Disney's Magical Express Questions

[llfowl]

Our flight lands at 4:30. How long does the transfer from the Orlando airport to the resort usually take??? Do they run on a set schedule, like on the hour and half hour, or how does that work?

 

[Stepharia]

I'm curious too. We land at 9am Friday and was wondering that myself.

 

[JDarling]

I'm wondering as well! I have friends coming in around 5:30pm in MCO. I'm wondering if it's safe to say (assuming they are on time), that we can leave from our resort to the parks by around 7:15 - 7:3pm

 

[Frantasmic]

From reading others' trip reports who have used ME, I think you can plan for about a 2 hour trip from the time you get off your plane until you are in your resort room. It can be anywhere from 4-6 hours before you receive your luggage.

 

[kaytieeldr]

From reading others' trip reports who have used ME, I think you can plan for about a 2 hour trip from the time you get off your plane until you are in your resort room. It can be anywhere from 4-6 hours before you receive your luggage.

I don't know about that... in September, it took me I think a shade under an hour from when I got off the plane until I got off the bus at Pop Century... and it took my luggage about, okay, yeah, four hours from when the plane landed until it was in my room.

 

[jcemom]

It took us under an hour and a half from landing to checking in at POR in June, and we were the third stop (after OKW and POFQ).

 

[CleveRocks]

It took me 53 minutes. At my resort in under an hour. And this was on May 8, when DME was still an infant (it started May 5). My luggage took about 3.5 hours. But I didn't care how long it took my luggage, it didn't matter to me, it's not like I was waiting for it. I was off having fun when it "magically arrived" in my room. I packed our carry-ons with everything we needed for the first 24 hours (because airlines can delay luggage, you know). So knowing our luggage was going to be several hours, I packed our bathing suits, "beach shoes," change of clothes, PJs, toiletries, etc. The luggage could have come the next day and we would have been functioning just fine.

As for scheduling of buses, there is no scheduling, and also no set routes or set groupings of resorts. It's a dynamic situation, and buses are dispatched based on need. Because there are reservations, they know who is arriving when and going where, and arrange buses accordingly. This is done for maximum efficiency.

DME is great. Relax, enjoy it and enjoy WDW!

-- Eric

 

[TDC Nala]

I don't know if you can PLAN on a two hour trip, but know that it can take up to that long. My last one took two hours, but that is two hours from the time the plane landed, not from the time I got on the bus. Because the buses are not on a set schedule, you might have to wait for one to fill up before it leaves the terminal, or you might not. Your resort might be the first stop, or it might be the fourth, depending on where everyone else in the shuttle is going.

I take carryons and haven't tried the luggage delivery system.

 

[JDarling]

It took me 53 minutes. At my resort in under an hour. And this was on May 8, when DME was still an infant (it started May 5). My luggage took about 3.5 hours. But I didn't care how long it took my luggage, it didn't matter to me, it's not like I was waiting for it. I was off having fun when it "magically arrived" in my room. I packed our carry-ons with everything we needed for the first 24 hours (because airlines can delay luggage, you know). So knowing our luggage was going to be several hours, I packed our bathing suits, "beach shoes," change of clothes, PJs, toiletries, etc. The luggage could have come the next day and we would have been functioning just fine.

As for scheduling of buses, there is no scheduling, and also no set routes or set groupings of resorts. It's a dynamic situation, and buses are dispatched based on need. Because there are reservations, they know who is arriving when and going where, and arrange buses accordingly. This is done for maximum efficiency.

DME is great. Relax, enjoy it and enjoy WDW!

-- Eric

Great advice on packing the carry ons! Thanks!