Staying at CSR first time with a Car

[candance2]

We leave on Friday for our stay at CSR. For the first time we are driving instead of flying. I was wondering if anyone had advice for us on whether we should take the disney buses to all parks or just certain parks. Originally, we were just planning on driving down and parking our car and only using it for our day at Sea World. But after reading other post I'm thinking maybe we should rethink that. I would love to hear from others who have stayed at CSR. Thanks for your input!!

 

[Eeyore's-tail-tack]

This is the exact question i need answered. We will be driving down in September and also staying at CSR!

 

[mjones73]

There are a number of threads on this topic worth reading, check the transportation section for advice also.

http://www.disboards.com/search.php?searchid=4681774

 

[TinkOhio]

We have styed there over several Easter breaks. The bus experience that we had there was typical--neither fantastic nor lousy. I would recommend taking the bus to the MK so that you arrive closer to the main gate and bussing it to most parks, if time allows. The exceptions to that would be if there was a good chance of rain, if you are going to DTD, and if you are going to a waterpark. The busses to DTD tend to have LONG waits, and who wants to wait around while wet for a bus?

The good news is that it has always been our experience that they run busses much more frequently than usual to handle holiday crowds.
You are also going during one of the most beautiful times of the year. The extended hours are also wonderful, IMHO. (Get there as early as possible and take a break mid-day.) Take time to enjoy the pool area. The gardenias will most likely be in bloom then and surround parts of the patio. Our kids LOVE the slide, and the poolside bar/sandwich shop serves some great less-expensive meals. The Pepper Market is pricey for what it is, and the poolside place serves good casual food. We liked it much better.

Have a great trip!

 

[CurtWill]

Take your car. We had a rental on our trip 2 weeks ago and we liked the flexibility of not having to deal with the buses. Blizzard Beach to DTD? No problemo.
Parking at CSR was a breeze. Never more than a 1 minute walk to the car.

Ciao!

Curt

 

[indsun]

We have stayed at csr a few times. Last time we drove to all the parks and we will always either drive or rent a car if we fly. We saved so much time not using the busses. Parking at the parks where a breeze. Have fun and enjoy your trip.

 

[KatMark]

Personally, we rent a car every trip and we drive to all of the parks--including the MK. We are, though, early risers and are there for rope drop or extra magic hours. Therefore, I can't really comment on the buses. If I were you, I would drive to all the parks except maybe the MK because you'd have to park and take the tram and then the monorail/ferry. Here are the estimated times it takes by bus to get to each of the parks (we find the car to be about a minute shorter):

Hollywood Studios -- 6 min ride once leaving resort
AK -- 6 min ride once leaving resort
MK -- 10 min ride once leaving resort
Epcot -- 7 min ride once leaving resort

 

[Disneybec]

We stayed at CSR last November and had a rental car. We used the bus to all of the parks except the waterpark. The only time we had to wait more than a few minutes for a bus was at night so if you are planning on staying late at the parks I would drive the car. Parking at CSR was very convenient.

 

[firefly4423]

We have stayed at csr a few times. Last time we drove to all the parks and we will always either drive or rent a car if we fly. We saved so much time not using the busses. Parking at the parks where a breeze. Have fun and enjoy your trip.

good info!

 

[RocketCityMama]

We drove in Dec and are driving again in May and will use the Disney buses as our primary transportation. For me it's all part of the experience. I love they have dedicated buses and no sharing with other resorts.

In Dec, we went 27-29 and the only time we had issues returning back to the resort was one night after MK. We prob had just got to the line area when the bus left, so we had to wait 20 mins or so.... but it wasn't to bad.

We have to drive 10-12 hours down, so I enjoy taking a break and not dealing with parking and directions! CSR also has bus stops located through out the resort and my personal fav to stay is at Casitas 4/5, they are bus stop 1 for any park bus and number 2 stop for DTD. Nice in the mornings!

 

[JPTexan82]

thats good info to have

 

[princessmom29]

We were at CSR in Nov. and never moved oru car except when I had to send DH to walgreens. We never had to wait more than 10 min for a bus, and didn't have to fight the traffic!!

 

[that's nice]

We were at CSR in March. I'm sure it will be a lot busier next week. We had a rental but we rode the busses to all of the parks. We used our car to get to other hotels for dinner/breakfast reservations. We were very impressed with how fast the busses were. We never waited more than a few minutes to get on. I would take the bus to MK. It drops you off right in front of MK. No monorail or boat! I would drive the rental to DTD. They take a long round about way to get there.

If you aren't sure try the busses... if you don't like them drive the car the next day. Oh yea... enjoy your stay at CSR!!!!!