Skyliner: a selling feature or deterrent?

[NYEmomma]

We're debating between BW, AoA and POR for our June stay. We're a family of 5 so the family suite is appealing. But we could also get BW for about the same price and even though it would be a single room instead of a suite, it's walkable to HS & EPCOT. I can't decide whether the Skyliner makes AoA more appealing or if it's what makes us cross that resort off the list. It seems to close/breakdown a lot and I am deathly afraid of being stuck in places... not claustrophobia but just anywhere that I don't have an escape route, so the possibility of getting trapped in it, high above the ground is terrifying. But man, two bathrooms and beds for all... that's tempting.

 

[DVCjj]

Love love love the Skyliner so I am biased.
Home resort is Beach Club so we take the Skyliner constantly. Enjoy going to visit AOA among the others. Cute resort. DH doesn’t like heights but thinks the Skyliner is wonderful.

 

[NYEmomma]

No complaints re: breakdowns or shutdowns? What's the wait like (I know that this is highly variable based on time of day & year)

 

[spiders]

I loved the Skyliner. I didn’t experience any breakdowns or shutdowns. The longest line I saw — and it was long — went from the entrance to deep into Pop. Even with what was a huge line, it still moved relatively quickly. I think we would have waited just as long if they were running the buses and it certainly is much more pleasant than a bus.

 

[gja360]

We loved the skyliner when we went and I hate heights. Now we only want to book resorts that have the skyliner as an option

 

[PepperjackDragon]

i believe the skyliner would be convenient enough to make it worth the suite for a family of five. Unless you actually have a real fear. I have never experienced it breaking down but it does stop for various reasons like delays with wheel chairs etc. it slows down sometimes and even as it moves smoothly there is no escape route. If you actually have a true fear, then just let’s the kids bunk up and bring a cot. They will survive and that would be way better than you freaking out every day. If you will be fine, then probably nights would be more peaceful in a suite.

 

[TheDad00]

We find it a huge selling point. That said we love Epcot and are there multiple days on a week visit

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Not a fan of Skyliner - while I'm sure it runs fine and on time 98% of the time, it's the 2% that is always of concern. Getting stuck during the trip or the occasional shut-downs that leave guests stuck at the resort or at a park just won't work for us. And I know similar shut-downs can happen with the monorail or boats, but at least there we're not hanging over the main highway.

 

[mco65]

Stayed at POP back in Aug... rode the Skyliner a few times.. it would not make or break my decision for staying at AoA. As i recall or was reminded.. for parks that connect to the skyliner, they did not have bus services... That was a bit of a downer... not sure if that is the case at AoA... but in our case, we drove to the parks most days so it was really a non issue.

 

[Nabas]

We're debating between BW, AoA and POR for our June stay. We're a family of 5 so the family suite is appealing. But we could also get BW for about the same price and even though it would be a single room instead of a suite, it's walkable to HS & EPCOT. I can't decide whether the Skyliner makes AoA more appealing or if it's what makes us cross that resort off the list. It seems to close/breakdown a lot and I am deathly afraid of being stuck in places... not claustrophobia but just anywhere that I don't have an escape route, so the possibility of getting trapped in it, high above the ground is terrifying. But man, two bathrooms and beds for all... that's tempting.

5 in one room is a tight fit. When our children were younger, I could tolerate two nights before reaching my limit.

Now that they are older, my limit is one night!

 

[kwdw]

I love AOA family suites as they hit the right price point and space needs for us when I’m traveling with one particular family group. The two beds plus sofa bed with one in a separate room, 2 bathrooms, and microwave are awesome for us. We use the microwave for a lot of breakfasts and some for heating up leftovers.

We do have one afraid of heights though, so if he is in the travel party, we would only stay there when having a car. He might occasionally cope with a ride or two on Skyliner, but for the most part, he would not get on it. And since bus service to those parks is now not really available, we couldn’t stay there without a car.

 

[KristaZ]

The Skyliner is great when it's running efficiently. However, last time we rode it, it took 40 minutes to get from Epcot to CBR at park close - and not because the line was ridiculously long at Epcot when we got in it - that part took us maybe 5 minutes to get through. The problem was that it kept slowing down for wheelchairs/ecvs. It was a torturous ride because of how slow it was. It was enough to make me rethink staying at a Skyliner resort again. I'm definitely in the minority, and probably crazy, but I'd much rather cram everyone into a smaller room just to be able to walk to the parks.

 

[Nabas]

The Skyliner is great when it's running efficiently. However, last time we rode it, it took 40 minutes to get from Epcot to CBR at park close - and not because the line was ridiculously long at Epcot when we got in it - that part took us maybe 5 minutes to get through. The problem was that it kept slowing down for wheelchairs/ecvs. It was a torturous ride because of how slow it was. It was enough to make me rethink staying at a Skyliner resort again. I'm definitely in the minority, and probably crazy, but I'd much rather cram everyone into a smaller room just to be able to walk to the parks.

We are like you. We have ridden the Skyliner many times. When it's running smoothly, it's great. But when it's not, it's just as bad as the buses.

Disney raised prices of the Skyliner Resorts (AOA, POP, and CBR) by more than 20% when the Skyliner opened. To me, it's just not worth it.

 

[cjlong88]

The skyliner is awesome. Definitely makes staying at Pop or AoA more worth it in my opinion. Yacht and Beach is our absolute favorite and we love that we can still access the skyliner, even it it's not the fastest way to HS. But it certainly a very magical way to travel between resorts and parks. Would love to see them build more skyliner routes in the future!

 

[brockash]

We're debating between BW, AoA and POR for our June stay. We're a family of 5 so the family suite is appealing. But we could also get BW for about the same price and even though it would be a single room instead of a suite, it's walkable to HS & EPCOT. I can't decide whether the Skyliner makes AoA more appealing or if it's what makes us cross that resort off the list. It seems to close/breakdown a lot and I am deathly afraid of being stuck in places... not claustrophobia but just anywhere that I don't have an escape route, so the possibility of getting trapped in it, high above the ground is terrifying. But man, two bathrooms and beds for all... that's tempting.

We'd definitely stay at BW given the situation.

As far as skyliner being pro or con...we've decided we won't stay at a skyliner resort during rainier months...it's just nott worth the hassle to us as it goes down frequently and there is not a simple easy, smooth transition that Disney has implemented for those situations.

During non rainy months we feel skyliner is a pro compared to resorts with only bus service.

Given the choice of staying at any resort within walking distance to a park - We'd choose that every time over skyliner though.

Lines can definitely get long...last year we stayed at CBR first week of March before real spring break crowds came in and waited 45 mins in the line from epcot to CBR about a 45 mins after the park had already closed...waited about 30 from DHS. Other times though it can be a walk-on.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

The skyliner is awesome. Definitely makes staying at Pop or AoA more worth it in my opinion. Yacht and Beach is our absolute favorite and we love that we can still access the skyliner, even it it's not the fastest way to HS. But it certainly a very magical way to travel between resorts and parks. Would love to see them build more skyliner routes in the future!

It's funny, it really does seem to be a love/hate thing with Skyliner sometimes. I sincerely say we respect your opinion and perspective, but we honestly think it's completely inefficient, unpredictable, and an eye-sore. That being said, however, we also believe that Disney didn't invest all that money to just attach AOA/POP/CBR and Riviera to HS and EP. Seems like a few years from now, they'll be building more of those towers and connecting more stuff. So in the long run, we're pretty sure your wish will overtake our displeasure with the aesthetics! We just really hope and pray it stays away from our favorite AKL - it would completely ruin the look and feel of the place.

 

[disneyseniors]

The skyliner is a deterrent for our family. I dont like heights at all and the concept doesn't appeal to me at all.
So, we would book non-skyliner resorts gladly. We love POR and POFQ, both non-skyliner resorts.

 

[NYEmomma]

Thanks for all the replies! I'm not sure that they've helped me decide, lol, but I've loved reading everyone's opinions and it's gave me a wider variety of things to take into consideration.

I think I can probably manage my anxiety as long as I'm not stuck in one spot for an extended period of time... pauses for ECVs would likely be OK. I do always get a small prescription for Klonopin whenever I travel because extended car travel, airplane travel, and being stuck on rides also causes panic attacks - and it helps quite well.

HOWEVER, this will be our first time going in June (we're typically Jan/Feb people) and from what I'm reading, that's the rainy season. We're not stressed about this mid-day storms ruining our fun but causing closures of the Skyliner with poorly organized and communicated alternate transportation plans sounds TERRIBLE.

We asked the girls where they'd like to stay and they actually all voted for Boardwalk. That's my husband's preference as well but having more space for all of us really appeals to me (especially the bathrooms, lol - last trip I got salmonella and only having one bathroom for all of us when I was suffering with that was hard).

 

[seashoreCM]

The Skyliner is a nice novelty attraction unto itself and for most folks it is fun to ride. Except, exiting Epcot the Skyliner is unreliable. If you are in Future World or near Norway you have a dilemma if you are exiting. If you head for the Skyliner (International Gateway) and find it down then it is a long additional walk to get transportation.

Not worth being a reason for electing to pay the higher room rates for a "Skyliner resort."

 

[_19disnA]

They were still testing the Skyliner that last time we were at Disney so it hadn't yet opened. We wondered how it would go once it got up and running. The fact they are sealed cars and aren't air conditioned seems like it will be a major issue once it gets warmer each year. Florida isn't a ski resort. Air vents will simply be circulating hot air making the cars stuffy/uncomfortable. A few of the mechanical breakdowns when the ride first opened also pointed out the limitations associated with having it travel over water with few options available when cars get stranded.