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Thread: Resort hopping..can I go from hotel to hotel in a day just to look?

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    Resort hopping..can I go from hotel to hotel in a day just to look?

    Greetings

    We are staying at shades of green, with a couple of days more then we have park tickets, and thought that it would be fun to visit the other Disney hotels, jus to look around, and see what they look like, and check out the restaurants for future visits and plans. Would we have problems with security? Can we just drive from resort to resort?

    Thanks

    LLevy

    -I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way-


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  3. #2

    Might be slightly hit or miss, depending on how crowded it is at any given resort on the day you try to do it. The biggest challenge may be ones very close to parks, as they need to be cautious of local or off site guests trying to park at resorts to avoid parking fees for the main parking lot.

    I have been allowed to park at the Poly (might have been late in the day) I think twice now when I told the guard I was interested in visiting the gift shop there. I really did just visit the gift shop and leave within an hour.

    If you are open to dining at a table service place at a resort during these adventures, that's solid way in, as they will let you park for dining reservations. You could schedule lunch at any Crescent Lake resort and then wander the grounds of those 3 to explore after your meal most likely (just an example).

    I forget if you can walk form SoG to the TTC? If so, that is your path to get to the 3 monorail resorts. While you will need to go through security now to get on the monorail each stop, you don't need a ticket to do so. So that would let you explore Poly, Grand Floridian and Contemporary. If you get off at MK, you can catch a boat over to Wilderness Lodge (though with no monorail stop or walk-ability to the park, I don't suspect WL is one of the harder ones to convince the guard to let you park for shopping/exploring)

    -Dave

  4. #3
    Registered User ericles's Avatar
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    We've done just this thing a time or two, and had no problems. Once at a non-monorail resort we drove up and told guard we were not staying at that resort, rather at another one & showed her our parking pass for said resort, and that we wanted to check it out for a possible future stay and she waved us right on in.


  5. #4
    Visiting WDW Since 1982
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    We did this the simplest way - just took disney transportation to go from one top another.

    Stan

  6. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by stan2u View Post
    We did this the simplest way - just took disney transportation to go from one top another.
    I need to admit I've never actually been on a Disney bus since I am in the "rent a car" camp, but doesn't that mean you need to do 2 hops for most trips of the type LLevy described?

    Buses leaving hotels only go to parks (main 4 and water) and Disney Springs, right? Or is that wrong?

    This would seem to get much more time intensive for the actual traveling part if you had to go to an intermediate point each time you want to leave one resort and head to the next.
    -Dave

  7. #6
    Waiting impatiently for next trip quackinup's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave1313 View Post
    I need to admit I've never actually been on a Disney bus since I am in the "rent a car" camp, but doesn't that mean you need to do 2 hops for most trips of the type LLevy described?

    Buses leaving hotels only go to parks (main 4 and water) and Disney Springs, right? Or is that wrong?

    This would seem to get much more time intensive for the actual traveling part if you had to go to an intermediate point each time you want to leave one resort and head to the next.
    True for the shuttle bus, no resort to resort travel. But many are grouped together so you could do them all in one stop (i.e. can walk between Boardwalk(Villas and Inn), Beach Club, Yacht Club and Swan/Dolphin), or may be connected by water transportation or monorail. But if you wanted it to be quick the rental car would probably be the best option.
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  8. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by quackinup View Post
    True for the shuttle bus, no resort to resort travel. But many are grouped together so you could do them all in one stop (i.e. can walk between Boardwalk(Villas and Inn), Beach Club, Yacht Club and Swan/Dolphin), or may be connected by water transportation or monorail. But if you wanted it to be quick the rental car would probably be the best option.
    Good point. While I mentioned it for driving purposes, obviously it applies equally well if you take a bus to get there instead!

    And for that particular example, it would be relatively do-able to walk from Swan/Dolphin or Boardwalk to the entrance to DHS to pick up a bus to the next resort.

    The 3 All Stars (I think?) are all relatively walk-able with respect to each other. Same for Art of Animation and Pop Century.

    Animal Kingdom Lodge is pretty much all by itself (and I highly recommend making sure to check that one out!), and I am pretty sure a lot of the moderates (Port Orleans Riverside or French Quarter, Coronado Springs, Caribbean Beach, other?) are too, but there could be some commonality I am not aware of.
    -Dave

  9. #8
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    You can take a boat from Disney Springs to Saratoga Springs or to French Quarter and Riverside.


  10. #9
    DVC Member KJSJpipe's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by rph13 View Post
    You can take a boat from Disney Springs to Saratoga Springs or to French Quarter and Riverside.
    Old Key West is in the loop as well.
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    Very Merrytime Cruise 12/5/2022
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  11. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Dave1313 View Post
    The 3 All Stars (I think?) are all relatively walk-able with respect to each other.
    You are correct - they're all right next to each other. Although I can't see anyone going out of their way to see them!
    The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.
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  12. #11
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    You can use Disney Springs or the TTC (or the Parks themselves) as your base -- but this only works during certain hours.

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  13. #12
    Out of this world for Disney DwarfPlanet's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by danyoung View Post
    You are correct - they're all right next to each other. Although I can't see anyone going out of their way to see them!
    We stay in the SoG all the time. We walk over to the Polynesian wander around in the stores, maybe get a Dole whip, or eat at Capt. Cooks and maybe depending on the time of day go to Trader Sam's Grog grotto. We also do the same sometimes at the Floridian and Contemporary (but we take the monorail from the Polynesian). As others have said we will take a SoG bus to TTC and go from there to places like Sanaa, the Boardwalk, or Wilderness Campground and visit the Disney Horses. Disney honors Shades of Green as if it was a Disney Resort. Always make sure you have your SoG paper pass with you. Other things we have done is purchase Disney Miniature Golf tickets from the Star and Stripes store if you did not get the Military Salute tickets. But by far the Military Salute tickets with the Hopper and Water Parks are your best bet if you have not purchased your tickets already.
    "Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an 8th dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

  14. #13

    Shades of Green and the Poly are a far cry from the All Star Resorts.

    The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.
    - James Taylor

  15. #14
    Out of this world for Disney DwarfPlanet's Avatar
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    This is true which is why they weren't mentioned, and I've never been to one of the All Star Resorts. But the higher end resorts are worth taking a gander at if you have the time.

    "Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an 8th dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

  16. #15
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    Book a dining reservation at BoardWalk or Yacht and Beach. They'll let you in if you have a reservation, then you can explore that whole area. Well worth a visit.


  17. #16

    Haven't had a problem looking around in like lobbies of other hotels and such myself. I mean, it's not like they're going to kick you out for looking (I'd hope?). Transportation-wise, being at SoG, I can't imagine walking to the TTC in that humid weather, so usually I'd snag a bus there, and you have basically everything accessible from there, to all the ones near MK and the Boardwalk ones. Haven't really tried looking at the others yet, I'd imagine their own Disney buses won't transport you, but as it's been so many years since I stayed at an actual Disney hotel, not sure what their rules are with the buses, just kinda assuming they don't let anyone besides the resort guests ride them?


  18. #17
    Out of this world for Disney DwarfPlanet's Avatar
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    I wouldn't walk to the TTC but I would take the Shady shuttle (if available) to the end of the road and then its just a brief walk to the Poly. You can take the SoG buses to the TTC and catch a Disney bus to wherever you want to go.

    "Although we think it's DOPEY that Pluto has been downgraded to a dwarf planet, which has made some people GRUMPY and others just SLEEPY, we are not BASHFUL in saying we would be HAPPY if Disney's Pluto would join us as an 8th dwarf. We think this is just what the DOC ordered and is nothing to SNEEZE at."

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