also may be taking someone with us who is handicap, and may be able to park in that lot as well.
If it is the public transportation, is there a spot that tells you exactly how to get to each one? I keep seeing people talking about transfering at this hotel and taking the tram or whatever, so I'd like to know before I go down there.
Thank you!!

 

[John VN]

I have never heard of nor seen a AAA Parking Area, but now have learned about it. When staying on site, you have free parking privileges at all parks.

As far as bus vs. car from your location whether it be a campsite or cabin, your own vehicle will get you to the parking area the quickest. If you take into consideration the extra time it sometimes takes to park your car and then walk to the park entrance, the time difference becomes less.

 

[jonimce]

On our last two trips to FW we drove to AK and MGM. We took the boat to MK and boat then momorail to EPCOT. We also had the AAA parking, but you have to get the pass from your local AAA. You only get this by buying your park passes through them or booking your vacation through them. We always book a package but bought Inlaws tickets at AAA. AAA parking is next to handicap parking. We are not fans of Disney busses.

 

[wildernessfamily]

If you have someone who is using a wheelchair you will need to consider some things. I don't believe all buses are wheelchair accessible, they do have them but am not sure how often they run. It depends sometimes whether we drive to parks or not. If we go with with our whole family, school age to seniors we will take Disney transportation because that gives any family member the flexibility to leave and come back from the park early, and not feel like they are ruining anyone elses fun. We always do the boat to MK from the Fort. We have done both and alot will depend on if we are staying to closing time(buses get crowded coming back) or if we are hopping to another park as to whether we drive or not that day.

 

[F4disneyfan]

No there truly is no point the bus and boat service is more than adequate.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

All Disney busses are handicap friendly. If you are going to the MK, Disney transport is definatly the best, if you drive you have to park, take the tram or walk if you use handicaped to the TTC, catch a monorail or the ferry boat to the MK. If you use Disney boat or bus(from WL) you are dropped off at the MK entrance. As far as the other parks it really is a coin toss, you may have a bit of a wait for the bus(yes there is a direct bus from FW to each of the other 3 parks) but if you leave the park during the day the nice air conditioned bus sure beats the sauna that will be waiting for you in your car.

 

[tim5055]

If you have someone who is using a wheelchair you will need to consider some things. I don't believe all buses are wheelchair accessible, they do have them but am not sure how often they run.

Disney has only been buying wheelchair accessable busses for many years now. If there are any NON-wheelchair accessable busses, they are few and far between.

Now, back to the original question--

Here is how we handle it

Magic Kingdom- Take the boat
Epcot, MGM, AK - Drive our truck

As to the AAA parking each park is a little different, but it is usually closer to the front. You are actually only entitled to AAA parking when you book your tickets/package threoug AAA travel, not jsut a AAA member. But, with that said the parking cast members don;t usually ask for proof, they just direct you to the area.

 

[Paul in TX]

We do as Tim does----even more so when our daughter was younger---sometimes the busses can take awhile at park closing---we'd head to our car and she could sleep on the way back to the RV--

sure made it easier on dad too--not carrying that "sack of potatoes"--- lol

Paul

 

[SueM in MN]

The last time I had heard from a bus CM posting on the boards, the buses were very close to 100% wheelchair accessible. That was about 2 years ago and they have bought more buses since then. The older buses have lifts and the newer ones have ramps which can be operated manually if the power operation system is not working.

There may be some buses that are temporarily out of commision for wheelchairs (like there is something wrong with the lift or the tiedown system), but pretty much any bus that comes along should be able to accomidate a wheelchair or ECV.

 

[suezb]

Wow thanks for all the responses!
My mother will be using an ECV, so she would need the handicap buses for that, which I didn't even think about until you guys brought it up.
I think I like the suggestion of using the boat to MK, and driving to the others.
My mother has problems sitting for so long; she has to sit, then stand, then sit, then stand, etc...so if the buses take a long time, she would be uncomfortable.
Although, I do like the idea of an air conditioned bus!
Oh my, the choices. Thank you for all your answers, I do appreciate it! And if people are still feeling like giving opinions, I'd love to hear more

As far as the AAA goes, I booked through the AAA travel agency, so I will be receiving the AAA passes

 

[jonimce]

Then you should drive to the other parks. AAA parking for AK is up front and to the right of the entrance. (if you are facing the park) A very short walk. MGM is also up front. We had one parking attendent direct us to park in the regular lot, telling us it was no farther away than AAA. It was really far, and we now know better. If this happens, Ask the next attendent and tell them you also have a handicap guest. Just show the parking pass AAA gave you. I don't know about EPCOT. We took the momorail from the MK. You will have a great time, and be back in your car in no time after leaving the parks. No transfering busses, just drive to your camp site.

Have Fun

 

[ynottony99]

One of the deciding factors for us is whether we will be leaving the park at closing time. Whether bus, boat, monorail, ferry boat, or whatever ,if everybody else is trying to catch one too, you are going to be waiting. We often will walk to parking lot at MGM, AK, EPCOT, and find that the resort monorail is a quick way to the trams at MK. Sometimes though, it is nice to get on that bus and just kick back

 

[corve77t]

The buses I thought were fine. Sometimes you might have to wait a while, but you have all day. I believe they always load handicap first.

 

[suezb]

Hrm are there lots of stops on the buses? Or does it go straight from FW to the parks?
And for the people who say to drive....how much shorter is the driving time versus the buses? Like..5 minutes or 20 minutes?
OH And how long does the boat take? The boat thing just seems weird to me, I cannot even imagine it
As far as having all the time....I will probably be using the bus systems so I do want lots of information on that, but my mother will have issues and will need to go from the park back to the trailer right away. We'll also have our animals in the 5th wheeler, and will need to get back to let them out.
Is there a website that explains the actual bus systems? That might be helpful to me, since I'm sure I'll stay longer at the park then my mom

 

[jonimce]

suezb, Anytime you take a bus to FW you need to transfer to an internal bus. The busses that go to the parks do not go into the campground. We always rent golf carts and leave them by the marina when we take the boat, and drive to the other parks. The boat comes often, and takes about 10 min. because it will also stop at WL to pick up people. This is the most direct and fastes way to the MK.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

Because FW is so large it has an internal bus system so you can get around within the campground without too much walking. To get to areas outside the campgroung you must get to one of the 2 main stops, settlement(near boat dock and Pioneer Hall) or Outpost(near check in) depending on where you want to go. Once you are on a bus from settlement or outpost there are no other stops between FW and the parks. Busses sometimes take longer than driving simply because of waiting for the bus not for actual drive time. If as you say you will be coming back to the trailer at different times the bus is probably the way to go. Golf carts are a great way to get around the campground but not very wheelchair friendly.

 

[PenskeSth1]

We ride the boat to MK..DH likes to drive to all the other parks. I don't really mind riding the buses if I am only going to be in the parks for a couple hours, If we are going to be at the parks until they close we usually take the truck..(THE BUSES ARE USUALLY PACKED AT NIGHT!) I don't enjoy being packed in a bus like cattle going to the slaughter.

 

[stinkerbelle's mom]

If your mother has problems sitting & standing for long periods you might want to drive because the buses do stop frequently. They do load the handicapped first & usually won't let anyone else board until the handicapped are boarded. Atleast that's what I noticed.

We were intending to drive ourselves to the parks, but found the transportation provided to be great. We actually loved the boat rides the best. Good luck.

 

[Thumper_ehhhhh]

I didnt read the all the comments so if i;m saying something already mentioned i'm sorry. There is AAA parking for those who book there vacation threw AAA and ask for it when ordering there vacation. We did not book through them so did not benifit from it. I did however drive to most attractions as the last time we visited we has a stroller and is really hard to get around on buses with one. Also its faster to drive than use there transportation. Next time we go the kids will be older and plan to use there transportation as mush as possible. After the long tow from the great white north I dont think i'm gonna want to drive.

 

[suezb]

Thank you for the suggestions!! I now feel like I know what we'll be doing at least, and when we'll use the buses.
now if I can just find a bus schedule or planner that tells how it works and what stops there are, I'll be set