Booked for 2018!! But have questions about getting to ship...

[Mousemommy1]

So excited! We took our 1st Disney cruise this past April (1st cruise ever actually) and it was fantastic! We just booked our second cruise for April 2018.

Our 1st cruise was a 4 night on the Dream, so we did a 2 night WDW resort stay prior to and after the cruise. This next cruise is a 7 night on the Fantasy, so we won't be doing Disney before and after.

The thought of flying in the day of the cruise makes me beyond nervous...is that what a lot of you do? Or can you recommend some alternatives? Maybe the Hyatt at MCO the night before?

Suggestions welcome!

 

[GoofyDisneyDaddy]

This has been very well discussed, so you can search and find lots of answers. If you like to use Disney Transportation, the Hyatt MCO is the way to go and I highly recommend it. If you are renting a car, then you can stay out near the port instead.

 

[mmouse37]

There are numerous options pre cruise. People do fly in the day of but as you mentioned it can be nerve wracking when a flight gets delayed.

You can do a beach stay beforehand by staying at one of the hotels on or near the beach in Cocoa Beach, or you could do Kennedy Space Center the day before or just use a hotel to chill. Port Canaveral/Cocoa Beach have many hotels with nice pools or close to the beach. Ron Jon surf shop is always a fun place to visit.

Or you could stay by the airport. We prefer to stay by the port and most always rent a car at MCO and return it at the port area morning of cruise. That way we have a car to get to the area, go shopping, go to dinner, go sightseeing, etc.

MJ

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

Flying in the day off just depends on how risk averse you are, when your cruise is and where you are coming from. If you would be flying in from somewhere prone to weather delays and it is that time of the year, coming in a day early is highly recommended. If you are flying in during the good season but think your nerves will be frayed by the time you reach the ship, coming in a day early is highly recommended.

 

[tee11]

We flew in the day of the cruise once - it was great.
I appreciated not having to open suitcases, getting right onto the ship (we had a very early flight).
I wouldn't recommend it during hurricane season or snowstorm season, but in April you are good!
Otherwise the Hyatt at MCO is great as well!

 

[jrabbit]

Earlier this year on our 7 night cruise we flew in the day before (from the west coast), and our Cocoa Beach hotel had a “package” where we were picked up at MCO, delivered to the hotel, and the next morning had a shuttle to the port. There are many hotels that participate in the “Fly, Snooze, Cruise” packages.


Next spring we are flying out of San Diego, its only a 2 hour flight and I am NOT going to fly to SD on the day of the cruise. There are way too many things that can go wrong with the airlines, and with no excess capacity (We don’t fly if the plane is not full), if something goes badly, you will be delayed 12+ hours.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

Fly in the day before. There are just too many things that can delay a flight and make you miss your cruise if you fly in the day of. There are several options and all have their advantages. Some of those options are:

1) Fly in day before, stay at Hyatt MCO overnight and take DCL transfers in the morning. This was super easy and convenient, but it can be more expensive than other options.
2) Fly in day before, rent a car to drive to Port Canaveral, stay at hotel there, return rental car and take rental car shuttle to port. This is a little less easy and convenient, but will generally be less expensive.
3) Fly in day before, stay at Hyatt MCO or another nearby hotel, and take a private car service to the port. This can be less expensive than #1 depending on how many people and if you stay at a less expensive hotel. It can be almost as convenient as #1, with one drawback being getting to a hotel outside of MCO if you don't stay at the Hyatt.

Some things to consider: The DCL transfers are $70 per person round trip. With 4 or more people in your party, it can be less expensive to use a car service in place of the DCL transfers. It appears you are a family of 5. You will need to look at what the max occupancy of the rooms are at any hotel you choose. I was thinking the Hyatt MCO might have a limit of 4 on some of their rooms. There are some suite hotels close to MCO that might be less expense than the Hyatt for a family of 5.

 

[BuzzLightyearInTampa]

After flying from Ohio to Florida during the "Delta Meltdown of 2016," there is NO WAY that I would fly in the day of the cruise. A computer problem delayed every Delta flight in the world that day. We were scheduled to arrive in Tampa by 11 AM. We actually arrived at 7 PM and our bags decided to spend an extra night in Atlanta. So chances are, you'll be OK. But if you can swing it, it's much more relaxing to know you have that extra day in your pocket.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

I spent more time trying to figure out the best transportation to port option for our group of 9 than I did for planning any other aspect of our trip.

Here is what I can tell you for sure:

It depends on what matters more to you convenience or price?
Also, how many people are in your group?

Hyatt MCO and Disney bus is definitely the easiest option, and certainly among the most expensive.
Car services or group shuttles are cheaper but pickup times and locations may be limited.
Rental cars are often cheapest, but you do have to pick them up and drop them off. They do offer more flexibility the night before though.

If you are just two people, the bus might not cost much more than the others, but if you have 4 or 5 people, the rental car is probably a lot cheaper.

All depends on what matters most to you and how many people you have.

Enjoy!

 

[clten]

I think more and more people are arriving at least the night before the cruise because there are so many things that can happen to delay your arrival. What "where to stay" option we go with depends on what time our flight gets in. If we are getting in late in the afternoon or evening, we opt to just stay at the Hyatt in the airport. You can grab a meal in the hotel or in the airport food court. If we are getting in earlier in the afternoon, we may opt to stay at Disney and just head to Disney Springs for the evening. Any earlier, we decide what we want to do for the day -- WDW, Beach or visit relatives and stay close to whatever we've decided. We have rented a car and that gives a lot of flexibility. If staying at the Hyatt or WDW, we may opt to use DCL transportation (we aren't anxious to be among the first to get to the port when we stay at WDW and use DCL transfers). We always use DCL transfers back to the airport because we are able to take advantage of Onboard Airline Check-in.

 

[BuzzLightyearInTampa]

As for where to stay, we always drive over to WDW and stay the night before a cruise out of Port Canaveral. It just gets that "Disney feeling" going earlier.

 

[bumbershoot]

I wouldn't recommend it during hurricane season or snowstorm season, but in April you are good!

Anything can happen.

I don't know where the op is from but plenty of my friends live in places were late spring snowstorms can happen. If she's in one of those places... If her plane is routed through one of those places... If the flight before hers has a stop in one of those places and can't get out...

DH couldn't get to Savannah from NYC for 24 hours because of that weird storm/tornado thing that happened this ear. Had to leave, hours and hours later than slated, from a different airport, get to Atlanta, get a car, and drive to Savannah.

I've walked into a gorgeous day at seatac to find a madhouse for my flight to Anaheim because no planes could get to us from the east coast. It was either late spring or early summer with no hurricanes.


It has a strong chance of being fine. Stronger than in January or August. But she's not simply fine bc it's April.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Thanks guys!! Yes, we are a family of 5. We like the Disney Cruise line bus, despite the cost, so that's what we will do. But, now that I think about it, either staying at Hyatt MCO or a Disney resort would be our only options if we want to use the bus.

Is there usually a problem with getting back to the airport to catch your flight home? I would imagine it would be best to schedule the home flight late in the day, right?

 

[jrabbit]

Thanks guys!! Yes, we are a family of 5. We like the Disney Cruise line bus, despite the cost, so that's what we will do. But, now that I think about it, either staying at Hyatt MCO or a Disney resort would be our only options if we want to use the bus.

Is there usually a problem with getting back to the airport to catch your flight home? I would imagine it would be best to schedule the home flight late in the day, right?

Wrong! On Both Counts. Sorry, not trying to be mean, just going to be helpful.

To take the bus from the airport to the cruise you only have to be at the airport. You can stay anywhere. We have flown into MCO, took a hotel shuttle to our airport area hotel, then in the morning taken the shuttle back to the airport, and check in at the DCL bus counter and were on our way.

The "problem" with this was trying to get some dinner. No car = limited options, but it was a long day from the west coast and we were more tired than hungry. So we slept, then the next morning back at the airport we picked up breakfast before going to the DCL bus.

And then at the end of your trip, getting back to the airport is not difficult. DCL suggests that the earliest you book a flight out on disembarkation day is 11:30. We've taken DCL transportation back to the airport many times. Never rushing breakfast / taking express walk off. We had our breakfast in the dining room , returned to our stateroom to pick up our carry-on luggage (arranged with our room steward beforehand), exited the ship, found our checked luggage, went through customs, exited the building and boarded a DCL bus to the airport. Usually arriving at MCO before 9:30. If you go the rental car route, I've seen and been in long lines waiting to rent a car if several ships are in port at the same time (and Port Canaveral has gotten way busier over the past 17/18 years). That will have an impact on when you arrive at MCO.

 

[Shanti]

Is there usually a problem with getting back to the airport to catch your flight home? I would imagine it would be best to schedule the home flight late in the day, right?

A late in the day flight will leave you sitting at the airport for several hours, bored out of your minds (or springing for an MCO Hyatt day-use room, a little nicer but still not ideal). Not the way to end your magical cruise vacation, imo. I recommend trying to get a flight between 12 and 2pm. You won't be crunched for time on debarkation day, and you won't be collecting your Social Security checks before boarding the plane. (If you pick a relatively early flight, I recommend using the ship's onboard check-in, so you won't have to check your bags or yourselves in at the airport- a significant time-saver.)

We had the late breakfast seating, ate a leisurely table-service meal on debarkation day, spent about an hour getting to the airport, and were still there way before noon. We had a 2-something flight that was on time, & even that felt like we were waiting around forever for our plane.

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

Wrong! On Both Counts. Sorry, not trying to be mean, just going to be helpful.

Sorry, not trying to be mean, just going to be helpful. With those emojis and your tone (which can be implied from the way you say what you said) in the statement, it is nothing but mean and disrespectful. You could have skipped the condescending emojis and just just said, "Well, actually there are ways to do that." or something similar.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Thanks for the suggestions guys!! I will continue to review our options - obviously with an April 2018 sail date - I've got some time!