Mears Connect Experience

[The Foolish Mortal]

Has anyone booked Mears Connect during a busy holiday? We are planning on taking the Mears Connect in December around Christmas time. I know MCO is swamped during this time and I’m worried they won’t give us enough time to get through security and to our flight on departure day.Can we request pick up 4 hours ahead of time instead of the 3 hours they usually decide?
Anyone have experience with this during a busy holiday?

Has there been a busy holiday since Mears Connect took over for DME? Guess it depends on your definition of a busy holiday. Regardless, it shouldnt be a problem to schedule an earlier departure tme. You enter your return flight info when scheduling your Mears pick up. Just enter an earlier flight than the one you ahve scheduled and, as a result, you will get picked up earlier

 

[maryj11]

Has there been a busy holiday since Mears Connect took over for DME? Guess it depends on your definition of a busy holiday. Regardless, it shouldnt be a problem to schedule an earlier departure tme. You enter your return flight info when scheduling your Mears pick up. Just enter an earlier flight than the one you ahve scheduled and, as a result, you will get picked up earlier

No I don’t think there has been a busy holiday. I forgot they started after January.

 

[DizParks]

How far in advanced can you book? My trip isn't until 6/16, but when I put in my Southwest flight details it's stating that it's too far out or incorrect.

 

[amy_sue]

I used Mears Connect for my solo trip 4/1-4/5. It was completely seamless. For my return trip to the airport a bus showed up about 20 or so minutes before my scheduled bus and he took me and 2 other parties onboard with no problems.
FYI about the masking. Neither of my bus drivers wore masks. Some of the guests did, some didn’t.

 

[maryj11]

I used Mears Connect for my solo trip 4/1-4/5. It was completely seamless. For my return trip to the airport a bus showed up about 20 or so minutes before my scheduled bus and he took me and 2 other parties onboard with no problems.
FYI about the masking. Neither of my bus drivers wore masks. Some of the guests did, some didn’t.

So you took an earlier bus beside the one you scheduled or your scheduled bus arrived early? We have taken an earlier bus several times with magic express. When I have asked a cm they tell me if there’s room they will take us.

 

[amy_sue]

So you took an earlier bus beside the one you scheduled or your scheduled bus arrived early? We have taken an earlier bus several times with magic express. When I have asked a cm they tell me if there’s room they will take us.

I took an earlier bus instead of my scheduled bus.

 

[The Foolish Mortal]

How far in advanced can you book? My trip isn't until 6/16, but when I put in my Southwest flight details it's stating that it's too far out or incorrect.

I do not know. But I usually book my transport three to four weeks in advance and never had a problem. Multiple people have reported booking the ride AFTER arriving at the airport. So i wouldn't worry too much about needing to book way in advance

 

[#1Disfann]

How far in advanced can you book? My trip isn't until 6/16, but when I put in my Southwest flight details it's stating that it's too far out or incorrect.

Maybe just a temporary issue. I have my reservation already for my September trip.

 

[disny_luvr]

We used Mears on Monday night and then again this morning and our experience was great! Our flight arrived after 11:00pm and we waited on the bus for about 15 minutes before we left the airport. We stopped at two other resorts first before we arrived at our resort. This morning our pick up time was 6:05am and the driver arrived at 6:03. We picked up people from two other resorts and were at the airport right before 7:00am. It was pretty much the same as Magical Express except their was no Disney wrap or video. We will definitely use them again in the future.

 

[eleven24]

I used MearsConnect from Bay Lake Tower to the airport on my last trip in early January, and did not have an issue with booking and did not have a problem getting to the airport.

However, I will say I overheard the radio chatter while on the shuttle and it sounded crazy. A whole bunch of people not showing up, and the dispatcher pleading with drivers to update their devices with passengers. In my case, I got on a shuttle about 20 minutes ahead of time because one just happened to be there, but the driver did not scan, nor even look at my confirmation. He said something to their dispatcher, but I have no clue how they would have figured out I was already on my way. So, I'm sure a little bit later another driver reported me as a no show. I'll probably use it again for a trip in early April, so will be interesting to see if they modify how it is actually run.

We used MearsConnect on Jan 8th from Bay Lake Tower and they forgot to come pick us up. On top of that when I called for a refund they told me I was a no show, which is the same thing that happened with 2 other families. I'd like to chalk it up to first week kinks in the system, but the only thing that really changed was the busses didn't say DME on them anymore. The infrastructure to Mears is still identical.

Hoping for a better experience in a month when we're again staying at BLT

 

[Nappy1380]

Doing a private car service in March proved 2 things; no need for a private car service OR Mears. Plenty of taxis at the airport, vans included, and the trip was $70 not including tip. For 4 people or more, that means it's the same price as the bus without any of the wait.

 

[SLThomas318]

Does anyone know if Mears Connect Express requires car seats? I know the regular Connect would be a large charter bus, but wasn't sure what they use for the Express?

 

[kittercats85]

How far in advanced can you book? My trip isn't until 6/16, but when I put in my Southwest flight details it's stating that it's too far out or incorrect.

I am booked for end of August and have been for a while. I just had a schedule change last week and it wouldn’t let me modify for a few days giving that same message. I think it just takes their system a little time to catch up after Southwest modifies anything in their scheduling.

 

[Ross Kratter]

Does anyone know if Mears Connect Express requires car seats? I know the regular Connect would be a large charter bus, but wasn't sure what they use for the Express?

No. The Express service could be in a large van or also on a bus. Per Florida law, car seats are not required in any chauffeured vehicle.

 

[seashoreCM]

We used MearsConnect on Jan 8th from Bay Lake Tower and they forgot to come pick us up. On top of that when I called for a refund they told me I was a no show, which is the same thing that happened with 2 other families

Did Mears eventually refund what you paid?

If you ask me, failure to show up equals unreliability. This makes the 3 hours before your flight inadequate because you need time to do a Plan B.

 

[Alli1988]

Do not use Mears! Worst part of our April 2022 trip. We arrived to the loading area at MCO to long lines, desk attendants that hardly looked up to call the next person in line to check in, and mumbled what to do. Everyone was confused, the line next to us had individuals that had been waiting 70 minutes already. They ended up waiting at least 20 more with us for their bus. We waited 45 minutes to be called. Only maybe 4-5 buses came during our time waiting, they were using mostly vans that held around 7. There was around 10-15 lines with 10-30 people in each line. We paid for bus but got a van. They call the line based on who of any of the line has been waiting longest. I know this because people were going up to the desk left and right asking what was going on. People were leaving the line left and right to call Uber, etc. those in the express line seemed to be waiting about 20 minutes. At one point the express line had at least 15 groups in it. No attendants were openly sharing what was going on, it was like secret chaos or they realized it was a mess and avoided actually walking over to the lines of people waiting. Never again. Will use Uber or call a private driver. If this was a walk up service it would make more sense that they couldn’t predict volume, but we all had reservations!

Also, the return text you get has tracking for the bus. Don’t look at it! Our return time was 550 but at 540 it showed the drive over 20 minutes away. Going on our prior experience, figured they were running behind. When I walked up to bus he was just sitting in drive seat, said, are you here for this, pointing to paper mears sign. We loaded at 553 to an empty bus and he told us we made him late! I almost snapped back about the wait we had on arrival! The only announcement was,
We will be to Mco in about 30 minutes. We picked up one other family and arrived at the airport two hours 20 minutes before our flight.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

This is our experience 4/23 and 4/30. Arrived at Mears and waited ten minutes to board the bus. Our line was long upon entering the queue. We waited another 10 to 15 minutes before leaving. The bus was full with stops at SSR, POFQ, POR, GF and WL. Stopped at SSR and the person to be dropped off was not on the bus, idk. My husband thought this ride was longer than previous experiences. Our stop was next, fine. Upon return to MCO, I didn't get an email or text as early as I did for the reservation to the resort. I was watching for confirmation of our departure. I already knew the pick up time from the original confirmation information. It was around 530 pm the day before departure, I decided to call and confirm. She eventually found our reservation and resent the QR code. I was just concerned that we were on the schedule. I don't handle last minute change of plans well. Her email arrived shortly after the auto sent one I had been watching for. I looked up TSA wait times and they were nearing one hour, 745 pm flight. A little concerned we were at the stop early when another bus showed up. We asked if we could board early and the driver said yes. She was looking for the Yates family, but only left with us. We were not that family. No additional stops, as people were already on. We got to the airport via I-4 just fine. I received texts while on the bus for our original pick up time with a link to the driver's location. Idk if the link didn't work or it was just me. I got a text with the bus number, driver's name etc and that he was onsite, but it was 20 minutes later than scheduled pick up. If I had been waiting that extra 20 minutes for a late bus, I would've been freaking out. I don't know if we'll do Mears again, especially for departure. Saw Sunshine flyer quite a bit on property. I'll probably try them, at least one way.

 

[SLThomas318]

This is our experience 4/23 and 4/30. Arrived at Mears and waited ten minutes to board the bus. Our line was long upon entering the queue. We waited another 0 to 15 minutes before leaving. The bus was full with stops at SSR, POFQ, POR, GF and WL. Stopped at SSR and the person to be dropped off was not on the bus, idk. My husband thought this ride was longer than previous experiences. Our stop was next, fine. Upon return to MCO, I didn't get an email or text as early as I did for the reservation to the resort. I was watching for conformation of our departure. I already knew the pick up time from the conformation information. It was around 530 pm the day before departure, I decided to call and confirm. She eventually found our reservation and resent the QR code. I was just concerned that we were on the schedule. I don't handle last minute change of plans well. Her email arrived shortly after the auto sent one I had been watching for. I looked up TSA wait times and they were nearing one hour. A little concerned we were at the stop early when another bus showed up. We asked if we could board early and the driver said yes.

5 stops? Is this what other people are experiencing? I’d hate to be the last stop… private transport is looking like a better option (aside from cost obviously).

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

People thought Uber and Lyft might be cheaper. Idk about that. I saw a vlogger trying to get from their apartment, Orlando, to the airport, MCO, at 5 am. His post showed a price over $100 for a ride pick up in 15 minutes.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

5 stops? Is this what other people are experiencing? I’d hate to be the last stop… private transport is looking like a better option (aside from cost obviously).

The queue we were in was only Port Orleans. I will give them credit for stops at least being in the same vicinity.