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

[mamabunny]

from blogmickey

I...

Well...

:::shudder:::

So, that's just a whole lot of NOPE for me! They would just have to leave me there, and periodically send up a carrier pigeon with a Diet Coke and a Micky-Shaped Rice Krispy treat!

(Can you tell? I don't have a fear of heights - I have a fear of *falling* from heights! LOL)

 

[RaySharpton]

Disney Skyliner Stations Nearing Completion at Disney’s Riviera Resort and Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort

https://blogmickey.com/2019/07/disney-skyliner-station-at-disneys-riviera-resort-nearing-completion/

by blogmickey

Disney’s Riviera Resort Skyliner Station
We’ll start with the station closest to Disney’s Riviera Resort. Interestingly enough, this station will service both the Riviera Resort and the Aruba section of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. At least, Disney has built out pathways that run from Aruba directly into the station, and Riviera Resort beyond that. Of course, Disney has yet to officially comment on the exact logistics of the Disney Skyliner gondola system, but it would appear that guests will be able to freely walk up to this station, or the station over near the main entrance to the resort.
Here’s a look at the Disney Skyliner at the Riviera Resort as seen from the Aruba section of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort.

Taking a look to the left side of the above image, we see patterns on the ground as well as astroturf.

Here’s a view of the Epcot (left) side of the station. This line will take guests through a turn station in the Boardwalk Resort parking lot and straight on to the International Gateway station.

As you may have noticed, the Disney Skyliner signage has been added to the main entrance ramp.

Shifting our perspective a bit, we can get a better view of the front of the station.

A wider view from the same angle can be found below.

Looking even further right of the above photo, we can see the connecting pathway to Disney’s Riviera Resort.

Here’s a ground-level view of the same angle.

Here’s a closer look at the pathway that we can see above.

 

[RaySharpton]

Disney Skyliner Stations Nearing Completion at Disney’s Riviera Resort and Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort

https://blogmickey.com/2019/07/disney-skyliner-station-at-disneys-riviera-resort-nearing-completion/

by blogmickey

Here’s a more concentrated view of the line that leads to the central Caribbean Beach station.

Speaking of the central station at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, let’s go take a look at that station now. This station is the powerhouse of the entire system. It houses the central drive that powers all of the lines. It’s also the parking space for all 300+ gondola cabins. With the impending storm, work for the day had ended, and all of the gondola cabins were in storage.

You can see the thunderstorm north of Walt Disney World property below. We’ll take the opportunity to talk about the Disney Skyliner and the consistent afternoon storms that roll through Walt Disney World in the summers. First, the entire system is grounded. That means that while Disney won’t operate the system during storms, it would still be reasonably safe to do so as far as lightning is concerned. Next, the line will operate similar to how the outdoor attractions do in the parks. There are two radiuses that the operators of the system will take into consideration with regards to operation of the system. The outer radius will be wider than the attractions, and that’s when Disney will consider cycling the system to empty. A lightning strike within the “attraction radius” would prompt a mandatory cycle to empty. Guests won’t be stranded in gondola cabins out on the line during a storm, Disney will cycle to empty, which means simply not loading new guests until a storm passes. On to the photos.

Here’s a very wide photo of the station and the storage area seen above.

An elevated view shows that the station has what appears to be a bus stop. We can also see how far along the station is. It looks like all major work on the station has been completed.

Here’s a closer look at what appears to be a bus stop.

Here are a couple closer looks inside the station, showing off some lighting elements and a few Disney Skyliner gondola cabins on the lines.

Finally, here are a few more ground photos of the station from the parking lot and yet-to-open walkways.

Disney has announced that the Disney Skyliner gondola system will open on September 29th at Walt Disney World.

 

[RaySharpton]

 

[mamabunny]

I do like the theming that each station has - it's one of the areas where Disney shines, and they have not disappointed with these stations.

It's also good to see confirmation that they will "cycle to empty" when storms are approaching. I know that safety is always a very high priority with Disney, so that really isn't surprising - I'm just a nerd for details. I like to know things like that. They make feel all warm and fuzzy (and safe!)!

 

[DisneyOma]

I do like the theming that each station has - it's one of the areas where Disney shines, and they have not disappointed with these stations.

It's also good to see confirmation that they will "cycle to empty" when storms are approaching. I know that safety is always a very high priority with Disney, so that really isn't surprising - I'm just a nerd for details. I like to know things like that. They make feel all warm and fuzzy (and safe!)!

Too bad the cables and towers are so ugly though. Takes away the theming of the resorts they cut through, IMO.

If they cycle to empty for storms, they'll be empty pretty much every afternoon in the summer?

 

[ZJ5/9D47]

If they cycle to empty for storms, they'll be empty pretty much every afternoon in the summer?

I worry about this happening. When the Friendship boats are down it takes 20-30 minutes for the busses to start (we were advised this by the boat captain since we were stuck at the Swan/Dolphin mid-trip). Since the busses and gondolas load in completely different sides of the park and resorts, it seems a frequent possibility of planning on finishing the day at the gondola station in Epcot and then being forced to walk all the way to the front where the busses load if a bad enough storm rolls in. Guests can't plan to end the day at the front of the park either if they don't always have busses running at 20 minute intervals to the gondola-serviced resorts.

 

[mamabunny]

... Guests can't plan to end the day at the front of the park either if they don't always have busses running at 20 minute intervals to the gondola-serviced resorts.

But have we ever gotten confirmation from Disney that they intend to fully discontinue bus service to/from all of the Skyliner Resorts?

I know that (for example) even though the 3 "old ladies" (what my hubby calls them LOL) Contemporary, Poly & Grand Floridian have monorail service, they also have bus service. Sometimes shared with other nearby hotels - but they do still have bus service.

 

[lanejudy]

But have we ever gotten confirmation from Disney that they intend to fully discontinue bus service to/from all of the Skyliner Resorts?

I know that (for example) even though the 3 "old ladies" (what my hubby calls them LOL) Contemporary, Poly & Grand Floridian have monorail service, they also have bus service. Sometimes shared with other nearby hotels - but they do still have bus service.

WDW has not stated anything definitive regarding buses to/from Skyliner resorts and DHS or Epcot. There is a lot of speculation on both sides of that question, but no answers.

The monorail resorts only offer bus service to MK or Epcot if the monorail is down. Bus is not generally an option for those resorts from to/from those parks.

Likewise, there are no regular buses to/from the Epcot-area resorts for DHS as they are generally serviced by boat. If the boats are shut down long enough, then buses will be put into use.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[RaySharpton]

Job Posting Gives More Details on Disney Skyliner Gondola System

By blogmickey

Disney has posted a job online for an hourly Cast Member position for the Disney Skyliner gondola system. The job posting contains a lot of the wording we’ve seen before from marketing materials, but it does contain a couple of interesting tidbits that we highlight below.

First, if you haven’t heard yet, Disney is opening a new transportation method at the end of September that will connect four resorts to two theme parks. Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Pop Century Resort, Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, and Disney’s Riviera Resort will connect, via various stations, to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot.

The gondola system will reach about 100 feet off the ground and it’s highest and sweep low over Hourglass Lake at its lowest. Travel times will be anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes between resorts and parks. The system is constantly loading and moving, meaning that waits for the system shouldn’t get as overwhelming as some bus lines can be. As far as capacity, Doppelmayr (and Disney) state that each cabin can hold up to 10 guests. Of course, the reality of the situation will likely lead to a cabin of 6 guests considered “full”.

Ok, with some of the groundwork out of the way, let’s take a look at some of the newer information.

First, Cast Members will earn a starting hourly wage of $12/hour, moving up to $13/hour when the system opens on September 29th.

The second new piece of information and perhaps the most interesting is the hours that Cast will be expected to work. Keep in mind that this position is considered a guest-facing position (read: not maintenance). According to the job listing, Cast Members will be asked to not only work first and second shifts, but also third shift where applicable. Disney goes on to list hours “as early as 5 am” and “as late as 3 am, 4 am, or 5 am”. Disney notes that the Walt Disney World Resort operates 24 hours a day, even if the parks aren’t open. Now, that’s not to say that the gondolas will operate 24 hours a day because they likely won’t. That said, Disney looks to be anticipating long hours, if not for the Cast Members alone.

This is interesting in how long the Disney Skyliner Gondola Stations may be open during each day.

I am also not saying that the Disney Skyliner Gondolas are going to be running all of those hours that the Disney cast members might be working.

But it is interesting information.

"Cast Members will be asked to not only work first and second shifts, but also third shift where applicable. Disney goes on to list hours “as early as 5 am” and “as late as 3 am, 4 am, or 5 am”."

"Now, that’s not to say that the gondolas will operate 24 hours a day because they likely won’t. That said, Disney looks to be anticipating long hours, if not for the Cast Members alone."

 

[lanejudy]

I think the longer hours are for times where there are After Hours events which can end as late as midnight or 1am or maybe even 2am depending on time of year. I suppose a 5am shift end might be if they ever offer a 24-hour event. Presumably this means they are expecting the Skyliner to be operational as late as the park(s) served are open, plus a period of time after to get people back to resorts. (By comparison, the monorail has stated running times that may not correspond to the parks' hours.)

 

[mamabunny]

I think the longer hours are for times where there are After Hours events which can end as late as midnight or 1am or maybe even 2am depending on time of year. I suppose a 5am shift end might be if they ever offer a 24-hour event. Presumably this means they are expecting the Skyliner to be operational as late as the park(s) served are open, plus a period of time after to get people back to resorts. (By comparison, the monorail has stated running times that may not correspond to the parks' hours.)

Exactly! Don't they run the buses for something like 2 hours after closing? They even still run Park-to-Park buses in addition to Resort buses because they know that some folks will have parked at (for example) MK, but finished the day at AK.

 

[gap2368]

Exactly! Don't they run the buses for something like 2 hours after closing? They even still run Park-to-Park buses in addition to Resort buses because they know that some folks will have parked at (for example) MK, but finished the day at AK.

They run the buses until the last guest is back to where they need to be whether thst is 3 hours after park closes or 5 ( I really hope it is not 5) you will move then likely share a bus with other resorts at this time

I was leaving the MK very late one night when I was staying at AKL I got on the AK buss thank goodness I realized my Mistake Before the bus left

 

[DisneyOma]

I think they are also planning on having a backlog of guests who need to be transported in case they have to shut the system down for an extended period of time, and to have coverage at the stations if they need to have an evacuation - those could run on for hours.

 

[RaySharpton]

It's been a while since I've seen anything posted about wheelchairs and the Disney Skyliner Gondola system.

On a side note.

I plan on driving down to Florida for four weeks at the end of August.

I usually fly to places like WDW.

I haven't driven down to Florida since I lost my car about six years ago now.

I am going to rent a car for the whole time instead of flying and stay in Daytona Beach, Florida for two weeks and then drive to Orlando, Florida for two weeks staying offsite for the first time in decades.

It should be interesting to me. I mean driving everywhere on vacation and loading and unloading my wheelchair each time.

I don't plan on activating my WDW Annual Pass until my December trip which I already have bought a Delta Airline flight and staying at the Disney Pop Century Resort.

I am going to visit WDW without going to the parks.

At least that is my plan.

I may watch Illuminations from the bridge near the Boardwalk Resort or the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the Polynesian Resort beach or pier.

I guess I will visit areas that I haven't spent much time at when I went to the parks like Disney Springs, etc.

My main plan is to check out the Disney Skyliner Gondola Stations and hope that they might have a soft opening that might allow me access.

Wouldn't that be cool!

Actually, my main plan is to just relax.

Maybe visiting the resorts like the Disney Caribbean Beach Resort, I might ask to take some photos and tape measurements of one of their refurbished Roll-in Shower Resort Rooms.

I will also try and visit all of the Disney Skyliner Gondola Stations.

I would like to take photos of each area entering the stations and going to the spot where they would load and unload the wheelchairs and mobility scooters.

While in Daytona Beach, Florida, I plan a two-day visit to the Kennedy Space Center and I will take some photos of accessibility with my wheelchair from parking to using their bus tours, etc.

While in Orlando, Florida, besides visiting WDW, I would like to visit Universal Studios Florida and check out their accessibility. I haven't decided to buy tickets, yet. I'll wait and see.

Anyone else visiting WDW in September?

 

[Simba's Mom]

Anyone else visiting WDW in September?

I am!

 

[gap2368]

Disney just did a video on the costume the CM will be wearing

Costume

Enjoy

 

[mamabunny]

Disney just did a video on the costume the CM will be wearing

Costume

Enjoy

I saw those outfits - I really like them!

 

[Simba's Mom]

I am!

Ray, I'm really hoping to meet you in September. Actually, first I'm hoping that your recent accident hasn't derailed your plans for heading to Florida and WDW at the end of the month. I'll be the solo on an ECV, planning to be at both the Poly Beach and Boardwalk area. Maybe we can share a gondola over to CBR!

 

[Simba's Mom]

Actually, that brings up a general question about the gondola system and multiple mobility devices. Does anyone know whether the gondolas are large enough so that more than one ECV/wheelchair can fit per gondola? What if 2 ECVs are traveling together? I know the monorails can per car. I've been on the monorail with another ECV right next to me. And each bus can carry 2 ECVs. What about the gondolas?