Transport to/from Port Canaveral?

[apemcarlson]

Hello Everyone!
We are traveling from Australia and wondering whether the Disney Bus is convenient, ie. are there multiple pickup times from MCO? Or are we stuck with a specific time, and if so, what is it?
Is it worth getting to the port early? What time is best?
Thanks for any tips!

Amy Phil Ethan & Marcus

 

[bats]

Hi all
We hired a one way rental car from the airport (before arrival), used it for the couple of days before our cruise, then drove it over to Cape Canaveral to drop it off. Very easy, we used Budget which has a fuel station right opposite and a free courtesy bus back to the Port (10 min drive).

If you need to use Disney transport, you can just pick it up from the designated pick up point (at any of the pick up times I believe).

Personally, I would get to the port as early as possible so you can get an early 'get onboard' ticket and start enjoying the ship before everyone else gets on. If you get on late, the eating places are really busy.

 

[apemcarlson]

Thank you!

 

[clawmachine]

Another very popular option is to hire a car service to take you one way or round trip. We used Spaceport Transport and they were wonderful! Timely, pleasant, safe, and much less expensive than Disney transfers would have been for our family of 5...

 

[Purdue Mouse]

Hello Everyone!
We are traveling from Australia and wondering whether the Disney Bus is convenient, ie. are there multiple pickup times from MCO? Or are we stuck with a specific time, and if so, what is it?
Is it worth getting to the port early? What time is best?
Thanks for any tips!

Amy Phil Ethan & Marcus

DCL transport buses are first come first served from MCO. We booked our own transport through ACE Transp. I was very satisfied with the service. We had a 9:30am pickup from our airport hotel and arrived around 10:30. Check in was a breeze, but I was amazed at how crowded the terminal was at that time. We were boarding group 14 (I believe you are in groups of about 50-100) which meant we were approx. the 700 to 1400 person to board. Boarding started around 11:45. We went right up to Cabana's on deck 11 and got a table with little waiting (tip: use the aft elevators - navigate to the left as you enter the ship. the elevator goes directly in Cabana's). You may also dine in the Enchanted Garden which in right off the Atrium on deck 4 (also left) where you be announced as you enter the ship. You will be given a ship map before you board. Have fun! It truly is an amazing ship.

 

[kcashner]

The Disney Cruise Line bus system runs only on cruise days. While that may seem obvious, some people aren't aware of it. The first bus departs MCO about 9:30 (Disney will tell you 10:00), and each bus after that departs as it fills--usually about every 20-30 minutes. You don't need to schedule a time. When you arrive at MCO, you proceed to the Welcome Center--lower level, terminal B--and they will check your documents and direct you to the next bus.

Your other options are to rent a car and drop it off near port (all the car rental companies have complimentary shuttles back to the port), or to hire a car and driver--again, there are many good companies.

It is truly a matter of what you prefer. One nice thing about hiring a car and driver is that you can stop at a store if you need something before you board the ship. Most companies allow a 15 or 30 minute stop in the price they quote.