Staying at AKL - nervous about buses - should I rent or taxi?

[luckyprincess]

Hi! We are staying at AKL Aug 27-31 and can't wait! Being 20 minutes away by bus from the furthest park doesn't bother me at so I don't really care about the distance. I am concerned about how the buses run at this resort. Do they send out less buses at the time I'm going because the park is slower? Will I be waiting for 30 minutes for a bus to even come?

I'm so nervous about that as I don't want to stand in the heat and bf isn't the best with patience when he's trying to relax. So, I have a car in wings for the 28th if I need it, but I'd rather not spend $115 for two days of a car. If the taxis from AKL to DTD or BW or something are reasonable that may actually work out for me if I just use the bus and then fill in with a taxi. Does anyone know the cost of those trips and if they are plentiful at WDW? Thanks!

 

[skelooch]

Rent the car for your whole stay for approx $150 you will not be sorry, it's the best money you can spend.

I was at OKW last week, had a rental car but let my family use it to go to the parks and I decided to go to Typhoon Lagoon alone. While walking to the bus stop, a bus was just pulling out of the bus stop, I waved at him to stop, he saw me wave, shook his head NO and continued driving.
I then waited a full 20 min in the 95degree heat for the next bus, which then took another 40 min to get to TL, which is at most a 5 min drive by car. A 1 hour trip to go approx 2 miles. Luckily the return trip only took a half hour.
I calculated that without a car we would have spent approx 24 to 30 hours waiting for or riding on Disney transportation for each of us, and that's taking into account driving and parking the car. That's alot of additional park time or time at the pool or whatever.
If you have any plans on visiting other resorts for dinner plan at least 90 min to get there and back each way.

HOW MUCH IS YOUR TIME WORTH???

 

[darwinsrule]

We were at AKL last summer on those dates. Longest wait for a bus was maybe 10 min. It was only crowded on one of the trips (coming back from DTD). Could you rent? Sure. I don't expect it will save you any time (between the drive and parking) and will cost more (rental and gas). Worth it? Not for us.

 

[CindyMcClung]

We have stayed at AKL several times. I recommend bus! You will waste so much time driving and looking for parking then walking to parks than it's worth. Caught the bus, relax and ride on! After all you are on vacation, leave the details to Disney.

 

[skelooch]

As they say time is money, vacation time is especially valuable, I don't want to be wasting it sitting on a bench or bus.
From what I have heard about AKV it can be a trek just to get to the bus stop.

To each their own as to Disney transportation, I will avoid using it at all costs.

 

[kaytieeldr]

shook his head NO and continued driving

Yeah, the drivers can't stop except at designated locations for safety (and probably liability) reasons.

I then waited a full 20 min

Right. Twenty minutes is the normal/expected interval between buses - so, note to the OP: no, you shouldn't have to wait thirty minutes because your resort is further from some parks. The buses loop around, they don't run back and forth between the same two points all day.

in the 95degree heat

Yeah, that can happen in the summer. Heck, that describes many of our days in Massachusetts this summer; I'm surprised it's not hotter in Florida!

which then took another 40 min to get to TL, which is at most a 5 min drive by car. A 1 hour trip to go approx 2 miles.

Oh. Well, a Guest boarding at Hospitality House would, yeah, have to ride all the way through the resort and then make two stops at Downtown Disney first, but when did Typhoon Lagoon move?

I calculated that without a car we would have spent approx 24 to 30 hours waiting for or riding on Disney transportation for each of us, and that's taking into account driving and parking the car. That's alot of additional park time or time at the pool or whatever.

You don't say which parks you visited, but OKW is less than ten minutes from Epcot by bus; it's about twelve minutes from DHS. Even AK and MK aren't more than twenty minutes away. The Unofficial Guide has a very just comparison chart - 'your' car vs. Disney bus, shortest trip vs. longest trip. It's unbiased.

If you have any plans on visiting other resorts for dinner plan at least 90 min to get there and back each way.

Eh... Walt Disney World Dining CMs (and the website) advise allowing 90 minutes to get TO the reservation so you're not late. A bit of preplanning easily cuts this; and the location of the restaurant in relation to one's location matters a LOT. It would be silly to 'plan at least' 90 minutes to get to The Wave for example, if the diner is staying at the Contemporary or is touring Magic Kingdom. And it likely won't take 90 minutes to get back. Example: okay, allow 90 minutes to get to the Hoop De Doo Revue. If you go to the second or third show, Walt Disney World provides buses directly from there back to your Walt Disney World resort. Barring mechanical problems, I'd be shocked if it took even the last Guests (each bus goes to about four resorts) an hour to get back to the front door of their resort.

 

[skelooch]

Yeah, the drivers can't stop except at designated locations for safety (and probably liability) reasons.

Right. Twenty minutes is the normal/expected interval between buses - so, note to the OP: no, you shouldn't have to wait thirty minutes because your resort is further from some parks. The buses loop around, they don't run back and forth between the same two points all day.
I gaurantee you I could have left my room

Yeah, that can happen in the summer. Heck, that describes many of our days in Massachusetts this summer; I'm surprised it's not hotter in Florida!

Oh. Well, a Guest boarding at Hospitality House would, yeah, have to ride all the way through the resort and then make two stops at Downtown Disney first, but when did Typhoon Lagoon move?



You don't say which parks you visited, but OKW is less than ten minutes from Epcot by bus; it's about twelve minutes from DHS. Even AK and MK aren't more than twenty minutes away. The Unofficial Guide has a very just comparison chart - 'your' car vs. Disney bus, shortest trip vs. longest trip. It's unbiased.


Eh... Walt Disney World Dining CMs (and the website) advise allowing 90 minutes to get TO the reservation so you're not late. A bit of preplanning easily cuts this; and the location of the restaurant in relation to one's location matters a LOT. It would be silly to 'plan at least' 90 minutes to get to The Wave for example, if the diner is staying at the Contemporary or is touring Magic Kingdom. And it likely won't take 90 minutes to get back. Example: okay, allow 90 minutes to get to the Hoop De Doo Revue. If you go to the second or third show, Walt Disney World provides buses directly from there back to your Walt Disney World resort. Barring mechanical problems, I'd be shocked if it took even the last Guests (each bus goes to about four resorts) an hour to get back to the front door of their resort.

In case you"ve never stayed at OKW, Hospitality House is the last stop before leaving the resort, so I didn't have "to ride all the way through the resort"
Obviously you don't know where typhoon lagoon is in relation to OKW, I just did a GPS and it is 1.2 miles from entrance to entrance.

Obviously you're happy with Disney transportation and that's your perogative I'm not and that's mine. and as I stated in a previous post above I will always avoid it at all cost.

I was simply sharing my opinion and experiences to the OPs request.
Why don't you just give them your opinion and not try to second guess or impose your feelings about Disney transportation on me, and let them decide for themselves what's best for them. You will never change my opinion.

I agree with "A bit of preplanning easily cuts this" that's why I always rent a car.

Prehaps you should read your signature.

 

[kaytieeldr]

In case you"ve never stayed at OKW, Hospitality House is the last stop before leaving the resort, so I didn't have "to ride all the way through the resort"

I have, several times. Going to the parks, yes, Hospitality House is the last stop before the buses leave the resort. Going to Downtown Disney/WestSide and Typhoon Lagoon, HH is the first stop. It's the bus that doubles as OKW's internal transportation to get OKW Guests from Hospitality House back to their distant villas.

I have to admit, I'm confused. I've reread my earlier response and I don't see anything that's an opinion. I see an error - while I don't have a GPS, I'll concede that my distance is wrong; on the other hand, Our Laughing Place shows the bus travel time as nineteen minutes (and no, they probably don't account for the Downtown Disney stops); but I don't see any opinions. And, thank you, I know what my signature says. I have read this entire thread - every time I access it. I read entire [new] posts as well, before responding

 

[skelooch]

I have, several times. Going to the parks, yes, Hospitality House is the last stop before the buses leave the resort. Going to Downtown Disney/WestSide and Typhoon Lagoon, HH is the first stop.

Perhaps the driver needs retraining, he picked me up at HH and immediately left the resort. Must have been some unhappy guests waiting for the bus to come.
Returning to OKW the driver also didn't know the rules and let people off the bus between bus stops. Guess he wasn't the one unwilling to stop for me.

 

[LimoFam5]

We have stayed at AK Kidani several time and LOVE the bus system. We have never waited for any bus longer then 10 min TOPS, if that. The buses are fine, save your money dont rent a car.

 

[rie'smom]

Take a cab. It is so much faster than either the bus or taking the trams.

Even when we rent a car we take cabs to and from the parks. The rental car is for getting to our WDW reosort, DTD and moving to an onsite Universal resort for a few days. Finally we take it back to the airport.

 

[emmabelle]

I wish we had a car the whole time we were in Disney last week. I only rented for part of the week and wished I had it for the whole week. We waited a minimum of 20-35 minutes at the parks to be brought back to the Boardwalk. It seemed like a lifetime, when your hot and exhausted. I wouldn't rent a car in January, when we plan to go again, because in the cool weather the wait would seem fine.

 

[msjprincess]

I would definitely rent a car. We used to rely solely on WDW transportation and thought it was great. Then we decided to rent a car one time and I couldn't believe how much quicker it was than taking the buses.

The only time we take the bus now is if we want to be at MK really early. We have an 8:10 ADR for CP our next trip so we'll most likely take the bus.

 

[skelooch]

I have, several times. Going to the parks, yes, Hospitality House is the last stop before the buses leave the resort. Going to Downtown Disney/WestSide and Typhoon Lagoon, HH is the first stop. It's the bus that doubles as OKW's internal transportation to get OKW Guests from Hospitality House back to their distant villas.

Perhaps that is the case at most times of the year, but it wasn't last week. 2 buses came by HH while I was waiting marked INTERNAL, I asked one of the drivers if it was going to DTD/TL and was told no. The bus I boarded was marked DTD/TL nothing about Internal, and immediately left the resort. Maybe it's a seasonal thing.

I have to admit, I'm confused. I've reread my earlier response and I don't see anything that's an opinion. I see an error - while I don't have a GPS, I'll concede that my distance is wrong; on the other hand, Our Laughing Place shows the bus travel time as nineteen minutes (and no, they probably don't account for the Downtown Disney stops); but I don't see any opinions. And, thank you, I know what my signature says. I have read this entire thread - every time I access it. I read entire [new] posts as well, before responding

You are welcome to believe Our Laughing Places bus travel times and schedule your time accordingly. I was simply sharing my experience, my trip took 40 minutes plus 20 minutes waiting time. I noted the times that I boarded the bus and exited the bus. There were no more than 6-8 other passengers, so the stops at DTD were not very long.

I think we should end this now, as I stated previously you are entitled to your opinions regarding Disney Transportation and I mine. Let's leave it at that.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

Looking for parking? You're kidding, right? At WDW, there's nothing BUT parking spaces. Plus, there's no waiting and no indirect routing in a rental.

The bus system is always longer, especially going from resort to resort. We love to start our day by running over to the Poly to grab a Tonga Toast before zipping over to typhoon lagoon or blizzard beach for a couple of hours then heading over to Earl of Sandwich in DTD for lunch before heading back to the hotel to shower, change and drive to a park. We love the freedom of being able to change our plans at a moment's notice and not feel penalized by the time we would waste if we had to rely on the buses. I love having more time to do the things I enjoy doing on vacation.

Taking a car is ALWAYS faster. Even to MK, where we've tested the Car v. Bus debate 3 times. Of 6 trips, the bus was faster once.

We have stayed at AKL several times. I recommend bus! You will waste so much time driving and looking for parking then walking to parks than it's worth. Caught the bus, relax and ride on! After all you are on vacation, leave the details to Disney.

 

[Chelley00]

DD and I were there in Nov, the full week before Thanksgiving, a totally non0busy time. Rented a car for 11 nights. Used it twice. Once to a very early morning ADR at Epcot, once to DTD. The rest of the time it sat. We never waited more than 15 minutes for a bus, either from AKL or the parks. It was a total waste of money and we were perfectly happy with the bus.

 

[luckyprincess]

Wow - thanks so much for ALL of the info, everyone! I so appreciate hearing other people's experiences. My ex-hubby and I stayed at POR once 10 years ago and rented a car and never used it at all! Total waste. But, that was a long time ago and not as far away from some things as AKL.
We lived in NYC and Miami for some time so we really like the ease of using taxis. If they are plentiful and we just want to go back to the resort and not wait around I'd be happy to pay for that quick service. I'm just wondering now if there is anywhere that I can check on prices from certain resorts to destinations for taxi fare.....
Of course, I'm still unsure now! Lol - so many different opinions! I'm taking the DME which is a great savings. The plan right now is to see how we do with buses for the first day - arriving around 4, heading to MK around 8 for EMH hours and then back to AKL. If all goes well with buses that night, I'll probably cancel my reservation for the car. If it is awful, we'll just go pick up the car the next morning and return it the night before we leave and take the DME back again.... I guess I'm winging it sort of.

 

[rie'smom]

Wow - thanks so much for ALL of the info, everyone! I so appreciate hearing other people's experiences. My ex-hubby and I stayed at POR once 10 years ago and rented a car and never used it at all! Total waste. But, that was a long time ago and not as far away from some things as AKL.
We lived in NYC and Miami for some time so we really like the ease of using taxis. If they are plentiful and we just want to go back to the resort and not wait around I'd be happy to pay for that quick service. I'm just wondering now if there is anywhere that I can check on prices from certain resorts to destinations for taxi fare.....
Of course, I'm still unsure now! Lol - so many different opinions! I'm taking the DME which is a great savings. The plan right now is to see how we do with buses for the first day - arriving around 4, heading to MK around 8 for EMH hours and then back to AKL. If all goes well with buses that night, I'll probably cancel my reservation for the car. If it is awful, we'll just go pick up the car the next morning and return it the night before we leave and take the DME back again.... I guess I'm winging it sort of.

You have to be a little creative, for example, for AKL you would use Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon for DTD.
http://mearstransportation.com/services/taxi-fare-estimator.asp

 

[r&kmommy]

IMO and IME renting a car is NEVER a disappointment and always worth the money. We will never NOT rent a car again. This trip we are not renting a car until 2 days into our trip because the difference in price was $200-300 depending on the carrier (because we're there for 9 days), so the first 2 days we'll be doing ME from airport, and disney transport to the parks.

I am already stressing about the grossness of getting on that bus after a LONG day at the MK with all the other sweatty grumpy masses. LOL!!

 

[aussietravellers]

We spent 21 nights at AKL and only twice during that whole time did we have a problem with the bus. Once as at AK, very frustrating being so close and the bus taking over an hour! The line went forever, then two buses turned up at once! The other was also an hour wait at MK. There was a couple with a little boy who were freaking out because they had to take the ME and I guess hadn't planned on waiting an hour for a bus.

Aside from those two times, we didn't wait longer than 20 mins for a bus. It was fantastic. We did use taxi's on the odd occasion when we had an ADR at another resort in the morning. It was just easier taking a taxi direct to the other resort. We can't wait to get back there next month