Some transportation thoughts from my trip...

[goofy4tink]

We flew DirectAir out of Worcester on April 14...first time with DirectAir for us. It was a very good experience. No issues at all. The same for our return yesterday from Sanford. No issues at all. I fly them again in Oct and am looking forward to it. They do nickel and dime you to death though....a dollar for water, two dollars for sodas, etc. Baggage is $30 for first piece if you pay for it at the counter, but 'only' $25 if you pay for it in advance. It does cost extra to choose your seats prior to arrival. But overall, it was a good experience.

I rented a car for the entire trip...a first for me. Rented through Budget. The only mistake I made was to fill up at the CCC before heading back to Sanford. That little error cost me $13.99!!! That addlt cost was added after I returned the car. Now, the thing that really annoys me??? We drove from Sanford to US/IoA, to Cocoa Beach (and around that area), then parked at port for 4 days, then drove to WDW, took buses for two days, then drove to Tampa and around the area, then back to WDW for breakfast yesterday and then to Sanford...only put in about $30 worth of gas..the tank never got below halfway at any time...kept it at about 2/3 full. So, that addtl $14 really annoyed me. Will fill up closer to the airport next time...lesson learned.

I did like driving around the area though. I was nervous about the MK parking lot but we got there early enough to get in the Pluto lot and took the tram for the first time ever. When we left about 2 hrs later, the lots were really filling up. And I found my way out of the lot fairly easily. Of course, my phone GPS sent me to Epcot on my way back to Sanford. Thank heaven we have APs so didn't have to pay to get in!!!! Got way turned around for some reason. And found Rt 4 to be really congested yesterday around 11am in the SW/US/IoA area. Added about 20 mins to our drive!!!

But Sanford Airport was easily navigated.

The buses at AKL-Jambo were okay. In hind sight, I should have just driven to the various parks since were there for just two days. Too much time waiting for buses...coming and going.

To those Disney bus drivers out there......I was terrified of committing some kind of driving incident. I was really careful when I saw a Disney bus. I could only imagine what would happen if your moderator caused some kind of difficulty out there, on the WDW roadways!! Oh, the horror of it all. But, I made it safely through.

I find that the area is very well marked for those of us who really have no idea how to get around.

 

[travelin' tigger]

Hey Diane! Sounds like you had a great trip!

Thanks for the DirectAir report. I've thought about flying them for a while now and might have to look at their prices for my next trip...

 

[kathmzh]

Sounds like a great trip, even with the "firsts," thanks for posting...I was waiting for your review of DirectAir. I am intrigued by their prices, but not sure if it's right for us with the added fees and driving time (we are on the South Shore of Mass.) From what I understand, they can cancel at anytime too, right? I may be too nervous about it, but your positive review makes me think twice...
Isn't Sanford a nice little airport? I have never minded the extra drive from there to Orlando.

 

[goofy4tink]

Update on the Budget issue. I did email them about the extra charge. They emailed me back to tell me that it is an automatic charge when a car is driven less than 75 miles. Ah....it was about 120 miles just on our last day...Tampa to WDW to Sanford Intl!!! They did say that they were going to remove the addtl charge plus any fees/taxes that were involved due to the addtl charge. So, I'm happy to report that Budget is fixing the issue.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

What kind of a car were you driving?