What to do day before?

[wendyk]

Hi:

We will be arriving late Thursday night any staying at the airport Hyatt for the 2 nights before the cruise. We have the transfers to te ship. I really don't want to rent a car. Any suggestions for things to do for Friday? We have a 8 year old and a 19 month old. I don't want to spend a fortune for one day. Thanks.

 

[dianthus]

WendyK-

The airport Hyatt is good if you are flying in the night before the cruise- convenient for transfers. It is not convenient for anything else though. The parks will cost you a fortune for one day.

Here's some ideas I'd suggest for the 2 nights before-

1- Drop the transfers on your reservation going to the Port only & reserve a rental car at AVIS at MCO. You can get some great rate codes on Mousesavers. Less than $50 per day- cheaper than the transfers. Stay at the Radisson Resort for the 2 nights instead. Use the FALL code on the website & you can get a 2 king bed suite that is spacious for $99 a night. The pool there is really nice. They have a kiddie pool with a fountain too. You can hang there or go to Ron Jon's & the beach. Avis has an office at the hotel. Turn in your rental car Fri. night & take the free shuttle to the Port on Sat. Radisson & Avis both have shuttles- very efficient.

2- There were some great rate codes on Mousesavers for Animal Kingdom Lodge. Take Mears motor car to AKL Thursday night & stay there for the 2 nights instead of the Hyatt-it probably would work out to be the same $ or just a bit higher. Enjoy the animals, the wonderful pool and the beauty of the Lodge. All of you would enjoy it & you wouldn't miss the parks one bit. I believe DCL has a bus pick up there to take you to Port. You can eat at The Mara cheaply, or enjoy Boma's a terrific buffet. Call DCL to verify pick up at AKL.

3- If you don't want to rent a car, take Mears motor car and stay at the Hilton or one of the Downtown Disney resorts. Dreams has great rates on those hotels- probably better than the Hyatt. Spend the day at Downtown Disney and take Mears back to the airport on Sat. morning to get the transfer to Port. Or you could take a taxi to the Poly, or Wilderness Lodge to get the DCL bus. Verify times of pick up with DCL at these hotels.

4- If you can get a decent rate at the Poly, stay there. They have the volcano pool to play in all day. Watch the water show at 9PM on the 7 seas lagoon. Ride the Monorail over to Contemporary & eat dinner @ Chef Mickey's ( make ressies) The kids will love it. You can see the castle from across the water on the Poly beach. Maybe they'll have fireworks on Fri. night. Watching the fireworks from the Poly beach is the best.

Good Luck!

 

[wendyk]

Thanks for your reply. We have already paid for the hotel, so changing this is not an option. How far is Downtown Disney from the airport? Is it possible to rent a car for the day and go there? We have never been to Orlando before so I have no idea if the rental cars are on site or if you have to take transfers to get them.

 

[din]

The Hyatt at the airport is located directly in the airport. Rental cars are in the airport itself. Downtown Disney is about 45 mins to 1 hour away. Great place to be in the afternoon and evening. Plenty of restaurants, kids stuff like lego play area , if still there, small train, small fountains for the kids to play, they will get wet!!!. Cookies shop and ice cream. A nice place to visit for dinner is the rainforest cafe. You will not miss it, just look for a volcano!!! Kids like this place, not sure if you know this place, but lots of robotic animals, tropical storms, jungle setting...our kids love this place. Food is not too bad!!

I am not sure what airline you are arriving by, but of you arrival gate is 60-130 you will not miss the hotel. You will pass it on your way to baggage claim.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

The Hyatt Orlando Intenational Airport is actually part of the airport terminal (not just near the terminal), so it is very easy to rent a car -- either from an on-airport car rental agency (such as Avis) or one with frequent shuttle service to a nearby location (such as Hertz).

Downtown Disney is about 17-20 miles southwest of the airport. There two different toll roads that will get you there quickly. Allow 25-30 minutes.

Considering that you have two nights at the Hyatt, you might want to spend a day at a theme park. After all, the Orlando area has seven of the world's best theme parks -- four Disney parks, two Universal parks, and Sea World Orlando. At Disney, your 8 year old pays a child'd admission and your 19 month old is free. Okay, it's still not cheap, but it won't cost "a fortune" either. And it beats hanging around the airport all day.

Is it too late to cancel the transfers? If you're renting a car anyway, you might consider driving it to the port area. See Dave's site at http://www.dcltribute.com for information on the car rental companies have have drop-off locations in Cocoa Beach (near Port Canaveral).

 

[sshuttle]

Also at Downtown Disney is a VERY nice AMC 24 movie plex with stadium seating so you could see a movie, not to mention the nice restaurants (Planet Hollywood, Rain Forest Cafe, Fulton's Crab House, etc.) and shopping that other's have mentioned. The nicest mall near the airport is The Florida Mall, only about 10/15 minutes from the airport. There is also a place called Pointe Orlando that has one of the biggest FAO Shwartz Toy stores in the world, your kids would love it. They also have shopping, restaurants, a huge movie theater, and one of the biggest arcades I have ever seen with top end arcade games. Pointe Orlando is on International Drive, a major tourist area in Orlando. There are a million things to do in Orlando, you won't get bored!