Panic time! We are leaving next week and I realized my cousin did not return my “Unofficial guide”. I have it mostly memorized anyways, but I really wanted to take a peek at the chart that gives the driving times vs disney transportation times between hotels and parks. If I remember correctly it is towards the beginning of the guide. We are staying at All-Star Music and I want to jot down the times from there to the parks.
Also - my brother and SIL will have 2 strollers and they were wondering if, with strollers, it’s easier to take disney transportation to the Magic Kingdom or drive. For two adults I had found Disney transportation more convenient to get to MK but I didn’t pay attention to the stroller hassle factor…
Generally speaking, it is ALWAYS faster to drive to the parks than take Disney Transportation (apart from, perhaps, a few rare situations)…with the exception of MK. With MK, taking the resort buses to MK is almost always faster, because you are by-passing the trams and monorail/ferry since you are dropped off right at the gates.
You can use Google maps, BTW, to calculate (approximate) transportation times between your resort and the parks. You can switch between buses and car to see the difference. Of course, with buses, it is widely variable. If you happen to walk up right when a bus is there, it is likely faster than driving, since there is essentially no wait time. But if you have to wait for the bus, then driving would be faster.
I would never drive to MK. The resort bus will drop you off in front of the park. They will just have to fold the strollers up before getting on the bus. Strollers are easy to fold—or at least they are for an experienced mom. I’ve seen lots of dads struggle with them
This has been my life for the last 12 years. We’re hoping next year will be the last time with a stroller – youngest DD will be 6.
Do they have two single strollers or is one a double? I highly recommend a double umbrella like this–so much easier to push and fold up than some of the other models. This assumes the kids are either petite and/or younger than 3 or 4.
If the strollers are relatively easy to fold up, I would recommend Disney bus transport with kids, especially if you’ll have a rental car and would have to deal with car seats. If you are able to drive your own car with car seats already installed, it might be more of a wash.
I agree MK it’s almost always better to use bus.
In my experience, bus service at the All-Stars is really good. Buses come frequently so you will never wait too long. However, if your room is far from the bus stop, that might be another point in favor of driving.
It is tough to find so it might be accessible. Scroll to the bottom section and click “Getting to the Parks and Disney Springs.” Then it will show you the chart.
I’d drive to all the parks except MK (I’d bus to MK).
To the extent you have the option and two stroller “pushers”, I much prefer 2 single strollers over a double. Inevitably there were times where our group split up because the kids wanted to experience different things.
For me I prefer one double, but it is very dependent on circumstances. Our kids are very small and light (my 12-year-old is not quite 65 pounds) and with the double stroller I linked above, it’s really easy to push them. We only have two adults, so one adult always has two hands free to look at maps, book LLs, hold drinks, pass out popcorn, etc.
But if your kids are heavier (which might require a more sturdy stroller) or if they have different interests, I can see why having two strollers would be preferable.
No disagreement here but I will say that two strollers have a few advantages. One is that it is easier to roll right onto a Skyliner for instance without breaking it down. Monorail as well (with a step up) into it. Second point is that your party can be in two places with kids versus potentially one. We use a stroller for our “stuff” many times and being able to park one and then continue on with just one is nice. So, we can have a kid walking sometimes but still wheel one stroller along to hold the backpack/bags, park day bag, ponchos, swag, popcorn bucket, cooling fans, drinks, blah blah blah. You get the picture. Nothing wrong with either method. Just some thoughts.
This is going to be the hardest part about ditching the stroller! Hoping that the kids will be able to carry enough stuff in their personal bags to make up for it (and not having to take wipes / diapers will help).
Yep. We are in the same boat. Now with a 9yo and 5 yo, we wont really need a stroller but I am thinking we will keep one going for a while for this exact purpose. It is beyond handy.
We’ve brought the stroller along for “stuff” on every trip–the idea was mentioned to ditch it this time, as our youngest is now 27 years old, and no one was a fan of that idea!
