Car or no car?

K

Kerpow

New Member
Hi, our trip to Disney is fast approaching and I'm wondering if we should rent a car or not? We're staying on property so would be a slave to the buses if we don't have a car. What are some considerations around renting a car? If we do have a car, do we have to pay parking every day, etc.?

Thanks in advance for your insight!
 
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Diesel Dan

Diesel Dan

Active Member
Don't bother renting a car, the buses are fine. In 15+ trips in 25 years we have never rented a car and We can count on one hand the few times we had problems. Save your car rental money for some special dining.
 
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Mander

Mander

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
It really comes down to personal preference.

We usually driven to WDW in the past and then our car sits in the resort parking lot throughout our stay. I don't like having to worry about navigating or driving- especially after a long day in the parks. I've never had an issue with the bus being too crowded or the waits being too long. When we fly, I love leaving our car in Michigan and not having to drive again until we are hope. That said, we are adults with no kids. I could see kids and strollers making one want a rental car.
 
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jaklgreen

jaklgreen

Well-Known Member
Ted Daggett said:
The DME requires you to go back to your hotel, and leave 3 hours prior to flight departure... by having a rental car, you can stay much later at the parks.
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At most I would feel comfortable staying later is 1/2 and hour. It still takes at least 30 minutes to get to the airport and you should be there over an hour before your flight(2 hours for international). So you are not really staying "much later at the parks" by driving instead of using magical express. Plus you need to return the car. The last thing I would want to worry about is getting there too late for my flight just so I could spend 30-60 minutes more at the parks. Some trips it has taken over an hour to get through security so I am happy to get to the airport early if it means not missing my flight.
 
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SAV

SAV

Well-Known Member
Our family will always get our own car. We just prefer to have our own personal space at the end, or start of a day and the freedom to go where we want, when we want to. Even if you don't know all of the roads, the Phone GPS will get you where you are going. As mentioned, MK is the only park where a bus may be quicker, but then you don't get to go on the Monorail, which to me is a big part of the trip to and from MK..."Please stand clear of the doors...".
 
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lunchbox1175

lunchbox1175

Well-Known Member
Personally, I love that fact that I don't need a car. Fly in, take Magical Express, get to resort and start having fun. The only place I feel that I have had to wait an unusual amount of time for a bus is at Disney Springs, but that was during bus stop renovations.
 
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correcaminos

correcaminos

Well-Known Member
Definitely a car for us or a car service. Considering Magical Express is now picking up 4 hours early, I really don't feel like dealing with that at all!
 
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Pixieish

Pixieish

Well-Known Member
jaklgreen said:
Maybe because getting through security is a nightmare at MCO and some people were missing flights. I would still rather be there early and wait for my flight then miss it.
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They're test-phasing tightened security at MCO. So far, I've only heard of them swabbing every single snack or food item, and asking that electronics be removed from bags.
 
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BigRedDad

BigRedDad

Well-Known Member
My only concern about not having a car on this trip is a grocery run. I am just going to have to take an hour out of the trip and Uber to one. As for buses, I am certain that having a car saves time. I timed my Summer trip staying offsite and my room-to-gate times were very consistent at each park. I will do the same when we are at OKW in 2 weeks. I expect the the room-to-gate times to be a lot more except for MK. I am hoping I am wrong, but I highly expect them to be far worse.

From Wyndham Bonnet Creek and Orange Lake Resort
MK was about 45 minutes (drive, park, walk to security check, ferry, gate)
DHS was about 8 (12) minutes
AK was about 15 (12) minutes
Epcot about 12 (15) minutes
 
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jaklgreen

jaklgreen

Well-Known Member
BigRedDad said:
My only concern about not having a car on this trip is a grocery run. I am just going to have to take an hour out of the trip and Uber to one. As for buses, I am certain that having a car saves time. I timed my Summer trip staying offsite and my room-to-gate times were very consistent at each park. I will do the same when we are at OKW in 2 weeks. I expect the the room-to-gate times to be a lot more except for MK. I am hoping I am wrong, but I highly expect them to be far worse.

From Wyndham Bonnet Creek and Orange Lake Resort
MK was about 45 minutes (drive, park, walk to security check, ferry, gate)
DHS was about 8 (12) minutes
AK was about 15 (12) minutes
Epcot about 12 (15) minutes
Click to expand...

I don't think there is any question about saving time driving yourself. There is usually 2 minds about whether or not to rent a car. Either a person/family wants to be able to go when and where they want on their own time. Or like me, don't want to have to worry about driving and watching out for other tourists who are driving. It depends on what stresses you out. If waiting for a bus stresses you out, then get a car. If dealing with driving in a strange city does not appeal, then use the buses.
 
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DfromATX

DfromATX

Well-Known Member
We've rented a car only once and that was when we did a Univeral/Disney combo trip, but I have zero issues with the buses. I think they're quite efficient and I've never had any problems.
 
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W

WWWD

Well-Known Member
If you do rent a car make sure you make a reservation. Apparently inventory is tight due to the hurricanes still. My wife was in Tampa last week (nothing big going on in the city) and with a week notice, all airport rental companies were out of everything and she took the last vehicle at a off-site Hertz. They gave her a dirty minivan as the employees felt bad for her since she was in town for a funeral. One of the guys at Hertz told her people were keeping cars longer as they dealt with insurance companies conserning their damaged vehicle from the storms. She saw several people arrive via taxi from the airport to get their car and be turned away.
 
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P

planters49

Member
We normally stay at Port Orleans and love that resort. The buses are terrible though because of the lost time spent waiting on buses. We normally drive, but last week when were there we rode the buses one day since we started at the Magic Kingdom and finished the day at Epcot. It took about 1 hour to get from Epcot after Illuminations to our resort. This included waiting in line for the bus, waiting for scooters to be loaded, etc. If we had driven that day, we could have been back at the resort in 15 minutes from the time we walked out the exit gates of Epcot.
 
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