Hi Susan!
I used to be very pro-car when driving to the parks since we always have one on our Walt Disney World vacations, but lately I have been letting
Disney transportation take the wheel for my family, so I would say we drive ourselves about half the time now. In my opinion, it was easier and less stressful to have a car and be on our own schedule for when we leave to go to a park or to leave a park and go back to the hotel when the kids were younger, but they also prefer using the
buses,
boats and
monorails now at ages 8 and 11. I will admit that they can be tired and cranky at the end of the day and waiting for a bus is not the most fun, especially if we just missed one.
Magic Kingdom Park is the only park we
always choose to take Disney transportation to since the bus, monorail or boat drops you right off at the park entrance. If you drive, you park at the Transportation and Ticket Center, take a tram or walk to the monorail or ferry boat and then ride over to the park entrance. This can can be quite a process and can also be tiresome at the end of the day when you can't just leave the park and go straight to your car.
The
My Disney Experience mobile app has a cool tool to use for Disney transportation. You can now see the bus schedule at your own Disney Resort hotel and when the bus will arrive at your bus stop. This is especially helpful so you aren't sitting at the stop waiting and can leisurely leave your room when you see the bus is 5-10 minutes away. For now, it doesn't show when your Disney Resort hotel bus will arrive at the parks to pick up, but I'm hoping this will be a future added benefit.
Please stop back by if you have any additional vacation planning questions.
Have a magical day!
Leslie