Riding the Skyline to "nowhere"?

[Surgie2]

We are thinking about taking a break on our Epcot day as the kids are interested in riding the Skyliner. We will be too busy on our HS day to do this. We are staying offsite so don't need it for transportation. How long would it take to go from Epcot to Caribbean Beach and back? Or is there a better way to ride this for the experience on a non-park day? I don't know if we could even park at a resort to do this, so that's why I'm considering a RT out of Epcot.

 

[sadiecatie]

You might want to consider what I do on Epcot days - I park (or get an Uber to) HS, then take the skyliner to Epcot. Not only do you get to ride it, but you can start the day in World Showcase (we always try for a Remy LL early), that entrance is not at all busy at park open (because most people coming through would be there for early entry), and it’s really not bad to get on and ride back at the end of the day. That is my official strategy on all Epcot days! And then you don’t have to try to find a time to leave the park and ride it in the middle of the day.

 

[Kwami]

You might want to consider what I do on Epcot days - I park (or get an Uber to) HS, then take the skyliner to Epcot. Not only do you get to ride it, but you can start the day in World Showcase (we always try for a Remy LL early), that entrance is not at all busy at park open (because most people coming through would be there for early entry), and it’s really not bad to get on and ride back at the end of the day. That is my official strategy on all Epcot days! And then you don’t have to try to find a time to leave the park and ride it in the middle of the day.

Eh... It's been about two years, but when I last visited Epcot, we had to wait in line for more than an hour to get a Skyliner ride back to the resort after the park closed. And that was in September, 2021 when the crowds were much smaller than they are now.

 

[sadiecatie]

Eh... It's been about two years, but when I last visited Epcot, we had to wait in line for more than an hour to get a Skyliner ride back to the resort after the park closed. And that was in September, 2021 when the crowds were much smaller than they are now.

I haven’t done it since last summer (2022), but that was July crowds and we didn’t wait more than 20 min of course YMMV, but it’s worked well for us. We’ll be Ubering on our trip next month, so will likely just grab an Uber back from Epcot, but we will definitely be getting a ride to HS and entering via the International Gateway in the morning.

 

[Disney Mickey&Minnie Fan]

Eh... It's been about two years, but when I last visited Epcot, we had to wait in line for more than an hour to get a Skyliner ride back to the resort after the park closed. And that was in September, 2021 when the crowds were much smaller than they are now.

Agree
When riding the Skyliner back to our resort from Epcot at park close there has always been a line, with a wait of one hour on busy park days.

 

[Lumpy1106]

To do what you propose, in order of convenience, you will need to get to Beach Club/Yacht Club, or maybe Boardwalk or Swan/Dolphin. From there you can walk or take the Friendship boat to Skyliner at the back entrance to EPCOT. Frankly I think I'd start at Disney Springs where you can park for free, then take a bus to any of the Skyliner resorts; Pop, AoA, CBR, RIV, or the ones I've already mentioned. There are good QS restaurants at POP, AoA, and CBR, not so much at BCV, BWV. There is a mini-golf course at Swan/Dolphin.

We did a similar thing in 2020, but we were staying at BLT, and we mixed in the Monorail too. You'll need to catch another bus to MK, Contemporary, Poly or Grand Floridian if you want to do that.

 

[Lumpy1106]

Eh... It's been about two years, but when I last visited Epcot, we had to wait in line for more than an hour to get a Skyliner ride back to the resort after the park closed. And that was in September, 2021 when the crowds were much smaller than they are now.

I think all posters above are correct - The Skyliner line to get from EPCOT to RIV/CBR/POP/AoA at the end of the night is usually pretty bad, but not the other way going from DHS to BWV/BCV/Swolphin.

 

[Surgie2]

You might want to consider what I do on Epcot days - I park (or get an Uber to) HS, then take the skyliner to Epcot.

I should have mentioned...2 of the 3 kids are in car seats so that limits our use of Uber. They do not reliably have car seats.

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

We loved the Skyliner, it was my 4 year old’s favorite “ride”. We rode it a few weeks ago at the end of August around 12:15pm. There was no line and we went from HS to Epcot in about 15 minutes. I would definitely recommend a mid-day ride to nowhere if your family wants to do it. It’s fun!!!

 

[StageTek]

We are thinking about taking a break on our Epcot day as the kids are interested in riding the Skyliner. We will be too busy on our HS day to do this. We are staying offsite so don't need it for transportation. How long would it take to go from Epcot to Caribbean Beach and back?

That is the longest trip and it takes about 10 minutes. So you should figure 30 minutes round trip.

Well worth the time!

 

[CarolynFH]

We are thinking about taking a break on our Epcot day as the kids are interested in riding the Skyliner. We will be too busy on our HS day to do this. We are staying offsite so don't need it for transportation. How long would it take to go from Epcot to Caribbean Beach and back? Or is there a better way to ride this for the experience on a non-park day? I don't know if we could even park at a resort to do this, so that's why I'm considering a RT out of Epcot.

DH and I often do this, especially when we’re not staying at BWV - leave whichever of the two parks we’re at and ride the Skyliner to the other park and then take the Friendship boat back, or get off at one of the resorts, walk around, get a drink or snack, then return to the park we’re visiting. As above, you could probably ride RT Epcot to CBR and back to Epcot in about 30 minutes, if you’re pressed for time, but it’s more fun to transfer at CBR to the AoA/Pop line or the DHS line. AoA and Pop are fun to walk around!

 

[scrappinginontario]

Just a note that resorts are not permitting cars to enter the resort unless the guest is staying there or has an ADR.

 

[buzzgirls&dad]

We stay at the BCV so walk by the skyliner station almost daily at some point. Mid-day there is no wait and 30 min. round trip is about right. It might be a very relaxing break/rest for your littles. Either way it is nice, quiet, decompress time.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

We do a day of resort hopping and riding all the different transportation modes. We start our day at Disney Springs, take the boat to Port Orleans French Quarter, explore the resort, walk to Port Orleans Riverside, take the bus to DHS, catch the monorail to Epcot, explore the
Boardwalk resorts and take the bus back to Disney Springs (usually from the Boardwalk), all while exploring each of the different resorts. It's our youngest daughter's favorite part of each trip.

 

[Elle23]

When my husband and I were at WDW in June, we took the skyliner to Pop Century, then took bus to MK, then took the monorail back to Epcot, and hopped on a bus to Port Orleans Riverside. We were hoping to take a boat to FQ, but it was taking too long so we walked back to our room at FQ.

It was honestly a fun and spontaneous adventure!

 

[Robbie Cottam]

We stay at RIV las Nov.

At closing we walked on the skyline
The line for strollers and wheels chair was like a marathon, however they did have a cast member to guide you to the proper line

 

[Surgie2]

We do a day of resort hopping and riding all the different transportation modes. We start our day at Disney Springs, take the boat to Port Orleans French Quarter, explore the resort, walk to Port Orleans Riverside, take the bus to DHS, catch the monorail to Epcot, explore the
Boardwalk resorts and take the bus back to Disney Springs (usually from the Boardwalk), all while exploring each of the different resorts. It's our youngest daughter's favorite part of each trip.

That sounds like a great plan! Where could we work in the Skyliner? Riviera to DHS instead of the bus?

 

[nw6675]

That sounds like a great plan! Where could we work in the Skyliner? Riviera to DHS instead of the bus?

The Skyliner from DHS to Epcot. They meant that and not the monorail.

 

[focusondisney]

If you decide to do it during your Epcot day, I’d suggest Skyliner to CBR, then transfer to Pop line. The kids can walk around & run off some energy in the different icon courtyard areas. You can have lunch or dinner in the food court. If you want to do a little more, you can Skyliner to Disney Studios & take the boat back to Epcot. The boat back to Epcot will take 20 - 25 minutes. I think this would make a nice midday break.

 

[Genie+]

I did this midday a few months after skyliner first opened. Round trip from Epcot to CBR. Very pleasant! There was a Joffreys at CBR station where I stopped to get the special skyliner coffee. Took under 40 minutes to complete. It was just like doing another attraction.

You might consider going to CBR. Getting back on toward Epcot and getting off at Riviera to share some gelato or something else from the shops there. Then an easy hop back on to return to Epcot. Would be fun! Riviera is pretty