WDW transportation or car??

[twins4mimi]

I need help from those of you that have been. We are going to WDW in Sept and staying at POP. We have 2 year old twins and will be driving down. Should we use the hotel transportation (which I know nothing about) or should be drive our car from place to place? We will of course have the twins and their double stroller and everything we need for the day. Would it be easier to just drive? If so do we have to pay to park? Would it be just as easy to use the hotel transportation, if so any info you could share on that would be helpful!!! Thanks so much!!!

 

[SalandJeff]

I've never been to WDW with twins, but will give you a little feedback on the transportation. We usually have a rental car, but always use Disney transportation to get to the parks. The resort will point out the bus stops to you on the map you receive at check in. Just stroll over to the bus stop when you're ready and wait for the next bus to wherever you are going. If you drive to the parks, you will be parked FAR from the actual park (almost always unless you get there really early ). So after you park the car, you would then go and wait to get on the tram or monorail or boat or whatever to get to the actual park.

Does the stroller fold fairly easily? If so, you can just fold it up and get on the bus. If possible, I would see if you can fit all their items for the day in one backback that you can stow under the stroller while at the parks. You want to have what you need with you, but I would imagine that with two little ones, you're hands are pretty full most of the time, and you don't need to carry extra bags. I would use the car for travel to DTD and any other resorts for meals.

I'm sure there are others who will disagree. Whatever you decide, don't stress about it. If it doesn't work one day, change it the next. Have a wonderful time!

 

[elderfam]

Whatever you decide, don't stress about it. If it doesn't work one day, change it the next. Have a wonderful time!

Very true!

We usually have a rental car but never use it to drive to the parks. For one thing, if you do not know your way around the property it is really easy to get lost. The only time we thought we would have liked to have the car was when the parks closed....but truly I dont think it would have been faster.
Have a great trip!

 

[twins4mimi]

Thanks for your suggestions! Is is difficult getting off and on bus with kids, strollers and backpacks? How often do the buses run? Am I correct in understanding the go from park to resort, but not from resort to resort??

 

[lovmy2girls]

WE don't have twins, but we started Disney with small girls, and looking back, I wish I would have used my car most of the time. These last few trips, we have skipped the bus and used the car. Much quicker, saves time waiting for the bus, travel time etc....Made everyone much more happier. But that is just our family.

 

[disney_family_1247]

You're right, the buses will go from your hotel to all of the parks and Downtown Disney. They don't go from resort to resort. To do that, you either have to drive your car or ride a bus to a park or DTD and transfer to a bus for that resort.

We don't have twins, but our first two are close in age. We've been riding the buses with a double stroller since '02 . We started out with a Graco Duo Glider, which was great in the parks, but huge on the buses. We have since purchased ones that are easier to use on the buses. DH usually gets on with the stroller and a backpack on his back. I am in charge of getting the kids on. I keep the baby in a sling to keep my hands free. The tricky part is when one or all of the kids fall asleep just before you're getting on the bus . DH has managed to climb on board with the double stroller and one sleeping kid in the other arm!

We love riding the buses; to us it's part of the trip.

 

[bigbabyblues]

We only use WDW Transportation whether we drive our own car to WDW or not. If we drive the car, it stays parked from the time we arrive until the time we leave. The buses are just too convenient. The A/C is on when you get on the bus, no getting into a steaming hot car when you're ready to leave.

 

[stacy6552]

I would drive everywhere from POp, except to the MK. The busses drop you off so much closer to the gate it makes any line waits totally worth it.

 

[Dana30]

We always drive everywhere. It is so much easier. Parking is free, and with crying babies, we never have to wait. My DH and used disney trnsportation on our honeymoon and while it was fine, we swore bnever again!

We like to be able to do something when we are ready.

Dana

 

[hammie59]

As someone else mentioned, parking if free if you're a guest of Disney. When it comes to using their transportation, I think it also depends on where you're staying as to how easy it will be. Some resorts share buses and some don't. From what I've read, I think the value resorts share, which means possible longer waits or harder time getting on bus with stroller and kids due to the buses being more full. If i were you, I'd maybe try using the buses at least once because they are pretty convienient. Last time I was there I used them, but I didn't have kids at the time.

We're going down next year with a 1yr old and 5yr old and are having a similar issue as you. We'll be at CSR which is suppose to have it's own buses, so I think we'll be using them for the parks instead of the rental car. The walk from your car to the park is pretty lengthy unless you get there at the crack of dawn.

 

[mexican-mouseketeers]

I would definetly drive my own car.

Disney buses work, but at park opening and closing the lines are looooooooong, it is a lot faster to wait for the monorail or ferry and walk to the first tram stop in the parking lots.

September is really slow, so dh and I found that if we got to MK before 9:30 we would park so close that it was easier walking to the turnstiles than to tram stop, especially with a stroller.

And sometimes the bus routes have problems, last may 5th we waited for an Epcot bus close to 50 min outside ASMu, so instead of arriving at the park before opening (I arrived at the bus stop at about 8:35) we got there about 9:35 and the lines to Soarin´ Nemo, etc were already long.

And you can always decide to hop from one place to another in the car, which is faster.

Oh, and using Disney transportation to go to DTD is a complete PITA, if you don´t use your car all the time, at least use it to go there.

 

[boettj]

We rent a car. The buses do not have a place to secure a seat. So your DCs will be on your lap, and those buses do not go slow between the hotel and the parks. We tried it once, but decided against it. We did not feel that our DD was safe.

Buses can be unreliable when it comes to making reservations. We have missed reservations waiting for Disney transportation. And yes, we did leave plenty of time. Granted these may have been one offs. We missed 2 dinner reservations during a nine day stay at Port Orleans.

After we missed the second reservation, we started using the taxi's. Can get expensive, about $10 per ride + tip depending on destination, but more reliable than the bus system.

Safety factor for your 2 DCs. Bottom line.

 

[mrstomrice]

I would suggest the car more than the transportation, especially when you plan to be out late, since 2 sleeping kids plus stroller and bags will be combursome on the buses. I LOVE the transportation and I have never had a big problem with it, but you will have a lot of gear to lug around and you will have an easier time in the long run. We just got back from a trip with our 3 yo and 11 month old ds's and the buses get crowded. If you do plan to take the bus, consider trying to slide the stroller under the seats that are reserved for scooters and wheelchairs, assuming no one has to use them. THey are roomy underneath, big enough for a single stroller. When the buses got too full, we would wait for the next bus and get a choice of seats. The buses were coming every 5 minutes as we left MK. We stayed at Pop with a car our last trip (only 1 ds then) and we drove a few times...everything is really easy to find, in my opinion. Give both a try and see what you think. Good Luck!

 

[eliza61]

We have twins (now 16) but it a nutshell the word is convienence. Let me tell you, I don't care how great the transportation is, getting on and off the buses with all our gear was at best a hassle. It was great at the end of the night after the kids were beat, not having to wait in line for a bus or the monorail. We rent a car even when we stay at monorail resorts. I find driving around disney ridiculously easy (its one big circle) and for me I'll incur any cost to make my life a little easier, hey it's my vacation too.

 

[mericletwins]

Thanks for your suggestions! Is is difficult getting off and on bus with kids, strollers and backpacks? How often do the buses run? Am I correct in understanding the go from park to resort, but not from resort to resort??

Yes, you are correct. We went with twins plus another, all in strollers. We used all WDW transportation although we had a car with us. It was just so much easier. If you use your own car, you won't pay to park as a WDW resort guest, but you will be far from the entrance. We found the strollers to be very easy to fold to get on and off the bus, but I guess that depends on what kind of stroller you have. We did not bring our big double stroller, instead we brought two umbrella strollers along with stroller connectors. That gave us the option of one person pushing or both. We carried one back pack with what they needed. Even had we wanted to use our car, the kids would have been very disappointed. They LOVED the "Mickey busses". I think that we probably didn't ever need to enter a park. They could have gone on the busses, monorails and boats all day and been happy.

 

[Lisa Anne Colling]

The year my DD was 1, was the year I stopped loving the buses. We waited for a bus that wasn't full, my daughter was asleep in my arms, Dh had stroller and bag. Anyways hour later no bus that wasn't full in morning. My husband said get on someone will give you seat. He always gives up his seat to children, elderly, etc. We got on a bus full of adults and not one person said have a seat. I was unable to hold anything because of my daugther. The driver slammed on his breaks at one point and I almost landed up on the floor. My husband thankfully caught us. The driver finally asked a person if he would mind letting us sit. The guy said" I'm sorry I didn't think you wanted to sit"? I'm not an outspoken person, what am I going to say. That trip we flew and had no vehicle. Now we drive and I much perfer not having to try and hold on to 3 kids at the end of the day on the bus and hope they have a seat. It also takes a long time to get anywhere on the bus. Depending on where you stay, 5- 10 minutes and you are there by car!
Some tips with the car: Go early to get a good parking spot. At MGM we always go early. After lunch we go back for a swim and rest, but leave the car and take the bus back when it's not busy. Then after Fantasmic when kids are tired and Us, we have a parking spot up close and don't have to wait in line for a busy bus.
We do take the bus to Magic Kingdom. You have to take monorail or boat from parking lot if you drive and if you Do EMH in am the only way to get there is by resort bus.
Have a great trip! 2 is an awesome age!