Once on Disney property, you don't have to worry about how you will make your way around the 27,520 acres that make up Walt Disney World. There are so many different modes of transportation provided by Disney to allow you to explore all of the areas that make up the Happiest Place on Earth. Here, I will let you know the types of transportation provided in Disney World and when using a particular mode of transportation would be most useful.
1) Monorail
This is the iconic mode of transportation in Disney World. It is an elevated train that travels up above street level. The monorail has existed in the Magic Kingdom area since the park first opened in 1971. When it first opened, it serviced Magic Kingdom and the two Disney resorts that existed at that time- The Polynesian and The Contemporary. When Epcot was opened in 1982, the monorail also extended a line to reach that park from the Magic Kingdom area. Finally, in 1989 when The Grand Floridian was opened, the monorail serviced that resort as well.
Nowadays, the monorail has three distinct routes that are available to all visitors of Disney World. First, there is a giant loop that connects Magic Kingdom, the Contemporary, the Transportation and Ticket Center, the Polynesian, and the Grand Floridian. Some people enjoy "resort hopping" by taking the monorail around to explore each of these Deluxe resorts. Second, there is an express line which brings guests directly from Magic Kingdom to the Transportation and Ticket Center, which is out in the middle of the Magic Kingdom parking lot. Third, there is a line that connects the Transportation and Ticket Center to Epcot.
The monorail is an extremely efficient way to get around Disney World. The trains travel on a consistent loop, and because they are elevated there are never traffic delays. There are a several times that using the monorail would be the fastest and easiest transportation option.
If you are staying as a guest at the Contemporary, the Polynesian, or the Grand Floridian and wish to visit Magic Kingdom or Epcot. These are three of the most expensive resorts in Disney World, largely because they are located right on the monorail line. Many people see being able to access the monorail right from their resort as a major plus to stay at these resorts.
You are park hopping from Magic Kingdom to Epcot, or vice versa. The monorail runs between these two resorts, with a quick layover at the Transportation and Ticket Center. There is also no bus offered between these two resorts because Disney expects you to utilize the monorail.
You are leaving Magic Kingdom or Epcot to have a meal at one of the restaurants in a monorail loop resort (for example 'Ohana in the Polynesian). With the monorail, it is extremely easy to grab a mid-day meal at one of these fan favorite restaurants, take a break from the park, and then efficiently return to the park.
You wish you dine in one of the restaurants in a monorail loop resort and are staying in a different resort. Unfortunately, there is no Disney provided transportation that will take you from one Disney resort to another Disney resort. You have to make a layover at a park and hop on a connecting mode of transportation. For example, if you are staying at All-Stars Music and wish to have dinner at 'Ohana in the Polynesian, you would have to take the bus to Magic Kingdom and then could hop on the monorail to take you to The Polynesian.
2) Bus Transportation
Busses are the most commonly used mode of transportation offered in Disney World. All resorts offer busses to most locations in Disney, whilst busses also offer connections between the parks.
Some Disney guests frown at resorts where the only mode of transportation provided is busses, but I personally do not necessarily think this is a negative. Disney has really perfected its bus system, and the busses run on an extremely consistent schedule, not letting guests wait for too long between busses. With the introduction of the My Disney Experience app, you can even see estimated arrival times of busses at your resort for each of the parks as well as Disney Springs.
The downfall of busses over the monorail or the skyliner, is that busses can sometimes get stuck in traffic. There are lanes throughout Disney World that are reserved solely for the Disney busses, but when there are accidents or high traffic levels, even a Disney bus can be delayed.
Busses can be used in the following situations:
All of the Disney resorts offer bus transportation to the parks and to Disney Springs. Busses can be boarded at the main lobby of the resort or at bus stops scattered throughout select resorts. The only time that a resort would not offer a bus to a particular park, is if another mode of transportation was available (for example guests at the Polynesian would be required to take the monorail to Magic Kingdom and no bus would be provided).
All of the Disney parks offer bus transportation to the other parks. This is regardless of if another mode of transportation is available between the two parks (for example the skyliner between Epcot and Hollywood Studios). The busses can be boarded in front of each park, with seperate stations for each park and each resort.
You can reach Disney parks from Disney Springs, only via a layover at a Disney resort. Some Disney goers have tried to avoid the parking fee at Disney parks by parking at Disney Springs for free and then taking the free Disney provided bus to the park. This will not work because there is no direct bus from Disney Springs to the parks. You would instead have to take the bus to a resort and then catch a connecting bus from the resort to the park. This is only advisable if you have no schedule for the day, as this whole process could be quite time consuming. Busses can be boarded out front of Disney Springs, with individual stations for each of the resorts.
3) Skyliner
The skyliner is the newest addition to the transportation fleet offered at Walt Disney World. The skyliner opened in 2019 and is a gondola system that travels high above Disney property. The gondolas are colorful and feature Disney characters on their exteriors. It is fun to see them flying overhead in portions of Disney World.
The skyliner is on the Hollywood Studios/Epcot side of Disney World and offers aa few different lines that you can utilize. Carribbean Beach Resort hosts the skyliner "hub" where you can make a connection to one of 2 routes. First, there is a direct connection between Caribbean Beach Resort and Hollywood Studios. Second, there is a line to Epcot, which passes through the Riviera Resort on the way. There is also a line that connects Pop Century/Art of Animation to Carribean Beach Resort, where guests can take a connecting line to either Epcot or Hollywood Studios.
As you can imagine, prices have increased to stay at resorts on the skyliner line. This is particularly true of Carribbean Beach Resort, since it hosts the hub and offers a direct line to either Hollywood Studios or Epcot without having to deboard for a connection. The skyliner is a convenient mode of transportation to be right outside your hotel room. It is also important to remember that due to the skyliner connecting to these resorts, bus transportation will not be offered to Epcot of Hollywood Studios from these resorts.
The skyliner runs consistently all day and night (during park hours) and like the monorail, does not face delays due to traffic. It is also one of the most fun modes of transportation you can take as you get to fly high above Disney World and see everything from a completely different vantage point. The one downfall of the skyliner is that service is halted when it is windy or stormy outside. Also, you risk being delayed inside the actual gondola if it is paused mid-trip due to high winds.
Here are some instances where the skyliner would be the best mode of transportation to take:
The skyliner is the only transportation option for guests staying at Carribbean Beach Resort, Pop Century, Art of Animation, and the Riviera to reach Hollywood Studios or Epcot. Every resort exception Carribbean Beach Resort (obviously) will have to deboard at the hub at Carribbean Beach Resort and catch a connecting line to either park. You should expect a long line in the morning when trying to reach the parks for rope drop.
Disney does not provide bus transport from Hollywood Studios to Epcot, so if you are looking to park hop from Hollywood Studios to Epcot, or vice versa, the skyliner would be your best option. There is no direct line between these 2 parks, so you will have to make a connection at the Carribbean Beach Resort hub and pass through the stop at Riviera along the Epcot line. This takes longer than expected, so factor in travel time if you are trying to adhere to a certain schedule.
If you are traveling from Hollywood Studios to the Boardwalk or one of the resorts in the Boardwalk area, the skyliner is a great mode of transportation to utilize. The Boardwalk is a short 5-minute walk from the Epcot skyliner stop. This can be a nice break from the parks to grab a meal on the boardwalk or at one of the resorts in that area. Another bonus- Fantasia Gardens miniature golf is a 10-minute walk from the Boardwalk area. If wanting to experience the skyliner, you can board it from Hollywood Studios and take it to the Epcot exit. Then, a quick walk will get you over to the mini golf course for a mid-day park break.
You are traveling to the Riviera from Hollywood Studios or Epcot to get brunch or dinner at Topolino's Terrace. This Table Service restaurant hosts a fan favorite character breakfast as well as a fancy dinner ambiance. The skyliner would be a great way to leave the parks to enjoy your meal here.
4) Water Taxis
A good portion of Disney World is built around lakes and small waterways. It only makes sense for Disney to offer boat transportation to get through these areas. There are several different waterways in Disney and therefore multiple different forms of water taxis that Disney visitors can utilize. Similarly to the skyliner, the water taxis will cease service in bad weather.
The most well-known water taxi in Disney World is probably the ferry to Magic Kingdom. This water ferry is quite large and sails guests from the Ticket and Transportation Center to the front gates of Magic Kingdom. This is not as fast as boarding the monorail, or even walking would be, so it is really only advisable to use if not in a particular hurry.
Several of the Magic Kingdom area resorts offer guests water transportation across the Seven Seas Lagoon to reach Magic Kingdom. Water ferries are offered by the Grand Floridian, the Polynesian, and the Wilderness Lodge. This is useful for guests trying to reach the park from their resort. It also would be useful for guests who may want to dine at a restaurant in one of these resorts. As mentioned before, no Disney resort offers a bus to take you to another resort. In such instances, you would have to take a bus from your resort to Magic Kingdom, to catch the ferry to the restaurant in one of these resorts. I personally think the monorail would be fastest and most efficient than the ferry if traveling to the Grand Floridian or the Polynesian. Unfortunately, the monorail does not connect to The Wilderness Lodge.
There are water ferries in the Hollywood Studios/Epcot area that travels along the waterway between those two parks. There are several different lines which go to Hollywood Studios, Epcot, the Boardwalk, Beach Club, Yacht Club, and Dolphin and Swan resorts. The water ferry is the only mode of transportation for guests staying at these resorts to reach Hollywood Studios or Epcot. However, there is also a walking path that connects the two areas which guests can utilize. The boat is often slow, with long lines, so I personally think the skyliner or even walking is a better option.
There are several water taxis in the Disney Springs area. These connect the surrounding resorts to Disney Springs. There is a boat offered for Port Orleans Riverside/French Quarter, a boat for Old Key West resort, and a boat for Saratoga Springs resort. Again, I personally think the water taxi travel is much too slow and unpredictable, so in most instances I would opt for bus transportation to Disney Springs over the water taxi.
5) Minnie Van Service
All of the Disney provided transportation options listed above are free of charge for all visitors of Disney World. This last category is the only transportation that you would have to pay separately for.
The Minnie Van service runs very similarly to Uber or Lyft. You actually use the Lyft app on your phone to book a Minnie Van to take you on a private ride within the Disney property. The vehicle is a van, which can fit up to 6 guests, and the exterior is decorating like Minnie Mouse. The car is driven by a Disney employee rather than a random person, so you can expect better customer service than you might get in an Uber. Rides in a Minnie Van on average cost anywhere between $30-$70, which is much higher than a normal Uber ride would cost for the same trip.
Minnie Vans can be used to get pretty much anywhere on Disney property. They will go to all resorts, all parks, Disney Springs, mini-golf locations, and The Boardwalk. The only place they won't go is anywhere off Disney property, such as the airport.
Minnie Vans could be useful as a more direct route to certain locations when in a time crunch or other limiting factors are at play. For example, you are staying at All Star Music but have a 7am breakfast reservation at Chef Mickey's at The Contemporary. In order to make it to your reservation, you would normally have to take a bus to Magic Kingdom and then take the monorail to The Contemporary. However, in order to get there by 7am, you would need to start that process by at least 6am. Since busses to Magic Kingdom don't start running that early, that would be impossible. That is where the Minnie Van service would come in helpful, as well as a lot of other similar situations.
However, Minnie Vans are much more expensive than a normal Uber of Lyft. It is important to note that Uber and Lyft operate on Disney property as well. If you are going to pay for transportation anyways, you might as well just book an Uber which will be a fraction of the price as a Minnie Van and will be essentially the same experience.
As you can see, there are many ways to get around Disney World. As usual, Disney makes it so that you don't have to worry about anything on your Disney vacation, including getting from point A to point B. Try to plan out your travel plans in advance and factor in enough time for each mode of transportation, to avoid last minute panic. I hope this post will help you in planning out your next trip to Disney World!
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