Magical Express vs Disney Buses: A Difference?

[Doctor 10]

Read in Unofficial Guide the hassle "Magical Express" can prolong waiting times & eat hours from your so called planned day. I'm guessing its the case for commuting to & from the airport. Are the Disney buses more conducive for Disney hotels to parks while hiring a town car best for trips involving airport especially when getting on flights on time is important?

Live in the present judging no one by his or her past nor expecting less for his or her future.-alm

 

[seashoreCM]

Read in Unofficial Guide the hassle "Magical Express" can prolong waiting times & eat hours from your so called planned day. I'm guessing its the case for commuting to & from the airport. Are the Disney buses more conducive for Disney hotels to parks while hiring a town car best for trips involving airport especially when getting on flights on time is important?

Live in the present judging no one by his or her past nor expecting less for his or her future.-alm

Magical Express is for guests staying at Disney's resorts only. One trip to Disney, one trip back to the airport.

Each DME trip does drop off (to your resort) and pick up (to the airport) at several resorts so the trip time can be longer compared with a taxi or town car. But not by much on average.

Also DME goes only between the airport and your resort. If you want to leave a park for the airport then a town car or taxi would be much quicker, assuming you don't need to go back to your resort to get the carryons.

Disney Transport buses go only between parks and resorts, or between parks. Not sharing any routings with DME buses, they can't be compared with DME in terms of trip time.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It's your money and time; only you can determine what works best for you.

Arriving in Orlando, the average time from plane to resort is 70-90 minutes using DME. This is only a few minutes longer than a car service or taxi, especially when you factor in not having to go to baggage claim when riding DME. This board's Moderator should be along shortly to detail her time experiences.

Given tha airline passengers are (strongly) advised to be at MCO two hours before departure, you might get another 30 minutes of on-site time by using a taxi-town car. You'd need to leave WDW 2.5 hours before your flight instead of the three hours DME schedules.

So, no. Disney transportation should suit all your needs.

 

[Doctor 10]

Additionally we don't plan to rent a car. We will be relying in buses which I think run every 20 minutes & then I guess factor another 40+ minutes to the park? Is there a site with general bus schedules?

Live in the present judging no one by his or her past nor expecting less for his or her future.-alm

 

[Alesia]

Additionally we don't plan to rent a car. We will be relying in buses which I think run every 20 minutes & then I guess factor another 40+ minutes to the park? Is there a site with general bus schedules?

Live in the present judging no one by his or her past nor expecting less for his or her future.-alm

There's no schedule. Buses run to parks about every 20 minutes.

 

[goofy4tink]

At MCO..figure on an average of 70 mins from gate to resort, using DME. Going back to MCO from your resort, using DME, you will leave 3 hrs prior to your departure flight.

For those buses to the parks?? Yes, they run about every 20 mins. They start running by 6:30am every morning but tend to run less frequently until about an hour prior to park opening. The 'regular' park buses can be more frequent than every 20 mins if there is a need....park opening/closing.
Depending on what resort you are at, travel times to various parks will differ.
I know that the UoG to WDW used to give approximate travel times, between resorts and the parks...showing times if you use a car or if you use the buses/boats/monorails. That should give you a fairly decent idea of what to expect.

Generally speaking? We always recommend figuring on an hour from resort to park...usually less but you do have to factor in wait times at the bus stop. No way of knowing exactly when the next bus will arrive...so better to figure on it being longer.

 

[Doctor 10]

At MCO..figure on an average of 70 mins from gate to resort, using DME. Going back to MCO from your resort, using DME, you will leave 3 hrs prior to your departure flight.

For those buses to the parks?? Yes, they run about every 20 mins. They start running by 6:30am every morning but tend to run less frequently until about an hour prior to park opening. The 'regular' park buses can be more frequent than every 20 mins if there is a need....park opening/closing.
Depending on what resort you are at, travel times to various parks will differ.
I know that the UoG to WDW used to give approximate travel times, between resorts and the parks...showing times if you use a car or if you use the buses/boats/monorails. That should give you a fairly decent idea of what to expect.

Generally speaking? We always recommend figuring on an hour from resort to park...usually less but you do have to factor in wait times at the bus stop. No way of knowing exactly when the next bus will arrive...so better to figure on it being longer.

Thanks. An hour wait appears to be the general consensus I see

Live in the present judging no one by his or her past nor expecting less for his or her future.-alm

 

[Sugardimples]

I have never found using Magical Express to be a hassle.

 

[siskaren]

Additionally we don't plan to rent a car. We will be relying in buses which I think run every 20 minutes & then I guess factor another 40+ minutes to the park? Is there a site with general bus schedules?

Depending on what resort you are at, travel times to various parks will differ.

It's never going to be 40+ minutes, though.

 

[Nancy F]

We go twice a year and I wouldn't even consider not using the Magical Express. Just thinking about the hassle with the bags when we got there would be enough to drive me crazy!! They make it so easy to get to your resort.
Nancy

 

[gabeoak]

I am leaning toward car rental though. I got an amazing deal on a minivan for our family. We arrive at 9:30pm. I do not want to have to wait up for our bags.
And yes, I know: "pack in your carry on what you need that night!" We travel a ton for business, less so for leisure. My understanding is the car rental is right at the airport so we can send someone to get the car while we wait for the bags.
My preference would be to use ME based on what I have read. But I just don't want to wait up past midnight for my bags.

 

[maxiesmom]

I am leaning toward car rental though. I got an amazing deal on a minivan for our family. We arrive at 9:30pm. I do not want to have to wait up for our bags.
And yes, I know: "pack in your carry on what you need that night!" We travel a ton for business, less so for leisure. My understanding is the car rental is right at the airport so we can send someone to get the car while we wait for the bags.
My preference would be to use ME based on what I have read. But I just don't want to wait up past midnight for my bags.

You don't have to wait up for your bags. You simply tell the front desk to hold them. Then when you are ready for them the next day you call down, and they bring them to you. Easy peasy.

 

[Donna M]

I am leaning toward car rental though. I got an amazing deal on a minivan for our family. We arrive at 9:30pm. I do not want to have to wait up for our bags.
And yes, I know: "pack in your carry on what you need that night!" We travel a ton for business, less so for leisure. My understanding is the car rental is right at the airport so we can send someone to get the car while we wait for the bags.
My preference would be to use ME based on what I have read. But I just don't want to wait up past midnight for my bags.

You can grab your own bags and bring them to the bus too; just don't put the DME tags on them. (I'm pretty sure you can do that.)

 

[goofy4tink]

It's never going to be 40+ minutes, though.

True. When I give 'estimates', I usually figure in probable wait times as well. But the actual ride to a park is never going to be 40+ mins!!! Not even AKL to MK!!

 

[N365PA]

You can grab your own bags and bring them to the bus too; just don't put the DME tags on them. (I'm pretty sure you can do that.)

This is what my wife and I do. I try not to check bags at all costs (Former bag smasher here, no thanks!). When we do check bags, we check them in and grab them from baggage claim, then get on the bus. Same thing going back out.

 

[ParrotBill]

There are lots of discussions on park bus timing and people who say it's horrible and many who say it's great.

On average, park buses run through all resort bus stops every 20 minutes - during some peak times you may see one every 10 minutes and during the afternoon doldrums it can drop to 30 minutes. So it's your timing arriving at the bus stop with the bus' timing for your wait plus the time to get to the park. 30 minutes to a park is typical. We use the buses except for going to water parks and dinners at other resorts. On every trip, we see one case of a bus that seems later than it should be and it takes 45 min or an hour to get to the park that time. But no problem all the rest!