Major transportation help!

[Disneylandfanatic]

Hello everyone,

I am currently planning my intricate Disney cruise and Disneyworld trip! One aspect that has been driving me nuts for over a week is the transportation. I don't want to spend a lot of money on transportation so no private cars or limos? Here is some of the information:

Flying into mco day before cruise currently have two options:
1. Stay at Hyatt airport and catch the dcl bus in the am (pricey option but CONVENIENT) I am hoping for a reduction in hotel price, it is currently 240 bucks.
2. Get some sort of transportation to a port canaveral hotel and use the hotel transportation in the am to the ship.

Then when we get back from our cruise we are going to WDW, currently booked at the Hilton Downtown Disney:

We need to get from port canaveral to WDW

We will then need to get from WDW to MCO after our WDW stay.

I've searched for buses, shuttles, taxis, car rentals, private cars, etc. I feel pretty lost, I want to make the right choice with reputable companies but am getting so many mixed reviews! I know it'd be more convenient in terms of transportation to stay on Disney property but the cost difference doesn't seem worth it just so I could take the dcl bus to get to WDW. I would love all the suggestions/companies/ideas you guys have so I can finally just settle all of this and make a plan and start working on figuring out the parks and what ADR's I need. I love planning trips this one has certainly been the ultimate in terms of planning!

 

[KrazeeK120]

Well, I can't help with the first part of your trip as I've never been on a cruise.

But you can take the Magical Express from your Disney resort to MCO at the end of your trip, and it is free.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Well, I can't help with the first part of your trip as I've never been on a cruise.

But you can take the Magical Express from your Disney resort to MCO at the end of your trip, and it is free.

ME is only for Disney resort hotels. The Hilton is not one of those.

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

Yup ME is out if the question since we are staying at the Hilton :-(

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

We just rented a car. We picked the car up a Budget rental car at MCO spent the night a Disney and in the morning we drove over to the Budget rental office near the port and turned the car in. Budget had 3 free shuttle vans to take people and their luggage to the ship.

When the cruise was over we hoped in the Budget shuttle van and went back to the rental office to get another car. The Budget rental office is 10 minutes from the ship.
The drive over to the coast was a straight shot and very easy!

Cost $36 each way including the gas.

 

[goofy4tink]

ME is only for Disney resort hotels. The Hilton is not one of those.

Yup ME is out if the question since we are staying at the Hilton :-(

But you can take DME back to MCO after your WDW resort stay!
If it were me? I would rent a car, at MCO, and drive directly to your port resort. Now..you have a few options here. If you are staying at a port resort that offers free parking with a shuttle to the ships, then leave your car there and when you're off the ship, drive back to WDW. You could return the car to MCO and then take DME to your resort both ways.
Or, drive to port, pay to park the car right there, by the ship. Then drive back to Orlando.
Or...return the car at port, take the car rental shuttle bus to the ship. when off the ship, shuttle back to the car rental office and pick up your new rental car and drive back to Orlando.
The drive is really easy...especially if you're just going directly to WDW and then returning the car there.
And it is usually cheaper to rent a car, and keep it and pay for parking, vs a private car service.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

But you can take DME back to MCO after your WDW resort stay!
If it were me? I would rent a car, at MCO, and drive directly to your port resort. Now..you have a few options here. If you are staying at a port resort that offers free parking with a shuttle to the ships, then leave your car there and when you're off the ship, drive back to WDW. You could return the car to MCO and then take DME to your resort both ways.
Or, drive to port, pay to park the car right there, by the ship. Then drive back to Orlando.
Or...return the car at port, take the car rental shuttle bus to the ship. when off the ship, shuttle back to the car rental office and pick up your new rental car and drive back to Orlando.
The drive is really easy...especially if you're just going directly to WDW and then returning the car there.
And it is usually cheaper to rent a car, and keep it and pay for parking, vs a private car service.

THEY AREN'T STAYING AT A DISNEY RESORT. The Hilton at DTD is not a Disney resort and has no ME.

 

[goofy4tink]

THEY AREN'T STAYING AT A DISNEY RESORT. The Hilton at DTD is not a Disney resort and has no ME.

Duh...evidently I need more coffee in the morning. Sorry.

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

The rental car option is looking better and better, is it easy to return rental cars at wdw? I looked for a rental to keep for the entire trip and it was about 250 bucks, a little too much to pay for something just to sit in a lot. but if we rented then returned then rented again that may be cheaper, obviously i will do whichever is the better deal. Will their shuttles take me to the Hilton? I'm also planning to call the hotel today and see what they suggest. I'm appreciating all the advice and ideas, keep em comin if a new one pops up ill have to start looking into getting the best car rental deal now. We just turned 25 so this will be our first car rental experience (although we've had rentals with our parents before so we know the dill).

 

[wiigirl]

Duh...evidently I need more coffee in the morning. Sorry.

 

[Jestocost]

The rental car option is looking better and better, is it easy to return rental cars at wdw? I looked for a rental to keep for the entire trip and it was about 250 bucks, a little too much to pay for something just to sit in a lot. but if we rented then returned then rented again that may be cheaper, obviously i will do whichever is the better deal. Will their shuttles take me to the Hilton? I'm also planning to call the hotel today and see what they suggest. I'm appreciating all the advice and ideas, keep em comin if a new one pops up ill have to start looking into getting the best car rental deal now. We just turned 25 so this will be our first car rental experience (although we've had rentals with our parents before so we know the dill).

But depending on how many people you have that $250 (plus you'll have to include parking at the port if you keep the car) could be less than purchasing different transportation options for each stage of the trip.

DCL transfers are $35 per person each way between the port and MCO, so that's $140 one way for a family of four, but DCL won't take you from the port to the Hilton. As a result, you'd either have to take the DCL bus back to MCO and then another form of transportation to the Hilton or you'd have to find alternative transportation from the port directly to the Hilton. Either way, that round trip for four people would cost you more than the cost of the rental car.

Round trip transfers for four going MCO-Port-Hilton in a town car will cost you about $250 plus tip and you'll still need to find a way to get from the Hilton back to MCO at an additional cost.

If you have more than four people the costs for both DCL transfers and a car service are going to go up. On DCL that's because you pay per person. With a car service it's because with more than four you'll need to move up to a limo or a van; not because of per person charges. If you have a large family, however, the cost of van transfers with a car service will be the same if you have five people or 10 people (or anywhere in between).

I'd suggest you price out the cost of a one-way rental from MCO to the port, and another rental that you would pick up after the cruise and drop off at MCO after your trip. Either that or just keeping a rental for the entire time may work out best for your situation. Plus with a rental car from MCO to the port you could bring your total cost down by staying at a hotel either near MCO or in the Port Canaveral area for less than the Hyatt.

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

I totally see the benefits o the other options if we were a family of four or large party... But this trip there is only two of us I will certainly price out a one way from mco to port and then another one from port back to mco after the trip... Might be nice to have a car while we r at wdw although we probably won't want to pay the Hilton for parking and then Disney for parking on top of that. I'm kind of snobby when it comes to park parking since with my ap at Disneyland I don't have to pay for parking once I get home today I will seriously look Ito the rental car option and get rates! This would be so much easier if we were four people or if we were staying at a wdw resort, lol oh well I'm super excited for my Disney extravaganza.

 

[KrazeeK120]

THEY AREN'T STAYING AT A DISNEY RESORT. The Hilton at DTD is not a Disney resort and has no ME.

I missed that too, when I first replied. Sorry, OP.

 

[goofy4tink]

The Budget rental office is located at the Doubletree Guest Suites right in DTD!! You could rent at MCO, drive to port, return the car at the Budget office there, take their shuttle to the ship. Shuttle back and re-rent a car at port, drive to the Hilton, return the car at the Doubletree. Easy!!

I actually found that it was only about $30 more to keep my car the entire time, even when adding in the parking costs!! So be sure to run the figures every which way!! You can never tell. Yes, it might be more expensive to keep the car and pay for parking, but it sure is nice to drive to the ship/parking lot, get out, lock the car and walk across the street to the ship, then disembark at the end, walk across the street and get right into your car and drive to WDW vs going back and forth to the rental office and heading away from WDW to return and re-rent your car..that will add time on both ends. I kind of like being master of my own destiny so to speak!!

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

I found out yesterday that there is an Avis counter right at the Hilton! So that made things a lot eAsier, now I just need to price it all out and se what will be the best option, it would be nice to keep the car, just depends on the cost. Thanks everyone for all the help!!

 

[traveljunkie]

You haven't asked about this part but I saved a bit of $$$ using this sight for my upcoming Florida trip. I got the website from the Disboard too. All you have to have is a Hilton Rewards number (which is free). I signed my daughter up for it and she used it in Georgia last month. Saved $30 per night.

http://directconnect.hilton.com/dc/...TOCSGBI1NEWQ?_pNd=6KChO3qjh2&_requestid=56885

Sounds like you have the transportation part figured out. Have a great time!!

 

[Disneylandfanatic]

Thanks for the link! I'll check it out when over home