Disney Springs Transportation Guide (With Updates)
This article discusses transportation options at Disney Springs. We’ll review how to take a bus, water taxi, or walk to Disney Springs, where applicable. Additionally, we’ll discuss complimentary parking and rideshare details.
In general, one of the most challenging things about visiting Disney is figuring out the best way to get around. During your vacation, you’ll likely want to leave a park or hotel at some point to visit Disney Springs.
If you haven’t visited Disney Springs lately, you might be surprised how much the place has grown. It’s so large that you’ll want to know where you’re going before arriving, especially if you have a dining reservation or are visiting a specific destination within the venue.
How to Get to Disney Springs
Depending on your departure point, you’ll have several options for traveling to Disney Springs. Complimentary transportation options to Disney Springs from Disney World’s Resorts include:
- Disney Buses
- Water Taxis
- Walking Paths
When applicable, you might consider driving your car to the venue. For those with plans to do some shopping, it’s nice to have the ability to store packages in your vehicle instead of carrying them all day.
Complimentary bus transportation is provided to Disney Springs from Disney’s Resort Hotels. However, some of the resorts near the Disney Springs area provide alternate transportation options to the venue in addition to buses. We’ll look at these options in more detail below.
But it’s important to note that ALL Disney-owned and operated hotels provide bus transportation to and from Disney Springs.
Disney Springs Bus Schedule
Buses begin running from the resort hotels approximately 30 minutes (usually anywhere from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.) before Disney Springs opens. Bus service continues up to an hour after the venue closes. Disney does an excellent job at ensuring their resort hotel guests get back to their hotel at the end of the evening.
Disney Springs Bus Transportation
Guests traveling to Disney Springs via Disney buses are dropped off at the Town Center bus loop. Town Center is conveniently located at the center of Disney Springs.
Buses do not run from the theme parks to Disney Springs. Additionally, buses do not run from Disney Springs to any theme parks.
Further down, in the tips section, I’ve added details on how to leave a theme park and get to Disney Springs. We use these methods when we leave a park and visit Disney Springs for dinner.
A Note to Guests Staying in the Disney Springs Resort Area
If you’re staying at Old Key West, Saratoga Springs, Port Orleans Riverside, or Port Orleans French Quarter, you might get to the bus stop (at your resort) and see that the wait times sign says “use watercraft” for Disney Springs. You can use the boat service. However, the bus still runs from the resort to Disney Springs. It just doesn’t display the wait time. We are at these resorts often and see numerous guests get confused and leave to go find the boat. While we enjoy taking the boats, we have found that the bus is often more efficient.
For example, if you’re staying in the Carrousel section of Saratoga Springs, you might prefer to take the bus to Disney Springs. This will be a much quicker (and shorter) option than walking or taking a boat to Disney Springs. Below is a photo of the bus stop at Disney Springs.
Rideshare to Disney Springs
Those traveling to Disney Springs via a car service (i.e., Lyft, Uber, Minnie Vans) are dropped off and picked up at the old Marketplace bus loop. This area is called Disney Springs East.
An additional rideshare location is available on the West Side (Disney Springs West) near the Watermelon surface parking lot and Cirque de Soleil.
Disney Springs Parking
As mentioned above, free parking is available at Disney Springs. Several garages and lots surround the venue:
- Lime
- Orange
- Grapefruit
Disney Springs Lime Garage is at the Town Center and exits near The Polite Pig restaurant. Disney fans argue that Lime is the better of the two garages because of its central location. This garage is often the first to fill up on a busy day.
For those who like to keep things low-key, we much prefer to park in the Orange Garage. The Orange garage is located on the West Side of Disney Springs. This parking garage has an exit near the Coca-Cola Store. A few nearby restaurants include Jaleo, Wolfgang Puck, and Chicken Guy!
Grapefruit’s garage is across the street from the venue and has a pedestrian bridge. Surface parking lots (Strawberry and Watermelon) are located toward the back of Disney Springs.
*Parking for guests with disabilities (permit required) is available in the garages and surface lots. Those who need to rent an ECV, wheelchair, or stroller can do so at Sundries, which is near the bus loop at Town Center. See Disney Springs Guest Services for more details.
Unfortunately, valet parking has been discontinued at Disney Springs.
Water Taxis to Disney Springs
Select resorts offer water taxi service to Disney Springs. Those resorts are as follows:
- Treehouse Villas at Saratoga Springs
- Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa
- Disney’s Old Key West Resort
- Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort
- Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter
Water taxis drop guests off at the Disney Springs Marketplace boat dock. We have a separate article that shares details of the boat ride between Disney Springs and the Port Orleans Resorts if you want to learn more about this service.
Related: Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Transportation
Walking to Disney Springs
Guests visiting Disney Springs from Saratoga Springs can walk back and forth to the venue. The walkway to Disney Springs is near the Congress Park section of Saratoga Springs. It’s a beautiful walk along the water with views of Disney Springs.
Follow the path toward The Marketplace. When you reach the end of the walkway, cross a bridge to enter Disney Springs. There, you will go through a security checkpoint before entering the venue.
Related: How to Walk From Saratoga Springs to Disney Springs
An additional walking path is available on the West Side of Disney Springs. This path cuts across the golf course and ends up at The Springs boat dock at Disney Springs. You can take another path from this location to Old Key West. However, we would not usually recommend walking to Old Key West from Disney Springs. It’s a remote path that takes approximately 30 minutes at an average pace. We have a separate article with photos and the distance.
Related: How to Walk from Old Key West to Disney Springs
Additionally, guests of non-Disney hotels near Disney Springs can use one of the raised pedestrian bridges to access Disney Springs. These footbridges are on the opposite side of Disney Springs, close to Lake Buena Vista Drive.
We have a few reviews of those nearby hotels:
- Drury Plaza Hotel at Disney Springs Review
- Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace Review
- Doubletree by Hilton at Disney Springs Review
Water Taxis at Disney Springs
Unfortunately, the water taxi service that takes guests from one end of Disney Springs to the opposite has never returned. All water taxis coming to and from the resorts drop off at The Marketplace boat dock.
Formerly, water taxis serviced the following boat docks within Disney Springs:
- The Marketplace
- West Side (not open)
- The Landing (not open)
Disney Springs Transportation Tips
Before we wrap things up, I wanted to share a few tips for using various transportation to get to Disney Springs. Anyone visiting Disney Springs can use Disney transportation even if they are not staying on the property.
- There is no cost to visit Disney Springs
- Parking is free at Disney Springs.
- All Walt Disney World Resorts provide bus transportation to and from Disney Springs.
- Guests staying at Saratoga Springs have the luxury of being able to walk, bus, or boat to Disney Springs.
- Guests staying at Saratoga Springs, Port Orleans Riverside, French Quarter, Old Key West, and the Treehouse Villas can take a boat or bus to Disney Springs.
- Water taxis provide transportation to the Marketplace dock at Disney Springs.
- Buses do not run from Disney Springs to the theme parks or vice-versa.
Here are a few ways you can use transportation to get to Disney Springs after leaving a theme park:
From Magic Kingdom to Disney Springs:
- Walk to Disney’s Contemporary Resort and take a bus to Disney Springs.
- Take the resort monorail to the Contemporary, Polynesian, or Grand Floridian and take a bus to Disney Springs.
- Take a bus from the Magic Kingdom to any resort. Then, stay at that bus stop until the next bus to Disney Springs arrives. (Some resorts will be out of the way distance-wise.)
- Take the bus from the Magic Kingdom to Saratoga Springs Resort, exit at the “Congress Park” bus stop, and take the walkway to Disney Springs.
From Disney’s Animal Kingdom to Disney Springs:
- Take a bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge (the closest resort to Animal Kingdom). Then, board a bus to Disney Springs.
- Take the Saratoga Springs Resort bus from Animal Kingdom, exit at the “Congress Park” bus stop, and take the walkway to Disney Springs.
- Catch any bus from Animal Kingdom to a resort. Then, stay at that bus stop and take the next bus to Disney Springs. (Keep in mind some resorts will be out of the way.)
From Disney’s Hollywood Studios to Disney Springs:
- Walk or take a Disney Friendship Boat to the Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Yacht Club. Then, take a bus to Disney Springs.
- Take the Saratoga Springs Resort bus from Hollywood Studios, exit at the “Congress Park” bus stop, and take the walkway to Disney Springs.
- Catch any bus from Disney’s Hollywood Studios to a resort. Then, stay at that bus stop and take a bus to Disney Springs. (Use this tip with discretion. Some resorts will be out of the way.)
- Take the Disney Skyliner to any available resort. Then, head to that resort’s bus stop and take a bus to Disney Springs.
From Epcot to Disney Springs:
- Walk or boat to Disney’s Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Yacht Club. Then, take a bus to Disney Springs. This can be done by exiting at Epcot’s International Gateway. The International Gateway exit is between the United Kingdom and France Pavilion.
- Use the Disney Skyliner at Epcot’s International Gateway to visit a Disney Resort. Head to the bus stop at that resort and take a bus to Disney Springs.
- Take the Saratoga Springs Resort bus from Epcot and get off at the “Congress Park” bus stop. Then, take the walkway to Disney Springs.
- Catch any bus from Epcot to a resort, stay at that bus stop, and take a bus to Disney Springs. (Some resorts will be further travel distance using this tip.)
Here are a few other considerations:
- Disney’s Swan and Dolphin no longer use Disney’s bus service. Guests of these resorts are dropped off at the West Side of Disney Springs.
- If you would like to ride the water taxis, you can take a bus from any theme park to Port Orleans Riverside, French Quarter, or Old Key West. Then, take a boat from those resorts to Disney Springs.
All of these travel tips can work great when transportation is running smoothly. However, some of these scenarios might end up taking longer than expected. Terrible timing or unforeseen issues could lengthen travel times.
When leaving a theme park, we almost always take a bus to Saratoga Springs and then walk to Disney Springs. Taking this route eliminates the possibility of waiting on an additional transfer bus.
Below is a picture of the Congress Park bus stop at Saratoga Springs. This is you’ll disembark if you elect to take this route. Saratoga Springs is a massive resort with several bus stops. When they finally call Congress Park over the speaker system, you might worry about finding your way to Disney Springs.
Fear not. The walkway is directly across from the bus stop. An arrow-shaped sign indicates that it leads to Disney Springs.
Within a few moments, you’ll see this view of Disney Springs.
Final Thoughts
We hope this transportation guide for Disney Springs helped you figure out the best way to travel back and forth to the venue. When it comes to Disney, the journey to the destination is often fun, especially when visiting new places along the way.
If you must be at Disney Springs at a specific time, you want to allow at least an hour of travel time. Also, consider how far you’ll have to walk once you arrive.
If you’re unsure about dining reservations, you might enjoy our guide to the best restaurants at Disney Springs. It includes our favorite places to eat and what we’ve enjoyed at them.
Additionally, you might like to browse our Disney Transportation Guide for a complete list of articles on how to get around Disney. It includes some of the following:
- Disney World Monorail Guide
- Guide to the Skyliner at Disney World
- Magic Kingdom Ferry Guide
- Disney World’s Complimentary Bus System
In the Comments
Did you find these transportation tips for Disney Springs helpful? Do you have any questions about traveling to or from Disney Springs? Let us know below in the comments. We love to hear from you and other readers we find your feedback invaluable.
I understand that bus transportation is provided to Disney Springs from Disney Resorts, but you don’t specify if transportation is provided to return to the resort. I know this probably seemsike a stupid question, but I just want to make sure. Does Disney provide bus transportation from Disney Springs to the Disney Resorts?
Hi, no your question is understandable. Buses travel from Disney Springs to the Disney Resorts. There’s a huge bus stop in front of the Town Center area at Disney Springs. It’s next to the same area where they drop you off. There are signs that indicate the bus stop number for each individual resort.
Just a bus warning for leaving Disney Springs. One year we took Disney Spring bus to Boardwalk Resort which is 5-10 minutes straight down highway. It took 65 minutes w/ stops at every Epcot hotel & resort first lol.
I have read that an option for the quickest way to get from Disney Springs to EPCOT is by taking the Disney bus back to the Swan Hotel, and then walking to EPCOT, with a walk of little less than a mile (0.7 miles), and is then about a 15 minute walk, which I don’t mind
Is this still an option?
Are these buses still located at the Marketplace Bus Loop, on the east side of Disney Springs and if so are they easy to find?
Will the bus simply say Swan Hotel on the front of it, or is there something else to look out for on the front of the bus?
Hi, you would want to take the bus from Disney Springs back to Beach Club. It’s a much shorter walk. We recently left Epcot one day to have a late lunch at Disney Springs. We walked out of Epcot at the International Gateway and took a bus from the Beach Club to Disney Springs, and then returned to Epcot the same way. It’s about a 5-minute walk from Beach Club’s lobby to Epcot.
It sounds like the Disney Resort buses that go to/from Disney Springs are available to anyone, regardless if you are staying on/off the property? Is this correct? Also, it appears Lynx has buses at Disney Springs that go near offsite Marriott properties? Where would I find more information on Lynx? Thank you!
Yes anyone visiting Walt Disney World can take advantage of the transportation options offered at the resorts or theme parks. Unfortunately, I don’t have any information for Lynx. However, the Marriott hotels will have any options for transportation listed on their individual websites. It really depends on which hotel you choose. Have a fun trip!
Hi Amber, thank you for your response. So If I am wanting to save $$ on transportation I could take Lynx to Disney Springs, then take the Disney bus to the Beach Club Resort (for free), then take the water taxi (for free) to Hollywood Studios?? I know it will involve more time, but being by myself there is no hurry… BTW, what time do the Disney Resort buses start running FROM Disney Springs? Thx!
You are welcome. It sounds like you enjoy traveling at your leisure, as do I. As far as resort buses from Disney Springs, they will be slower to pick up from the venue than drop off first thing in the morning. I would imagine there aren’t many people leaving at opening time, so you might have to alter your route a little bit.
Hi Resorts Gal,
Thanks for this thorough transportation article! Our vacation starts next Monday.
Is this a good plan?… we are staying the Hilton Buena Vista Palace, which is right across from Disney Spring. It’s an official Disney hotel with a shuttle to all the parks. We want to have lunch at Gyser Point. Should we take our shuttle straight to Ticket and Transportation ctr. then take the ferry to Wilderness Lodge ? Or is there a better option?
If it were me, I would probably walk to the bus stop at Disney Springs and catch a direct bus to the Wilderness Lodge. However, it is a bit of a walk from your hotel to the Disney Springs bus stop. (I think I touched on this in our Hilton Buena Vista Palace Review.)
If you take the shuttle you’ll get dropped off at the TTC. Then you’ll have to take the ferry or monorail to Magic Kingdom, go through security, and then take a boat to the Wilderness Lodge. So this isn’t a terrible option, but make sure to give yourself plenty of time to do either.
Have fun!
Thanks so much!! We’ll do your first option.
You are welcome. You might consider how early you leave too. If Disney Springs hasn’t been open long, there might not be a ton of buses returning to the resorts yet.
We are planning a trip and I’m
Trying to figure out transportation via Disney bus. We are staying at POP Century and have dinner reservations at Splitsville dining room afterward we were looking to go to Winter Summerland Mini golf which I believe is outside of Blizzard beach ( temporarily closed) is there a bus that will take us from
Disney Springs to the mini golf place and the back to POP Century from the mini golf area?
Hi, to my knowledge when Blizzard Beach is closed, bus transportation is not available to Winter Summerland. You would likely need to take a taxi, Minnie Van, or car service from the West Side of Disney Springs to Winter Summerland. Or you could take a bus from Disney Springs to Coronado Springs, and then take a taxi or car service to Blizzard Beach, which might save you a few extra dollars (but not time).
hi amber a group of 9 of us are staying at signia hilton at bonnet creek in august is it easy to get to disney springs from there and how far
Hi Kim! The Bonnet Creek Resorts are approximately 2 miles from Disney Springs. You take the road out of Bonnet Creek, then take a right on Buena Vista, and Disney Springs will be a little over a mile on your left. If you take a car service, they will drop you off at the West Side loop or Marketplace loop. I would ask to get dropped off closest to where you were going to dine if you had reservations.
We’ve stayed at the Signia and they have a scheduled shuttle bus to Disney Springs several times a day. So that is an option but you would need to travel based on their scheduled times.
If you’re driving, I prefer to park at the Orange Garage on the West Side of Disney Springs. It will be the first parking garage exit (on the right side of the road) just past Typhoon Lagoon.
You’ll be less than 10 minutes away, but if you travel during a busy time, you might sit in traffic for a few minutes. Hope that helps!
Hi! Do you know if there are buses at Disney Springs that go to the Four Seasons hotel?
Hi, I haven’t stayed at the Four Seasons yet. I believe their complimentary buses drop off at each of the theme parks. I see their around Disney World pretty regularly. You might check the options here on the Four Seasons website.