What do you do when the parks close early?

[harleyquinn]

I know this has been asked before--what hasn't?

I'm planning to go Jan 25-february 1. it'll be 4 25-year-olds. I'm sure we'll spend a lot of time at PI (can you buy a 7-day pass?) Dh LOVES the AC--he's a fanatic. We'll be onsite--probably at POP. Maybe some late dinners at the other resorts? Do buses keep running after the parks close? We won't have a car.

Thanks!!

 

[twoeeyy]

I was going to say International Drive but without a car I don't know.

Last year we were at Universal in Oct and they close very early every night then. We went to International drive everynight, lots to do. We did not get to the indoor skydive but we are definately going to do it this Oct.

 

[Pats Dragon]

The buses from PI will take you everywhere until early morning. We like Boardwalk, the water pageant, quest, lounges for snacks, the pool at pop, pizza in the food court.

 

[jann1033]

if you haven't done cirque it's amazing

 

[NoelGypsy]

We were there Dec 2004 at All Star Music for 7 days. Since they close early then also, we went to the hotels at night at checked out different restaurants and nightlife. Some nights we went back to the hotel and went swimming. Some nights we went to the Boardwalk, which is alot of fun. If you go to Epcot you can walk over to the Boardwalk throught the International Waterway. Jellyrolls is alot of fun!!! We were at Jellyrolls until 12:30 and they said we could take a bus from the Boardwalk to Pleasure Island and then back to the hotel. The buses that late at night only run from the hotels to and from Pleasure Island and then you catch a connecting bus to whichever hotel you are at. We didnt want to wait for a bus so we took a cab, it only cost us 10 dollars and the guy took us through the McDonalds drive through since we were starving
Other nights we went to Downtown Disney and hung out around there. We pin trade so we were pin trading with all the people with the books full of pins. Also on the West Side is the House of Blues, Disney Quest, and other restaurants and they are happening.
Hope this helps and have a great time

 

[harleyquinn]

Thanks! That's awesome! We've never done the Boardwalk at all--so we'll definitely go there. Great tip about going from whatever resort to PI!!


Now cross your fingers that they have free dining again. Those big dinners sure would take up a ton of time!

 

[harleyquinn]

Tell me more about the water pagent!! Do they do it every night? DO you watch from the boardwalk? I've heard it mentioned before, and it sounds great. We'll definitely hit Jellyrolls too.

Our friends might want to do Cirque. I want to, but it's too expensive for me.

 

[whacked]

Go to sleep so we can be at the parks before the opening the next day.

 

[TDC Nala]

I am the transportation to PI expert for some reason.

If you are at a park and you want to catch a bus to PI - well, you can't. There is no direct transportation to Downtown Disney from the parks. Here is what I do.

If you're at Epcot, walk out the International Gateway to the Beach Club and take a Downtown Disney bus from there.

If you're at MK, walk to the Contemporary and catch the bus there, or take the motor launch to GF and catch their bus. If you have a thing for the monorail, ride it to the GF. If you get off before the GF, when you catch the bus, it will stop at other resorts before heading out to DTD.

If you're at MGM, that one is more difficult. Fastest way is to take the walking path to the Boardwalk and catch the bus there. You can take the boat - if you do that, get off at the Swan/Dolphin, walk over to the Boardwalk and catch their bus to avoid multiple bus stops. Or, you can catch the first resort bus that comes along and transfer at the resort to the DTD bus. You might end up picking a resort that has lots of bus stops, though. I think the best resort for this would be Pop Century - it's centrally located and the bus will go directly there, and the DTD bus from there will go directly to DTD without stopping anywhere else.

If you are at a resort and the parks are closed, take the bus from that resort to Downtown Disney. If you're headed to PI, you're there. If you're going back to your resort, transfer to your own resort bus either at the marketplace or PI.

Buses run to and from PI until 2 AM, so you're not going to get stranded.

You can't see the water pageant from the Boardwalk, you would need to be at a Magic Kingdom area resort or Fort Wilderness.

BTW, if you want to spend more than a couple of nights at PI, look into a PI annual pass. It costs around 50 bucks. I don't know if they still have the deal where you pay a bit more on your one-night pass and get some extra nights or not.

 

[harleyquinn]

Thanks Nala!! I'll print that out and take it with me!!

I figure we'll do PI 2-3 nights and DQ 1 or 2 and Boardwalk a couple. Plus some dinners at the resorts and stuff.


Thanks all so much for your help!!