DH and I have planned our first Disney Cruise for May 2011 and we're so excited! I'm trying to plan out a few days beforehand in the parks and make a rough schedule. Does anyone know what time the DCL transfer will pick us up on Sunday morning? We'll be staying at the Beach Club and I wanted to know if we'd have time for breakfast before the bus comes. Thanks!!
From our experience at the Poly, you should certainly have enough time for breakfast. We were asked to meet the DCL rep. at the rear of the lobby at 11:30 a.m., in preparation for departure at noon on the DCL bus. Since our luggage had to be packed, labelled and ready for pickup by Poly bell services by 8 or 8:30 a.m., it was still an early morning for us. We decided to finish our packing, and then go to breakfast. I even had the time for some last minute shopping before we checked out and went to meet in the lobby!
We left from Port Orleans FQ and we were told to be in the lobby 15 minutes prior to the bus which came at 12:15pm and it was on a Sunday
You'll have time for breakfast - and then some!! The DCL transfers don't leave until about 12 noon, and in fact the cruise desk at the resorts don't even open until around 10 or 11. Our transfer in September picked us up from the Animal Kingdom Lodge at 12:15, then went to the Beach Club to get the folks there at 12:30 and then on to the Boardwalk at 12:45. Unfortunately the bus driver couldn't find the Boardwalk group, and we ended up sitting there for 30 minutes while he searched for them. It was after 3 p.m. by the time we got to the ship. Ugh. To be honest, I won't use the DCL transfers again. We ended up sitting on that bus for over three hours, and got to the ship after almost everyone else was already on board (the upside was no lines at check-in!!). It's not cheap, either. This time we're renting a car and driving ourselves to the port!
For 2 people, I think DCL transfers are a great deal! They will pick up your luggage right from your room and transfer your luggage to the ship. You will have time for a liesurely breakfast and possibly a walk along the boardwalk. When you arrive at port, after you check in and get your picture taken, you will be able to board immediately. In most cases, your stateroom will also be open so you can drop off your carry ons before going to lunch. We have used DCL transfers twice and loved them. We took them from the POFQ and never had to stop at another resort before heading to the port.
When we stay at the resorts, we actually take the Magical Express back to the airport and then take the Disney Cruise shuttle from there. This lets us go early in the morning and get to the port early - we have done this the last 3 cruises and will do it again on this cruise. The only thing you need to do is to find a "dummy" flight that you want to take that leaves 3 hours AFTER the time you want to leave the resort. We choose a noon flight, and that got us on a 9 am pick up from the resort to go back to the airport. Krisann Krisann
I concur with Mushu, even though it changes for every cruise. We just left from BWV on 12/12. They picked us at 11:50am AFTER having picked up at BC and then we stopped at both POFQ & POR before leaving for the port. Good luck! Gayle
Normally, each bus serves 3 resorts in the same general area (like the EPCOT area, Beach Club, Yacht Club, and Boardwalk) with pick up between 11:30 and 12:30. You will get an exact time the day before you depart. Your luggage will be taken from your room about 8 am and will go on a truck to the port. You will get to the port in the 1:30-2:00 range (traffic being normal, etc). There is no question that the DCL transfers are the easiest way to go; you do get to the port later than many people like. A rental car is typically $40 and up depending on dates, size of car, etc. and you can drop it at a location near the port and shuttle back if you wish to arrive earlier. When figuring the cost of using a rental car, add gas, tolls, and a tip to the porter who takes your luggage.
^^ Exactly this. ^^ We stayed at AKV. Had our baggage picked up at 8am. We kept a day bag with us with things we wanted onboard the ship for a few hours in case our bags / cabin were not available for a bit for whatever reason. We went over to AKL, had breakfast, checked in with the cruise staff personnel. We were directed to a lounge. We confirmed some paperwork / ID and chilled with some fellow cruisers for maybe 15 minutes. We were then informed the shuttle had arrived. We went out front, boarded the shuttle. We made 2 other stops within the WDW property and then headed off to the port. Onboard the shuttle there was a video of Disney trivia, cruise info, fun Disney stuff while we enjoyed the ride - completely stress-free. We arrived at port, checked in, went through security and boarding process (passport check, etc...). We boarded the ship, found out our cabin was ready for us, stopped at the dining rotation requests desk to change our rotation, stopped by our cabin to "regroup," and went up to the lunch buffet that was in progress. Easy-peasy. Would a rental car or taxi/limo have gotten us there faster? Sure. However, for $35/person, as 2 adults, it was hassle-free, easy, done. - Dreams Boarding THE BUS (yeah, the one with the cool windows that means we are - ah! - going on a Disney Cruise!) Comfy, albeit blurry LOL Coming over the hill, do you see it? Eeek! It's our ship! We're going on a Disney Cruise! Inside the terminal Check in Cute ship model Enter the ship this ------> way 'nuf said Yum! Dessert at the Lunch Buffet which we had "just" enough time to catch With, of course, an ocean view And before long, the ship was moving and we were enjoy the Sail Away Sailabration ("OMG We are on a Disney Cruise!!!) Yeah, it was fun and exciting from the moment we got on the shuttle. The cute little shuttle with the porthole windows. Wanna see it again? Okay! Since you asked... (At Port Canavaral) HTH! Enjoy!
