3 questions on a Sanford car rental!

[grover]

Flying/Renting out of Sanford for the first time..some questions-hope someone here can help!

1) What are the tolls if we use 417 to WDW? How long is the drive? Some people say 35 mins, others say 60 mins!

2) When returning the car, if we are coming back on 417-where is the best place to fuel up? We have to be at the airport for 5am check in-so we would need a 24 gas station.

3) Assuming National won't be open when we drop the car off at 4:45am, does anyone know the after hours return policy for National at Sanford?

 

[migel]

I can't remember the tolls, but I'm thinking at the most, two. FYI, there was one as soon as you leave the airport, it was 75 cents last time I was through, and exact change required because the booth was not staffed. Without traffic, the drive should be about 45 to 50 minutes depending on where you are staying. I believe most of the rentals have a key drop at Sanford. I'm sure someone else will confirm.

 

[grover]

Thanks for the tip on the change, I will see American change I can dig up from our last trip

 

[ZellyB]

I've driven from Sanford a few times, but don't recall the specific amount for tolls, but I do think it's somewhere around $6 or so. We've never worried about exact change. At least everytime we've driven it, there has always been an attended toll booth so we could pay the toll and get change.

There are a couple of gas stations right before you get to the airport. You drive right by them on your way to the airport.

 

[grover]

thanks for the info

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

If you have that early of a flight I would stay near Sanford the night before. You can't do anything more at Disney that early of a flight. I had hit two roadway shut downs traveling 417 into and I4 back to the airport. It took an hour with just a bit of traffic on another trip. Getting gas last minute is a pain. I got off two exits befor and drove a few miles. I know there is closer spots. My tolls were more like $10 but I also got off a wrong exit and it charged me. I was worried about blowing through one, that I got off an actual exit paid and had to get back on. The car return was easy, the sexurity was backed up. Allegiant wanted us at the gate at least 40 minutes before, everyone was on the plan 20 minutes before the flight. Our plane had a repair need, but when it couldn't be fixed, another arriving plane was serviced and sent us on our way.

 

[grover]

We plan on taking 417 both ways.
Staying our last night at wdw-were visiting our son who works there-so I'm not willing to give up my last night there

 

[nacho113]

On one of our trips, we had a similar flight time out of SFB. Left our resort at 2:45am and just took I-4 to Lake Mary Blvd. Traffic was very light, no tolls to stop for or worry about. When you exit I-4 at Lake Mary Blvd (turn east into Sanford), there are lots of gas stations (and Coffee shops) along this road. Just follow Lake Mary all the way through Sanford to the airport (almost no one on the road through Sanford at 4am). There's some fast food restaurants that are open 24 hours along this strip also so if your stomach is starting to grumble, you could pull through a drive through and grab something for breakfast (or if you made good time up to this point, you could have a sit down breakfast, there's a Denny's, Perkins, Steak n Shake etc along this road). You are about 10-15 minutes from the airport once you turn onto Lake Mary Blvd

We've also used the reverse of this route when arriving in SFB, going to WDW. Lake Mary Blvd has a whole bunch of restaurants and stores. We have arrived several times in SFB at lunch time, so we plan a meal stop, a grocery stop and then head out to I-4. Arriving at the WDW exits on I-4 before the supper rush hour starts.
When arriving during rush hour periods, sr417 is a nice drive and worth the few dollars you have to spend on the tolls

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Anyone who says there are only two tolls or that it takes only 35 minutes is probably thinking of Orlando International Airport (MCO) -- not Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB) -- to Walt Disney World.

SFB is double the distance and more than double the tolls.

The distance is around 50 miles. Plan on an hour from SFB to WDW, although you might do it in 50 minutes if you use electronic toll payment.

 

[jimmytammy]

Flying/Renting out of Sanford for the first time..some questions-hope someone here can help!

1) What are the tolls if we use 417 to WDW? How long is the drive? Some people say 35 mins, others say 60 mins!

2) When returning the car, if we are coming back on 417-where is the best place to fuel up? We have to be at the airport for 5am check in-so we would need a 24 gas station.

3) Assuming National won't be open when we drop the car off at 4:45am, does anyone know the after hours return policy for National at Sanford?

I apologize if all your questions have been answered. We have done this on a few occasions, and when we drive, we always take 417, so much so, we bought the Sunpass so we could scoot on through the tolls.

1. I am not sure, but cash wise, around $6.50-7.50 I think. From SFB, around 40-45 mins. Here is some extra advice...got to exit 3, not 6. Exit 3 puts you onto Osceola parkway which will place you near AK area, which is near the All Stars, Pop Century, Coronado Springs and AK Lodge resorts. Its easy to navigate from this point as its less traffic, less lights, etc. Exit 3 dumps you near International Dr. and around Downtown Disney which is a mess at all times, and esp. worse now. Even if your resort is up on that part of property, still take exit 3!

2. We fuel up at on Lake Mary Blvd. There are 2 stations shortly after you turn off. The airport is maybe 2-3 miles from there.

3. Not sure about this. If you havent done a rental agreement yet, and you dont have strong ties to National, my advice based on renting at SFB, try Alamo. They are independent from the other rental companies, meaning they have their own separate bldg., they have huge inventory, and at times offer really good deals. We recently got a mini van for the economy price through AAA at Alamo and it was so easy, we were in and out, no time flat.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

3) Assuming National won't be open when we drop the car off at 4:45am, does anyone know the after hours return policy for National at Sanford?

National Car Rental at SFB opens at 8:30 a.m. (9:00 a.m. on Sunday):

https://www.nationalcar.com/en_US/location-details/us/sfbt01-sanford-intl-arpt.html

Normally, you would handle after-hours return by parking the car in a designated area, noting the final mileage and fuel level, locking the car, and depositing the keys in an after-hours return slot. The next morning, your car will be officially checked in. If National has your email address, you'll promptly be sent a receipt electronically. This works well at airports that don't rely on remote car rental lots with shuttle service.

You can call the number at the link above to confirm how National does it at SFB.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

1. I am not sure, but cash wise, around $6.50-7.50 I think. From SFB, around 40-45 mins. Here is some extra advice...got to exit 3, not 6. Exit 3 puts you onto Osceola parkway which will place you near AK area, which is near the All Stars, Pop Century, Coronado Springs and AK Lodge resorts. Its easy to navigate from this point as its less traffic, less lights, etc. Exit 3 dumps you near International Dr. and around Downtown Disney which is a mess at all times, and esp. worse now. Even if your resort is up on that part of property, still take exit 3!

40-45 minutes is optimistic, unless that means 45-50 minutes on the SR-417 toll road plus additional time getting onto SR-417 and driving on WDW property.

I agree that Exit 3 is better for resorts that are along Osceola Parkway (the ones noted above, plus Art of Animation), even though it requires an additional 50-cent cash toll at an unattended exit.

However, Exit 3 is a detour if you are staying at any other WDW resorts. Exit 6 takes you right onto World Center Drive, which becomes Epcot Center Drive when it crosses I-4 onto WDW property. Your GPS is likely to direct you to Exit 6 for any resorts in the Magic Kingdom area, Epcot area, or Downtown Disney area. You will not need to drive on the section of Buena Vista Drive adjacent to Downtown Disney.

3. Not sure about this. If you havent done a rental agreement yet, and you dont have strong ties to National, my advice based on renting at SFB, try Alamo. They are independent from the other rental companies, meaning they have their own separate bldg., they have huge inventory, and at times offer really good deals. We recently got a mini van for the economy price through AAA at Alamo and it was so easy, we were in and out, no time flat.

Alamo has hours that are similar to National. But unlike many airports, at SFB National and Alamo do not have a shared facility with combined operations.

National is walking distance to the terminal (but double-check this to make sure that's still the case).

Alamo is around a mile and half south of the terminal. If you drop your car at Alamo, 3 or 4 hours before it opens, I don't know how you would get to the terminal. Before booking Alamo, I would recommend calling them to see if they have an after-hours return process that does not require you to walk a mile and a half on an airport road during the pre-dawn hours

By the way, it's usually easy to change rental car companies, even if you already have a reservation. You're typically only locked in if you use a nonrefundable rate, typically only found on third-party websites such as Priceline. Just book something new and cancel your original reservation without a penalty.

 

[nacho113]

National is walking distance to the terminal (but double-check this to make sure that's still the case).

Alamo is around a mile and half south of the terminal. If you drop your car at Alamo, 3 or 4 hours before it opens, I don't know how you would get to the terminal. Before booking Alamo, I would recommend calling them to see if they have an after-hours return process that does not require you to walk a mile and a half on an airport road during the pre-dawn hours

Actually Alamo is right on site at SFB. It's the furthest from the terminal, but it's only a couple hundred yards outside the baggage claim doors (a 60-90 second walk). All the rest of the rental agencies are literally right across the road from the baggage claim doors (30-60 second walk).

We had an early morning drop off with Alamo last year (5:00am) and was concerned because the website warned the location was closed at this time and we would have to use the "after hours key drop" procedure. When we actually arrived at the airport just before 5am, we were greeted by a very friendly Alamo rep when we pulled in who scanned our vehicle and gave us our receipt. She said that they usually had people on site when there were flights going out this early.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Actually Alamo is right on site at SFB. It's the furthest from the terminal, but it's only a couple hundred yards outside the baggage claim doors (a 60-90 second walk). All the rest of the rental agencies are literally right across the road from the baggage claim doors (30-60 second walk).

Excellent! Glad to hear that Alamo is not where Google Maps now shows it to be -- and that you had a good experience with a return while the Alamo facility at SFB was officially closed.

 

[grover]

Thank you for all the helpful advice! You guys are great!
I am familiar with Osceola Parkway, our son lives just off of Disney Property near the outlet mall so we normally use this route as it is quick and seems to avoid a lot of traffic.