Do You Prefer ME or Rental Car?

[famsen]

We were all set to use ME when we arrive next Saturday.
Since we normally drive down to WDW, I am used to having a car and the freedom of being able to bypass the buses, if they are too crowded and also being able to go off site to the outlet mall or grocery store if need be.

I am weighing the pros and cons of both.
For ME:

Ease of them picking up our bag
No hassle at the airport; get in the bus and go.
Pick up at the resort for trip back to airport

Cons:
Won't have freedom to go outside WDW unless we pay for a cab
Bound by WDW transportation schedules

For car rental:
Freedom to go where we want, when we want.
Can bypass bus service if slow or too crowded

Cons:
Have to pay about $200 plus gas for the week
Have to hassle at airport with check-in and check-out

What do you think? Opinions and experiences please!

[TheWog]

Two trips and used Disney's transportation both times (DME one time) for parks, etc. I would bag the rental car and not worry about it. You'll get where you are going, so unless you absolutely need to save a couple extra mins use the busses. DME is a great service as well and worth the cost.

Do you plan on going offsite?

[famsen]

Originally Posted by TheWog

Two trips and used Disney's transportation both times (DME one time) for parks, etc. I would bag the rental car and not worry about it. You'll get where you are going, so unless you absolutely need to save a couple extra mins use the busses. DME is a great service as well and worth the cost.

Do you plan on going offsite?

Well we were planning on getting a cab to take us to the outlet mall one day.

[TheWog]

Originally Posted by famsen

Well we were planning on getting a cab to take us to the outlet mall one day.

To me, a small side trip on one day, I would use the cab vs. a rental car. Good luck deciding.

[mainemouselover]

My head prefers the car to have the freedom like you stated BUT my pocketbook prefers the ME, and in this battle the pocketbook wins! I don't mind the bus except when there is a long line after closing the park down.

[debster812]

We actually prefer a combo of both.

We'll take DME to and from the airport to our resort. Then, we'll rent a car onsite (usually from Alamo/National at the Car Care Center). That way, we catch a bit of a break on the rental fee as we usually pick up the car on our 2nd day, and drop it off the day before we leave.

It's worked very well for us the past couple of years. Arrive late afternoon/early evening, use DME to get to resort, use WDW transportation to get where we need to that day. Call Alamo, arrange for shuttle pick up the next morning. Go get car, enjoy vacation.

Return car day before departure, use WDW transportation for remainder of the day. Take DME back to airport.

[famsen]

Originally Posted by debster812

We actually prefer a combo of both.

We'll take DME to and from the airport to our resort. Then, we'll rent a car onsite (usually from Alamo/National at the Car Care Center). That way, we catch a bit of a break on the rental fee as we usually pick up the car on our 2nd day, and drop it off the day before we leave.

It's worked very well for us the past couple of years. Arrive late afternoon/early evening, use DME to get to resort, use WDW transportation to get where we need to that day. Call Alamo, arrange for shuttle pick up the next morning. Go get car, enjoy vacation.

Return car day before departure, use WDW transportation for remainder of the day. Take DME back to airport.

Oh that is a great idea! I did not think of that.
I just got a quote from Alamo at the Car Care Center.
So how do I get a shuttle to pick us up to take us to Alamo?
Will they come to pick up the car or do we have to drop it off and find a way back to our resort?

Thank you soooo much for this advice. It's the best of both worlds!

[Brer Chump]

Check the prices from picking up and dropping of at MCO.

What we do is while DW and DD ride DME which allows the luggage to be "legally" transferred. I pick up the rental car and drive to the resort. We then have a car to go off property. We all take the car back to the airport which allows us to go to a park or DTD and not have to worry about being at the hotel for a pick up 3 hours before departure.

[shoes99]

We are two seniors (60+) that do both. We take DME to the resort, then rent a car at the car care center or the Dolphin. Depending on our return flight we either keep the car to get to the airport, or we return the car and take DME. The luggage handling is key for us old folks...

[debster812]

Originally Posted by famsen

Oh that is a great idea! I did not think of that.
I just got a quote from Alamo at the Car Care Center.
So how do I get a shuttle to pick us up to take us to Alamo?
Will they come to pick up the car or do we have to drop it off and find a way back to our resort?

Thank you soooo much for this advice. It's the best of both worlds!

Easy Peasy!

On your reservation confirmation, there will be a phone number for the actual location at the CCC. Call them 24 to 1 hour prior to your pick up time, tell them where you're staying, and they'll come fetch you. We've even been picked up at a park before as well. When you drop off the car, the shuttle will bring you back. We were dropping off last year, and one of the shuttle drivers passed out, right there on the sidewalk. The other driver asked if he could drop us at the TTC, rather than at our resort to save time, since they were going to be very shorthanded. Not a problem.

[schoen]

I like the freedom and privacy of the car personally. For me it is worth the extra expense. I don't think it makes that much of a time difference either. You can have one person pick up luggage while the other gets the car stuff taken care of. Also, you often have to wait in a line to register for DME, wait in a line to get on the bus, wait for the bus to fill up, and then wait while the bus goes to four resorts you aren't staying at.

I actually think it is more time efficient to rent a car.

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Rental car. Keep in mind that renting onsite at Disney is a lot more costly than renting from the airport.
Also having a car allows to you to eat offsite which will save a lot of $$.
Plus who wants to spend precious vacation time waiting on buses, boats, monarails. Plus if you have a rainy day you can hope in the car and go offsite and have more options of things to do like a mall, museum, M & M world ect

This code might help 6600422 it good at National and it comes from Airtran fequent flyer newsletter
The code is ND1881JDK which also gives you $40 off a weekly rental. I got the code from Nationals web site.

[mommy*RN]

Personally we always have rented a car. I like the convience of storing the stroller in there and not having to worry about getting the kids and stroller on and off a crowded bus. Then we make sure to do a couple things off site too. Last trip we went to St. Petersburg and spent the day collecting sea shells on the beach and playing in the ocean. This upcoming trip my DH and oldest DS are spending two days at Universal...and the car will benefit them to get to and from those parks. I think once my kids are older and more responsible we might start using onsite transportation...but for now a rental car suits us much better.

[mickey2000]

I always rent a car ! I just revised our 10 day mid size car with Dollar.
All fees and taxes $176. ....... I can be anywhere on property in minutes. No bus for me. The Magic Bus as I was told by a CM Manager was to lock you in on property = all your money to Disney

[aristocat65]

Originally Posted by debster812

We actually prefer a combo of both.

We'll take DME to and from the airport to our resort. Then, we'll rent a car onsite (usually from Alamo/National at the Car Care Center). That way, we catch a bit of a break on the rental fee as we usually pick up the car on our 2nd day, and drop it off the day before we leave.

It's worked very well for us the past couple of years. Arrive late afternoon/early evening, use DME to get to resort, use WDW transportation to get where we need to that day. Call Alamo, arrange for shuttle pick up the next morning. Go get car, enjoy vacation.

Return car day before departure, use WDW transportation for remainder of the day. Take DME back to airport.

This is what we like to do also Our travel day from the west coast is a long one and its so nice to be picked up and not have the hassle of getting the car. We usually pickup from the Dolphin the next day.