AKL verterans..soothe my transportation worries.

[Finiamh]

We are staying at AKL for 7 nights, I am on the fence about getting a car or entrusting the bus system. I know it can vary from day to day, but just want to hear some bus and car experiences or transport tips please. Thanks

[DisneyHoneymooners]

We love the AKL. We would not have become DVC members if they hadn't opened it up to that hotel.
In 6 visits we have never stayed at any other resort. I know people complain about the transportation but if you plan your time it"s really no problem. We always try to allow 45mins-1 hour to get somewhere and we have never had a problem. That includes getting to another resort for dinner. Also, because there's only one form of transportation, the bus stop is huge and it's divided up by park. I will admit that late night ADRs at resorts can be complicated because you usually have to go to Downtown Disney to get back. But that's the case with some other resorts as well. All in all, I would not let it deter me from staying there-we think it's totally worth it.

[vorpalswrd]

I have never stayed at AKL but I can say without a doubt I would never go to Disney World without a rental car again. After a long day in the park I don't want to stand (or maybe even possibly sit if I am lucky) on a bus for an indeterminent amount of time. Also, I hate being trapped by someone else's schedule. If I want to go to the store, I do so. If I want to go to a different park, I do so. My vacations are too rare and too precious to waste time waiting in line. We already do so for rides, why do it more than necessary. My family is going in December and our travel agent got us a minivan rental for 6 days for 324.00. I couldn't be happier. A car for that price is always worth a look.

(rant ended)

[Stickey]

AKL bus transportation is not any more risky than the bus service at other WDW resorts. The AKL does not share buses with other resorts, therefore it is often more efficient.

[ThanxForNoticin]

It might depend on how you like to spend your vacation. If you spend most of your time at the parks or DTD, then the transportation system is fine. If you like to eat or shop at the other resorts, then having a car to drive yourself can save you a lot of time.

Enjoy your stay - it's an AMAZING place!

[MNNHFLTX]

My son and I stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge in August and have absolutely no complaints about the bus service. We never waited longer than 10 minutes getting to or from the parks and the buses were never packed either. The only drawback at all is that it takes a bit of time to get to the Magic Kingdom. But even if you drive a car to the Magic Kingdom you still have to park in the parking lot of the TTC and either take the monorail or the boat over. So I would say there is no time saved there in driving.

[Disney Doll]

We just returned from Animal Kingdom Lodge and found the bus service to be fine. We were a group of 8. Mom and dad rented a car because mom prefers a car with her ECV. Sometimes we rode with them and sometimes we used the bus. I prefer a car with a baby, stroller, and diaper bag in tow. It just seemed like we always had a lot of stuff to manage on the bus. We did have a few occasions where the entire group was meeting up, half by bus and half by car. The car group was always quicker, but not significantly. Because mom is disabled and uses the handicapped lots I think their car trips were quicker in part because of the prime parking spaces they got. Animal Kingdom Lodge now makes 2 stops, one at Jambo House and one at Kidani Village. Even then we never experienced an overly full bus and never waited for than a few minutes for a bus to arrive.

[RedSoxFan]

Out of the three resorts we have stayed at; AKL has the best transportation. One bus stop (unlike the CBR and POFQ) and I didn't find it a long ride to any of the parks. We hardly ever had to wait for a bus either.

[bkfree]

Recently stayed at AKL and the bus transportation was stellar.

In fact, we NEVER have a car on our WDW trips.Never needed one and never once thought we even might prefer to have one. We fly in, board ME and let Disney do the driving for the entire week. We have never had anything but excellant bus service and have never spent much time waiting for one to arrive and really never taken over 20 minutes to get anywhere on the bus either.
The great transportation is one reason why WDW is my husbands favorite family trip because he gets to totally relax and not have to drive at all for the week. This for him is truly magical.

[Aggie97]

We stayed at AKL for SWW last June and really enjoyed it. We did not have any complaints about the resort-to-park bus service. Because it was a shorter trip, we did our TS dining at the AKL and did not do any resort hopping.

Most of the time, though, we prefer to stay at a resort that is near other resorts, for convenient access to TS dining and shopping in the evenings. I think it just depends on how you will be spending your time at WDW.

[CaptSmee]

stayed at AKL twice, been upgraded to Savannah rooms both time and never had a transportation problem with exception of the AK buses! surprisingly these buses were not frequent enough, and always crowded.