Disney Springs Resort Bus Verification Becoming Permanent After July 4th

I am local and I dont like it because we spend a lot of time, especially in the summer , having non park days at the resorts. and they definitely still get my money , I spend more on a non park day than a park day. So now we'll just take up spaces at a park we have no plans on visiting . which isnt ideal either but oh well.

i'm in support of this change.... as someone who sometimes drives in for the day, and other times stays on property., and other times stays off property... this was the system they had in the past, and I think opening it up has put too much pressure not on the bus system, but on the resorts themselves...

and they need to lock down every pool while they are at it... if they want to restore Pool Hopping for DVC Members, that could be worth a separate discussion once they get the pools back under control - but at least at first they need to totally restrict access - the two hotels that are like fort knox at the pools SAB and BLT, it works just fine...

Big fan of this change. As a resort guest that is. If i were a local, my opion may differ.

As a local, I understand and can deal with this just fine as long as it doesn't eventually become you can't take any Disney transportation (beyond DS) without a reservation. I love to resort hop!

That would be horrible. I cant see them doing that

I don’t know that this is affecting many locals. I do think it’s going to affect the good neighbor hotel guests who want to resort hop. I think locals would have APs that would cover parking anyway.

It does affect locals. Now when we want to resort hop, we have take up a spot we dont need to take up. at a park or park at TTC, which can be a mad house sometimes

I don’t understand how thats any different than taking up a spot you dont need at Disney Springs.

I think the parks have more free spaces available than Disney Springs. Those garages can fill up on busy weekends.

yes thats true. I guess for some reason taking up a spot at the parks seems more “wrong” than taking up one at the Springs lol, I guess because we’ve always been allowed to do it. It just makes resort hopping trickier for us .

Not a local and never want to be but wonder if an Uber or Lyft to the TTC might be more convenient. Assuming you live within a reasonable distance so as not to have to pay a big chunk o’ cash for the ride, that is.

Also, no tram ride across the TTC wasteland to endure, not to mention no return to a beastly hot car.

we are close enough (approx 10 miles) that a ride share wouldn’t cost a ton, but it would add up , were on property an Average of once a week, some weeks more , some weeks less but those are few and far between

Thanks, JenT1971. You have rendered me not just pea green but flashing neon green with envy.

Some weeks MORE than once? 😱

I’ll console myself with the fact that I’d never adjust to the steam bath that is Florida almost year round. You’re forgiven. 😁

lol yeah its hotter than fhe surface of the sun:) so we dont spend a ton of time in the parks but we will go to DS frequently and the resorts. But the new rules just made that more difficult

I get why some people don't like it, but I can see why Disney is doing it. Overcrowding has been a problem at the resorts for a while and at Disney Springs parking, and it's been impacting the paying guests at those resorts (and the people who want to go to Disney Springs and park there) more than people might want to think. And the dissatisfaction among the paying resort guests has made it's way to Disney's ears.

Just because Disney was willing to tolerate non-guests taking the Disney Springs busses to the resorts and the parks for a while doesn't mean they have to do it forever, especially if it's causing problems for their business.

I hadn’t thought of the DS free parking impact on resort crowding because we’re weirdos who hate DS and rarely go there.

Sorry JenT1971, but now that I really think about it, I see how locals hanging out at resorts more often than if they had to pay for parking could markedly result in overcrowded resorts.

Here’s my deal: I’ll tone down my whining about the Gingerbread House going away if this DS parking restriction reduces resort crowding significantly. Then (ulterior motive), Disney can bring back the Gingerbread House! 🤞☘️

I really do think it's a measure to cut down on mooching and loitering. There are a lot of people who will stay off property and then go to Disney Springs for the resort buses, and then switch to the park buses at the resorts to avoid having to pay the $35 fee to park at the TTC or the parks. There are also plenty of people who will park at Disney Springs and go to the resorts and spend hours just loitering there, particularly the MK area resorts.

It wasn't too much of a problem for a while, but then influencers started telling the entire Internet about it as a short cut/cost saving measure, and large numbers of people started doing it. It's like the DAS passes; so many people started abusing it that it became a big problem. Thus, Disney had to crack down, and I think more crackdowns are coming.

I tried to look at it from the perspective of Disney Springs stores. Its great to have the foot traffic there, but all those stores that lease the property aren't getting those customers sometimes because the garages are full of people going to the parks and or resorts.

I know there isn't a perfect solution to this, but if Disney can direct some cars to the much larger park lots that generate revenue then that is what should be done. The logistical nightmare that is Disney Transportation will correct itself over time and they will get good feedback and data from this to make changes in the future.

Thanks Dot! I get why they are doing it, in a way, but AP holders shouldnt be colateral damage because of the people that scammed the system

The more I think about this the less it makes sense if the DS bus restrictions ultimately become restrictions on resort hopping by “bubble” guests and locals who pay to park as is being speculated.

Could it be another facet of give-em-less-and-charge-em-more-and-more, etc.? Because Disney knows from much experience that plenty of us will keep returning.

Troubling thoughts for sure.

This policy is long overdue. The resorts and transportation were getting seriously overcrowded. This policy will cut down on that, which is great news for those that are paying the money to stay on property.

I heard there were restrictions trying to walk from the Transportation Center to Poly, as well. They were turning away people yesterday who didn’t have a hotel reservation on property. It sounds like Disney is really cracking down on anyone visting resorts who aren’t staying on property.

I’m a fan of it. I get why locals and those who were taking advantage of the loophole are upset, but it was something Disney needed to do. It sounds like people can still visit resorts by parking at the parks, so the option is still there.

Don't AP holders get to park for free at the parks and TTC, though? So it isn't going to affect them so much, I would think.

They've been stopping people who were trying to use the paths at like 6:30 in the morning, but people can still use them during regular hours.

When I read about resorts being over crowded with people not staying at them it reminds me why I love SSR and OKW. Outside of a few golfers and maybe some people visiting the DVC offices at SSR, people do not visit those resorts just to look around. Just saying...

Given that I own at the lavish (decadent?) GF/VGF, I’d agree with you that there’s a reason why nobody much goes to OKW or SSR to look around.

I take it you’re implying that removal of the Gingerbread House is a step in the right direction—nothing appealing to see, no overcrowding?

Perhaps not precisely your point…Or is it?

No I am just pointing out that I love the privacy of SSR and OKW. Even without the Gingerbread House, people will still go to the GF to dine, shop, and look around. Same for the Poly, the Contemporary, and the Crescent Lake Resorts. They are simply too easy to get to between walking access and the various transportation options.

People visiting the Magic Kingdom can easily walk over to the GF or the Contemporary. People visiting EPCOT can easily walk to the Beach Club or the Boardwalk.

Nobody is getting on a bus at a park to go to OKW or SSR just to look around.

All resorts have their advantages and disadvantages. Many people do not like the fact that SSR and OKW are further from the parks than other resorts or only have bus transportation to the parks. However, in my opinion the privacy those resorts offer due to their locations is desirable, particularly during peak times of the year.

And yes I realize people visiting DS can walk to SSR but the walk really isn't that convenient and it is not convenient at all to get to the main parts of the resort.

It does , in terms of time. It will take longer to get to resorts to park hop, etc. And it just annoys me, that those of us that follow the rules have to change what we do. because of rule breakers.

The first time I went to Disney, in the early 2000's we stayed off property and bought our tickets at Downtown Disney. When we were buying them a cast member actually explained how we could just park there and use the bus system if we wanted and we did for several years. The first bus we took was to the Yacht Club and when I walked in to that lobby for the first time I was blown away and couldn't imagine ever being able to stay in such a nice place. It started my desire to visit each resort and If it weren't for being able to take those buses I might not have fallen in love with all the resorts like I have.

OK sorta off topic, but we love OKW for the privacy as well. It is more like a Condo complex than a hotel. It is always our go to for 7 months.

now back on topic.

I think the new rules are great, at least on the surface. It will be all about how it is implemented and enforced. Fo far it sounds very reasonable. We always do a bit of resort hopping and I don't see this changing anything for us.

Our first trip to WDW was back in 1996. I had a work conference and the DW did a lot of exploring via the bus system. She had a goal for coffee in every resort, which she did! I dont think the new rules would have changed anything for her excursion.

From my understanding, you are correct. Your ability to resort hop will not change since you stay on property. Anyone staying on property will be able to resort hop.

one thing I’ve heard conflicting accounts of-some people are saying to cant even rideshare to a resort now too, is that true? That seems excessive

I don't think it's necessarily a new thing, but a few times that I have been dropped off at a resort, I've been asked for my dining or resort reservation info. Like I recall being asked for that info when I was dropped off at GF for afternoon tea. (This is before the new DS bus/boat rules.) Most of the time, I'm never asked for that info when taking a rideshare.

Agreed. We were asked for a reservation at Poly when we went in to tour the tower with our DVC guide (we were meeting her there). We didnt have a formal reservation but he let us in when i showed him the email chain with her.

We were also asked for a reservation a few years ago when ride sharing to the boardwalk. Its certainly not a new thing but is being talked about more and more due to the new restrictions. Im sure some resorts used to be more lenient with it during less busy times.

Ok, the only time i’ve taken a ride share to a resort was in May, when we took newbie friends on a monorail crawl. We started at Contemporary, they asked if we were checking in, etc, we said we were starting a monorail crawl there and they were fine with it

Keep in mind restrictions of this sort have been in place for awhile. Back in the day (pre COVID) you could drive to Animal Kingdom Lodge and park and walk around and look at animals. That practice got halted during COVID and it has been kept in place.

They were checking magic bands on people coming from DS to SSR this weekend.

You mean walking to SSR from DS?

Good, I am hearing people have been walking there to use the pools

Who is walking from DS to SSR to use the pools? You have to be pretty hard up for a pool to want to do that. The pools at SSR are fine but they are not that great and they certainly are not a convenient walk from DS.

I have to believe a lot of this stuff Disney is doing is specific to peak times (such as 4th of July weekend). It's one thing to check people at the DS bus stand but to start doing this all over the place will get onerous in terms of cast member staffing.

i’ve no idea , its just what I’ve seen mentioned several times online.

This isnt even a peak time anymore. Slowest I’ve seen in years. The heat maybe? Who knows

I will be really annoyed if my ability to access SSR gets curtailed in anyway. Besides the fact that we own there, even when we are not staying there it is one of our favorite places on WDW property to go birding.

I doubt ability to access SSR will get curtailed. and I am as surprised as you that people are supposedly walking from DS to SSR to use their pools, I've read it dozens of times, but you cant always believe what you ready on FB anyway lol

I think this is good, and I hope it continues beyond the July 4th holiday. I've already seen multiple FB news stories circulating about how the "SSR loophole" remains now that you can't take DS buses. I would never discount cheapskates and their ability to find whatever loophole they can find.

If you're staying at a WDW resort, cool, you're welcome to visit SSR. If your'e not, I see no reason why you should have free and easy access to SSR buses or pools.