Round round, get around, I get around - Disney Transportation

The minefield of transport explained! Firstly we love Disney transport and the service it provides, it’s always clean and it always gets you there.

Is it a perfect system - no but what is, however its close?

There are multiple types of transport from the parks and Disney Springs depending on where you are staying, heading to or from. Firstly its free and anyone can use it.

First task is figuring out what your transport options are from where you are staying:

1. On site guests - all hotel guests will be provided with transport to the parks to your chosen park for the day. This includes the water parks and the theme parks.

2. Off site guests park in car parks or get dropped off in Ubers etc slightly further away than onsite guests are dropped off in boats/bus or sky liner.

3. WDW has been designed to transport you from the mundane nature of everyday life and to begin an adventure. Expect car parks to be a distance from the park - for example from Magic Kingdom car parks you arrive from the car park to the Ticket and Transportation Centre then you catch the monorail or ferry boat to the park entrance area.

Value resorts transport options:

The all star resorts use buses as their only form of transport. Pop and Art of Animation use the Skyliner to access EPCOT and Hollywood Studios but both Animal Kingdom and the Magic Kingdom use the bus services.

Disney Bus - wrapped in the Number 1 Duck.

Moderate resort transport options:

Coronado Springs only uses bus transportation. However, it has multiple pick-up stops around the resort, as do the other moderate hotels. There there will generally be a pick up order so by the time it gets to your stop it maybe full - to get around this you could walk to another stop to ensure you get an earlier bus. Alternatively you could wait for the next one as they are quite frequent.

The Port Orleans (Riverside and French Quarter) use bus transportation for all the parks however they also have access to the boat service to Disney Springs.

Caribbean Beach has the Skyliner (the main hub for pick up for both EPCOT and Hollywood Studios), everyone gets off from their previous resorts and then gets back on to head to the parks from this resort so it can get busy at peak times. For the other parks its bus transportation only.

Deluxe resorts:

Old Key West(OKW), Saratoga Springs (SS) and Animal Kingdom (AK) Lodge are the cheapest of the deluxe resort options and are all served by bus transportation only to the parks. OKW and SS both have access to the boat service to take you to Disney Springs.

Beach and Yacht Club and Boardwalk resorts are both a walkable distance to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios (a boat is also provided for the latter). For the remaining parks it’s bus transportation. The same transport options also apply to the Swan, Dolphin and Swan Reserve properties in the Boardwalk area.

Wilderness Lodge - this beautiful resort uses the boat to access Magic Kingdom and busses for the other parks.

Contemporary resort - you can walk to Magic Kingdom from this resort and use the bus for most other parks excluding EPCOT where you can hop on the monorail.

Polynesian - There is due to be a walkway introduced at the Polynesian to Magic Kingdom however currently it’s not available. The monorail is the form of transport to get you to EPCOT and Magic Kingdom. There is always the option to use the boat service to head across the Seven Seas Lagoon to get to MK. The bus service is the main form of transport for both AK and Hollywood Studios.

Riviera Resort - The newest of the deluxe resorts at Disney is a very beautiful resort with the famous Topolinos dining experience this resort is serviced by the skyliner for both EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. Using bus service for Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Personally my only minor issue with this resort is that the skyliner takes you to Caribbean Beach as the main resort hub - no direct route to the parks. This means at busy times extra queues at the Skyliner hub - as you’re paying deluxe prices, is it worth the extra or should you opt for Caribbean Beach instead?

Monorail Green - Contemporary Resort - Walt Disney World Florida.

Grand Floridian - There is now a walkway between Magic Kingdom and the Grand Floridian which is available to use there’s also the monorail to get you to EPCOT and Magic Kingdom. Or because it’s Disney and there’s always a bonus you can hop on the boat across to Magic Kingdom. The bus service is the main form of transport for both Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.

Getting to Disney Springs:

All resorts offer transport to and from Disney Springs area with the majority offering this through the bus service. However, Saratoga, Old Key West and the Riverside resorts also offer a boat service. You should note though, if the weather turns stormy and there is thunder/ lightening in the area, all boat transport in the Disney area is suspended and busses are used as an alternative. From Saratoga Springs Resort you can walk across to Disney Springs from the Congress Park area in about ten minutes.

Resort hopping:

This is well worth doing it’s an opportunity to get out of the parks and just chill, shop, eat and relax. All the transport can be used to hop between areas the only thing to consider is the transport to Disney Springs doesn’t start till just before Springs opens and you cannot use transport to get from one resort to another generally.

So for example if you’re in MK for the day head out to the Grand Floridian get a good lunch in Gasparilla quick service hop on the boat or monorail between Grand Floridian and go and have a potter around the Polynesian resort and a drink in the famous Trader Sam’s or if its late sit on the Polynesian sands and watch the fireworks. Hop on the bus to Springs and end your night with a wander around Springs. All without having to drive and more importantly the stress of trying to find your car along with thousands of other people.

Another option head out the exit at EPCOT through International Gateway (where the Skyliner is) and wander around the Boardwalk shops take in the atmosphere grab a snack walk through the resorts and round the path to Hollywood Studios or if you don’t fancy a park head on the skyliner to have a wander around Art of Animation, Pop Century Resort and the Rivieria.

Disney Skyliner Walt Disney World Florida

Key points to note:

1. WDW is enormous don’t underestimate the steps you will be racking up, so take advantage of the odd sit down.

2. The transport is open to everyone on WDW property whether you stay on site or off site.

3. The transport from the hotels will take you to the parks and Springs - just get on the right transport.

4. There is no transport between parks most of the time unless on the monorail eg between MK and EPCOT. So either walk to your nearest resort and park hop to your second park of the day or head to a hotel using free transport and then pick up the bus to your next resort from there.

5. Have a think about where you need/want to end up and plan from there.

6. Go and explore the resorts the shopping and food options are great - scope out your next destination to stay in.

Disney’s boat transportation system - Walt Disney World Florida.

It gets busy at peak times and that’s when we overheard the most rumblings about the service - it’s bound to be busy at peak times so just plan around it. If you need to avoid the masses, avoid first thing or mass exodus at the end of the fireworks. The next bus or boat etc is never too far away. If you cannot avoid it - accept it will be very busy but you’re in the happiest place on earth so who cares if the next bus is 10 mins away anyway.

Thanks for reading our guide to Disney Transport. We hope you found it useful and if so, please consider following along on our socials. We have plenty to come including another trip to Florida which we plan to vlog so why not follow Team Five Travels on YouTube for Cruise, Disney and All Inclusive resort content?