1130 is too early for a flight on debarkation, isn't it.

[Lisa F]

I would ask myself. "...how full or overbooked are the next two flight going home if I miss the 11:30 due to circumstances beyond my control?"

This is my thing... I would worry on a Saturday about not being able to get on the next flight and having to take a very late one. But I also have not only the flight but a ferry involved and coordinating all of those transfers is complicated.

 

[cedricandsophie]

You could probably make an 11 30 flight. But you should check about onboard check in. My understanding is that even if you book Disney transfers but don’t meet the cutoff time that Disney places on onboard check in, which is usually the minimum time they say you should book a flight (like 11 etc), you can’t use onboard baggage check in.

 

[iivye]

We usually do an 11:30 flight. The first time we cruised I booked a later one and it was painful sitting around at the airport. We couldn't even check the luggage when we got to the airport because the flight was so much later.

ETA: We also take Disney transportation.

 

[daisyx3]

I had a noon flight and had several hours to kill before the plane boarded. As long as you do express walk off and get on one of the first buses you should be ok. Even better if you’re TSA pre check.

We do have precheck as well. Between that and onboard checkin and having DCL take care of the checked bags, the flight home this last time was painless.

 

[annacali]

We had a 1:45p flight after our Dream cruise last month---my brother had an 11:05a flight. We had early seating and Disney transfers. We had to get our own luggage in customs because our airline wasn't one eligible for onboard check in. We ate in the dining room, picked up Shutters pictures and headed off the ship. We were at the airport well before 9 and we couldn't check luggage because it was more than 4 hours before the flight. Sitting in the airport all day is super painful to me---I would have been thrilled with an 11:30 flight! My brother was home in PA before we took off.

 

[shoes99]

Any idea why the June 27, 2020 sailing has different guidelines?

That’s the default time for wanting to check your luggage thru to the airport. If your flight is earlier you bring your luggage to the bus and make your earlier than 12:30 flight.

 

[tlprice]

We did around a 4:00 flight on our last cruise. We took DCL transportation to the airport and I had already reserved a car at the airport (it cost about $18). We went to Disney Springs and had lunch and did a little shopping. It made getting off the ship quite a bit easier still having a little Disney to look forward to. When we got back to the airport, our flight ended up getting delayed, so I'm glad we didn't just sit there the whole time!

 

[PurplePencil]

Any idea why the June 27, 2020 sailing has different guidelines?

I just tried to research it. I couldn't find a clear answer, but the following cruise (the Jul 6 that is also mentioned in different guidelines for latest time for embarkation day). Guess is that since they are scheduled to arrive in Castaway Cay an hour later, it may have an effect.

 

[DIS_MIKE]

We did around a 4:00 flight on our last cruise. We took DCL transportation to the airport and I had already reserved a car at the airport (it cost about $18). We went to Disney Springs and had lunch and did a little shopping. It made getting off the ship quite a bit easier still having a little Disney to look forward to. When we got back to the airport, our flight ended up getting delayed, so I'm glad we didn't just sit there the whole time!

$18 sounds like a bargain to rent a car form the airport for the afternoon.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

They could already known there will be a delay in arriving, or a mandatory inspection.

Yeah, I was thinking, maybe they know there's going to be too many ships in port causing them to arrive later. Or a dock workers strike. Or a Coast Guard inspection. Or road repair work they know will delay the buses. Or a lack of buses available for that day. Or ......

 

[tlprice]

$18 sounds like a bargain to rent a car form the airport for the afternoon.

That's why I did it (with taxes it was about $23). It was cheaper and easier than getting an Uber and we were able to store our luggage inside since we couldn't check it in at the airport that early.

 

[katellynne]

We just got off the Fantasy 11 day and took an 11:54am flight home with time to spare (an hour after getting through security). We did onboard air program and DCL transfers and had TSA precheck We even stayed for our 8am breakfast. Had we walked off at 7:30 there would have been zero line. We left on the bus at 9:30am and were at the airport by 10:10am.
Anyway, I say go for it. It is worth getting straight home! DCL Onboard Air recommends flights before 1pm depart the ship by 8am but when we saw how many people were waiting to debark at 8am (the whole atrium was packed) we decided to go ahead to breakfast and let the line go down.
Plus if you plan a later flight there are other issues that can go wrong...weather and airline delays and cancellations. We ended up getting out before all the storms that caused quite a bit of delayed and cancelled flights for fellow cruisers later in the day.

 

[DIS_MIKE]

That's why I did it (with taxes it was about $23). It was cheaper and easier than getting an Uber and we were able to store our luggage inside since we couldn't check it in at the airport that early.

Such a great idea. I would prefer to take a later flight (as long as the cost isn't too high) which gives me time to visit Disney Springs.