flight landing time to ADR... how much to allow?

[Lisa F]

I would like to book an Ohana dinner on my arrival night and depending on what SW does for schedules, am looking at landing somewhere between 3-3:30pm. Will get a car rental, drive to the poly and check in there. Can anyone give me an idea of what a "safe" adr time would be? is 6pm pushing it for all that? Do not want to be stressed.

 

[Pmlocke]

Land at 3:30, get to the baggage claim area at around 3:50. Get luggage at 4:30. Get car and start trip to hotel around 4:50. Arrive at hotel at 5:30-hopefully no traffic. Get checked in, unload the baggage at the room and then head to Ohana. You may be cutting it just a tad close. 6:30 would be the earliest I would get a ressy for.

 

[Alesia]

I would give it at least 3 hours. Even with that, you could still end up paying the no-show fee if you have any delays.

I never book an ADR for arrival day unless I'm completely fine with paying the fee.

 

[figment_jii]

I also agree that I would look to make the ADR at least three hours after you're scheduled to land. That being said, I would only make the ADR if you're okay with paying the no show fee in case your flight is delayed, there are delays at the airport, there is traffic get to the resort, etc. Truthfully, I often make the reservation while en-route to the resort (at least then I know the flight was on-time and the only big unknown is traffic) or while checking-in.

 

[anonymousegirl]

I once allowed 3 hours for baggage, rental car, and driving over to hotel. Even thought we'd have time to have a quick shower before taking WDW bus over to the Contemporary. Boy, was I wrong! Flight was delayed, bags took forever, rental car lines were long. We ended up going straight over to the restaurant and still being 10 minutes late!

 

[minnie mum]

When we used to fly into Orlando, I didn't make any ADRS sooner than 4 hours after landing . Airlines ETA's just aren't that reliable. At least you'll have a car. If you run short of time, just drive straight to the Poly. You can check into your own resort after dinner. Be sure to do online check in though, if you will want room charging privileges or if youre using the DDP.

 

[Alesia]

When we used to fly into Orlando, I didn't make any ADRS sooner than 4 hours after landing . Airlines ETA's just aren't that reliable. At least you'll have a car. If you run short of time, just drive straight to the Poly. You can check into your own resort after dinner. Be sure to do online check in though, if you will want room charging privileges or if youre using the DDP.

From the original post, it sounds like they're staying at the Poly, which is the only reason I feel reasonably comfortable recommending 3 hours. Otherwise, I would definitely recommend at least 4 hours.

 

[minnie mum]

From the original post, it sounds like they're staying at the Poly, which is the only reason I feel reasonably comfortable recommending 3 hours. Otherwise, I would definitely recommend at least 4 hours.

I totally missed that they are staying there. That will help.

 

[ParrotBill]

Agree with 3 hrs given no flight delay. If you are slightly late, send driver to rental car counter and the rest to get luggage. Express rentals not requiring a counter stop adds some security to the timing. If your flight is late enough you won't make it - call and ask to speak with the restaurant directly. Tell them the situation and your ETA - they are likely to try to help you out.

 

[Hopefully]

From other posts I believe that the OP is going solo with a child. Splitting duties up won't be possible.
I agree with PP. I never make an arrival day ADR closer than 4 hours of my scheduled flight arrival time. Flight delays are common and out of your control.
Good Luck

 

[happymommy]

We never make an ADR on arrival day. Our friends that do (always) do so at least five hours after arrival (they usually do so at Disney Springs, so that allows maybe a bit of shopping time or a drink).

We do, however, go to a park and enjoy a counter service meal either there or at our resort! Usually it's Epcot, so I can stop in Norway and get a bottle of vodka for the room (and I have to allow at least 3 hours for it to be delivered to the park entrance to pick up).

 

[guilderlandmouse]

I would agree that it can be done with a 3 hr window since you are staying at Poly. However, if you want to allow for delays and make the experience a little more relaxing, 4 hrs would be better. This might give you a chance to check in, freshen up, and head over to Ohana.

 

[LilyWDW]

Are you willing to eat $10 per person if you can't make your reservation?

If the answer is yes, then give yourself at least 3 hours. If the answer is no, then don't make an ADR for your arrival night.

 

[goofy4tink]

I would go with a 7:30 ADR. That should give you time to get your bags, the car, drive to the Polynesian, and checked in. You will appreciate being able to relax a bit, freshen up and then head to dinner. Maybe even 8ish. Then you'll have time to unpack, get settled. Then dinner, maybe a swim, then a good night's sleep.

 

[Lisa F]

Agree with 3 hrs given no flight delay. If you are slightly late, send driver to rental car counter and the rest to get luggage. Express rentals not requiring a counter stop adds some security to the timing. If your flight is late enough you won't make it - call and ask to speak with the restaurant directly. Tell them the situation and your ETA - they are likely to try to help you out.

It's just me and my kiddo so I am the driver and only adult. I currently have a car reserved with budget and have a fastbreak account. To answer other questions, yes, I am staying at the Poly so do not include a "check in, get bags, get to poly" time in there... we are using the DDP so I'd like to check in even if we don't hit our room right away. Southwest is opening their december bookings on June 2nd I think? something like that and my 180 day window is June 6th... so I should have a decent idea on timing at that point. Maybe I will just bite the bullet and take the early early flight that gets in more like noon.

 

[caliope]

It's just me and my kiddo so I am the driver and only adult. I currently have a car reserved with budget and have a fastbreak account. To answer other questions, yes, I am staying at the Poly so do not include a "check in, get bags, get to poly" time in there... we are using the DDP so I'd like to check in even if we don't hit our room right away. Southwest is opening their december bookings on June 2nd I think? something like that and my 180 day window is June 6th... so I should have a decent idea on timing at that point. Maybe I will just bite the bullet and take the early early flight that gets in more like noon.

From your previous posts, I believe you're traveling from PVD, correct? Are you looking at the 11:50am nonstop to MCO? That's listed as a 3:00pm arrival. We just took that exact flight at the end of January and, with no delays and favorable winds, landed at 2:25pm, way ahead of schedule. We had our bags by 3:00 and were at the Poly by 3:45 or so (we had a town car pick us up). We had a 6:30 ADR at 'Ohana and made it with plenty of time to spare.

So, to answer your question, it's very doable if the stars align correctly as they did for us. I originally had an 8:30 ADR but was unhappy with that because I didn't think our 3 year old would last that long (he didn't; good thing we ate earlier!). I knew when I switched to 6:30 that any delays might cause us to miss our ADR and honestly I was fine with the no show fee if that happened; we would have just found something else for dinner (likely cheaper) and it would be a wash.

Also, FWIW, my DH took that same 11:50 flight to MCO on a business trip in early January and also arrived way ahead of schedule. When there's no delay out of PVD (and the plane isn't delayed inbound to PVD), it runs very smoothly.