How to Get from Park to Park In Walt Disney World

in Disney, Walt Disney World

Disney's Contemporary Resort at night with a monorail running through the lobby

Credit: Disney

Walt Disney World Resort Guests may be aware of the Disney buses that are free to resort and hotel Guests and take you back and forth between the Disney resort hotels. However, the buses only travel from the hotels to the Parks and back, making them inconvenient to get from one park to the next. There are also times and days when the buses are more crowded, making it more difficult to time them and often uncomfortable to ride, with few seats and being forced to stand. There is also the Minnie Van Service, which works similar to a rideshare, and helps Guests get from their Disney Resort Hotel to their desired Disney theme park. For those planning a vacation to Walt Disney World soon, you may be excited to learn that there are more options to help you get around Disney property.

A little-known fact about Walt Disney World transportation is that there are other options available to Guests to help them travel between Parks as well as between hotels. The Skyliner, Monorail, ferryboats, and parking trams are all in-park methods of Disney transportation to help Guests get around.

 

disney world skyliner
Credit: Disney

Disney Skyliner

The Disney Skyliner was opened in 2019, too much Guest excitement. Reminiscent of the ski lift at Disneyland that is no longer in operation, the Skyliner is an aerial suspended and enclosed gondola that travels over the Disney resorts and Parks.

Each Skyliner is painted in a bright color, with the windows featuring different beloved Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars characters. After some operational issues early on in its history, the Skyliner has become a favorite way to get around Disney property. The Skyliner has been featured on merchandise products such as buttons, popcorn buckets, shirts, mugs, ornaments, and many other souvenirs for Guests to take home.

 

disney skyliner
Credit: Twitter user Cameron

Where does the Skyliner take you?

The Skyliners travel through several of the Walt Disney World resort hotels to each other. You can catch the Disney Skyliner at the following resorts:

  • Disney’s Riviera Resort
  • Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
  • Disney’s Pop Century Resort
  • Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

To catch the Skyliner from one of the resorts you do not need a Park ticket and it is free to ride. And you can also catch the Skyliner at any one of these hotels to take you to EPCOT or Hollywood Studios.

 

disneys caribbean beach
Credit: Disney

What parks does the Skyliner connect?

The Skyliner connects two of the Walt Disney World Resort Parks, EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. You can catch the Skyliner in the back of EPCOT near the International Gateway. You can also board the Skyliner right outside the entrance to Hollywood Studios. Unless you’re entering EPCOT through the World Showcase, you would have to have a Park ticket to catch the gondolas from there. You do not have to have a ticket to catch the Skyliner from Hollywood Studios.

EPCOT and Hollywood Studios are also connected by a path that Guests can use to walk to each resort. The walking path and the gondolas at EPCOT also conveniently place Guests near Disney’s BoardWalk Inn, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Resort, each of which provides various entertainment and dining options to Disney World Resort Guests.

 

Credit: Disney

Is the Skyliner free?

The Skyliner does not require an additional charge to ride. However, depending on where you plan to pick up the Skyliner will affect whether it is “free” or not. If you catch the Skyliner from any one of the Disney hotels or at Hollywood Studios, there is no charge to ride. Unfortunately, the Skyliner at EPCOT is only free if you are approaching EPCOT from one of the EPCOT resorts at International Gateway. If you enter the Park from the main entrace, you will need a Park ticket to make your back to the Skyliner.

disneyland starbucks west and monorail
Credit: Disney

Disney Monorail

Perhaps the most famous method of Disney transportation is the Monorail. Available at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, the Monorail has inspired tons of merchandise including purses, shirts, hats, toys, ornaments, and even a lunch tote.  The Monorail Spanish safety spiel is arguably one of the most quoted and well-recognized spiels amongst hardcore Disney Park fans. The Orlando International Airport even has a similar Monorail-style train that transports passengers between the terminals.

 

polynesian monorial
Credit: Bioreconstruct on Twitter

Where does the Monorail take you?

There are several stops along the monorail route. Three resorts, two Parks, and the Ticket and Transportation Center. And for Guests wanting something unique to do during their vacation, they can do something known as the Monorail Crawl, where you can take the Monorail between the three resorts along the route and get a drink, a bite to eat, or just explore the different resorts. The Monorail connects Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and Disney’s Contemporary Resort to each other.

 

Monorail at EPCOT
Credit: Disney

What Parks does the Monorail connect?

The Monorail technically has two tracks. The Resort Monorail connects the above-mentioned resorts with Magic Kingdom and the Ticket and Transportation Center. This Monorail operates throughout the day, starting about half an hour before Magic Kingdom opens until an hour after Park close.

The EPCOT Monorail/Express Monorail connects EPCOT, Magic Kingdom, and the Ticket and Transportation Center. This also operates throughout the day, starting half an hour before EPCOT opens until two hours after it closes.

 

Credit: Cory Disbrow via Flickr

Is the Monorail free?

The monorail is completely free for guests to use. Guests will be required to go through a security bag check from any boarding location, whether at the resorts or the Parks, but Guests are able to board the Monorails before entering through the ticketing turnstiles at Magic Kingdom or EPCOT. The Disney Monorails are a fun way to travel throughout the resorts due to its birds-eye view and the fact that it travels through the hotels and Parks.

 

Disney World Ferryboat
Credit: 4K WDW on YouTube

Disney Ferryboats

The Disney ferryboats are another fun way to travel and are available at several of the Parks and resorts on Disney property. They provide another scenic look and relaxing ride through Disney property.

 

Disney Springs at night
Credit: Disney Parks Blog

Where do the Ferryboats take you?

The ferryboats are available near the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Studios resorts as well as Disney Springs. In the Magic Kingdom area, the ferryboats allow Guests to access:

  • Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
  • Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
  • Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
  • Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
  • Magic Kingdom
  • Ticket and Transportation Center

The EPCOT and Hollywood Studios boats connect:

  • Disney’s Boardwalk Villas
  • Disney’s Beach Club Villas
  • Disney’s Yacht Club Resort
  • Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
  • Walt Disney World Swan Hotel
  • EPCOT
  • Hollywood Studios

Finally, the boats along the Disney Springs waterway connect:

  • Disney’s Old Key West Resort
  • Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
  • Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside
  • Disney’s Port Orleans – French Quarter
  • Disney Springs

 

Fort Wilderness Canoe Rentals
Credit: Disney

Are the Ferryboats free?

The ferryboats are free for guests to ride. The boarding stations are located outside of the ticketing turnstiles and therefore do not require a Park ticket to access any of them.

 

Magic Kingdom Trams
Credit: Spectrum News

Disney Parking Trams

Unlike the others on this list, the parking trams don’t take you between Parks or resorts, but they are still a very important part of in-park transportation. The Disney parking lots are some of the largest parking lots in the United States and can take quite a bit of energy out of you even before you enter the park, especially on busier days. When the parking lots fill up quicker, you can sometimes be asked to park at the end of a row or a parking lot that is further away.

Some Guests don’t mind the walk, treating it as a warm-up before a long day of walking, but many Guests want to save the walking for inside the Parks or are physically unable to walk the extra distance. For this reason, trams are currently available at two of the Disney Parks. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, trams were available at each Disney theme park, but there is still no news on when trams will return to EPCOT or Hollywood Studios.

 

disney world tram
Credit: Screenshot via Disney Programs YouTube

Where do the Trams take you?

The parking lot trams take Guests from the parking lot to the main entrance of the Parks. They operate the entire day and are a quick and easy trip up to the main entrance.

 

tram disney world
Credit: ITM

Are the trams free?

While the trams are technically free to take, they are located inside the Park parking lots. This means that you do have to pay a parking fee in order to park and ride the trams. Please note that annual pass holders and Disney resort Guests do not have to pay a parking fee, making the trams completely free for those specific Guests.

 

disney world tram
Credit: Screenshot via Disney Programs YouTube

From the skies with the Skyliner and the Monorail, to the water with ferryboats, to the ground with trams, there are a variety of ways for Guests to get around the Disney Parks and Resorts without using the buses or Minnie Van Service. Next time you visit Walt Disney World, be sure to try out one of these fun and unique methods of Disney Parks transportation.

in Disney, Walt Disney World

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