Disney A to Z (Buses and Boats)

One of the things that you need to take into account when traveling to Disney World is transportation.  For us we never rent a car because we know that we can rely on the Disney transportation system.  Now I know that staying on the property is not an option for everyone, while it is the most Magical place on Earth it certainly is not the cheapest. Although there are reasonable resorts on the property that give you access to some things you might not have thought about like discounted tickets and exclusive park access.

More on those in a later post.

Unfortunately the stroller needs to be folded on the bus

One thing we like to know about the hotel we are staying at is the transportation options to the various parks.  If we are staying near Epcot we know that we are going to have to take a bus to get to the Magic Kingdom. If we stay near the Magic Kingdom we can either walk, take a boat, or ride the monorail.  But then we will have to take a bus to get to Epcot. Each has their advantages.  If you are a family of four with two strollers taking a bus late at night with two sleeping kids is not always the best option.  It's one of the reasons we don't stay at a resort like Animal Kingdom Lodge where the bus is the only option. If you have to fold up your strollers, it's not very easy to carry everything, especially if one of those is one of those oversized double strollers that we had.  If you can just roll onto a monorail or boat it makes it much easier.

The transportation system works great.  

They fall asleep at the wrong time

It might not seem like it at the end of the night when the kids are having a meltdown, everyone has one so don't worry that your kid is screaming that they don't want to leave, but the buses are pretty efficient.  The lines can get long when you are leaving the park, so take that into account when you are making a mad dash after the fireworks.  You don't need to worry though, you will eventually get back to your hotel where the kids will be sleeping and you can crash.

Life is better on a boat

We like taking the boats when possible. Vacation feels better when you are riding a boat.  We seem to always stay at either Beach Club Resort or The Boardwalk. They are connected to Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot by a boat. The Dolphin and The Swan are also nearby so if you don't feel like making the quick walk to any of them feel free to use the boat. You can also take boats from places like Port Orleans or Old Key West to Downtown Disney or from Wilderness Lodge to the Magic Kingdom.  I would be tempted to just ride the boats all day if my kids didn't want me to go to the parks with them.

The transportation system might sound confusing but it is always easy to find.  Whether you are leaving your hotel to get to the parks or leaving the parks to get back to your hotel, you can be sure that you will get there.  No one that I know of has ever been stranded on the side of the road without a way to get back to where they were going. 

Of course you could just rent a car and drive to the parking lot of the park or to the transportation center. That would make traveling that much easier for you, but I will tell you in a future post why you might not want to do that.  

Too bad you can't take one of these

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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