We Tested 3 Options to Find Out the Quickest Way from Disney’s Beach and Yacht Club to Hollywood Studios

Over the years, I cannot tell you how many times I’ve sat at Disney’s Beach Club’s bus stop and watched the same scenario play out: a family arrives and proceeds to wait on a bus. At some point, someone looks at the wait times screen and begins questioning whether they are at the right place. They then ask, “Is this how you get to Disney’s Hollywood Studios?” Unfortunately, it’s not.

If you’ve ever stayed in the Epcot Resorts Area, you already know you can take a boat or walk to Disney’s Hollywood Studios from your resort. Additionally, you can walk to Epcot (a short distance) and take the Skyliner to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. But, unfortunately, if you don’t do your research, you will waste a good deal of time on your vacation.

That said, this scenario always interests me the most. Not everyone is a planning guru. I get that. But when spending upwards of $500.00 a night on a hotel because you promised your family a trip to Walt Disney World, shouldn’t you know about some of the perks? Especially if that perk is the ability to walk to two theme parks! It’s a little humorous when you think about it, but I’ll give you a break because the truth is, we don’t know what we don’t know. These types of experiences are what inspired me to write this series of Resorts Gal Routes. If I can help even a few of you figure out how to get where you’re going ahead of time, the effort will be worth it.

Who knows? You might even be able to help someone with directions, too. Disney World is a big and often intimidating place for many. So below, we’ll discuss how to get to Disney’s Hollywood Studios from the Beach and Yacht Club and which route is the fastest.

Route 1: Taking the FriendShip boats from Beach Club to Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Disney’s Beach and Yacht Club are sister resorts. In the photo below, the Beach Club is the blue resort on the right, and the Yacht Club is the grey resort on the left. These resorts share multiple amenities, including a boat dock at the lighthouse. You can exit the resort, walk to the lighthouse, and take one of the FriendShips to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. On the way to Hollywood Studios, the boat stops at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin. This route takes an average of approximately 13 minutes, give or take a few minutes for the additional stop. The return route averages the same amount of time.

Route 2: Taking the Walking Path from Beach Club to Disney’s Hollywood Studios

You can also walk from Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We enjoy this walking path, but it’s relatively long. You’ll want to consider if everyone in your party is up for the distance. The path is also almost entirely in direct sunlight during daytime hours. The distance is 0.85 miles and takes approximately 20 minutes at an average pace. (We’re by no means speed-walking.) For reference, I tracked this distance from the lighthouse as an origin point. So you’ll want to add a few minutes to leave the room, exit the resort, etc.

While I love the FriendShips, I almost always prefer the walk. If you happen to leave Hollywood Studios in the evening and encounter a long line for the boats, the walking path is much quicker. It’s also the perfect way to decompress after a long day in the park if you’re up for a few extra steps.

Route 3: Taking the Skyliner from Epcot’s International Gateway to Disney’s Hollywood Studios

If you want to take the Skyliner, you can do so. I don’t necessarily consider this a traditional option, but something you might do for taking the Skyliner. You’ll need to walk to Epcot’s International Gateway from the resort. The walk is short. It takes about 8 minutes from the lighthouse, less if you leave the Beach Club. You probably won’t run into a long line for the Skyliner in the morning at Epcot’s International Gateway.

However, you must exit and transfer to Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney’s Caribbean Beach. This is where you could potentially run into a long line. So, we would not recommend taking this route first thing in the morning. If you don’t run into a line, this route averages about 28 minutes. That includes walking to Epcot’s International Gateway, the travel time to Caribbean Beach, and transferring to Hollywood Studios. Again, this average does not include waiting in line, which can make the timing vary greatly.

We tend to make this route in the afternoons and rarely run into a line of more than 30-40 guests, which is not a big deal. You can also take this route when leaving Disney’s Hollywood Studios. However, we wouldn’t recommend it around closing time.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the FriendShips are the fastest way to get from Disney’s Beach and Yacht Club to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. However, the walking path is a close runner-up and could be quicker based on how fast you walk or how long you wait for the boat. For fun, I often watch the boats when I’m making this walk to see if they pass me, and they almost always do.

However, you may remember if you’re making the entire route between Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios for park-hopping, we found that all three options average the same amount of time. For more in our series, you might enjoy:

• How to Get to Port Orleans French Quarter from Disney Springs
• How to Get to Disney’s Boardwalk (with Resort Transfers)
• How to Get to the Hoop Dee Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness
• How to Get to ‘Ohana at the Polynesian (With Resort Transfers)

You might also enjoy our Resorts Gal Routes series, which shares some of our favorite routes to popular Walt Disney World destinations.

In the Comments

Were you surprised by our findings? Did you know you could walk to Disney’s Hollywood Studios from the Beach and Yacht Club? Let us know your thoughts, experiences, or any questions below in the comments section.