Magical Express back to Airport

[mickey58729]

I have a question. What happens if you are late and miss the bus that you are supposed to be on? We will be at the park on our last day and wanted to see if anyone has any experence doing this.

305 hours till we arrive

Thanks

 

[LWQuestie]

I'm pretty sure you have the opportunity to pay for a cab to get to the airport.

Plan to leave the park at least an hour before your ME pick up time, which will be approximately 3 hrs before flight time. If you will have baggage checked with Bell Services, give yourself an extra 15 minutes or so.

 

[Lewisc]

DME buses have a potential pick up time every 30 minutes.Buses are only scheduled if there are guests at that resort who have a flight requiring a pickup at a scheduled pick up time. There is no guarantee there be another bus in 30 minutes nor is there any guarantee the next bus will have room for your entire family.

Some posters have been lucky and have been accommodated on a later bus. Others have paid for a taxi.

You should plan on paying for a taxi if you miss your scheduled pick up time. You want to maximize your last day? Why not just schedule a car service for pickup at a theme park, or a resort near whatever theme park you plan on visiting your last day. You'll avoid having to leave the park an hour before your pickup time and can probably schedule your car service to pick you up 2-2 1/2 hours before your flight. You'll get an extra 60-90 minutes of park time.

 

[tjmw2727]

ON the trip back to the airport you are actually assigned to a bus - you should not count on just "catching the next one".

As mentioned there may not be a next bus for hours and if there it may be full of passengers scheduled for that bus. Even if it seems there are empty seats at your resort the bus may be heading to another resort and I have been on buses that are filled to capacity.

 

[goofy4tink]

Here's the situation....lets say you have a 3pm flight. Your DME p/u time is about noontime. You decide that you want to hang at MK, but you get caught up in a long line at Space Mt...so you don't get back to Pop until closer to 12:45. Obviously, you have missed your assigned bus.
BUT....no one at Pop has been scheduled for a p/u until 2:00...no one had a flight scheduled that necessitated a pickup before 2:00. So, no DME bus coming to Pop. Now, you can call a cab to get you to MCO.

Or....you get back at 12:45, your bus has obviously come and gone. There is a bus arriving at 1:00, but it is a full bus with no room for anyone else...so, you can't get on that bus. Maybe you can get on a bus if one is coming 30 mins later, maybe not.

In all seriousness...you are assigned a particular bus based on your flight departure time. You can not assume that you can just 'hop on' another bus. You can't expect to displace those who were booked on that bus. So, plan on being back at your resort no less than an hour prior to DME pickup time. You will need to be on the platform, ready to go (bags in hand, the entire group there) no less than 15/20 mins prior to the stated p/u time. that time is the time the bus is scheduled to leave the resort, not when you should think about getting to the bus stop.
Get all your bags from Luggage Assistence...assuming you stored the carryon bags before leaving for the morning. Use the restrooms, grab those last minute snacks or gift and head to the bus stop.
It's really important that you use the bus you have been assigned to. Otherwise you can just get a cab...at your expense. Of course, if you do that, and you have any/all carryon bags with you, you can leave directly from the park rather than take the time to go back to your resort...giving you an addlt hour at the park.

 

[maxiesmom]

I know the 3 hours before your flight pick up time can seem excessive, but it is not. Traffic around Orlando can be hideous, and more times than not I hear accident reports when listening to the morning news. Add to that the fact that the security lines at MCO can be very long, and you don't want to cut much time of the 3 hours Disney wants you to have.

The best thing to do is to not miss your assigned bus. You don't know if another one will be along (the only come by when someone is scheduled for a pick up) and even if one comes along half an hour later, they may not have room for your family. If you want to use DME be at the bus stop, ready to go 15 minutes before your scheduled pick up time. Buses do come early, and if you are not there, they will leave without you.

 

[mickey58729]

Thanks for the information. We have used magical express for 3 or 4 years now and have always made it back before our pickup time. I just wanted to see if something happended and we were running late what the alternatives were.

 

[dudspizza]

Thanks for the information. We have used magical express for 3 or 4 years now and have always made it back before our pickup time. I just wanted to see if something happended and we were running late what the alternatives were.

Taxi at your expense would be your only option unless you were lucky enough to have another bus there with room on it.

 

[mlittig]

It is really magical Airport to the base on security and authority.

 

[Carriemel]

never mind...

 

[seashoreCM]

You would probably be better off getting a taxi right away as opposed to even waiting and trying for a later bus. Even if you did make it onto the next bus, you would be cutting it very close for making your flight.

Plan on arriving back at your resort an hour before your DME pickup time. A little more time if you will be getting carryons back from the bellhop.

 

[goofy4tink]

Since the OP has actually traveled to WDW, and has been home for more than a month, I think we can close this one, rather than restarting it again.