POLY Bus Service to AK & MGM

[Bohms4]

I just wanted to get everyone's opinion about POLY's bus service to AK and MGM. I just read in another post that they had a horrible experience with the bus service to these parks (waiting 30 minutes for the bus). What was your experience going to these parks from the POLY and please let me know the month you were there.
Thanks.

[TiggerRPh]

I didn't think it was that bad but it can be crowded in the morning because they share buses with the other MK resorts.

[TiggeRia]

We probably waited an average of 20-30 minutes for the bus at the Poly. Our biggest problem was that since the bus was shared between resorts, it was already partially full by the time it reached the Poly, and my dad was in an ECV. There were several buses that went by that we couldn't get on because there were already people on board. I think the longest we waited was about 40 minutes, and it was due to the ECV.

[SBETigg]

I've never had a bad bus experience from the Poly to anywhere else, even with bus sharing, at any time of the day. For us, the buses running to and from the Poly have always been timely and not overcrowded. Yes, I have had to stand once or twice, but I've never had to wait for an entirely new bus to come. I think the horror story is an anomaly. But if you were really worried, you could walk to the TTC and catch a bus from there, I suppose-- the beauty of the Poly location. Our last trip Poly trip was an October trip.

[tomorrowschild]

When we stayed at the Poly 2 summers ago we did not use the buses very much, but we did try it once to go to DTD and waited more then 40 minutes for it- not thrilled, but that is life. Sitting in Disney waiting for a bus is better then sitting a home- any day:mickey:
But, all in all I think the bus service is pretty good to the parks.

[SBETigg]

I'm curious to know if people who waited for buses just went out and stood waiting or alerted someone? There's usually someone out there working to make sure the buses are all running on time and regularly. If we were ever waiting more than a few minutes, we would tell the CM and they would tell us when to expect the next bus-- it was always there within minutes. I don't think they would let you sit there waiting for forty minutes if they were aware of a problem, but maybe I'm naive.

[Tinkerfreak]

Don't tell me this. The reason we did not like the BC was because of sharing the bus with all the other Epcot area resorts. We were the last on the loop so by the time it picked us up it would be full and we would have to stand. On the way back to the resort we were always the last dropped off and it felt like it took forever to make all those other stops. I had to really convice DH to try the Poly instead of the AKL where we usually stay, so I hope we don't have problems like that while we are there. I don't mind waiting a few minutes for a bus but I hate having to stand, I am a bit pooh sized so I don't have the best balance.

[LudwigVonDrake]

I didn't think it was that bad but it can be crowded in the morning because they share buses with the other MK resorts.

What is the order of pickup/drop off with the MK resorts? Thanks :tikki:

[SBETigg]

What is the order of pickup/drop off with the MK resorts? Thanks :tikki:

There is no set order. It changes depending on need. The fact is that bus service at any WDW resort is not perfect. At the Poly, you won't need buses for Epcot or the MK. For the rest, you may indeed have to stand on occasion-- but not necessarily all the time. It happens. That's bus service-- everywhere at WDW. The only way around is to rent a car. It's still that much better at the Poly and other deluxes to my experience than it has been at the moderate resorts.

[TiggeRia]

I'm curious to know if people who waited for buses just went out and stood waiting or alerted someone?

No, we never alerted anyone because there were no CM's around the bus stop area. And we weren't standing there alone, there was usually a crowd of people waiting for various buses. We would have had to walk to the concierge desk out front. I wouldn't call it a horror story having to wait for the bus. The buses came just about every 20, however, because we had an ECV, they would not load it on the bus if there were already people on board, which was what happened in our scenario. We would wait for the second or third bus to come along before we would be able to board.The majority of the buses seemed to go to CR, Poly, then GF.

[PirateLover]

We had good experiences with Poly bus service on our last trip. We took buses to AK, MGM, and Typhoon Lagoon. I think the longest we waited was maybe 15 mins... On the morning we were headed to AK, we just missed a bus. The next one came within 10 minutes. I think it also depends what time of day it is too. I've noticed that at all resorts, buses tend to run more frequently in the morning and towards the evening as opposed to mid-afternoon.
* Wanted to add that we did not find resort sharing to be problematic.

[LudwigVonDrake]

There is no set order. It changes depending on need. The fact is that bus service at any WDW resort is not perfect. At the Poly, you won't need buses for Epcot or the MK. For the rest, you may indeed have to stand on occasion-- but not necessarily all the time. It happens. That's bus service-- everywhere at WDW. The only way around is to rent a car. It's still that much better at the Poly and other deluxes to my experience than it has been at the moderate resorts.

Thanks for the info :tikki:

[Bohms4]

Thanks for all of the info.

[Carol]

We've never waited more than 15/20 minutes for a bus at the Polynesian. You have to remember if one just left - the wait will be a bit longer. I've stayed at the Polynesian in March, April, May, October, December and February.

The longest I've ever waited for a bus was at Downtown Disney trying to get back to Animal Kingdom Lodge. It was over an hour. Other than that one time we've always had great success with Disney transportation.


The reason we did not like the BC was because of sharing the bus with all the other Epcot area resorts. We were the last on the loop so by the time it picked us up it would be full and we would have to stand. On the way back to the resort we were always the last dropped off and it felt like it took forever to make all those other stops.I agree. It's one of the reasons I don't like staying in that area either. The sharing at the Polynesian is nothing like that.

[krorx]

Our last stay was end of July early August. The buses were shared between Contemporary, Poly and Grand Floridian. I wouldn't say it was a nightmare but the waits were longer than we've had in the past staying at POFQ. Someone did alert a CM (by walking to the Great Ceremonial house--the only place I saw a CM standing outside monitoring buses was at the GF) but it didn't really change anything. We ended up driving to most of the parks not on the monorail which was a surprisingly pleasant experience. That being said, I would stay at the Poly again anytime. It was a lovely resort, well located and well themed. :tiphat:

[psychotekkie]

We stayed last summer, early July, and took busses to MGM and AK and Downtown. It was not bad at all. The wait was average up to 15 minutes. Almost always got a seat. But compared to staying at Value resorts, including POP, it was a huge improvement. Never had to wait for a second bus because of reaching capacity. Never had to go far to get to a bus stop. Plus that was only a few days. Most days we spent at MK and Epcot which had monorail.

[DisneyorBust]

We have stayed at the POLY:tikki: and normally our wait time for the busses to AK or Disney Studios was approx. 15-20 minutes.
That's one of the reasons that we love the POLY:tikki:, great transportation options.:thumbsup:

[MR.MIKE]

I agree. It's one of the reasons I don't like staying in [EPCOT Resort] area either. The sharing at the Polynesian is nothing like that.

Not to get off track but We rarely used the buses at the Epcot resorts. We walk to Epcot and MGM (the main reason to stay at those resorts) and walk through Epcot to get the monorail for the MK. I don't know if it is faster but it is more enjoyable.:mickey:

[wedway fan]

But if you were really worried, you could walk to the TTC and catch a bus from there, I suppose-- the beauty of the Poly location.

just to clarify- i thought that the busses went directly to the MK, and not to the TTC.