When you’re going to Disney World, especially in this era of social distancing and capacity restrictions, some lines are to be expected. You’re likely going to wait in a line for the buses, you’re likely going to wait in (sometimes long and confusing) lines for stores, restaurants, and attractions, and you may even wait in line for the pool!
Be Sure to Look For These “Line Begins Here” Signs!
But there’s one line you may NOT be thinking about or planning for, and if you stay at certain resorts, not planning for this line could MAKE or BREAK your day!
Yes, it’s time we talk about those lines to get on the Disney Skyliner!
On the Way to EPCOT!
What’s Going On?
If you’re staying at Disney’s Pop Century Resort, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, or Disney’s Riviera Resort, using the Skyliner to get to EPCOT or Disney’s Hollywood Studios is usually your BEST option, especially in the mornings or at night.
Here’s a Look at the Pop Century Skyliner Station
The Skyliner is a fun, fast, and pretty easy way to get to and from these four resorts, Hollywood Studios, and EPCOT. However, due to the pandemic, Disney is currently only sitting one party per gondola and there are social distancing markers in line. Those can sometimes equate to one thing you might not even be thinking about: LOOOOOONG lines. Lines to get on the Skyliner can be REALLY, REALLY LONG, especially at the Skyliner “hub” at Caribbean Beach in the mornings!
The First Long, Long Line of the Day
We took the Skyliner from Caribbean Beach to Hollywood Studios twice on a recent spring break morning, and the line to get on the Skyliner went ALL the way to the Skyliner Bus Station and down the road!
What a Line!
Time-wise, we waited about 30 minutes one day and about 40 minutes another day just to get to our gondola! Some of our readers have reported waiting upwards of an HOUR.
This Line was 40 MINUTES long!
Those 30-40 minutes are VALUABLE park time, and there are few more frustrating ways to start your day than with an unanticipated, lengthy line.
LONG Lines!
This isn’t just a problem at Caribbean Beach, though. We’ve also experienced some long lines to get on the Skyliner at Disney’s Riviera Resort, too. The line may not look as long here (since this station only serves one resort, instead of the three-plus resorts and two theme parks served at the hub over at Caribbean Beach), but there can be fewer gondolas available (especially on the way to EPCOT), so you may have to wait a WHILE to get on the Skyliner here.
Most of the time, you will just watch as gondolas full of people pass you by since they have already been loaded at other Skyliner stations.
Riviera Resort Skyliner Station
We’ve also waited in LONG lines to get on the Skyliner from EPCOT at the end of the night.
What Can You Do?
So, what can you do to alleviate the pain of these LONG lines? As with most things at Disney World, the secret is to plan ahead. If you know you want to arrive at EPCOT or Hollywood Studios when the gates open (or before!) from one of the Skyliner-area resorts, get on the Skyliner as SOON as you can!
You can avoid this!!
According to a Cast Member we spoke with, the Skyliner generally starts running one hour prior to the earliest park opening. So, be sure to check those park hours constantly and see if there have been any changes in the Skyliner operating hours during your trip. AND be sure to set your alarm!
Keep an Eye Out for Those Skyliner Hours
If you’re less concerned about getting to the parks first thing in the morning and more concerned about avoiding crowds, then you might want to wait a couple of hours before heading to the Skyliner to travel to the park of your choosing. The lines for the Skyliner tend to be significantly shorter in the middle of the day.
Looping Around
As we noted before, lines for the Skyliner can also get quite LONG at the end of the day. But don’t sweat it too much — from what we’ve seen and based on our conversation with a Cast Member recently, the Skyliner generally runs for an hour AFTER park closing. So, you have some time there. But, if you’d rather avoid those longer lines, then consider leaving the parks a bit earlier. You could also consider using other kinds of transportation, like arranging for a ride share service.
Check Out That Skyliner Line!
Long lines are usually not the most fun part of your Disney trip (unless they’re interactive, in which case a long line might be SUUUPER fun). But if you know what to expect, it can help to alleviate the pain of it all. Just be sure to plan ahead.
Skyliner Crowds!
If you know or expect that you’ll be heading to a Skyliner station when the line will be long, then just be sure to bring some mobile games or think of other ways you can your family can spend that time and still have fun. Soon, you’ll be up in the sky and on your way to a magical adventure!
As we continue to experience the parks and things continue to change all around Disney World, we’ll work on developing more tips and tricks and we’ll share them all with you.
How to PAY to Skip the Lines in Disney World — Warning, It’s Not Cheap!
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Hello. We’ll be staying a the CBR in September so thanks for the reminder to plan ahead for Skyliner trips. Is this similar to the planning we’ll need to do for the bus system or is Disney running more buses to accommodate fewer seats? Just curious to know if this is something to plan for across the board. Finally, when we’ve had long waits in the past, we’ve occasionally grabbed an Uber ride from our resort. Are you still seeing that as an option or are Uber rides reduced as well?
Julia, we’re seeing more buses during this Spring Break time, but otherwise we aren’t always seeing the charter/extra buses. Still, buses are running with just about full seats because the barriers allow for all seats to be occupied. Ride shares are definitely still viable.
Have reservations for June of 2022 for 10 days. The more I read about ride breakdowns and and the extended wait times for rides, the more I think about reconsidering my plans. Things weren’t this bad for the 25th Anniversary nor up to 5 years ago, my last visit. Things really seem to be going in the wrong direction, as I keep reading the different blogs I subscribe to. Very disappointed in Disney.
Just got back from Disney World and they are no longer limiting it to one party per gondola. Lines are still long, but move pretty fast.
You also have the option of taking the gondola with a shorter line and grabbing a boat to the other park. For instance, if you are going to Epcot but the lines are horrible and the Studios lines is shorter, get on the Studio gondola and hop the boat to Epcot.
The biggest problem I see is that the gondola’s won’t operate if there are lighting strikes. Florida – summer – storms. Out of 3 trips this summer to Epcot, only had one complete trip on the Skyline back to Pop. Once there was an accident on the Epcot line but the Studios line was operational, so we hopped the boat to Studios and the Skyliner all the way back to Pop. One we got to Carribean Beach transfer and they shut it down for lightening in the area. Waited over an hour for buses to be routed to pick up more than 200 people who were stranded. The third time was the charm – made it all the way back to Pop.
So – the problem isn’t only loading one party per gondola. It’s the accidents and weather you have to watch out for.