Transportation Options from Disney to Universal/IOA

[marylandteachergirl]

I am happy for a shared van. I believe Mears has a $20 RT special available via phone. I just couldn't find info regarding if these shuttle trips run several times per days do not want to be at Downtown Disney for 14 hours.

 

[Jec4289]

I believe Mears has many trips both directions during the day. When I called them asking about transportation from WDW to US.they quoted me 4 or 5 times after 3 pm. Be warned they pick up at hotels at Disney but drop off at parks at US

 

[maddiebee]

I've tried to search this, but haven't been able to find a good answer: via the Mears shuttle, how longish is the trip between Universal and WDW?
Thanks!

 

[damo]

I've tried to search this, but haven't been able to find a good answer: via the Mears shuttle, how longish is the trip between Universal and WDW?
Thanks!

It varies. If the shuttle is picking up a bunch of people it is going to take a lot longer than if it is only picking up a few.

The ride itself, without picking up other customers, should be around half an hour in good traffic. Add onto that the time to pick up others.

 

[maddiebee]

It varies. If the shuttle is picking up a bunch of people it is going to take a lot longer than if it is only picking up a few. The ride itself, without picking up other customers, should be around half an hour in good traffic. Add onto that the time to pick up others.

What is a smart amount of time to allow yourself if trying to plan adrs and such around the shuttle? Do they let you know if they'll be getting others? Thanks!!

 

[damo]

What is a smart amount of time to allow yourself if trying to plan adrs and such around the shuttle? Do they let you know if they'll be getting others? Thanks!!

I'd leave yourself at least two hours if you are planning a dinner ADR at WDW after leaving Universal. It also depends on where your ADRs and how long it will take you to get from your WDW hotel to the restaurant.

It is really tough to judge with traffic also.

 

[ferrero121]

We are planning on going to universal/Disney in November

We wanna know the cheapest way to get from
Disney to universal studios.

 

[damo]

This is a good deal if you don't have your tickets yet ... http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com/universal/

 

[Nohal]

How do you get from your hotel to Universal? Do you have to share a shuttle with other Disney hotels or are you picked up at your hotel and taken right to the front gates at Universal? We are planning to do a 1day/2park in September. We aren't into roller coasters and are hoping that we will be able to see almost eveything if we get there when they open. The last time we were there was in the early 90's when there was just one park.

 

[jdrais]

How do you get from your hotel to Universal? Do you have to share a shuttle with other Disney hotels or are you picked up at your hotel and taken right to the front gates at Universal? We are planning to do a 1day/2park in September. We aren't into roller coasters and are hoping that we will be able to see almost eveything if we get there when they open. The last time we were there was in the early 90's when there was just one park.

I'm getting ready to do this. Dreams Unlimited describes the process. Basically you call them and they pick you up at your hotel and bring you to Universal. You arrange with them when you want to head back. Not sure why the 10 - 3 restriction.

Transfers provided by Mears Transportation

Transfer Schedule:
To Universal Orlando Resort: This service is available 24-hours a day except between the hours of 10:00am and 3:00pm. Pick-up time will be determined by calling Mears Transportation at 407-423-5566 at least 24-hours in advance to arrange your pick-up time from the hotel.

From Universal Orlando Resort: Pick-up time with Mears can be arranged when making your initial reservation or by calling Mears from the parks a minimum of 3 hours prior to your desired pick-up time.

From anybody that has done this, does Mears drop you at the gate or can you get dropped at one of the Universal Hotels? We are staying one night.

 

[hsmamato2]

I like the sound of dreams unlimited.....can you get an early p/u in the a.m.? I was thinking the same thing, arrive as early as possible to see the parks....

 

[jenseib]

I like the sound of dreams unlimited.....can you get an early p/u in the a.m.? I was thinking the same thing, arrive as early as possible to see the parks....

This is not a Dreams only special, it can be booked with any Universal package.

 

[Mrs Lapo]

I am thinking of buying the 1 day 2 park passes with transportation from WDW to Unuversal that I saw advertised on this site. But after reading this thread I saw there are many options for transportation. Does anyone have experience with what's included in this ticket offer? We want to be at the park early so idk if this is the best option for us. We're staying in the Disney All Star Movies. Does anyone know if this is a bus or shuttle that is included & do you arrange the pick up & drop off or do you have to wait for a bus?? Sorry, I'm a first timer )

 

[rlbklein]

We bought the Dreams Unlimited 1 day / 2 parks Universal tickets in Oct and it worked great! We were able to get an early pickup (8am I think?) and were there pretty close to park opening. They do drop off in the morning, then they stop running buses until the afternoon. You have to call 24hrs in advance for morning pickup, then at least 2hrs before you want your return trip. It was pretty easy from my perspective. And since we were mainly interested in the HP stuff and not as much other stuff, it was plenty of time in the parks for us. (I also have to say that it was painfully evident at times that Universal does not have the same customer service philosophy or training as Disney.) Mears runs the buses and they did a great job.

 

[MinnieMallons]

My wife and I are staying at Saratoga Springs in May and will be going to universal on two days.

I was going to book through Dreams Unlimited but since the recent ticket price increases at Universal there two day two park transfer deal does not seem the best option at $220 each.

So the dreams price is charging $44 for the Mears taxi return fared, which is $4 more than booking yourself at $20 per day.

More importantly, a 2 day/1 park ticket at universal is now $136.
So that would be a saving of $44 over the Dreams price, as they don't offer this ticket option.

Can UK residents buy tickets direct from the Universal website. It states that you print your own tickets off and take them with you to the park gates?

The UK version of the site only offers a 2 day/2 park bonus ticket for £126 ($210)!

 

[bumbershoot]

Can UK residents buy tickets direct from the Universal website. It states that you print your own tickets off and take them with you to the park gates?

If it's an option, do "will call kiosk" pickup rather than printing them. If you print them, that page from your printer is your ticket. If you can do will call pickup, you get a proper ticket.

 

[jenseib]

What is the advantage of a proper ticket rather than a printed one?

Do you need to present your ticket regularly whilst in the parks?

It's usually a voucher that you redeem at the kiosk outside the park entrance. You need to scan it and your credit card that you used to buy it with.

 

[deltadinah]

Can anyone tell me of their experiences using Mears 7-person taxi vans? I would like to know if they are reliable, and if it is wise to book too far in advance. We are 14 persons going from Art of Animation to Universal Studios one day in May and then Islands of Adventure the next day. Any help would be appreciated as there are a lot of negative reviews about Mears and I wonder if Disney would keep them if they were all that bad, but I am especially concerned about them showing up and being relatively on time.

 

[martinmont]

If we are planning to take a cab from a disney resort to US, and US to the airport when we leave two days later, do we need to pre book a cab? Or would cabs be readily available outside the resorts in US and disney?

 

[damo]

If we are planning to take a cab from a disney resort to US, and US to the airport when we leave two days later, do we need to pre book a cab? Or would cabs be readily available outside the resorts in US and disney?

They are hanging around.