Transportation from Dolphin

[pewing]

How is the transportation to rest o' the World from The Dolphin?

 

[dahess]

The boat rides to MGM & Epcot are awesome. The bus to MK is not bad either but the boat rides are awesome, did I mention that?

 

[gschmerl]

WE loved the transportation from the Dolphin. The boats are wonderful. Didn't I hear that somewhere before? You can also walk to Epcot or MGM. We are early risers and always took the first bus to AK and MK. At that hour the buses were usually pretty empty. We found it much more convenient than other resort areas.

 

[kimmar067]

...reason why I loved the S/D so much was location, location, location!!!! It was absolutely EASY to get to: BW, Fantasia Mini Golf, MGM, Epcot, and fairly easy to get to MK and DTD. The only thing I didn't care for was the bus making stops at BB before going to AK....

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by pewing
How is the transportation to rest o' the World from The Dolphin?

We stayed at the Dolphin in Aug of 2002 and thought the transportation was great. We walked to MGM and took the boat back. We walked back and forth to EC but there is also a boat if you do not want to or cannot walk. Then it was bus to MK and AK. Both times that buses arrived within the 20min window coming and going with no issues.

 

[pewing]

Thanks for all the great input I was worried b/c on a separate post I was asking about breakfast choices and I was hearing things like..."Boma is great, but if you don't have a car (which we won't) Spoodles is nice too"

These boards are a life-saver

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by pewing
Thanks for all the great input I was worried b/c on a separate post I was asking about breakfast choices and I was hearing things like..."Boma is great, but if you don't have a car (which we won't) Spoodles is nice too"

These boards are a life-saver

Well, Boma is located at the AKL and not the AK. WDW transportation does a good job of getting people from their resort to one of the four main parks or the water parks but it is not designed to get people from one resort to another. To get from the Dolphin to the AKL without a car you would need to take the bus from the Dolphin to the AK and then take a bus from the AK to the AKL and then reverse the process to get back. It would be much easier to just walk over to Spoodles for breakfast if you are staying at the Dolphin. You could also take a taxi from the Dolphin to the AKL.

 

[pewing]

Can you take a bus to the TTC?

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by pewing
Can you take a bus to the TTC?

To my knowledge there is no bus from the Dolphin to the TTC. You could take the bus from the Dolphin to the MK and then take the monorail or ferry over to the TTC but I do not believe that buses run from the TTC to resorts any longer. So if you are trying to go from the Dolphin to the AKL for breakfast this would not be a good route to take.

 

[pewing]

Okay...I know you can walk or take a boat launch to MGM and/or Epcot (or so I've read). Can you catch the Monorail in front of Epcot...or would that only be possible if you went through the park? We likely will not have tickets most days...

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by pewing
Okay...I know you can walk or take a boat launch to MGM and/or Epcot (or so I've read). Can you catch the Monorail in front of Epcot...or would that only be possible if you went through the park? We likely will not have tickets most days...

You would need a park ticket to enter EC through the International Gateway and then walk to the front of the park and out of the front entrnace to get to the Monorail. The Dolphin does not run any buses to the front of EC.

 

[slp87]

You will be on the same transportation loop with Swan, Y/B Club & BW Resorts, so you'll want to be sure to add extra time when using bus or boat. I believe the buses go Swan, Dolphin, Yacht Club, Beach Club, BW. That takes quite a bit of time when heading to MK. On the plus side, you're one of the first stops when coming back from MK.

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by slp87
You will be on the same transportation loop with Swan, Y/B Club & BW Resorts, so you'll want to be sure to add extra time when using bus or boat. I believe the buses go Swan, Dolphin, Yacht Club, Beach Club, BW. That takes quite a bit of time when heading to MK. On the plus side, you're one of the first stops when coming back from MK.

Just an FYI on this. As Chip'n Dale Express, a WDW Bus Driver who posts over on the transportation board, has explained this loop does not exist all of the time. They only do the full loop during slow periods of the day. When we stayed at the Dolphin in 2002 when we took the bus to MK in the moring it stopped at the Dolphin after stopping at the Swan and then stopped at the BW by mistake (the bus driver was earning his ears) and then on to the MK.

For some great info about how the bus system works at WDW check out the Transportation Board and look for Chip'n Dale Express posts.

 

[pewing]

Haven't used that board...I will check it out

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by pewing
Haven't used that board...I will check it out

You are welcome pewing. Chip'n Dale Express is a wealth of information.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Okay, I'll try and see about answering all the questions in this thread:


Bus routes for the Epcot Resorts can vary by the time of day, demand, and destination.

TYPICAL morning routes go:
Swan -> Dolphin -> (Boardwalk)
Yacht -> Beach -> (Boardwalk)
(Boardwalk)

After 11:00am, MK routes change to:
Swan -> Dolphin
Yacht -> Beach -> Boardwalk

AK will do all 5

Downtown Disney does all 5 all day long, with the exception of 6pm-11pm when they separate the Boardwalk.

Note that depending on the season and demand, this can change. During slow times, the busses might stop at all five. Despite popular beleif, this does NOT take a long amount of time.


There is no bus from any of the Epcot Resorts to the Transportation & Ticket Center. The reason, is because there is typically no need to go to the TTC. However, if you need to go to the TTC, you can go to the MK and catch the Monorail, or Studios and catch the bus.


In regards to having breakfast a Boma... I highly recommend it, it's a WONDERFUL place to have breakfast. Especially the omelette bar! From 7:00-8:00, there will be Character Breakfast busses running. These busses will display either the theme park area they service, or Character Breakfast on the destination sign. They can take you directly to AK Lodge. Just make sure to talk to the driver as you board. After 8:00am, you'd take the Animal Kingdom bus, and potentially transfer to the AK Lodge bus at AK. Talk to the driver as you board... there's always that slight chance they can drop you off themselves.