Travel Times to parks

[rideswithchrist]

What is the average travel time to the parks from the Fort?

MK by boat of course and the rest via bus vs driving our own car.

We are trying to strategize which parks are worth RD as a sleepyhead family and also knowing that we will be returning at night!

 

[PaHunter]

Depends on how you catch everything, or if you just miss one. But on average during our trips I figure about 90 mins.

The small boats run I believe every 15 mins, but one goes from the Fort to WL then Contemporary, the other goes to Contemporary then WL to the Fort. Large Ferry takes longer but takes you right to MK dock.

Buses at the Outpost has clocks with bus departure times.

 

[garneska]

I take the boat to MK and we drive to all the other parks. Buses take a lot longer.

 

[rideswithchrist]

I take the boat to MK and we drive to all the other parks. Buses take a lot longer.

That is what I was thinking of doing since we will be taking a stroller with us anyway, but I am not sure my hubby would be on board. Maybe for Animal Kingdom since it is so much further.

 

[PaHunter]

Even when driving it can still take awhile, traffic, and the walk thru the parking lot, or waiting for a tram. We usually let Disney drive, although now with our TV we may drive, we will see.

 

[lindsey]

Hollywood Studios entrance has changed. If you take bus, be prepared for long walk. If you drive, watch signs carefully.

 

[team bradfield]

driving takes longer than buses in most cases, rarely wait over 20 minutes for a bus during early March before crowds swell. Last march we timed trips, AK took less than an hour. Now when parks close, you may have to wait for the second bus if linger too long in the parks, Epcot at closing can take the longest, 60 minutes trip is normal, last year took 90 as we passed on the first bus so a family with little ones, could board, they were clearly done with Disney for the day.....I enjoy the free transportation, did I mention the Margaritas?

 

[rideswithchrist]

Yup- Hubs vetoed driving to the parks after already driving so many hours to arrive. He said that the buses were part of the magic and I do agree, and we booked it to the busses last time at closing, so hopefully we can do that again.

 

[Winchester24]

When we were there in October we made the mistake of driving to MK. Not the best way at all! lol. Yes the buses can be slow (and crowded so sometimes you have to wait for another one) but they have the advantage of using the bus lane to bypass traffic. They also bring you right up to TTC so you don't have to park and take a tram. The ferry is nice relaxing way to get to MK and the ticket line in MK was usually shorter. Just make sure you know the schedule, if you miss the boat the next one won't come around for 15-20 minutes! We found the buses ran to MK and Epcot efficiently, but buses to HS and AK were not so great. Especially AK. Our first trip to AK took 2 hours first thing in the morning. The problem seems to be (in our opinion) that there aren't enough buses running to AK. Every time we were waiting for a bus we watched the AK buses get swarmed and then 1/2 the people would be left standing waiting for the next bus. We drove for our second trip to AK and had a much better experience. HS buses weren't as bad but the walk from the bus stop to the entrance is long.

 

[Teamubr]

Except for AK and DS, we always let Disney do the driving.

We factor about 60 minutes to get anywhere. Generally it is a bit less than that, occasionally a little more, but an hour is a good average.

j

 

[rideswithchrist]

Based off this info- I'll plan on (him) driving to AK and we will let Disney drive for the rest.

Silly question- will GPS coordinates take us from Fort to AK?

 

[Teamubr]

Silly question- will GPS coordinates take us from Fort to AK?

It should, but the signs on site are pretty good.

j

 

[SolNest]

Go up to the Outpost and contact Uber via your cell phone. 6 minutes to Magic Kingdom and $7 for three of us. Drops off at Ticket & Transportation. Alternatively, the Minnie Vans can pick you up and take you and your party to any park for a flat rate of $25.

 

[sippican]

The ferry is nice relaxing way to get to MK and the ticket line in MK was usually shorter. Just make sure you know the schedule, if you miss the boat the next one won't come around for 15-20 minutes! .

I think the "schedule" is every 15-20 minutes, maybe longer, maybe shorter, lol!
Nothing in writing as far as I know. If we see the boat pulling away, and the resort boat to the Contemporary is at the dock, we sometimse take that, then walk from the Contemporary to the MK.

 

[Patience]

We factor about 60 minutes to get anywhere. Generally it is a bit less than that, occasionally a little more, but an hour is a good average.

j

Wow, 60 minutes? We are arriving at the Fort in February. The last time we were at WDW was in 2013 and I think I have forgotten how long it takes to go anywhere. We did Universal last year and both parks and CityWalk were a 10 minute walk or a 5 minute boat ride from our onsite hotel. I am definitely going to have to wrap my head around long bus or car rides to anywhere but Magic Kingdom.

 

[garneska]

car ride does not take as long. your issue with the bus is if you just miss one.

 

[rideswithchrist]

Go up to the Outpost and contact Uber via your cell phone. 6 minutes to Magic Kingdom and $7 for three of us. Drops off at Ticket & Transportation. Alternatively, the Minnie Vans can pick you up and take you and your party to any park for a flat rate of $25.

That may work for 3 people, but for 6 of us, I am not paying $25 to load 4 carseats in the back of a van and then have to find a place to store them We drive so we have our own vehicle so I can't fathom paying someone to drive theirs haha.

Wow, 60 minutes? We are arriving at the Fort in February. The last time we were at WDW was in 2013 and I think I have forgotten how long it takes to go anywhere. We did Universal last year and both parks and CityWalk were a 10 minute walk or a 5 minute boat ride from our onsite hotel. I am definitely going to have to wrap my head around long bus or car rides to anywhere but Magic Kingdom.

I was thinking that too- I can't recall at all how long it took to get anywhere because we really did enjoy just sitting on the bus talking each day. And because I have no concept of time. I mainly care in case we don't get some FPs and need to rope drop AK. I would rather keep refreshing MDE and see what we can get, or try to ride a ride at the tail end of the day maybe. (Can you tell we are not morning folks?)

car ride does not take as long. your issue with the bus is if you just miss one.

I hope we can figure out our commute time quickly so we don't miss anything. I think we will have bikes to get around- or we will just have to figure it out on the fly!

 

[bama_ed]

In a related vein, this thread on the Resorts board indicates that MDE will show you bus schedules (the same info as at the monitors at the bus depots to other destinations) but ONLY WHILE YOU ARE AT WDW during your resort dates.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/on-app-bus-schedules.3728749/

Can anyone there at the Fort confirm?

Bama Ed

PS - the university my DD attends runs a shuttle bus network around campus connection parking lots to classroom buildings for kids and the smartphone app has a gps mapping system showing the bus location in near real time. Now how cool would THAT be for the Fort/WDW guests?

PPS - a lot of universities and city/county transit system use this app. Why can't Disney? The app is "Transloc": http://translocrider.com/

 

[rideswithchrist]

In a related vein, this thread on the Resorts board indicates that MDE will show you bus schedules (the same info as at the monitors at the bus depots to other destinations) but ONLY WHILE YOU ARE AT WDW during your resort dates.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/on-app-bus-schedules.3728749/

Can anyone there at the Fort confirm?

Bama Ed

PS - the university my DD attends runs a shuttle bus network around campus connection parking lots to classroom buildings for kids and the smartphone app has a gps mapping system showing the bus location in near real time. Now how cool would THAT be for the Fort/WDW guests?

PPS - a lot of universities and city/county transit system use this app. Why can't Disney? The app is "Transloc": http://translocrider.com/

That is a brilliant idea

 

[mickeyfan0805]

As to your GPS question, it seems to depend on the device. Many will work, but there are some that will try to route you onto backstage areas where you aren't supposed to be. As me how I know...

Overall, to your original inquiry, we tend to fall into the 'drive' category most of the time. When at the Fort, we use the boat for MK (usually there in under 30 minutes, using a cart to get to the dock), and we would sometimes use a bus to DS (60 minutes would be my budgeted time). For the other three, however, we almost always drive. While you CAN get there faster by bus, driving is simply much more reliable on time. I know how long it will take me and don't have to build in a bunch of extra time in case of bus delays. Driving to the other 3, I would plan to be able to be in the park in well under 45 minutes (often closer to 30).
Many like the freedom of not having to drive. I don't mind driving, and put a higher premium on the reliability of travel time and the ability to make quick stops (restaurants, stores, etc...) when leaving a park. To each their own!