Disney ME or rental car - WWYD?

[srberubenh]

My DW, DS (4 at time of travel) and, DS2 (3 mo at time of travel) are going to Disney in October to celebrate my son's fourth birthday. We had originally planned to go for three nights but now have extended the trip to five. We are staying at BWV for one night and the remaining nights at BLT. We had planned to take ME for the first time. We usually get rental cars, but thought it may be a good trip to try the bus. Any thoughts about which would be better!

 

[Alesia]

I prefer to not drive on vacation if it can possibly be avoided. Give DME and Disney transportation a shot. You might find that you prefer it to renting a car.

Oh, and It's free, so why not? Really, what do you have to lose?

 

[laughinplace199]

We prefer to rent a car, especially with little ones.

When we're done touring a park, we want to be able to leave right away, not wait for a bus and then wonder if we'll get a seat or not. Also, I hate lugging strollers on the bus.

 

[sam_gordon]

You won't get a definitive consensus. I'm guessing if you ran a poll, it would be about 60/40 in favor of a rental car. There are plusses and minuses of each.

Pro Car
Transportation on YOUR schedule (no waiting for busses, monorails, boats)
Not crowded with other guests on transportation

Anti-Car
Cost
Getting between car & park gates (could involve folding stroller up for tram)

Pro busses
No 'stress' of driving
Busses already air conditioned when you get on
All adults can 'imbibe' if they so choose without worrying about a designated driver
More 'immersion'

Anti-Busses (monorails)
May need to wait for multiple busses at park opening/closing
Busses/monorails can be extremely crowded depending on time of year/day

I agree with trying out the Disney transportation. If you don't like it, you can rent a car from the car care center on Disney property for the rest of your trip.

 

[jcemom]

We find that while we may have to wait 15 minutes for a bus, it's not any longer than it would take us to find our car in the parking lot anyway, lol. So, we're firmly in the anti-rental car group.

 

[Tara]

I prefer a rental car. In fact, I wouldn't consider NOT having one. I like the flexibility it gives me, the escape from the crowds, the ability to control the a/c (I don't care how hot it is outside, I always freeze on Disney buses)...just to name a few. If you are used to having a car, I'd say stick with that. But I'd especially recommend a car because you are switching resorts.

 

[Brian Noble]

I prefer having a car---and almost always get one. I sometimes skip it if I'm in an Epcot-area resort, but even then it's a 50/50 proposition unless I'm on a budget trip. Now that the kids are older (11 and 13) the bus is easier (they can stand if they have to). When they were younger, I wouldn't have gone without a rental car in almost any circumstance.

But, to each their own. What sounds like more of a vacation: never having to touch your car keys, or never wondering when the bus will come or if you'll have a seat on it?

 

[dburg30]

If it's a florida 300 degree day, the buses, while not exactly cool when full, are a heck of a lot cooler then a car that's been baking all day in a parking lot.. You do still have to drag all your stuff and probably a longer distance, you still have to load and unload it, you still have traffic to contend with, but it is on your schedule.. Me, unless WDW drastically changes something, I dont see me ever wanting to rent and deal with a car while at WDW. Once I get thru security at our home airport my vacation has started. I want to be driven around and no have to pay attention to that kind of stuff..

 

[Alesia]

But I'd especially recommend a car because you are switching resorts.

I just want to point out that Disney will transport your luggage to the second resort for you.

 

[JavArmy]

I have never rented a car, but I love Disney transportation. Both of my trips were in mid June, when it is super busy. I have never had to wait more than 15 minutes for a bus and we have had occations when we were the only ones on the bus. This is not to say that we haven't sat on a crowded bus, because we have, but I think most people are sympathetic to people with sleepy small children and some will give up their seats. It is nice after a busy day in the parks to catch a little cat nap on the way back to the resort on the bus. I think it helps keep the "disney bubble"

 

[freddydiser021]

We get a rental everytime we go .. we stay at disney but there is quite a bit of stuff we like to go to or do that is off disney property .. we use my husband aeroplan miles to pay for the rental so it doesn't cost us any extra money and its convenient to come and go as we please ....i can definitely see the benefits to ME if your staying on property and most of your time is spent on disney resort ... it just really depends on what you plan to do while on vacation ...

 

[goofy4tink]

This is a hard one. Are you bringing car seats along with you??? I imagine you need them for the plane. And if the little one is going to be a lap baby, you still have to have a car seat for a rental car.
Parking at BWV is not all that close to the resort...it is across the street from the bus stop. Not the worst scenario but it's not the best I've seen. BLT is more convenient.

I have had a car while at WDW..and there are times it's nice to have. I do a lot of split stays, and the easiest ones have been when I had a rental car. Much better having my bags with me, vs handing them off first thing in the morning and not having them until late afternoon!!! No, your room isn't usually ready early afternoon, but it's nice to have the bags in your car if you find you need something in them.

On the other hand, I have no issues with the buses. When at BWV, you can just walk or boat over to Epcot and DHS. At BLT...walk to MK, and monorail to Epcot. I seldom find an issue with the buses at WDW. Others find they like the convenience of having a car.

Only you can decide if the addtl expense of having a car is going to be worth it for you.

 

[srberubenh]

Thanks for all of your thoughtful replies! There are definitely pros and cons to each choice. We have always rented a car or had our own with us. I like the idea of not driving while on vacation. We go to Disney often so are not worried about seeing everything. In fact, I think the plan is to visit only Epcot and MK based on the resorts that we are staying at. My biggest concern is the lack of freedom that comes with not having a car. I guess we will wait and see if some cheap car rental deals come along and use that to help make our decision for us.

 

[wdwrich]

Another point that I didn't see mentioned in this thread is that it is MUCH easier to travel between resort hotels with a rental car. Getting back to one's resort from a different resort after a late dinner can take forever if the parks are closed and you need to transfer at DTD.

 

[Tara]

Another point that I didn't see mentioned in this thread is that it is MUCH easier to travel between resort hotels with a rental car. Getting back to one's resort from a different resort after a late dinner can take forever if the parks are closed and you need to transfer at DTD.

Yet another reason I love having a rental car.

 

[jcemom]

Another point that I didn't see mentioned in this thread is that it is MUCH easier to travel between resort hotels with a rental car. Getting back to one's resort from a different resort after a late dinner can take forever if the parks are closed and you need to transfer at DTD.

That is true! Since we prefer to not drive at Disney, I have to be careful when planning meals at other resorts. For example, if I plan dinner at an MK area resort I make sure we'll be finished before MK closes for the night, so we won't have a problem hopping on a bus back to our own resort. It isn't difficult, but it does require a little bit of thought and advance planning.

 

[bumbershoot]

With those two resorts, I would definitely be tempted to go without the car. But for us we would have to make SURE we had no interest in a Sweet Tomatoes night, or in going to GiftWorld or one of the other kitschy souvenir places. And since we're ALWAYS in the mood for Sweet Tomatoes, we'd go back to the rental car.

When the Disney transportation is working, it works. When it doesn't, it's miserable. My aunt and husband experienced a perfect storm of nasty transportation problems once, and they haven't trusted the system since. The dispatch system had just changed, and they waited well over an hour at DHS waiting for an OKW bus. Others who came behind them not only missed their Olivia's reservation, but didn't even get to OKW before Olivia's was fully closed that night. It was just a cruddy situation. I'm still not sure why we didn't just hop in the car and get them, but we were all brain-fried and not thinking. DH and auntie are high-stress people who lose the ability to be clear in such situations, as well, so everyone just kept waiting. It might take the same 15 minutes to find a car as it does to wait for a bus (though I've waited longer for buses overall), but it's NEVER taken me 2 hours to find the car and drive to the resort.

As for a cool car...assuming you have a nice almost new rental car, that AC will be whooshing in absolutely no time, and by the time you're out of the lot it will be freezing in that car.

 

[Disney Ron]

We always rent a car in fact I just booked our rental with Alamo for our upcoming trip in 18 days. WDW is so easy to drive around and the car allows us much more time to enjoy our vacation instead of waiting for buses and boats.

To each his own.