Too Close for Comfort...DME and RAC

[bookgirl]

Got my Mickey Mail.

RAC it opens at 5am, but says if your flight is before 8am use airport check in.

However my flight is at 8:15 so after 8am, and my DME bus shouldn't be any earlier than 5:15 am, so as long as they open on time I'd be within their own guidelines.

I love being able to just give them my bags...but that's so close to the edges of the windows.

Of course they might not like my margins and just give me the "sorry you may not be able to use RAC" letter.

What would you do?

 

[bumbershoot]

I would be in line nice and early so I'm first, and I would trust it.

 

[maxiesmom]

You are forgetting you need to be at the DME pick up spot, ready to go, 15 minutes before your scheduled time. Buses do come early, and if you are not out there waiting, will leave without you.

 

[Alesia]

Checking your bags with RAC is not an instantaneous process - it can take a bit of time, and you need to be at the platform, completely ready to go, 15 minutes before your pickup time. Yo do not have time to use RAC. It's not really a matter of "better safe than sorry," it's a matter of not being able to be in 2 places at the same time.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

You are forgetting you need to be at the DME pick up spot, ready to go, 15 minutes before your scheduled time. Buses do come early, and if you are not out there waiting, will leave without you.

We've been forced to wait several times for people who didn't show up on time. If the OP is standing outside waiting to check luggage, I highly doubt a DME driver is going to drive off without her.

 

[maxiesmom]

We've been forced to wait several times for people who didn't show up on time. If the OP is standing outside waiting to check luggage, I highly doubt a DME driver is going to drive off without her.

I don't. Unless someone else is waiting at the bus stop to tell the driver they are in line, there is no chance they will wait for someone who doesn't show up. And even if someone tries to get the driver to wait, there is no way of knowing ahead of time if they will, or if they will stick to what they are supposed to do, and leave. It makes no sense to delay other guests getting where they need to go because someone else can't be where they need to be on time.

It is a risky move, and if you miss your bus you need to get yourself to the airport on your own dime. Just not worth the stress, imho.

 

[bookgirl]

RAC is usually outside within sight of the bus. I figured I'd be out and hopefully be first. I'd be able to see the bus and could always just say never mind. At least at the Mods and Deluxes. Last couple of Value trips my flights have been too early for RAC (and in one case they couldn't process me because it was before the SW/TA merger was complete). But there as well the RAC was outside within sight of the bus stop.

I've totally been on the bus waiting for 20 minutes for riders who never showed up. I'm thinking at 5 in the morning there may not be a ton of people wondering around the RAC yet.

But again if they are not open right at 5 I'd probably just say screw it and take the bags myself. It's not like there's a huge line at the airport that early. Last trip I had a 5:50 am checkin for my flight and had to not only wait 20 minutes for them to open the airline counter, but once I got in the airport I didn't see more than a dozen people until after 7 am. Which was when 80% of the folks on my flight showed up.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

I don't. Unless someone else is waiting at the bus stop to tell the driver they are in line, there is no chance they will wait for someone who doesn't show up. And even if someone tries to get the driver to wait, there is no way of knowing ahead of time if they will, or if they will stick to what they are supposed to do, and leave. It makes no sense to delay other guests getting where they need to go because someone else can't be where they need to be on time.

It is a risky move, and if you miss your bus you need to get yourself to the airport on your own dime. Just not worth the stress, imho.

I don't see how you can say there is no chance a bus driver won't wait when I personally have been on a bus waiting, multiple times, for people to show up.

 

[maxiesmom]

I don't see how you can say there is no chance a bus driver won't wait when I personally have been on a bus waiting, multiple times, for people to show up.

Maybe slight, almost non existent chance that the driver will wait for people when no one from their family has given them a heads up that they are on their way. Certainly it cannot be depended on happening.

 

[tjmw2727]

I would not plan on doing RAC - depending on your resort the RAC area can be completely out of sight of the DME pickup. IMHO there isn't enough time to complete the check in process - especially when they first open and then be at the bus stop on time.
The issue is if you do miss your assigned bus there is no guarantee of a next bus - it could be 30 minutes after but full - or not for an hour after depending on the other guests departure information from your resort.

 

[tjmw2727]

duplicate - sorry!

 

[sam_gordon]

OK, IMO, this is easy...

1) Find out what time you are assigned a bus. It will be at some point between 5am and 5:30am (Departure time - 3 hours +/- 15 minutes).
2) If your assigned time is between 5-5:15, you take your bags on (actually under) the bus with you.
3) If your assigned time is between 5:15-5:30, you have all your bags at the RAC desk at 4:30AM, waiting for them to open at 5.
4) If you have not started to check your bags at least 15 minutes before your assigned pickup time, give up and take them to the bus.

Obviously if your pickup time is 5:15, you better be the first one in line at RAC and they better open at 5. If you have more than 2-3 bags, I would just check a few and get to DME.
If your pickup time is 5:30, you have a little more leeway, but I'd still want to be the first one in line.

ETA: You won't find out what time your assigned bus is until the morning before the day you leave.

 

[bookgirl]

OK, IMO, this is easy...

1) Find out what time you are assigned a bus. It will be at some point between 5am and 5:30am (Departure time - 3 hours +/- 15 minutes).
2) If your assigned time is between 5-5:15, you take your bags on (actually under) the bus with you.
3) If your assigned time is between 5:15-5:30, you have all your bags at the RAC desk at 4:30AM, waiting for them to open at 5.
4) If you have not started to check your bags at least 15 minutes before your assigned pickup time, give up and take them to the bus.

Obviously if your pickup time is 5:15, you better be the first one in line at RAC and they better open at 5. If you have more than 2-3 bags, I would just check a few and get to DME.
If your pickup time is 5:30, you have a little more leeway, but I'd still want to be the first one in line.

ETA: You won't find out what time your assigned bus is until the morning before the day you leave.

Yep this is kind of my plan (although I would not be surprised to get the sorry we can not do RAC for you letter. I've actually gotten it before and that would totally make this poll a moot point). I actually kind of worry more about the bags not making it to my flight in time rather then me missing the bus. Kind of depends on how often they run them to the airport.

 

[sam_gordon]

I believe the "rule" is you have to have your bags checked at least three hours before your flight. So as long as you're walking away from RAC by 5:15, your bags should get on the flight. If you're not walking away from RAC by 5:30, you're missing your bus anyway.

Obviously, even if you have a later pickup time, if RAC doesn't open on time or is going slow, you might need to make the decision to bring the bags on the bus with you.

ETA: Corrected time bags needed to be checked by. That's what I get for posting first thing in the morning.

 

[goofy4tink]

With an 8:15 flight departure, it's going to be tough. I doubt I would take the chance. You will get a p/u time of between 5 and 5:30am. You need to be completely done checking your bags and walking away no less than 3 hrs prior to flight departure. So....you would need to be waiting, at the RAC counter before 5am. It takes about 10 mins to get checked in....yes, it can take less time, but it's always better to plan for too much time. So, now it's 5:10. You should be at the DME bus stop, ready to go, about 10-15 mins prior to p/u time. If your p/u time is close to 5:30, then I would take the chance...especially if there are others in your group that can head directly to the bus stop..just in case the bus is early, or you take more time at the RAC counter.
Also...it will depend on which resort you're at. Some resorts have the RAC desk in full view of the DME bus stop...others are a bit further away. They are all close, but some are better than others.

 

[bookgirl]

I'm staying at POP (which I've never been too) and don't have any idea where the RAC is. The more I think about it the more I think I'll probably end up ferrying my bags to the bus myself. It's not a huge thing but yeah I'll be pushing that 3 hour window. I expect the airport to be pretty empty at 6ish in the morning and it's only one checked bag so no biggie.

 

[bookgirl]

Hmm Never did update this.

I had an 5:30 am DME. I went out to the RAC just before 5am which is all the way in the back and not in sight of the buses, and low and behold there was a HUGE line. I was probably 25 back as far as boarding parties went. The people in front of me were also a little surprised it was this busy this early. I figured I'd stay in line until I was closer then head out. I did get checked in at a decent time, but there was a group ahead of me that was losing their collective mind. I guess they had different boarding times and the lady was insistent that they all had to board the same bus. But it looked like it was going to be full. They ended up pulling my clerk over just as I stepped up to deal with here. I'm pretty sure my face reflected my feeling on that. She did eventually ask someone to help me as she was going to be tired up for a while. I got there in plenty of time for my bus, and my luggage arrived at my final destination with no problem. I never did see the family again.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I went out to the RAC just before 5am which is all the way in the back and not in sight of the buses, and low and behold there was a HUGE line.

Thanks for the update. Just pointing out to others who may be in a similar situation: sam_gordon did advise getting to the RAC desk thirty minutes - not just - before it opened.

 

[hsmamato2]

yu

I would be in line nice and early so I'm first, and I would trust it.

p

 

[houseofduck]

I will never check my bags using RAC for a morning or early afternoon flight again. We had a 12:55pm flight today. This morning, we arrived at the RAC counter at around 9:20am with a ME pickup time of 10:10am. There were only three people in line (2 already at the counters and one ahead of us). I don't know why, but it took them forever to process people. By the time I reached the counter, it was 9:53. The woman at the counter was going to help someone else who had a "deadline." I told her we had a deadline too and had been waiting in line. By the time she entered our information, it was exactly 9:55 and she was not able to accept our luggage for the 12:55 flight. I had thought once they took our luggage, we were ok with the 3 hour window. But, apparently, you have to be processed at the counter. Normally, we take late afternoon or evening flights and do not run into this issue.

RAC always seems to take a long time and it just doesn't seem worth it to me for earlier flights. So, for us, we will take our luggage on the bus with us from now on.