Walt Disney World Skyliner Gondola cabin video, photos, info.

[DisneyOma]

WDW is testing the gondolas at various speeds -- likely both faster and slower than what will be the "usual" speed. One video RaySharpton posted shows both a fast run with considerably swing at the beginning of the video and then towards the end of the same video is an obviously much slower run with very little if any swing noticeable. I don't know that we can rely on videos of the test runs to be indicative of swing during actual use with guests. There is also recent discussion taking place on the Rumors & News board that gets into the mathematics of calculating the estimated swing. General consensus seems to be the amount of swing felt in the gondola car may be similar to an elevator.

Swing in an elevator? Um, no.

Anyways, I'm not impressed. The quote by Dean Huspen makes me realize why Disney is headed down the tubes - riding in a tin can on wooden benches, crammed in with 9 other people (looks comfortable for about 6, max) is not my idea of “Our vision is, this is the most magical flight on Earth,” said Dean Huspen, a principal architect with Walt Disney Imagineering. The destruction at CBR continues, with trees being torn down and piles of debris everywhere, with the huge towers plunked down in the middle of what used to be a quiet oasis. The new blood just doesn't get it, IMO. I think these gondolas and stations are ugly. No Imagineer worth their ears should have developed this.

 

[RaySharpton]

Disney Parks Blog has a video of the gondola, too.

There’s Magic in the Air as Progress Continues on Disney Skyliner at Walt Disney World Resort

by Thomas Smith, Editorial Content Director, Disney Parks

Disney Skyliner is an all-new transportation experience set to debut this fall at Walt Disney World Resort. Testing of the system’s nearly 300 guest cabins and other elements is well underway, and today we have new details to share about this innovative transportation system.

Disney Skyliner will offer guests sweeping views while whisking them between Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and four Disney resort hotels. Each cabin can accommodate up to 10 guests, including those traveling with wheelchairs or assistive devices. And with the system constantly in motion, guests will arrive at their selected destinations in minutes while enjoying the comfort of cabins specifically tailored for the Florida climate.

Check out the video below for a peek inside a Disney Skyliner cabin and to hear Walt Disney World Resort Senior Vice President Thomas Mazloum and Walt Disney Imagineering Principal Architect Dean Huspen tell you more about this unique transportation system.

I like the wooden type benches that can fold up. I saw the same gondola that came with just plain metal benches.

I can't wait to try them out in December 2019.

.

 

[gap2368]

Swing in an elevator? Um, no.

Anyways, I'm not impressed. The quote by Dean Huspen makes me realize why Disney is headed down the tubes - riding in a tin can on wooden benches, crammed in with 9 other people (looks comfortable for about 6, max) is not my idea of “Our vision is, this is the most magical flight on Earth,” said Dean Huspen, a principal architect with Walt Disney Imagineering. The destruction at CBR continues, with trees being torn down and piles of debris everywhere, with the huge towers plunked down in the middle of what used to be a quiet oasis. The new blood just doesn't get it, IMO. I think these gondolas and stations are ugly. No Imagineer worth their ears should have developed this.

Guess what you do not have to ride it. So do not ride it find another way around. I sure will and I will have a great time

 

[RaySharpton]

MouseSteps just posted some photos of the Caribbean Beach Resort Disney Skyliner Gondola Station.

It shows the rear section with two rows. No white wall like at Pop.

I can tell that there is a second row by looking at rolling wheels above the gondolas

There is a section to the left of the center poles in the photo that shows the first row turning to the center and the second row continues at the end. You might be able to see that there aren't the same continuous rolling wheels all of the way across.

That station looks to be huge. I guess because they store a lot of the gondolas behind the building too.

So far, I have seen two photos and one video showing the possibility of a second loading zone for wheelchairs, etc.

 

[lanejudy]

That station looks to be huge. I guess because they store a lot of the gondolas behind the building too.

Yes, CBR is the "hub" station and also has storage for all the gondolas - I think I've read ~300 cars.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Swing in an elevator? Um, no.

Elevators swing. You may or may not feel it depending on the size of the shaft, height of the building, and possibly outside 2ind speed - but they swing. If you can't feel it the 3levator, it would ne unusual to feel it in the gondola.

riding in a tin can on wooden benches, crammed in with 9 other people (looks comfortable for about 6, max) is not my idea of “Our vision is, this is the most magical flight on Earth,”

I think the gondola depth is eight feet. Let's say the benches are seven feet. Are you expecting each person in your party to need two-plus feet of seat?

The destruction at CBR continues

Respectfully, you seem so unhappy with this efficient transpottation option, maybe it's time to vacation elsewhere?

 

[gap2368]

I do not think they will have any type of tie down for wheelchair or ECV there is a slight sway when it starts and ends but the boat at Disney have more sway and bump then the gondola will and they do not strap them down.

 

[joelkfla]

I do not think they will have any type of tie down for wheelchair or ECV there is a slight sway when it starts and ends but the boat at Disney have more sway and bump then the gondola will and they do not strap them down.

• Buses at WDW travel up to 50 mph,and sometimes have to make sudden maneuvers to avoid other traffic, or stop quickly if the driver doesn't anticipate a red light. Gondola lifts at WDW will max out at 11.2 mph, and have no interfering traffic.
  
• Tie-downs on buses are required by FDOT regulations; there's no such requirement on gondola lifts.
• I don't know how quickly the gondolas will decelerate for an emergency stop, but consider the physics:
  • When a bus stops, all of the inertial force on the riders is directed forwards.
    
  • When a gondola stops or decelerates, the gondola will swing forward and tilt, causing the inertial force to be at an angle partially towards the floor, or downward from the rider's perspective.

I think the gondola depth is eight feet. Let's say the benches are seven feet. Are you expecting each person in your party to need two-plus feet of seat?

The vendor, Doppelmayr, says the seat width is 460 mm per person, which is 18.11". Economy seat width on almost all airlines is 17"-18".

 

[RaySharpton]

Yes, CBR is the "hub" station and also has storage for all the gondolas - I think I've read ~300 cars.

This was some months ago of the rear with some gondolas in the upper right side.

A few weeks ago the lower half seems full of gondolas.

I would be interested in getting a closer look of the moving around of the gondolas from this storage to the cable.

 

[RaySharpton]

• Buses at WDW travel up to 50 mph, and sometimes have to make sudden maneuvers to avoid other traffic, or stop quickly if the driver doesn't anticipate a red light. Gondola lifts at WDW will max out at 11.2 mph, and have no interfering traffic.
  
• Tie-downs on buses are required by FDOT regulations; there's no such requirement on gondola lifts.
• I don't know how quickly the gondolas will decelerate for an emergency stop, but consider the physics:
  • When a bus stops, all of the inertial force on the riders is directed forwards.
    
  • When a gondola stops or decelerates, the gondola will swing forward and tilt, causing the inertial force to be at an angle partially towards the floor, or downward from the rider's perspective.

The vendor, Doppelmayr, says the seat width is 460 mm per person, which is 18.11". Economy seat width on almost all airlines is 17"-18".

This is not the actual Disney Skyliner Gondola, but similar in size with photos of three guests on the left and two guests on the right with what appears to one guest taking the selfie. It looks like the photo is taken of the sliding doors in the background. And everyone seems to lean toward the center of a photo since one guest's head is passed one the sliding glass doors.

I am not saying this is what guest would look like in the Disney Skyliner Gondola, but it is just a suggestion of what it may look like.

This is an actual photo of the Disney Skyliner Gondola looking from the sliding glass doors. I like the extra expense on the wooden benches. It reminds of the decades ago when they used to have resting and people watching all over Magic Kingdom park.

They could have used these cheaper aluminum benches that appear to be the same gondola by the same manufacturer shown by BlogMickey at a convention show floor. I think that I would rather sit on wood than metal.

It looks like they added a lot more to the design of the Disney Skyliner Gondola.

Since I learned to "snip" photos from a video. I took these photos for the first post video.

The measurements for height show 2,220 mm = 87.4 inches or 7.2 feet.

I'm not sure what the two lengths mean. Maybe one is an interior length and the added length might be the total outside length.

I don't know.

The measurements for length show 2,256 mm = 87.4 inches or 7.2 feet.

The measurements for length show 2,256 mm + 220 mm = 2,476 mm

The measurements for length show 2,476mm = 97.4 inches or 8.1 feet.

The measurements for entrance show 80 mm = 31.4 inches or 2.6 feet.

I don't know if this is also the exact measurement of the Disney Skyliner Gondola.

Another photo of the entrance measurement between the Disney Skyliner Gondola sliding doors open.

The measurements for entrance show 800 mm = 31.4 inches or 2.6 feet.

These are two photos of one video scanning across the bench showing their estimate of seat width. The white lines are showing their estimate of seat width.

There were a total of four spaces in the video. They estimate a 460 mm width per seat.

The measurements for one seat area show 460 mm = 18.1 inches or 1.5 feet.

So the whole bench is 6 feet long.


I repeat that I don't know if this will be the same measurements as the Disney Skyliner Gondola as this is a similar gondola made by Doppelmayr.

I am getting excited about seeing them in action when I visit in a few weeks.




.

 

[RaySharpton]

BlogMickey posted some updates.

The Disney Hollywood Studios Skyliner Gondola Station sure has come a long way since construction began.

As we get closer to an opening date for the Disney Skyliner gondola system at Walt Disney World, many guests have wondered what the travel time will be between the stations located at various parks and resorts. Today, Disney released information on the Disney Skyliner travel times between all of the resorts and theme parks. Here’s a breakdown of the times:

• Disney’s Caribbean Beach to Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 6-7 minutes
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort to Disney’s Pop Century Resort or Disney’s Art of Animation Resort: under six minutes
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort to Disney’s Riviera Resort: about 5 minutes
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort to International Gateway at Epcot: approximately 15 minutes
• Disney’s Riviera Resort to International Gateway at Epcot: approximately nine minutes

One bit of interesting information is that time is listed for Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort straight to Epcot, confirming that you’ll be able to stay on the gondola system through the Riviera Resort station.

The DHS Tram construction is coming along with the new security check station.

It looks like they also added Uber and Lyft ride pick up sign close to the DHS entrance, too.


Not part of the Gondola info, but boy they sure are making changes to the MK and EPCOT entrances with new construction as far as distance to the entrance with temporary tram drop-off at MK and other things at EPCOT.

That fenced off area on the right was a sidewalk from the Handicap Parking for Magic Kingdom.

Disney has started with the first phase of the Epcot entrance overhaul project. We made it out to Epcot today to find that the parking lot tram drop off area has been rerouted. Just like Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios before it, Epcot will now have a temporary drop off area for the parking lot tram. Here’s a look at the area as of this morning.

The parking lot tram no longer drops off at the usual drop off point near bag check. There are now two tram drop off areas.

First, the tram drops off between the Amaze and Journey parking lots services the Journey, Discover, Create, and Amaze lots. Of course, it would be much quicker just to walk from either the Amaze or Journey lots.

The drop off here stops well short of the main entrance.

The walkway from this drop off point goes through a portion of the old handicap lot and towards the East bag check.

Disney has started with the first phase of the Epcot entrance overhaul project. We made it out to Epcot today to find that the parking lot tram drop off area has been rerouted. Just like Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios before it, Epcot will now have a temporary drop off area for the parking lot tram. Here’s a look at the area as of this morning.

The parking lot tram no longer drops off at the usual drop off point near bag check. There are now two tram drop off areas.

First, the tram drops off between the Amaze and Journey parking lots services the Journey, Discover, Create, and Amaze lots. Of course, it would be much quicker just to walk from either the Amaze or Journey lots.

 

[fabfemmeboy]

Guess what you do not have to ride it. So do not ride it find another way around. I sure will and I will have a great time

Except you do if you don't want to switch to a different resort. That's what's frustrating me. Pop has been our go-to place for years, in part because it was the only value resort that didn't share buses. While there hasn't been an official statement yet about continuation of bus service at skyliner-served resorts, as others have pointed out the monorail resorts don't have bus service to MK/EPCOT because they're reachable by monorail and boat. That means it's unlikely that Pop/AoA will continue to have bus service to DHS/EPCOT once the Skyliner is up and running. That's going to be a problem for us because my partner is terrified of these sorts of gondola rides, as we learned by accident on our last vacation. That means we'll need to find a new resort to call home...either bumping up to a more expensive category or going back down to All Stars which are usually louder, more crowded, and the bus situation is a nightmare.

I mostly just don't know how anyone could watch the average bus loading process at a Disney on-site resort and think that gondolas will make that process safer and more efficient. People can't figure out how to load children and strollers (to say nothing of ECVs they aren't used to driving) onto a stationary bus one at a time; do they really think people will be able to move on and off these gondolas on the first try?

 

[jo-jo]

Anyone know the size of the doors on monorails? Just curious how it compares to the gondolas.

 

[gap2368]

Except you do if you don't want to switch to a different resort. That's what's frustrating me. Pop has been our go-to place for years, in part because it was the only value resort that didn't share buses. While there hasn't been an official statement yet about continuation of bus service at skyliner-served resorts, as others have pointed out the monorail resorts don't have bus service to MK/EPCOT because they're reachable by monorail and boat. That means it's unlikely that Pop/AoA will continue to have bus service to DHS/EPCOT once the Skyliner is up and running. That's going to be a problem for us because my partner is terrified of these sorts of gondola rides, as we learned by accident on our last vacation. That means we'll need to find a new resort to call home...either bumping up to a more expensive category or going back down to All Stars which are usually louder, more crowded, and the bus situation is a nightmare.

I mostly just don't know how anyone could watch the average bus loading process at a Disney on-site resort and think that gondolas will make that process safer and more efficient. People can't figure out how to load children and strollers (to say nothing of ECVs they aren't used to driving) onto a stationary bus one at a time; do they really think people will be able to move on and off these gondolas on the first try?

You can always taxi to the parks if they do not do then bus also I normily stay at the all stars the only time they share bus is in the off times and this is getting less And I think they might have less room then POP so less people on the bus. I find staying at sport the best so hour first if they do share bus but like I said it is getting less often

There will be two load area one on the front one in the back for handicap my guess is they will make people fold stroller to board. It really should be smother then you think

 

[kaytieeldr]

And I think they might have less room then POP so less people on the bus.

You are correct. As usual . Each All Star absolutely has less room than Pop. Movies and Sports 1,920 each. Music 1,640. https://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/hotels/number-rooms

 

[gap2368]

You are correct. As usual . Each All Star absolutely has less room than Pop. Movies and Sports 1,920 each. Music 1,640. https://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/hotels/number-rooms

It as just a guess since all stars have three floor and pop has 4 it seems like the same number of building

 

[RaySharpton]

Anyone know the size of the doors on monorails? Just curious how it compares to the gondolas.

The Disney Mark VI monorail has four doors that are 72-inches in height, but I can't find the width with Google search.

The photo shows the A.D.A. 32-inch wheelchair ramp fits easily with more room to spare as seen to the left of the ramp, so the door width is wider than the gondola.

 

[jo-jo]

Thank you. Seeing that picture makes me wonder if there are going to be a lot of banging into the side of the gondolas getting out. Maybe I'm just a bad driver but I felt like the ramps were small. But at least the gondolas will be level platform, not a 4 inch drop.

 

[RaySharpton]

Thank you. Seeing that picture makes me wonder if there are going to be a lot of banging into the side of the gondolas getting out. Maybe I'm just a bad driver but I felt like the ramps were small. But at least the gondolas will be a level platform, not a 4-inch drop.

I guess for newbies, there might always be some issues entering a smaller space.

Well, I must admit I sometimes have trouble too when I am really tired after a long day or I am so excited that I forget to pay attention when exiting the bus ramp.

And the Disney Skyliner Gondola open doors are about the same width of the ramp. The A.D.A. usually requires the width of 32-inch ramps, I believe. Someone could correct me if I am mistaken.

On the bus and monorail, mobility scooter drivers had to learn to drive straight up the ramp instead of turning into the raised side lip of the ramp. This seemed to happen more when exiting and when maybe the excitement of arriving at a park they took their eyes off of driving down the ramp and turned in the lip of the ramp and possible over the ramp.

I think that if you allow yourself time to drive straight through into the gondola opened doors, instead of turning into the opened gondola doors you will be fine.

Think of it like driving your mobility scooter into your resort room straight instead of turning into the resort room door.

I know some sidewalks in front of some of the resorts are not that wide and you have to turn to get in, but you could keep your mobility scooter as far as you could on the sidewalk away from the front door so that by the time you start to enter the doorway, your mobility scooter should be fairly straight.

I don't know if you have had to drive backward off of the monorail before, but just put your speed mode in slow and exit slowly or someone could stand in front of you and put their hands on your tiller and walk the mobility scooter back and off the monorail or gondola.

 

[fabfemmeboy]

You can always taxi to the parks if they do not do then bus also I normily stay at the all stars the only time they share bus is in the off times and this is getting less And I think they might have less room then POP so less people on the bus. I find staying at sport the best so hour first if they do share bus but like I said it is getting less often

There will be two load area one on the front one in the back for handicap my guess is they will make people fold stroller to board. It really should be smother then you think

Have you watched people try to fold down their strollers? It's hardly a fast process with those giant things parents wield now!

Also taking a cab to parks seems absurd to me - free transportation is one of the perks of staying on-property! One of the bigger perks, honestly. As for All Stars, we've stayed there numerous times before and while peak times are pretty good about getting buses in and out to each resort, anything other than morning and evening rush has been pretty dismal for us, including (perhaps in particular) heading to dinner at Disney Springs. Not during a crowded time of year, either, but just a mess. Again, it just seems to me like this is a lot of money spent on transportation that won't make the door-to-door experience faster and will cause more problems than would be solved by spending a comparable amount of money on other options (like adding more buses/drivers). We'll see. It may turn out this is faster and fabulous and there's no problem loading at all. But at this point I can't imagine the people who can't figure out how to board a bus quickly and efficiently will do better when the whole thing is moving and swings and you have to transfer at least once.