Magical Express Questions

[KelleyK75]

I’m hoping all the experts here can answer my questions about the Magical Express. When I called to add a guest they weren’t very helpful, which really surprised me, so I thought I’d come to the experts instead. It’s my first time using it as we usually drive down & have a car.

~You can pick up your luggage instead of having them collect it, right? We’d rather pick it up & drop off at All Stars front desk so that we can add our carryon to it while we head to the parks. We land at 10am so I know our room won’t be ready then.

~ If Magical Express is extremely busy, can you choose not to use them & just take a Lyft? Or do you have to let them know in advance?

~Any idea how long before your flight they pick you up on departure day? We are planning on HS in the morning then have a 6:00pm flight.

Thank you!!!

 

[nkereina]

~You can pick up your luggage instead of having them collect it, right? We’d rather pick it up & drop off at All Stars front desk so that we can add our carryon to it while we head to the parks. We land at 10am so I know our room won’t be ready then.

Yes, you can. Just don't put the yellow tags they mail you on your luggage. You'll have to go to baggage claim when you arrive. If you're flying Southwest or any other airline in the same terminal, you will need to walk the distance of the airport with your luggage and go up and down the escalator or elevator.

Your room could be ready that early, that's not uncommon. They will deliver the bags straight to your room within a few hours of arrival, once its ready. If it were me, I'd put anything I need right away in my carry on bag and let them handle the luggage. Especially if I were going straight to the parks when I arrive, because it will save you time since you don't have to collect luggage. You can store your carry on bag with bell services when you arrive as well.

~ If Magical Express is extremely busy, can you choose not to use them & just take a Lyft? Or do you have to let them know in advance

You can. No need to let them know in advance.

~Any idea how long before your flight they pick you up on departure day? We are planning on HS in the morning then have a 6:00pm flight.

For domestic flights, they will pick up from your resort roughly 3 hours prior to your flight, +/- 15 minutes. For a 6pm flight, I would expect a 2:45-3:15 pick up. You should be at the Magical Express stop waiting about 15 minutes prior to your pick up time, so give yourself enough time to collect any items stored with bell services before that.

 

[hedberg1661]

I’m hoping all the experts here can answer my questions about the Magical Express. When I called to add a guest they weren’t very helpful, which really surprised me, so I thought I’d come to the experts instead. It’s my first time using it as we usually drive down & have a car.

~You can pick up your luggage instead of having them collect it, right? We’d rather pick it up & drop off at All Stars front desk so that we can add our carryon to it while we head to the parks. We land at 10am so I know our room won’t be ready then.

Correct. I wouldn't put the yellow DME tags on it if you choose to do this. IMO I would let them collect the checked luggage with yellow tags. Take your carry ons and store them at Bell Services upon arrival at your resort. Once your room is ready, and assuming they haven't brought your luggage to your room already, call bell services and ask for it plus your carry ons that you have stored with them.

~ If Magical Express is extremely busy, can you choose not to use them & just take a Lyft? Or do you have to let them know in advance?

Just take a lyft. Lots of people have done this and there is no need to contact them.

~Any idea how long before your flight they pick you up on departure day? We are planning on HS in the morning then have a 6:00pm flight.

Approximately 3 hours prior.

Thank you!!!

 

[Dug720]

~You can pick up your luggage instead of having them collect it, right? We’d rather pick it up & drop off at All Stars front desk so that we can add our carryon to it while we head to the parks. We land at 10am so I know our room won’t be ready then.

Yes. Just don't put the yellow Magical Express tags on it. If those are on the bags, they will not even make it to the carousel.

Your room could be ready - they just don't guarantee it.

~ If Magical Express is extremely busy, can you choose not to use them & just take a Lyft? Or do you have to let them know in advance?

No clue. Call me cheap, but I'd rather just wait and take the included transportation than pay for a duplicate service.

~Any idea how long before your flight they pick you up on departure day? We are planning on HS in the morning then have a 6:00pm flight.

You'll get a letter on your door the day before with your pick up time. It's usually 3-4 hours before your flight - and you need to be there 15 minutes before the designated time in case the bus is running early.

 

[AngiTN]

I’m hoping all the experts here can answer my questions about the Magical Express. When I called to add a guest they weren’t very helpful, which really surprised me, so I thought I’d come to the experts instead. It’s my first time using it as we usually drive down & have a car.

~You can pick up your luggage instead of having them collect it, right? We’d rather pick it up & drop off at All Stars front desk so that we can add our carryon to it while we head to the parks. We land at 10am so I know our room won’t be ready then.

~ If Magical Express is extremely busy, can you choose not to use them & just take a Lyft? Or do you have to let them know in advance?

~Any idea how long before your flight they pick you up on departure day? We are planning on HS in the morning then have a 6:00pm flight.

Thank you!!!

Wondering, did you call regular reservations or did you call ME itself?

 

[KittieKat]

Yes you can bring your own bags to magical Express bus. They are stowed underneath. Don't put the magical Express tags on your bags.

Yes you can bypass me bus and take a Lyft. They don't need advance notice. Don't use ME tags.

Pickup for your return flight is roughly 3 hrs. They will put a notice on your door at hotel

 

[nkereina]

Yes you can bypass me bus and take a Lyft. They don't need advance notice. Don't use ME tags.

Good point. If there is a chance you may want to take Lyft depending on the line at Magical Express, you should leave the yellow luggage tags off your bags so you can collect them yourself.

 

[AngiTN]

Since you have mentioned it's your first time to use ME you may not know this but no matter what the line looks like, they have a target to get you on a bus and off to the Resort, within 30 min of your arriving and checking in. Now, there may be exceptions where it takes longer but they are really rare and unusual.
Basically, you can spend roughly 30 min retrieving your bags and calling for an Uber or you can spend 30 min (or less) just getting on the bus and leaving for Disney, without doing anything with the bags.
It's highly unlikely you'll be leaving the airport much faster not using ME.
Were it can be a long process is once at Disney. If you are the first stop, great. When you are the last, not so great.
We've done Uber to Disney on about half our trips, sort of depends on how we fell when we land and what we might have that we want to do, we always Uber back to MCO

 

[KelleyK75]

Thanks so much everyone!! That’s very helpful!!

 

[Dug720]

Since you have mentioned it's your first time to use ME you may not know this but no matter what the line looks like, they have a target to get you on a bus and off to the Resort, within 30 min of your arriving and checking in. Now, there may be exceptions where it takes longer but they are really rare and unusual.
Basically, you can spend roughly 30 min retrieving your bags and calling for an Uber or you can spend 30 min (or less) just getting on the bus and leaving for Disney, without doing anything with the bags.
It's highly unlikely you'll be leaving the airport much faster not using ME.
Were it can be a long process is once at Disney. If you are the first stop, great. When you are the last, not so great.
We've done Uber to Disney on about half our trips, sort of depends on how we fell when we land and what we might have that we want to do, we always Uber back to MCO

Good point about the timing. Especially arriving midday, the odds of being "stuck" there a long time are slim. Where I've had long waits is when I arrive around midnight and they are trying to fill a bus as much as possible - often hitting more than the usual 2 or 3 resorts.

 

[KelleyK75]

Wondering, did you call regular reservations or did you call ME itself?

I called ME itself. I received my ME letter & had to call to update flight info for a friend we just added to our room. I used the number on the letter that went directly to them. I wasn’t sure if they’d send an updated letter with correct flight info on it & the guy that answered was very short with me & seemed irritated with my questions. I’ve called Disney reservations several times in the past & they’ve always been super helpful. Maybe the guy was just having a bad day? ‍

 

[AngiTN]

Good point about the timing. Especially arriving midday, the odds of being "stuck" there a long time are slim. Where I've had long waits is when I arrive around midnight and they are trying to fill a bus as much as possible - often hitting more than the usual 2 or 3 resorts.

Not even supposed to do longer than 30 min then, according to ME
Even if the bus isn't full they are supposed to be hitting a target to depart MCO 30 min after the first guest check in to the bus. They are not supposed to wait for it to fill, unless of course, they are still inside that 30 min clock.
They could for sure alter the routes then and stop more often.

 

[KelleyK75]

Since you have mentioned it's your first time to use ME you may not know this but no matter what the line looks like, they have a target to get you on a bus and off to the Resort, within 30 min of your arriving and checking in. Now, there may be exceptions where it takes longer but they are really rare and unusual.
Basically, you can spend roughly 30 min retrieving your bags and calling for an Uber or you can spend 30 min (or less) just getting on the bus and leaving for Disney, without doing anything with the bags.
It's highly unlikely you'll be leaving the airport much faster not using ME.
Were it can be a long process is once at Disney. If you are the first stop, great. When you are the last, not so great.
We've done Uber to Disney on about half our trips, sort of depends on how we fell when we land and what we might have that we want to do, we always Uber back to MCO

No I wasn’t aware of that. Thank you! My only concern is I arrive at 10:06am, and I kinda wanted to get to All Stars Music, head to Disney Springs only to hit the World of Disney store, then go to HS for a 2:30-3:30 fast pass. I think we’ll probably have time, but depending on how long it takes we might not go to Disney Springs. I’ve tried to change that fast pass to later but nothing new is coming up.

 

[KelleyK75]

Any idea where All Stars Music is on the drop off route?

 

[Dug720]

Not even supposed to do longer than 30 min then, according to ME
Even if the bus isn't full they are supposed to be hitting a target to depart MCO 30 min after the first guest check in to the bus. They are not supposed to wait for it to fill, unless of course, they are still inside that 30 min clock.
They could for sure alter the routes then and stop more often.

It's possible that I was put on at the beginning of the 30 minute window and being tired and wanting to get to Disney just made it seem longer...

 

[AngiTN]

No I wasn’t aware of that. Thank you! My only concern is I arrive at 10:06am, and I kinda wanted to get to All Stars Music, head to Disney Springs only to hit the World of Disney store, then go to HS for a 2:30-3:30 fast pass. I think we’ll probably have time, but depending on how long it takes we might not go to Disney Springs. I’ve tried to change that fast pass to later but nothing new is coming up.

I have to say, bus transportation to DS from any resort is always a time-consuming process. I always count on 90 min when going to/from DS. It's just the.worse.
I'd guess you are looking at a VERY tight window.
First, (if you do land on time) it will probably be 11:30ish when you reach Music
Give yourself 15, 20 min to get your bags dropped off and a pit stop if needed and then on to the bus stop. It can be a 90 min process just to reach DS at that point in the day, then another 90 min back to a resort, then to HS. Not counting your shopping.
In your shoes, if you don't have a lot of carry on stuff, I'd take Ride Share from MCO to DS, get my shopping done and then Ride Share to Music, or grab a bus. Again, all dependant on how much stuff you are going to carry on the plane.

 

[AngiTN]

Any idea where All Stars Music is on the drop off route?

The ME routes are not like regular Disney bus routes.
They are ALWAYS changing/regrouping the resorts.
While you'll probably have all the All Stars on your bus it's impossible to guess who else they may have on there. I'm not sure I've ever had the same route to any resort twice, even BWI, which we've stayed in like 10 times.

 

[Dug720]

Any idea where All Stars Music is on the drop off route?

The 3 All Stars would likely be on the same bus - whether there are other resorts on with those or not I don't know. Generally they would start with Sports, then Music, then Movies - but occasionally I've had them go to the further one first (in the case of Pop and Art of Animation - you pass the entrance to Animation first, but the bus went to Pop first).

 

[KelleyK75]

I have to say, bus transportation to DS from any resort is always a time-consuming process. I always count on 90 min when going to/from DS. It's just the.worse.
I'd guess you are looking at a VERY tight window.
First, (if you do land on time) it will probably be 11:30ish when you reach Music
Give yourself 15, 20 min to get your bags dropped off and a pit stop if needed and then on to the bus stop. It can be a 90 min process just to reach DS at that point in the day, then another 90 min back to a resort, then to HS. Not counting your shopping.
In your shoes, if you don't have a lot of carry on stuff, I'd take Ride Share from MCO to DS, get my shopping done and then Ride Share to Music, or grab a bus. Again, all dependant on how much stuff you are going to carry on the plane.

That’s very helpful. Thanks so much!!

 

[KelleyK75]

The ME routes are not like regular Disney bus routes.
They are ALWAYS changing/regrouping the resorts.
While you'll probably have all the All Stars on your bus it's impossible to guess who else they may have on there. I'm not sure I've ever had the same route to any resort twice, even BWI, which we've stayed in like 10 times.

Gotcha, thank you!!