DON'T USE DISNEY TRANSIT!!....bring your own car?...

[FUNDAD]

Do you agree?

This is our first time to WDW....We are traveling from Canada..... We'll either have to rent a car, or rely on the Monorail/bus/boat system......What have you found with the Disney Transit System (DTS)...If you are staying in a resort, do you use your own car to get around, or the DTS?

Comparing the Disney Transit System (DTS) to car travel times "door to door" in the Unofficial Guide To WDW 2006, it shows having a car can save you a lot of travel time.....For example: We are staying in the Polynesian for four nights, then moving to the Animal Kingdom Lodge.....Travel times to the parks per the guide book are:

Downtown Disney....by car: 22 min, DTS: 51 min.
Typhoon Lagoon......by car: 20 min, DTS: 55 min.
Epcot....................by car: 19 min, DTS: 40 min.
MGM......................by car: 19 min, DTS: 30 min.
Blizzard Beach.........by car: 12 min, DTS: 40 min.

Over a full week that adds up to a lot of time difference!...Time we could be spending in the parks..... Of course to Magic Kingdom, the DTS is about the same as a car....

Would you recommend we rent a car and shave some time off?

Daryl & Connie.

 

[clarkstallings]

Take a cab if you need to get to specific places like a dinner reservation or what not. When I go, I sometimes take my car to the park and refuse using the buses, but invariably I regret it when I get to the end of the day and I'm worn out. I kick myself for driving because it's felt at times like I have no energy left to drive the mile or whatever back to my resort. Use DTS, though it might take longer getting from point A to Point B, it beats having to walk from a parking space to the front gate and gives a nice lull. With regards to those times, I think they are a bit exagerated. Going from hotel to hotel can take a while but hotel to park isn't bad at all.

 

[Tinkerbella16]

The DTS is awesome...eventhough you do a whole lot of walking on your vacation, it takes a lot of stress away from parking your car and getting to and from the park from the parking lot...that takes up alot of your time. I've never had any problems with the transportation...all in all it is great!!

 

[Ivan72]

No question, use the Disney Transportation. We have found them to be reliable and fairly prompt. As has been mentioned, there is real value in giving your body and mind a break. Why have the strain of driving at the end of a long day?

Besides I love the full immersion into the magic. I don't want to step back into reality to drive and park the car.

 

[TimeTrip]

Why have the strain of driving at the end of a long day?

Because you might save yourself an hour of waiting at park close for a resort bus, and use that extra hour of sleep prepping for the next day! Depending on the park of course

 

[SpenceMan01]

I also would guess that they aren't counting finding a parking spot to actually put you car in or the trek from your car to and from the main gates of the various parks.

The times you listed didn't factor in the time wasted walking from your farrrr away parking spot.. and then walking back to your farrr away parking spot at the end of the night.

They dont include schlepping to and from your car everynight, not to mention waiting to get into the parking lot and actually finding a parking spot.

Wrong. At the bottom of the page, there is a footnote that says:
"Driving time vs. time on DTS. Driving times include time in your car, stops to pay tolls, time to park, and transfers on Disney trams and monorails where applicable."

Source: Amazon: Search Inside the Book, search for 338 (the page number), choose the first result, and scroll to the bottom.

The chart in the book shows the averages of the results gained from the Unofficial Guide's research of "over 250 bus routes". It also assumes the Disney stated 20 minute interval between bus arrivals at a given stop (ie: if you get to a stop as the previous bus is departing, you'll have to wait 20 minutes before the next one arrives). They've found the actual times to range from 1 to 56 minutes. Since it's an average, you could wait less time, or you could wait more time.

On our past trips, my parents have always rented a car, but that's because we've always stayed off site and using the DTS exclusively wasn't an option. For our upcoming honeymoon, my fiancee are staying on-site, and we'll be taking the busses. For us, it's not worth spending the extra money (even more because we're both under 25) to rent a car.

I think it all boils down to paying for convenience and time. Ask yourself: Do you want to shell out the extra money of renting a car and paying for gas in order to be able to go where you want, when you want, and possibly save a little bit of time?

 

[Nansafan]

The only times we've had a car in 20 visits to the world was when we drove from Chicago to WDW. We use and enjoy DTS. As stated above, we have grabbed a cab a few times when going from one resort to another resort for a dining reservation. Other than that, we prefer DTS. When we've had our car with us, we still only used it a couple times. In our second trip to the world, back in 1993, we drove from Chicago, parked at the Poly on Sun., checked to see if the car was still in the lot on Wed., then got in the car to come back to Chicago on the following Sat..

 

[wcox377492]

Use Disney Transport! Remember that in addition to everything else listed above, you will be spending a LOT of time walking to your car in the parking lot. The bus/monorail stops are right outside the parks. While there may be some delay getting a bus at your stop, it's MUCH faster than dealing with parking, finding your car, etc. Not to mention learning to navigate the WDW highway system

 

[Master Yoda]

I have got to agree with what most are saying. Those times look way off. We always drive to WDW and we still use Disney transportation. The only thing a car is really good for is going from resort to resort.
I did my own unofficial time study on one trip and found that the time from hotel room door to turnstiles was about the same to AK, MGM and Epcot. Busses were faster to MK and slower to DTD.

 

[Nemo14]

My husband generally rents a car, but he knows the area well. We usually use both, depending on where we are going. Part of the magic for us though is the transportation - our first ride on the monorail, a leisurely boat ride from MGM to Epcot, and even the conversations we've had with the bus drivers all are part of the whole experience. I think you miss a lot if you don't use DTS.

The other thing to consider is the risks of driving in FL. There are many people driving those roads who are not only unfamiliar with the vehicle they've rented , but in fact unfamiliar with driving in the kinds of traffic you'll find there. All it takes is one "encounter" with a poor driver to really ruin your vacation!

Whatever you decide, have a great time!:wave:

 

[Master Yoda]

Depending on which resort you are staying at, you could always swim to MK, Epcot and MGM. You would still have to crawl up on shore and walk to AK.

The nice thing about swimming is that there is no waiting, and it's not a long walk to your car. And depending on which way the current is flowing, you could just even float back to your resort.

Yeah but when you swim you have to worry about that whole gator thing. It is such a hassle to have to put up with that "Daddy, the gator tore off my arm" crap from the kids.

 

[brich]

Oh the stress and expense of driving on Disney property... :lol:

I knew this thread would get a lot of opposite views. I avoid the misery of Disney transportation like the plague. I usually spend $200 for 10 days use of a minivan. That's a lot of money in the grand scheme of a Disney vacation? haha Ok...

Why I like to have a car:
1) When I leave the park, I leave the crowds of people I've been mingling with all day. I have a nice, cool, quite ride back to my room.

2) My ride back is exactly when I want it. Dont have to depend on a bus schedule

3) Lugging bags and strollers and kids onto a crowded bus? Oh ya, that's fun at the end of a long day...

4) Hmmm, I would love to eat off property tonight or pick up some donuts or muffins to have in the room for the next morning. Or maybe an affordable beverage... How about a trip to the pharmacy? Do the buses go off property?

5) So I'm paying for a vehicle to sit in a parking lot all day. Seems that's what I do at home. My own vehicle is parked outside my house or my office most of the day...

6) Now which bus takes me where? And we stop where first?

7) Oh look, it's starting to rain or it got really cool when the sun went down. I'll run back to the car and get the jackets... Be right back... (Oh but I suppose you could rent a locker. They probably hold a lot if there are any left. And sure, rent a stroller to so you don't have to take it on the bus. And that costs how much a day compared to roughly $20 a day for your own car?)


To each there own I guess but to me, the reason's to use Disney Transportation are now where near the convenience I find in having my own transportation.

 

[brich]

...The total wait was less than 25 min. DTS is fantastic...

With my rental car, I'm already at my resort pool within 25 minutes...

 

[kachow]

I personally would never rent a car at WDW unless I needed to get off property. We usually stay at the Boardwalk, so we're fortunate to have easy walk or ferry access to MGM and Epcot, but we still need buses for AK, MK, water parks and DTD.

In the mornings, we've never encountered an annoying wait time for a bus to where we wanted to go. Park-hopping, it's probably a bit based on luck, but again, we've never had a memorably long wait time. The main areas where we get annoyed is buses at park closing. Things obviously get a little jammed, but you also can't get a bus directly to DTD from the parks. So you have to go to a resort, and then wait for another bus to DTD. We've tried to figure out the fastest strategy for getting around this, but haven't nailed one yet. But even with that, I would NEVER want to deal with a car getting out of the parks either.

 

[brich]

But even with that, I would NEVER want to deal with a car getting out of the parks either.

NEVER a problem.... I have never sat in traffic getting out of a park...ever. Just an FYI...

 

[Victoria]

My husband generally rents a car, but he knows the area well. We usually use both, depending on where we are going. Part of the magic for us though is the transportation - our first ride on the monorail, a leisurely boat ride from MGM to Epcot, and even the conversations we've had with the bus drivers all are part of the whole experience. I think you miss a lot if you don't use DTS.

The other thing to consider is the risks of driving in FL. There are many people driving those roads who are not only unfamiliar with the vehicle they've rented , but in fact unfamiliar with driving in the kinds of traffic you'll find there. All it takes is one "encounter" with a poor driver to really ruin your vacation!

Whatever you decide, have a great time!:wave:

This is one of the primary reasons you will NEVER find me driving a car in WDW. There are all sorts of drivers zipping around Disney and most have NO CLUE where they are going or how to get there. I would much prefer to leave the driving up to a person who drives for a living and knows where they are going like the back of their hand.

At home I consider myself to be a very good driver. (clean driving record, never pulled over, etc.) However, I know how nervous I get when I am driving in an unfamiliar area. I dont want to feel that way on my vacation.
I dont want to exponentially increase my chances of getting into or causing an accident in WDW. I do this for my own safety and the safety of others.

I think this is something more people should probably take into consideration before they take to the roads of WDW. But this is just my $0.02. :wave:

 

[bgraham34]

I had a friend who brought a car with him because he said he was not waiting for the bus. Some of the people he went with did not drive they just took the bus.

They only times he beat the people on the bus was at the end of the day going back to the resorts.

Going to the parks he had to park far away and walk to the gates. So the people on the bus were let out up front and he was still walking.

 

[PhilharMagician]

I rented a car the first time we went to WDW and it sat in the parking lot in front of our room the entire time till we left to go back to the airport. That was an entire weeks rental for nothing.

We now like to use quicksilver car service to take us from the airport to our resort. They offer a free 30 minute stop at a grocery store so we can get lots of water, fruit, snacks, breakfast items and even a bottle of wine. For approx $100.00 (round trip) this gives you plenty of supplies for your room and is a lot cheaper than renting a car for a week.

Once you are on property Disney transportation is amazing. I cannot say that we have not had some delays and have been frustrated, but that happens when I drive to the store at home in my car. Now some people have said that they have had problems getting resort to resort transportation. We are usually able to plan some type of transportation or you can just get a cab for about $10.00.

Save the money on the rental and as others have said "go have a nice dinner and relax".

:wave:

 

[poohbear6103]

We always take a car, especially since we have discount with Alamo which has a counter right at MCO. Plus you can an inexpensive car. Since it's just my fiancee and me, as long as I can fitour luggage in the trunk and the air conditioner works, that is all I need.
I like being able to leave the airport right away and head for the hotel. Then we eat at other resorts A LOT while we are there and we like coming and going when we please and not waiting for a bus. What we usually do is take the monorails during the day for MK and Epcot, but then drive when we go to MGM and AK. We are also early birds and like to take advantage of morning EMH, so we have never had to walk far at all. If you do not like to wake up early in vacation, which is totally understandable, driving to a park may not be a smart thing to do since walking a long distance or taking a tram may be involved.
We also know our way around The World very well by now so we don't have to worry about getting lost or anything which did happen in the beginning. After spending the whole day waiting in line for rides, the last thing I want to do is wait in another line for a bus. Especially in August/September, when we tend to travel, I count down the minutes till I can dunk myself in the hotel pool I want to soak every minute out of my vacation while I am there.
Maybe the time of year you travel in (busy or slow period), resort(s) you stay at or visit and parks you go to may affect how you feel about Disney transportation.

 

[Gravydeen]

What about Value Season?

During the slowest times of the year, say mid December, are there longer gaps between buses? I thought I read where time was longer than 20 minutes between buses during those periods.

 

[Ringo8n24]

I totally recommend Disney transportation...especially since you are staying at Poly for half the trip with the monorail right there. Those times that were quoted I have never experienced there. We will never drive at WDW again. I can always find what I need on property without having to leave. Not having to drive makes me really feel relaxed on vacation.