Epcot's International Gateway Question...

[Yensid TlaW]

Did a tram ever used to operate behind the International Gateway at Epcot? I'm guessing the answer is obviously "yes" because of the setup back there, but the earliest I remember entering Epcot that way was from the Yacht Club in 1995, and it wasn't operating then. When did it serve between the Yacht and Beach Club or Swan and Dolphin and Epcot? Or was the structure put there and never used?

[JP12]

I believe there used to be a tram that ran from the International Gateway back to the Swan/Dolphin Hotels. Those hotels were built before the Yacht and Beach Club and the Boardwalk, so it would have been a pretty long walk through basically nothing around the lake from the Swan/Dolphin to Epcot.

[danyoung]

If you go back to one of the original Epcot promotional videos, the one with the teens touring Futureworld and the older couple touring World Showcase, you will indeed see the older couple being delivered by a tram to the International Gateway.

[Speedway]

Being delivered hahaha

[testtrack321]

From what I could tell, it used to go up the ramp, over the bridge, then to the swan and dolphen, while the people from the yach and beach used the passage below the bridge to get to the park.

[maelstrom]

I actually used this tram in 1993 while staying at the Dolphin for a convention. It was like a regular WDW tram but painted pink and teal like the Swan & Dolphin. It was a great little ride and quick way to Epcot. They should bring it back and have it service the Boardwalk and Yacht & Beach as well. It would probably be quicker than waiting for the boat (and hold more people!).

[mkt]

What route would it take though, since all of the pedestrian walkways are there?

[maelstrom]

Originally Posted by mkt

What route would it take though, since all of the pedestrian walkways are there?

Ah, you're asking for *gasp* thinking, Rob? Gosh...

Does anyone have a map of the area with the hotels and walkways noted? What route did the tram take when it was operating?

My memories of this are vague. I was only seven years old in 1993.

[mkt]

I was 12... and living in the Caribbean. My memories are nonexistant

[SkywayFA]

The trams were run by the Friendship Boat crews years ago. And was not considered transportation.


Sean

[captsmith84]

The trams ran to the Swan and Dolphin via the Boardwalk. (Yes, the wooden boardwalk was actually there before the Boardwalk Hotel was ever built.)

The Trams ran until about a year before the Boardwalk started construction.

There is no viable route to bring back the trams to the Boardwalk at this time, nor would it be safe. The only thing that will help is actually to replace the aging (and extremely slow boats i might add) with newer and faster boats.