Details for Disney World Bus & Boat Restrictions, Resort Hopping Rules & Parking Policies (Now in Effect!)
Walt Disney World has provided details about the expanded restrictions on use of free transportation between Disney Springs and the WDW hotels, plus policies for on-site guest resort hopping, third party properties, parking & more. Here’s everything you need to know about these rules that are now in effect, plus on-the-ground reader reports in the comments.
As previously reported, Walt Disney World has brought back transportation restrictions that were tested over New Year’s and Spring Break ahead of the Independence Day holiday. But this time, on a permanent basis. Not only that, but they’re going to be expanded beyond just the buses to also encompass the Sassagoula River Cruise.
We now have new details that should answer a lot of reader questions in response to the previous post, which has garnered nearly 250 comments. Since the new restrictions were first announced, there have been a lot of questions, speculation, rumors, and misinformation. We reached to Walt Disney World for answers to the most pressing reader concerns, and this covers the official policies.
We’d strongly encourage you to read the new rules before responding or asking questions. This includes who the restrictions do and do not impact, what is not changing, and what we still don’t know. (As always, feel free to ask questions, but if there’s something that we proactively mention as an unknown, we’ve already put in the inquiry to WDW and are awaiting response.)
All of the changes are effective as of today, June 28, 2026 and will continue indefinitely. If you visit Disney Springs, we would greatly appreciate it if you’d leave a comment sharing your experience, as the official policy and what’s unofficially enforced (or not) often differs. With that said, here’s everything we know about the new rules…
Permanent Bus Restrictions
With this new rule, Walt Disney World is limiting use of transportation from Disney Springs to the resort hotels to guests who have business to be there. Meaning they have an active reservation at a resort of some sort: hotel stay, Advance Dining Reservation, or Enchanting Extras booking.
Guest Relations Cast Members act as gatekeepers outside of the bus loops, scanning MagicBands, Key to the World Cards, or reviewing My Disney Experience bookings to ensure eligibility. Guests who do not have a valid reservation for using the transportation will be politely informed that buses to resort hotels are currently only available for resort guests, and turned away.
Reservation checkpoints are before the various sets of bus loops, and not at the specific stops. (That would be a tremendous staffing burden!) The only bus stop that’s not behind the checkpoint is Typhoon Lagoon.
Once you’ve proven you’re an on-site guest or have an eligible reservation of some sort, you’re free to access whichever bus stop you’d like. Any on-site Disney resort guest can go to any other on-site Disney resort by bus. This is both as a matter of practicality and official policy.
That’s good news for impatient people like me, who would board the first bus bound for any Crescent Lake resort when staying at Yacht & Beach Club or BoardWalk, Art of Animation and Pop Century, etc. You’ll still be able to pick whichever bus you want. Likewise, if you’re staying at All Star Sports but want to head over to Coronado Springs for a delicious meal at Three Bridges or 40% off at Toledo for VIPASSHOLDER Summer Days, you’ll be able to do so.
Sassagoula River Cruise Restriction
It’s not just bus transportation that has restrictions. Walt Disney World has also implemented the same guest verification to board the Sassagoula River Cruise, which transports guests by boat to Old Key West, Saratoga Springs Resort, Treehouse Villas, Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter.
The same policies apply to the Sassagoula River Cruise as the bus transportation. Any on-site Disney resort guest can board the Sassagoula River Cruise, even if their resort is not serviced by the boats. This means that if you’re staying at All Star Sports, you can still board a boat bound for Port Orleans, stopping off at French Quarter for those beautiful beignets.
Saratoga Springs Walking Path
The above checkpoint is at the boat dock itself, leaving the bridge that connects Disney Springs to Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa open to unrestricted pedestrian access.
This is surprising to us, as many SSR guests and DVC Members had already complained about crowds at the Congress Park bus stop and pools around Saratoga Springs. This is presumably being caused by people parking at and walking over from Disney Springs. Leaving this open will only presumably exacerbate that problem.
Our expectation is that this checkpoint will quickly move to just beyond Disney’s Wonderful World of Memories, before the walkway leading to the bridge and boat docks. All of these gates are temporary and could be moved in a matter of minutes, so it’s not as if the current location is set in stone. It’s disappointing that Disney didn’t put the checkpoint by Wonderful World of Memories in the first place.
Two Hour Reservation Rule
Guests who are accessing resort transportation via an Advance Dining Reservation or other reservation (that’s not a hotel stay) will be able to access the buses and boats up to 2 hours in advance of their eligible reservation.
Note that this is identical to the official policy for parking at resorts where you have an Advance Dining Reservation. And contrary to some guest misconceptions, all-day parking is not permitted at the resorts after an ADR. (Not really relevant here, but we’ve seen that come up several times in the comments.)
Mobile Order and Table Service To-Go are not eligible for access. This is an important point because there are a few fan-favorite locations, such as Scat Cat’s Club Cafe or Lounge, River Roost Lounge, and Gurgling Suitcase, that do not offer reservations. However, Olivia’s Cafe, Turf Club Bar & Grill, and Boatwright’s Dining Hall all do offer ADRs.
Day Guest Parking at Resort Hotels
This seems like a good time to reiterate the official and unofficial policies concerning day guest parking at the Disney-owned resort hotels. Here’s the official policy according to Walt Disney World: “Standard self-parking is complimentary for day Guests while they enjoy select dining, shopping, entertainment and recreation experiences at Disney Resort hotels.”
This is not a new policy. It’s also not the actual policy in practice. In reality, parking for day guests of resorts has become strict over the last several years. If you do not have confirmed ADRs or other reservations, you will not be allowed past the security checkpoint for the vast majority of resort hotels that offer non-bus transportation to the parks.
This usually means no Walk-Up Waitlist or Mobile Order, and no “I’m just here to shop and look around.” It can also mean no Uber or Lyft drop-offs for non-registered guests. Contemporary is the most locked-down since it’s the closest hotel to Magic Kingdom, but other monorail, Skyliner, boat, and walking distance resorts have similarly stringent policies.
With that said, this is subject to the discretion of the security Cast Members at each resort entrance. Some do not care, and will wave you through with ease. Others could get jobs guarding Fort Knox. Those are the two extremes, with a lot in between. It is very whim-driven and inconsistent. I don’t think Sarah has ever been turned away, whereas my experience has been very different. Funny how that works.
This is precisely why we want predictable parking policies at BoardWalk once Hurly-Burly nightclub opens, even if that means paid parking with validation. That beats being turned away and wasting time!
Rules for Swolphin & Shades of Green
It is worth noting that guests staying at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin, Swan Reserve, Shades of Green, and other on-site but third party Good Neighbor Resorts get dropped off at Disney Springs at the West Side Bus and Rideshare Loop.
This is located between the Strawberry and Watermelon Surface Parking Lots, on the far end of the West Side just beyond Cirque du Soleil and Level99. This is as opposed to the Disney Resorts Town Center Bus Depot, which is by the Orange Garage, AMC, Wolfgang Puck, Coca Cola Store and Planet Hollywood.
Despite this, guests staying at Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Hotels, Swan Reserve, and Shades of Green get the same transportation privileges as any other on-site guest of Disney-owned resort hotels.
This means they can take the bus to Three Bridges at Coronado, boats to beignets at French Quarter, and everywhere else in between. Just be mindful that the West Side stop is on the exact opposite end of Disney Springs as the Sassagoula River Cruise, so that’s quite the hike!
Rules for Other On-Site Third Party Hotels
We have inquired with Walt Disney World about the policies for all other on-site resort hotels, including but not limited to the Disney Springs Resort Area Hotels, Bonnet Creek Resorts, and more.
The official policies concerning these properties were not communicated to us by Walt Disney World, leading us to believe the answer is “no.” Accordingly, we would greatly appreciate it if readers staying at these hotels could share their actual, on-the-ground experiences.
Fair warning: I would not expect Walt Disney World to extend the same privileges to these Good Neighbor properties as the Swolphin or Shades of Green, which have historically been considered Deluxe Resorts by most measures. We shall see, though!
Resort Hopping NOT Banned
Contrary to some claims, this rule does not end resort hopping for on-site Walt Disney World guests. For that matter, it does not end resort hopping for off-site guests, only from Disney Springs as a starting point.
When it comes to visiting the resorts, Walt Disney World encourages off-site guests to park at the theme parks and then use the transportation network. Meaning that off-site guests will need to pay for parking prior to resort hopping.
Obviously your mileage may vary, but our experience has been that the best ‘home base’ for resort hopping is Disney’s Hollywood Studios. It’s the easiest parking lot (IMO) with quick and immediate access to the Skyliner and bus loops, as well as walking to Crescent Lake and EPCOT. Whenever we park and hop, it’s usually starting at DHS.
Rules for Annual Passholders
The above also means the Disney Springs restriction does not prevent off-site Annual Passholders from resort hopping. We’ve heard from a lot of locals who are worried about this restriction, but you will still be able to park at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and take the Skyliner to Riviera Resort or walk to Crescent Lake, park at the TTC and take the monorail to Grand Floridian, etc.
However, Annual Passholders without the aforementioned reservations will NOT be eligible to board buses or boats at Disney Springs. Rather, they will be directed to park at one of the theme parks and resort hop from there.
As a reminder, all Walt Disney World APs (including the Pixie Dust, Pirate, Sorcerer, and Incredi-Pass tiers) include complimentary standard theme park parking. Annual Passholders are also eligible for free park to resort transportation.
This AP restriction also underscores that the new restrictions are not exclusively about closing the free parking loophole at Disney Springs that has been exploited “thanks” to social media, nor are they just about preserving bus and boat bandwidth for on-site guests. They’re also about ensuring plenty of parking at Disney Springs for locals and other guests who actually want to visit Disney Springs.
Another note we’d offer here is that Walt Disney World has not offered (or even implied) an official justification for the changes. We have speculated at length about the rationale, and some of this has been informed by talking with frontline Cast Members and on-the-ground leadership at Disney Springs and a couple of resort hotels, but all of that is just off-the-cuff, casual conversation.
Based on what we’ve heard and experienced firsthand (extensively using Disney transportation and parking at Disney Springs), it’s our belief that there are multiple underlying explanations for the changes.
Beignet Bind
Far and away the biggest complaint we’ve heard from off-site guests is that this will prevent them from purchasing the delicious beignets at Scat Cat’s Club Cafe in Port Orleans French Quarter. On its face, this is true, as Scat Cat’s doesn’t offer ADRs.
However, there are still ways to visit French Quarter while perfectly following the new rules. The first of these is the one we’d recommend, which is making an Advance Dining Reservation at Boatwright’s Dining Hall and enjoying an early dinner. (See our new Boatwright’s review for menu recommendations–our top picks are the Taste of the Bayou Platter and the Prime Rib.)
After dining at Boatwright’s, enjoy a stroll around Riverside and over to French Quarter, which can be reached by foot. These sister resorts are two of the nicest on property from an atmospheric perspective, and are overlooked by most guests since they’re not Deluxes. (See Peaceful Promenade at Port Orleans.)
Another option is booking the Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides at Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside. These rides fit up to 4 adults (or 2 adults and 3 small children). Each horse-drawn carriage ride costs $65.
Alternatively, you might be able to take an Uber or Lyft to Port Orleans French Quarter. We do want to offer the same caveat as above, which is that your entrance is at the discretion of security Cast Members, but we’ve found in the past that POFQ is less restrictive than, say, Contemporary or Beach Club. Of course, this too could change if it becomes a problem and even today there’s the risk of being turned away.
That’s precisely why making an ADR at Boatwright’s is our top pick. The Port Orleans resorts are lovely, and if you’re already going to the effort of making the trek to French Quarter, why not make an evening out of it? Frankly, this would’ve been my recommendation even before the transportation crackdown.
If you don’t want to do a horse-drawn carriage, dinner at Boatwright’s or rideshare, paid parking at one of the theme parks and resort hopping via Disney transportation to French Quarter remains an option.
Ultimately, the added friction of Walt Disney World restricting bus and boat access to guests with reservations at a resort should be a net positive. It’s good for on-site guests. It’ll be a bit of a hassle for Annual Passholders and off-site guests with a valid ADR or other reservation at a resort, but still presents minimal overall impact.
The majority of people it’s adversely impacting are those trying to exploit a free parking loophole. This isn’t to say there’s not ‘collateral damage’ with other guests being impacted, but such use cases are few and far between and most can be mitigated by paying for parking at one of the theme parks or making a reservation at one of the resorts.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Thoughts on this Disney Springs boat and bus rule? Do the new details make the restrictions better or worse for you? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!
I’m amazed the trouble people will go to in order to save a few bucks. Is taking advantage of free parking at DS so you can walk to a bus stand in order to take a bus to a hotel just to take some other form of transportation to a theme park really that much of a thing? Sounds pretty inefficient to me.
Dan, I assume you never cook dinner. I mean, why would you go to the trouble of doing that just to save a few bucks when you can order take out.
When you say “save a few bucks”, that is the way people get wealthy – by saving a few bucks here and there.
You can make more money. You can’t make more time.
Really? I guess we need to end all bankruptcys, since it’s not possible to go bankrupt – the people can just go out an make more money. Not everyone can just go out an make more money.
Glad for the new restrictions and hope that they increase the “Friction “ for non guest hanging out at the Polynesian and Grand Floridian. They should restrict the boat transportation to the GF, Poly and Wilderness Lodge and the resort monorail to WDW resort guest too and at holidays only to the guest actually staying at the resort itself.
Jason
The older one gets, the more precious time becomes. You’ll understand in another 30 years or so. And as for money, when I’m on vacation the last thing I want to do is pinch pennies. That’s not what vacation is all about, at least for us. If I have to worry about spending 35 bucks more or less that’s not a vacation, that’s an extension of reality. Vacation is, again for us, not reality, else why do we go to a place where people dress up like cartoon characters and enjoy walking down a main street where the buildings are largely false fronts in a town that never was?
Jack, first off, I find it highly offensive for you to tell me what I will or won’t understand in 30 years. You don’t know me or anything about me. I’m not going to start telling you or anyone else how much smarter I am than them and how you will understand something in 30 years. Just because $35 is chump change to you and you have no problem spending it, doesn’t mean it is like that to everyone else. There are some people who save up for years just to be able to afford a Disney vacation and to them every penny saved counts. There are millions of elderly people who are barely living off social security and wish they had saved an extra $35 on every vacation.
I will not respond to any more of your comments, since there is no point responding to someone with such a know it all attitude about everyone else.
Agree with Jack. It would be $35 well spent to save all that time. Buses don’t even start departing from Disney Springs until 10 am. There are better ways to save a few bucks without wasting so much time.
I’m sure I’m gonna get some shade here, but oh well. The parks are so crowded that it’s beyond ridiculous, and most of the Disney properties are packed with annual passholders who also tend to be Disney adults and GO TO DISNEY ALL.THE.TIME. Some even LIVE there in an RV (you can Google that story). I did a Disney vacation two years ago and visited the park for the first time in 10 years. I stayed at the Yacht Club, and with the stress of trying to get on a damn ride, I enjoyed the day we had at the resort more than the Disney parks. Why? Because the resort pool was restricted to guests only. And I’m a big fan of Disney and even grew up going to Tampa and went to Disney World as a kid, including opening day at EPCOT. Even being local with a three-season-salute pass as a kid, it was still a big deal and a treat to go to Disney. Now? It’s treated as a lifestyle. So here we are, and now Disney has to do something about it. If we now have a giant community of people who want to live at Disney and spend every waking moment there, it stinks for the rest of us normal-minded people who want to enjoy Disney without massive crowds, no matter what time of year it is. So yeah, it’s about Disney trying to discourage the annual passholders who can’t go a week without setting foot on Disney property.
I think what you’re saying is generally accurate, and I can’t really quibble with any of it.
At the same time, I also don’t think that’s the impetus for this specific policy. Annual Passholders have free parking at the parks and I don’t know many who would deal with the hassle of Disney Springs as an origin point for resort hopping. To the extent APs and locals are doing Disney Springs, it’s for its intended purpose.
Now if this were a crackdown of loitering in lobbies or some of the other spaces a small-but-visible minority has monopolized, you’d be absolutely right. All it takes is a few dozen people who want to use WDW as their remote work “office” and it becomes a problem.
Sarah,
You hit it out of the park with your “lifestyle” comment. I’m sure that it was never meant to be that way, but you’re right. In a way that’s kind of sad.
We have APs but we live 1200 miles away. We go often enough to justify the expense. As for shopping and begniets, even not going more than maybe four times a year, kids, grandchildren and all, we have yet to find any merch so compelling that we do much, if any shopping as a “destination” while we’re there. We’ve been on all the rides, seen the shows, fireworks and parades over the years and we don’t feel compelled to do any if these as a “must”. If we lived locally I don’t see us visiting the parks much more than we do now. I guess everyone needs to have a hobby. With all of the things to do in the area I find it hard to believe that some locals focus on Disney to the extent they do. And how often can you eat begniets?
Everything I’ve read here seems very reasonable. You can still resort hop, but you just have to pay. In other words, if you want to resort hop and you’re not an AP or a hotel guest, it costs $40.
Why don’t they just put a beignet stand by Tiana’s and make everyone’s day a little happier?
There is one! Golden Oak Outpost. You’d be forgiven for not knowing that, though, since it garners very little coverage. (Because it’s not very good. The ones at POFQ are much better.)
Now, a good beignet stand at Disney Springs…that sounds like a license to print money! 😉
DLR has amazing beignets at DTD and it’s always busy. DS offering them would make a lot of sense.
I was thinking to be on theme with the new BoardWalk jazz club being introduced that a beignet stand would make sense, but then again it would get offsite people in the same pickle if they wanted to get there from DS.
The Golden Oak Outpost beignets are a pastry abomination, a confectionery crime. If that was the first beignet you’d ever tried (and I imagine it is for many guests) you’d rightfully think “not sure what the big deal is with these, I don’t need to try another in my lifetime.” Which is sad.
This isn’t bad at all, if anything they should restrict people coming from parks as well without a stay or reservation- I think resort guests should even get first dibs on their resorts restaurants reservations
“I think resort guests should even get first dibs on their resorts restaurants reservations”
They more or less do with the 60+10 rule.
At this point, I can’t really think of any resort restaurants that are super high demand. Most have ample availability, to the point that adding too much friction would cause (even more) tables to go unfilled.
While I think a lot of the on-site guest complaints are very reasonable, Disney has to strike a balance here.
@Tom
Yeah I guess you are right. I am curious if this new DS rule has a visible dent at resorts. We arrive Tuesday- will report lol
I hoping it at least puts a visible dent in parking at Disney Springs.
Wanted to leave a data point from the first day the new rules are active – parked at Disney Springs and even though I had a dining reservation at the Contemporary they said they needed something to scan to let me into the bus loop. They tried my annual pass and that didn’t work of course and they only let me in because I am a Cast Member and they were able to scan my Blue ID. Hopefully they work out the kinks of needing something to scan since dining reservations are supposed to work to allow you on the buses!
Thanks for sharing your experience!
Really hope this is just first day hiccups and not going to be standard operating procedure. An off-site guest wouldn’t have anything to scan for an ADR, so someone *not* in your circumstances could just be turned away entirely. Given that they announced this a couple weeks in advance, I hoped that everyone would be on the same page as soon as the rules rolled out.
If anyone else could share their experiences–good, bad, ugly or otherwise–that would be greatly appreciated!
Well, that’s disappointing. Did you show them the res in My Disney Experience or? Of course, they should have some way to look it up themselves. Did you intentionally park at Disney Springs to test this out? Or did you just not want to park at the Contemp for some other reason?
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing, it almost doesn’t make sense. My neighbors were there during the Easter timeframe with no car and they were staying at the Drury. They did have a reservation for dinner at Boardwalk and decided to shop at Disney Springs first then take the bus over to Boardwalk. All they had to do was show the cast member checking for resort IDs their MDE which showed their dining reservations. They had no issues whatsoever and nothing was scanned because there isn’t anything to scan, as they weren’t resort guests. I specifically asked them about it once I heard about the restrictions returning. And I do not understand why the poster would not just park at the CR for a dining reservation there. Or at the Magic Kingdom parking lot and take the monorail from the TTC, that would be easier than parking at Disney Springs, especially if they have an annual pass, also strange because most cast members do not have AP’s because their CM ID gets them in most days, anyways…Doesn’t make sense. Disney tested this for almost 2 weeks at Easter, they pretty much worked out all the kinks then. I’m sure they were people then who were not staying on property but had dinner reservations and were allowed to board the buses without issues or scanning. Again, my neighbors had no problems, as they told me, their reservation showed in their MDE and that was all they needed to show. You also receive an email from Disney when you make a dining reservation, which would also be acceptable. Also kind of odd is that the comment was posted at 10:09 AM on June 28, the first day of these restrictions. Disney Springs doesn’t even open until 10am, so I’m guessing this person tried to board a bus, went through all the issues they mentioned above, and was able to post in only nine minutes, by 10:09am. Hmmmmmm….
I showed the dining reservation on my MDE app and the CM still wanted to have something to scan. I really do think it was just a hiccup from the first day as it would go against what their posted signs said. We were honestly probably one of the first guests with the new widespread rule as we arrived at about 9:30am.
I didn’t even think about the new rule when we came up with our plan to park at DS. We parked there because we were going to MK for a short period of time after dining at Steakhouse 71 so I was concerned about leaving my car at the Contemporary while going into MK and was planning on going back to DS after MK anyway!
We most often stay at one of the Boardwalk area resorts (Yacht Club/Beach Club/Boardwalk), but occasionally stay at the Swan or Dolphin. I know we’re fine taking the busses to YC/BC/Boardwalk, but what if we’re staying at the Swan or Dolphin? Will we still be able to take a YC/BC or Boardwalk bus from Disney Springs and walk over to the Swan/Dolphin? If not, it will be a huge hassle to walk all the way to the other end of Disney Springs to get the Swan/Dolphin bus. I don’t mind taking a ride share back, but I believe they pick up at the lot near where you get the Swan/Dolphin bus.
Read the Rules for Third Party On-Site Hotels section in the article.
WhoAmI, they started running buses from the parks to DS years ago. Took quite a few myself. secondly, where does it state that you have to be a guest at FQ to visit ?????
BJS, you are incorrect. Busses have NEVER run between the parks and DS, in either direction. This was/is to discourage people from using DS as a free alternative parking lot for the theme parks. The only park a bus from Disney Springs will go directly to is Typhoon Lagoon. And that only makes sense if a guest staying on property doesn’t have a car because Typhoon Lagoon does not charge for parking. Disney Springs buses only go to and from the resorts, no theme parks, never before, not now.
Buses don’t go directly from the parks to Disney Springs. You need to transfer at a hotel. No one said you couldn’t visit the FQ if you’re not staying there. You just can’t take transportation there from Disney Springs if you’re an off-site guest unless you have an ADR or other reservation.
Tom – Checking in at the Grand Floridian on July 3rd and got an email directly related to this:
“Thank you for staying with us at The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.
To help make sure you and all resort guests staying with us have enough parking and amenities, we’ll only be allowing guests listed on a resort room, dining or recreation reservation to park at the resort.
All others, including those visiting registered resort guests, will be asked to park offsite at a different location and take transportation to the resort.
We appreciate your understanding and hope you have a wonderful stay!“
Note that it does not say where your guests are supposed to park. Definitely not Disney springs, though!
Hey Maggie – Thanks for the heads up on this–I greatly appreciate it!
Glad to pass it on! Also interesting because I am staying at the All Stars on July 2nd and (not surprisingly) I did not receive a similar email. It’s an evolving situation, so I’m curious to see if another email comes for my stay at the Poly on the 5th. Either way, I’ve never gotten something like it before…
I got that too for GF with checking in Sunday. Email came today.
Thanks, Darlene! I also just got the same thing for the Poly on Sunday. Curious now if it’s all DVC or just Bay Lake resorts…
Thanks Maggie,
This is just another example of how poorly the parking at resort part of this policy ks thought out.
This strikes me as new management taking a sledgehammer to a problem and not thinking about the second and third order repercussions of this.
I think parking at GF has already been following those restrictions pretty closely. The funny thing is that even though we’re locals and DVC members there who only live a max of 15 minutes away… we don’t usually choose dining reservations at GF anymore because the parking for them forces those guests to park across the street in a parking lot that definitely doesn’t feel like you’re in the Disney bubble. And more recently the entrance to that parking lot across the street has been under construction, so you’d have to use an alternate entrance into the already ugly parking lot… across the street from the resort and then walking in the heat to the resort. And last time we drove by, that entrance was also flooded! GF is not a highly desired location for ADR’s for locals driving their own cars right now.
Kenr
I used “on our own terms” poorly. I was strictly referring to AP holders losing access to resort transportation at Disney Springs. Often we will get our car and drive there from the parks, but sometimes we go to Disney Springs to eat and shop from other locations, and then want to return to our cars or continue with our day.
We’re incredipass holders from out of state and come 3 times a year. Sometimes we stay on grounds but not always. Yes, we feel this removal of this resort transportation from Disney Springs is targeting people that also come, eat, shop, and spend a lot of money. We don’t need Disney to micromanage our movements.
There you go doing it again. You acknowledge your poor wording of “our own terms” and finish up letting everyone know that you “don’t need Disney to micromanage your movements” (more entitlement). Look, our annual passes provide free parking at the parks for park access. Nothing else. Disney gets to decide who gets to use THEIR transportation. And they just decided that patrons of Disney Springs do not get to use it if they do not hold a resort reservation. Very simple. So your option is to park at the theme park parking lot (for free) with your Incredipass and go about touring the resorts that you don’t hold reservations at from there.
I totally agree… I know of some good people who just like to enjoy the magic of disney… This has totally taken a lot.of the magic away … I Think Disney need to rethink this one…
Kenr,
You are really completely and totally missing the point. Everyone agrees Disney CAN do this. The argument is they SHOULDN’T.
As Carole says there are people that spend thousands of dollars every year at DS and the resorts but don’t stay there. Disney is pushing them away with this policy, maybe that is what they want.
One very easy way to circumvent the ADR reservation issue to enter a resort parking lot is to give a very common name for an ADR. For instance, The most common last name in the US by far is Smith, followed by Johnson, Williams, Brown, Jones, Garcia, Miller, Davis, Rodriguez and Martinez. Simply telling the gate agent that you have ADR for any one of these names will allow you a simple wave of the hand forward as pre-existing reservations for of these names at every restaurant on any given night is almost certain. You’re welcome!
Won’t work. You have to show photo Identification too, not just say a name.
Jeremy- you have access to your resort, transportation, pools, and amenities until midnight but you must leave your room by 11am. You can check your bags at the resort until midnight on checkout day.
Pfft! No, they ask to see your ID before they look up your res.
Are we supposed to believe your real name is Jeremy Vaughn?
I’m curious how this rule will apply for guests who stayed onsite on their check out day. For example, I’ll be checking out of CRB by 11am. Flight back home strategically scheduled for after 9pm. Mears will likely pick me up from CRB around 6pm. Was planning on an ‘Ohana breakfast reservation, monorail resort hopping, bus to DS, boat to POFQ for the mandatory beignet, bus to HS to hop on the skyliner back to CRB. Assuming the app will no longer scan I have an active reservation post check out, wondering if I will be excluded from Disney transportation to POFQ and/or back to CRB. Hopefully they will make an exception on check out day, especially for guests who need to get back to a resort to pick up their luggage from bell services. Super unique situation but will impact me on my upcoming trip. Haven’t contact Disney to inquire as of yet.
Ashley, I mistakenly replied to Jeremy (above) when I meant to reply to you.
That’s great to know. Thanks for confirming. 🙂
The resort parking changes are a problem here too.
We just came to Boardwalk to go to Cake Bake Shop, the guard let us in but told us it wouldn’t be allowed in the future.
Yes, we can get here via HS or Epcot, but its a much bigger pain. There’s about a thousand ways to close the “free” park parking without affecting people coming to spend money at a place like Cake Bake. I can’t imagine the Boardwalk businesses are too happy about this.
Instead of just cutting it off, why not say you can only come after 6pm? Limit the time to a couple hours? Validate with a purchase. Three ideas I came up with in 5 minutes of thinking on this – this policy seems to be half baked (at least in relation the resorts, maybe not at DS)
We actually discussed the specific need for new Boardwalk parking policies in light of the recent announcements: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-world-announces-new-hurly-burly-night-club-restaurants-retail-coming-to-boardwalk-in-2026/
Suffice to say, totally agree with you.
I would think validating with a purchase but also with a time limit would be a functional way to do this. Once again though, I don’t think Disney anticipated their food venues being used as delayed drive-thrus by offsite guests or even as spur-of-the-moment snack attacks by legitimate guests or pass holders. This relatively newly exposed visitation philosophy will, in my opinion, actually need a whole new Disney parking philosophy, complete, I’d venture to say, with time-stamped parking tickets. The question is, is Disney willing to do this which may engender, again in my opinion, justifiable backlash from paying resort guests, or will they crack down further to maintain a vestige of resort exclusivity? This is getting good! Popcorn anyone?
This is a change? As far as I was aware, you haven’t been allowed to park at resorts without a reservation of some sort for years.
Darlene,
We’ve both spent enough time on this so this will be my last comment.
Disney is primarily for kids and if four children can see the decorations, especially at Christmas, I’m all for it. What you have to understand is that there is an apparent problem with too many off-site people availing themselves of Disney Resort amenities that should primarily be for those actually paying for same. I’ve read where people who haven’t even paid for parking use resort transportation, resort pools and occupy resort fireworks viewing positions to the point where paying guests are excluded, even at their resorts! You’re going to host five or six people. OK. But what if everyone staying ar a resort, or even your resort, did that? Imagine the crowds. And while you’re being circumspect about your guests’ use of the facilities, would everyone else be?
Disney has taken an all or none approach here and in my opinion it not only serves an obvious need, but it’s the fastest, easiest and cheapest way out for them.
We can complain, not patronize them, or try to end run the rules, but in the end it’s their venue and they can do whatever they want.
Have a great rest of your day!
Of course I was being facetious.
While I agree that there is a logical reason to accommodate AP holders on Disney transport originating in Springs, I don’t think that Begniets at Scats or a boat ride to same were ever meant to be a draw for outside commerce either. This ain’t Mickey D’s.
Maybe this whole thing is interim while Disney looks for a better solution, like badged access to resort pools and begniets at Springs. We’ll see.
Jack…”on our own terms” referred to bus versus car to Disney Springs for annual passholders. I’m simply addressing the rule change at Disney Springs.
Obviously from all the comments, there are huge problems with infrastructure, rule breakers, and enormous crowds.
There will always be ways to maneuver to get to wherever we need to…by Disney transportation or car. I think the distress comes from unnecessary roadblocks for a very large, loyal base of annual passholders. Passholders are Not the problem here, so there was nothing to be gained. We should be able to show our passes and enjoy Disney on our own terms.
Nope. When we buy ANY type of entry into Disney we agree to their terms, rules and regulations. Taken to an extreme, what if enjoying Disney on “our terms” includes, as some people have, debarking mid-ride from the Land boats and wandering unescorted around the gardens? That little maneuver will, as it should, get you a FastPass to being banned fo life.
If we don’t like Disney’s rules we have the choice of not going to Disney. I do agree that, in general, pass holders aren’t a major problem unless they assume that they’re also entitled to resort benefits like swimming pools.
Your annual pass as is mine, provides entry to the theme parks and parking at the theme parks. Your last statement saying “our own terms” alludes to an unearned sense of entitlement that is not bestowed upon you. The AP is not a golden resort visitor pass. Disney Springs parking is for DS shoppers and diners. It is not meant for people to hog a free parking spot while they play Disney resort tour guide to friends and family or worse, to use resort pools. And Disney transportation is for whom Disney decides it’s for. And they just decided that not for Disney Springs shoppers who do not hold a resort reservation.
It’s my understanding that these new rules are mainly addressing the problem of non guests using the pools at the resorts. Apparently it’s been an on going problem, using Disney Springs buses to get to resorts and making themselves at home in the pools. My husband and I pay a premium to stay at on site resorts and we pay for what we use. We very much dislike the buses and we never use them. We either use the monorails or the Minnie Van service. Regardless , from a security stand point WDW is huge with thousands of people going thru the parks, transportation, resorts a day. I prefer there being some understanding of who’s coming and going on the properties.
We have a place in Cape May NJ. In order to use the beach even residents need a beach pass. Visitors can buy them for various time periods as well. Most other NJ beach towns do this as well. If Disney Resort pool use by outsiders is a problem it would seem that if access to an entire beach can be controlled, doing the same for a swimming pool area with limited access points should be easy.
My wife and I are both DVC and AP members, so we do not have to pay to park at parks. We ocassionally come to WDW and stay outside the property, as we don’t have quite enough points to satisfy our joy of WDW. Not quite sure why we cannot use the boats to any of the resorts that are connected to the Sassagoula River, while not staying on property. Also not sure how this hurts Disney. Here’s an example of our day: we park at HS and take a bus to DS. We then decide to go to French Quarters. We usually jump on the boat and hear there. Now, we can’t do that!! Don’t quite understand it!!
When did they start running buses directly from the parks to DS? They weren’t doing that when we were there earlier this year.
As to why you shouldn’t be able to jump on the boat and head to French Quarter, that’s easy – because that transportation is supposed to be for the guests staying at Port Orleans, or those who have dining reservations at Port Orleans, not just for anyone who decides they want to take a ride.
It’s unacceptable that people pay the extra money to stay at a Disney resort such as French Quarter, and then have to wait an inordinate amount of time for a boat because joyriders and beignet fanatics decide they want to clog up the transportation.
WhoAmI says “When did they start running buses directly from the parks to DS?”
They don’t. Misremembering or missing a leg of this journey.