Should we stay at a Disney world resort a night before our cruise?

[MomOTwins]

We’ve done the Hyatt once when our flight got in at night, but for trips when we are getting in the morning or early afternoon we prefer disney hotels. Can go for a nice swim, have a fun meal and just basically start the vacation a day earlier. Staying at the airport feels more like a transit day than a vacation day to me, and I found the DCL bus check in at the Hyatt lobby to be quite stressful—hundred of people all trying to check in versus a dozen or so at the resorts.

 

[DSLRuser]

DVC makes it so easy. We fly in 8am to MCO on Thursday. Rent a car. Drive to our resort. Enjoy the pool and a park Thursday / Thursday Night. Sleep in Friday morning. Breakfast at 10am. Check out at 11am, Drive to the terminal and board by 1pm.

The combination of a DVC room + a car make is so worth it.

All in, a car costs $400 vs $160 for (2 people) busses to the terminal. The extra $240 is well worth it for us.

 

[revdon64]

My standard procedure is to fly in late morning the day before the cruise and stay at a value resort like All-Star or Pop. Dinner that night at the Springs and DCL transport the next morning. This has been when it was just one of my sons and I. With the whole family (6 of us) it becomes much more cost prohibitive, and we'd probably look for less expensive options like staying near the port.

 

[Sir William]

Is Lyft pretty reliable though?

We had no problem except it took a few minutes to find a driver and car for 4 adults with luggage. Both DW and DS were sorting through various options. The guy we got was dropping off disembarking cruise passengers but lived in PC so appreciated a fare back to the port.

Our driver who drove us said there were some Uber & Lyft drivers who specialize in commutes to PC and back. Usually, though not always, they pick up disembarking passengers and take them to MCO (or WDW, Universal, etc), then pick up some embarking passengers for their return to PC. Consequently, there can be some competition for drivers depending on what time you're trying to get to the port.

As an aside, we now use Lyft to for our transfers to/from WDW, MCO and PC.

 

[BeckyEsq]

We did in 2019. We stayed at Pop Century and it was much cheaper than staying at the Hyatt MCO. Granted, back then we took free Magical Express to get to the resort from the airport, so now you'd have to factor that in. We got picked up in a big bus that was basically the same as ME. We figured it was a safe way to go because Disney was in charge of getting us to the port on time. Worked great for us and we enjoyed being in the Disney bubble before we set sail. We just ate in the food court, swam in the pool and took a tour of Art of Animation.

 

[auntlynne]

 

[DisneyDad1736]

We did in 2019. We stayed at Pop Century and it was much cheaper than staying at the Hyatt MCO. Granted, back then we took free Magical Express to get to the resort from the airport, so now you'd have to factor that in. We got picked up in a big bus that was basically the same as ME. We figured it was a safe way to go because Disney was in charge of getting us to the port on time. Worked great for us and we enjoyed being in the Disney bubble before we set sail. We just ate in the food court, swam in the pool and took a tour of Art of Animation.

If the ME was still around, we’d stay at a Disney resort no problem. I really hope that they bring it back in the future

 

[TonyStark27]

Sorry for bumping an old-ish thread....I have a related question.

Do you get onto the boat any faster if you stay at a WDW resort or the Hyatt vs staying at a cheaper hotel by the airport and then catching the shuttle from the airport?

 

[Girl of the South]

I gotta be honest here, I don’t understand why people feel a need to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than someone else. In the grand s heme of things, it really doesn’t matter.

 

[Kidguile]

Sorry for bumping an old-ish thread....I have a related question.

Do you get onto the boat any faster if you stay at a WDW resort or the Hyatt vs staying at a cheaper hotel by the airport and then catching the shuttle from the airport?

It's all about the port arrival times.

 

[Kidguile]

I gotta be honest here, I don’t understand why people feel a need to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than someone else. In the grand s heme of things, it really doesn’t matter.

Just in case there's a mad rush at the sit down meal or buffet. Maybe an extra ride or two on the aqua slide(s)

 

[TonyStark27]

I gotta be honest here, I don’t understand why people feel a need to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than someone else. In the grand s heme of things, it really doesn’t matter.

But pretend for a second that you did want to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than the next guy......does coming from a WDW resort bump you up in the order of PAT?

 

[Mommb]

But pretend for a second that you did want to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than the next guy......does coming from a WDW resort bump you up in the order of PAT?

My guess is that there is often just 1 bus pickup from each Disney World resort, and there are multiple buses running from the airport, so you could arrive at the port earlier if you are coming from the airport. (I'm not sure whether the Hyatt typically has 1 bus or many.) However, that's just a guess, and I'm not sure if arriving earlier on an airport bus will get you an earlier boarding group, or just a longer wait in the terminal.

 

[Rex1993]

My understanding is that you're assigned a specific boarding group and can't start boarding until that group is called. This obviously doesn't apply to concierge.

 

[Kidguile]

My understanding is that you're assigned a specific boarding group and can't start boarding until that group is called. This obviously doesn't apply to concierge.

Or Platinum tier - I believe

 

[Ensusieasm]

But pretend for a second that you did want to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than the next guy......does coming from a WDW resort bump you up in the order of PAT?

In March 2023 I got PAT 11:15AM and boarding group 3 by taking the DCL bus from Disney’s Old Key West resort. Also, after the cruise, I was back at Old Key West checking in at 10am via the DCL return bus.

 

[RedHead0186]

Or Platinum tier - I believe

That perk goes to Pearl members now. Platinum do need to select a PAT.

 

[RedHead0186]

I gotta be honest here, I don’t understand why people feel a need to spend 45 more minutes on the ship than someone else. In the grand s heme of things, it really doesn’t matter.

Some people want to try to snag adult dining reservations or need to made adjustments to their dining times, or maybe are trying to book something else on the ship. Those slots can fill out so 45 minutes can make a difference. Not saying it makes a difference to you, but to others it does/can.

 

[lanejudy]

Do you get onto the boat any faster if you stay at a WDW resort or the Hyatt vs staying at a cheaper hotel by the airport and then catching the shuttle from the airport?

In theory, yes you do board sooner.

Taking DCL Transfers from a WDW resort or the Hyatt MCO, you will not select a PAT and a low boarding group will be automatically assigned. Taking DCL Transfers from MCO or arriving by any other mode of transportation, you will need to select a PAT and will have a higher boarding group number.

That said...there is no guarantee that Transfers from a resort will arrive early enough to board with that low boarding number. It usually works out most of the time but there's always the odd chance of getting delayed.

 

[Kidguile]

That perk goes to Pearl members now. Platinum do need to select a PAT.

Oh yeah -the new tier PEARL I thought it was Platinum / Titanium / Vibranium