These Disney Resort Hotels Offer Direct Access to the Skyliner

It was an instant game-changer when the Disney Skyliner became part of Walt Disney World’s transportation lineup. Years later, riding the gondola system has become as much a rite of passage as the monorail. It’s no surprise that the resorts with direct access to the Skyliner have become more popular than ever. It’s also worth mentioning that a variety of hotels comprise these resorts. Therefore, you don’t have to pay a premium price to stay near the Skyliner like you would a monorail hotel. You’ll have a choice of budget-friendly accommodations.

Below, we’ll discuss the Skyliner Resorts and where the gondolas will take you from them. We’ve also shared a few tips and distinguished the price range for each one.

List of Disney Resorts with Skyliner Stations

The following resorts all offer direct access to the Skyliner.

• Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• Disney’s Pop Century Resort
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
• Disney’s Riviera Resort

Additionally, a few resorts are within walking distance of Epcot’s International Gateway, where guests can access the Skyliner: Disney’s Beach Club, Disney’s Yacht Club, and Disney’s BoardWalk Resort. You would typically only use the Skyliner at these resorts for leisure.

Access and Destinations

Below, we’ll discuss where to access the Skyliner at these resorts and their destinations. Sometimes, you must transfer to a different line to reach your destination. We’ve noted those places below. You can expect long lines for the Skyliner at the resort first thing in the morning. You’ll also encounter long lines when you leave Epcot or Disney’s Hollywood Studios in the evening. Thankfully, the lines move relatively quickly. However, they are so long that they can be intimidating. Our best tip is to hang out in the parks for a little while after they close. Most of the park’s larger shops stay open an hour past closing. So you do not need to be in a rush to leave. As far as traveling in the morning, rope drop crowds will be inevitable.

Disney’s Art of Animation and Pop Century

Disney’s Art of Animation and Pop Century share a Skyliner station. The station is located on the bridge between the two resorts in the center of Hourglass Lake. The lake is immediately between the resorts. The length of your walk to the Skyliner station will depend on your room location at either resort. The longest distance we’ve tracked is 0.33 miles or about 8-10 minutes from the Little Mermaid rooms to the Skylner station.

Once you board the Skyliner, you have to exit at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort’s station. From Caribbean Beach, you can board a line directly to Disney’s Hollywood Studios or a line that continues directly to Epcot. The line to Epcot drops down at Disney’s Riviera Resort. However, you do not have to exit at Disney’s Riviera unless that is your destination.

When you return from Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot, or the Riviera, you must exit at Caribbean Beach. You’ll then board the direct shared line to Disney’s Art of Animation and Pop Century.

• Skyliner Location: Center of the Bridge over Hourglass Lake
• Skyliner Destinations: Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
• Transfer to: Disney’s Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, and Disney’s Riviera Resort

Disney’s Art of Animation and Pop Century are both value resorts. Other than the family suites at Art of Animation, these resorts will be among the most budget-friendly accommodations at Disney World.

Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort

Disney’s Caribbean Beach is home to the Skyliner’s central hub. All the gondola lines feed to this station. Guests of Disney’s Caribbean Beach are within walking distance of the hub and the Riviera station. In some instances, the Riviera station might be closer to your accommodations. For example, if you’re staying in Aruba, the Riveria station is less than a five-minute walk. So, you would likely want to board the Skyliner at the Riviera for Epcot.

• Skyliner Location: Near Jamaica and Across the Lake from Trinidad
• Skyliner Destinations: Disney’s Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, Disney’s Riviera Resort, Disney’s Pop Century and Art of Animation
• Transfers: NA

Disney’s Caribbean Beach is a moderate resort. Prices are higher than those of Pop Century and Art of Animation but considerably lower than those of Disney’s Riviera Resort, which is our next stop on the Skyliner.

Tip: Given its vast size, some might consider this resort challenging to maneuver. However, the resort has an internal bus that picks up at a stop near the Skyliner’s exit. If you do not want to walk back to your room, you can take the internal shuttle. Make sure you know which bus stop is closest to your room. (See our guide to walking distances at Caribbean Beach for more details.)

Disney’s Riviera Resort

Our last Skyliner Resort is Disney’s Riviera. This resort has a bonus: It’s an interior hotel only a few steps away, with a covered walkway leading to the Skyliner. (However, if you’re visiting Epcot, you must walk to the opposite side to board, which is not covered.) You may remember that we recently discussed in this article how the Skyliner continues to operate when it rains but not during inclement weather that involves lightning or strong winds.

You can board a Skyliner directly to Epcot or Caribbean Beach from Disney’s Riviera. Once you reach Caribbean Beach, you must exit. From there, you can transfer to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Pop Century, or Art of Animation Resort.

• Skyliner Location: Immediately next to the hotel (You won’t have to walk far.)
• Skyliner Destinations: EPCOT, Disney’s Caribbean Beach
• Transfers: Hollywood Studios, Pop Century, Art of Animation

Disney’s Riviera is a deluxe villa resort. This will be the most expensive accommodations on the Skyliner and among the highest-priced hotels at Disney World. It is a nice hotel with high-end finishes and fantastic dining options.

Final Thoughts

We love staying on the Skyliner, and our only major complaint about any of these resorts is that the line can be long first thing in the morning. However, you will rarely encounter a long line throughout the rest of the day. So, if you avoid early mornings and park closing times, you probably won’t encounter a long wait. That said, there are advantages to arriving at the park early. For more on transportation at Disney World, you might enjoy some of these other articles:

• Using the Skyliner to Park Hop Between Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios
• Disney Resorts Ranked by Their Transportation Options
• Disney Resorts that Share a Bus Service with Others
• How to Get to Disney’s Boardwalk from Other Places on Property

You might also enjoy our entire guide to the Disney Skyliner.

In the Comments

Have you ever stayed at a resort with access to the Skyliner? Let us know your thoughts, questions, or feedback in the comments below.