How early to leave WDW for MCO?

[tjkraz]

I'm waffling on DME. :(

We're staying in a studio, thus more meals out. I'm thinking the convenience of being able to dine at other resorts might be worth paying a few bucks for a small rental car.

I'd also like to hear how long people are allocating to get to the airport these days. I've heard DME pickup times are about 3 hours out. That didn't seem outrageous to me since I've been following the 2 hour arrival rule since 9/11. Others seem to think the 3 hour pickup time for DME was just too early.

What time would you leave MGM on a Friday to make a 6:30pm flight out of MCO?

Thanks.

[ghost1000]

We had a 4:00 pm flight out of MCO in January, and started heading to the exit at Disney-MGM Studios about 1:30. Even though the security line was very long, we made it to the gate with plenty of time to spare.

Somewhere on the Internet I saw guidelines for various airports, and it suggested arriving at MCO 1-1/2 hours before a domestic flight. So that's what I try to do.

[mushu]

Towncars pick you up usually 1 1/2 hours before flight.

[jaysue]

Yesterday we left at 5:40pm for an 8:05pm flight - arrived at airport at 6:10pm - through check in (Air Canada does not offer electronic checkin) by 6:45pm - security lineup very short -

With small kids we tend to follow leave about 2 1/4 hours before the flight - we could leave 1 3/4 hours if it was just the adults

The 3 hour DME thing seems like a long time to us

We would rent the car in your position especially since you will be relying on Disney Dining

Cheers
jaysue

[lovinlilo]

Another thing you're going to want to factor in is where you end up renting your car. If you rent from one of the companies that is located in the airport it will be very convenient. But if its just down the road you'll have to factor in some shuttle time.

We usually rent from National or Budget in the airport. I travel a bit for work and have flown through airports all over the country. I always get to the airport about 75 minutes early when I have to check luggage and an hour if I don't. From WDW I plan on 30-45 minutes drive.

[jaysue]

Good point on car rental wait time - we have started using National EA so our only wait time is waiting for our 6 year old to pick a car from the EA aisle :coolcar: (and of course paperwork on exit) - on inbound, almost no waiting time since we tend to come back at quiet airport times

cheers
jaysue

:solikeiwa

[idratherbeinwdw]

The towncar picks me up 90 minutes prior to my flight. (They always tell me two hours, but I tell them 90 minutes is plenty). It's never taken me more than 30 minutes to get to MCO, usually it's 20. So I have an hour, usually a little more before my flight leaves. I have never even come close to missing a flight. I like to eke out as much WDW time as I can.

I have never rented a car at WDW, so I don't know how much time returning one adds on to the trip. :coolcar:

[tjkraz]

Thanks for all of the info.

I double-checked my flight and it actually departs at 6:10pm. I'm thinking that with a rental car I should be able to get away with hitting the road at 4pm, beating the worst of the 5pm rush.

By comparison my DME departure time is almost certain to be 3pm, and I'd have to be at the MGM bus stop around 2:15 - 2:30 to make sure I have enough time to get back to the resort.

In other words, renting will get me an extra 1 1/2 hours in the park on my departure day. Given that our main purpose for going is the Star Wars Weekends event, and that it will only be held on our departure day, I'm leaning toward the rental.

I did some checking and so far have a car for $120. It would be nice if I can get that a little lower, although renting will probably save me $10-15 in grocery charges (Publix vs. buying at the resort) and another $15 in bellman tips (won't need them if we have a car and can move our own luggage.)

In a sense, I'm a bit disappointed that I probably won't be trying DME. There's something fairly attractive about just relaxing and letting someone else do the work. But with this being a short 4-day trip, I'm a little worried about being completely dependent upon Disney busses. My experiences with the busses have been largely positive, but just one or two long waits during the trip will certainly leave me kicking myself for not getting the car.

Decisions, decisions....:headbange

[carolina_yankee]

DME can work very well - especially for arrival. We've always had good luck with Disney buses, too - but for the short amount of time, I suspect you'll feel happier with a rental car. I didn't catch where you're staying? If it's an Epcot area resort, you could always rent from National on site at the Dolphin if you find you'll need a car, or even pick it up early your last day and drop it off at the airport.

For that matter, if you're staying elsewhere, I believe National/Alamo has a pick-up and delivery service from their lot at the Care Care Center. It might be a little cheaper by knocking off a day or 2 of your rental, and you can still use DME for arrival while taking the car for return to the airport.

If budget is a concern, what about Hotwire? I think they guarantee in airport pick-up when available, so it wouldn't be Thrifty or Hertz.

Dirk

[TW1]

Like Mar, we really love the towncar option.

Much more flexible, you are their only customer, and you can't beat the price.

That said, our last trip in August was the first time we drove, thus we had our own car with us. It was nice having the option to use it or the bus system. We did take the car to TL, AK and MGM which made a difference for us. Fee valet service is a great deal and yes you can make a Yuengling run much more easily with your own car.

All in all, if I fly I think I'll stick with the towncar option for now.

[gopherit]

What airline are you flying with?

Personally, out of all the travel I do for work, and all the airports that travel takes me, the Orlando airport is a nemesis with me. Last week I arrived 2 hours early - and still did the OJ airport dash. I got to my gate and the door was already shut, everyone else on there, yet I literally had been at the USair check-in a full 1.75 hrs before my flight. Yikes. The cattle cues for security were about 8 lines deep - both sides. Unreal. It was a Thursday afternoon at 4:30 pm. And this happened to me the last time at Orlando too - maybe it's just my bad luck, blame it on spring break... but Charlotte sure didn't look anything like that, and it's a hub airport.

THat said, I almost always fly USAir - which is like a second class citizen at MCO. If you are flying Delta, or basically any other airline, you won't have as far to go to check in. USAir is allllll the way on down, at the very END of the line. (And it didn't help either that my gate # was 58... out of 59!) I think the next time I fly to MCO on business, I will shoot for Delta. It won't shorten the security gate issue, but at least I won't have the long USAir walk of shame to the last check-in window to deal with.

I think if you can get a rental at the airport (and the EA service there is pretty good) that's what I would do. When my time is short, I like being in control of my own destiny, so to speak. Check-in of a National car is really quick - they do it right there at the vehicle, spit out a receipt, and away you go. Took longer for me to get my suitcase out than it did for the Ntional guy to complete the deal. And of course, since I'm married to the Anti-Valet, he would second the emotion for taking your own bags to your room, LOL. Letting someone else do the driving is nice... but not if it will make you stress out. On the other hand - will being in control make you a constant clock watcher? How well can you enjoy an extra hour if you're constantly checking time? I know I would be. Just something to consider! Between the options you presented, I'd probably go with either Town Car or rental. ME is too herdish for me. ;)

[tjkraz]

What airline are you flying with?


We're flying Spirit Airlines. I had one not-so-great experience with them about 10 years ago, but the price was right and it's a direct flight. I had also hoped to save some money with DME but probably won't go that route now. Oh well.

The flight was still a bargain at $120 pp round trip. :D

On the brighter side, I just so happened to receive an email from the airline today indicating that the departure has been pushed back 30 minutes. Now we're leaving at 6:40 instead of 6:10pm. Since it's so close to rush hour and a Friday to boot, I'll probably just use that as additional buffer. If we start heading to our car around 4pm, that gives us a little over 2 1/2 hours to take care of our running.

[jdvm]

We always have a car and love the freedom it gives us. We eat out almost every night and it's so nice to be able to drive to a resort for dinner and decide during the meal that a game of golf at Winter/Summerland would be great after dinner. Try doing that without a car. I need to add that we always stay at Old Key West which is very car friendly. The advice you've been given on timing and renting from someone like National who is on-site at the airport is perfvect, by the way. Good luck!

[doombuggy]

Rush hour starts here around 3pm. :upsidedow There is always traffic, especially on I-4. If you are going to take 417 (have your quarters ready), it should not be so bad. That road isn't used as much as I-4, 528 & 408 (although, that is changing). I-4 East towards 528 will see traffic start to build around 4ish. The 408 East starts to get heavy around the same time (although you won't go that way). I recently picked up my dad on a Sunday with no problem (took me about 25 minutes to get there from around Universal Studios). Picking my mom up on a Friday at 5pm took me longer (to get us to DTD) and taking her back to the airport (we left on a Monday at 3:15, got there at 3:50). My dad flew out SW earlier that Monday but experienced about a 15 minute wait at security. I don't know how long it took Mom to get thru to get to USAir; all I head about was her wait at PHL. :scary:

I would go with the car rental. I believe National/Alamo has a pick-up and delivery service from their lot at the Care Care Center. It might be a little cheaper by knocking off a day or 2 of your rental, and you can still use DME for arrival while taking the car for return to the airport.
This is correct and I have rented a car from here for part of my trip (back in 2000)

[dgaston]

For those of you renting cars: Remember to gas up the car before you leave for the airport. The Hess stations on property usually have good prices and the gauge will still be on full at the airport. Waiting to top off the tank until you're leaving for the airport can make it a little too rushed.

[ghost1000]

RE: DME and three hours before the flight.

I think that's a standard timeframe for transportation that makes multiple stops. DH and I used to use Tropiano Limo here in Pennsylvania. We didn't order a private car, but used their shuttle service. They would always ask when our flight was, and would tell us to be at the hotel (they would pick us up at the Radisson in King of Prussia) three hours beforehand. Since they only stop at the Radisson once an hour, sometimes it would be more than three hours, sometimes just under three hours.

I'm pretty sure when Super Shuttle picks us up at Disneyland Resort they also use the three hour rule.