Transport from mco to port Canaveral

[LOVEMY3KIDDOS]

Can someone please explain everything about the transport from mco to port Canaveral ? We are flying in the night before and staying at a hotel near the airport. We can shuttle back and take cruise line buses but I’m a bit unclear on the process. Will we wait long? How long before our pat should we be at the airport? Will they take our luggage from there or will we check at port? Would Uber just be easier? It’s only 2 of us. Thank you!!

 

[MsChristy12]

Don't worry it's easy peasy! We took the DCL bus to Port Canaveral back in March and it was 2 of us as well.
But question first - Not sure if you booked the DCL transport yet, if no, just want to make sure you know this is a service that requires reservation and must be added to your cruise reservation in advance.

If you already have a reservation, here's some tips and my experience -

When you take the shuttle from the hotel back to MCO, ask them to take you to Terminal B Level 1 for ground transportation. It depends on where the shuttle drops you off, the DCL transport check-in is further towards middle/front of the terminal, so if they drop you off at the end of the terminal, just keep walking inside the terminal and eventually you should see DCL bus check-in on your left. From there, the CMs will have you drop off your luggage in a specific area and you will not see them again until you're on the ship. So make sure you have everything you need with you.

We had 1230 PAT I think, and we took the hotel shuttle (also near MCO) around 10am. I can't remember the exact time, but I'm pretty sure we got on the bus and left MCO just before 11am and arrived PC a little after noon. One of the nice things about DCL bus is that, even if you're early for your PAT they will still let you go inside the terminal and check in (someone corrects me if that's no longer the case). I remember when we got to PC, the sign at the gate had displayed they were allowing 1215 PAT or earlier to go in. Had we taken an Uber/Lyft and arrive at the same time, we would have to wait until they let 1230 PAT in, so that's a nice little perk.

It was our first time taking the DCL bus to the port, easy and smooth experience, I would do that again.

 

[auntlynne]

Two people - that should be $45 pp OW For DCL transport.

I recommend you do a price estimate for Uber/Lyft. If it is in the price ballpark, it would be a less complicated trip. You could walk out of the hotel, step inside the car and get out at the port. No standing around waiting for luggage to be unloaded from the hold of the bus.

The bus was great when it started. The paint job was DCL. Inside, old Disney cartoons played. It started your Disney bubble experience. Rideshares didn’t exist. Taxis did not go to PC or were outrageous. Private transportation was more expensive if the party was small. Those Disney-fied buses are just generic ones now.

If you opt for the bus, you will take the hotel shuttle on their schedule, with first come first serve (usually). DCL transport was also first come first serve in the past. I do not know if they tie it to flight arrival times or PAT these days. It’s another set of moving your luggage from vehicle to vehicle.

I often have gone with lower cost over convenience or creating a more relaxing vacation. You need to consider your vacation style (at least for this trip).

If you opt for a bus, you could also look at GoPort. They are typically $30 pp OW and use buses similar to DCL. Pick up is at same area at the airport. They can carry guests from a mix of cruise lines, with DCL as the last drop-off.

 

[enzy65]

It is very easy to use the DCL transfers to port from airport, it may cost more but it is very convenient. Have never waited long for a bus, always a DCL wrapped one. No one checks pats, you go right into terminal for security as soon as you arrive, then up the escalator and wait for your boarding group number. We try to time it so we don’t have much of a wait in the terminal.

 

[kiford]

even if you're early for your PAT they will still let you go inside the terminal and check in (someone corrects me if that's no longer the case)

It largely depends on the number of people. There is a maximum occupancy in the port terminal building under fire codes, so if everyone tries to get there early, even if their PAT is later, they can potentially run into a situation where there are too many people. This is especially the case for the larger ships. But open boarding is usually around 12:30-12:45 so it's not usually a problem getting in if you're there around noon. Boarding usually starts 11:45-ish and goes quite quickly. It's when everybody wants to get there at 10:00 am that you really run into issues.

Throughout most of COVID, they staggered much more aggressively and kept people outside to keep distancing, but I don't think they've been doing that for at least a year. They didn't hold anyone outside last January from at least 11 am onwards (not sure about earlier), but we'd seen videos from a couple of weeks earlier where they had been keeping people in lines outside based on PAT. They didn't even check our PAT on that cruise.

 

[Bruce66]

Feb 16, 2024
As another who searched online for current information on this process without much success... since I am currently sitting in MCO waiting for our disney bus I thought I would comment. My dilemma was WHEN to show up at the airport to get on an early bus. We arrived at 8:45am and checked in with no line.There was about 25 people already waiting for a bus. We where told boarding would begin between 10 and 10:15am. It's currently 9:25 and I would estimate the crowd has grown to around 60 people now and a check in line forming. Glad we got here by 9am. Much calmer than I feared. As for PAT, others have explained it clearly enough. For me being platinum we checked in online right at midnight and got a boarding time of noon, group 12. Since I could not get an earlier time or group we booked dlc transportation from mco which changed our PAT boarding group to 3 with no arrival time. I hope this helps others with there questions on when to show up at mco (not hyatt mco).

 

[dipdotdarlin']

A benefit of using Disney's bus as transportation is that if there is a wreak/traffic jam, Disney will wait for their buses before sailing. They do not wait for other types of transportation.

 

[Kevin O'Brien]

DCL bus is better as you don't have to book a PAT (port arrival time) you get given a boarding group. The ship will wait if the DCL bus is stuck in traffic. If you have any questions worries or concerns about DCL busses you can ask Disney on phone, chat or email.
To add it onto your reservation you need to call DCL or if you booked with DUT you will need to contact DUT to add it on.