Should I use DME transport? Or taxi to save time and sanity?

[Tonja]

My family of 4 (kids are 3&5) are going to WDW in Nov/Dec. 1st night at AKL (stayed at KV AKL in 2011& LOVED) then leaving the next day for 3 night cruise. It's our 1st cruise and I'm unsure of how the transport will work. Then we are booked at the Polynesian on our return. As of now we have DME to the resort, a transfer to Port Canaveral, transfer back to Polynesian and DME to airport after...

Am I crazy? Should I skip the DME so I can optimize the one day we have pre-cruise?

 

[pixarmom]

We're a family of five and we use DME whenever we can. For our kids, DME is part of the fun! And my husband and I love checking our bags straight through to the resort so that we don't have to mess with luggage at the airport or resort.

Same with DCL transfers - they picked up our luggage from BWI in the morning and delivered it to our stateroom on the ship. We spent the morning around the Epcot resort area and had a great early lunch at Beaches N' Cream. It was so easy and we didn't mind arriving at the port after the lunch rush.

Last year, we did 2 nights BWI, 3-night cruise and 1 night BC. We used DME and DCL transfers to the port. We could have taken a cab instead of DME (faster) or rented a car or used car service to the port (less expensive.) We knew that going in, but were really happy with our decision to use Disney transport the whole time. It was easy and festive for the kids.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We have been lucky with our DME experiences, waiting probably 10-15min for our bus to leave from when we que'd up in line. I would say our DME time was 50-60min from landing to arriving at the Poly.

I have a friend who only uses a towncar service and she swears that it's less time than waiting for a DME bus.

We have rented a car going either to or from the airport and it was easy to do, but probably took as much time as our DME experience did. It was convenient to not pick up our bags, schlep them to the car and leave the driving to someone else.

 

[M&MGirl1]

Having done the MCO to Disney to Port Canaveral thing more than once, my strong suggestion is to rent a car with pick up at MCO and drop off in Port Canaveral. Most of the major rental chains will shuttle you from the drop off to the cruise line for free. A one way rental like this has run me anywhere from $45 to $70 a day in the past for a full size sedan, which probably isn't much more than using a cab or airport shuttle service would run. You also have the benefit of having the car to yourself to use the whole first day which would definitely help you maximize the time you have. It also allows you to get out to Port Canaveral earlier in the morning (if you can get everyone up early) and get checked in for your cruise before the hoards of passengers that will be using the ME get there and mob the check in counters.

 

[goofy4tink]

Here's a loose breakdown of various times I've had...between MCO and WDW..using various types of transport.

DME....50-85 mins, usually around 70 min.

Towncar....carryon bags only.....45 mins

Towncar...checked bags......65 mins

Mears shuttle...carryon only, to the Dolphin...85 mins.

Do with that what you will.

 

[tinkermommyof3]

Family of 5. Have done Star Limo (Stretch Limo). They played Disney Movies for children on way to resort. Have also taken Mears in a Bus and a Taxi Van. Favorite transportation (children's vote) DME hands down. Time difference has been hardly noticeable between methods of transportation. Limo may have been a little faster--not much though. Love DME!

 

[tiger4me2]

I have taken a town car for quite some years (starting in 2001) It has taken us around 30 to 40 minutes to get from MCO to the BWI. And that getting the luggage


We have had bad experiences with DME & will not use them. We decided after that we will never use them again MHO

 

[Sue M]

We use DME, it's free, never had a long wait, and don't have to deal with luggage.

 

[letsgoreds]

Stick with ME...if you rent/etc. you would also need to secure carseats for the little ones. Riding on ME is a treat for the kiddos.

 

[AJKMOM]

I personally have not done DME because we stay in a villa and always rent a car, but sometimes our guests have used Magical Express and it goes well. I think the only time I have read here about complaints was when it first started. Also if the persons flight came in very late, or very early. That seems to be the weakest area. Other than that, it's free and is maybe 15-20 minutes more than a service you pay for.

 

[denene914]

I love DME, but when we went last November, we had a 90 minute wait in line. Was not fun. Line was halfway thru the airport. Since we are going again this November, we are renting a car. I don't want to deal with the waiting in line. Went last April during spring break and had no line. Don't really understand that, but not taking any chances this year. Was 90.00 to rent a car for 8 days. Totally worth it to me.

 

[macnodos]

We have never used ME but have heard many great thing about the service. Our first time to Disney in 1999 we used the service Disney provided which I believe was Mears. We have been there several times since and have always used a car service. Actually it's not that expensive but very convenient for several reasons. Your driver is waiting for you at the bottom of the stairs as you are headed to claim your luggage and is very helpful in the loading of such. You are then taken directly to your resort unless you choose to stop for snacks and drinks. They give you a 30 minute stop (publix/walgreens)and believe me the money you will save versus buying the same products at a resort can offset the fare by a good bit. The price is about $110 + tip and that includes round trip service. It will save you a lot of time at each end. They typically use late model Lincoln towncars unless your party is greater than four, if so they will use a larger vehicle. It has always worked great for us and we will continue to use one of the two services we have used. I won't mention any names because it is not permitted by this website. Good Luck with your choice and have fun.

 

[reiella]

AKL will be one of the last stops on a DME trip due to its location for time concerns.

For sanity, you have the trade off of luggage claim.

 

[Tonja]

I am a newbie on DIS and really appreciate all of the info!

 

[Micca]

Welcome to the Dis Tonja! You've found the place for Disney experts right here(not that I'm one).

 

[Jestocost]

I love DME, but when we went last November, we had a 90 minute wait in line. Was not fun. Line was halfway thru the airport. Since we are going again this November, we are renting a car. I don't want to deal with the waiting in line. Went last April during spring break and had no line. Don't really understand that, but not taking any chances this year. Was 90.00 to rent a car for 8 days. Totally worth it to me.

I have no doubt this happened, but unusual delays can happen with any form of transport you use. For example, I have waited nearly two hours for luggage to arrive in baggage claim on one occasion (all baggage handlers pulled from the tarmac due to thunderstorms) and have had a rental car company just not have a car available for an hour (a la Seinfeld). As a result, I wouldn't base any decision on an isolated report of a problem with one mode of transport vs. another.

 

[dburg30]

AKL will be one of the last stops on a DME trip due to its location for time concerns.

For sanity, you have the trade off of luggage claim.

We just used DME a couple of saturdays ago, yes AKL Kidani will be the logical last stop.. We stopped at POP and Jambo.. No others. The POP stop litereally added a total of 5 minutes onto the trip. We werent stopped for more then 3 minutes to offload passengers and luggage before we were on our way again. Driving it's the farthest also, so no matter how you get there if you do the speed limit, it's going to take extra time.

 

[mindy20]

With kids those ages I would use DME, my kids (2,3,5) love the Disney buses plus the benefit of not dealing with checked bags is HUGE IMO. We have made 2 trips in the past year and a half and never had a wait over 10 minutes. The part I was/is not thrilled with is the resort to Port Canaveral. Our bus picked us up at 12:00 at BC, and while I love not having to deal with luggage, it's such a late pick up we lost a lot of the day to enjoy the ship (4 night dream) thankfully no wait to get on the ship. I'm worried you might really miss it with a 3 night, so i think if I were you I'd use a service to get from resort to port early so you get to enjoy the ship/pools ect...then id take DCL transfer from port to Poly and let them handle luggage, I think I've heard they get you to resort pretty early.

 

[goofy4tink]

I have taken a town car for quite some years (starting in 2001) It has taken us around 30 to 40 minutes to get from MCO to the BWI. And that getting the luggage


We have had bad experiences with DME & will not use them. We decided after that we will never use them again MHO

Wow....that' incredible timing. It takes at least 10 mins to get from the gate to baggage claim, then about 10-20 mins for baggage to appear, then 5 mins (at least) to get to the car. And then 25 mins to get to BW.
Most of us give times from gate to resort. The ride to the resorts is about 30 mins average..some are a bit shorter, some a bit longer.
I just want others to understand that it takes much longer than 30-40 mins to get from their plane to their resort.

 

[Gary M]

Since 1992 we have stayed at WDW resorts over 50 times, flying into MCO each time. We have taken Mears shuttles, town cars, stretch limos and DME. Having taken DME at least 15 times, I have found that it has taken anywhere from 55 to 75 minutes to get to the resort. This is from the time you step off the plane, until you walk into the resort lobby. The luggage being delivered to your room at the resorts is a great selling point for us. I think you and the kids will also like the movie shown on the bus.

Our experience has been you "may" get to the resort 10 or 15 minutes faster by limo or town car, but don't count on it.

We enjoy the DME and have no complaints so far.