Transportation from Art of Animation to Morning Character Breakfasts & Resort Dinners

[cdhar2]

Hello Everyone! This is my first post.

My family and I will be traveling from August 8 -15 2014. Our party consists of myself & DH (39), DS (6), DD (5), DS (2) and mother- in-law (65). We have the following TS reservations.



8/10 Sci-fi Dine @2:05
8/11 Akershus @ 8 am
8/12 Tusker House @11:30 am
8/12 Kona Cafe @ 6:50 pm
8/13 Cinderella's Royal Table @8:15 am
8/13 Sanaa @6:50 pm
8/14 1900 Park Fare @9:50 am
8/14 La Hacienda @6:30 pm
8/15 Ohana best friend's breakfast

I am concerned about getting to Akershus at Epcot (including walking from the gates to the restaurant) and CRT at MK on time. Do we need to get a taxi on those days or will the bus be sufficient? How long does it usually take by bus in the morning? Also, how difficult is it to get to Kona (Polynesian) and Sanaa (Animal Kingdom Kidani). I haven't been to disney since I was nine and we stayed off site, so I am a little worried about missing our reservations. Also, how much time does it take to go through bag check when you go for an early breakfast?

Thanks

 

[Mariep26]

I have done AoA to the parks for early breakfast and we had no problem whatsoever. The buses were running and for the most part the crowds were light. With regards to going to the Poly, you may need to go to MK and then hop on the monorail (someone else may be able to provide the best approach for Poly as I haven't been there that early before). Animal Kingdom Lodge is a good question -- hopefully someone else has a good idea. If it were later in the day I would do the bus to DTD or HS and then a bus to AKL.

Bag check generally doesn't take long as the crowds to get in early aren't super heavy. Once through the bag check there is a special line for folks with ADRs to get you into the park quickly. Of course this all depends on how close you are to RD for that particular park on that day... keep a close eye on opening times including EMH.

I avoid cabs as much as possible because we generally are in a group of 10-12 so it is a pain but a cab may be easier in some instances but I don't believe it is your only options.

Anyone correct me if I am wrong, please!!!

 

[amomma23]

The busses to early ADR' s will be fine if you want to save $ on cabs. We have done it many times. For an 8:00am reservation, I would be standing at the bus stop by 7:00. You will likely arrive early, but the busses seem to run a bit less frequently in the early morning, so you would hate to have just missed one.

Getting to Kona would be easiest from MK, just hop on th monorail and get off at the Poly. If you are elsewhere, get yourself to MK and go from there. I would aim to be waiting at the monorail station about 30 min prior.

Sanaa would be quick if you are at AK. Just hop on the AKL bus from any park or go to AK then AKL. I'd be waiting at the AK bus stop at least 20 min before you'd like to be there in case you just missed a bus.

 

[joelkfla]

General rule: allow 1 hour travel time between resort and theme park; 1.5 hours between resort and another resort. That's to the front gate, so add whatever walk time you think you'll need to reach the restaurant.

For the MK monorail resorts, if you're traveling from your resort, take the bus to MK and transfer to the Resort Monorail. You can also take the boat from MK to GF.

For Sanaa, transfer at AK if the park is open; otherwise DHS or Epcot. DTD has historically had slow bus service; it should be improving with recent streamlining of the routes, but it's probably still better to avoid transferring there until we see how things shake out.

 

[cdhar2]

Thank you so much! I never thought about switching at Animal Kingdom t o get to Sanaa. thanks.

 

[goofy4tink]

Hello Everyone! This is my first post.

My family and I will be traveling from August 8 -15 2014. Our party consists of myself & DH (39), DS (6), DD (5), DS (2) and mother- in-law (65). We have the following TS reservations.



8/10 Sci-fi Dine @2:05
8/11 Akershus @ 8 am
8/12 Tusker House @11:30 am
8/12 Kona Cafe @ 6:50 pm
8/13 Cinderella's Royal Table @8:15 am
8/13 Sanaa @6:50 pm
8/14 1900 Park Fare @9:50 am
8/14 La Hacienda @6:30 pm
8/15 Ohana best friend's breakfast

I am concerned about getting to Akershus at Epcot (including walking from the gates to the restaurant) and CRT at MK on time. Do we need to get a taxi on those days or will the bus be sufficient? How long does it usually take by bus in the morning? Also, how difficult is it to get to Kona (Polynesian) and Sanaa (Animal Kingdom Kidani). I haven't been to disney since I was nine and we stayed off site, so I am a little worried about missing our reservations. Also, how much time does it take to go through bag check when you go for an early breakfast?

Thanks

2:05 Sci-Fi....assume you'll already be in DHS
8:00 Akershus...be out at the Epcot bus stop no later than 7...6:45 would be better if you can manage it. These buses tend to run less frequently than regular buses. It will take you about 15 or so mins to get to Akershus.
6:50 Kona....monorail or boat from MK
8:15 CRT...be out at the MK bus stop by 7
6:50 Sanaa...head to AK if it's open (should be) and transfer to AKL bus..get off at Kidani. If it's not still open, head to Epcot and get the AKL bus there.
9:50 Park Fare....bus to MK, boat or monorail to GF
6:50 LaHacianda....assume you'll be in Epcot already
'Ohana...bus to MK, boat or monorail to the Polynesian.
It's always best to plan on it taking up to 90 mins to get from one resort to another when using Disney transportation. It probably won't actually take that long, but it's better to be safe than sorry.

And welcome to the DIS boards!!!

 

[cdhar2]

Thanks.

 

[GillianP1301]

If it were me and I was relying on Disney transportation, I would taxi for those early morning ADRs and take the extra hour sleep.

 

[cdhar2]

My kids get up at the crack of dawn anyway. We never sleep in! Such is life! lol.

 

[sbrost13]

We were at the AOA bus stop at 6:45am just about every morning of our April trip to get to the AM EMH park. There were buses for the other parks that were running that early even though they didn't open until 9:00. Good luck and enjoy AOA! We loved it there!