magic express wwyd?

[SwanVT2]

Our return flight departs Orlando at 8 am. This means magic express would pick us up at POR at 5 am. Ouch. Would Mears ask us to be out that early? From what I have read, will ME haul us all over disney to other resorts before getting us to the airport?

 

[KrazeeK120]

The ME pick up time is always approximately 3 hours before your flight departure. You may stop at other resorts after you are picked up.

You should be prepared for a ME departure of around 5 AM. Also, you should be prepared to take your bags to the airport yourself as I believe RAC opens at 6 AM (someone please correct me if I'm misinformed).

 

[Alesia]

Mears is going to pick you up at the same time. You'll probably end up on the exact same DME bus. You can get a taxi for about $60, but you'll need to leave by 5:30. You really do need to be at the airport 2 hours before your flight - security lines can be unbelievably long.

 

[bumbershoot]

DME might take you all around or might not. That's why the pickup is so early, to account for the possibilities.

 

[disney world dreamer]

these are things you should have thought about prior to booking your flights if you didn't want to have to get up that early.

no matter what you're gonna have to leave right around the same time to go to the airport.

you might as well just use DME.

and as PP said RAC doesn't open until 6am so you'll need to bring your checked luggage and check it in at the airport.

you would have to do that if you took another mode of transport as well so you'd have to leave around the same time to ensure you have enough time to do that.

 

[xlsm]

Here's the thing with the early pickup time...the drive from the resorts to the airport alone can be 45 minutes depending on traffic. If ME stops at another resort, it's along the way from your resort to the airport, not somewhere way off course. Once the bus gets to the airport, it drops off on A side, then goes around to the B side (this may vary). Then you will go inside, check luggage (since you'll miss RAC), make your way through security (which can be a major pain at MCO), and then you still have to find your gate, grab some food, use the restroom, and by that time, you don't have a lot of extra time before your flight begins boarding. Three hours sounds like a long time beforehand, but once you are in the moment, it almost feels rushed.

In my opinion, your best option is to take the ME. Just make sure everything is ready to roll the night before. If it really concerns you, you can check on changing your flight, but otherwise, just plan on an early morning.

Have fun on your trip, and best wishes for everyone in your party being in a good mood with quick feet on your departure day

 

[SwanVT2]

It is fine. No worries. We are morning people so it is fine. Thanks for the info. I'm glad ME exists!

 

[Amanda999]

I took a 5am ME from POR a year or so ago. We stopped at pofq, okw and ssr. It was easily an hour before we left the 3rd resort (can remember if okw or ssr was last). (I had never seen either ssr or okw before, so it was kinda nice to drive around and see them.). Fwiw it was a Saturday, and no traffic at all on the highway, so we got to Mco with plenty of time.