Magical Express Reviews

[BiggFam8]

My family is vacationing from 07/29 to 08/07 and staying at OKW. I was thinking of using the Magical Express for our vacation. Anyone have any experience and would like to give an opinion on the service? I realize that time is short to sign up and need to do this tomorrow.

I have several questions.

1 - How long is the wait at the airport when you arrive before you get transportation to your resort? Used Mears a few years ago and waited over an hour to get a bus!

2 - What time do they pick you up on your return to the airport? I don't want to be there 4 hours before I take off!

HELP!!!!!!!!!!! Time is of the essence!

 

[rabx5]

Well, we came in early. Actually we got off the plane and went straight to the bus and left within 10 minutes

We had to leave 3 hours ahead of scheduled flight because the ME bus had to stop at other resorts and pick up people and drop them off at different gates at MCO.

I rate it an A. It was really good for us

 

[legalslave]

We were at our resort within 50 minutes of landing. Our luggage arrived less than two hours later. We left 3 hours before flight time. It was so smooth. We're doing it again in August. Loved it.

 

[all4disneyworld]

My family is vacationing from 07/29 to 08/07 and staying at OKW. I was thinking of using the Magical Express for our vacation. Anyone have any experience and would like to give an opinion on the service? I realize that time is short to sign up and need to do this tomorrow.

I have several questions.

1 - How long is the wait at the airport when you arrive before you get transportation to your resort? Used Mears a few years ago and waited over an hour to get a bus!

2 - What time do they pick you up on your return to the airport? I don't want to be there 4 hours before I take off!

HELP!!!!!!!!!!! Time is of the essence!

Hi! We have used ME twice and had great experiences. Each time we literally got off our plane and walked straight on to the bus. Maybe waited 10 more minutes for all the bags to be loaded.

As for your return, they picked us up 2.5 hours before our flight. Loaded up all the bags and I think the drive is about 35 minutes to the airport. Still had enough time to browse the shops or get a snack.

We will use ME again in Sept. Hope your experience is as good!

 

[BiggFam8]

Sounds great. I hope the tags come in time!

11 more days 'til vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[CleveRocks]

DME is RUN by Disney. Mears is the subcontractor, they supply the buses and drivers, but DME isn't run like the old Mears shuttle was. It's much more efficient. On another thread, I explained it that Mears is the "muscle" but Disney is the "brains."

The reported average time from landing to resort drop off is 70 minutes.

The target pick-up time from your resort to return to the airport is 2.75-to-3 hours before flight departure. The day before you leave, you'll get your paperwork (including your EXACT scheduled departure time) hanging on your resort room's outside doorknob.

DME was originally announced to end in late 2006. In April of 2006, it was extended through 2011. That fact should speak for itself in terms of DME's success and popularity.

 

[CleveRocks]

Sounds great. I hope the tags come in time!

11 more days 'til vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Since you'll be making your DME reservation so close to your departure, it's very likely you WON'T receive your luggage tags, which are part of the DME booklet that people usually receive.

BUT NEVER FEAR. Even without the tags, you can still use DME just like everyone else.

EVERYONE has to go to the DME Welcome Center to register -- go straight there, don't go to baggage claim. At the DME Welcome Center, the CM will ask you if you have DME luggage tags on your checked luggage. After you say "No," the CM will ask you for your baggage claim ticket numbers, and ask you to identify your bags using a photo array of every piece of luggage known to man. They'll dispatch a CM to go to the baggage claim carousel, claim your bags for you, then take them behind the scenes and put them with the rest of the DME luggage, to be automatically delivered to the inside of your resort room.

 

[BiggFam8]

Since you'll be making your DME reservation so close to your departure, it's very likely you WON'T receive your luggage tags, which are part of the DME booklet that people usually receive.

BUT NEVER FEAR. Even without the tags, you can still use DME just like everyone else.

EVERYONE has to go to the DME Welcome Center to register -- go straight there, don't go to baggage claim. At the DME Welcome Center, the CM will ask you if you have DME luggage tags on your checked luggage. After you say "No," the CM will ask you for your baggage claim ticket numbers, and ask you to identify your bags using a photo array of every piece of luggage known to man. They'll dispatch a CM to go to the baggage claim carousel, claim your bags for you, then take them behind the scenes and put them with the rest of the DME luggage, to be automatically delivered to the inside of your resort room.

I was told on the phone that the tags might not arrive in time but was also told to get my bags from baggage claim myself to assure that all of our luggage gets to our room. I think that is what we'll do. I don't like the "describing" our luggage thing. Something might get missed.

 

[CleveRocks]

I was told on the phone that the tags might not arrive in time but was also told to get my bags from baggage claim myself to assure that all of our luggage gets to our room. I think that is what we'll do. I don't like the "describing" our luggage thing. Something might get missed.

Fair enough.

Just another thought for you, though ....

We used DME back when it was just 4 days old. We received our DME packet from our clueless TA about 18 HOURS before our flight left home, so we were prepared to use DME without the luggage tags.

A DME CM recommended that we ADDITIONALLY identify our bags with some bright yarn or ribbon. That night, my wife went to a fabric store and got the brightest and most obnoxious ribbon I've ever seen, orange with purple polka dots. We tied a length of ribbon to each bag, and prepared to bring a swatch of that ribbon with us, to give to the DME Welcome Center to further help them identify the bags.

If your bags aren't DME-tagged, an actual live person will be sent to the baggage claim carousel with your baggage claim ticket numbers, a description of your bags, and knowledge of how many bags to look for.

Again, do whatever you're comfy with, but keep in mind that the person you talked to was probably in a call center somewhere, but the actual DME CMs stationed at MCO are confident in their ability to get the job done up to Disney standards.

ENJOY YOUR TRIP!

 

[BiggFam8]

Fair enough.

Just another thought for you, though ....

We used DME back when it was just 4 days old. We received our DME packet from our clueless TA about 18 HOURS before our flight left home, so we were prepared to use DME without the luggage tags.

A DME CM recommended that we ADDITIONALLY identify our bags with some bright yarn or ribbon. That night, my wife went to a fabric store and got the brightest and most obnoxious ribbon I've ever seen, orange with purple polka dots. We tied a length of ribbon to each bag, and prepared to bring a swatch of that ribbon with us, to give to the DME Welcome Center to further help them identify the bags.

If your bags aren't DME-tagged, an actual live person will be sent to the baggage claim carousel with your baggage claim ticket numbers, a description of your bags, and knowledge of how many bags to look for.

Again, do whatever you're comfy with, but keep in mind that the person you talked to was probably in a call center somewhere, but the actual DME CMs stationed at MCO are confident in their ability to get the job done up to Disney standards.

ENJOY YOUR TRIP!

Thanks! Glad to hear that. Just didn't want to start out with missing bags!

 

[paults]

Hi! We have used ME twice and had great experiences. Each time we literally got off our plane and walked straight on to the bus. Maybe waited 10 more minutes for all the bags to be loaded.

can't walk straight onto the bus from plane without going to the DME check-in desk first. Sometimes its' crowded and sometimes not. depends when your flight gets in.
Also DME return from resort to MCO is 3hrs plus 15 mins in most cases.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Just a few clarifications...

Hi! We have used ME twice and had great experiences. Each time we literally got off our plane and walked straight on to the bus. Maybe waited 10 more minutes for all the bags to be loaded.

The only bags that are loaded into the luggage hold of the motorcoach are any carry-on bags (including car seats) that are too large for guests to take to their seats, plus any luggage from guests who preferred to waste time at baggage claim instead of using the yellow tags. Such bags should not take "10 more minutes" to load.

Checked airline luggage that was tagged with yellow tags is never loaded onto the motorcoach. It's sorted at the airport and loaded onto luggage trucks to the resorts.

As for your return, they picked us up 2.5 hours before our flight. Loaded up all the bags and I think the drive is about 35 minutes to the airport. Still had enough time to browse the shops or get a snack.

The normal pickup schedule is 3 hours before your flight departure (plus or minus 15 minutes). If you boarded a bus 2.5 hours before your flight, you probably missed your scheduled DME pickup and boarded the next DME motorcoach instead. (We did that too once.) Of course, it's best to be there for your scheduled pickup. There's no guarantee that there will be another motorcoach in 30 minutes, that there will be room on it, and that you'll still get to gate in time if there are traffic delays, check-in delays, and security delays.

 

[BiggFam8]

Good advice to all. Thanks Horace!

 

[all4disneyworld]

Just a few clarifications...


The only bags that are loaded into the luggage hold of the motorcoach are any carry-on bags (including car seats) that are too large for guests to take to their seats, plus any luggage from guests who preferred to waste time at baggage claim instead of using the yellow tags. Such bags should not take "10 more minutes" to load.

Checked airline luggage that was tagged with yellow tags is never loaded onto the motorcoach. It's sorted at the airport and loaded onto luggage trucks to the resorts.


The normal pickup schedule is 3 hours before your flight departure (plus or minus 15 minutes). If you boarded a bus 2.5 hours before your flight, you probably missed your scheduled DME pickup and boarded the next DME motorcoach instead. (We did that too once.) Of course, it's best to be there for your scheduled pickup. There's no guarantee that there will be another motorcoach in 30 minutes, that there will be room on it, and that you'll still get to gate in time if there are traffic delays, check-in delays, and security delays.

Yes, you are right about the bags!,sorry. We each had one carry on our first time and therefore was loaded under the bus. But when we traveled with the tags I guess I thought they were on the bus aslo. The luggage arrived as soon as we got into our rooms that time. I guess we were lucky, its was a slower time of year.

Nope, didn't miss the scheduled pick up time and we also never stopped to pick up anyone else on our way to the airport. This was shortly after Disney introduced DME, must have been lucky then to, with lower crowds. At least I also know what to expect now in September! 3 hours before will be ok for us I think we are on the last flight out home that day. (I planned it that way..hee hee) Gotta get as much time in the park as possible! Thanks for all the info. we won't be late!

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

The luggage arrived as soon as we got into our rooms that time. I guess we were lucky, its was a slower time of year.

Yes, all4disneyworld had an unusually quick DME luggage delivery. The rest of this note is addressed to first-time DME users who think that it would be bad news if they don't also get their bags as soon as they check in.

If you pack a small carry-on with anything you'll need the first day, it really doesn't matter if the luggage takes a few minutes (unusual) or a few hours (typical). Disney pays the inbound bell service gratuity. So you can be at a theme park, or at the pool, or in a restaurant when your luggage is delivered. There is no reason to wait in your room for your luggage to be delivered.

Chances are you'll be on a DME motorcoach before your airline has unpacked the bags from your aircraft and transfered the yellow-tagged bags to Disney. Then, your bags need to be sorted and transported. When they arrive at your resort, they'll be queued up with other inbound DME luggage. A bellman will deliver your bags to your room when he gets a chance, while also helping guests who are checking in with luggage. So, it typically takes quite a bit longer for DME luggage to get to the room than the DME guest.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

Every so often there will be delays... if the line to check-in for ME is long, for example. Once, we had to wait a good 55 minutes from the time we were in line for our resort until a bus arrived to take us because they needed a special bus for disabled access. So... delays can happen, but normally it seems to run quite smoothly...

 

[boBQuincy]

I have only take ME once but it was a really good experience!

I arrived at MCO early in the morning in mid-January, so you can imagine it was not busy. The people with me were staying at POP, I was staying at BWV. Thier bus had 6 people aboard, mine had only me.
When the dispatcher said "roll it" I couldn't believe it! I told him I could get on the other bus and they could rop me off at BWV but the dispatcher said they had a set schedule and had to sticl with it, so off went me, the driver, and an empty bus! I was at BWV within 60 minutes of landing!

I usually only have carry-on luggage so I can't comment on that part of ME. I wouldn't want to wait hours for my luggage, my room is often ready when I arrive.

We will try ME again in September. It sounds like a good way to go in off-season, peak season may be another story.

 

[BiggFam8]

Ordered the tags Thursday and they came in the mail yesterday!

 

[CleveRocks]

Ordered the tags Thursday and they came in the mail yesterday!

NICE! It seems Disney changed printing subcontractors, or redefined the terms of the contract. That is IMPRESSIVE turnaround time.

ENJOY YOUR TRIP!

 

[mandy200587]

I just got back from Disney and we did it. The only downfall we had was we got in at like 8 at night and didn't get our luggage till 12 that night and were told usually it takes 4-6 hours to get the luggage while it states in the pamplet 1-3 so bring a change of clothes in case you have a late flight in.