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jaredkari
07-21-2011, 09:02 AM
My wife and I went about a month ago to WDW. We stayed at the Poly. Now the transportation on the monorail was great, BUT the bus transportation was a joke!! I thought since I was staying at a deluxe they would have better transportation. NOPE, sharing buses with Contemporary led to full buses before they even reached the Poly!! Ok so now for my story.

Twice during our 7 day trip we tried to get to HS in the morning. No such luck. One morning we waited 45 minutes for a bus to arrive. The next morning was the real horror story. We went to the bus stop which was mobbed and waited 30 minutes. No HS bus. So we decided there was no way we were catching a bus even if one showed up there would not be enough room. So we went back to our room and I called the front desk to ask where the buses are. After we cooled down for a minute we went back. Buses must have showed up while we were gone. But again it was mobbed. We waited another 40 minutes. Still no bus. Finally a non-disney charter bus showed up heading for HS. We all boarded and thought we would be to the park soon. WRONG AGAIN! I was convinced the driver took a route that ensured he would not have to make a left hand turn. So we went all the way around MK, by the campgrounds, by the Monorail repair shops. It took 30 minutes to get to HS. There were people getting calls on the bus from others who had gotten on a Disney bus at Poly after us and were already in the park. To say the least we were not happy at all. We went to guest relations and filed a complaint, they did give us fastpasses which was nice. Later we went to the front desk at the Poly and filed a complaint as well.

I understand that problems occur and you may have to wait longer for buses. But when it was 2 times at a Deluxe resort I was pretty steamed. I am sticking with moderates from now on.

BugeyedMuggy
07-21-2011, 09:37 AM
This is the main reason we like to stay in the Epcot hotel area. We can walk to 2 of our favorite parks. The busses are shared for the other parks but have never experienced that long of a wait.

Goofy4TheWorld
07-21-2011, 09:49 AM
My stay at the Contemporary last June left me disgusted with the bus service as well. I always thought to myself that the only thing worse than the Contemporary bus service was the bus service at the Poly (since you were the second stop).

I too had the exact same problem at CR with the DHS bus, we waited through FIVE buses that were going to AK and DTD (4 out of 5 drove off empty) while zero buses had come to load the packed DHS line (including two bus-loads of people and 3 wheelchairs). We missed rope drop and TSM because of that, and is just one of many reason I won't be back on the Monorail resort loop again. They just can't figure out how to service DHS.

Rosanne
07-21-2011, 09:50 AM
The problem with the MK resorts is that they are so incredibly far from everything else.

Say they have two buses going back and forth to DHS from the Contemporary/Poly. One bus has a electronic wheelchair to load. By the time they get that stuff settled, the other bus is right behind it. So instead of one bus being at the Poly and one bus at DHS, they are together. And it does take a good 25 minutes to get from the MK resorts to DHS.

What I'm surprised about is that they didn't seem to have a transportation CM at the bus stops. They usually do. If they need to call for an extra bus, they usually can. However, that was not the case here.

I'm sorry you had a bad experience. You did the right thing by filing a complaint with the front desk. That's a LOT of money to spend and have to wait 40 minutes for a bus in the morning.

Joannelet
07-21-2011, 11:05 AM
Ah the famous buses! This is also why my hubby and I drive the car to the parks. We had a bad experience one night at Epcot that put us over the top. We didn't even stay to watch Illuminations so we literally ran to the front of the park with my 1 year old son and my mom and dad. By the time we got to the front of the park though (my parents are older so they are slow walkers) Illuminations was over and there was a mad dash to the buses. We headed over to catch the Saratoga Spring buses. By the time we got on line for the buses my son had passed out in my arms. I told my hubby if the first bus comes I don't want to get on it if its full as we were in the center. ( wanted a seat with my sleeping son). The bus comes the whole front end loads and no sitting room so we wait. 20 minutes later another bus. We get on, we sit, it's all good. Suddenly one of the ECV's come and the bus driver decides to let load while we are all already on the bus. The bus is packed. Some people move off just so she can get the ramp down. The person parks the ECV and walks off to a seat. Here is where the part comes in...since we were all ON THE BUS....there was a malfuncion in the ramp returning to it's normal position. Between the maintenance that was called etc. It took us 2.5 hours to get back to our hotel. I was so upset. My son was dead asleep on me so I was so uncomfortable and my hubby was standing somewhere in the crowd of people maneuvering the stroller. It was a huge mess. NEVER EVER AGAIN!!! 2.5 hours to get back to our hotel....way too much.

DisneyDoug2
07-21-2011, 11:14 AM
We go every year in January, even with the light attendance for that time the year the bus system is horrible then also. It is amazing that 2-3 MK buses will show up in a row and buses to other parks are few and far between. As automated as Disney is I am always surprised that they bus system doesn’t work any better. You ask the drive and they say that there routes are all computer dispatched.

Goofy4TheWorld
07-21-2011, 11:14 AM
What I'm surprised about is that they didn't seem to have a transportation CM at the bus stops. They usually do. If they need to call for an extra bus, they usually can. However, that was not the case here.

That is another thing that turned me against deluxe resorts. Not once did I ever have an attendant at any bus stop, ever, when traveling to or from a deluxe resort. I saw plenty at Pop Century bus stops, and many of them VERY helpful in keeping things moving, but never saw any at the CR ot AKL. That combined with the lack of designated que lines made things really bad at these bus stops.

VWL Mom
07-21-2011, 11:22 AM
Normally don't have a complaint about the buses and accept them for what they are but we were at BLT end of June and had the same problem getting to DHS. After waiting an hour for a bus they came out and gave everyone FP. Not a great way to start the day.

Dragongirlx
07-21-2011, 11:29 AM
I have always had good service from the bus stops at the deluxe resorts for all the parks (just not to downtown disney)and I have stayed at the Poly, WL and GF
There has always been a CM there and last year's CM Kirsten at the GF really stood out. It didn't matter id ther was only 1 or 20 people people waiting for a bus to a park she always called and checked the time they were coming or called for another if we had just missed one. We never had to wait more than 10 minutes.

We LOVE Disney
07-21-2011, 01:05 PM
I have always had good service from the bus stops at the deluxe resorts for all the parks (just not to downtown disney)and I have stayed at the Poly, WL and GF
There has always been a CM there and last year's CM Kirsten at the GF really stood out. It didn't matter id ther was only 1 or 20 people people waiting for a bus to a park she always called and checked the time they were coming or called for another if we had just missed one. We never had to wait more than 10 minutes.

CM's at the bus stops :confused: I have NEVER seen a single CM at any of the resort bus stops I have ever been at. I haven't been to WDW since 2009 so maybe this is a new thing??

DisneyMom12
07-21-2011, 01:16 PM
It took us 2.5 hours to get back to our hotel. I was so upset. My son was dead asleep on me so I was so uncomfortable and my hubby was standing somewhere in the crowd of people maneuvering the stroller. It was a huge mess. NEVER EVER AGAIN!!! 2.5 hours to get back to our hotel....way too much.

That is just crazy.

CajunDisneyDad
07-21-2011, 01:30 PM
After staying at Wilderness Lodge, I really didnt have any complaints with the buses, sure we shared with either fort wilderness or GF (depended on what part you went to) but we had a cast member every time I remember going to the bus stop. Of course the MK buses were frequent but we have to remember, we were in the MK area. I would much rather do that than deal with what we had in March for the All Stars. My wife and DS (not yet 2 at the time) went to DTD. Well when we went to leave, the line for the All-Stars was all the way almost to the christmas store (from the busstop all the way at the end!) It took over 2 hours to get a bus. Then when we finally got a bus, there were some drunk teenagers on the bus that were on thier early "senior trip" There was a young kid (6 or 7) dressed like Spiderman... one of the boys yells, "Spider man is a (gay slur)... No one said anything... I guess he wanted to make sure we heard him cause he said it again... Well at that point I had it. as did most of the bus. They started yelling at the kid, then all of the sudden the chaperones desided to act... They literlly formed a wall from the back entrance to the front of the bus to keep someone from killing that little punk. Well after that, I said no more All-Stars. Then the next day, 5 BTG filled up the line for the MK... so we drove for the rest of the trip. After dealing with that nonsense, anything would be an improvement... I just wish the bus driver would have understood enough English to know what that little punk had said, and tossed him and his whole group out... oh I forgot to mention before the Spiderman comment, we had loaded onto the bus, and lots of people had sleeping kids, and this drunken idiots started singing like a bunch of Drunk Frat boys... fun times let me tell you lol

Stu29573
07-21-2011, 01:44 PM
Have always stayed at value or moderate resorts. We have never had any problem at all with the busses, other than having to wait for the next one a couple of times. All in all I think Im glad I never plunked down the dough for delux!

Basket Mommy
07-21-2011, 01:48 PM
I have always had good service from the bus stops at the deluxe resorts for all the parks (just not to downtown disney)and I have stayed at the Poly, WL and GF

Same here. I've stayed at the GF, Contemporary, BLT, SSR, BWV, BCV and WL and never had very long of a wait for any bus. We always go during value season, though, and we don't get up early enough to rush to park opening, so that might explain why I've not had problems. ; )


CM's at the bus stops :confused: I have NEVER seen a single CM at any of the resort bus stops I have ever been at. I haven't been to WDW since 2009 so maybe this is a new thing??

I've been going to WDW every year (sometimes 2X/year) for the past several years. I've never seen a single CM at a bus stop, be it at a park or a resort.

Lisaj13
07-21-2011, 02:10 PM
We will be staying at the Poly next month.

If we're close we can walk over to the TTC. What transportation is available there, besides the monorail?

Are there buses to AK and DHS?

Thanks for any information.

WDWCrazyKaren
07-21-2011, 03:53 PM
For the most part, we take the busses during the daytime only. I know it costs us a little more, but if we are going to an early morning ADR at another resort, we take a taxi. If we close down the parks or wait until after an evening fireworks show, we take a taxi. Sure, it does cost a little, but taking the busses during the day, we've never run into problems. We have a real system about it and know what nights and mornings we will be taking taxi's, so we budget for it. DH is not known for his patience...so these few dollars are well spent in my opinion!

DisneyMom12
07-21-2011, 03:56 PM
After staying at Wilderness Lodge, I really didnt have any complaints with the buses, sure we shared with either fort wilderness or GF (depended on what part you went to) but we had a cast member every time I remember going to the bus stop. Of course the MK buses were frequent but we have to remember, we were in the MK area. I would much rather do that than deal with what we had in March for the All Stars. My wife and DS (not yet 2 at the time) went to DTD. Well when we went to leave, the line for the All-Stars was all the way almost to the christmas store (from the busstop all the way at the end!) It took over 2 hours to get a bus. Then when we finally got a bus, there were some drunk teenagers on the bus that were on thier early "senior trip" There was a young kid (6 or 7) dressed like Spiderman... one of the boys yells, "Spider man is a (gay slur)... No one said anything... I guess he wanted to make sure we heard him cause he said it again... Well at that point I had it. as did most of the bus. They started yelling at the kid, then all of the sudden the chaperones desided to act... They literlly formed a wall from the back entrance to the front of the bus to keep someone from killing that little punk. Well after that, I said no more All-Stars. Then the next day, 5 BTG filled up the line for the MK... so we drove for the rest of the trip. After dealing with that nonsense, anything would be an improvement... I just wish the bus driver would have understood enough English to know what that little punk had said, and tossed him and his whole group out... oh I forgot to mention before the Spiderman comment, we had loaded onto the bus, and lots of people had sleeping kids, and this drunken idiots started singing like a bunch of Drunk Frat boys... fun times let me tell you lol

I totally agree with you about the bus situation back from DTD. That has not stopped me from staying at the All Stars, but I always take a taxi back from DTD to avoid that mess. This year we are driving for the first time, but that will be the only place we drive to.

TheVBs
07-21-2011, 04:50 PM
Bus issues can really take a toll on you. So sorry to hear about these problems - deep breaths! We always stay at ASMu and with one exception out of 5 trips, we've never had to wait long for a bus going out. Catching a bus back if we stay until park closing is an entirely different story. If the line is huge, we just have a seat until it thins out. We're not in a rush and it's far more comfortable to sit for awhile than stand in line for a long time.

Gator
07-21-2011, 06:06 PM
I would much rather do that than deal with what we had in March for the All Stars.

Say no more! We went to the AllStarsMovies once when they had no discounts for the week of PopWarner. I vowed to always be willing to spend more than do that again. The bright side: the kids loved Pongo and the dalmatian rooms. The dark dark dark side: the bus service. It was always slow with long lines. And I'm pretty sure every ECV rider at WDW was staying there and going to the same park I went to every day.

Honestly, the best bus service I've had was at AKL-Kidani. The buses were always frequent, although the rides were fairly long. The only bad incident was with MK, and that's due to the sheer distance of that trip. I'd stay there again just for the bus service.

ryca1dreams
07-21-2011, 06:07 PM
The only time we've ever had a problem was several years ago when staying at Pop. We waited for quite awhile (maybe 30-45 minutes if I remember right) at Epcot for a bus back to Pop. Even for October there was a huge line waiting for Pop but all the other hotels had buses come by - some had multiple buses come by. I'm pretty patient and it is a "magical" place, so we just rolled with it.

I don't understand their system. Even if it is computerized, shouldn't bus drivers (or CMs) be able to call some dispatch office when there are issues a computer can't see? How about bus queue cameras? - We have those all across our cities here to monitor freeway traffic. Just wondering.

texas211
07-21-2011, 09:53 PM
After reading this board and a few others, i was worried about the resort/transportation issues. One of the main reasons I stayed at a Disney resort, so i didn't have to drive in Orlando. After grad school in Orlando, I never really wanted to drive a car there again.

But aside from issues with the handicap folks (people with them seem to be in the double digits) the transportation wasn't too bad except at close. Though from POR and ASMusic, seems to be a 10-1 bus ratio for buses going to Epcot and anywhere else. Trying to push going to Epcot or what?

Dragongirlx
07-22-2011, 03:51 AM
CM's at the bus stops :confused: I have NEVER seen a single CM at any of the resort bus stops I have ever been at. I haven't been to WDW since 2009 so maybe this is a new thing??

I have been going once a year since 2006 and there has always been a CM at or near the bus stop. Ialways stay at a deluxe resort though and this might be why.

DisneyFr33k
07-22-2011, 05:35 AM
It was that way at the All Stars too - shared buses are the pits.

We've stayed at POP and Coronado Springs and LOVED their transportation. Especially CS. Their buses were practically empty due to a large convention taking place while we were there.

When we go back, we'll stay as CS again! :thumbsup:

We LOVE Disney
07-22-2011, 08:58 AM
I have been going once a year since 2006 and there has always been a CM at or near the bus stop. Ialways stay at a deluxe resort though and this might be why.

I've stayed at a deluxe a few times and still, no CM at the bus stop. Maybe they were on a break whenever we were there :confused:

What, exactly, is the job of the CM at the bus stops?

Dragongirlx
07-22-2011, 10:13 AM
I've stayed at a deluxe a few times and still, no CM at the bus stop. Maybe they were on a break whenever we were there :confused:

What, exactly, is the job of the CM at the bus stops?

Maybe we have been lucky.
The CM at the stop in the grand floridian told us that it was her job to make sure that nobody had to wait to long for a bus and if there was a lot of people waiting for one bus she would call and arrange for another one so no one would have to wait. She also directed people to restaurants around the Grand Floridian and gave out really useful information about all parts of the world. She was really good at her job.
In other resorts the CM's seemed to be there just to make sure the transportation was running smoothly.

DVC2004
07-22-2011, 11:07 AM
On our first trip with the kids, and the last day there (we had checked out and our flight left in the late evening) there was some major problem with the monorails. None were running. I think they said they had lost power to them. We waited in throngs of people at the TTC while they tried to get more buses in the rotation and of course the ferry can only hold so many. I think it took us well over an hour and maybe almost 2 to get to MK. Wasn't fun but seemed like a freak thing. The Dapper Dan's came out and started singing but it didn't help really. LOL.

UCJen
07-22-2011, 12:02 PM
You guys, stop stressing. You're on vacation at Walt Disney World--the most perfect place in the world. What's a few hours of waiting going to do to your vacation? :secret::thedolls::nudge:

#tongueincheek

texas211
07-22-2011, 05:58 PM
One thing i did notice as different than when i was a kid. As a younger adult, i hadn't stayed at the resorts. But this year, i noticed the bus drivers didn't drive nearly as fast or maneuvers as stunning as when i was a kid. I remember going faster, and thinking my god, we are going to hit those people, bus, building, etc. I even asked my dad, he agreed. Much slower. The buses were like a ride when i was a kid.

HoosierDisneyFan
07-22-2011, 07:16 PM
I have always had good service from the bus stops at the deluxe resorts for all the parks (just not to downtown disney)and I have stayed at the Poly, WL and GF
There has always been a CM there and last year's CM Kirsten at the GF really stood out. It didn't matter id ther was only 1 or 20 people people waiting for a bus to a park she always called and checked the time they were coming or called for another if we had just missed one. We never had to wait more than 10 minutes.

I am glad you wrote this reply. I am sure that everyone that listed a complaint had a problem but my experience has been excellent in all of our trips to WDW. We have always exclusively used WDW transportation. That is not to say we haven't waited a few extra minutes here & there when we "just missed" a bus or boat but more times than not the buses have met or excided our expectations. I guess my point is although I am sure people have had poor service at times, this is not the norm. WDW transportation is excellent.

IloveDisney71
07-22-2011, 07:47 PM
If I remember correctly most of the bus stops have a phone at them if you are staying at the moderate resorts. I think I've used the phone before to see if a bus was coming because we had been waiting for one a long time. I only did it once. We've visited a lot and only had a couple of bad bus experiences. Only once did we walk up to the line at the resort and decide that the line was too long for us to wait and we decided we better drive or we wouldn't make our ADR. I was surprised the one time we splurged and stayed at a deluxe - the Poly - and realized we were sharing a bus with other resorts! I felt like I was back at the All Stars. Even at the POP you have your own bus. ;)

Aurora
07-22-2011, 08:29 PM
One thing i did notice as different than when i was a kid. As a younger adult, i hadn't stayed at the resorts. But this year, i noticed the bus drivers didn't drive nearly as fast or maneuvers as stunning as when i was a kid. I remember going faster, and thinking my god, we are going to hit those people, bus, building, etc. I even asked my dad, he agreed. Much slower. The buses were like a ride when i was a kid.

I agree with you and I think the reason is that there are many more personal vehicles on the Disney roads than there used to be -- many more people staying at more Disney resorts, renting cars or driving their own vehicles.

I just wonder when the number of resorts, size of crowds and cars and buses on the roads will reach critical mass for the theme parks.

johnO
07-22-2011, 10:02 PM
We've had a couple of nightmares. One morning, I believe we were at ASMUsic, we waited for a bus to Epcot. It was already sweltering at around 9am. We waited for more than 40 minutes for a bus to show up. People were beyond mad using profanity and civilized behavior was vanishing quick. We watched as numerous buses to other parks, with sparse lines came and went. Finally after several complaints a Transportation CM showed up in a van and was making calls. He forced a bus destined for another park, switch his sign and pick us up. We load up onto the bus. The driver turns right out of the All Star resort area and at the intersection of CSR, a car runs a red light and the bus T-bones the vehicle. We had to wait AGAIN, for another bus to show up, off load off the bus and into the new one. UNREAL.

Another nightmare was one night after Wishes. We were staying at All Star Movies. The heat was intense, even though it was fall. The line was huge! We watched and waited but no buses. The line got longer and longer. People began vomiting in the line and no CM came to clean it, causing people to walk through the mess. It was absolutely unbelieveable as we watched tons of buses for other resorts come and go, and not a single bus for All Star Movies. It took an 1.5 hours from the time we entered the line until we made it back to the hotel.

In 2010 we stayed at CSR, the buses were fantastic.

JasonH
07-23-2011, 02:48 AM
I personally don't recall any bad times with transportation. Sure, I've had a few long lines, but they were largely due to being an EMH for the park or a special event at the park that day. Now I hated the morning commute on the buses at All-Stars b/c they shared the buses then, but did appreciate that after park closing, they separated them b/c of how many people were there. And there were CM's the last couple times we had stayed there. Now when Pop Century opened up, we started staying there and noticed a difference as far as the morning was concerned. Let's face it....only one stop compared to 3 at All-Stars. And again, CM's there every day to help out on any long line situations and getting extra buses to that particular line. So having CM's available has been around for some time now by at least several years and I'm glad they have them. :D

RBrooksC
07-23-2011, 09:53 AM
This is why we ALWAYS rent a car. That way, there is never a question if my transportation option is going to be full or delayed.

I always know that I will be able to leave a park, get to the car, and drive wherever I want to go, without delay, without being surrounded by other people, to listen to the radio, and relax.

The only time in May when I was annoyed in Disney is when my 5 year old son wanted to take the Monorail to Epcot. We were staying in the CR. When we got to the TTC we learned the Epcot monorail was not running. So, we had to take the bus.

Nothing says "fun" like getting on a bus with a crowd of people, having to stand for the ride for the privilege of walking through a park all day.

I am so glad that was the ONLY time during that stay where we rode a Disney Bus.

Basket Mommy
07-23-2011, 10:14 AM
I am glad you wrote this reply. I am sure that everyone that listed a complaint had a problem but my experience has been excellent in all of our trips to WDW. We have always exclusively used WDW transportation. That is not to say we haven't waited a few extra minutes here & there when we "just missed" a bus or boat but more times than not the buses have met or excided our expectations. I guess my point is although I am sure people have had poor service at times, this is not the norm. WDW transportation is excellent.

I think it has a lot to do with your attitude and patience level. ; )

I've only had one bad experience with the buses. We had dinner at Boma one evening. Getting there was easy; we took a bus from ASMo to AK then a bus from AK to AKL. When it was time to return, AK was closed. I suggested we take a bus from AKL to Epcot, then Epcot to ASMo. Hubby argued that DTD marketplace would be easier and faster. I lost that argument. We waited at DTD over an hour. Every bus that was headed to All Stars resorts was full. I think 4 buses came and went before we finally squeezed our way onto one. We had four sleeping children and 4 irritated adults, but it's just a thing that happens when resorts share buses and everyone is trying to get back to the same location. I would've given a taxi big bucks if one had come around, but we finally got back to our rooms.... around midnight. It was crazy. Hubby did admit that Epcot would've been faster, and we never try to use DTD as a bus transfer location anymore.

waymickey
07-23-2011, 07:20 PM
Always ride the busses and only had one problem that stands out in my mind.

We were at Typhoon Lagoon and the sky's opened up. Thunder + lightning so they closed the park. we went to the bus stop and waited over an hour in the pouring rain dodging the lightning bolts. A CM came and assured us a bus was coming .

Not fun.

texas211
07-23-2011, 07:45 PM
We were at DTD trying to get back. After an hour, i chased down a cab. If i had seen one sooner, it would have done it. 10 bucks or so to get back to the resort. Cheap and easy.

MrPeetrie
07-24-2011, 07:48 AM
...I know it costs us a little more, but if we are going to an early morning ADR at another resort, we take a taxi.

We do the same thing. If we have ADRs at Chef Mickey's, we always use a taxi. Then, it's usually a monorail over to Epcot.

In the past, drivers have given us their direct cell phone number to call them if we need a taxi. I keep it with me for the trip. If buses are running late or are too crowded to find a space, we'll usually call the taxi for those circumstances, too.

Daisy'sMom
07-24-2011, 11:16 AM
Relax, you are on vacation. And if the buses are such a big problem and seems to put a damper on your stay, rent a car. There is always a solution to a problem unless you need to vent.:mickey:

Kenny1113
07-24-2011, 11:24 AM
I wonder if CMs at bus stops are only seasonal. I have stayed at all levels (value, moderate and deluxe ) and I have never seen a CM at the bus stop.

I have a couple of episodes with Disney transportation that were a little frustrating. Once at FW we took the boat from MK back to FW, on this trip we made a special stop not on our usual route to pick up someone in ECV and their family. (ok no big deal, they needed the bigger boat) only to find out they didn't get off at FW (the last stop)! So why did 20 (or however many people fit on the boat) have to be inconvienced to pick up 1 not even going to our stop.
Next one was from MK to CS. It was a late night and we waited a looonngg time for a bus,(no because they were full either :( ) well over 35 min. When the few of us waiting for CS bus finally board the bus our bus driver decides to take us on a 'scenic' route. We ended up in the back of another resort (at this point I forget which one, but I remember it was not near ours)
He went in and turned around and that was it!!!!! He then made his way to CS :confused:

(this is not Disney transportation fault but funny to mention nonetheless.)
After getting off at CS we were walking through parking lot to go to rm. My mom carrying sleeping DS5 (at the time) and me carrying sleeping DS8 (at the time). The sprinklers started on us!!! We screamed in shock as the couple ahead of us ,who got off our stop as well, laughed at us. :)

ibelieveindisneymagic
07-24-2011, 01:56 PM
We've had some wonderful experiences with the transportation at Disney, and some down right horrible ones.

The one that sticks out in my mind is marathon day this past January. We were quite prepared that it would be slow, but we didn't realize that to get to Epcot, we'd have to go to the TTC first, and then take the monorail. It was frustrating, and a REALLY slow trip to the TTC, but we knew that there wasn't anything we could do, so it was a bunch of "a day at disney is better than a day anywhere else"

However, what really make it horrible was a couple of other passengers on the bus. They were VERY unhappy with the whole set-up and were yelling and swearing at the driver and at other passengers, I really thought it was going to become physical a couple of times. I understand that they were frustrated, but their reactions were just over the top! Crazy :confused:

Gibbs
07-24-2011, 04:41 PM
We used to take the buses, but now, after a few horror stories of our own, we take the car from park to park. I'll spend the extra gas money to be able to sit and ride in comfort.;)

texas211
07-24-2011, 06:16 PM
We used to take the buses, but now, after a few horror stories of our own, we take the car from park to park. I'll spend the extra gas money to be able to sit and ride in comfort.;)

I've often been tempted to do the same, but the transportation is a major reason to stay at the resort.

They should just build personal monorails everywhere and be done with it :)

A Big Kid
07-24-2011, 08:23 PM
*January 2011.
*Staying at the Poly.
*Taking a bus to DHS.

We stopped at the Conty bus stop on the way (dont get me started with this) to DHS. People paitently waiting in line for the bus. Then a large group pf people wearing the same color shirt (who shall remain nameless so that this thread doesnt get locked) led by a person with a flag forced their way to the front of the line and to the exit door and started piling on, and piling on, and piling on and on and on and on! :mad:It was like a clown car in reverse.

The bus driver kept telling them that the majority of them needed to get off the bus. At the same time, the person carrying the flag was telling them to stay on the bus! :mad::mad:

The bus driver turned the bus off. took the keys with him and called someone on the radio. Our bus did not move again until a second bus showed up and they all piled on that one. :mad::mad::mad:

jaredkari
07-25-2011, 09:11 AM
I have to admit that we have stayed at WDW resorts at least 7 or 8 times and this was the first time we really had a major issue. I guess the thing that really frustrated me was the fact that we were paying for a deluxe resort at the Poly. We have stayed at moderates and never really had a problem.

I just can't get over the fact that the MK area resorts have to share buses. I mean GF is the flagship resort and it shares buses?? I understand these resorts are not as large as the moderates and values but come on!! You are paying at least $1,000 more to stay there and this is what the transportation service is like?!?! You would think at at least at opening and at closing of parks they would have buses running devoted to one resort??

BigRedDad
07-25-2011, 09:45 AM
First, I have had an excellent experience with buses for the most part. I have only had 2 horror stories and 1 wasn't that bad. Had to feel sorry for the old guy.

#1 We just arrived for my DD's first trip in March 2008. We met my parents there and hopped a bus to AK. We were standing behind the driver and even asked if he missed his turn. He said no and that he was going to MK. The whole bus started grumbling. The guy had to be in his 70s. He forgot he was going to AK and driving to MK.

#2 This one could have been avoided if the resort posted that there would be long delays getting to Epcot and MK. We happened to be there during a marathon. We were heading to Epcot. No one told us about the marathon and watched about 10 DHS and 10 AK buses pass. We asked the driver of each one why no Epcot bus. They all said they were on their way. Well, 30 minutes wait, finally get on and are being taken to the TTC??? It took 20 minutes to get there. When we were pushed off, it was an hour wait for the monorail. We were told to get on another bus to go to DHS. This bus gets held up at TTC just getting out past the Poly. We were stuck on this bus for 45 minutes. There was a girl that was in the marathon on the bus that started severely cramping, getting dehydrated, and heat exhaustion. Helped with the cramps as best as possible. Had to fight with the driver to open the door so we could get water from stopped cars in traffic. He didn't think it was an emergency to call in. Someone called 911 on their cell phone. In the end, the girl wound up being fine once she was cooled off and drank fluids. 2 hour bus ride was not a fun start to the day.

RBrooksC
07-26-2011, 11:21 AM
We used to take the buses, but now, after a few horror stories of our own, we take the car from park to park. I'll spend the extra gas money to be able to sit and ride in comfort.;)

When we went in May, the only time we filled the tank is when we left for the airport. So, extra expense for gas wasn't a factor.

CanadianWDWFan
07-26-2011, 11:54 AM
We have used Disney transportation exclusively on several trips but felt that I lost control of my travel times and convenience of coming and going at our leisure. So we started driving to all the parks EXCEPT MK. One night we spent two hours leaving the park to just get back to our car was enough to decide never drive to MK again.

DNS
07-26-2011, 12:21 PM
Every trip seems to bring more stories of delays for us. The first several years we went to Disney, we loved the buses. Now we dread them. We have had problems at all price ranges of resorts, so it is not about that. Every trip we have at least 2 or 3 wait times of 40 minutes or more. Last trip we had a wait of almost an hour. It is very frustrating. We seldom plan time back at our room for a nap or swim, or shopping now. You always lose so much time on travel. I would not think so much about it if in the early times of going, the busing was so much more efficient. Makes me seriously wonder why so many problems in recent years.