Monorails to no longer operate during Evening Extra Magic Hours

[DonaldDoleWhip]

.
Stop running EXPRESS loop.. that will free up what.. 2 maybe 3 trains?


so for us who have annual passes and want to get back to our cars fast and try and make it home before it gets to late we would have to wait for all of the deluxe resorts to offload and then go all the way back to the TTC is that fair:shrug:

i understand if it is matinence. and if it is budget cuts then it better be going back into the parks.

P.S i blame meg crofton

Have you ever taken the resort loop? After leaving MK, it stops at one resort (CR) and then the TTC. So it's really not that inconvenient, and a lot of people take the resort line to TTC anyway since it almost always has a shorter line.

The resort line is a much bigger priority. It services 3 resorts and the TTC, and it's the only way for handicapped people to get to MK from GF on an ordinary day.

And if you have an annual pass and are trying to make it "home," this issue doesn't really affect you, since you wouldn't be at MK that late on an EMH day anyway (unless you're staying on-property).

 

[Hakunamatata]

The resort line is a much bigger priority. It services 3 resorts and the TTC, and it's the only way for handicapped people to get to MK from GF on an ordinary day.

This is simply not true.

 

[cwtigerlily]

There will also be busses on the routes which will be wheelchair compatible.

Thanks. It is still inconvenient though - part of the advantage of paying all the extra money to stay at these resorts was to avoid having to wait in the handicapped line for a bus.

Chatting with a castmember now from the Disney Reservations site who is insisting closing down the monorail is impossible. x.x

I asked her about the handicapped question and she told me that since the parks do not "close" until after extra magic hours, they could not shut down the monorails:

Gilmore: Hello and welcome! I'll be happy to point you in the right direction. Yes they will be running an hour prior to the parks opening time and and hour after the parks close, including the extra hours as well.
Gilmore: So for example if Magic Kingdom® Park is open from 9:00am to 9:00pm with extra hours from 9:00pm to 10:00pm, the moniral will run till 11:00pm.
you: Really? Everything I have heard has said that they will stop running an hour after closing starting August 1, and no longer run during/after Extra Magic Hours. That information is what is circulating on many 'unofficial' disney sites, and is also what I heard from my uncle, who is a castmember.
Gilmore: You may call the Disney Reservation Center to verify this information. Unofficial Disney sites are not always accurate. We cannot close the monorail down for extra magic hours, extra magic hours would no longer be a benefit to our guests.
Gilmore: The monorail will stop running when the parks close. The parks do not close till the extra magic hours are over. Did you have any other questions for me to make your vacation more magical?

I love when they don't seem to know what they are talking about, it just makes everything more confusing.

 

[djkidkaz]

Yes, and I'm saying that from experience. I always plan to take advantage of MK evening EMH. By the 2nd and 3rd hour, the park really isn't too crowded, and it's dark and I can do quite a few rides. Now, by paying the premium for convenience to MK in the first place, I'm being punished.

Or, for example, I'm dining at Citricos while staying at CR. MK closes at 9 but has EMH, so I think the monorail will be running. My dinner is done at 10:20 because it was a peaceful 2-hour meal and we dressed up a little. So now you're telling me that instead of taking the monorail 2 stops to CR as I've been able to do for decades, I have to walk to GF's boat dock, wait for the boat to stop at Poly and then MK, and finally walk all the way back to CR? No way. If this is exactly what it sounds like, I'm not fine with it at all.

And I've never gotten worked up over the yeti, Splash Mountain, or anything like that. But this directly affects my experience, and I don't think I'm okay with it.

You misunderstood. I was saying that emh is usually just Sunday night. It seems that those few extra hours they are taking it away aren't gonna do much to change it's issues for the whole week. Is 3 more hours of maint a week gonna make the monorails problems go away? Doubt it!

 

[unkadug]

Thanks. It is still inconvenient though - part of the advantage of paying all the extra money to stay at these resorts was to avoid having to wait in the handicapped line for a bus.

Chatting with a castmember now from the Disney Reservations site who is insisting closing down the monorail is impossible. x.x

I asked her about the handicapped question and she told me that since the parks do not "close" until after extra magic hours, they could not shut down the monorails:

Gilmore: Hello and welcome! I'll be happy to point you in the right direction. Yes they will be running an hour prior to the parks opening time and and hour after the parks close, including the extra hours as well.
Gilmore: So for example if Magic Kingdom® Park is open from 9:00am to 9:00pm with extra hours from 9:00pm to 10:00pm, the moniral will run till 11:00pm.
you: Really? Everything I have heard has said that they will stop running an hour after closing starting August 1, and no longer run during/after Extra Magic Hours. That information is what is circulating on many 'unofficial' disney sites, and is also what I heard from my uncle, who is a castmember.
Gilmore: You may call the Disney Reservation Center to verify this information. Unofficial Disney sites are not always accurate. We cannot close the monorail down for extra magic hours, extra magic hours would no longer be a benefit to our guests.
Gilmore: The monorail will stop running when the parks close. The parks do not close till the extra magic hours are over. Did you have any other questions for me to make your vacation more magical?

I love when they don't seem to know what they are talking about, it just makes everything more confusing.

:lol:

Thank you for calling USA Prime Credit. My name is Peggy. What is problem please.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRLwKw9up3s

 

[Testtrack321]

Thanks. It is still inconvenient though - part of the advantage of paying all the extra money to stay at these resorts was to avoid having to wait in the handicapped line for a bus.

Chatting with a castmember now from the Disney Reservations site who is insisting closing down the monorail is impossible. x.x

I asked her about the handicapped question and she told me that since the parks do not "close" until after extra magic hours, they could not shut down the monorails:

Gilmore: Hello and welcome! I'll be happy to point you in the right direction. Yes they will be running an hour prior to the parks opening time and and hour after the parks close, including the extra hours as well.
Gilmore: So for example if Magic Kingdom® Park is open from 9:00am to 9:00pm with extra hours from 9:00pm to 10:00pm, the moniral will run till 11:00pm.
you: Really? Everything I have heard has said that they will stop running an hour after closing starting August 1, and no longer run during/after Extra Magic Hours. That information is what is circulating on many 'unofficial' disney sites, and is also what I heard from my uncle, who is a castmember.
Gilmore: You may call the Disney Reservation Center to verify this information. Unofficial Disney sites are not always accurate. We cannot close the monorail down for extra magic hours, extra magic hours would no longer be a benefit to our guests.
Gilmore: The monorail will stop running when the parks close. The parks do not close till the extra magic hours are over. Did you have any other questions for me to make your vacation more magical?

I love when they don't seem to know what they are talking about, it just makes everything more confusing.

I doubt the news has propagated down yet, I mean it was just announced today on a weekend.

 

[puntagordabob]

Do you forget when Disney didn't acknowledge BLT for TWO YEARS as it was being built?

DVC construction seems to be a level headed explanation for this change, but count me in the not happy with this decision column.

They never acknowledged that it was DVC.....it was just something being built and they had "no idea what it was"..... so if the GF construction did interefere then they would not admit to WHAT it was, but would rather only say Misc construction has blah blah blah....." Its not like if you stared at the rising BLT and pointed it out to the CM that theyd lie to you and say there is nothing there, just grass! I am sure the official line always would be (whether they truly knew or not!) that they have no idea what is building being built there is to be used for....

Chatting with a castmember now from the Disney Reservations site who is insisting closing down the monorail is impossible. x.x

IGilmore: The monorail will stop running when the parks close. The parks do not close till the extra magic hours are over. Did you have any other questions for me to make your vacation more magical?
.

Id of said yes, can you please send me this in writing? LOL j/k

 

[mike7904]

Ok so this is happening. Isn't one of the ferries between MK and the TTC going down for service as well. Will be there in September, we stay on property but not at a monorail resort and normally drive to MK. Might have to take the bus to avoid the hassel of getting back to our car.

 

[Frau Farbissina]

It's a permanent change unfortunately. As permanent as things can be that is, things can always change.

I just had this confirmed as well. I called for something else and the CM told me that it was permanent and "based on customer needs."

 

[mickey2008.1]

I dont see why they couldnt just run the resort loop only for those guests staying at deluxe properties. All that is needed is a turnstile thats lets you through with your room key, just like you do to get into a park. That allows those guests access, keeps the others off, lessens the crowds for those trains, and would need less trains running with longer wait times in between. Instead of every 15 mins, make it 25 minutes. Seems pretty simple to me. Best for both worlds. Trains get more maintenance, people at deluxe get what they pay for.

 

[cbconglom]

And that's why you waste 45+ mins coming and going to the parks while the rest of us are already on the rides? You can always make more money. The one thing you'll never get back in this lifetime is time. When you're on vacation, time is an even more valuable commodity, and the deluxe resorts all provide buses and boats to the MK. You might want to re-think your strategy there, pal.

Disney FTW.

i'm sure you're right, i'm sure my plan could use improvement. but for our family it works out well. we go the slowest time of year so we walk onto every ride so time is not an issue, we always get to see and do everything. we wake when we feel like it, whip up some breafast and stroll in to the park around 10 or 11. we also do not leave the park in the middle of the day. we have a lot of food allergies and we try our best to eat organic so the hilton parc soleil is nice being five min from whole foods. it also only takes me 15 min to get to MK, so not sure what you mean by 45+ min.

so to recap, for 105 a night i get a one bdr with full kitchen at a 4 star hilton built in 2008 complete with a tub that fills from the ceiling (ooh ah) and then drive 15 min to the park. and meanwhile i never waited for a bus. i'm not seeing the drawback but maybe someone can enlightmen me.

p.s. i am saving and saving for 2013 to stay at a 1bdr at BLT so maybe i'll see that it's really worth it to spend $2000 for a week of lodging instead of $600

 

[Neverland]

Have you ever taken the resort loop? After leaving MK, it stops at one resort (CR) and then the TTC. So it's really not that inconvenient, and a lot of people take the resort line to TTC anyway since it almost always has a shorter line.

They actually do shut down the express line, every night. I'm one of those people who doesn't actually leave until about an hour after the park closes, and when I exit, all monorail riders are being directed to the resort line. And this is on non-EMH nights.

 

[wdwmagic]

Thanks. It is still inconvenient though - part of the advantage of paying all the extra money to stay at these resorts was to avoid having to wait in the handicapped line for a bus.

Chatting with a castmember now from the Disney Reservations site who is insisting closing down the monorail is impossible. x.x

I asked her about the handicapped question and she told me that since the parks do not "close" until after extra magic hours, they could not shut down the monorails:

Gilmore: Hello and welcome! I'll be happy to point you in the right direction. Yes they will be running an hour prior to the parks opening time and and hour after the parks close, including the extra hours as well.
Gilmore: So for example if Magic Kingdom® Park is open from 9:00am to 9:00pm with extra hours from 9:00pm to 10:00pm, the moniral will run till 11:00pm.
you: Really? Everything I have heard has said that they will stop running an hour after closing starting August 1, and no longer run during/after Extra Magic Hours. That information is what is circulating on many 'unofficial' disney sites, and is also what I heard from my uncle, who is a castmember.
Gilmore: You may call the Disney Reservation Center to verify this information. Unofficial Disney sites are not always accurate. We cannot close the monorail down for extra magic hours, extra magic hours would no longer be a benefit to our guests.
Gilmore: The monorail will stop running when the parks close. The parks do not close till the extra magic hours are over. Did you have any other questions for me to make your vacation more magical?

I love when they don't seem to know what they are talking about, it just makes everything more confusing.

Oh dear - Gilmore is going to feel a bit silly when he/she reads the memo.

 

[unkadug]

I dont see why they couldnt just run the resort loop only for those guests staying at deluxe properties. All that is needed is a turnstile thats lets you through with your room key, just like you do to get into a park. That allows those guests access, keeps the others off, lessens the crowds for those trains, and would need less trains running with longer wait times in between. Instead of every 15 mins, make it 25 minutes. Seems pretty simple to me. Best for both worlds. Trains get more maintenance, people at deluxe get what they pay for.

Who else would be using the monorails during EMH except for those staying at the Deluxe resorts?

Or, are you saying all the time?

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

You misunderstood. I was saying that emh is usually just Sunday night. It seems that those few extra hours they are taking it away aren't gonna do much to change it's issues for the whole week. Is 3 more hours of maint a week gonna make the monorails problems go away? Doubt it!

Oops, sorry. I'm honestly not thinking clearly anymore, since this is of imminent importance to us. We have 7 nights planned for the Grand in August and I'm not flushing thousands of dollars to stay there and experience this monorail-light service (since I know I'll be at MK for evening EMH).

I agree with your point.

This is simply not true.

Ok, so it's not true. I would appreciate it if you could inform me of why it's not true, or what other option exists, instead of simply telling me I'm wrong. The boats that serve GF on a daily basis do not accommodate wheelchairs or ECV's. The monorail is out of this discussion. The only other option I can think of is walking from GF to the TTC (a 20-30 minute walk) and catching the ferry. What am I missing?

 

[Mr Bill]

I can believe that they need more time for maintenance than they have under the current operation schedule, given the age of the trains at this point. They're four years older than the Mark IV trains were when they were replaced. Maybe it's time for a new set of trains?

 

[misterID]

Hmmm. They're cutting out a big reason why people want to stay at these resorts. Plus, I can believe the maintenance excuse. Updating, replacing the Monorails is way overdue. That's the problem.

Right now they're weighing out the costs between the money lost losing bookings for their most expensive resorts and buying a new fleet of monorails. The answer: Guests lose. Again.

 

[MKCP 1985]

How many years has MK or EPCOT been open until 2am. WDW just now implement this policy? Does not sound like maintenance is the issue but a way to cut cost or cost avoidance. Doesn't effect me as i never stay at a monorail resort and now it sounds like I won't. I would want quick transportation paying that amount of money.

Maybe Disney should invest in a few more monorails so the same ones are not always running? Okay, I already know that answer. I buy 10 suits and rotate them for work so they last longer.

^^^^ This.

But again, the monorails have been running to all hours of the night and 365 days a year since 1971, so it isn't any new and unanticipated wear and tear.


it is as the little birdie in the Tiki Room used to sing, "Cheap, cheap, cheap, cheap, cheap." :lookaroun

Contemporary Bay Lake Tower DVC sales may pick up. . . shortest walk. :lol:

 

[wm49rs]

The resort line is a much bigger priority. It services 3 resorts and the TTC, and it's the only way for handicapped people to get to MK from GF on an ordinary day.

This is simply not true.

Ok, so it's not true. I would appreciate it if you could inform me of why it's not true, or what other option exists, instead of simply telling me I'm wrong. The boats that serve GF on a daily basis do not accommodate wheelchairs or ECV's. The monorail is out of this discussion. The only other option I can think of is walking from GF to the TTC (a 20-30 minute walk) and catching the ferry. What am I missing?

There are larger ferry boats that are wheelchair/ECV accessible, as well as busses that have the same capability. These can both be utilized to transport people out of the park on EMH nights.....

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

There are larger ferry boats that are wheelchair/ECV accessible, as well as busses that have the same capability. These can both be utilized to transport people out of the park on EMH nights.....

They can, but does that happen often? I know that the bigger boats (like for Fort Wilderness or Wilderness Lodge) are handicapped accessible, but I've never seen bigger boats for GF or Poly except during really rare occasions (Christmas & New Year, the day after the monorail crash, etc). Does anyone know if those bigger boats will now serve GF and Poly on EMH nights? If so, what will serve Fort Wilderness? Are there a lot of extra boats that simply aren't used?

I'm assuming that the bus service is referring to getting back from Epcot, while GF and Poly will still only have the boat from MK. I don't think GF and Poly will have both a bus and a boat. But then it has to be a bigger boat, or else people in wheelchairs or ECV's can't get back (without the especially annoying route via the ferry to TTC then walking all the way to GF).