Resort Airline Checkin Procedures on departure day?

[Carol97]

According to WDW site, "Guests flying domestically on a participating airline are automatically enrolled in the Resort Airline Check-In service when arriving through Disney’s Magical Express. This service allows you to obtain your boarding pass and check your luggage at your Disney Resort hotel, bypassing airport check-in completely. If your flight is after 12:00 PM, your boarding pass will be delivered to your resort room on the morning of your departure." So does this mean THEY will check me into my flight and obtain my boarding pass? Or, Do I have to check myself in and they will merely print the boarding passes and deliver them to our resort room?

[KrazeeK120]

I've used RAC before. It's basically like going up to the counter at the airport. They will check you in and give your your boarding pass. You can also check your bags there too. Then, all you have to do when you get to the airport is go through security and head to your gate! The whole thing was a breeze and I liked avoiding the counter at MCO.

[poohj80]

What we received in our room was not the airline boarding pass, it was merely a confirmation that we were signed up for resort airline check in. We had to physically take our bags to airline check in at the resort and show our photo IDs to get the actual boarding passes.

What I was not clear on is whether I should tip the luggage handler like I would at curbside check in at the airport.

[joxer1014]

I have done RAC in the past, and I always tip when I checked my bags at the resort desk since that is the last time you see your bags until you land at your home airport.

[amomma23]

We have flown with Airtran and Southwest recently. Both times our actual boarding passes were delivered to our room the night before check- out, with our Magical Express info. We did have EBCI with Southwest. In the morning, we took our bags we were checking to RAC and tipped the person at the counter, just like we were doing curbside.

[Jestocost]

Originally Posted by amomma23

We have flown with Airtran and Southwest recently. Both times our actual boarding passes were delivered to our room the night before check- out, with our Magical Express info. We did have EBCI with Southwest. In the morning, we took our bags we were checking to RAC and tipped the person at the counter, just like we were doing curbside.

A lot depends on what airline you are flying. If it's one of the legacy airlines (American, Delta, US Air, United, etc.) then when you check in isn't very important in most circumstances. Likewise if you have purchased EBCI on SWA then there's not much to worry about.

If, however, you are flying SWA without EBCI or on any other airline that requires you to check in at a certain time to receive seat assignments or boarding number assignments, then I would be hesitant to rely on Disney checking you in.

Delivering your boarding pass is one thing; checking you in is something else. There have been reports of guests that have been checked in by RAC, but I personally would not rely on it.

[Horace Horsecollar]

The big advantage of RAC is being able to check your luggage at your resort. You also get your boarding pass. It's a wonderful service.

It's more like curbside check-in than checking in an airline ticket counter. How so? here's how... Skycaps at curbside check-in rely on tips. Airline employees at the the airline ticket counter are not tipped.

RAC is essentially curbside check-in at your resort.

RAC does not get your bags from your room, but bell services can do that. That involves a separate tip. You would still have to go to the RAC counter too.

[Mickey&JoshNut]

Quick question about tipping...the last time we used RAC, there was one person who took my bags and weighed them and then there was the agent behind the desk that checked my ID and handed the luggage tags to the one that weighed the bags and he put the tags on my bags and put them in the luggage cages...I tipped each of them but wasn't sure if that was the norm.

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally Posted by Mickey&JoshNut

Quick question about tipping...the last time we used RAC, there was one person who took my bags and weighed them and then there was the agent behind the desk that checked my ID and handed the luggage tags to the one that weighed the bags and he put the tags on my bags and put them in the luggage cages...I tipped each of them but wasn't sure if that was the norm.

I would assume the RAC employees pool and share tips. I would be very surprised if that's not how it works. Otherwise, I would expect RAC to work more like a traditional curbside check-in, with one skycap dealing with one family from start to finish.

I would tip the person who actually handles the bags, but it might also makes sense to tip the person who "completes" the whole process by handing your boarding pass folders to you.

[scjo68]

Originally Posted by Mickey&JoshNut

Quick question about tipping...the last time we used RAC, there was one person who took my bags and weighed them and then there was the agent behind the desk that checked my ID and handed the luggage tags to the one that weighed the bags and he put the tags on my bags and put them in the luggage cages...I tipped each of them but wasn't sure if that was the norm.

We just did this today.

While we were checking in at the resort airline checkin desk, one man who was handling bags handed the man at the desk cash, and said "add this to the tip jar". I took this to mean they shared tips. We tipped the man at the desk, and assumed it was divided.

We did receive a paper that said "boarding pass" in our room the day before departure. When we checked in on departure morning, they gave us another "boarding pass" and that is what we actually used. It looked more "official" than the one from the previous day.

We paid for our checked bag over the phone the day before departure. We flew AirTran and had chosen seats ahead of time.

[Mickey&JoshNut]

Originally Posted by Horace Horsecollar

I would assume the RAC employees pool and share tips. I would be very surprised if that's not how it works. Otherwise, I would expect RAC to work more like a traditional curbside check-in, with one skycap dealing with one family from start to finish.

I would tip the person who actually handles the bags, but it might also makes sense to tip the person who "completes" the whole process by handing your boarding pass folders to you.

Originally Posted by scjo68

We just did this today.

While we were checking in at the resort airline checkin desk, one man who was handling bags handed the man at the desk cash, and said "add this to the tip jar". I took this to mean they shared tips. We tipped the man at the desk, and assumed it was divided.

We did receive a paper that said "boarding pass" in our room the day before departure. When we checked in on departure morning, they gave us another "boarding pass" and that is what we actually used. It looked more "official" than the one from the previous day.

We paid for our checked bag over the phone the day before departure. We flew AirTran and had chosen seats ahead of time.

Thanks guys...we did divide the tip we would have given between the 2 so it is good to know that they share their tips.

[poohj80]

Originally Posted by scjo68

We did receive a paper that said "boarding pass" in our room the day before departure. When we checked in on departure morning, they gave us another "boarding pass" and that is what we actually used. It looked more "official" than the one from the previous day.

That's what happened to us but the ones we got in our room did not have the correct return flight info (our flights had changed since we originally signed up for DME but we had updated the info with DME before leaving home). When I tried to get the boarding passes we received in our room updated that night, I was told they were no official and we would get the real ones at Airline Check-in in the morning.

[smidgy]

color me embarrased! As a bartender and a waitress (2 dif jobs) I alway tip well.

I had NO idea the RAC employees were in a tipped position. I have never tipped them (I always tip the baggage guys, though). so the person behind the counter expects a tip? if so, I have been remiss!

[KrazeeK120]

Originally Posted by smidgy

color me embarrased! As a bartender and a waitress (2 dif jobs) I alway tip well.

I had NO idea the RAC employees were in a tipped position. I have never tipped them (I always tip the baggage guys, though). so the person behind the counter expects a tip? if so, I have been remiss!

I'm in the same boat as you. My airport doesn't have curbside check-in...I didn't actually even know it existed before reading these boards! Oops.