Wilderness Lodge Boat, departure times

[timandlesley]

Hello, after reading several negative reports about WL transportation I am beginning to worry about making it to my early PS times on our next trip. When do the boats begin to run from Wilderness lodge to the MK and to CR?? If it is early I may cancel our AK early ressie and change it to Chef Mickey's breakfast and take the boat and then take the bus from the contemporary to AK. I need some advice. THANKS!
Lesley

 

[betterlatethannever]

... When do the boats begin to run from Wilderness lodge to the MK and to CR?? If it is early I may cancel our AK early ressie and change it to Chef Mickey's breakfast and take the boat and then take the bus from the contemporary to AK. I need some advice. THANKS!
Lesley

The boat that runs between the WL, CR and FW starts operating at 7 AM (leaving from the CR at that time, I believe).

Ed

 

[Kimberle]

The large Green launch runs about 1 hour before and after MK open/closes. The smaller blue launch runs 6:45 am - 10pm every day.

There are generally 2 blue boats running at a time, 1 clockwise, 1 counterclockwise.

It is very easy to make an early PS at MK. For our 9am PS, it took us 40 minutes from leaving our room to checking in at the CRT desk. And that included a picture stop. (Blue boat to CR, then monorail to MK.)

One of the boat drivers is a regular poster here. I can't remember his name right now, but if you have concerns, I'd suggest you ask him. I sure he will steer you in the right direction.

 

[jenjersnap]

Only one morning trying to get to our 8:05 PSs at crystal Palace in MK did we have any trouble whatsoever with WL transportation. That morning was foggy and the boats DO NOT run at all if there is any fog. I had no idea and took my DS to wait at 7 am. No boat to the CR ever appeared. I really wish that they would have a CM put a sign out when the boats are not running for whatever reason.

We went back to the lobby and the CMs at the front desk were clueless. It was getting late so we asked the bell services for advice. They suggested a taxi to the TTC and then the monorail. That is what we did but the taxi driver went on and on about how "stupid" they were at WL because he was going to have to drop me off "so far from the Magic Kingdom". I think he meant that he was taking us to TTC and not to the entrance of MK which I figured anyway. When we got to the monorail, we waited a long time - they had a breakdown - but, luckily because I started the whole process so early, we were only a little late for our PS. Whew, it was a nightmare getting it worked out but seeing DS's face when Tigger hugged him made it all up in my mind.

Now I know there are character meal buses in the morning. Apparently, the bell people have NO idea about transportation so don't bother asking them. I still don't know what I could have done differently about the fog and the boat to CR. *shrug* Everything else went swimmingly. I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[cruiseonmagic]

Only one morning trying to get to our 8:05 PSs at crystal Palace in MK did we have any trouble whatsoever with WL transportation. That morning was foggy and the boats DO NOT run at all if there is any fog. I had no idea and took my DS to wait at 7 am. No boat to the CR ever appeared. I really wish that they would have a CM put a sign out when the boats are not running for whatever reason.

Sorry you had the problem. I emailed a supervisor with the suggestion to put up the signs at the entrance to the docks--"boats not operating due to inclement weather". One more heads up--sometimes we shut the boats down if it is extremely windy.

The blue route will normally have a boat at WL and one at FW at 645. The green route to mk will have a boat at wl, and one at fw approx 30 min. before park opening.

For those of you who want to see the "train station welcome", take the blue to CR, and walk to mk--it starts at 848am, or 755 on emh days.

 

[timandlesley]

Thanks! That is very helpful information. So I could make a 7:45 at Chef Mickey's at CR??
What is the "train station welcome" I have never heard of this and my son is a huge train fan.
Thanks,
Lesley

 

[jenjersnap]

Thanks! That is very helpful information. So I could make a 7:45 at Chef Mickey's at CR??
What is the "train station welcome" I have never heard of this and my son is a huge train fan.
Thanks,
Lesley

That is the official opening that happens every morning at MK. The characters come out into the oval in front of the train station (on the inside, if that makes sense) and greet everyone. It's a mini-parade! All the parks have one of these character parades at the rope drop (well, never been to Epcot's so cant confirm that do ahve one, seen the others though). It's a great start to the morning!

 

[cruiseonmagic]

Well, I don't have to work today, so I can get back to what I started yesterday.

Lesley, you shouldn't have any problem making chef mickey's. Like Jennifer said, the train station welcome is the official opening of MK. There is singing and dancing, the mayor of main st. has his speech, Mickey and the gang arrive on the train, and the family selected to open the park does the count down, and throws "pixie dust" to open MK. It's a great way to start the day!

Jennifer, the boats will run up to the point that we can't see the dock. If it was extremely foggy that morning at our dry dock where we store the boats, they would wait until it cleared enough to see. When it gets to that point, a manager calls the bus mgr, who then puts busses on line. That usually takes around 15 min. from the time the call is made. The resort mgr is notified, and when there is staff available, a cm is sent to the dock(whether it's our staff, or resorts). If the front desk didn't know anything about it, then it looks like someone dropped the ball relaying the info. As far as the cab driver goes, he is the stupid one. TTC is the entrance that cabs use for MK. There is not a cab stand on the MK side of seven seas lagoon. Not being there when it happened, it's hard to say what went wrong, but I would have thought that someone would have at least given you options. Best bet if you are having transportation problems is to ask someone in transportation.

 

[abline]

We had 8:00AM PS for CRT and were waiting for the first boat of the day from WL which never came. (CLEAR DAY NO FOG) We finally got the boat from WL to CR and ran along the path to MK and to CRT. We were 25 minutes late. We were sweating and stressed out. When we checked in we explained our circumstances and the CMs couldn't have been cooler. One handed me some Mickey dust and said this is to help you relax. It totally worked and we enjoyed our breakfast and all our worries were washed away by one quick thinking CM.

 

[jenjersnap]

We had 8:00AM PS for CRT and were waiting for the first boat of the day from WL which never came. (CLEAR DAY NO FOG) We finally got the boat from WL to CR and ran along the path to MK and to CRT. We were 25 minutes late. We were sweating and stressed out. When we checked in we explained our circumstances and the CMs couldn't have been cooler. One handed me some Mickey dust and said this is to help you relax. It totally worked and we enjoyed our breakfast and all our worries were washed away by one quick thinking CM.

I am sorry you had a similarly sweaty, stressful experience like mine but isn;t it great when it all works out?. Just an FYI, the main boat to MK doesn't start running until 1/2 an hour before MK opens. It's the boat to CR that starts earlier and it, or the character breakfast specific buses, are the ways to get to an early meal at MK. So, you did it the right way after all! At least, that is the way I understand it from our friendly transportation CMs who post here. If you read this thread, cruiseonmagic explains it in more detail.

 

[timandlesley]

So what would you recommend doing for the 8:10 CRT? WAit for the boat from WL to CR or just find the bus to MK that goes early for character breakfasts? How early does that bus start running?

Thanks,
Lesley

 

[betterlatethannever]

So what would you recommend doing for the 8:10 CRT? WAit for the boat from WL to CR or just find the bus to MK that goes early for character breakfasts? How early does that bus start running?

Thanks,
Lesley

I'd take the bus. It starts at 6:30-6:45am. runs every 15-20 minutes or so.


Ed

 

[cruiseonmagic]

We had 8:00AM PS for CRT and were waiting for the first boat of the day from WL which never came. (CLEAR DAY NO FOG) We finally got the boat from WL to CR and ran along the path to MK and to CRT. We were 25 minutes late. We were sweating and stressed out. When we checked in we explained our circumstances and the CMs couldn't have been cooler. One handed me some Mickey dust and said this is to help you relax. It totally worked and we enjoyed our breakfast and all our worries were washed away by one quick thinking CM.

Were you waiting for the first boat from WL to MK? or WL to CR? It has been posted numerous times on the boards that WL/MK starts 1/2 hr before park opening (I'm also going to check the signs at Wl to see if they state this too). I've opened the blue route too many times to count, and we always start one at WL, and the other at FW at 645am. The boats basically sit there at the docks until a guest comes on board, then they are taken to the resort on Bay Lake of their choice. We don't even run regular routes until the greens start, because we are there for the guests attending character breakfasts. I'm sorry that you didn't receive all of the info that you needed to get to CRT on time. I always tell guests that it's only a short walk to MK from CR--actually I usually say "Get on whatever boat is in front of you--it might take a little longer, but at least you're moving." Blue route to CR, and a short walk. Green to mk.

 

[DisneyTeacher]

Thanks for the advice, cruisonmagic. We have a PS for CRT at 8:15 and I was a little worried about getting there. I have read that it's easy but hearing it from you makes me feel so much better. We love starting and ending our day at the MK with a boat ride, it's so relaxing after a busy day.

 

[dudspizza]

Last August we went to the bus stop where the CM standing there told us to go to the boat. We caught the boat to CR and the we had time so we took the monorail around. Very simple. If we were crunched for time, we would have walked.

We will take the boat in June to CR and then the monorail around to the Poly for a 7:30 Ohana breakfast.

Duds

 

[Luv2go2WDW]

So I just want to make sure I understand this correctly. I have a 7:00 AM PS at Chef Mickey. I'm staying at the WL.

I can get down to the docks at 6:40 and at 6:45 a boat will leave for CR.

 

[*Fantasia*]

If we're doing the EMH in the morning and let's say the EMH is at 7am. Does this mean that the boat will start at 6:30am? How long does it take to get to MK with the boat? What if we take the bus, how long does it take to get there? Thanks so much for your help!!