Port transportation limitations

[RweTHEREyet]

I have booked a mini van to get us from MCO to WDW and then to Port Canaveral the next day. When I went to book a car for the return rental, the Costco site tells me that either that location is closed or there are no vehicles available. I called Enterprise and they just say that there are no one-way rentals available.

So, what does a person do if you can get to the Port but then can't get a car rental to return. Can you book Disney transportation for just one-way or does it have to be round trip?

 

[Tammyepolytinkfan]

Yes you can book Disney Cruise transport for a one-way. We have done it for the return to the airport after the cruise. We just did it again in August.

 

[princessmommyx3]

You could also keep the car during the cruise and park it in the garage. This also allows you to have a car if you test positive at the port and thus more options of what to do.

 

[mmouse37]

In September we kept our rental for the whole cruise and even including the parking fee it came out less expensive than doing two one-way rentals through Costco.

If you only want to rent one-way TO the port then book a one-way back on DCL transfers. We have done it before and will do for our upcoming Magic cruise out of Miami since we are flying home right after the cruise. I have even booked return transfer right onboard day of debark at guest service desk.

MJ

 

[RweTHEREyet]

We will have a party of 4 adults and one child with luggage, so I was looking at booking a mini-van. We will also be at WDW a week following the cruise, so keeping a mini-van that length of time is cost prohibitive. Maybe private transportation is a cheaper way for us to go on this trip, but I am not sure who to use.

 

[rmoxgt]

delete

 

[mousefan73]

People have posted here that they are renting one Ways at the port as a back up in case they are positive at port. Once all clear they cancel. Once the car rentals got a hold of this they’re going to increase what they allow in over bookings so if you actually get a car there’s another question. Or they gonna start requiring pre-payment and cancellation fees.

 

[SnowWhite2]

Unless things have changed since the pandemic, the rental car facilities at Cocoa Beach are small. They are like your local places, not the airport. Just because you rent a minivan doesn't mean you get a minivan. Once we got a Ford Escape in place of our minivan reservation. Definitely not the same. You are at the mercy of what the facility has. They offered to let us wait to see if someone returned a minivan that was getting on the next cruise but we didn't want to wait for something that might not arrive.

 

[meliscan]

I would keep checking as things seem to be changing constantly with rental cars. I booked a one way car rental through Costco for May about two weeks ago so it could be your dates. I rented a car in OK in November. When I first reserved it the cost was $300 for a Corolla a few months about and 3 weeks before I was able to get a minivan for the same price. Crazy.

 

[starry_solo]

We will have a party of 4 adults and one child with luggage, so I was looking at booking a mini-van. We will also be at WDW a week following the cruise, so keeping a mini-van that length of time is cost prohibitive. Maybe private transportation is a cheaper way for us to go on this trip, but I am not sure who to use.

We spent about $180 for private transportation for 3 adults through Mears. We were in a large SUV. With that many people and luggage, you will likely be spending about $215-250 for one-way for private transportation (includes gratuity with Mears).

 

[Lilsia]

I would price it out all ways. As others have said, it might be cheaper to just put the minivan in the garage at the port to keep for your trip if you are wanting the car at WDW. Most of the time one way rentals are double/triple/ and even 4x as much as you would pay to keep it longer and return it back to the original place. They really don't like one way rentals since it messes with their inventory. Now, if you don't actually need the car for your stay at WDW, then private transfers might be the way to go. There are lots of town car companies in Orlando. If you Google Orlando town car, you can go to their website and look at prices.

 

[Cyn T]

I just booked a full-size, one-way rental from Budget (via Costco) to go from MCO to Port Canaveral. Including a booster seat, taxes and fees the total is $116.

My husband will drop off myself and our son's plus the bags at the port then go return the car and either shuttle or Uber to join us. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive.

We will sail (hopefully) for 7 days.

I booked another full-size, one-way rental from Alamo (via Priceline, since Costco only wanted to let me originate a rental from an airport) to go from Port Canaveral to the WDW Car Care Center for $126, including taxes and fees. Husband will drop us and our luggage off at Beach Club, return the car to the Car Care Center near Magic Kingdom, then Uber or shuttle to meet us.

It sounds like you need something larger than a full-size and of course actual inventory/availability varies as others have noted, but fwiw I noticed that some rental companies charged (higher?) one-way rental fees and others didn't.

And based on the recommendations on this board, we also booked town car service from Tiffany Town Cars (which also offers SUVs, vans, etc). But when I factor in gratuity and ease of service (town car) vs gas, tolls, freedom, privacy and less exposure to others (rental), we are leaning toward the rental.

I hope you find a solution that works well for you and your family!

Edit: This is my first Disney cruise so I have no prior experience of my own. I could be doing this all wrong!

 

[Colo17]

Look into Goport. They do trips between airport/airport hotels and port and back. You can also book airport hotel packages through them. Transportation only is around $25pp roundtrip and less for one way. Airport pickup location is near the current Magical Express bus area.

 

[lanejudy]

My husband will drop off myself and our son's plus the bags at the port then go return the car and either shuttle or Uber to join us.

Just so you know...he probably will not be able to drop you off until your PAT time. Then I think you will need to wait for him to return and join you before you can begin testing.

 

[Cyn T]

Just so you know...he probably will not be able to drop you off until your PAT time. Then I think you will need to wait for him to return and join you before you can begin testing.

Thanks for the heads up!