Flying vs Driving Advice

[DisneyArie]

I drive down and even though I have a car, I use Disney transportation so if that is your only worry, I wouldn't worry about it. It's silly to take a bus from CBR to Disney Springs then to a resort. Take the bus to the closest park and then hop the bus to the resort you are going to if your ADRs are at another resort, or a taxi or Uber. I've never waited longer than 1/2 for a bus and that was at Disney Springs, which I don't go to any more.

As far as flying, I live about 7 1/2 hours away from Disney but 45 min. to a hour away from the airport in Atlanta. So I would have to drive to Atlanta, pay to park my car there, wait the 2 hours to get on my plane and then the flight wouldn't be that long, maybe 1 1/2, then wait to board ME then wait for how ever many stops there were before we got to my resort, reverse that when it's time to leave then pay the parking for the week at the airport. So I might, if I'm lucky and the stars align, save 2 hours from driving plus pay a heck more than it costs me to drive, so I drive. I would advise you to do whatever you are most comfortable with, do you like to fly with the little ones? Can you get everything you need into the two free bags? If so, go for it but no matter which you decide, don't let the Disney transportation be the deciding factor and I wouldn't add the cost of renting a car once you are there to that.

I just looked up airport parking fees. I didn't think about that. It would cost $56.30 so I have to factor that cost in as well. The airport is about an hour away with no traffic.

My oldest has been on a plane before when he was 2, but my youngest has never flown so I'm not sure how he would behave. I would imagine he would be extremely loud lol.

We would each get two free checked bags on southwest so 8 total.

 

[DisneyArie]

I would go with the flight and rental car. We have done the drive with and without kids and if the flight is cheap enough, fly. If its an early morning flight, we would get a airport hotel so we would be right at the airport in the morning.

DH and I both have control issues and have a hard time giving up control of driving, so we hate riding on Disney transportation. Back when I was working, it was nothing for me to drive anywhere from 40-60,000 miles a year and DH drives 30-40,000. We are both is sales so we live in our cars! On our last trip, I had read how everyone raves about the busses and tried them again, they were as bad as I remembered them.

I like having the car because my youngest has tantrums like nobody's business, and when it happens, I will need to find a "calm down" spot or remove him from the park if he won't calm down.

 

[tvguy]

4 hours? Good gravy! I bet if you drove & they flew, you'd beat them there 9 times out of 10!

I can drive to KC in 4 hours. 3 of the last 4 times I flew there (or back), it took 6-7 hours

4 hours is kind of an odd number, because I can't think of a single place we have gone that was between 4 and 7 hours drive from home. Most places are 90 minutes to 2 1/2 hours, or 7 hours, nothing in between..

 

[lovemygoofy]

Is this your first trip? I recommend flying and doing the buses because the construction right now is crazy for people that know where they are going.
We were there in December and took the buses everywhere with only a couple problems.

Also, don't forget to factor in tolls as well with your drive down. Isn't there a parking fee? Was that factored into the costs?

I would fly because the drive home is looooong after being wiped out on a disney vacation. I never feel refreshed and relaxed after a visit there. Usually just tired and
ready for peace and quiet.

 

[MamaBelle4]

We drove last time and will be this time. It's 15 hours plus stops for us. We have 4 kids, 7 & under.

We leave around 7pm that way a bulk of our traveling is overnight where we can minimize stops. The kids sleep through, then when they wake up, we are 1 state away (maybe 2) from the happiest place on earth.

 

[tinkerone]

I love getting on a plane at breakfast and having lunch at the resort. You can not beat that! For us, its worth a few extra dollars. Especially during our colder months, leaving from snow and getting to shorts territory in two and a half hours. Heaven.....
Of course if your adverse to the bus system, that's a whole nother thing.

 

[Disneyliscious]

Option 2: Fly & get a rental
RT flights: $815.84
Compact Rental car : $79.72 for 8 days
Gas: $40 estimated (We won't go around except to the parks & to the grocery store once)
Concern: Is the price worth it?
Total: $935.56

I realize you have already gotten a ton of replies but I wanted to offer my experience too. For 20+ years I drove the 12 hour (one way) drive to Orlando. Last October I flew for the first time and I WILL NEVER DRIVE AGAIN. Yes, it was a couple hundred dollars more expensive but omg it was SO nice. We basically got to add an entire 24 hour day to our vacation from saving the time of driving alone.

My flight was 1hr and 45 mins versus 12 hours of driving. It was almost surreal at how fast I was in Nashville one hour and literally in Orlando the next. Your option #2 is DEF worth the money, trust me. We flew and rented a car and it was the best decision ever.

 

[AP18]

My husband and I drove down for our honeymoon and it was about 18 hrs. We got a late start the day we left but stayed overnight in GA and then made it to Orlando the next day. We had an unfortunate first night as my husband was very sick and dehydrated, we spent our first night In the hospital until 6am. By the time we were ready to go to the parks we were exhausted. We ended up calling our trip early because of our exhaustion.

We are headed back in Nov and we originally wanted to fly but it is so darn expensive, so we are driving again but we are giving ourselves one extra day of travel so we can hang by the pool before hitting the parks. I enjoy driving down because you get to enjoy the sights and you get quality time with each other. We don't have children yet but when we take them to Disney I plan to still drive down.

It's a toss up because of the time you have on vacation, but I recommend driving.

 

[Shanti]

We're 21 driving hours away, and I refuse to drive. The exhaustion just isn't worth it (I'd rather stay home), and as you said, the make-up sleep eats into Disney time. That's a much bigger issue than any minutes you'll lose from relying solely on Disney transportation at the parks.

I'm also the type who sees vacation as a time to not work. I'm a single mother of an autistic child, with a demanding job, so total escape from career work and housework is treasured. I don't like to cook on vacation, or to do my own laundry, or to drive when I don't have to. I like handing off my Disney tagged luggage at check-in at my home airport, flying nonstop for 2 and 1/2 hours to get to MCO, then climbing on a Magical Express bus and immersing myself in the mouse. I also love RAC on the way back- makes the airport less of a hassle. There is magic in not always being tired and overworked.

 

[Shanti]

...But however you get there, you'll have fun.

 

[kniquy]

It doesn't really seem like there is a considerable savings to account for the time you would spend driving - 16 hours driving will likely be 20 hours when you factor in stops and a couple meals and traffic. And then the 16-20 hour return trip. That is a work week of driving. I thought about driving from MA but when i looked at both sides of the drive it looks less appealing.

You mentioned 2 small kids -- I am not sure their ages but my 10 year old boys would probably be ok, but my 3 DD would be driving us nuts 2 hours in. So carefully consider your kids tolerance of being strapped into the car for 16+ hours.

The Disney magical express was pretty easy to use when we went. There was a bus waiting when we got there so we sat on the bus and waited a little bit for a few other passengers, but we didn't mind because we knew our Disney vacation had started. It is just nice to sit back relax and have someone handle your luggage watch a video about Disney and you get dropped off at the resort. I think we were at the resort within an hour of landing. The return to the airport was very simple. They give you a time that you need to be ready and at the bus stop and they take you to the airport. I cant remember how far in advance of our flight we were picked up --- maybe around 3 hours.

The actual park transportation isn't that bad. you just have to expect to wait a little bit. Don't make dining reservations that will be difficult or will cause you stress in getting there. It is a vacation just plan and try and relax.

I just calculated the difference between your drive and fly and park transportation -- $273.67 -- that could mean you you guys dine out 4 less times between now and September.

Hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[hoffman1]

We have done all three options. It is a 12-13 hour drive for us with minimal stops. We drive overnight, check in, and head straight to the Magic Kingdom. We are seriously ready to crash by that night. Our preferred option is flying and renting a car. We are not fan of waiting even 15-20 minutes for a bus when you could be to the park in 10 min. We also don't enjoy being packed in a bus like sardines at the end of the night.
But often our budget dictates what we do -- so we drive.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

My flight was 1hr and 45 mins versus 12 hours of driving. It was almost surreal at how fast I was in Nashville one hour and literally in Orlando the next. Your option #2 is DEF worth the money, trust me. We flew and rented a car and it was the best decision ever.

If you're being total fair, you can't compare a 1.75 hour flight to a 12-hour drive unless you ALSO include travel time to the airport, the time you spend at the airport pre-flight, the time you spend getting from your plane to ME, and then the time you spend on ME riding to the resort. When you add it all up "door to door", it's probably more like 5 hours vs 12 hours (although, for me Nashville-Orlando is more like 14 hours driving).

Still a time savings, and obviously enough for you to prefer the flight. But, it's not really being honest to compare JUST the time spent on the plane to the time spent in the car.

 

[MommaBerd]

As far as flying, I live about 7 1/2 hours away from Disney but 45 min. to a hour away from the airport in Atlanta. So I would have to drive to Atlanta, pay to park my car there, wait the 2 hours to get on my plane and then the flight wouldn't be that long, maybe 1 1/2, then wait to board ME then wait for how ever many stops there were before we got to my resort, reverse that when it's time to leave then pay the parking for the week at the airport. So I might, if I'm lucky and the stars align, save 2 hours from driving plus pay a heck more than it costs me to drive, so I drive. I would advise you to do whatever you are most comfortable with, do you like to fly with the little ones? Can you get everything you need into the two free bags? If so, go for it but no matter which you decide, don't let the Disney transportation be the deciding factor and I wouldn't add the cost of renting a car once you are there to that.

This is us too (plus we'd have 5 or 6 people flying)! No matter how fun I think it would be to fly to Orlando, I can't justify it. Driving just makes sense. I imagine if it were 10+ hours, then that is when we'd choose to fly.

 

[brockash]

I'm hoping you guys can help me out deciding if I should drive or fly to Disney World this September. Of course, driving the MUCH less expensive option, but is flying worth it to save time?? We are a family of 4 - 2 adults and 2 small kids.

Option 1: Fly & use Disney Transportation
RT flights: $815.84 (4 people, 2 free checked bags each)
Concern: long wait times for buses (we will need to take a break about mid-day), not being able to leave exactly when we want; long transport times, price
Total: $815.84


Option 2: Fly & get a rental
RT flights: $815.84
Compact Rental car : $79.72 for 8 days
Gas: $40 estimated (We won't go around except to the parks & to the grocery store once)
Concern: Is the price worth it?
Total: $935.56

Option 3: Drive
Standard SUV rental : $362.17 for 10 days (We went with a SUV because we thought it would be more comfortable to have the extra room)
Gas : $180 estimated
Time: 16 hours each way; we plan on driving overnight and stopping every 2.5 hours that the kids are awake to give them a break and let them stretch and go potty. My husband and I will take turns driving, rotating every 2 hours because that's about the most amount of time I can last lol
Concern: Being exhausted upon arrival; wasting vacation hours from driving & sleeping
Total: $542.17

I guess I'm mainly hoping people who have done one or both to provide some insight. We have taken a road trip before. It was about 10.5 hours total, but it took us close to 12.5 as my youngest was just under 1, and he needed to be fed/changed/given a break quite often. We drove straight through and immediately passed out as soon as we arrived, taking about a 6 hour nap. My oldest was wide awake while my husband, the baby, and myself were all exhausted. We had my niece to keep him company while we napped; we won't have anyone at WDW.


This decision is stressing me out lol. Please help!

Def. fly...815 for 4 ppl. and basically free baggage is a really good deal too. We always fly and the buses aren't that bad. I will say that during our first trip with young kids, we planned on doing the mid-day break thing every day, but stopped that after the 2nd day, because it just wasn't worth it - too much time, too much energy etc. Now we just hang in the parks and when kids get tired they sleep in the stroller and we walk around, get a snack and sit to take a break or do some of the longer indoor attractions. This works much better for us. If you guys def. want to do the mid-day break thing every day then that would be my only reason to consider getting a rental, but either way I'd def. fly. It's just not worth the time and the driving 16 hours in our opinion.

If it were under 10 hours of a drive, then I'd be more serious and open to driving or if tickets were outrageous or something, but you have a nice deal on tix. so with a 16 hr. drive it wouldn't even be a consideration for us.

 

[DisneyArie]

If you're being total fair, you can't compare a 1.75 hour flight to a 12-hour drive unless you ALSO include travel time to the airport, the time you spend at the airport pre-flight, the time you spend getting from your plane to ME, and then the time you spend on ME riding to the resort. When you add it all up "door to door", it's probably more like 5 hours vs 12 hours (although, for me Nashville-Orlando is more like 14 hours driving).

Still a time savings, and obviously enough for you to prefer the flight. But, it's not really being honest to compare JUST the time spent on the plane to the time spent in the car.

You're right. The cheapest flight would leave at 6:45am and is not direct. While the flight time is 2.5 hours, there is a layover and I would not arrive in Orlando until 1PM. I live a little over an hour away from the airport so I would probably have to leave my house at around 4:15am. I would say it is closer to 10 hours total time. Knowing this, would you fly?

 

[brockash]

Thanks so much! How was it getting to the parks? I read it could take up to 2 hours each way if using Disney transportation. I also read that I shouldn't even bother to take the bus if I have an early morning ADR.

We use the buses alone every trip and it's nowhere near 2 hours to get to a park. The worst time for buses is going to be at closing, but even then it's usually only a 10-30 min. wait for the bus (depending on the time of year you go etc.) and then 10-20 mins. to the resort. That's worst case scenario. -Most times from the time you leave your room to the time you arrive your intended park, it's much more like a half hour and that includes walking to the bus stop, waiting and driving. We also do several before park open ADR's in the morning and have never had a problem with the transportation. People would not use the buses if it wasn't a viable option. Every now and the there will be a horror story or two, we've had one of our own, but even then it was more like an hour, nowhere near 2 and that was once in many many week-long trips only using Disney transportation.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

You're right. The cheapest flight would leave at 6:45am and is not direct. While the flight time is 2.5 hours, there is a layover and I would not arrive in Orlando until 1PM. I live a little over an hour away from the airport so I would probably have to leave my house at around 4:15am. I would say it is closer to 10 hours total time. Knowing this, would you fly?

Me? No, but I detest air travel. And my wife thinks even less of it than I do. Plus, we stay offsite, so a car is pretty much mandatory. In the end, you're still saving 8-10 hours each way, and possibly avoiding an overnight somewhere along the way. So, you'll have to weigh it all

 

[brockash]

Sorry, guys. I meant up to 2 hours to get to your destination-not wait time. This is the article that I read.

"If you've got dining plans at another Disney hotel, the cheapest option is to take a Disney bus from Caribbean Beach to Downtown Disney (or an open theme park), then take another bus from there to your destination hotel. Do the reverse to get back to Caribbean Beach. While that's free, it can take anywhere from 90 minutes to 2 hours each way. If your destination is one of the Magic Kingdom monorail resorts, and the Magic Kingdom is still open, you could take a bus to the Magic Kingdom, then either walk (to the Contemporary and Bay Lake Tower), hop on the monorail (to the Polynesian and Grand Floridian), or take a boat (to Fort Wilderness, the Wilderness Lodge, the Polynesian, and the Grand Floridian). We suggest you still allow at least an hour for that."

Where are you eating? If you're eating at one of deluxe resorts around MK area, then you'd want to take a bus to MK and then walk, monorail or boat to the resort. If it's one around Epcot, take a bus to DHS and then walk or boat to the restaurant. In no circumstance would I ever book something that I would first have to go to DTD to transfer to another resort. That very well could take 2 hours. DTD is going to be the worst bus transportation (time-wise) you'll find, so def. don't go there unless you're going for something at DTD.

 

[Disneyliscious]

If you're being total fair, you can't compare a 1.75 hour flight to a 12-hour drive unless you ALSO include travel time to the airport, the time you spend at the airport pre-flight, the time you spend getting from your plane to ME, and then the time you spend on ME riding to the resort. When you add it all up "door to door", it's probably more like 5 hours vs 12 hours (although, for me Nashville-Orlando is more like 14 hours driving).

Still a time savings, and obviously enough for you to prefer the flight. But, it's not really being honest to compare JUST the time spent on the plane to the time spent in the car.

True, but then we'd need to add in the time sleeping upon arrival after a 12 hour drive as well because regardless of what time of day or night you arrive, your body is going to have to rest after that. Thats not the case on a short flight.

And just as with possible layovers at an airport (or delays) there could be construction zones on the interstate, a wreck that holds up traffic, etc.