Very excited, but freaking out a little too!

[Rekenna]

Hi guys! So we usually drive b/c we are a family of 5 and the airfare is just crazy. We drive from KY and that is a 15+ drive one way.

So today, I was tooling around and found airfare from both Louisville and Cincinnati for less than $1,100 for the 5 of us, non-stop flights too!

I bit the bullet and purchased the airfare on Southwest out of Louisville (a little bit longer drive from home but, the Louisville airport is much more family friendly than CVG).

I have the Emerald Isle Club with National (you reserve a mid-size car and then can pick any car from the Emerald Isle) and I got that for $362 for the week. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can get either a full size car or an SUV (I would LOVE a van). We are coming in on Sat, Oct 22 at 3:30pm-in yall's experience do I have a decent shot at getting a larger vehicle?

So I ended up going over our budget by about $900 (I had budgeted around $500 to drive). I know there will be some extra costs like airport parking, gas for the rental car, etc. My kids will be so excited and I love having a 2 hour plane ride.

That being said, I am freaking out a little! I am very conservative with our vacations (if I wasn't we wouldn't get to go once a year). I really think I got a good deal, but spending that money has really made me nervous!

Okay, I feel a little better now-I just needed to write it out. Thanks for listening!

 

[tkldisney]

Sounds great and you'll love getting to WDW in couple hours. As far as rental car, I'd check rates daily to watch for price drop and check DIS boards for any new coupons. ND3166ZDQ is 25.00 off weekly rental, did you apply this to your ressie. It's from there website specials to go. I just priced out with your arrival for 7 days and got less that what you had, even on full size car.

 

[Rekenna]

Sounds great and you'll love getting to WDW in couple hours. As far as rental car, I'd check rates daily to watch for price drop and check DIS boards for any new coupons. ND3166ZDQ is 25.00 off weekly rental, did you apply this to your ressie. It's from there website specials to go. I just priced out with your arrival for 7 days and got less that what you had, even on full size car.

Awesome-thanks for the tip! I will check out this discount code, I also just received an email from National with coupons/discounts. Can you use discounts and the Emerald Isle at the same time?

 

[tkldisney]

Yes you can... What I do, if I find better rate I book it right then, then cancel the other one. I may do this several times before my trip as prices drop. I am also an emerald club member.

 

[3BoysRDisneyFreaks]

are you staying on site? I wouldn't rent a car and just use DME and Disney buses.
If you still want to rent a car, and are on site, parking at the theme parks are free because you are a resort guest.


Sarah

 

[Rekenna]

Yes you can... What I do, if I find better rate I book it right then, then cancel the other one. I may do this several times before my trip as prices drop. I am also an emerald club member.

Good strategy-thanks for the tip! I will keep my eye on it.

are you staying on site? I wouldn't rent a car and just use DME and Disney buses.
If you still want to rent a car, and are on site, parking at the theme parks are free because you are a resort guest.


Sarah

Yes we are staying at POR. We have had DME and have used the buses before, and we have no complaints about either. However, DS4 has autism, and we are really concerned about having to wait for a bus (mostly if it is late, crowded or extra loud). I just think that would set him off-we are discussing it. The one thing nice about having our own car is that if he needs to have a meltdown it doesn't affect anyone else but us and we are cool with it. Thanks for the heads up though.

What do you guys think my chances are of getting a larger than midsize vehicle from Emerald Isle on a Saturday afternoon? I have seen it before and it seemed that there were a lot of nice, roomy vehicles to choose from...

 

[tkldisney]

From what I saw pricing yesterday, you can rent full size for less than mid. You still walk out and pick your car, just in fullsize catagory instead of emerald isle. Your reservation will show emerald reserve which is more or less same as emerald isle, w/just different car class.

 

[bumbershoot]

From what I saw pricing yesterday, you can rent full size for less than mid. You still walk out and pick your car, just in fullsize catagory instead of emerald isle. Your reservation will show emerald reserve which is more or less same as emerald isle, w/just different car class.

But choosing mid-size gives you the gamble that there will be something bigger than mid or full size.

OP, if you NEED a bigger car, I would just book a bigger car. If you can squeeze into a midsize, stick with Emerald Aisle. Just remember...it's possible you will end up with a midsize, so if you cannot do that, book something else.

 

[SoccerDad]

Are you willing to consider Budget instead?

Using BCD X474200 and coupon code MUWZ023, I'm seeing a Minivan available for the week of Oct. 22nd at $302.55 - $25 = approx. $278 total. Premium Car and Standard SUV are also available at the same price.

 

[gmeh1]

Saturday is a very busy day for car rentals. IMHO, if you need a larger than midsize car, then you should book that class of car. The chances of getting a full size car on the EA are good, but, not guaranteed. We do try to keep full size on the EA, but, everything depends on the demand.
Keep checking the rates, as other posters have stated, you can rebook and cancel the existing one if the rates are better.

What airport parking fees are you thinking about?