Could I do this regarding Disney Transportation?

[durangojim]

This is a little convoluted, but my goal is to save some money and not have to drive myself.

My wife and I are planning on running the WDW 10K in January, we're also going on a Disney cruise the same day as the race. Apparently on race day you need to be up around 3am for a 5:30am race.
Our options for getting to Port Canaveral are:

1. Renting a car and driving that morning -- I'm not really interested in this because I have a feeling we'll be tired and I don't want to hassle with returning the car, etc.
2. Getting a towncar from the resort - would be the easiest but also most expensive, and I'd like to save some money if I can
3. Take Disney transfers from the resort to the port - reasonably priced for 2 but in the past we've left the resort late between 12 and 12:30 and we'd like to be on the ship as early as possible as we have a suite and want to enjoy all the benefits of it

So this brings me to my final option, could we take the magical express back to the airport around 9 and then take Disney transfers from the airport to the port? It seems like we could but it also leaves the most possibilities to go wrong, like if we don't get back to our resort in time from the race.

What do you think?

 

[englanddg]

Disney ME to MCO and then to Port Canaveral sounds like your best bet. I would plan in some funds to account for the fact you may miss your ME bus. If that happens, don't fret. Just grab one of the taxis that loiter outside the resorts to MCO and be on your way!

 

[Phonedave]

Are you really going to save that much time?

Lets say you race at 5:30 AM. I am going to say you finish the race at 7:00 AM (your worried about being tired after a 10k, so I am going to say your are doing 12 minute miles)

You get lucky and get a good bus and are back at your resort at 7:45 AM - you shower, pack up, and leave and you are ready for a DME at lets say 8:45. Since you are not going to plan things that closely, the DME gets you at 9:00 AM, so you are at the airport at 9:30 AM so you get lucky again and get on a 10:00 bus to the port.

Thats a lot of work, and a lot of things going right just to get on a 10:00 AM bus. Me, I would rent a car - you will still be stuck using disney transport to the race (dont drive) - but you can pack your car the night before, and just have your shower stuff and a change of clothes in the room. Come back, shower, and you are on the road to the port at 8:45, and that time is under your control.

-dave

 

[DVCOwner]

There are town cars from several places in Orlando that will drive you to the port. If it is more than one person going, it will not cost much more than the Disney bus from the Airport. My son and his wife did this once.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Disney transfers are $35 a person. We had 3 people last week from Boardwalk Villas to port so that would have been $105. We checked the price of a town car and found one for $177 (and that's including tip as well) For us it was worth the extra $24 a person to get to port early. I don't think we will ever not take a private transfer going forward. We loved being able to get there at the earliest port time. We could rent a car, for probably cheaper, but the convenience of not having to pick up the car, drive to the rental location, drop the car off and then shuttle to the port is worth it to us. Obviously a town car would be more per person for 2 people than it was for us 3.

 

[Phonedave]

Disney transfers are $35 a person. We had 3 people last week from Boardwalk Villas to port so that would have been $105. We checked the price of a town car and found one for $177 (and that's including tip as well) For us it was worth the extra $24 a person to get to port early. I don't think we will ever not take a private transfer going forward. We loved being able to get there at the earliest port time. We could rent a car, for probably cheaper, but the convenience of not having to pick up the car, drive to the rental location, drop the car off and then shuttle to the port is worth it to us. Obviously a town car would be more per person for 2 people than it was for us 3.

When I rented a car and drove from WDW to the port the day of the cruise, the price was a toss up between a rental and an town car. I went with a rental because I did not want to be tied to a town car time. One adult and two kids meant that if I was running 15 minutes late, I would rather have me rental car in the lot, than a town car on the clock waiting for me. Plise if we got done early, we could get a head start on the day. As it turned out, my kids barely slept and we were out the door early.

The returning of the rental really was not a hassle either. Very fast and easy drop off and a quick shuttle.

If we cruise DCL again from WDW and go same day, I think we will take a town car. This time there will be 5 of us (two of which are adults).

DIsney transfers are not cheap, and once you get around 3 people, rental cars and town cars quickly become a viable options.


-dave

 

[ChuckElias]

The returning of the rental really was not a hassle either. Very fast and easy drop off and a quick shuttle.

I agree with Dave with just about everything he said. The one thing that can be a hassle (in my opinion) is the shuttle. I've had mixed results. The last time I dropped a rental car, the shuttle left within 5 minutes of when I finished the check-out process. But the time before that, we waited about 25 minutes for a shuttle to the port; and then after debarking, we sat in the van for literally a half hour before the driver decided to take us back to the rental location.

It can be a piece of cake, but it can also take a while. It's a mixed bag. I still think it's worth it for the money I saved.

 

[durangojim]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and input. I'll probably just wind up paying the extra money to have a town car drive us to port and use Disney transfers to get back to the airport.

 

[Nmoody1]

this ties in perfectly with a question I have been meaning to ask.... are transfers back to WDW free? We paid for transfers last time we cruised but we didnt have any paperwork checked when we returned to the resort?!

I want to get onboard as early as we possibly can - its frustrating that Disney transfers drop off so late in the day.... by which time you miss out on upgrade opportunities, and in some instances signup for beverage classes

 

[Phonedave]

this ties in perfectly with a question I have been meaning to ask.... are transfers back to WDW free? We paid for transfers last time we cruised but we didnt have any paperwork checked when we returned to the resort?!

I want to get onboard as early as we possibly can - its frustrating that Disney transfers drop off so late in the day.... by which time you miss out on upgrade opportunities, and in some instances signup for beverage classes

No, they are not free. You pay each way, and can book only one way if you so desire.

 

[durangojim]

this ties in perfectly with a question I have been meaning to ask.... are transfers back to WDW free? We paid for transfers last time we cruised but we didnt have any paperwork checked when we returned to the resort?!

I want to get onboard as early as we possibly can - its frustrating that Disney transfers drop off so late in the day.... by which time you miss out on upgrade opportunities, and in some instances signup for beverage classes

$35/per person, per way. Downsides are on the way to DCL from WDW you get to the port late, upside is from DCL to MCO you can check your luggage for the airlines on board if you're using certain airlines.