Skyliner breakdown and BWVs

[DebbieB]

Not sure how this would increase business on the BW. Are you suggesting that they would always provide bus transportation from the BW to the other resorts that the Skyliner service?

They are doing that at least during the outage. I saw a post on facebook this morning, there's a bus route (not necessarily in this order) AOA > POP > CBR > BW

The poster was complaining that at 6:30am this morning, she saw 4 of these busses at BW but no MK bus for early entry.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

Well that's just great for guests staying at BW. Talk about crowded buses! This just keeps getting better, worst nightmare seems to be happening. Why are they putting BW on the same route with AOA/Pop/CBR? In the past 20 years of staying at BW this has never happened.

 

[DebbieB]

Well that's just great for guests staying at BW. Talk about crowded buses! This just keeps getting better, worst nightmare seems to be happening. Why are they putting BW on the same route with AOA/Pop/CBR? In the past 20 years of staying at BW this has never happened.

This bus just goes to those 4 resorts, not to a park. I think BW is in there so that people from the skyliner resorts can access the International Gateway. I don't see any reason why someone staying at BW would ride this bus.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

This bus just goes to those 4 resorts, not to a park. I think BW is in there so that people from the skyliner resorts can access the International Gateway.

Again great for the BW and Epcot area resorts. I guess the question now should be why pay a premium to stay in the Epcot resort area if they are now busing in guests from 3 soon to be 4 other resorts? This will impact guests staying at BW the most and is going to negatively impact all the guests staying in this area. I can just image the lines waiting to get on the boats in the morning and at end of day...

I surely hope this new bus route is only during the time the Skyliner is down. Not making my day here!

 

[Brianstl]

I totally believe this was their thinking. We were just at BWV (got back home on Sunday). We were there for the opening of that Skyliner as well as the crash. Once Skyliner opened that IG was a crowded jam packed mess. No more going in or out of Epcot swiftly. Those days are done. Also noticed everything on the BW was jam packed. The ample hills had lines out the door. The last night of Illuminations we were enjoying a quiet night at Belle Vue lounge when all of the sudden there were about 50 people crowded around the bar. The 2 servers were extremely stressed and could not keep up. We had trouble getting and paying our tab. In 13 years of DVC ownership and a dozen or so visits to BWV I have never seen this. I wish I had gotten a photo. I did get a photo of the IG at the end of the night and the line for the Skyliner.....

It was the last night of Illuminations, first week of Skyliner and Food & Wine was going on. Of course everything was packed and the IG gate was crowded. That will be the busiest evening at Epcot for years to come. I would draw no conclusion off this one night or anything during the first week of Skyliner being opened during Food & Wine. You had three special events all occurring at the same time at the same place. There won't be another grand opening week of Skyliner. There won't be another last showing of Illuminations. The only one that will happen again is Food & Wine.

 

[lovin'fl]

It was the last night of Illuminations, first week of Skyliner and Food & Wine was going on. Of course everything was packed and the IG gate was crowded. That will be this busiest evening at Epcot for years to come. I would draw in conclusion off this that one night or anything during the first week of Skyliner being opened during Food & Wine. You had thre pecial events all occurring at the same time at the same place. There won't be another grand opening week of Skyliner. There won't be another last showing of Illuminations. The only one that will happen again is Food & Wine.

Yeah, okay, still going to wait and see. Not sure why they would switch out night show at Epcot the VERY same week the Skyliner opened. Seems like they maybe should have staggered that, no????? And we avoided the last night of Illuminations and the first night of the new show yet still cattle called out of that gate in mass chaos on other nights. Awful the whole week. As was the entire BW area. Never saw a line out onto the BW from Ample Hills before. Nor 50+ people in Belle Vue lounge. No plans to return to WDW next year. My college DDs plan to go after finals with a couple friends. So they can give me the scoop. By end of May it should be running normally.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

The crowds leaving Epcot at the end of the night are always high, its like a heard heading to the front gate. That was one of the great benefits to staying in the Epcot resort area, we had that back door (so to speak) that only a small number of the crowd used. Now that "back door" has been opened to a much larger number of visitors. Some may be ready to go directly back to their rooms after the night time show at Epcot via the Skyliner others may want to venture over to the BW and if Disney is going to supply bus transportation to the other 4 resorts it would be a nice place for those guests to take advantage of. From a financial stand point it makes good sense for Disney, another revenue stream. For the guests staying at the BW it kind of stinks.

I surely hope that the bus route between BW/AoA/Pop/CBR and soon to be RR is only during down time of the Skyliner. Even that is annoying, why not YC/BC?

 

[jerseyduke]

I do not understand this thread at all.

So, during 'the incident' people were directed to the boardwalk bus stops via pre printed signs as opposed to the BC.

In case of an increased flow, it would be a lot quicker getting extra buses into the boardwalk as it is right off of Buena Vista Drive, as opposed to looping all those buses back to BC via Epcot Resorts Blvd.
It seems much more efficient, and that was probably the goal.

Also, this was during a shut down. Is the notion that the shut down was designed to get more people to board walk?

With the skyliner, why not condense existing bus routes? BCV, BW, AoA, CB, et all now no longer have to solely rely on buses to HS. If you are going to BW, you now only need a bus from MK and AK.

There is a mere handful of destinations at The Boardwalk, if Disney wants to get people somewhere, wouldn't Disney springs be the goal? More foot traffic = higher rent

Edited to Fix poor grammar and spelling.

 

[Chuck S]

Not sure why they would switch out night show at Epcot the VERY same week the Skyliner opened. Seems like they maybe should have staggered that, no?????

One really has nothing to do with the other, does it? The final Illuminations/start of EPCOT Forever had been planned long before the opening of the Skyliner. And if it hadn't been for the Skyliner incident, there would've been no issue. Two different divisions, two different projects.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I really don't see how "people paying a premium to stay in the Epcot area" should have had any expectation of it staying quiet.

See also: People paying a premium for Contemporary and having the traffic for Chef Icky and Cali Grill.
People paying a premium for Poly and having lines out the door for Trader Sam's specialty mugs, and people all over the lobby at every hour for 'Ohana.
People paying a premium for Grand FLoridian to have people taking a nap in the lobby mid-day.

 

[tjkraz]

Hot take circa 1997: “I miss how quiet the International Gateway was before they built the BoardWalk resort and its hideous clown pool. #BringBackTheTram”

 

[Ms.Minnie]

Because there's a level of expectation that has been there since these resorts opened, for BW that would since 1996. This has always been a fairly quiet area and the IG was great and a main benefit to this area, it was never really crowded, an easy way to enter and exit Epcot. I'm sorry if you don't get it but I'm pretty sure those of us who stay in this area most of the time know what I'm saying.

 

[lovin'fl]

One really has nothing to do with the other, does it? The final Illuminations/start of EPCOT Forever had been planned long before the opening of the Skyliner. And if it hadn't been for the Skyliner incident, there would've been no issue. Two different divisions, two different projects.

So then the influx of peeps we experienced going in/out of IG and on the BW in general was or was not due to the 2-fold of Skyliner opening and night show changing???? Yes or no? Up thread it said yes and it should calm down. Or is it now the norm? Which? I bought 255 BWV points based on our 2007 stay using our 200 OKW points and loving Epcot and the IG. But I should, according to @_auroraborealis_ above^, not expect that same calm BW and IG I have had since 2007, right? No right to expect that??? Then I'd prefer not to stay there or pay the rather expensive annual dues for those 255 BWV points. All I am saying!

 

[lovin'fl]

And @Chuck S you never address the paying more wage to the managers of the bars and restaurants on the BW so they could hire more and better ones so we can get service. Same for Ample Hills cashiers. If the cheapskate mouse could pay better, they could staff more to deal with this super crowd the mouse seems to want all across it's resort. Widen the IG with more turnstiles and staff at those. They are working on that IG but maybe they should have also had that completed in time for Skyliner to open. I dunno....maybe I am just dumb. But it was a clusterfreak last week. Insane clusterfreak!

 

[Brianstl]

So then the influx of peeps we experienced going in/out of IG and on the BW in general was or was not due to the 2-fold of Skyliner opening and night show changing???? Yes or no? Up thread it said yes and it should calm down. Or is it now the norm? Which? I bought 255 BWV points based on our 2007 stay using our 200 OKW points and loving Epcot and the IG. But I should, according to @_auroraborealis_ above^, not expect that same calm BW and IG I have had since 2007, right? No right to expect that??? Then I'd prefer not to stay there or pay the rather expensive annual dues for those 255 BWV points. All I am saying!

You shouldn't have expected things to remain the same for 13 years. The whole area will be more busy from here on out, particularly at the IG gate. It just won't be as busy normally as what you experienced.

 

[Chuck S]

So then the influx of peeps we experienced going in/out of IG and on the BW in general was or was not due to the 2-fold of Skyliner opening and night show changing???? Yes or no? Up thread it said yes and it should calm down. Or is it now the norm? Which? I bought 255 BWV points based on our 2007 stay using our 200 OKW points and loving Epcot and the IG. But I should, according to @_auroraborealis_ above^, not expect that same calm BW and IG I have had since 2007, right? No right to expect that??? Then I'd prefer not to stay there or pay the rather expensive annual dues for those 255 BWV points. All I am saying!

The point is, transportation and park shows are two separate entities. The skyliner had been operating for a week prior to the incident. And apparently Disney was preparing for increased entrance traffic at the IG due to the Skyliner. The fireworks show could have changed out a month later, and you still likely would had the same congestion at IG for the final performance. The scheduling just happened on a night that the Skyliner went down. And one has nothing to do with the other. Whenever Disney opens something new, like Avatarland, a new show, or other new attraction, there will always be an increase in guests entering the park for that type of event. The Skyliner incident was secondary, and could've happened at anytime, it was simply coincidence that it happened on that particular night.

Will the skyliner increase traffic at IG, of course, just as opening a new EPCOT area resort did when Boardwalk was built, and that increase in traffic won't necessarily taper off. You simply hit it on a very busy night with the normal (and likely permanent) traffic bump from the Skyliner, once it starts operating again, and the special increase in traffic from the Illuminations/EPCOT Forever changeover.

The norm is going to be busier than you have seen in the past...that is unavoidable with the new transportation options.

 

[Chuck S]

And @Chuck S you never address the paying more wage to the managers of the bars and restaurants on the BW so they could hire more and better ones so we can get service. Same for Ample Hills cashiers. If the cheapskate mouse could pay better, they could staff more to deal with this super crowd the mouse seems to want all across it's resort. Widen the IG with more turnstiles and staff at those. They are working on that IG but maybe they should have also had that completed in time for Skyliner to open. I dunno....maybe I am just dumb. But it was a clusterfreak last week. Insane clusterfreak!

Better pay does not automatically mean an increase in staff, or better staff. Servers at Disney do quite well given the amount of tips. Managers are there to see that things run smoothly, if possible. But, you seem to think managers are there to supplement servers, wait on tables, and be cashiers. That is only part of their job, they also need to be sure the kitchen is running smoothly, and call in additional help if needed...and again, servers at DIsney make good $$ on tips, better than Denny's and Olive Garden to be sure. It should not be problem for Disney to find servers. The entire Orlando area is short on hospitality employees, you can't hire people if there is no one to hire, there is an area wide hospitality labor shortage.

 

[Brianstl]

Better pay does not automatically mean an increase in staff, or better staff. Servers at Disney do quite well given the amount of tips. Managers are there to see that things run smoothly, if possible. But, you seem to think managers are there to supplement servers, wait on tables, and be cashiers. That is only part of their job, they also need to be sure the kitchen is running smoothly, and call in additional help if needed...and again, servers at DIsney make good $$ on tips, better than Denny's and Olive Garden to be sure. It should not be problem for Disney to find servers. The entire Orlando area is short on hospitality employees, you can't hire people if there is no one to hire, there is an area wide hospitality labor shortage.

Plus, Ample Hills isn't even operated by Disney.

 

[jerseyduke]

IG is a casualty of all this. It was a not so hidden gem. In fact, when not staying at a board walk resort, I would often book a breakfast at BC/BW/YC with the added bonus of being able to quietly walk in the back door. Now such restaurants have lost that luster (albeit it was only a little).

By the way, they could have changed the opening date of the Skyliner, but there was virtually no way the last showing of Illuminations was not going to be Sept 30th, enabling the new show to start of Epcot's birthday.

 

[tjkraz]

Because there's a level of expectation that has been there since these resorts opened, for BW that would since 1996. This has always been a fairly quiet area and the IG was great and a main benefit to this area, it was never really crowded, an easy way to enter and exit Epcot. I'm sorry if you don't get it but I'm pretty sure those of us who stay in this area most of the time know what I'm saying.

Everyone has their own expectation of how things "should" be, but rarely does it remain so. I've been a member for 15+ years and own points at the boardwalk. I've seen all of my resorts change over that time, most notably Saratoga Springs which grew from 4 buildings to 18 + Treehouses.

As a BoardWalk owner, I don't see how this materially changes things for me. Why should I care if there are 500 people queued up for the Skyliner after fireworks? Why should I care if the walking path between IG and BW has 50 people or 250? If Ample Hills proves to be overwhelmed for an hour or so after fireworks, I'll go another time.

If anything, the BoardWalk area has diminished over the last decade due to lack of interest. The night clubs barely operate. Performers have become less frequent. Maybe a little more foot traffic is what the area needs to liven things up and prompt Disney to provide additional services and entertainment.