So how long does it REALLY take DME to get to the resorts?

[Tracey1974]

We (all 14 of us) are traveling to WDW the day before our cruise and 2 nights after. We are using DME, 2 families are flying out of Philly and we are all flying out of Newark but our flights hopefully will land about an hour from each other. I hate that we have late afternoon flights but no one wanted to hear about the 7am flight that would have brought us to Disney nice and early!

Anyway- how long does it realistically take to get from the airport to POP? Do you know if they all stop at different resorts?

 

[Lostgirlz]

I was told by Disney Travel it could take anywhere from 30mins-1 hour from MCO. As far as stopping at resorts there really is no way in knowing that from what I have read and asked myself to prepare for our first trip and upcoming honeymoon at WDW that the ME has no set list on which resort to stop at first. Hard call to get an exact estimation, but based on what Disney Travel and what the dis board members have said at least 30mins-1hour.

 

[mom_of_5]

I had heard from our travel agent (knowing we have 5 kids) that it could take up to 2 1/2 hours depending on how many stops they had to make. YIKES. We opted for a stretch limo to and from, the kids went nuts, that was probabably the biggest highlight of the trip for them. Knowing I could sit and relax was a highlight for me.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

There is not a simple answer of "x minutes" because you could check-in for DME and be sent to a motorcoach that's ready to depart to your resort. Or you might have to wait 20 minutes.

Once the motorcoach departs from the airport, it's about a 30-minute ride to the first stop. The first stop could be your resort. But your resort could be the second or third stop. Officially, DME can make up to four stops, but there have been few reports on this board of being the fourth stop.

If you walk from your arrival gate directly to the DME Welcome Center (bypassing baggage claim), you should arrive at your resort around 70 minutes after stepping off the plane — plus or minus 20 minutes. So plan on 50-90 minutes total.

One thing that will work in your favor is that DME motorcoaches are dispatched on the basis of demand. So let's suppose ten of you show up wanting to go to POP, but another DME motorcoach just left for POP five minutes ago. Your presence should lead to another dispatch to POP relatively soon.

 

[kaytieeldr]

So plan on 50-90 minutes TOTAL.

Stressing total. That's from getting off the plane until getting off the bus at your resort.
There are no 'set' routes; as Horace indicated, routing is based on demand/need. If there are 50 Guests going to Pop Century, DME is not also going to place the 36 Guests headed for Caribbean Beach on that same bus. Stops at each resort are generally around five minutes - enough time for the passengers to debark and the driver to pull anything those people placed under the bus (carryons, strollers)

 

[havencruiser]

IF you are really "lucky" you could right onto a bus that is leaving the curb and be at a resort that is the first to drop-off. Then....ut's a matter of about30 minutes. Same as if you drove (minus having to wait at the luggage carousel). On the other hand, if you walk up to a line and are the first in that line, that means that the bus JUST left. In that case, you will need to wait for the enxt bus, wait the amount of time that they are required to layover at the airport, and then follow the rotation of stops they make at the resorts. The resorts are grouped geographically so it's not like you have to drive all over the World but if you are the last one off the bus, it could be significantly longer than if you were the first.
All that said, free luggage service and free transportation service is well worth it!

 

[goofy4tink]

I've taken DME to POP three times now. First time it took us 65 minutes...we had a very quick checkin (about 5 mins) then bus line was quick (again 5 mins) and the bus left almost as soon as we got on board. Then, we were the first stop. Second time it took us 70 minutes, third time was last May and I (POP people) was the last stop of three, and it took 85 mins. These times are timed from when I get off the plane and head towards the monorail shuttle at MCO to the time I get in my resort checkin line.

 

[tmt martins]

POP last OCT 55 min .
SSr June 50 min This time 3 of the gals went on ME and the 2 guys went to rental and it took us 55 min with no bags or wait in the rental line.
So it was about the same .

This was also from the time I stepped off the plane until I hit the check-in line at the resort.

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Last September we took ME. Our flight landed at exactly noontime- by 1:30 I was sitting in the park eating lunch. No exaggeration. We got off the plane, got to ME and checked in, took bus to POP (which is the first stop), got off bus, checked in, put bags in room, took bus to MK, walked to restaurant and got food...all in an hour and a half.

 

[Lewisc]

DME normally stops at resorts in order from MCO. POP is generally the first stop. Because of the route the buses take from MCO POP can generally be added on to almost any bus route.

It'll take you 5-10 minutes to walk to the DME desk, 5-20 minutes to wait for a bus and then 20-30 minutes to get to POP. You should get to POP less than an hour after landing.

 

[havencruiser]

I don't know what all the hub-bub is about with DME. This is the same service people USED to take before DME. It's MEARS with a Mickey logo on the bus plus it's free plus they take your luggage and deliver it for FREE. How long it takes is the same amount it took with Mears. If 50 people all happen to be in line ahead of you for the same resort loop and the bus hold 49, it will take longer than if you are the last one to get on the waiting bus and happen to be the first resort stop on the loop. Same as with Mears...but it's FREE.

 

[dsneygirl]

Last Oct we got in the DME line at 10:25 and were at our site at Ft Wilderness at 11:30 (included check in) I believe it stopped at POR and SSR first.

In Dec we got in line at 10:35 and were at OKW at noon after stopping at SSR.

The Oct trip we boarded the bus almost immediately after moving to that line. In Dec we maybe waited 10 min before actually boarding the busses.

Looks like 60-90 min is the norm.

 

[disneyfan719]

I took DME two weeks ago and it worked out really well for us. We got off the plane at noon and we were at Old Key West 65 minutes later. We had just missed a bus headed for OKW when we got to thru the queue. We waited about 15 minutes and the bus was stopping at OKW and Saratoga Springs. Its an awesome service and I'm so happy that Disney hasn't started charging for it yet!

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

I don't know what all the hub-bub is about with DME. This is the same service people USED to take before DME. It's MEARS with a Mickey logo on the bus plus it's free plus they take your luggage and deliver it for FREE. How long it takes is the same amount it took with Mears. If 50 people all happen to be in line ahead of you for the same resort loop and the bus hold 49, it will take longer than if you are the last one to get on the waiting bus and happen to be the first resort stop on the loop. Same as with Mears...but it's FREE.

Actually, no, it's not just a rebadged Mears Shuttle.

There are several key differences.

The Mears Shuttle makes four stops at the airport. DME has one pickup location.

The Mears Shuttle would make up to 7 or 8 different stops, not neccessarily in Disney, and not neccessarily close to each other. DME makes a maximum of four stops, and those four stops are grouped by physical location to minimize travel time.

The Mears Shuttle had no maximum wait times... it waited till it was full. DME has maximum wait times. Buses get dispatched no later than 15-20 mins after the first person has boarded. Most often, much less time than that.


For the return trip... things are organized MUCH better.

With the Mears Shuttle, it was pretty much a guarantee that the bus would be late. 7 pickups scheduled within 20 minutes. DME structures the pickup times and locations so that the driver is able to arrive early, and depart on time.

With the Mears Shuttle, they took walk ups, and often filled up before reaching all stops. With DME, they don't take walk ups, thus reducing full buses.

Mears Shuttle also crammed people into Vans. DME uses brand new luxury motorcoaches with onboard entertainment.


So yeah... Mears Destination Services, Inc. drives the motorcoaches for Disney's Magical Express. But you know what... that's where the similarities end.

 

[CleveRocks]

I don't know what all the hub-bub is about with DME. This is the same service people USED to take before DME. It's MEARS with a Mickey logo on the bus

Sharon,

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE digest the information that Tyler just posted. He posted fact, not opinion.

Just because it's Mears buses and Mears drivers does not mean it's the same Mears service that was in place in the past, as you erroneously assumed.

It's all run by Disney. The way I like to describe it, Mears is still the muscle but Disney is now the brains.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

I don't know what all the hub-bub is about with DME. This is the same service people USED to take before DME.

And just to add to what Tyler and Eric wrote:

DME is a high volume operation. DME serves far more passengers than Mears ever did, with more departures more often.

DME passengers bypass baggage claim entirely (unless they purposely choose not to use DME luggage delivery), so DME passengers are able to check in 15-45 minutes sooner than Mears passengers in the past — and thus get out of the airport more quickly.

DME's focus is on getting passengers out of the airport and to their resorts — but Mears' focus was on filling buses and vans to get revenue from every seat.

 

[havencruiser]

I think we are saying the same thing, I just wasn't clear enough. In my opinion, Disney took what Mears was doing and added Disney Magic to it. They were able to use their ability to handle people and "stuff" and add it as a free service. It intrigues me how peolpe who took the same service before and waited in the same lines and took the same loop before DME now seem to think the lines are so long and the loops are so long, etc etc. It's a free service that I think is well worth not having to rent a car or wait for my luggage and I will happily wait a few minutes for.

 

[tmt martins]

This is true and the biggest turn around time is the Luggage .

It took the mears driver forever to take the bags on and off both at the airport as well as the resorts.

I also know that some do still carry their bags on but it's not all 50 people going to 7 different resorts.

We are now using ME even though we will still rent a car just do it at a DTD location and save the drive as well a day or so on the ressie.

 

[Gary M]

We used DME three times last winter. I timed all three trips with DME. I started timing the minute we stepped off the plane until we were in line at our resort. The two trips to WL took almost one hour and the trip to YC took 1 hour and 15 minutes.

 

[soxnation]

On August 24th our time from landing to resort was around 80mins. A bit of a wait at the check in desk due to the volume of people who did not have their luggage tags and were trying to describe their luggage to the cast members. Also we had a bit of a wait for a Magic Kingdom area bus. Luggage took a while, would use them again but with the time we waited in line and for a bus we could have grabbed our own luggage