Most convenient rental car location - Dolphin vs Car Care Centre

[elainesj]

Is it more convenient to rent a car from the car care centre or Dolphin? I will be at Blizzard Beach and plan to leave at lunch time to get the rental car, go for lunch in DD, then return to Blizzard Beach.

I was going to rent from Dolphin - I was going to hop on the bus at Blizzard Beach headed to Dolphin and get the car that way.

But now I see that the Car Care Centre offers a free pickup service. Would that be quicker? Because I would not have to wait up to 10-20 mins for the bus? Not sure how well the pickup service works, especially from a park, instead of a resort.

Alternatively, do any of the rental places in DD offer free pickup service? That would be just as quick for us as we plan to have lunch in DD.

It will be our first time renting a car in WDW and i'm still trying to learn the ins and outs.

Thanks,

 

[billsfan]

I have found it cheaper to rent a car from Dollar. It looks like you want to go to Downtown Disney for lunch and the Dollar rental car place is the Wyndham resort. This is about a 300 yard walk from where the WDW busses drop you off from the resorts at the marketplace. We just did this last October and are planning to do it next week also.

I just can't remember if you can get a bus directly from Blizzard Beach to DTD ar not.

 

[Buzz's Buddy]

If the shuttle from the Car Care Center is on time picking you up, that's definitely the way to go. I've had good luck being picked up from the resorts, but the one time I asked to be picked up at the Magic Kingdom, the shuttle was at least 30 minutes late. The return shuttles pretty much depart when you're ready to leave. The only potential downside is that if someone else is returning their car at the same time, you may need to make another stop to drop them off first.

The Dolphin is convenient, but the convenience will likely cost you a few dollars more. When you rent from the Dolphin, you have to give your keys to the valet, who will retrieve your car from the lot. I ended up giving him a few dollars. When you return the car, you will likewise have to give the keys to the valet to return the car to the lot. Again, I felt obligated to give him a few dollars.

After using both, I prefer to use the Car Care Center.

 

[elainesj]

Thanks so much for the feedback.

I don't think I can manage DD unless they have a pickup shuttle simply because the sheer logistics of getting from Blizzard Beach to Downtown Disney will be a bit nuts.

The Car Care Centre sounds like the better way to go. I could wait up to 20 mins for a WDW bus to the dolphin anyway - so shuttle should work out well.

Thanks!!

 

[LisaS]

The Dolphin is convenient, but the convenience will likely cost you a few dollars more. When you rent from the Dolphin, you have to give your keys to the valet, who will retrieve your car from the lot. I ended up giving him a few dollars. When you return the car, you will likewise have to give the keys to the valet to return the car to the lot. Again, I felt obligated to give him a few dollars.

When we rented from the Car Care Center we tipped the shuttle driver more than we usually tip the valet at the Dolphin when we've rented there. So including tips, the rental from the CCC cost us more than when renting from the Dolphin.