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transportion/routes
- Thread starter eagles
- Start date
Nemo14
Well-Known Member
Mouseplanet offers a pretty thorough explanation, although it is not a map if that's what you're looking for:
http://www.mouseplanet.com/dtp/wdwguide/5_Primer/wdw_transportation/wdw_transportation.htm
http://www.mouseplanet.com/dtp/wdwguide/5_Primer/wdw_transportation/wdw_transportation.htm
I went to the website that Nemo14 mentioned and I like it. It is informative without giving too much detail. If you are looking for details as to times or routes, you will not find them for most of our transportation system. There are no set times for the routes to leave the theme parks once the system starts up in the morning. The campground is the only place that has a time schedule that involves guests. Our goal is to get a bus to every resort within 20 minutes of each other. Depending on where you are staying, you may see more buses from one theme park than others. That is mainly because the resort is closer to a theme park than to other theme parks. This happens alot with MGM buses at Pop Century because it is so close. There are many factors throughout a full day that change our transportation pattern. The most frequent involves the start of the day when everyone and their families want to be at the parks first. This often causes a headache at all the resorts, especially the family and moderate resorts and we try to meet it by having buses sitting by waiting for communication between hubs. It's called MOD: Magic on Demand. The goal; move as many people as we can to the parks within a 3 hour time frame. After that, some things change, especially in buses. Dispatching is handled differently and some resorts are split apart where they were combined during MOD. At 3:00 p.m. at the Magic Kingdom, the Port Orleans load zones are separated, just one bus to Riverside and one bus to French Quarter. A lot of people don't know this. Things change one more time when all the theme parks start closing. Dispatching is done visually. The goal: Move people as fast as we can back home to their resorts. Watercraft has three forms of transportation at MK: Ferry's to and from TTC to MK- launches that go from Magic Kingdom to the Grand Floridian and the Poly, one that goes from the Contemporary to Fort Wilderness and Wilderness Lodge and sometimes Magic Kingdom, and Cruisers that go from Fort Wilderness and Wilderness Lodge to and from the Magic Kingdom. Sometimes they go to the Lodge first and sometimes they go to the campground first. It depends on the time of the day. Epcot has watercraft that carries guests back and forth from there to MGM stopping at the Epcot resorts. The monorail base is at TTC. All three rails start and end from this point if you are in the area. There are only three resorts on the resort beam that goes around MK. In order: Poly, Grand Flo and Contemporary. The express beam goes from TTC, through the Contemporary and on to MK. The Epcot beam goes from TTC to Epcot. There is no bus service to Epcot from the three resorts on the resort beam so you either go to MK or TTC and get the Epcot beam.
The are some hard and fast rules that I can guarantee will make your traveling better if you take them under strong advisement. 1) Ask the correct cast member for information regarding the particular form of transportation. DO NOT rely on Guest Services for transportation questions because 4 out of 5 times the info is wrong. 2) Allow more than ample time to travel around the area especially if transferring might be involved. For example; you have dinner scheduled at the Crystal Palace at 6pm and you are in Epcot at 4pm. You choose to get to MK by monorail. You first have to leave Epcot and walk up the ramp to the beam. Then you will have to wait for the monorail. Travel time from Epcot to TTC should be about 15 minutes, but I am not sure so you ask a Monorail cast member. When you arrive at TTC you now have to get off the Epcot train, walk down a ramp and back up another ramp to get on the express beam. Then when you arrive at MK, you have to go through security because you have bags that have to be checked. Then you are walking to the Crystal Palace without making any stops. This is the perfect scenario. I can give you others that are worse. So plan ahead and allow a minimum of one full hour travel time from the moment you leave your current location and arrive at your designated location. 3) Try to avoid the busy times: First thing in the morning, after a parade or fireworks and definitely at the end of the day. By delaying or starting your travels 5-10 minutes you may come across fewer crowds and shorter lines. 4) When the theme parks close for the night, incoming bus service stops. Our drivers are told not to bring anyone back to theme parks once a theme park is scheduled to close at the end of the day to all guests. It becomes the responsiblity of Downtown buses to pick you up for transports from resort to resort. Exceptions: EMH nights, party nights that require separate tickets or if you have a vehicle parked at a theme park, mainly MGM, Epcot or Animal Kingdom. I know this is lengthy, but I want to help as much as I can. After all, I am one of the proud Disney bus drivers.:ROFLOL:
The are some hard and fast rules that I can guarantee will make your traveling better if you take them under strong advisement. 1) Ask the correct cast member for information regarding the particular form of transportation. DO NOT rely on Guest Services for transportation questions because 4 out of 5 times the info is wrong. 2) Allow more than ample time to travel around the area especially if transferring might be involved. For example; you have dinner scheduled at the Crystal Palace at 6pm and you are in Epcot at 4pm. You choose to get to MK by monorail. You first have to leave Epcot and walk up the ramp to the beam. Then you will have to wait for the monorail. Travel time from Epcot to TTC should be about 15 minutes, but I am not sure so you ask a Monorail cast member. When you arrive at TTC you now have to get off the Epcot train, walk down a ramp and back up another ramp to get on the express beam. Then when you arrive at MK, you have to go through security because you have bags that have to be checked. Then you are walking to the Crystal Palace without making any stops. This is the perfect scenario. I can give you others that are worse. So plan ahead and allow a minimum of one full hour travel time from the moment you leave your current location and arrive at your designated location. 3) Try to avoid the busy times: First thing in the morning, after a parade or fireworks and definitely at the end of the day. By delaying or starting your travels 5-10 minutes you may come across fewer crowds and shorter lines. 4) When the theme parks close for the night, incoming bus service stops. Our drivers are told not to bring anyone back to theme parks once a theme park is scheduled to close at the end of the day to all guests. It becomes the responsiblity of Downtown buses to pick you up for transports from resort to resort. Exceptions: EMH nights, party nights that require separate tickets or if you have a vehicle parked at a theme park, mainly MGM, Epcot or Animal Kingdom. I know this is lengthy, but I want to help as much as I can. After all, I am one of the proud Disney bus drivers.:ROFLOL: