Availability of taxis at SSR?

[Mississippian]

I realize this is technically a transportation question, but figure it has a much better chance of being answered here.

I currently have a stay booked at SSR. I'm waitlisted elsewhere, but if it doesn't come through I've just decided to enjoy myself anyway.

When staying at BWV I always like to get a taxi to the Magic Kingdom (actually the Polynesian, where I get on the monorail) when running late in the morning. There are always lots of cabs at the Boardwalk. Is it easy to catch a cab at SSR? I figure I will need to take cabs to EPCOT and MGM as well, if they are available.

Thanks

 

[MrsNick]

Hi, when we stayed in February, we had to call for a cab. They don't congregate at the entrance like they seem to at BWV.

 

[BroganMc]

I'm still trying to get over why you think you need a cab to get to Magic Kingdom if you're running late. Especially since you intend to just go to Poly and hop the monorail. The busses run every 15 minutes in the morning and evening and every 20 min mid-day. My longest wait at SSR was 3 minutes. Also the Magic Kingdom busses drop you off right by the gate to the park so there's no wasting an additional 20 minutes waiting for the monorail or ferry. I figured even drving my van, I was break even on the travel time to MK.

Only time I'd mess with a cab (or my van) is if I had early breakfast ressies at one of the hotels. And I can park up front in handicapped parking. The bus just seemed much more convenient at SSR.

But as said, cabs don't park around SSR. (It would detract from the peace of the resort.) You can call Bell Services and have them order one for you. They're all over at DTD throughout the day.

 

[Mississippian]

I'm still trying to get over why you think you need a cab to get to Magic Kingdom if you're running late.

I've found the bus service at Disney to be extremely unreliable at ALL resorts, regardless of location or cost. Make no mistake, most of the time it works just fine. But, when you really need to be at a park 30 minutes before the gates open, somehow I've found that that is the time the bus decides to not run for 40 minutes. A cab gets me where I am going at once, no waiting!

I figure I have an investment of about $1,000 per day in a Disney vacation. Missing the park opening ruins the effectiveness of the day by at least 30 percent, so it costs $300. I don't mind spending $15 on cab fare to save $300.

That said, my question is answered. Thanks.

 

[disneynutz]

I've found the bus service at Disney to be extremely unreliable at ALL resorts, regardless of location or cost. Make no mistake, most of the time it works just fine. But, when you really need to be at a park 30 minutes before the gates open, somehow I've found that that is the time the bus decides to not run for 40 minutes. A cab gets me where I am going at once, no waiting!

I figure I have an investment of about $1,000 per day in a Disney vacation. Missing the park opening ruins the effectiveness of the day by at least 30 percent, so it costs $300. I don't mind spending $15 on cab fare to save $300.

That said, my question is answered. Thanks.

Have a good time. I'll be in bed enjoying my vacation 100%.

 

[nuts]

I've found the bus service at Disney to be extremely unreliable at ALL resorts, regardless of location or cost. Make no mistake, most of the time it works just fine. But, when you really need to be at a park 30 minutes before the gates open, somehow I've found that that is the time the bus decides to not run for 40 minutes. A cab gets me where I am going at once, no waiting!

I figure I have an investment of about $1,000 per day in a Disney vacation. Missing the park opening ruins the effectiveness of the day by at least 30 percent, so it costs $300. I don't mind spending $15 on cab fare to save $300.

That said, my question is answered. Thanks.

Wow! With that kind of analysis, you really do need a vacation!

 

[MrsNick]

Guys, does it really matter why missippian wants to take a cab? The question was whether it is easy to get a cab at SSR. Geez.

 

[Mississippian]

Guys, does it really matter why missippian wants to take a cab? The question was whether it is easy to get a cab at SSR. Geez.

Mrs. Nick, I don't mind! BTW, my children are 8 and 7, this is probably the last time that Dumbo, Peter Pan, etc., and such will have their magic. My experience is that if we make it to the park early we can ride everything we want to in the first three hours with virtually no waiting for the first hour or so, especially on Extra Magic Hour mornings. With a Fastpass or two, it is just very pleasant.

We usually stay at BWV and quit the Magic Kingdom before noon, taking the monorail through EPCOT, where we generally stop to eat and perhaps take in an attraction or two. Then we return to our resort to swim and take it easy. At night we might return for fireworks and another ride or two. The important thing for me is that I don't stand for any length of time in any lines.

From BWV, I've found that taking a cab shaves anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes off the time it takes me to get to the park entrance, as measured from the time I walk out the door to the time I walk in the park. If there is a good crowd of folks waiting for a bus, I might just join them as I figure there is a bus coming soon. On the other hand, if the Magic Kingdom bus slot is empty, I realize I just missed it and will run and catch a cab, as I don't want to wait 20 to 30 minutes for another bus.

Hope this makes a little more sense!

 

[BroganMc]

From BWV, I've found that taking a cab shaves anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes off the time it takes me to get to the park entrance, as measured from the time I walk out the door to the time I walk in the park. If there is a good crowd of folks waiting for a bus, I might just join them as I figure there is a bus coming soon. On the other hand, if the Magic Kingdom bus slot is empty, I realize I just missed it and will run and catch a cab, as I don't want to wait 20 to 30 minutes for another bus.

I understand that is what folks often report happens at BWV with the bus service (isn't it supposed to be rated as slower than OKW & SSR?). My only reason for asking you why bother with a cab is that I timed my bus waits and trips, as well as spoke to the bus drivers and managers about the scheduling of runs just last week. (Some of the busses were being tested by managers for their new satelite tracking.)

I was told that in the mornings the busses ran on a 17 minute schedule. Mid-day it dropped to 22 minutes, then picked up to 17 minutes in the evening. Inside the resort, assuming you hopped the bus at Grandstand, the bus took between 7-15 minutes to make the full route before going to a park. (Parks were between 10-15 minutes away, most around 12 with Animal Kingdom being the longest trek because you stop at Blizzard Beach first.)

I never personally waited more than 5 minutes on a bus at SSR. Also at Grandstand, if people missed the bus they just caught it at the Springs before it left the resort. It's a very short walk between bus stops. Same for Carousel and Paddocks stops, and Paddocks and Springs.

Catching a cab you'd have to call ahead and give them 10-15 minutes to arrive. I saw a family do that one morning. Doable but then I had just passed the bus for their theme park not 2 minutes before the cab arrived. Made me think cabs for theme parks are a needless expense. Now to the resorts for meals...?

I'm only speaking based on my experience. I had my van available to me all week and yet we always used the bus. At Epcot and MGM it didn't seem to matter either way. Animal Kingdom was quicker by car, but Magic Kingdom was absolutely better by bus. I saved a good 20-30 minutes on my MK journey one morning. And I went for early entry, breakfast at Cindy's and even a 4 Park in a Day marathon. You can say I put all Disney transport through its paces. (Factor in I also use a powerchair and had to have it strapped in as well as adapt to the various forms of accessible busses and their quirks. Those older lift busses are a pain to everyone, the ramps work 1000% better.) The transport I found the slowest was the ferries.