Staying in Port Orleans -rent a car or not?

[swalke6]

I am swirling over the advice I have received from the 6 books I have read. I am broke & only able to do this trip because my parents insisted on paying for it because, in their words "your son is 8 and we want him to experience the magic before he can drive himself there." Normally, I might be insulted or proud about this, but we have struggled with our (my) own business & the financial ruins that ensued for the past 4 years and all three of us have worked 7 days a week to try to make it work. We NEED a vacation. My big concern is that we waste too much time taking advantage of the "free" transportation and lose too much time in the parks. We are staying at Port Orleans Riverside Aug 21-26. I am hoping that the parks will be emptier because the southern schools will have begun classes and the northern schools (including my son's!) start August 27th. Most normal parents wouldn't want to do vacation right up until the day school starts...right??

Anyway, my big question is whether or not we should rent a car. We do have AAA.
Are the AAA Diamond lots close enough to entrances to make it worth renting a car???????????????
We did not purchase a meal plan because we are light eaters & really did not see the value in it. My parents are giving us the $600 they would have spent on the meal plan to use for meals we choose on our own. I have been scared off by the hours the books describe the Disney airport shuttle system taking to get to a particular hotel & by the lines for buses described in the books. I am hopeful that I am going at a slightly off time. Can anyone tell me if this is an accurate assumption? Can anyone tell me whether or not a rental car will save significant time? (I'm figuring we can hit the local grocery store and use the savings to pay for the rental car-- which I will use biddingfortravel.com to determine the best priceline prices. ((If you haven't checked Biddingfortravel.com before bidding on priceline, you do not know how much you can save!! I booked a hotel in San Francisco for $32/night while my fellow franchisees were paying a "corporate discounted" rate of $170. No joke!! )

What I need to know: Is the shuttle that pokey from the airport (I'd hate to lose the first day) & are the lines that long at the very end of the summer? Am I better of with the transit system or a rental car if I am staying at the Port Orleans during this timeframe?

 

[Cowboysfan]

Well, IMO, you mentioned stopping at a local grocery store. If you plan to do that, then you would need a rental.

I stayed offsite, until may last trip in 12/06, then we stayed at POR, used DME and Disney transportation. I thought my DW would have a problem without a rental car, but as it turns out, she actually enjoyed not having to park or search for the car, and even wanted to do it that way this time, also. i think the busses take different routes than we would so travel the parks was never an issue. traveling from the parks... if you leave at a time when a lot of people are leaving (i.e. at park closing), then you may have to wait in a line for the bus.

DME was very painless, we boarded the bus, i think quicker than we would have gotten a car and found it in the garage. the wisk you to you hotel for check-in, afterwhich you are free to start enjoying the Disney-Magic (i.e. pools, parks, dining...) while your luggage is delivered right to your room (LOL, I sound like a promo).

A lot of people have gotten cars for the comfort of being able to come and go as they please, but then try Disney transportation, and wind up leaving the car at the hotel for most of the week. That's an expense that i would rather not risk.

If you have a car you are able to go off-site, and buy groceries or go to a less expensive restaurant. But I think that, depending on how much you eat, you could end up spending more with a car, because you end up having to buy gas in addition to the added expense of renting the car.

I would recommend saving your money, use DME and Disney transportation. if you find that you need to rent a car, AAA has a place onsite that can help you.

Have a great trip.

 

[mericletwins]

I would skip the rental car. It really is a needless waste. We have done DME twice. Once at Easter and once in June. Both times we were at th efront desk of our resort about 90 minutes after we landed which is the same or quicker than if we had to go get our luggage, then go the the rental car desk then find the car and drive to our resort. Honestly I think both DME experiences were quicker than our rentals. If you want groceries, you can use a delivery service like gardengrocer.com. Order online before you go, schedule delivery and it comes to you. You don't even have to be there waiting for it. There are other services but Garden Grocer is the only one I have dealt with. I am sure others will have recommendations also.

I have heard, and read, that the last two weeks in August drop in attendance.

Have a great time.

 

[Ishy]

I am swirling over the advice I have received from the 6 books I have read. I am broke & only able to do this trip because my parents insisted on paying for it because, in their words "your son is 8 and we want him to experience the magic before he can drive himself there." Normally, I might be insulted or proud about this, but we have struggled with our (my) own business & the financial ruins that ensued for the past 4 years and all three of us have worked 7 days a week to try to make it work. We NEED a vacation. My big concern is that we waste too much time taking advantage of the "free" transportation and lose too much time in the parks. We are staying at Port Orleans Riverside Aug 21-26. I am hoping that the parks will be emptier because the southern schools will have begun classes and the northern schools (including my son's!) start August 27th. Most normal parents wouldn't want to do vacation right up until the day school starts...right??

Anyway, my big question is whether or not we should rent a car. We do have AAA.
Are the AAA Diamond lots close enough to entrances to make it worth renting a car???????????????
We did not purchase a meal plan because we are light eaters & really did not see the value in it. My parents are giving us the $600 they would have spent on the meal plan to use for meals we choose on our own. I have been scared off by the hours the books describe the Disney airport shuttle system taking to get to a particular hotel & by the lines for buses described in the books. I am hopeful that I am going at a slightly off time. Can anyone tell me if this is an accurate assumption? Can anyone tell me whether or not a rental car will save significant time? (I'm figuring we can hit the local grocery store and use the savings to pay for the rental car-- which I will use biddingfortravel.com to determine the best priceline prices. ((If you haven't checked Biddingfortravel.com before bidding on priceline, you do not know how much you can save!! I booked a hotel in San Francisco for $32/night while my fellow franchisees were paying a "corporate discounted" rate of $170. No joke!! )

What I need to know: Is the shuttle that pokey from the airport (I'd hate to lose the first day) & are the lines that long at the very end of the summer? Am I better of with the transit system or a rental car if I am staying at the Port Orleans during this timeframe?

1. You need to book your vacation thru AAA in order to get the Diamond Parking Pass for better parking.
2. I like renting a car. I get great rates through thrifty (bluechip member here) last week their rates dropped as low as 94.00 a week. Back up today but they can drop low again... mousesavers.com lists discounts for everywhere.
3. DME for the most part is quick and easy. Many people skip the car rental and never have a problem. If your really on a low budget - I say take advantage of DME and the Disney Transportation and enjoy! You are onsite at Disney!
4. You will experience lighter attendance that week! I have been during the busiest times and the lightest times, last week in august is fine... buy a mister fan before you go to help stay cool, pack light, enjoy.
5. If you do DME - CALL today and get some dining ressies that you want. Great info on dining in disney here (wdwinfo.net) and on allearsnet.com - make some adrs for table services so you can enjoy a sit down, check out the counterservices (read reviews in the dining section) make notes - you can dine all week at the counter services and experience quite an array of foods (not just hambergers and chicken fingers) - IF you know what is where!

The big benefit of your stay is you are on site. There really is no reason to leave disney property. You are only there for 5 full days anyway - and there is so much to do and so many wonderful places to eat. It will go FAST - so relax and enjoy.

 

[CleveRocks]

I have been scared off by the hours the books describe the Disney airport shuttle system taking to get to a particular hotel & by the lines for buses described in the books.

What I need to know: Is the shuttle that pokey from the airport (I'd hate to lose the first day) & are the lines that long at the very end of the summer?

I'll speak on the subject of Disney's Magical Express, the free bus transfers between the airport and your Disney resort.

There are lots of rumors of long delays, but you don't find a lot of people actually reporting that they themselves experienced long delays. Sure, there are a few, but if you go over to the DISboards Transportation forum and look around for DME threads you'll see the vast majority of people were completely satisfied ... like me.

Problem is, rumors of delays feed on themselves. There tend to be a lot of threads that say things like, "I've heard bad things ...." Well, that's how a rumor starts. There are lots of threads where people say they've heard bad stuff and express anxiety about the unknown, but very few that are actual first-person reports of bad experiences.

In addition, reporting negative experiences but not positive ones is just human nature. Just look at the television news. A lot of fires and shootings and white-collar fraud, and maybe at the end of the news there's a little story about a charity event.

On message boards, it's the same way. We rarely see threads with titles like these:

• Mousekeeping cleaned my room to my satisfaction every day

• The sign said the stand-by wait was 30 minutes, and we waited in line for 30 minutes

• Space Mountain didn't break down while we rode it

• We ate at 7 different restaurants and never got food poisoning!

Same with DME. The average reported time from deplaning to resort drop-off is 70 minutes. My 2 experiences were 63 minutes and 56 minutes. I can't imagine that using a car service or rental car consistently gets you there substantially quicker than DME. The big time savings comes from being able to totally skip baggage claim, so you don't have to waste time waiting for your bags.

If you choose NOT to use DME, then do so because you want the freedom of a rental car or the personalized service of a car service. But don't skip DME because you think it's slow ... because it's not.

 

[FamilyGuy]

We drive to Disney and actually PREFER disney transportation over driving...

Adds to the resort feel and being on vacation - it's part of the experience!

If you want to absolutely maximize every minute I could see renting a car...

 

[pixdust]

The DME was a wonderful experience. We stayed at POR in March 06 and the ONLY time I would have liked a rental car was the day we went to Typhoon Lagoon. That was the longest wait for the bus to come and then the bus to get to TL.
This trip, because we are now 6(yeah everyone is going) I am renting a car for the week, just because we are making a side trip to the beach one day, and have several ADR in the morning for breakfast and with this crew I think trying to get to a resort in the morning on the Bus would make a nice comedy show. So a car, even though we are only going to use it maybe 4 times, is going to be a nice edition. But, that said. The Disney transportation system does work really well, and it can be a magical experience in itself if you let it. And I totally like the idea of letting someone else take me every where I want to go.

 

[Epcot82Guy]

I went last year at about that same time and again in October. I agree that DME is likely faster than waiting in line for the rental. I have had no problems. Of course there is the occasional glitch, but it is worth saving the money.

Groceries would be the only reason to have a car, and, when it comes down to it, I think the delivery option is the best. YOu certainly will save money that way, and I get a certain peace of mind not ahving a vehicle. It ties me to the magic more, I guess. ha ha.

I will post one warning, though. Where you really hit the crowds and lines for busses is when you are LEAVING the parks, particularly Epcot and MK. This won't cut into your park time per se, but it can be long. I hate waiting in crowds like that, so I have taken longer routes on multiple buses/boats/etc. just to keep myself moving. But, if you have a tired family, some down time in line at the end of the day may not be too bad!

 

[scottny]

I was there last week and DME was fantastic and it took about an hour from there desk to POR desk.
Busses to parks were good also. Longest wait for us was 10 minutes if that.
Skip the rental and save the money.
Have a great trip.

 

[swalke6]

Wow! Thanks for the fast feedback! We did book our travel thru AAA, but I think I'll hold off on a car until we see what the waits end up being. I promise I'll post the results!

 

[mattmommy]

I think DME is awesome. I would do it again in a heartbeat. But the buses to/from the parks needs some sprucing up with regards to times. We've done it and lived, but it takes time. And if you want to visit another resort you have to take a bus to the TTC and then another bus to another resort. We like to eat at Whispering Canyons at Wilderness lodge and at the Poly.

If you do rent a car and buy some groceries (cereal, milk, some water, snacks). That will probably let you break even. Do buy a mister (you'll need it) and one of those folding car shades. It won't be nearly as blistering to get in the car.

 

[CleveRocks]

And if you want to visit another resort you have to take a bus to the TTC and then another bus to another resort.

Not the TTC. You'd have to take a bus to a park or DTD, and from that park or DTD you'd catch a bus to the resort you want to get to.

There are no WDW resort buses that go to or from the TTC.

 

[swalke6]

OK, a follow-up question or 3: I have read a few good suggestions on getting groceries shipped or shiping staples to yourself ahead of time, so we don't need to grocery shop there.

I know MK is a long wait at the end of the night. I did read that you can get out faster if you book dinner reservations at one of the MK hotels (Contemporary), park there and leave from a different side than the masses. (We're at Port Orleans) We are planning on park hopping and hitting AK, MGM, Epcot for 1/2 a day, and at least one of the water parks if not both. (My 8 year old son craves action and the world showcase was boring to me the last two times I went- I know that he'll burn right through it in search of adventure.)

1. Are the other parks as bottlenecked and time-consuming at the end of the night as MK is?

2. Are the AAA diamond lots beneficial for the other parks? Are the Diamond lots close enough in MK that I could just walk to them instead of waiting for a shuttle? (We did book everything through AAA)

3. Are the off-site restaurants near Downtown Disney close enough to walk to?

If a rental car will save us 30-45 minutes of waiting at the end of each day, then it is worth it because my son goes full-throttle all day and then crashes hard. My husband is even crankier when he is tired. If the only park that is really bad at the end of the night is MK, then we can skip the car.
Thank you for all of your help!!!!

 

[mickeymousemom]

I would skip the rental car. Disney transportation is not near as bad as some folks claim and we love it. We drive down, so we already have a vehicle, but we park our car at POR(where we always stay) and don't even look at it again until we pack it to leave. Personally, I love the busses as I feel this is just more of Disney to be immersed in. It's all part of the WDW experience. My almost 4 yo loves the busses and thinks of them as another ride.
The thought of having to get up and get in my vehicle every morning and drive to a park, then get on a tram and get to the entrance(which is twice as bad at the MK because you have to drive, get on the tram then take another mode of transportation before you get to the entrance, while the bus takes you right up front) makes me tired.

Yes, the busses CAN get crowded. Yes, you may have to wait for a second bus, but we stay at POR and have rarely had this happen. If you leave at park closing or close to it, the lines are long at the bus stops, but if you drive you also have to deal with the traffic.

When we stay onsite, it's all or nothing for us. We love it.!

Also, I don't know if anyone else has mentioned this, but you can rent a town car or other transport that will make a grocery stop for you on the way to WDW. BUT....you should probably check the cost of grocery delivery against that. You can take ME for free, they deal with your luggage, and then have your groceries delivered.

Whatever you choose, have an awesome time! Your parents are wonderful for doing this for you and your son and it surely sounds as though you need the break! What better place to go??!!!!

 

[themudd4]

For us part of the vacation is letting Disney provide the transportation. We have only had issue with it 2 times in our multi trips. My 2 cents...
sit back and enjoy the ride! You don't need the car, save your money. You will not loose much time if any. Think about it. You wont have to find a parking spot, then wait for the bus, monorail, tram etc to take you to the enterance. The Disney transportation takes you directly to and from.
If you are not planning on giong from one resort to another you wont have to switch buses...but if you are I suggest going to MK to switch over. Not sure if it is my imagination or not but seems like we usually get where we are going a lil quicker. This is the hardest part of getting around WDW. But for what it is worth, I don't remember where I read it but I recently read that the WDW resorts were going to start running resort buses. the buses will just continuiosly make rounds from resort to resort. This will make it nice for early morning breakfast's at another resort...not to mention lunch and dinner.

 

[splashmtnfan]

I also agree on not getting the car, but now to save more money. Besides the books you should read some of the trip reports here and also on allearsnet.com these are more up to date than some of the books and more "regular" people writing these reports. Some authors may not include the advice you may receive from another "first-time" parent of an 8 year-old. Understand?/make sense? I really wish I knew some of the things that I am reading here before, and I have been about 7 or 8 times last two with my DD when she was almost three and most recently a few days before her 7th B-Day. One thing I did was go to the public library and check out Steve Birnbaum's Disney World for kids by Kids. She was able to read first-hand accounts and opinions given by other children her same age! She "went crazy" making her lists of rides and rating them before she rode then again after she rode them.
Hope you also realize though, that it should be a VACATION and that resting is vital to your surviving those hot days. I used to read those books and say yea, right I am spending 5,000 I am not wasting one penny! Until last time when I actually decided to take it easy, and leave the parks, although every bone in by body was still shouting to me that I was "losing" money. But actually, it was the best trip ever! If my daughter seemed tired I would get her inside to a cool place/show or whatever and then maybe an ice cream, and if she still seemed tired we would hop a bus back to the POR and no it did not take forever. I would suggest opening your favorite park once and closing it once or staying around for the fireworks/light parade once but if you do one, don't do the other on the same day. Actually scouting out the other hotels via the monorail and bus/boat system is worth half a day you will not believe how awesome some of them are until you really see them. My daughter really enjoyed scouting out our next place to stay as she called it. TRUST US WHEN WE ALL SAY REST IS IMPORTANT. Love Disney So much and can't wait until we can go again! I am a teacher, and that should say a lot, we save forever for these get-aways. Also DownTown Disney has a sandwich shop where all sandwiches are 5 bucks I believe and you won't feel so stuffed. I also recommend sharing meals lunch especially, if you are light eaters, I hate getting so much food then realizing you have to throw some away, you can always get more or get an ice cream/popcorn/fruit snack later to tide you over 'til dinner. Also ice water is refreshing and free!

 

[smidgy]

we usually drive down from chicago, and STILL mostly use the disney transportation. It was only the last trip that we actually used our car, because our resort was so close to the water park, or we were eating at another resort or doing karaoke at the swan, which was 3 blocks from our resort, and the bus trip to MGM and the boat ride there would have taken MUCH longer.
but given this is your first trip, you will probably concentrate on the 4 major parks, and maybe a water park, so I would save the expense of a rental car.
I would skip the DDP. we love it when it's free! (but we do book it for a few days if we are doing a split stay at 2 dif. resorts .) we usually have a big cooler with lunchmeat, etc. BUT even flying down, you can bring some breakfast bars, nuts, etc in your suitcase. buy the refillable mugs, and buy a box of donuts, snacks, etc. at your resort. (DO pack swinsuits and a change of clothes in your carry-on bags, you might not get your luggage in your room with ME for hours,and a few snacks, but - NO PROBLEM! just spend time at the pool till your room is ready. OR got to the park bell services will keep you carry-ons for you!) if you're not big eaters, you can "snack your way through the parks and never go hungry. and the food court at POR has plenty reasonable options.
rethink "meals" this is VACATION! you do not need "3 squares". just nibble enough so no one is "starving" nothing wrong with having hot dogs at 3pm, and ice cream for dinner at 7pm!
your first time there, I wouldn't waste a lot of time at sit down restaurants anyway. maybe book an ADR at sci-fi or prime time at MGM. maybe ONE country at epcot (but they're pricey out of pocket. the german buffet might be fun for you.) you really want to hit all the attractions and not be bogged down by reservations.... that's for us folks who've been there tons of times and don't worry about missing some rides (been there , done that)
have tons of fun!!!! mrs. nebo(read his trip reports!)
ps. if you REALLY want a grocery stop (POR has a fridge) skip ME and call *********** (advertised on ALLEARSNET) they incluse a 30 minute grocery stop)

 

[Disney Crazy Debbie]

Since We always fly in, we always use ME and prior to that we used the "other" company that ran the route. The Disney buses are no problem, though there are lines sometimes in the evenings at park closings. The absolute experience we had was after the last show of the "Spirit of Aloha" which is staged at the Poly. The show let out at around 10:00 and since we were staying at the POFQ they wouldn't let us ride to the MK because it was closed so we had to catch a bus to DTD and then catch a bus to POFQ. I was a little miffed because we didn't back to our rooms until after 11:30 PM. I just vowed that I'd never book a late show again!

The crowds will be fairly light for your travels except for the week-end so I would plan parks accordingly. The most crowded park on week-ends is MK.

Have a great time and remember you're at Disney. So sit back, relax, and let them provide the pixiedust!

 

[byoung]

I dont need a car staying in Disney at all.

 

[swalke6]

Thank you all for helping me with this. I really appreciate that you would take the time to help out a stranger. These boards are GREAT!

I was feeling the same way about big meals -we don't eat that much & can go out at home to authentic & top rated restaurants if we really cared to do that (we're 45 min from Philly & 1.25 & 2.0 hrs from Baltimore & Washington, 2.5 from NYC), so better meals can be had at the same price as Disney & we wouldn't be wasting precious park time. I also figured ADR would be hard to do with only 30 days to go.

Does anyone know POR rooms have microwaves or if they have them available? (popcorn, reheating things)