Buses with an 18month old

[Imagineer1981]

As many of you may know, I am a huge advocate of renting a car instead of using the buses when staying on property. However this upcoming trip I find myself in a situation where I don't know if I want to lug a carseat with us for the rental. I really don't want to do the buses, especially with us using the Dining plan this year and wanting to make ADRs. I think with a young child, that will be enough stress and I don't want the stress of the buses added to it. Anyone else use the buses or do you just do the rental. The car is only 214 total for 7 days

[MickeyandTink]

We took our DS last year, who turned three during the trip and used the buses during our stay at POP. It was not bad at all, EXCEPT around park closing times or when there are several ECV's. (I know they make it possible for some people to enjoy the parks who otherwise could not, but they really do slow down the bus boarding)

It can be somewhat inconvenient to wait, but with no stress having to drive, find parking, AND not having to make the long trek back and forth to the car we think the buses are just fine.

[joonyer]

We don't have small children, but we always drive to WDW since we live close. BUT, We park the car at the resort and use the buses almost exclusively while we are at WDW. I have tried it both ways, and the time difference between using our car to go to the parks and back is negligible when you take into consideration parking and taking trams to the park entrances. And, at MK it actually takes longer to drive since you have to park so far away (then tram to TTC, then monorail or ferry to the park) while the buses drop you off at the park entrance. Since there is no real advantage to driving, I let Disney pay for fuel, no sense burning my own gas. The buses are already cool on hot days, unlike a car which has been sitting in the sun (or warm on cold days) and it's convenient no be able to let somebody deal with the traffic and driving. The only disadvantage to using the buses is when you stay until park closing, the bus lines can get long then, but we just take our time leaving the parks at closing, so when we get to the bus stops the lines have mostly dissipated.
If you are in a real hurry all the time, you can get frustrated waiting on the buses, but you actually don't save much time driving yourself. Maybe 5 minutes at best. We try not to be a hurry for anything while we are at WDW. We let that be other people's problem.

[peemagg]

We have done the buses with not one, but 2 13month old babies and a 2.5 year old. It wasn't too bad except we made a rule that if it was standing room only we would wait till the next one. We also put the smaller 2 in a hip carrier while on the buses. This allowed for us to have free hands and the child was attached to us for a more secure ride. The child couldn't escape from us either.

[javamama]

I did the buses w/an 8 month old, and 18 month the following year. It was fine, I don't like the fact of her not being in a carseat, especially on the ME, but we held her the whole time on the buses. Last year she was challenging for us--terrible two's and all but it was fine. Plus we were at the Poly so we rode the monorail lots more than buses. You should be fine, people were gracious and always gave us a seat w/her and my ds who was 4 at the time.

[Breochaid]

We went in 2006 when our DD was almost 3 and our DS was 5 months. I would hold both children while my DH would take the stroller. We were also blessed to have my parents along, so they would lend a hand when we would head out to the parks together. If it was standing room only, someone would give up their seat to let me sit and hold the kids.

On our most recent vacation in 2008 the kiddos were 5 and 2 1/2. They weren't too hard to manage. Occasionally, when the bus was crowded, I would put them in a seat together and stand right infront of them or sit and hold them both. Our biggest problem on this trip was waiting in line, they had no patience for it.

[Disney Doll]

We had been using the buses exclusively , but now that we have a baby in tow I like having a car. We used the buses on baby's 1st trip when our DS was 12 months and it went okay, but it was sometimes stressful to lug a baby, a diaper bag, and a stroller on a crowded bus. Plus, the waiting was a bit more challenging with a baby. On the next trip when DS was 15 months we rented a car and it was so much nicer. I liked being able to relax in the quiet of our own vehicle. We had plenty of room to spread out and when we decided DS needed a break from all the stimulation we didn't have to worry about a long line or a crowded bus ride standing between us and nap time. I hate driving in unfamiliar places, but now that we have GPS that's a non issue. We'll be renting a car from now on.

[tinksmom02]

We travelled with another family last year, and their youngest was 18months. We did the buses with few problems. As others have said, the difficulty is at park closing. As long as you have someone to take care of the stroller while you take the baby (or vice versa), you should be OK.

We were die-hard car renters until our last trip, and now I don't ever want to have to rent again! It's so much nicer to let someone else worry about the traffic!

However, I can certainly understand wanting to be in control of things, and wouldn't blame you if you did decide to rent.

Huh, guess i wasn't that much help after all. ;)

[Septbride2002]

We've managed to do the bus thing but we stay at Boardwalk which means I only have to use buses for AK, MK and DTD.

It looks like you are staying at Pop - if it was me I would take a car.

~Amanda

[MidnTPK]

Plus, the waiting was a bit more challenging with a baby.
AMEN!!! Waiting for a bus with an active little one can be very tiring! My little girl is usually pretty good when she can tell we're on the way to something, but gets active and antsy when we're sitting still waiting for something.

Last year with my then 15-moth old, we only bussed to the MK, and drove everywhere else we couldn't walk (or boat). This year we'll be renting a car again.

I used to somewhat enjoy the downtime of waiting....but its much more stressful when an active toddler is figuring her way out of her stroller, wanting to chase the cars that could kill her. We'll go back to buses when the safety and squirming phase is over.

[2lilboys]

Since your car rental is so cheap, I would rather have the car available for use, just in case. You never know how a toddler will react to a new situation.:confused:

In August 2008, we took our then 2 year old twins for their first visit. We had our car since we drove to WDW, but planned to use the buses exclusively. Unfortunately, our boys HATED riding on the buses. They did not mind waiting for the buses, but were miserable when the buses were crowded. They were ok when they each had their own seat, but did not like sitting our our laps. We had one really awful bus trip back from MK (the bus was packed) with both boys screaming the entire way. Plus, trying to hold onto them (as they were squirming in the seats) and their stroller could get pretty difficult. By the end of the week, we drove our car as much as possible.

This trip, I hope the boys like the buses, but we are prepared to drive everywhere to avoid any problems...I know our fellow bus passengers will appreciate it!:blush:

[kathiep]

Having a car has worked best for us. The kids were comfortable in their own seats and I was relaxed because I was sure they were safe. Many times, they would fall asleep within 5 minutes of getting into the care so we would take our time getting back to our resort so they can catch some extra rest. Most times, the busses would probably be OK but I just don't think anyone of us would do well waiting for a bus during more crowded times.

[megustamex]

I'm assuming you don't have a seat on the plane for your 18 month old or you would have to bring the car seat anyway. First of all, we always bring the car seat because we've gotten lucky most of our flights and we were able to get a seat for our babies when they were under two (if a seat is available they will give it to you for free). And our kids were always way better in a car seat on a plane than in our laps.

We always rent a car now with kids. It is so nice to not have to fold up your stroller. You know you always have a seat. You know EXACTLY how much time it is going to take you to get to the park - you don't have to wait for the buses. And when your kids get cranky, the car seat acts as a wonderful pacifier - for some reason, as soon as they get in their familiar car seat, they are fine, no matter how cranky they were. And that makes the trip back to the hotel much more pleasant. The only place it is kind of a pain to take the car is MK because sometimes you have to take two kinds of transportation from the parking lot to get to the park, unless you park pretty close. But at Epcot, AK and HS it is a dream because we always just walk right to our car, no matter how far it is (usually not that bad).

We also always have to run to Walgreens or Publix at some point with the kids, so it's great to have the car for that.

[Imagineer1981]

Thanks for all the info! Being a former CM I know my way around property and all the shortcuts so getting around is easy, plus parking at most parks minus MK is very easy and free because we will be at POP. I think to others point that waiting in line, and dragging all the baby necessities would be a litte stressful.