......and my verdict on the "Skyliner" is..........

[Sue M]

Yay! I’m looking forward to my CBR stay this summer! I think the Skyliner will be a game changer. So easy now to get to dinning at the EPcot resorts. Although I don’t understand taking Skyliner to Pop to go to Disney Springs. When CBR has a direct bus too.

I have to disagree that there’s no difference between CBR and POP. Aside from much larger rooms, there’s the landscaping, nicer pools, even the quiet pools are prettier. I felt the Pop quiet pools lacking, and were just cement holes with zero attractive landscaping around them. cBr is more relaxing as well. Love the hammocks on the beaches.

I have stayed at Pop, and the buildings look like cement bunkers with designs on them. I will stay there again, in winter, I do like the new rooms. But won’t stay in summer when I enjoy more Resort time and mid day pool breaks.

 

[DVCjj]

The trick is/was.....we were staying at CBR and just finished Happily Ever After at MK........so the masses headed for the exits as expected. Our bus for CBR was at the very back of the stalls (#18). As we reach our line we notice that the Riviera bus was in stall #11.....it was there and not crowded by a long shot. The CBR bus would be packed so we instead jumped on the RR bus.........waved to those waiting for the CBR bus and arrived at RR in time to take the Skyliner to CBR which was then a short walk to Trinidad! Easy Peasy!!!! Really not a big trick...….but effective.

Doug

That’s very clever. I applaud you! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Orionreplay]

To my family, the Skyliner in November was the very first ride they wanted to try at WDW for this trip. We had been watching the YouTubers chatting it up since it opened and couldn't wait. Let me add that my wife loathes heights. Not a fan at all. While moving she'd stay firmly planted in her middle of the bench, looking straight at her iPhone.

We got to AoA at 7pm on arrival and we cared not where our Magical Express luggage was. We checked in online via the Experience app during the bus ride, grabbed our backpacks, and entered AoA. First stop: Landscape of Flavors for resort mugs, quick dinner and Mickey Ice Creams. Second stop: Skyliner. We rode that like it a Tier 1 ride. We totally fell in love with it. And this includes my wife...! We witnessed fireworks from Epcot that night and it was totally magical.

Edit: And the best part for us was that I had no idea what a Skyliner was when I booked at AoA 8 months earlier. It was last summer when my coworker was ogling AoA online and she asked what "this gondola" was. I had no idea what she meant. Suddenly my head exploded. What a cool thing to stumble on because of the reservations I had made in the early spring!

 

[NickC]

We did a round trip from Epcot just to experience it. It seems like a very efficient method of transportation.

 

[Orionreplay]

We did a round trip from Epcot just to experience it. It seems like a very efficient method of transportation.

I think it is as well. But I worry about the mugginess of summer. I know on one day during our November trip it reached 86 degrees. While moving it was a dream, but when we had a couple small pauses that day, without wind coming through the windows it began to heat up inside the cab and get a little stuffy.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

The thing with the Skyliner is similar to the monorail or the buses. When the Skyliner is up and running, it seems to be a great addition to the transportation system. But the glitches they've had with some extended stoppages have folks more than a little nervous (including us) about riding. But we've had delays with the other transportation systems, too.

We rode it several times last month, and each time it slowed or stopped, we were concerned if it was going to get moving again! I guess confidence will come after there is more data showing it's reliable. But the real test will be the hotter months with pop-up storms. There will be things guests need to account for then - like taking Skyliner to EPCOT on a summer morning with plans to return on Skylner that afternoon - only to find Skyliner isn't running for weather reasons in the afternoon, and guests have to walk all the way to the front of the park to catch a bus back to their resort. Hopefully, that situation is more of an exception. If that happens at DHS, it's not nearly as inconvenient. But EPCOT will be interesting.

I bet the rumors of them planning to expand Skyliner to other resorts/parks are likely somewhat true - probably on a planning board at Disney someplace. Should be interesting.

 

[WEDWDW]

But the glitches they've had with some extended stoppages have folks more than a little nervous (including us) about riding.

As far as I know there has only been the one really bad incident and that was early on.

After 26 Flights without incident,I like my odds and will just "deal" with any future incidents I may incur.

For me the POSITIVES of Skyliner outweigh any possible negatives by a mile!

As for Summer,we will wait and see if it is as hot as some already assume it will be.

And,if so,we will bring a misting fan with us and Skyliner on!
(And maybe Disney has some plans for some sort of battery operated fans in the Gondolas in Summer-who knows until we get there.)

I will wave at everyone down below in the air-conditined buses this Summer as we fly right by them!lol

 

[thanxfornoticin]

I truly do hope any issues are few a far between. I even like the idea of extending it to other resorts.

And yes, only one really serious incident that required evacuations. But there have been a couple others with stops of 30+ minutes at a time. And for many of us, it's in the back of our minds when we get on and the door closes!

But again, I go back to issues that pop up on all the transportation systems from time to time. There are situations people have sat in the monorail for extended periods of time, too. I'm sure boats have broken down on the lake and buses have broken down while in route.

 

[sam1998]

So.... we are staying at POP in June. This will be our first trip without our own car. Is the consensus that the skyliner doesn't run early enough for rope drops? We are a rope drop family and enjoy breakfast reservations before park opening. Now I am scared!

 

[mercuryvenus]

We went this week and loved it. We did do the transfer from the HS line to the RIV/Epcot line and, although the wait looked long, we actually only had to wait maybe 10 minutes to get through it and onto a skyliner vehicle.

Our 3 year old loved it, too!

 

[MaC410]

So.... we are staying at POP in June. This will be our first trip without our own car. Is the consensus that the skyliner doesn't run early enough for rope drops? We are a rope drop family and enjoy breakfast reservations before park opening. Now I am scared!

Just use the buses in the morning for rope drop and reservations.

 

[karly05]

Stayed at POP the first week of Feb and practically lived at DHS and loved the Skyliner!

My last full day (2/6) when I left DHS around dinner time, it was closed because of the wind, and I had to drag myself way the heck out to Bus Stop 38 for Pop, bummer. Otherwise it was great.

I do agree with PP, they need to open earlier in the morning. On 2/6, Pop line was actually running at 7:30 and I made it into DHS by 8:00 and got a BG, but you couldn't count on that. 2/4 they didn't start till nearly 8, and on 2/7 my departure day I came by after 7:30 and they weren't loading yet. Planning my trip, I had dreamed that the Skyliner to Epcot would let me have a PPO breakfast at Cape May, but no go for that. Hopefully they'll fix that.

 

[Dakota731]

What are the operating hours?

 

[WEDWDW]

But there have been a couple others with stops of 30+ minutes at a time.

Out of THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS of Flights.

Not even CLOSE to even make me take pause and even CONSIDER a return to the buses.

 

[WEDWDW]

What are the operating hours?

Here is the current schedule.

https://www.orlandoparksnews.com/p/weekly-walt-disney-world-times-guides.html

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Out of THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS of Flights.

Not even CLOSE to even make me take pause and even CONSIDER a return to the buses.

Understood - but there are many who will hesitate because of it. Whether it's concern for it stopping, or the perceived confined space, or even the heights - there are people who won't ride it very much. The good news, it'll keep the crowds lighter for those who do want to ride! And for those who prefer the buses, the people taking the Skyliner will help keep the bus crowds a tad lighter - so it all works.

 

[kariyava]

I really hope they start the skyliner an hour before park opening so that it is a viable option for RD/RoR.

 

[dkrauss]

Understood - but there are many who will hesitate because of it. Whether it's concern for it stopping, or the perceived confined space, or even the heights - there are people who won't ride it very much. The good news, it'll keep the crowds lighter for those who do want to ride! And for those who prefer the buses, the people taking the Skyliner will help keep the bus crowds a tad lighter - so it all works.

Disney has curtailed bus service to Epcot & HS from the Skyliner Resorts to once per hour.....something to keep in mind. Also curious if that impacts the bus rides back to those same resorts.

Doug

 

[scrappinginontario]

Thanks for this tip! We stay at Pop and their bus stops at the MK and DS are notoriously far away. I'm going to try this method for sure!

PS, If I take a bus from MK or DS to CBR, is there a stop close to the Skyliner? I know they installed stops at the station for when the Skyliner is down but am not sure if they use those stops all the time or not?