Magical Express: What time do they pick you up?

[CruisingCamper]

What time does the Magical Express pick you up from your hotel for your ride back to the airport when you are leaving Disney?

3 hours prior? Two hours? etc..

What time do you have to have luggage ready?

Thanks for any info...

 

[TDC Nala]

The general pickup time is about three hours prior to your flight. They ask that you be at the pickup area with your entire party and all your luggage at least ten minutes prior to your pickup time. Fifteen would be better.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

What time does the Magical Express pick you up from your hotel for your ride back to the airport when you are leaving Disney?

3 hours prior? Two hours? etc..

3 hours for domestic or 4 hours for international, give or take up to 15 minutes either way. You should be at your resort's pickup location about 10-15 minutes before your scheduled pickup. You'll get a letter with the planned pickup time delivered to your room the day before your departure.

What time do you have to have luggage ready?

If you're using the Resort Airline Check-in (RAC) remote skycap service at your resort, you must check in and check your bags between 5:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., because the RAC desk closes at 1:00 p.m. Be sure to allow enough time, because there can be a line for RAC.

For more information about RAC, see the Disney's Magical Express FAQ.

If you're not using RAC, you simply need to have your bags with you at the pickup location.

If you want assistance to get your bags from your room to the RAC desk, or to the DME pickup location, or to be held by bell services for a later DME pickup, be sure to allow plenty of time. The bellmen can be be very busy around check-out time, so you may not get immediate service.

Also, the DME service does not include tips for outbound luggage assistance of any kind. You're responsible for any tips when anyone helps you with your bags.

 

[beccasmom]

VERY early if you have an early morning flight. Our pick-up time was 4:00 a.m. for our 7:15 a.m. flight. So now we try to book our flight home for closer to noon.

 

[tchrrx]

My sister will be flying out at 8:00 am. Will she be able to check her luggage & then head out around 5 or do you think it will be later?

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

My sister will be flying out at 8:00 am. Will she be able to check her luggage & then head out around 5 or do you think it will be later?

Is the flight scheduled for exactly 8:00 a.m.? If so, it's unlikely she'll be able to use RAC.

With a domestic flight scheduled at 8:00 a.m., your sister will have a scheduled DME pickup time between 4:45 a.m. and 5:15 a.m..

The RAC desk officially opens at 5:00 a.m., and RAC check-in must be "no less than three hours prior" to the scheduled departure.

As the DME FAQ states, "Resort Airline Check-In Service operates seven days a week, from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. If you cannot check-in during these operating hours, you will need to check in directly with your airline upon arrival at Orlando International Airport."

So, unless the RAC desk opens early and the DME pickup time is at the later end of the range, RAC won't be an option for your sister.

 

[CruisingCamper]

Thanks for all of the replys! I was just trying to find out how much time we'd have the morning that we leave. You know I might could schedule another breakfast or see a little of a park...

Our flight is not until 1PM, so I will plan on meeting for the DME around 10AM then.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Thanks for all of the replys! I was just trying to find out how much time we'd have the morning that we leave. You know I might could schedule another breakfast or see a little of a park...

Our flight is not until 1PM, so I will plan on meeting for the DME around 10AM then.

Plan on earlier than 10:00 a.m.

Your pickup time will be between 9:45 a.m. and 10:15 a.m., and you should be at the pickup location 10-15 minutes before then. By that time, you need to have finished checking in at RAC, or your need to have your bags at the pickup location with you. If you use RAC, allow enough time in case there's a line.

Going to a park before your DME pickup is probably not a realistic plan. Having breakfast at another resort is probably not realistic either (unless you can walk there). In both cases, you would have to allow time for transportation, including the time you might spend waiting for transportation.

Having a nice breakfast at your resort, or at a resort you can walk to, could be a good option, as long as you don't cut it too close.

 

[tchrrx]

Is the flight scheduled for exactly 8:00 a.m.? If so, it's unlikely she'll be able to use RAC.

With a domestic flight scheduled at 8:00 a.m., your sister will have a scheduled DME pickup time between 4:45 a.m. and 5:15 a.m..

The RAC desk officially opens at 5:00 a.m., and RAC check-in must be "no less than three hours prior" to the scheduled departure.

As the DME FAQ states, "Resort Airline Check-In Service operates seven days a week, from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. If you cannot check-in during these operating hours, you will need to check in directly with your airline upon arrival at Orlando International Airport."

So, unless the RAC desk opens early and the DME pickup time is at the later end of the range, RAC won't be an option for your sister.

Yes, the flight is at exactly 8 am. So, what would be her best option? Should she just load her baggage onto the ME bus & then go through baggage check in at the airport? She's never flown alone before & I really want to be able to tell her what to expect. Will she be able to check in for her flight at the resort or will she also need to do that at the airport?

 

[TDC Nala]

What airline is she flying? Some airlines can't use the resort check-in.

 

[tchrrx]

What airline is she flying? Some airlines can't use the resort check-in.

She'll be flying Delta

 

[localdriver]

What time does the Magical Express pick you up from your hotel for your ride back to the airport when you are leaving Disney?

3 hours prior? Two hours? etc..

What time do you have to have luggage ready?

Thanks for any info...

The following are the common routes, and the actual DEPARTURE times for each resort.
These are the scheduled times regardless of what CM's or Bell staff may tell you. Unfortunately, there are many misinformed and uninformed CM's and Bell Staff out there.

You need to take YOUR scheduled bus, not earlier or later, regardless of what CM's or Bell staff tell you. Your pickup is based on reservations, and # of pax.
That is how the busses are assigned routes. If you don't take your assigned bus, seats may not be available on another, or it may not even come due to the fact that stops are

assigned based on reservations, and WILL NOT stop at resorts WITHOUT reservations.

The routes may be mixed during low volume hours. Keep in mind reservations are required. The DME busses DO NOT stop at a resort that has no reservations registered at

a particular time. If your departing flight has changed, you need to notify DME ASAP to make sure you have a reservation on DME for the proper time.

When you receive your departure notification letter, don't throw it away, read it, and bring it with you to the bus. The driver will collect it, (or your original vouchers) as you

board. Be at the pickup location 15 min prior with ALL your belongings AND PARTY. This is NOT the time to do last minute shopping, be collecting luggage and family

members, or taking restroom breaks. All the neccessaries and such should be taken care of at this point. Keep in mind, these busses have a schedule to keep, and have NO

obligation to wait beyond the times listed below. If you plan on visiting a park the day of your departure, give ample time to get back to your resort on the transport system. Be

aware, the transports are subject to delays too, and don't always run ontime. I would suggest planning to be back at your resort at least 1 hr prior to your pickup time. If you

miss your assigned bus, there is no obligation from Disney or Mears to provide transportation via DME. So be conservative with your departure day plans. Figure 3 hrs prior

to your flight time, 4 hrs for International Flights.

CONT :55/:25
WL :05/:35
POLY :15/ :45
GF :25/:55

FT WIL CAMP :20/:50
PO RS :00/:30
PO FQ :10/:40
OKW :20/:50
SS :30/:00

YC :00/:30
BC :10/:40
BW :20/:50
CBR :30/:00

AKL :05/:35
POP :15/:45

MOVIES :15/:45
MUSIC :25/:55
SPORTS :35/:05
CSprg :45/:15

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Yes, the flight is at exactly 8 am. So, what would be her best option? Should she just load her baggage onto the ME bus & then go through baggage check in at the airport? She's never flown alone before & I really want to be able to tell her what to expect.

With a flight at exactly 8:00 a.m., Resort Airline Check-in is really not an option your sister can depend on.

As I noted earlier, the only way that RAC might be an option would be if the RAC desk opens earlier than the scheduled 5:00 a.m. opening and if the DME pickup time is at the later end of the 4:45 a.m.-to-5:15 a.m. pickup range. But you can't count on it.

So, yes, your sister would simply take her bags to the DME pickup location at her resort. She should be there 10-15 minutes before her scheduled pickup time (which she'll learn from the letter that she'll receive the day before her departure).

The DME driver will load her bags into the luggage hold of the DME motorcoach.

At Orlando International, DME will stop twice to let passengers off, once on the "A" side and once on the "B" side. Both stops are on on Level 1, the ground transportation level. Delta is on the "B" side. The DME driver will unload her bags from the luggage hold. (The drivers appreciate tips if they've handled luggage, as is customary.)

There are elevators from Level 1 to Level 3, the departure level. If your sister needs assistance with her luggage, there are usually porters available where DME drops off. Of course, the porters rely on tips for their income.

Will she be able to check in for her flight at the resort or will she also need to do that at the airport?

At the airport, she'll need to go to the ticket counter or to a curbside skycap anyway, so she can wait until then to get her boarding pass. Delta has pre-reserved seats, so there's no big reason to get her boarding pass in advance at the resort. However, if she wishes to get her boarding pass ahead of time anyway, she can go to the lobby concierge (not Resort Airline Check-in) at her resort up to 24 hours before her departure.