All-Star Movies Busses?

[disneykid@hrt]

So I've been looking on other websites and reading people's reviews of ASM and a repeating themes were long waits for busses, sharing busses with the other All-Star resorts, having to walk a far distance to the bus stop itself, standing room only...etc. You get the picture. I am taking my 28 lb. 19 month old in October and am really really really nervous about having to hold her... or DH, standing on a packed bus, holding my "solid" and sleeping or cranky-by-now DD after a long day at the parks.
Is it going to be as horrific as I am imagining? Should I rent a car?? Should I upgrade to a moderate resort?? I'm freakin!!:confused:

[Rodders]

I really wouldn't worry too much about it. Certainly the buses will be packed at park closing but many of the moderate resorts have packed buses also. We always gave up our seats to people that clearly needed them and we see many others doing the same. We usually found that people are generally good spirited if a little tired on the buses at night. Having said that, if you can afford a moderate and you would appreciate the other benefits then it is something to consider. I think the rental car issue depends on how you like to take your vacation. At the end of a long day I have no intention of driving but coming from the UK midnight feels a whole lot later. I know that many people swear by having a car and I can certainly understand how this is so attractive to some people.

I hope that you have a great holiday :mickey:

[FaithTrustPixieDust]

We have been at ASMovies the last 2 Octobers, and had no complaints about the buses. Yes, you do share with the other 2 All Star Resorts. The good news is that, on your way to the parks, Movies is the last pick up . . .so you go straight to the parks when you get on!

The buses were generally full, but rarely packed to standing room only. In fact, the the "standing room only" sitatuions I recall were only at busy park closing times. If the buses are that full, you can always wait for the next one. (which is generally a very short wait) When there were people standing, there was always a gracious vacationer who would stand up to let the person holding a child sit down. :mickey:

We stayed at POR 3 years ago and had some miserably long bus waits, and some moserably crowded buses. That will probably keep me from ever staying at POR again.

We found the bus service at Movies to be very efficient, and a big improvement over what we experienced at POR.

[steamboat willy]

Don't Freak. Enjoy your bus. The bus is your friend.
Disney will have buses lined up right behind the other, ready to take you to your resort. The bus lines are no different for Value as it is for Moderate, you wait, you get on, you go back to a good nights sleep. The more buses they need, the more they send or re-route.

If I see you or your DH standing with your DD, I will get up and give my seat. I promise. Others will too!

Don't rent a car for fear of a seat on the bus!

Now repeat after me......I will not freak....I will not freak..... I will not freak!

Now your ready. Enjoy.

35 Days :cool:

Steamboat Willy

[johnO]

We has Bus issues at ASMu...

[Goes4FastPass]

We have fine bus service at our last All Star stay.

Busses are for people on VACATION.

Rental cars are for people that gotta go go drive drive park park rush rush tram tram get there with extra struggle.

19 month olds should not have long days at the parks but if your family is on an AllStar bus wil me I'll give my seat to the baby carrier every time.

[KAT1811]

If I see you or your DH standing with your DD, I will get up and give my seat. I promise. Others will too!



For the most part this is true. We always give up our seats for those that need them and I always squish us together as close as possible with a child on each of our laps at the end of the night so as many as possible can fit on a bus. I think for the most part you'll be fine but there are a few people out there with no manners.


19 month olds should not have long days at the parks . . .

I beg your pardon but this is a personal decision. Our four children always do long days in the parks and hve been at every age we've experienced so far (our oldest is 12) and been just fine. Never gone back for a nap either :blush:. Our children are used to being on the go and love it. :mickey: Our youngest, DS, will be 7 1/2 months on our next trip and I'm sure we'll have mostly long days. We take a pool day break every couple of days and everyone gets a chance to nap to recharge.

[Lizzie]

We stayed at All-Star Music and never had an issue with the busses.

Our last time our twins were almost a year and a half. When it came to standing room only on the busses we would just wait for the next bus that way we were guaranteed a seat.

[Goes4FastPass]

...Our youngest, DS, will be 7 1/2 months on our next trip and I'm sure we'll have mostly long days...
Yes, it's a personal decision. We see babies and young children experiencing those personal decisions every time we go to WDW.

[diz_girl]

I also agree that it is a personal decision. However, I remember seeing a comment last week on another thread that amounted to if you wanted to see the rigors of parenting, go to Fantasyland at naptime. Is having to handle a sleep-deprived toddler really worth the extra time in the parks? Not to me, but that's just me.

I can't tell you how many times I go grocery shopping at night (usually around 9 p.m.) and see a lot of 1-3 year olds that are just plain miserable because they should have been in bed an hour or two before, and their parents are wondering why they're so cranky. Each child is different, but most infants and toddlers need 10-11 hours of sleep per night, in addition to their afternoon nap.

So most toddlers really can't handle long days at WDW. If you want to minimize the chances of packed buses with a tired toddler, then maybe most nights that you're at WDW you should leave before the fireworks and/or before park closing.

[KAT1811]

Is having to handle a sleep-deprived toddler really worth the extra time in the parks?

I will admit I am very lucky. My children nap in the stroller as well as they do in the resort. I'm talking hours! At home they are all in bed at 7pm but WDW is a special treat where we break all the rules. We even let them have ice cream as a meal on occasion :secret:

To the OP, you'll be fine on the busses. Because of the zillions of people that stay at the All Stars they have tons of busses at night. Quite often there are busses waiting to pull up as others are loading. To be honest I have had shorter waits for AS busses than at almost any other resort. The busses are always packed at night but there are a ton of them.

[BluewaterBrad]

You will be fine. Resort change wont make a difference in bus running. Have a wonderful trip!!:mickey:

[Phantod]

Well, I hate to differ with everyone, but I will. :mickey:

We've stayed at All Star Movies twice. If you get a room near the front of the complex, then the walk to the buses is pretty short. However, both times we've been there, we were at the very back, and it's the longest walk we've ever had to a bus. And at the end of the day, grumble, grumble.

If you go anywhere near peak park travel times, you will be standing. I don't believe that I ever sat more than a couple of times in the two stays there. It was very noticeable. This was during the end of August one year and the first of May in the other. And since i'm really 11 inside, but nobody could recognize that, no one ever gave up a seat for me. Maybe you'll have better success.

We stayed at CBR last time, and the walk to the bus from the Jamaica building was sweet. It was the first bus stop and we virtually had no walk at all to it. We had one bad experience getting back from PI and one morning getting on when the buses didn't have their signs on (we now know to ask where they are headed if that is the case), but other than that, we had no issues. We'll be there in late September this year, and hopefully it will be the same.

So a lot of it depends on where they put you at the resort, and the kindness of others...and both of those can be risky.

Hope everything works out for you.

[momof3+twins]

Have been there...Yes, the All Stars have slow bus service and share between the three hotels.
No, I would not rent a car. I would either change to the Pop Centure OR make sure she gets naps...so hopefully she won't be a rock asleep in your arms. And not stay until closing because you WILL stand. And you can always let the bus go and be first in line for the next bus.
We don't stay at the All Stars anymore due to the bus service!!

[DisneyFr33k]

We've stayed at ASMovies twice curing October. Several points:


Our experiences was that the busses were crowded. By the time they came to pick us up, they were full with standing room only (as they picked up sports and music first). We stood 95% of the time.
With that being said, we ALWAYS gave up our seat to a parent with a young child. Our children shared a seat and DH and I stood.
We stayed at POP last year and LOVED the bus service. Completely dedicated to POP, but still crowded at times. My DH stood each time, giving his seat up for families with young children like you.


My recommendation: stay put and be prepared or switch to POP. We're heading back to POP this October - won't do the ASM busses again, POP's are way better - IMHO.

Good luck!