Do I need a rental car?

[Phil'sFrontier]

We are really leaning towards renting after more research. It is well within our budget range, and it would be a lot more convienent than trying to rely on a transportation system I am totally unfarmiliar with. I didn't mention we are also staying two nights(the last two of the vacation) in the YC as a treat to us. Chris(7 years old) is very excited about their pool.

Now I have to figure out the whole car rental thing. So far I am going towards 'enterprise' as they semm to have good rates and reviews as well.

 

[MariDisney]

We stay on site and don't even consider not renting a car. For the additional $200 it adds to our vacation we feel like it's a vacation budget line item and non-negotiable. We like to be on our own time fram as well as dining at other resorts. For what might take 1 hour or more on a disney bus (say a resort to resort trip for dining where we'd need to transfer somewhere, possibly waiting 20 min. for both buses) we can do in the car in 15 minutes. My time is precious, particularly vacation time. Other people enjoy not having to drive on vacation, and I can respect that. It's just not for me. If I were staying off site there is no way in the world I would consider not having my own car.

 

[SnootyBear]

I would call and find out what their shuttle service is like. Our first trip to WDW the hotel we booked was off site and the shuttle consisted of ONE bus in the morning and ONE at night. We drove our rental car and parked in the lots, but had no intention of doing that when we first planned the trip!

 

[carolina_yankee]

If car is within your budget, I would definitely rent a car. However, since you're finishing up with a 2 night stay at Yacht Club, there are a couple of alternatives.

You could rent from National/Alamo at the airport and then turn the car in at the Dolphin or Car Care Center once you're on property. You could then use Disney transportation while at YC if you need it (depending on your resort/park desires, the walk or boat to Epcot or Disney Studios might be all your need), and take Disney's Magical Express to the airport.

However, depending on your trip length, it's probably just as cost effective and less hassle to rent a car for the whole duration. The kicker is the cost of transportation from the airport to the Radisson. Once you pay for that and even a couple of cab fares, you might as well have a car rental for all the hassle you're going through.

Also, with a child, that extra walking to get a Downtown Disney bus (which won't be convenient) would wear him out before you, and could take up to 2 hours to get from your resort to an actual park if you hit the timings all wrong.

Dirk

 

[cranbiz]

That's a really long walk and crossing SR535 is not the easiest thing to do.

After a day in the parks, that walk would be a deal breaker in my book.

If you still opt for this option, be aware that the buses from DTD to the resorts don't pickup at the Marketplace before 8:30am and are spotty at best until after 10am. You will still need to go to a Disney resort and transfer to a park bus. From room to park can be in excess of 2 hours.

The DTD resort area shuttles are for registered guests only. So walking to the Doubletree is not an option. The Mears drivers I have spoke to on those runs check to make sure you are a guest of one of those resorts.

The Raddison does not appear to have a shuttle so renting a car is your best bet.

 

[Phil'sFrontier]

yeah we are def renting a car.