Visiting Monorail Resorts during Christmas week

[dandemom]

Hi all. We're planning a trip to Universal (staying offsite) for the week between Christmas and New Years. I was thinking it would be fun to take a side trip to Disney and ride the monorail to the resorts to see the decorations/gingerbread/etc during this trip since I've never been at Disney during the Christmas season.

Where is the best place to park for this? TTC? Or if I have an ADR can I park at one of the resorts itself? And how long would I be able to park there for? Is there a time limit for dining parking?

 

[crvetter]

Hi all. We're planning a trip to Universal (staying offsite) for the week between Christmas and New Years. I was thinking it would be fun to take a side trip to Disney and ride the monorail to the resorts to see the decorations/gingerbread/etc during this trip since I've never been at Disney during the Christmas season.

Where is the best place to park for this? TTC? Or if I have an ADR can I park at one of the resorts itself? And how long would I be able to park there for? Is there a time limit for dining parking?

The best place and only place you likely can park without an ADR during the Christmas season would be at TTC. With an ADR you can park at the resort for up to 3 hours.

Also I highly recommend taking the boat ride from the Contemporary or MK to the Wilderness Lodge to look at those decorations too.

 

[dandemom]

So what happens after 3 hours if I'm not out of the lot? Do I just get charged for the resort parking fee or do I get parking ticket? Certainly way more convenient to park at the resort than at the TTC, but I won't be able to get through all the resorts in 3 hours including an ADR somewhere. I have no issue paying for the parking, but would love to have the convenience of the resort lot.

 

[Anchored]

Valet park at your first resort. Then you can leave it there all day while you explore

Have fun!

 

[crvetter]

So what happens after 3 hours if I'm not out of the lot? Do I just get charged for the resort parking fee or do I get parking ticket? Certainly way more convenient to park at the resort than at the TTC, but I won't be able to get through all the resorts in 3 hours including an ADR somewhere. I have no issue paying for the parking, but would love to have the convenience of the resort lot.

You can do what the prior poster stated. However, be mindful during certain times the guard may not allow you to enter without an ADR even if you intend on Valet Parking but that will extend your time. You will likely find the Grand Floridian is more open to parking than Poly or Contemporary, these are more busy because of their convenience to TTC and walking to MK. Also they may let you park for touring/shopping the resort also, no need for ADR, but that is less of a guarantee and would have to be a slow day for the resort and have a guard open (the policy is that day guests can park to shop but resorts will limit it during peak times).

As for after 3 hours, the supposed policy is tow a car. With that being said I've never seen them actually police this nor seen any reports to verify it.

 

[dandemom]

Looks like valet parking it is then. It's $33 for that and $25 at the TTC. What is a reasonable amount for a tip? I've never used valet parking before. And when do you leave the tip, when you leave the car or when you pick it up? Thanks for you help!

 

[Heather Tyson]

We tip $5 when drop off and $5 when picked up.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Be aware that it may take you a long time to get to the MK during that week. Traffic can be backed up for miles trying to enter the parks. And you might even be turned away because of the traffic.

 

[writerguyfl]

We tip $5 when drop off and $5 when picked up.

Personally, I'd never tip when dropping off a car. The tip for the service provided and at that point, you haven't received any service.

For the record, I worked in luxury hotels for over a decade. Our valet staff virtually never received tips when dropping off cars. In each hotel I worked, valet tips were pooled, meaning anyone who happens to get only cars arriving is going to get the same amount as the person who might only be returning cars.