Hi there, Lisa!
Welcome to planDisney and thank you for bringing us a fantastic
Walt Disney World Resort vacation planning question. It sounds like you're either on-site at The Most Magical Place on Earth
right now, or you're planning to visit very soon - how exciting! I'm happy to help you understand your theme park
transportation options during your thrilling day of park hopping.
Lisa, the ability to return to a theme park and retrieve a personal vehicle using complimentary Walt Disney World Resort transportation depends on the theme park operating hours. (I always refer to the
Hours & Events Calendar when I'm planning out my perfect Disney day!) Unlike the other theme parks that can be reached by multiple means of transportation, Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park is only accessible by
bus transportation. Buses run between the Disney Resort hotels and theme parks until approximately one hour after the theme parks close, Lisa. This also applies to buses running between the theme parks. Today, Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park closes at 8:00 p.m., so I encourage you to catch a bus from Magic Kingdom Park back to Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park by 9:00 p.m. if you hope to rely on complimentary transportation.
Perhaps you aren't ready to leave Magic Kingdom Park quite yet... maybe you're taking advantage of
extended evening theme park hours for Guests of Deluxe Resort hotels, Deluxe Villa Resorts, or other select hotels!? If you find that bus service has ended for the evening and you still need to reach your vehicle at Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park, you have a couple more options, Lisa. First, you could utilize a third-party rideshare service like Lyft or Uber to return to your parked vehicle at the closed theme park. Alternatively, you might consider using
Minnie Van service, a paid personal ride service powered by Lyft that'll whimsically whisk you between two points within the Walt Disney World Resort!
Lisa, if your question pertains to a future visit, I recommend parking your vehicle at the theme park you plan on
ending at, if possible, and relying on complimentary transportation to reach your starting park (with transfers at Resort hotels, if needed). This way, you'll be able to walk directly to your vehicle at the end of your day of park hopping without stressing about logistics, giving you the ability to fully focus on the fun factor! I hope you've found this information helpful and wish you a most magical time at the Walt Disney World Resort. If you have any additional questions throughout your visit, you're always welcome to revisit us here at
planDisney. We're all ears!
See ya real soon,
Lauren