Can non guest park at Disney Resorts?

[Rob H]

We'll be staying off property with a rental car in December and want to spend one non-park day visiting some of the Resorts to see the Christmas decorations.
I know Resort parking is free for guests, but can a non-guest park at a Resort? (Don't want to spend $22 parking at TTC just to visit the Resorts!)
Would love to park at one of the monorail Resorts and "Resort hop" to all 3 of them. We could also catch a bus from MK to Wilderness Lodge and back.
Thanks!
(I guess our back up plan would be too park free at Disney Springs, take a bus to one of those Resorts, Monorail hop from there and then take a bus back to Disney Springs.)

 

[mom2rtk]

The resorts with the best decorations are also the resorts with the greatest parking issues. You can ask if you can park there, but have a backup plan if they turn you down.

I would guess of those, Wilderness Lodge would be least restrictive on parking, so maybe start there?

 

[kniquy]

http://allears.net/pl/parking.htm

The above info looks like you can park at a resort for a fee, but might encounter problems with finding a spot to park. It does look like you can get free parking at disney springs and just take one of the resort buses to start your tour of the monorail resorts.

If you have a dining reservation i wonder if you have to pay for parking at the resort? Maybe someone else can chime in. That might be something to include on your resort tour -- maybe an early ohana reservation then off to visit each of the other resorts.

 

[Lynne M]

There's no fee for self-parking at any of the Disney resorts, but as PPs have said, they can get pretty restrictive about parking during the busy holiday season.

You can pay to valet park at the monorail resorts, but that's not going to be any better than parking at the TTC, cost-wise. I would say to give it a try, and if they turn you away from self-parking, head down to Disney Springs and take a resort bus from there.

 

[pixie08]

They usually have a sign now during peak times that says unless you have a dining reservation you cannot park. If you want to see a monorail resort you have to park at TTC. You can park at TTC and easily walk to Poly and then monorail around. For the EPCOT resorts best to park at HS and take the boat. Or just make a reservation at one and dine there, park for free and hop around and enjoy.

 

[DSLRuser]

yes you can. just tell the guard you are visiting to shop and look around. been doing this for almost 30 years.

plan B is to go park at fantasia gardens and walk to the swan or dolphin. from there you can go anyplace on property via disney transportation.

 

[Sue M]

Resort parking at the monorails is going to be tough. I’ve heard of people being turned away without an ADR. As mentioned, WL would be your best chance. They have a large parking lot. And their decorations are beautiful. Then you can boat to CR to see their decorations and then monorail to Poly & GF. Boat to MK and hop on WL Boat. Resort parking has a 2 or 3 hr time limit
There is a rumour that Disney Springs May start paid parking. If this is the case and you can’t park at any resort TTC would be your best back up plan.

 

[DVC Doc]

Monorail resorts can be tough at Christmas time. Tell the guard you are going to shop, go to the spa (day pass), or rent a boat from the marina and you’ll usually get in unless they are really full. Next best option would be to try Wilderness Lodge which usually has more parking available. Take the boat from there to MK or Contemporary and catch the monorail.

 

[kwdw]

I've never had a problem - but I have seen signs at CR posting CR guests or ADR's only. The only time I saw one - I HAD an ADR - so no big deal for me. They scanned my MB and let me in.

But yes - I've parked to go shopping, to eat quick service (yup - I drove to Poly to get a Dole Whip!), and to just see the Christmas decorations at a number of resorts - including the monorail ones. I'm a horrible liar - so I just tell the guard the truth - no problem.

 

[germandisneymom]

If you have the time. Park at Disney Springs and take the first bus to a monorail resort.

 

[zebrastreyepz]

We did this at Christmas and were shut down, even though we were staying at FW onsite, at the Yacht Club due to a convention.

We paid for Valet.

We also used Valet at Contemporary where the guard STILL gave me a hard time because we didn't have ADRs (the Valet people were awesome and knew which cranky guard I was talking about) and we used it at the Poly where the guards were awesome and fun.

 

[maxiesmom]

I wouldn't recommend parking at Disney Springs. Sure, it is free, but it takes a lot of time to get anywhere from there, which is why they don't charge for parking. It is, simply put, a giant pain in the rear to use DS as a stepping off point to visit resorts.

I would pay for the parking at the TTC. Time is money at WDW, and you don't want to end up wasting a bunch of time driving around trying to find a resort that will let you park.