Magical Express worth it?

[sharibrat]

Is this worth it? I have read it can take up to 8 hours to have your luggage delivered to your room! WE arrive at 9am and by 5pm we'll be ready for a change of clothes I would think before heading to dinner. Waiting that long doesn't seem like much of a convenience at all.

Can we just pick up our own luggage but still take the express bus to our resort?

We also booked our own airfare, but the rest of the package through Disney. Is the bus shuttle still an option for us?

Also, since we have an entire first day, what do you do with your carry on bags? Will our hotel hold them for us but give us access if we need them mid-day? I would hate to carry them around all day!

thanks

 

[Bob P]

Hi Shari and welcome to the DIS!

Here's a link to info on Magical Express..

http://allearsnet.com/acc/mexpress.htm

Hard to quantify if something is "worth it" when there is no charge! I'm sure there are sometimes some problems with ME but your bags could take a couple of days to get off an airplane too. Anytime you give someone else control of your bags there is a chance something can go wrong.

As for your carryons, when you check in the hotel will hold all your bags if your room is not ready. They will give you a baggage claim tag and if you need to get into your bags at some point during the day you will have to present your tag at the bell desk.

Bob

 

[goofy4tink]

Welcome to the DIS boards. I have used DME twice now and will again in late Nov. In mid-June we arrived at MCO at about 11:50 a.m. We got to the DME check-in desk at 12:10, on the bus at 12:15 and on the road at 12:30, in the line to check-in at BCV at 1:00, at the pool at 1:30 (had bathing suits in our carry-on and changed in the health club area), got our room at 2:30, our luggage arrived at 3:00. In Aug we had only carry-on with us, and our room at Pop was ready for us so no need to wait for luggage.
I would always suggest that people have a carry-on bag with anything you might need for a few hours at your resort. If your room isn't ready you can leave your carry-on bag(s) with Bell Services at the resort.
You can grab your luggage from the baggage claim at MCO, but I haven't heard of anyone waiting all that long to get their bags once they get into a room. You can access your bags mid-day if you aren't in a room yet.
I have to say that I love this service. It worked like clockwork for me twice now.
If you decide to use DME, just give Disney a call and they can set it up for you. You will need to give them your flight info, both coming and going. If you do decide to go with DME but want to grab your own bags, do not put any of the yellow luggage tags on your bags. If you do put them on, they will not reach you in the baggage claim area since they are taken away before they get out front.

 

[beattyfamily]

I almost used ME this past Sept/Oct trip because DH wasn't coming along to drive our rental but after being told I'd have to be ready to head back to the airport 3 HOURS before my flight, I decided to rent a car.

I'm so glad I did. I guess I just like having my freedom to come and go as I please. I was able to leave Epcot at 3:30p for a 5:30p flight instead of being at my resort for 2:30p ME bus.

 

[SB in KY]

Is it worth free??? I would say so. If it is worth $100+ for a weeks car rental or a towncar and tip to save 30 to 60 minutes on the end of your trip and have your luggage arrive at the resort with you...then go for the car or car service.....personally for us the savings justify the small inconvienence.

Although I suppose it is possible for it to take 8 hours for your bags to arrive at the resort I have not heard of anyone experiencing that kind of delay recently. Since you are arriving in the early AM I think the bigger problem for you would be room availability (they cannot deliver the luggage to your room until you ahve a room for them to deliver it to!!)

I would suggest using DME, taking whatever clothes you will want for the parks in your carry on's (or wear on the plane), change if needed when you get to the resort and check your bags with bell services. Check in to the hotel and head to the parks (not much chance your room will be ready that early anyways). When you return, call and see if your room is ready, if so I can bet your luggage will beat you into the room.

In our experience the time it takes to get to the resort from the airport is about the same or maybe a little shorter with DME than a towncar (because you do not have to wait for your luggage to come down) and definately shorter than with a rental car (since no matter who I rent from there is a long line at the counter!!)

On the return trip DME pick up is usually 2.75 to 3 hours before flight time. If you use a towncar service they will want to pick you up 2.5 hours prior to departure and if you drive you can usually get away with leaving the hotel 2 hours before your flight....we could not justify the additional expense for 15 to 60 extra minutes of vacation time!!

 

[OKW Lover]

Magical Express is worth every penny. ;-)

Its never a good idea to to pack all your stuff in checked bags. Seasoned travelers bring a day's worth of clothes, toiletries and all medications in their carry-on bags. If you do it that way, you won't really care what time your bags get to the room.

 

[sharibrat]

Magical Express is worth every penny. ;-)

Its never a good idea to to pack all your stuff in checked bags. Seasoned travelers bring a day's worth of clothes, toiletries and all medications in their carry-on bags. If you do it that way, you won't really care what time your bags get to the room.

Easier said than done with a toddler!
I used to always carry my toiletries on with me, but the toy bag to keep her occupied on the plane has replaced that. Medication, eyeglasses/contacts, snacks, toys, cameras.......that's about our limit. I'll have to find a place to stash an extra shirt or something.

 

[billwendy]

we loved ME!!!!

we just made sure each child had an extra set of clothes (and a bathing suit) in their carry on bag. We have also done it where DH carried an extra carry on with a change of clothes for everyone in a spare backpack. On our last trip, we did not have our luggage delivered, we picked it up ourselves, and brought it to the ME bus...lots of other people did this as well.

 

[CleveRocks]

Its never a good idea to to pack all your stuff in checked bags. Seasoned travelers bring a day's worth of clothes, toiletries and all medications in their carry-on bags. If you do it that way, you won't really care what time your bags get to the room.

Easier said than done with a toddler!
I used to always carry my toiletries on with me, but the toy bag to keep her occupied on the plane has replaced that. Medication, eyeglasses/contacts, snacks, toys, cameras.......that's about our limit. I'll have to find a place to stash an extra shirt or something.

OKW Lover is right. I did it with a 5 year old and a 2.5 year old in May. Keep in mind that when you use DME you won't have to carry around your checked luggage, so all you will need to "lug around" will be your kids and your carry-ons. Each ticketed passenger is entitled to at least one carry-on (some airlines allow more), and that includes your kids. We each had a carry-on -- even my 2.5 year old (who is very little, only the 4th percentile in height) had a little backpack with coloring books, small toys, etc.

No matter where or when I travel by air, I ALWAYS have a carry-on with supplies for my first 24 hours, just in case the AIRLINE delays my luggage. If you do this, you won't care how long it takes your luggage to get to your room, because you'll have everything you need. Seriously, go gather and fold a complete change of clothes, PJs, toiletries, medications, bathing suit, etc. for each person in your party. You'll be surprised how little room that takes up, especially when you're talking about warm weather clothes. You can fit ALL of that into one carry-on, like a small rolling suitcase that fits in the overhead.

Each kid can have a small carry-on with toys, snacks (even if the child is too small to actually carry it, you're still entitled to carry it on, and it'll be small enough that it won't bog you down if you have to carry it). I'll put it to you in a different way -- for a week vacation, we had 4 carry-ons and 2 checked suitcases.

Eight hours' wait for DME luggage sounds like a worst case scenario. It is absolutely not typical. I arrived at WDW on May 8, DME's 4th day of operations. All I know is that I checked into my room at CBR at 11:00 a.m., walked around, got lunch, changed for the pool, enjoyed the pool, and when we got back to our room at 2:30 p.m. our checked bags were there. Even if they weren't, we would've been fine even if they arrived the following morning, because we were prepared. Prepared not so much for DME as we were for the possibility of the airline delaying our luggage. Better safe than sorry, you know?

Have a great time on your trip!

-- Eric

 

[maine_jennifer]

I know the resort will store your carryons, and I'm pretty sure they'd let you have access to it. Maybe call your resort directly and ask them.

Is DME worth it? It really all depends on who you talk to.

For me, no it's not worth it. I used a car service and was lucky enough to get a room that was ready. I was all settled in and unpacked an hour or so from when I landed. If I had used DME, I would've a room with no luggage. To me, I'd feel inconvenienced to have to wait to share a bus, wait to stop at other resorts, wait for my luggage to show up, etc. Some people think there is not much of a wait for these things. Personally, I would rather pay money for a car service. I've had the same drivers for my past 4 trips and just prefer supporting the little guy I guess. I posted my latest trip report to my website and posted a transportation review there too, if you're interested in checking it out. http://www.queenofthefreakinuniverse.com/Transportation_Review.htm

There honestly is no right or wrong answer. It's just a matter of opinion.

Cheers!