To Drive or Not To Drive - THAT is the question!

[matt1902]

Hi All

Looking for some advice as to whether to hire a car or not for our 2 week honeymoon next May.

We are flying in to MCO, staying at Hilton Grand Vacations Resort on International Drive and already planning to go to the following places:

WDW Big 3 plus Animal Kingdom and the 2 water parks
Discovery Cove, Busch Gardens, Aquatica and Sea World
Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure
Cirque de Soleil
and I would like to go and see a Baseball Game

DOWNSIDES OF HAVING A CAR I KNOW OF

Cost - Will need to pay for 2 weeks rental + extra driver + USA Maps for my Sat Nav (hate maps!) + Fuel + Parking

Booze - Either one of us has to stay dry or we have to pay for a taxi anyway

UPSIDES TO HAVING A CAR I KNOW OF

Transfers - Means dont have to take a taxi (dont know if Hilton offers free / cheap transfers for it's residents)

Can come and go when you please

I am not sure, given what we have planned so far, which is the cheaper option, but also seems a shame that one of us wont be able to drink most of the time if we go down the car route considering it is our honeymoon.

Any advice would be fantastic.

Thanks

 

[orangetiggs]

why sat nav? the places are so easy to get too so you wont really need them

we get the platinum insurance with dollar that gives us an extra driver

i wouldnt go without driving but then thats my option

we like the freedom to just get in the car and drive instead of having to wait for buses and transfers all the time

 

[Dollyrar]

I personally would never dream of not hiring a car, even if we ever stayed on-site at Disney. After coming out of a park like Epcot at closing time whilst surrounded by thousands of people, it is so nice to just get straight into your own private space and be home quickly. Having control of your own air-con is great as well, and we love listening to K92 Country radio whilst cruising along.
Also, I just love driving in the US! It makes me feel like Jack Bauer for 2 weeks in my ridiculously over-sized SUV!!

 

[Disneymad]

Considering your location, you're probably talking between $15-25 for a taxi each way for the various WDW things you want to do (can keep it at the lower end of the scale if you always took a taxi to Epcot or Studios and then transferred to a Disney bus or monorail for other parks).

Think you can get the IRide up to Seaworld/DC/Aquatica and that's also where the transfer from Busch leaves.

Universal is likely to be $25 or so each way.

Not sure what the going rate for more organised transfers is (Mears runs lots of shuttle services for example) but while cheaper they also tend to drop off at several hotels which is a pain in the rear.

I imagine if you add up all the costs of the car hire, driver, sat nav, then compared it to the transfers and taxis you'll have to pay for it there's probably not going to be a massive difference between the 2.

I've not done the non-car option for a few years because without doubt it is more convenient to have a car but we also stay onsite which means drinking is not a problem as by the afternoon/evening the car is parked, but we did do 3 trips 'back in the days', 2 of which were offsite, and managed just fine. You have to think things through a little bit more in advance, but it's really not that big a deal in the grand scheme of things and it does then give you the freedom to both relax and enjoy a drinkie or 3 on your Honeymoon

 

[PChef]

We are definitely of the hire a car camp! But you need to find out what shuttles your accommodation offers to the parks, if any, where to, how frequent, cost etc. before making your decision. Some shuttles will only drop at one place in WDW then you have to use buses to get to where you want to go. There may only be a couple per day with the last being early evening so you'd need a taxi if staying out later anyway.

As you are on International Drive you should be able to use the I-Ride trolley to go to restaurants and bars in the evening, also they go up to Universal and down to Seaworld.

 

[2Tiggies]

I stay onsite and don't need a car. However I would not consider off site without one. Given that you plan on doing various parks, I think it will save you a considerable amount of time and hassle.

 

[Disneymad]

As you are on International Drive you should be able to use the I-Ride trolley to go to restaurants and bars in the evening, also they go up to Universal and down to Seaworld.

I think the Hilton is at the bottom end of IDrive though, so just up from where Premium Outlets are and not that far from LBV. Can get the Iride to Universal but would take for-ever I think.

 

[Boodle]

Hi All

Looking for some advice as to whether to hire a car or not for our 2 week honeymoon next May.

We are flying in to MCO, staying at Hilton Grand Vacations Resort on International Drive and already planning to go to the following places:

WDW Big 3 plus Animal Kingdom and the 2 water parks
Discovery Cove, Busch Gardens, Aquatica and Sea World
Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure
Cirque de Soleil
and I would like to go and see a Baseball Game

DOWNSIDES OF HAVING A CAR I KNOW OF

Cost - Will need to pay for 2 weeks rental + extra driver + USA Maps for my Sat Nav (hate maps!) + Fuel + Parking

Booze - Either one of us has to stay dry or we have to pay for a taxi anyway

UPSIDES TO HAVING A CAR I KNOW OF

Transfers - Means dont have to take a taxi (dont know if Hilton offers free / cheap transfers for it's residents)

Can come and go when you please

I am not sure, given what we have planned so far, which is the cheaper option, but also seems a shame that one of us wont be able to drink most of the time if we go down the car route considering it is our honeymoon.

Any advice would be fantastic.

Thanks

Definitely get a car - the when you want to go for a drink at night hop on the I-Ride trolley which goes up and down I- Drive and you can both enjoy the evening! I think the fare is 75 cents!

 

[Disneymad]

Definitely get a car - the when you want to go for a drink at night hop on the I-Ride trolley which goes up and down I- Drive and you can both enjoy the evening! I think the fare is 75 cents!

What if they want to drink in the parks? I realise that some days I sound like a bit of a lush, LOL, but we frequently drink in the parks, restaurants and bars on property. That basically rules out the car for the day unless they go back to their resort, drop it off and then come back which kinda defeats the purpose.

 

[dixonsontour]

I'd get the car.

We just go with 1 driver (DH), saves a small amount. Use own own sat nav.

To be honest he's happy to have a beer or two when we get back in the evening. Florida's not a drinking holiday for us - need to be up at the crack of dawn for the parks!

We tried for the first time to do part of the trip without a car last December. We had a car for the offsite bit and 2 weekends but then did the park days onsite without.

This time we are back to car for full time.

It's doable without a car but so much easier with imo.

 

[wayneg]

101% car for us, our last trip we tried to use Disney transport a little more and still did 900 miles in the car.
All added up at the end of your trip I doubt there is a great deal of difference in cost, car maybe slightly dearer but more than made up for in convenience.
A for drinking I won't pay prices for alcohol I much prefer to have a nice quiet drink back in the room at the end of the day, Smirnoff Raspberry Vodka costs $18 for 1.75 litres at Walgreens or Publix, about same price as 2 drinks in Disney, beer costs about $6-8 (and more), supermarket I got 18 cans for $10 for Bud Select.
We do too much away form the parks to be without a car, day at Port Canaveral, Clearwater, Daytona etc
Many get by no problem without a car but not something I will consider.

 

[Netty]

Go for it-get a car!!!
even i drive over in Florida, as its so so easy, less hastle than in this country
here a good website for you

http://www.kissimmee-us192.com/british/default.htm

 

[Chally99]

We are not having a car for our holiday, my husband drives for a living so he doesnt want to do it over in orlando.

he has been 3 times before and hired a car the 1st time, didnt hire the 2nd time and the 3rd time he was with his work so they had a bus.

im not really bothered about not having a car, we are staying on i drive behind seaworld, so their are 3 parks within a smallish distance from our hotel (sw.dc.aq) the only time we will be travelling far out is when we go to disney but that is only 5 days out of 16 so i dont think its worth it

but thats my opinion

 

[paulfoel]

I cant even imagine how anyone can even consider not hiring a car in florida. It cuts down the options so much....

If you want a drinking holiday, florida isnt the place to go imho.

 

[Lisa x]

If you want a drinking holiday, florida isnt the place to go imho.

I have to disagree (I know it is just your opinion, im not jumping on that - just giving another point of view), my hubby and I enjoy a drink every day on our holiday no matter where we go.....Florida is no different.

We usually stay around I.Drive and Universal Area, when at IOA and US, we walk from our hotel and can enjoy a drink (or three...or four...) there and not have to worry about driving back to the hotel (or your hotel may have a shuttle).

We always hire a car and would be totally lost without one though, we drive to Disney and always have a beer or two (two at the most throughout a full day if we are driving) or on the occasion that we will be making our way around EPCOT (we never get 'drunk' and in a mess I might add), we would get a taxi, not the cheapest option but for a one off....Im on holiday, who cares!!

At night, we usually would be at CityWalk or along I.Drive and either walk or use the I.Ride trolley and never take the car out with us - that way we both enjoy a drink and nobody has to drive!

I would say get a car and have the best of both worlds and if you enjoy a drink....Florida is no different than anywhere else!!