We are planning to go to MK the morning of our arrival day. We are staying on property and have already completed the on line check in. Should we just park at the resort we’re staying at and catch the bus or would it be possible to get our resort parking pass to park near the MK? What would be the best thing for us to do since it will be so early in the day? We are hoping to rope drop MK. Thanks!
You should be able to do either. If it was me, I would park at the resort and take Disney transportation to the park so I could be done worrying about my car for the day. I also hate dealing the TTC and ferry/monorail to the park. Buses and other transportation just go straight to MK, which I love
Depends on a lot of things. If you are doing rope drop - it will take you a bit to get to the resort - get a bus etc.
I would call the resort - find out exactly what you need to do to get the pass and then go from there.
If you have time - go to the resort - if not drive right to the park. Personally - I never had an issue going through TTA. Additionally if you are there for rope drop - you should be FAIRLY close to the TTA and not have to wait for a tram (we never did we always enjoyed the walk
For rope drop, drive right to the TTC. It would be too early (most likely) to have access to your room as check in is officially 3pm.
Enjoy MK for the morning, then head to the resort closer to check in time.
In terms of a parking “pass,” when we parked at the parks we just used Magic Bands to get in the gate. No additional parking pass was needed for us (staying on property this past August). If you checked in online, I feel like this capability should be activated on your arrival day even if your room isn’t ready yet!
That said, if you have tons of time before rope drop, you could store your bags at the resort and take the bus and enjoy front door service instead of parking at the TTC.
Have fun!
When we traveled last fall to AK on our first day (before check-in at WL) we drove straight to the park before RD. We had our Magic Bands so had no issue parking for free. However, we showed up early for EMH that day, and because we hadn’t checked in to our hotel yet, it didn’t read that we were resort guests eligible for EMH. Our credit card also didn’t activate- a general nightmare…no coffee for me. We found a CM who let us in at guest services but it took 20 minutes (and this was despite me talking to three separate CM who said we would not have a problem with this!). Just wanted to let you know our experience.
Despite check in time being at 3 pm, we were able to check in at 6 am on our first day. We had plenty of time to get unpacked and get to MK at rope drop via the bus.
We stayed at Caribbean Beach Resort, which has a dedicated bus. If you are staying in a resort that shares the bus with other resorts, you may want to consider driving to the park. Either way, I would suggest arriving to the resort first and having the front desk check to make sure everything is going to work properly on your magic band. Even if your room isn’t ready, they may still be able to hang on to your bags and put them in your room while you are at the parks.