Staying at POP--Use Bus or Drive?

[DisneyOtaku]

My friends and I are staying at the POP Century December 18-21, and I had heard alot of complaints about waiting for the buses. Are there some parks that are better to drive to?
We're hoping to pick up our tickets super-early our first day (like 6-6:30 am early--it's worked before at the Poly and CR) and head to Animal Kingdom for our first park of the trip. I figure since our rooms probably won't be ready, we'll just drive over there and wait and be one of the first in line for the park. But what about the other parks?

[JPL]

I have stayed at Pop 5 times in the last year and a half and never had a problem with the buses. The line for the buses at the end is usually long but I'm never in a hurry to get back to my room. The line does move quickly and can be avoided for the most part by lingering in the park and shopping or grabbing a snack before exiting. And even if you do leave with the crowds the line moves quickly and I never had to wait for more than 3 buses.

[ThanxForNoticin]

Depending where we are staying, we usually prefer to drive to the AK, EPCOT, and Disney Studios. If we are staying at BC/YC area, we'll usually walk or boat to EPCOT and DS. We have found it is almost always better to bus to MK, due to the way you park and then have to take the trams and monorail/boat to the park. But driving or busing is a personal preference. If you are staying on Disney property, parking at the theme parks is free (with a resort parking pass). Have a great time.

[thrillme]

It all boils down to you and your parties "patience" for busses in general and if you can afford the extra $$ for a car. You "may" have to wait 20-30 minutes for the bus to arrive. If you really like park hopping...it's sort of a pain to have to go back to a hotel and catch another bus going to the park or your next choice. Unless you're doing the Magic Kingdom to Epcot thing then you can just catch the monorail.

This just isn't the POP it's ALL of them.

I've done both and I personally just like the freedom to drive so I can "Explore new worlds" outside of Disney. When I'm ready to go I'm ready NOW not 20 minutes from now...

Alas I have gone the bus route before and it's not "terrible". They do run pretty regularly.

[Goofy Pluto]

Please correct me if I am wrong, but for morning EMH or early breakfasts, you cannot get to the parks (or at least MK) if you don't take a bus, correct? So if MK opens at 9:00 and I have an 8:15AM breakfast ADR, I'd HAVE to take a bus to actually get to MK... right?

[BugeyedMuggy]

We never had a problem with the busses @ Pop but the DTD & Typhoon Lagoon Marketplace bus goes to all 3 in one stop. If I was to drive to any it would be that one. Otherwise the busses are much better than at the moderates.

[DisneyOtaku]

I've stayed on resort property numerous times before, but it's always been at a monorail resort, so we use that and catch the bus to the other parks. Plus we're driving to WDW, so we'll already have the car at hand.

Guess we'll just play it by ear

[Nascfan]

Here's a thought, after all that driving, why not grab some breakfast at Pop and then catch the first bus to AK? You'll still be pretty much first in line, and it will give you some good decompression time after driving.

For us, after all that driving to get there, the last thing I want to do is get back in the van and drive to a park. We thoroughly enjoy leaving it parked for the duration of our stay and letting Disney shuttle us where we want to go. With the possible exception of Downtown like BugeyeMuggy mentioned. We've never had problems with huge waits.

[Von-Drake]

During our stay at POP it was all buses in regards to the resort and parks. I consider part of vacation not having to drive everywhere. The wait for the buses was never really all that long. I would highly recommend the buses.

[Taja]

Please correct me if I am wrong, but for morning EMH or early breakfasts, you cannot get to the parks (or at least MK) if you don't take a bus, correct? So if MK opens at 9:00 and I have an 8:15AM breakfast ADR, I'd HAVE to take a bus to actually get to MK... right?

You can still drive to and park at the TTC, but you may be restricted to taking the resort monorail to MK. The ferry and MK express monorail were not operating when we went for the early KTTK tour. Just allow a few minutes extra and you'll be fine!

[January-2007]

After our experience in September at Pop Century with the bus system, we have vowed to always drive. Up to this time we hadn't really had any problems with the bus transportation though, at different times of the year, it's just our personal decision. You could always try taking the bus and if you don't like it, drive the rest of the trip. The car will be there anyway! I just loved being able to go from our room at Pop Century to inside of MGM in under 5 minutes. That was so cool. And we could put our pictures we drew in the car so they wouldn't get messed up. Loved that.

[DisneyOtaku]

Yay for feedback! That's why I love Intercot so much

We're actually doing all our driving the day before our check-in (we're driving from Louisiana, a 12 hour drive) and staying the night before offsite to rest-up; it's a tradition my family has done for years, so I thought it would be good for us (it's a group of three college students, 22/23 years old).

I am thinking that when we get there early in the morning, unless we actually can get into our rooms that early (happened last July when we stayed at CR), we're going to want to explore the hotel a little since this is the first time for all of us staying at POP before we head out. The breakfast sounds like a good idea ^_^

[crazeedizneefinatic]

If you don't have to incur the expense of a rental and already have your car than drive. I am all for driving. This past September we went and I was quite irritated at the buses. Some days the buses were consistant others they were not. We stayed at CBR and leaving the parks at night was a nightmare unless you left an hour before park closing or stayed quite a bit after park closing. I actually witnessed one night the line at POP being so long they opened another line. I saw grown adults jumping the banisters and climbing over people with strollers, I was quite a riot. People were actually screaming. Our bus just simply was not consistant. We had 2 grown adults walk to the front of the line (where the wheelchairs were) and try to cut in front of a hundred people who by this time had been standing quite some time. There was a lady in line who flipped out (she was right) and started screaming and hollering. It was just so upsetting. This was twords the end of our 10 day vacation and can say this only happened a few nights and a few days but if the car is there pay the parking and avoid the mob. You may wait in line to park and get out but at least you will be in the comfort of your own vehicle. I have been trying to convince my husband to rent next time we go. It just is not worth the hassle and getting upset about stupid things, like waiting for a bus!

[GrmGrninGost]

We usually ride the bus unless we need to get somewhere in a hurry, such as a dinner reservation. Sometimes the lines are a little long and you may have to wait a while, but when we're at WDW I try not to move the car from where I parked on day 1!

[bucky at disney]

but if the car is there pay the parking and avoid the mob

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong - but I believe resort guests do not have to pay for parking. I just wanted to clear that up.

Otherwise - I don't have any experience with the resort busses.

[septembergirl]

Keep this in mind: The busses to and from Pop can get really crowded at the end of the night leaving from MK and EP particularly. It was pretty much a given that my DH and DSons weren't going to have a seat on the buss and had to stand all the way back to Pop. If you drive your own car, you will have to get to the car and out of the lot so you may not save time but it sure is nice to be able to sit down after a long day of walking!

[FlaTinkRAMESAM]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong - but I believe resort guests do not have to pay for parking. I just wanted to clear that up.

Otherwise - I don't have any experience with the resort busses.

you are correct. resort guests do not have to pay for parking...just keep the little sheet thingy on your dash!

[jakeofwildwood]

Goofy and Dopey agree on this one LOL. Bus is the way to go. We were down two years ago and drove, specifically so if we wanted to beeline for things we could. The car sat for a week without moving. The Pop buses are so convenient, it is the reason we stay there over even moderates.

[DREAMADREAM93]

Deffinatly use the buses.
i dont recall ever hearing of anyone having a problem with the buses at POP, but even if there are issues, by the time you've get out of the parking lot, and into a parking lot at the park, and then either ride a tram or walk to the entrance, you could have been there in the same amount of time.
and then you have to factor in fighting crowds to get out and then finding another parking spot at the resort.
not to mention the total amount of gas you would use by the end of the week !

so save yourself a tank of gas - & ride the bus (:

[crazeedizneefinatic]

you are correct. resort guests do not have to pay for parking...just keep the little sheet thingy on your dash!

If this is true this would be Great! Is the sheet something you get at the resort for parking? I definately have to bring this one up to my Husband. Thanks for the tip.