Drive or Disney Transportation

[Von-Drake]

Well, we are down to just 4 days before our Disney trip. We are staying at the Pop Century and was wondering if it was better to drive to the parks or use Disney transportation. We will have our 4 year old son with us.

[Goofeygal]

We always take disney transportation to MK. If you drive to MK you still have to take the monirail or boat to the park. If you take disney transportation they drop you off right at the park. As far as the other parks, it just depends on the crowds. With the the other parks it isn't a big difference driving or taking the bus.

[robhink]

I will usually use the disney transportation for all the Theme Parks except Animal Kingdom. Most of the times the busses from the resorts going to the Animal Kingdom stop at Blizzard Beach so it can be faster to just drive there.

[LauraF]

I HIGHLY recommend the WDW transportation.

I've never waited more then 10 minutes for a bus/monorail and never more than 15 minutes for a boat. If you drive you have to wait in line to park, pay for parking, and walk to your parking spot entering and leaving, which may too much for a little one. The trips are pretty quick and depending on your resort, the buses range from mildly crowded (opening and closing)to wide open (off peak times). I can't remember if POP shares a bus with the All-Stars, which does have crowded buses.

[DDuck66]

I HIGHLY recommend the WDW transportation.

I've never waited more then 10 minutes for a bus/monorail and never more than 15 minutes for a boat. If you drive you have to wait in line to park, pay for parking, and walk to your parking spot entering and leaving, which may too much for a little one. The trips are pretty quick and depending on your resort, the buses range from mildly crowded (opening and closing)to wide open (off peak times). I can't remember if POP shares a bus with the All-Stars, which does have crowded buses.

POP has it own buses and does not share with another hotel. When we stay onsite, we almost never use our car except if we want to go offsite or possibly to drive over to the Boardwalk for dinner. I would not drive especially to the MK. There are too many other options available.

[ThanxForNoticin]

I agree with the recommendation that you always bus to MK. That is by far the most convenient way to get to and from that park. However, we often find driving to the other parks to be much more convenient than the buses - depending on what your plans are after the park. If you are staying at POP, there is no charge for parking at the parks, so that's not an issue. All Disney resort guests can park for free.

If you are going to park hop later in the day, it can be easier to drive. And if you plan to have a meal at another Disney resort, it's definitely easier to have a car with you.

That being said, if you are going to a park in the morning and then going directly back to your resort later, the buses are fine. So, like I said, it really depends on your day. Generally, if we have plans that require us to take multiple buses to get somewhere, we'll drive instead.

[Tygger7]

[QUOTE=LauraF;1385742]I HIGHLY recommend the WDW transportation.

I've never waited more then 10 minutes for a bus/monorail and never more than 15 minutes for a boat. If you drive you have to wait in line to park, pay for parking, and walk to your parking spot entering and leaving, which may too much for a little one. QUOTE]

I agree 100%....we always use Disney transportation. Saves the headache of driving, parking, and fighting traffic. I'd rather sit back and relax and let their drivers worry about getting me to my destination.

[illini]

I vote for bus to MK, drive to the other parks. We've had some pretty bad experiences with busses, including some waits over an hour, and those weren't at park closing even. That's no fun with a tired 4 y/o.

[Nascfan]

Based on our personal experience, we always enjoy leaving the driving to Disney.

[Tink's Mom]

We also enjoy Disney transportation

[mttafire]

IMHO, Drive your own vehicle. We find it easier to just drive the minivan from the resort to the parking lot. No wait and no crowded busses. Honestly, We find it to be faster than using a bus. We just hop on a tram at the parking lot and then to the tta. We LOVE the morning Monorail ride! Everyone has thier own preferences but if you have a car there..To us it just seems easier to drive.

[Jasper]

My wife and I have run our own informal experiment to see which transport method was faster by both of us leaving from point A on our way to point B at the same time. However, one of us would take the car and the other would go by Disney Transport. We have done this many times and in as many different combinations of departure and arrival points as possible. In something like 98% of the cases the person who went by Disney transport arrived at the destination first. I even let my wife be the one to go by car because she drives MUCH faster than I do!

Anyway, after running these experiments we have decided that Disney transport is far more efficient than going by car. By the way under most conditions there is no real difference in wait time or transport time from any of the hotels or any of the parks. They have people that monitor wait times and move buses from one route to another to keep their system in balance. Of course, there are always those times when something unusual like a bus breakdown or something else occurs that will back the system up every now and again.

[wedway76]

My wife and I have run our own informal experiment to see which transport method was faster by both of us leaving from point A on our way to point B at the same time. However, one of us would take the car and the other would go by Disney Transport. We have done this many times and in as many different combinations of departure and arrival points as possible. In something like 98% of the cases the person who went by Disney transport arrived at the destination first. I even let my wife be the one to go by car because she drives MUCH faster than I do!

Great experiment! I have always suspected that you make as good time or better with WDW transportation. Thanks for proving it.

Also... My wife drives much faster than me too. Is this the case in most famalies?

They have people that monitor wait times and move buses from one route to another to keep their system in balance. Of course, there are always those times when something unusual like a bus breakdown or something else occurs that will back the system up every now and again.

That's interesting too. We are Value Resort regulars, and one problem that I've had with the Values is that it always seemed that we get the short end of the stick when it comes to bus frequency. I guess that may not be true.

[The Hitchhiking Ghost]

One benefit to driving yourself that hasn't been mentioned yet is the convenience of leaving things in your car (rain gear, warmer or additional clothing, food etc.) that you can hop out and get at your convenience. We found that to be helpful when we were in the parks all day into late evening, when it got chillier. Last time we were there we relied solely on Disney transport, so we rented lockers on certain occasions, which works well too.

My personal feeling (as someone that has to fly into Orlando) the decision for me starts at the airport. I decide whether or not we are getting a rental car or relying on Disney's Magical Express. Last trip we used Magical Express, didn't rent a car, and spent 8 days using only the bus/boat/monorail transportation system, all without problems. Had we had a rental car, with no charge for parking as a hotel guest, why not use it. As mentioned by many posters, at MK it is nice that the bus drops you right off at the park entrance, no need to wait in line at the monorail or the ferry.

The good thing, there really isn't a bad choice.

[Disney_pups2]

Disney transportation! Definitely! We almost always get ran over by Orlando traffic and finding your hotel at night from various Disney parks can be confusing and frustrating at times.
Tips:
Send items purchased in the parks to your room during the day so that your hands are freed up for stroller and sleeping child at the end of the day.
If the buses are full but you can get a seat by waiting for another bus, consider it! NOT EVERYONE will give up a seat for a parent and sleeping child, but most of the time they do.
Lastly, Bring a mai tei or other soft child carrier so you can bundle your child on (yes some can be carried at that age) either before leaving park or while waiting for your bus to come... that way if you get stuck standing both hands are free for holding on and it is WAY more comfy on mom or dad than just holding dead weight.
ENJOY your vacation!!!!

[Spaceship Tigger]

Having used both methods on different trips we've found that driving ourselves is far more convenient to everywhere except the MK. Especially with small children that can be put into their own car seats at the end of the day instead of being held on a crowded bus along with a folded stroller. We've never once found that using the busses was faster than the car for going to AK, Epcot, or DS, much less trying to go to DD or another resort...

[Von-Drake]

WOW!! The biggest reason I believe this to eb the best Disney site ever. All these great responses!! Thanks Everyone!!! As we get closer to leaving for our trip we do at least one thing each day as we call "Disneyish" (definitiion: somehow, however small, related to our upcoming Disney Trip). We are so excited.

Thanks Again.

[gueli]

Just a warning-
Obey the speed limits.
I have heard that there is increased police patrols and 'speed traps' in and around the WDW property.
PS thank you orange county sheriff's dept for making the world a safer place for all.

Have fun Von Drake

[SurferStitch]

The last thing DH and I want to do on a WDW vacation is get behind the wheel of a car. I commute almost two hours every day for work, so leaving the driving to someone else at WDW is a must.

Even the one time when we drove down to WDW for a spur-of-the-moment long weekend, we never once touched the car once it was parked at Pop. Bus service was excellent!

I'm on vacation....I don't need to worry about shaving off a few minutes using my own car, if you even save any time at all. I liked the experiment mentioned above....I always felt that Disney transportation was just as fast or faster than driving ourselves.

Besides....there was a huge discussion on here about being green and doing your best for the environment, so technically I'm being green by using available mass transit rather than my own car.