UPDATED: Ultimate park hop - 6 parks in one day - WE DID IT!

Ooh! Another bit of good news I forgot to share!

My husband and I are going to upgrade our WDW APs to Premier APs. We did the math and we will save money doing that (with the food and merch discounts) over buying 5-day tickets and an additional 1-day ticket. Plus, that enables him to potentially run Avengers in November and me to run Light Side in January (assuming it happens!) We will do the upgrade in Florida beofre we leave so he and I will already have our tickets ready to go.

Plus, since we booked a package at the Grand Californian, they actually already sent us our package tickets in advance (along with some super cute luggage tags and a DL backpack!) We bumped the package tickets down to 2-day hoppers (it was the minimum.) The kids will use theirs (and we will upgrade them to 5-days after we get there) and we will put the other two in the drawer for the next CA trip!
 
Ack! No more Express Bus!!!

We were totally going to try to use it, but now it's not even an option. Grrrr.

But I think we will be ok. We were planning to get to 3 of the 4 parks without it anyway. So really it will just impact the last hop, from DHS to EPCOT.

So now we will have to get around with either our rental car, Uber/Lyft, or Minnie vans. I'm thinking Minnie vans will be our best bet, depending on where they pick up and drop off at the parks.

I think the plan would look like this, transportation-wise:
  • Drive rental car to EPCOT parking lot super early in the morning so we can make a quick getaway to the airport at the end of this
  • Minnie van / Uber to Magic Kingdom for Early Morning Magic
  • Walk to Contemporary and grab a Minnie van / Uber to Animal Kingdom (I assume this is the faster option from MK)
  • Minnie van / Uber to Hollywood Studios
  • Minnie van / Uber to EPCOT
  • Drive rental car back to MCO
Is there a thread on the boards that describes the Minnie van pick-up and drop-off locations for the parks? I need to research!
 
snuggly duckling said:
Ack! No more Express Bus!!!
Click to expand...

:scared1: Express bus is gone?!? I thought it practically just started! I never even got to try it...and it was finally going to convince me to park hop.

Anyway, I just found this thread because it was on the "new posts" list, and didn't realize it was from May until I got to the bottom of page one (so if I confused anyone by "liking" a really old post, forgive me!) and I skipped to the end.

It sounds like quite a goal! At first I couldn't imagine doing it instead of slowly enjoying each park, but then I realized you were frequent visitors and would have several days at WDW before this, so I decided it was more like a "bonus day" that had the potential to be a great memory. I hope you can pull it off!
 
PollyannaMom said:
:scared1: Express bus is gone?!? I thought it practically just started! I never even got to try it...and it was finally going to convince me to park hop.

Anyway, I just found this thread because it was on the "new posts" list, and didn't realize it was from May until I got to the bottom of page one (so if I confused anyone by "liking" a really old post, forgive me!) and I skipped to the end.

It sounds like quite a goal! At first I couldn't imagine doing it instead of slowly enjoying each park, but then I realized you were frequent visitors and would have several days at WDW before this, so I decided it was more like a "bonus day" that had the potential to be a great memory. I hope you can pull it off!
Click to expand...

Yup, it came out yesterday. 8/23 will be the last day for Express Bus operation. We are so bummed. We were going to use it for some quick park hops during the regular part of this trip (and if we liked it, again for our Christmas trip) but we don't arrive until the afternoon of 8/23. Oh well. Maybe they will bring it back during busy times like Christmas?

A bonus day is exactly how we're looking at the Ultimate Park Hop day! If we weren't doing this, we'd probably spend 2-3 hours in one of the parks before heading to the airport, but the bulk of the day would be spent in transit. No matter how it turns out, it will be fun to try!!
 


I know! It totally sucks!

And funny enough when the announcement came out I first was annoyed for my trip in September. But my next thought was: What about snugly duckling's 6-park hop?!?
 
Lesley Wake said:
I know! It totally sucks!

And funny enough when the announcement came out I first was annoyed for my trip in September. But my next thought was: What about snugly duckling's 6-park hop?!?
Click to expand...

Awwwwww, you're so sweet! :)

I'm bummed, but I think we will be fine without it. Just one less tool in our arsenal!
 
Lesley Wake said:
I know! It totally sucks!

And funny enough when the announcement came out I first was annoyed for my trip in September. But my next thought was: What about snugly duckling's 6-park hop?!?
Click to expand...
Funny, that was one of the first things I thought of as well! (AFTER getting over my hissy fit, because I LOVED that service. :sad1:)

@snuggly duckling , I haven't done a lot of research on the Minnie Van service but I do believe that in at least MK they have a much better pick up and drop off location than regular Lyft vehicles.
 


snuggly duckling said:
Ack! No more Express Bus!!!

We were totally going to try to use it, but now it's not even an option. Grrrr.

But I think we will be ok. We were planning to get to 3 of the 4 parks without it anyway. So really it will just impact the last hop, from DHS to EPCOT.

So now we will have to get around with either our rental car, Uber/Lyft, or Minnie vans. I'm thinking Minnie vans will be our best bet, depending on where they pick up and drop off at the parks.

I think the plan would look like this, transportation-wise:
  • Drive rental car to EPCOT parking lot super early in the morning so we can make a quick getaway to the airport at the end of this
  • Minnie van / Uber to Magic Kingdom for Early Morning Magic
  • Walk to Contemporary and grab a Minnie van / Uber to Animal Kingdom (I assume this is the faster option from MK)
  • Minnie van / Uber to Hollywood Studios
  • Minnie van / Uber to EPCOT
  • Drive rental car back to MCO
Is there a thread on the boards that describes the Minnie van pick-up and drop-off locations for the parks? I need to research!
Click to expand...
Forgive me if this has already been brought up or its logistically out of the question, but why not use the boats to get from DHS to EPCOT?
 
Mopedmom1 said:
Funny, that was one of the first things I thought of as well! (AFTER getting over my hissy fit, because I LOVED that service. :sad1:)

@snuggly duckling , I haven't done a lot of research on the Minnie Van service but I do believe that in at least MK they have a much better pick up and drop off location than regular Lyft vehicles.
Click to expand...

Awww, thank you too!

I've heard the Minnie vans pick up at the bus depot too, which would be awesome. Now hopefully, they roll it out to all resort guests by 8/29. Seems like they have to with Express ending!
 
mrs. magoo said:
I told my family about your quest and they were inspired to do 4 parks in a day. It was a lot of fun and we really enjoyed ourselves. I hope it all works out for you. Can't wait to hear about it.
Click to expand...

Disney challenges are always fun! I admire those people who try to do all the attractions on a single day!
 
TXAKDisneyFan said:
Forgive me if this has already been brought up or its logistically out of the question, but why not use the boats to get from DHS to EPCOT?
Click to expand...

We could take the boat, but it is soooooo slow. We can walk from DHS to International Gateway faster than the boat (we've tested this numerous times.) I wish the boat was faster because that would be a relaxing way to get from one stop to the next!

Plus the big advantage of the Express bus was skipping security and the tapstiles!
 
snuggly duckling said:
We could take the boat, but it is soooooo slow. We can walk from DHS to International Gateway faster than the boat (we've tested this numerous times.) I wish the boat was faster because that would be a relaxing way to get from one stop to the next!

Plus the big advantage of the Express bus was skipping security and the tapstiles!
Click to expand...
Idk what time you're going, but we went out/in the IG several times in July (not at park opening or closing) and there was hardly anyone there. No wait at bag check.
 
It seems like a six park challenge involving the four WDW parks and the two Universal parks seems a bit more reasonable. Maybe, seven if you include Sea World. Unless you live in Southern California and are returning home your plan seems just a little too 1% ish.
 
qman6975 said:
It seems like a six park challenge involving the four WDW parks and the two Universal parks seems a bit more reasonable. Maybe, seven if you include Sea World. Unless you live in Southern California and are returning home your plan seems just a little too 1% ish.
Click to expand...
Really? That's a pretty rude comment. This is just for fun and I think everyone here on the thread agrees. Besides the whole Disney parks concept is pretty much a privilege. I personally am very amused at the whole attempt!
 
Last edited:
I am just seeing this and I am rooting for you to get it done! I love this idea!

We have done all 4 WDW parks in one day and it was really fun. But this is taking it to a whole new level! Love it and good luck!
 
TXAKDisneyFan said:
Idk what time you're going, but we went out/in the IG several times in July (not at park opening or closing) and there was hardly anyone there. No wait at bag check.
Click to expand...

If everything goes to plan, we would be heading in through IG around 10:30 or 11:00 am on Tuesday, 8/29. We are definitely going bagless for this so that should help us. Fingers crossed it's not too backed up!
 
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