Magic Express: Do you really need to allow 3 hours?

[camdensmom]

Hi all,
We'll be leaving the POLY on a Tuesday morning. I am torn between booking an 8 a.m. and an 11 a.m. flight. We've taken the ME a bunch of times and always adhered to the "be at the pick-up spot" 3 hours before your flight rule.

And we've always found ourselves at the airport WAY earlier than we need to be there.

We have assigned seats on the flight (Jet Blue) and will not be checking any bags (in fact my inlaws will be taking all of our luggage with them to their home in FL b/c we'll be back to see them a few weeks later). We aren't even bringing strollers for this trip.

I hate the idea of getting the kids up at 4 a.m. since they'll need to go to school Wed-Friday of that week.

Has anyone boarded the bus a bit later than the 3 hour window? What was your experience?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Missytara]

ME will always book you 3 hours ahead of your flight. You cannot "opt" for a later bus.

 

[abdgeek]

Hi all,
We'll be leaving the POLY on a Tuesday morning. I am torn between booking an 8 a.m. and an 11 a.m. flight. We've taken the ME a bunch of times and always adhered to the "be at the pick-up spot" 3 hours before your flight rule.

And we've always found ourselves at the airport WAY earlier than we need to be there.

We have assigned seats on the flight (Jet Blue) and will not be checking any bags (in fact my inlaws will be taking all of our luggage with them to their home in FL b/c we'll be back to see them a few weeks later). We aren't even bringing strollers for this trip.

I hate the idea of getting the kids up at 4 a.m. since they'll need to go to school Wed-Friday of that week.

Has anyone boarded the bus a bit later than the 3 hour window? What was your experience?

Thanks in advance.

If you don't want to get the kids up early, you should book the 11am flight. ME will always book you three hours out, but I've been told that you can go to the concierge and have them book you for a later time.

I always go with the time they give me so that I don't have to worry about possibly not making my flight. You never know if you are the first, middle or last stop they are making.

I was on ME one time when there was an accident on the access road between a baggage truck and car(we had just gotten off the exit and could see the airport). We sat on the road(with other ME busses) for about an hour before the police allowed the bus and other traffic to back up, cross the median and go back to the interstate(cars had been driving through the grass to get out). Needless to say, we had to go all the way back around and take another road to get to the airport, which took about another hour. Because ME had picked us up three hours ahead, we still had time to get to our flights on time. From that point on, I have never questioned the three hour time gap. I just use it to eat something or leisurely stroll to my gate.

 

[nordkin]

Depending on the security lines 3 hours may not be enough. We usuually opt for 3 1/2 just in case. On our last trip in October, even with that, we made it to our gate just as they were starting to board. I would rather get to the airport early and wait there than risk missing our flight. I would book the later flight if I were you.

 

[DisneyForLife]

I agree with everyone...............you just never know what can happen and ME is smart with the three hour window. I would rather get there early than have something happen and be worried about missing my flight.

In your case I would either book the 11am flight or get a towncar to pick you up to take you to the airport. But I don't think you would gain enough time to make it worth the price.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[goofy4tink]

Contrary to what happens upon arrival into MCO, you are put on a specific bus for your ride back to MCO. You could find that the next bus, from your specific resort, isn't coming for another hour. They are dispatched according to need...so if no one has booked a ride, the bus will not come. You could be left standing there, waiting for a bus that isn't coming!!
You say you get to MCO way too early? MCO strongly recommends arriving no less than 2 hrs prior to your departure. If you ride the DME back to MCO, and you make no other stops along the way, and there is no heavy traffic, you arrive with 30 mins to spare. That's not a lot of time.
You have no way of knowing what security it going to be...I've breezed right thru, and at other times, I've had it take close to 45 mins.

If you don't want to wake the family up that early, take the later flight.

 

[Lewisc]

You have the option of using a car service. You have to decide if the extra, maybe an hour, of sleep is worth the money ($60-$70)

 

[Lewisc]

I've been told that you can go to the concierge and have them book you for a later time.

I've heard you can request and earlier pick up time. AFAIK you're the first poster to indicate a later pick up time is possible.

I understand Disney contract with MCO requires guests be scheduled to arrive at MCO at least 2 hours before their flight. 3 hours allows 30 minutes to drive and 30 minutes for pickups at other resorts and delays due to traffic or extra time to load guests.

 

[seashoreCM]

Even with the normal 3 hour in advance pickup, there are still numerous instances (some reported right here on The DIS) where people are running for their planes.

If you understand either what a bell curve is or what "YMMV" means, you will understand that other peoples' experiences are not a good gauge of you yourself might run into.

To further cut down on the chances of being anxious, or having your low zone number or early bird boarding become academic, you can always request and get a yet earlier pickup, say, 3-1/2 hours in advance. This becomes your assigned bus. (Deadline for doing this is morning of the day before the day you check out.) Plan your last meal at the airport to make use of any surplus time spent there and also maximize sleep or park time.

... an accident on the access road between a baggage truck and ...

A Magical Express baggage truck?

 

[JayhawkFans]

So with a 6:40 a.m. flight we can anticipate leaving All Star Sports at 3:40 a.m. Might as well sleep in our clothes since we are closing the M.K. at 1:00 a.m. Very short w/e trip

 

[camdensmom]

Thanks for all your replies.

I probably should have added that the 8:00 flight was a lot cheaper when multiplied x 5 which is why it is up for debate.

I hadn't thought about the town car. It would still be cheaper than the flight difference to do that, but I'm not sure if its an option since my twins would need car seats.

I think I'll suck up the cost difference and opt for the later flight.

Thanks again.

 

[beccasmom]

I know 3 hours sounds insanely early, but traffic, stops at other resorts and any number of other things can delay you. I was on a Mears bus once (pre-ME days) that picked us up 2 hours early and the driver got stuck in back of an accident miles ahead. I bet a lot of folks missed their flights that morning. I was lucky..... I was carrying only a carry-on and my flight ended up being delayed anyway. I was alone, which helped too. Not a fun morning.

The earliest flight home I book is the 10:00 am, which gives us a 7:00 ME pick-up - plenty early enough, but I learned that the hard way. 4:00 am? We did that a few times --- not much fun at all, especially with little ones.

 

[bigbabyblues]

We used a town car service once with two in car seats. The seats were provided with the car.

 

[bear_mom]

Thanks for all your replies.

I probably should have added that the 8:00 flight was a lot cheaper when multiplied x 5 which is why it is up for debate.

I hadn't thought about the town car. It would still be cheaper than the flight difference to do that, but I'm not sure if its an option since my twins would need car seats.

I think I'll suck up the cost difference and opt for the later flight.

Thanks again.

When we used a town car service they still recommended you be picked up 2 1/2 hours before our flight so that would only save you 30 minutes. (we were at the Dolphin so we didn't have access to ME).

Emily

 

[sam_gordon]

When we used a town car service they still recommended you be picked up 2 1/2 hours before our flight so that would only save you 30 minutes. (we were at the Dolphin so we didn't have access to ME).

Emily

Maybe. The three hour pickup window is actually +/- 15 minutes. So your assigned pick up could be anywhere between 3:15 before your flight and 2:45 before you flight.

The following is NOT a recommended course of action
I guess it would be technically possible to give DME a flight number of a plane leaving 'x' amount of minutes after your scheduled flight. For example, your flight leaves at noon. You want to leave Disney at 10 (instead of 9). So you find a flight leaving at 1pm and tell Disney THAT'S your flight. AFAIK, DME doesn't check with the airlines to see what you actually have booked.
The preceeding is NOT a recommended course of action
Of course, in the above example, it's possible you get assigned a 10:15 pickup (or even a 9:45 pickup and other stops need to be made), meaning you get to MCO ~10:45... a little over an hour before your flight. I can easily do that at my home airport, would never in a million years consider doing it at MCO.