Driving into the parks each day

[Scrappy2]

We always stay on property so I always use the Disney transportation to the parks. Our trip in May we are going to be staying off property. We have a large group going so we are getting a house this time just to make it affortable for everyone. How bad is it to drive into the parks each day? Also park hopping do I move the car or use the Disney transportation? I am a AP pass holder so I do not have to pay for parking. The only other time I did not stay on property we just did the MK one day so it was not so bad. This time it will be for a week. Any thoughts and suggestions would be great!

[Altair]

Arrive early and there is no problem at all. The season you go also affects the traffic.
If you are park hopping between MK and Epcot, you can park your car in one lot and then use the monorail. The other parks it may be easier just to drive to them.:mickey:

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

It isn't bad at all. In fact, we often drive even though we stay on site.

If you're arriving early, the CM's will direct you to a parking spot, and if it is too far away from the entrance there are trams that run almost constantly to get you there. For a couple of trips, I think the trams were DD's favourite ride.

If you arrive later in the day, you can "drive-up" closer to the front and find a spot from someone who has already left for the day, but again, there are trams.

Driving to MK is the only challenging one at all, since you have to leave extra time to take the ferry or monorail to get to the park.

[eandrsmom]

We drive to the parks even when we are on property. I like having the flexibility of having our own car. We haven't experienced any problems. Depending on the park and if you get there really early, you may not even need to take the tram. (You'll be close enough to walk to the front of the park.) This has happened to us many times at Epcot and HS. Waiting for the tram isn't too bad. The main thing is dealing with other guests who refuse to stand behind the safety lines and fold their strollers. I don't let that bother me, I figure that it's their first visit to WDW and don't know the procedures. We have park hopped between MK and Epcot, leaving the car at MK and taking the monorail. It was a few years ago, so I don't know if the monorail evening closings will cause any problems. They used to run a couple of hours after the parks closed, but now it's only an hour. For the other parks, we drive when we park hop.

[Melanie]

We love driving to the parks, with the MK being the exception. That is quite the production to park at the TTC and then ferry or monorail in. Like Heather mentioned, allow extra time for that. The others are a breeze and many times, especially when arriving early, it's very easy to just walk into the parks as opposed to taking the tram.

[MargaretMessler]

I have never had a hard time driving into the parks, we always stay onsite, and we always get a rental. We do sometimes also use the buses (for instance, when we all want to indulge a little :beer: at EPCOT in the evening or DTD). I just hate crowded buses, which there almost always are going to be some when you are going right at park opening or staying until the end of the night.

[Mousemates]

Its not bad...except for a few key times of the year...and from your post it doesn't appear you will be there during one of the peak seasons when major league backups can occur. Do be aware that depending on where you are coming from you might hit some general morning commute traffic on your way in.

[Scrappy2]

Thanks for the posts. I feel much better now!

[disneynarula]

We always drive as well. Never had any real problems.