This is the first time we are going to stay in a value resort, we usually stay at the Wilderness and take the boat to the MK, and or a boat to the contemporary and then the monorail to Epcot, or buses to the other parts.

I have heard the bus system for the value resorts are not as good or as prompt. We are staying at All stars Music.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Yeah! Best advice.... Rent a car or stay at another resort!!:~D

We stayed at the All Star Sports a few years ago. It was our first trip with our daughter who was 18 months old at the time. Never ever again! The buses were horrific!! We had longer waits in the morning and would have long waits getting back to the hotel. Which was worse because people were tired and cranky.

We stayed at the Poly in February and it was a totally different. We had our daughter (then 4 years old) and our 3 month old son. We also rented a car. We planned it that if needed one of us could use the car to get back to the hotel and the other could take the bus back. The buses were never crowded. Come to find out that many people staying at the Poly and other resorts in the same grouping of hotels rent cars! :confused:

Heres a thought... being that you are going during the off season, it should not be all that bad. For every horror story, you are going to get a great success story, regardless of what resort is talked about.

At the same time, the time of year and special events play a role in how busy things are as well. Chances are, you will do just fine. But like any other resort that depends solely on bus transportation, you will have to wait at times for the right bus to show up. Its just the way it is. We make the best of it by planning out our next stop(s), looking at pictures recently taken, or talking about the highlights of the day.

You may want to do some additional searching on this topic as well. That way you can read up on past comments.

You're likely to be fine. Sometimes the All-Stars do share buses, and Music is the middle of the 3. But if it's busy, they'll be running more buses.

I do not like to rent a car and usually stay at bus-only resorts, so I just go with the flow. Sometimes you'll have to wait longer than you'd like. Sometimes you have to stand. I don't let it ruin my vacation.

I really like being able to have a drink (or 2) in the evening, and I don't drive if I've been drinking, so driving to the parks really isn't a viable option for me. (Plus I get lost and stressed out driving in unfamiliar places easily!)

I have to agree with Drince. I stayed at Sports in early June of 2004 and had no problems with buses. In June of 2005 at Movies the only unreasonable wait we had was getting to Blizzard Beach. They actually sent charter buses and they wouldn't let anyone stand on those. I don't know what was up with the Disney buses that day, but it was an isolated incident.

We found the value resorts to be perfectly acceptable, and within our budget. My son LOVED them!

Thanks for all the info! I am hoping that because we are going on a week that is in between the "holidays' after Halloween and right before "christmas season", that maybe it won't be as crowded, although I know the food and wine festival is still going on.

I think we will go with the flow....

I did read somewhere that if the buses dont seem to be running that some people have taken cabs.....any thoughts on this?

Thanks for all the info! I am hoping that because we are going on a week that is in between the "holidays' after Halloween and right before "christmas season", that maybe it won't be as crowded, although I know the food and wine festival is still going on.

I think we will go with the flow....

I did read somewhere that if the buses dont seem to be running that some people have taken cabs.....any thoughts on this?


We take cabs at WDW all the time. They are usually readily available and not that expensive. If we are going resort to resort for dinner (and we want to have a drink or 2) we will always take a cab.

I've done the cab thing usually after dinner at a resort, or for a breakfast at another resort.

There've been times where if I exit with the crowds at Epcot and the line seems extra long, that I'll hop a cab. Usually if I'm staying at a resort that's in the first group of bus stops, since that's where the cabs are. That's more a 'I'm tired, I'm grumpy, I don't want to wait any longer, and they're RIGHT there' sort of a thing.

I did read somewhere that if the buses dont seem to be running that some people have taken cabs.....any thoughts on this?
While I can agree that there are situations where cabs can be a useful transportation tool (such as going directly from resort to resort), I dont see them as a necessity. With proper planning, the buses will be just fine in most cases.

I've used the taxis as well and have 2 or 3 times this trip that I figure I'll need it--specifically to get to GF early one morning and to get to the minigolf (Fantasia). I know I could get a bus to DS or Epcot and the walk, but it's the convenience over cash that will make us take a taxi to Fantasia. We are walking back through BC/YC to eat lunch at Beaches and Cream, then go through Epcot on the way to its bus stop.

So yes there are ways around the taxis, but I have found them to be convenient and reasonably priced.

Alright, I give in that people have had success with the bus system at the Value Resorts. My feeling is that you should still look at renting a car.

Before I posted this I checked Alamo for a random Saturday to Saturday date in November without a coupon (which are available anywhere and everywhere) and got a rate for a midsize for under $118. An economy car was under $100. To me that is peace of mind of not having to rely on buses, worrying how crowded buses will be, saving time waiting for the buses, money (that adds up quickly) for taxis and not have to worry if you need to go off property to Target to get Pepsi because they don't sell Pepsi products at WDW or if you want to have a nice meal outside of the park to save money. (Sorry, I realize this is a run on sentence.)

And if you are concerned about room for luggage with an economy car, one or two of your party can ride the Magical Express from the airport.

We drove to Disney one time and the car never left the parking lot the whole time we were there. The second time we flew and didn't rent a car. The main problem was, as mentioned before, there was no Mountain Dew for my husband! When we drove down, we were able to bring snacks, etc. in the car. When we flew we didn't have any of that "comfort" stuff with us. I thought about getting a taxi one day, but decided not to mess with it. Maybe if I had to do without my Diet Coke, I would have had more motivation!:~D

One of the reasons I don't mind waiting in line for a bus is because someone else is doing the driving. It can be torture riding in a car with my husband when (a) he doesn't know where he is going and (b) there is a lot of traffic!!

So, I guess the question of renting a car depends on your individual needs. I did see some very good last minute deals through National, and I believe it was on Mousesavers that I saw how you could stack discounts. So you could consider renting just for a couple days.