The Magical Express Kidnapped my Son...Sorta, LOL!

[Hisgirl]

Last night my DS and DD were arriving on different flights, one hour apart. They were both coming in, separately, on ME.

My son called and said they were on the way.

My daughter called an hour later and said she was almost at magical express.

My girl called about 40 or so minutes later and said she was here. I was shocked and said, "you mean you're on the bus?" and she said, "No, I'm at fort wilderness"

My son....was nowhere to be seen.

When we called him and asked his whereabouts, I could NOT hardly believe the tale he told!

He was at Wilderness Lodge, The Magical Express driver was trying to insist this was where he got off. They had stopped at multiple other resorts prior to getting to WL. My son insisted they were going to the Fort Wilderness CAMPGROUNDS at the cabins.

THE MAGICAL EXPRESS DRIVER DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO GET TO FORT WILDERNESS!

My son had to pull up a GOOGLE MAP to find how to get there!

At one point, the driver made a wrong turn and was trying to turn around and got stuck. My son had to get out of the bus and do the 'Mon-Back' help routine. Has this person ever driven a bus before????

Finally.... over TWO HOURS after getting on the bus,having to argue with the driver that there was a place called FORT Wilderness, having to research the directions on how the bus was to go, having to get out and help the driver safely back up, they arrived. My son was so irritated. His sweet girlfriend was fit to be tied and I don't blame them.

They both were saying they would NEVER use ME again and I know they'll be telling everyone the same. Which is sad, because normally it has worked for us.

I normally don't like to complain and get folks in trouble, but this is one instance, Disney will indeed be getting a call. Not a good way to start a vacation.

 

[MaleficentRN]

That's insane. If I had to pull up a map for a bus driver, I think I'd get off the bus ASAP.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

Last night my DS and DD were arriving on different flights, one hour apart. They were both coming in, separately, on ME.

My son called and said they were on the way.

My daughter called an hour later and said she was almost at magical express.

My girl called about 40 or so minutes later and said she was here. I was shocked and said, "you mean you're on the bus?" and she said, "No, I'm at fort wilderness"

My son....was nowhere to be seen.

When we called him and asked his whereabouts, I could NOT hardly believe the tale he told!

He was at Wilderness Lodge, The Magical Express driver was trying to insist this was where he got off. They had stopped at multiple other resorts prior to getting to WL. My son insisted they were going to the Fort Wilderness CAMPGROUNDS at the cabins.

THE MAGICAL EXPRESS DRIVER DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO GET TO FORT WILDERNESS!

My son had to pull up a GOOGLE MAP to find how to get there!

At one point, the driver made a wrong turn and was trying to turn around and got stuck. My son had to get out of the bus and do the 'Mon-Back' help routine. Has this person ever driven a bus before????

Finally.... over TWO HOURS after getting on the bus,having to argue with the driver that there was a place called FORT Wilderness, having to research the directions on how the bus was to go, having to get out and help the driver safely back up, they arrived. My son was so irritated. His sweet girlfriend was fit to be tied and I don't blame them.

They both were saying they would NEVER use ME again and I know they'll be telling everyone the same. Which is sad, because normally it has worked for us.

I normally don't like to complain and get folks in trouble, but this is one instance, Disney will indeed be getting a call. Not a good way to start a vacation.

I wonder if your son got on the wrong bus, WL and FW are often confused or thought of a the same. In hind sight for your son, he could have just got off ME at WL and taken the internal FW bus to you(assuming he didn't have baggage with him).

 

[CNYDisneyFan]

Yikes.

 

[helenk]

I wonder if your son got on the wrong bus, WL and FW are often confused or thought of a the same. In hind sight for your son, he could have just got off ME at WL and taken the internal FW bus to you(assuming he didn't have baggage with him).

I am wondering if he got on the wrong bus as well. All of the times I have stayed at the VWL the bus has never gone to the campgrounds. But that is not to say it does not, but the bus to the WL has generally included the Poly, GF, CR those resorts.

 

[Hisgirl]

They had magic bands which worked at the kiosk, and they were pointed to a bus. They also said, when the driver pulled up to a resort, he didn't call out which resort it was and everybody was all confused where they were and if they should get off.

when they told the driver they needed to go to FORT wilderness, he acted like he had never heard of it!

 

[kaytieeldr]

Even so, the driver should have known of the existence of Fort Wilderness.

OP, I can understand your son's refusal to use DME again. I even understand his intentiin to describe his negative experience to (apparently) as many people as possible. But it's unreasonable of him to tell everyone not to use a system that's now in its tenth year of working great, based on a single ride with one driver unaware of the difference between or existence of the two separate properties.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I wonder if your son got on the wrong bus, WL and FW are often confused or thought of a the same. In hind sight for your son, he could have just got off ME at WL and taken the internal FW bus to you(assuming he didn't have baggage with him).

But he still would have needed a way to get to FW. The FW internal bus doesn't stop at WL.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

But he still would have needed a way to get to FW. The FW internal bus doesn't stop at WL.

Yes it does. One of the 3 routes(orange I think) does go out to WL after it stops at Settlement.

 

[KrazeeK120]

Yes it does. One of the 3 routes(orange I think) does go out to WL after it stops at Settlement.

Oh, didn't know that.

I would also assume that someone unfamiliar with these particular resorts wouldn't know that, so the son may not have realized that he had a way to get to WL had the ME driver dropped him off at Fort Wilderness.

 

[sam_gordon]

While I agree this would be a terrible way to start a vacation, I don't think it's a reason to rule out using ME again. If he caught a cab and the driver took him to the wrong place would he tell everyone "don't take a cab"?

Tell the story? Absolutely! But do as a lesson... "When getting on the DME bus, double check with the driver that he's going to the right resort."

 

[Hisgirl]

While I agree this would be a terrible way to start a vacation, I don't think it's a reason to rule out using ME again. If he caught a cab and the driver took him to the wrong place would he tell everyone "don't take a cab"?

Tell the story? Absolutely! But do as a lesson... "When getting on the DME bus, double check with the driver that he's going to the right resort."

While I would agree, unfortunately, his experience with ME didn't improve on his way back.

Also, they went to the bus at the airport they were told to go to. The airport person could have made a mistake. But...the issue is also that the driver of the ME bus, AFTER being told that they were needing Fort Wilderness, tried to tell them that Wilderness Lodge WAS fort wilderness.

They argued with him saying that no, there was a FORT wilderness with Cabins and horses and such and he kept insisting Wilderness Lodge was all there was.

Even after agreeing that maybe there were two resorts with Wilderness in the name, he should have contacted headquarters to get the route. My son had to call us to get the address and use his google map to tell the driver how to get there.

That, my friends, is ridiculous. (also the driver didn't announce any resort as he pulled up and all the folks were confused )

Move forward three days, it was time for DS and his girlfriend to return. They called ME to double check the time. Their pick up time was 4:50 pm. They sat at the bus stop, waiting for an internal bus to take them to the pickup place....and waited.....and waited......and waited......and waited....no bus.

So they grabbed one of our golfcarts and just left it in the parking lot, hiding the key, calling me to tell me what they'd done.

They arrived, checked their watches, and had minutes to spare.

They waited for ME....and waited....and waited.....and waited.

No bus.

They called ME, and they said the driver reported no one was there and he had left.

So sorry bud. There was no suggestion they go to another resort for another pickup. Nothing...just your bus is gone.

The reason I share this one here is to just educate the public that there can indeed be various experiences and also have a backup plan, or an awareness your plans can change, not for the better. My DD had a great experience with ME, as have I. But my DS, well, I'm pretty sure Alamo will be getting his business from now on.

(side note....we waited half an hour at MK yesterday for a WL bus, watching other resorts get their 3rd or 4th bus, then another 25 min at WL for a FW bus. Just be aware, for dinner ressies adn such)

 

[JanaDee]

While I agree this would be a terrible way to start a vacation, I don't think it's a reason to rule out using ME again. If he caught a cab and the driver took him to the wrong place would he tell everyone "don't take a cab"?

Tell the story? Absolutely! But do as a lesson... "When getting on the DME bus, double check with the driver that he's going to the right resort."

Or make sure you get on the correct bus.

The bus that stops at WL also usually stops at Poly, Contemporary and GF, not FW.

 

[JanaDee]

While I would agree, unfortunately, his experience with ME didn't improve on his way back.

Also, they went to the bus at the airport they were told to go to. The airport person could have made a mistake. But...the issue is also that the driver of the ME bus, AFTER being told that they were needing Fort Wilderness, tried to tell them that Wilderness Lodge WAS fort wilderness.

They argued with him saying that no, there was a FORT wilderness with Cabins and horses and such and he kept insisting Wilderness Lodge was all there was.

Even after agreeing that maybe there were two resorts with Wilderness in the name, he should have contacted headquarters to get the route. My son had to call us to get the address and use his google map to tell the driver how to get there.

That, my friends, is ridiculous. (also the driver didn't announce any resort as he pulled up and all the folks were confused )

Move forward three days, it was time for DS and his girlfriend to return. They called ME to double check the time. Their pick up time was 4:50 pm. They sat at the bus stop, waiting for an internal bus to take them to the pickup place....and waited.....and waited......and waited......and waited....no bus.

So they grabbed one of our golfcarts and just left it in the parking lot, hiding the key, calling me to tell me what they'd done.

They arrived, checked their watches, and had minutes to spare.

They waited for ME....and waited....and waited.....and waited.

No bus.

They called ME, and they said the driver reported no one was there and he had left.

So sorry bud. There was no suggestion they go to another resort for another pickup. Nothing...just your bus is gone.

The reason I share this one here is to just educate the public that there can indeed be various experiences and also have a backup plan, or an awareness your plans can change, not for the better. My DD had a great experience with ME, as have I. But my DS, well, I'm pretty sure Alamo will be getting his business from now on.

(side note....we waited half an hour at MK yesterday for a WL bus, watching other resorts get their 3rd or 4th bus, then another 25 min at WL for a FW bus. Just be aware, for dinner ressies adn such)

Their pick up time was not 4:50. That was the time the bus would be leaving. People need to be at the stop 15-20 mins before the time listed.

 

[sam_gordon]

While I would agree, unfortunately, his experience with ME didn't improve on his way back.

Also, they went to the bus at the airport they were told to go to. The airport person could have made a mistake. But...the issue is also that the driver of the ME bus, AFTER being told that they were needing Fort Wilderness, tried to tell them that Wilderness Lodge WAS fort wilderness.

They argued with him saying that no, there was a FORT wilderness with Cabins and horses and such and he kept insisting Wilderness Lodge was all there was.

Even after agreeing that maybe there were two resorts with Wilderness in the name, he should have contacted headquarters to get the route. My son had to call us to get the address and use his google map to tell the driver how to get there.

That, my friends, is ridiculous. (also the driver didn't announce any resort as he pulled up and all the folks were confused )

I agree. I mention double checking with the bus driver before getting on the bus as a preventative measure. No, you shouldn't need to, but it may save you that one time in a hundred something like what happened to your DS would happen again.

Move forward three days, it was time for DS and his girlfriend to return. They called ME to double check the time. Their pick up time was 4:50 pm. They sat at the bus stop, waiting for an internal bus to take them to the pickup place....and waited.....and waited......and waited......and waited....no bus.

So they grabbed one of our golfcarts and just left it in the parking lot, hiding the key, calling me to tell me what they'd done.

They arrived, checked their watches, and had minutes to spare.

They waited for ME....and waited....and waited.....and waited.

No bus.

They called ME, and they said the driver reported no one was there and he had left.

So sorry bud. There was no suggestion they go to another resort for another pickup. Nothing...just your bus is gone.

The reason I share this one here is to just educate the public that there can indeed be various experiences and also have a backup plan, or an awareness your plans can change, not for the better. My DD had a great experience with ME, as have I. But my DS, well, I'm pretty sure Alamo will be getting his business from now on.

(side note....we waited half an hour at MK yesterday for a WL bus, watching other resorts get their 3rd or 4th bus, then another 25 min at WL for a FW bus. Just be aware, for dinner ressies adn such)

If I'm understanding correctly, this wasn't a problem with ME, it was a problem with the internal bus system at FW. Because the internal bus didn't show up on time, your DS & his GF weren't at the ME stop at the correct time. ME stopped to pick them up but they weren't there. The bus driver has no idea why and can't spend too long waiting on people.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

Lets go ahead and make this educational/helpful for others using DME to get to the airport.
The time listed on your info is the time the bus LEAVES, just like a flight departure time, guests need to be at the DME area and ready to leave 15-20 minutes BEFORE the time the bus leaves. If you are relying on Disney transportation to get you to DME, whether a resort internal or you are not at your resort, you need to leave plenty of time to get to the DME area. The general rule of thumb for buses is they run approximately every 20 min, so factor in a 20 minute wait plus the actual drive to your location.

So for the OP the departure should have gone something like this(it may have I don't know, just using it as an example for others).
DME time is 4:50, that means being at the DME area ready to go no later than 4:35. Figuring in the just missed internal FW bus(20 min) plus the trip to Outpost(about 15min), her son and gf should have left the cabin no later than 4pm. Since this is about informing others, not just the OP, I believe you can contact the Outpost at FW and arrange for a FW van to transport you to DME. This is very helpful when you have lots of luggage.

 

[bumbershoot]

Their pick up time was not 4:50. That was the time the bus would be leaving. People need to be at the stop 15-20 mins before the time listed.

Except for when the CMs (for us, at Wilderness Lodge), wonder what on earth you are talking about when you get there a solid 20 minutes early and tell them WHY you are there that early. When they tell you that's not how it works and they've never heard of such a thing.

That's fun. Especially when the bus is 15 minutes late, so you've been sitting there for quite awhile, all the while all the bell services people and random CMs outside think you are bizarre for being there so early because that's not how it works, according to them...

 

[sam_gordon]

Except for when the CMs (for us, at Wilderness Lodge), wonder what on earth you are talking about when you get there a solid 20 minutes early and tell them WHY you are there that early. When they tell you that's not how it works and they've never heard of such a thing.

That's fun. Especially when the bus is 15 minutes late, so you've been sitting there for quite awhile, all the while all the bell services people and random CMs outside think you are bizarre for being there so early because that's not how it works, according to them...

Who cares what they think? We've sat and waited for a DME bus for an hour before. Not because of any problem, just that we've accomplished everything we had planned and couldn't squeeze anything more in. So we sit outside and wait. I don't remember any strange looks much less comments.

 

[Sandi]

Lets go ahead and make this educational/helpful for others using DME to get to the airport.
The time listed on your info is the time the bus LEAVES, just like a flight departure time, guests need to be at the DME area and ready to leave 15-20 minutes BEFORE the time the bus leaves. If you are relying on Disney transportation to get you to DME, whether a resort internal or you are not at your resort, you need to leave plenty of time to get to the DME area. The general rule of thumb for buses is they run approximately every 20 min, so factor in a 20 minute wait plus the actual drive to your location.

So for the OP the departure should have gone something like this(it may have I don't know, just using it as an example for others).
DME time is 4:50, that means being at the DME area ready to go no later than 4:35. Figuring in the just missed internal FW bus(20 min) plus the trip to Outpost(about 15min), her son and gf should have left the cabin no later than 4pm. Since this is about informing others, not just the OP, I believe you can contact the Outpost at FW and arrange for a FW van to transport you to DME. This is very helpful when you have lots of luggage.

Supporting the educational nature of this post, I just wanted to add that at FW you can arrange for a van to come to pick you and your luggage up from your cabin to take you to the DME pick up spot. You just need to arrange for that in advance and time it right (they have a book into which they'll enter the information and time). Of course, I suppose that could get screwed up, too, but it's worked for me and my family more than a couple of times. (I think I would avoid traveling with the OP's son. He sounds like bad luck [she said in jest].)

 

[maxiesmom]

Sorry OP but the return trip problems were not caused by DME but by your son and his girlfriend not leaving enough time to get to the DME bus stop.