Is Grand Floridian transportation always crappy?

[captainkidd]

Just got back from 2 weeks at WL, and I must say, we'll never stay at the GF after seeing what they experienced. They shared buses with us at WL, and were picked up 2nd, meaning for $400 per night, you get to stand half the time on the bus.

One night, we were there for dinner and waiting to catch the monorail to the MK. Because the GF is the last resort picked up, we waited for 4 monorails before there was any room. That's insane.

 

[yankspy]

I have stayed at the GF twice. Both times we did not share with any other resorts. My last stay there was a couple of years ago though. I wonder if this is new or if this is just a fluke?

 

[nolatron]

One night, we were there for dinner and waiting to catch the monorail to the MK. Because the GF is the last resort picked up, we waited for 4 monorails before there was any room. That's insane.

That's why we always took the boat when we stayed at the G/F.

 

[balletgirl2]

I just got back last week from an 8 day stay at GF and did not experience any of those problems. The only time we shared a bus with the WL was on the ME.:shrug:

 

[captainkidd]

I just got back last week from an 8 day stay at GF and did not experience any of those problems. The only time we shared a bus with the WL was on the ME.:shrug:

I was there August 10-23. Every time we were on a bus to Downtown Disney, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, or Typhoon Lagoon, we stopped over at the Grand Floridian. And on every return trip, the bus always said Wilderness Lodge & Grand Floridian.

 

[AGentlRose]

We were at the GF during the first week in August and I thought the bus transportation was horrible, being the last on the line for both the Studios and Downtown Disney, the bus was always packed when it arrived. Transportation to Epcot wasn't much better, having to take two monorails. I remember back in the 1990s when bus service was an option from the monorail resorts to Epcot. The only good transportation from the GF, in my humble opinion, was to the Magic Kingdom and most nights, we always returned on the launch.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

We stayed at the GF over New Year - monorails were fine (if not a little packed when returning from TTC on NYE). Catching buses/monorail from GF we had no problems. Buses to GF, yes we had to share and yes we sometimes went via the Contemporary.

Hey - its a free bus service. We paid extra to stay at the GF - not to have a bus or monorail to ourselves. If we'd wanted that we'd have booked a taxi

 

[captainkidd]

Hey - its a free bus service. We paid extra to stay at the GF - not to have a bus or monorail to ourselves. If we'd wanted that we'd have booked a taxi

I disagree. When you're staying at any of the Disney Resorts, you're paying a premium for location, none more so than the GF. What good is location with crap transportation? I don't expect to have a bus or monorail to myself, but for $400 per night, I don't expect to have to stand or wait for 4 monorails.

 

[carmenhumphreys]

Not sure about the GF, but I can tell you we just returned from a 10 day stay at the Poly. We split bus service with the Contemprary. On two separate occasions, we waited 40 minutes for bus service to Hollywood Studios and ended up being late for dining reservations. Also service by bus for Animal Kingdom took approximately 30 minutes. I agree when you pay to stay at one of the most expensive hotels, you should have excellent service all around. The best bus service we have had has been at Coronado Springs - coming or going, waited no longer than10 minutes.

 

[Philo]

When I was staying at WL I noticed that GF was often a stop between WL and the park and thought it was a little odd.

I'm split on the whole thing though. One one hand, you are paying a lot and deserve a seat, one the other hand, you do get the luxury hotel, the monorail, the boats and the free bus service. Would it be right if the bus went to GF then WL and all the WL guests had to stand? No, I don't think it would. I guess the best solution is to have a seperate bus system but with the other transport options available at GF, is this really necessary?

 

[WishIwasThere]

Just got back from 2 weeks at WL, and I must say, we'll never stay at the GF after seeing what they experienced. They shared buses with us at WL, and were picked up 2nd, meaning for $400 per night, you get to stand half the time on the bus.

One night, we were there for dinner and waiting to catch the monorail to the MK. Because the GF is the last resort picked up, we waited for 4 monorails before there was any room. That's insane.

Didn't you just cover this in your "Just back from Disney/Universal" thread.

JK, seems kind of stupid to have two resorts on opposite sides of the lagoon to share busses. Maybe Poly/GF busses, but WL/GF busses???

That is why I rent a car...no worry about packed busses, just really hot pleather seats and tram fights...

 

[glennsineadkatl]

GF Transportation

I have to agree with Nolatron. We always used the boat to and from the GF.

 

[Master Yoda]

When it comes to bus transportation I have always found the resorts on the monorail loop to be seriously lacking. The three resorts commonly share a bus route and due to the Contemporary's isolation relative to the Poly and GF the pick up route is incredibly long. This equates to long wait times especially off peak due to reduced buses on the route. When it comes to the monorail it comes down to two things. First of all you can only put so many trains on the beam at once and they can only hold so many people. A closed system like the monorail can easily get overloaded at peak times and unlike a bus system where you can add as many buses as you need you simply can not add more trains. Second it has been a common "insider tip" to take the resort monorail over the express monorail at the end of the night as it is typically a quicker trip to the TTC on the resort monorail and a shorter line than the express monorail. This adds to the overloading of the resort line

 

[IRBIWDW]

We noticed that a couple of years ago. All the "deluxe" resorts were sharing buses. The wait times were very long and the buses were PACKED!! Yacht and Beach Club sometimes shared with Swan and Dolphin and Boardwalk. We thought the bus service at Port Orleans was better than what they got at the "deluxe" resorts. (Still had fun though!! :wave