Disney Skyliner (Gondola Transportation System) Read Post 1 Now Open!

[Searc]

Skyliner or Bus --what the heck, I think I will just rent a car, LOL.

Nah, I'll stay at a resort where buses will always be an option.

 

[yulilin3]

Walking to 2 parks from the original Epcot resorts is looking better and better.

the Epcot resorts were never intended to use the Skyliner, obviously you can but definitely better/faster to boat or walk or bus. This is only affecting the Skyliner resorts

 

[snappy]

You are right! Let me rephrase: staying at the original epcot resorts from where you can walk to 2 parks is looking better than staying at a Skyliner resort, at least for stays where you are going to those 2 parks.

 

[Craig Larson]

It will be interesting to see how they handle the rope drop crowd. As of now, I don't think the skyliner opens early enough for that (would need to be open at least 60 minutes before, and better yet, 90 minutes before scheduled open).

While officially stated as starting 45 minutes before park open, i found you could typically get to HS and EP at least an hour before park opening, even with EMH by bus. Will they still run that early and will they run the more typical 20 minute schedule until the skyliner is fully open for the day?

 

[TheMaxRebo]

FYI - some more info from someone who called Disney about this:
- will be happening to all Skyliner resorts
- will still have buses every 20-25 minutes in morning before Skyliner open and if/when Skyliner is down

Just got off the phone with Guest Relations (I was on hold for 25 min) she confirmed all Skyliner resorts will have the same situation. Since the Skyliner technically doesn't start running until 7:30am they assured me that bus transportation will be available every 20-25 min to DHS before that, also when the skyliner breaks down

 

[scrappinginontario]

The Skyliner has never been an option to get to DHS for rope drop since RotR opened and park hours are early.

To get to DHS for rope drop buses are still the best option if using Disney transportation.

 

[fla4fun]

And so it begins. (The drastic reduction in bus transportation for skyliner resorts)

I am not surprised. I always thought they would reduce the bus service. I don’t think they would remove it entirely because it would be easier to ramp up in case the Skyliner wasn’t running if there were already some buses on the route. It will be unpleasant if the buses remain popular enough that a person has to wait for the second bus (assuming there is a reason they can’t ride the Skyliner, such as claustrophobia). I really enjoyed the Skyliner the last time I was there, and plan to ride it on my trip later this month. But this does validate my decision to book at a non Skyliner resort for my trips in warmer weather.

 

[DGsAtBLT]

You are right! Let me rephrase: staying at the original epcot resorts from where you can walk to 2 parks is looking better than staying at a Skyliner resort, at least for stays where you are going to those 2 parks.

As far as I’m concerned you can never get better than the walking resorts with any form of transportation. Nothing like not having to pad your transportation time to a park.

This is why considering the prices of all the skyliner resorts, I would never consider Riviera for that price, instead staying at one of the crescent lake resorts.

 

[summerw]

I bought Riviera and do not ever plan to use the bus to those two parks unless it’s down, and then I’ll probably uber anyway. The Skyliner is definitely part of the reason we purchased. We rode it in 90 degree heat and it was awesome and stopping for 10 minutes didn’t make it too hot.

 

[umichigan10]

Cutting bus service back to the studios and epcot was inevitable. It’s up to the individual guest about rather or not that’s a deterrent to their stay. There’s plenty of other resorts to choose from that aren’t on the route, but I think it’s a great and unique perk to have.

 

[DGsAtBLT]

On the resort board, someone pointed out that Disney doesn’t offer a monorail alternative from the monorail resorts to Epcot. I thought that was a good point. Considering that, I wouldn’t be surprised if bus service eventually disappears for Epcot/DHS all together at the skyliner resorts, only coming back during downtime.

The monorail isn’t exactly reliable, no reason for the skyliner to operate perfectly

 

[Dean Marino]

Deleted

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Cutting bus service back to the studios and epcot was inevitable. It’s up to the individual guest about rather or not that’s a deterrent to their stay. There’s plenty of other resorts to choose from that aren’t on the route, but I think it’s a great and unique perk to have.

While it definitely sucks for someone that really liked best POP or AoA but is scared to ride the Skyliner - there are the All-Stars or for the couple of times you need to go to DHS or EPCOT just allow more time or use Uber/Minnie Can

It sucks when a change negatively impacts how one likes to vacation but compared to some other changes this seems to hav alternatives to address. You don't have to be happy about it though

 

[disneygirlsng]

ummmm - is the new Riviera DVC Resort not a "Skyliner" Resort?
Oh - that's gonna boost sales .

I would think that people who did or are considering purchasing at Riviera would have done their research and known this was inevitable. Not sure it would hurt sales.

 

[tlmadden73]

And so it begins. (The drastic reduction in bus transportation for skyliner resorts)

I mean, it's not really a surprise, is it? That was probably the whole point of the Skyliner .. that and the ability to call Riveria a "Deluxe" resort (and charge more for Pop/AoA and CBR)

 

[summerw]

I think it's definitely not a surprise to Riviera owners, but I remember when I first starting researching WDW, Pop lovers mentioned its bus service (because it doesn't share) more than anything else. I imagine there are some angry Pop lovers.

 

[Disneylover99]

I think it's definitely not a surprise to Riviera owners, but I remember when I first starting researching WDW, Pop lovers mentioned its bus service (because it doesn't share) more than anything else. I imagine there are some angry Pop lovers.

Not angry. I knew the writing was on the wall. Just a bit sad. I really loved the Pop buses more than the buses at any other resort.

 

[Jimmy Mouse]

I mean, it's not really a surprise, is it? That was probably the whole point of the Skyliner .. that and the ability to call Riveria a "Deluxe" resort (and charge more for Pop/AoA and CBR)

I think Riviera would be a Deluxe without the Skyliner. Have you been there yet? Beautiful grounds, rooms are outstanding. Restaurants are as good or better than other Deluxe resorts and the whole feel and décor of the resort is definitely Deluxe. Skyliner or not.

 

[DGsAtBLT]

I think Riviera would be a Deluxe without the Skyliner. Have you been there yet? Beautiful grounds, rooms are outstanding. Restaurants are as good or better than other Deluxe resorts and the whole feel and décor of the resort is defiantly Deluxe. Skyliner or not.

I remember the Skyliner announcement changed a lot of people’s minds on a DVC built on moderate grounds. I don’t know how much people would have held onto that moderate perception once Riviera actually opened, but I imagine it helped.

 

[Lewisc]

I think it's definitely not a surprise to Riviera owners, but I remember when I first starting researching WDW, Pop lovers mentioned its bus service (because it doesn't share) more than anything else. I imagine there are some angry Pop lovers.

I think there are many more POP guests who consider the Skyliner as a huge upgrade. For years posters have been complaining about Disney buses. Hoping for monorail expansion or some other form of upgraded transportation.