Magical Express to Orlando/Sanford?

[wecroozin]

Hi everyone. Can anybody tell me if Disney offers transfer service to and from Orlando/Sanford airport for the resorts? We are fairly new to flying(only flew once before for our Disney Magic Cruise) and I haven't found any info on this anywhere. I can't get flights from my area directly to Orlando MCO International without layovers which makes the trip so much longer. My local airport(Lehigh Valley International at Allentown,PA) has direct flights to Sanford only. I have to drive 80 miles to Philadelphia International to get flights to MCO direct. That is a big pain dealing with Philly traffic. Any help or suggestions are welcomed. Thanks!

 

[loveysbydesign]

We live near LVIA too, (in Alburtis) and we're planning to fly into Sanford via Allegiant and just rent a car, since ME doesn't go to Sanford. Also if you don't want to fly out of Philly, Newark is a good choice. HTH!

 

[Gooofy-Blade]

Not sure but you should look at Philly and larger airports closely if you want to save some $$. When you figure that fact that you will have to rent a car for simply airport to WDW transportation and the likelihood that you will get much better airfares out of larger airports, the 80 miles may not seem as bad. The ME is good free transportation from MCO!

 

[wecroozin]

Hey neighbor! Nice to hear from a local. I live 1 mile from the malls in Whitehall. Allegiant air has some nice prices, but we don't want the expense of a car for the week. We stay at the resort and never go off property. Where else would you want to go but Disney? LOL I never felt the need to have a car to travel otherwise. The rental kinda defeats the cheap flights you get also. I'm not frugal, but I try to see how inexpensive we can travel. It's a silly game I play. I shell out plenty for the things we need to have a good time, but I really don't want to go the rental car route. Heck I'm on vacation. I drive for a living. Let someone else drive me around HAHA! Keep the suggestions coming for anybody else out there.

Thanks for the response loveysbydesign. Have a great trip!

 

[cranbiz]

Disney does not provide any transportation services to/from Sanford.

The best was when using SFD is normally to rent a car. Alamo/National, Dollar, Hertz etc. are onsite, Budget is off site. I also believe that USA Coach runs a shuttle bus to the attractions.

If you rent a car, take SR417 (toll) south from Sanford to Disney. It's about an hour ride and is normally a pleasant ride.

Sanford is a very easy airport to navagate around and the rental car prices are about the same as MCO.

 

[MulanMom]

Another nearly neighbor here! We've also done the Sanford route when Southeast was flying out of ABE. The Sanford airport is very nice and clean and less hectic than MCO. Using the Greene Way (417) to WDW is usually an easy drive (it experiences heavy traffic during rush hour but not as bad as I4). It'll cost about $5.00 in tolls in one direction.

We used to rationalize that we would prefer to drive an hour down in FL rather than make the drive to and from Philly (and we're just off the turnpike!). It wasn't bad when we intended to rent a car anyway for our trip. However, our recent plan has focused on staying on property and using WDW transportation exclusively (DH needs to use an ECV, so buses work better). With Magical Express being a freebie, we just can't justify the added expense of a rental car. So now we are focusing on flights out of PHL into MCO.

The Allegiant fares are attractive, though. Good luck. And if you find Disney does ME to Sanford, please let us know!

 

[sandy5764]

It must be Pennsylvania day. I work right near the Lehigh Valley Mall (in the same building that WZZO and B104 are in) and live in a tiny town named Breiningsville (near Trexlertown). I too looked at flights to Sanford and found out that Disney doesn't service. When I looked at transport from Sanford to Disney (besides renting a car), a car service would have cost me about $200 round trip. I figured for that price I would just bite the bullet and fly directly into Orlando.

 

[wecroozin]

This is great to see so many locals right next door to me with the same interests. Thanks for all the suggestions guys. It looks like we'll just stick it out with the Philly direct plans. I wanted to see if there was something I was missing before we finalized our trip.

sandy5764 and others, my wife and I live on Schadt ave in Whitehall next to the auto repair/ towing company my parents own which I work for. Great to see so many people so close to me with the same interests. My parents think we are weird with the Disney stuff but they just don't get it. That Disney Magic! They don't travel which is a shame. There is so much to do and see out there. I feel bad they don't go.
My wife works near Breinigsville(Fogelsville) at the old Keebler plant which is now Sharp. They package pharmaceutical products.

P.S. sandy5764, were you working there a year or so ago when that tractor trailer launched off the exit ramp and landed in Ramada's front lawn? We did the recovery on that incident. Just asking cuz you're so close to it in the WZZO bldg.

Thanks again for all the tips and suggestions and we will stick with Philly going direct. Take care all!
See ya at The World real soon!

Mike and Kim Wotring