What to expect from Airport to Resort

[Rikariko12]

It's been 10 years since my hubby and I have been to DW. Now we have an 8 year old that will be with us. We are going in May and staying at the Poly. I can't remember how it all works from the Airport to the Resort. We are getting into Orlando at around 11am... about how long does it take from stepping off the plain to stepping onto the property? And does anyone know the length of the actual bus ride? We are trying to figure out lunch and Fast passes for the day. Any other info or tips would be appreciated.

 

[dansdad]

It's been 10 years since my hubby and I have been to DW. Now we have an 8 year old that will be with us. We are going in May and staying at the Poly. I can't remember how it all works from the Airport to the Resort. We are getting into Orlando at around 11am... about how long does it take from stepping off the plain to stepping onto the property?

The quickest time from stepping off the plane to getting to our resort was 45 minutes. Everything went perfectly. Our gate was the closest to the monorail-lite station and walked right on. Our bus to CBR was just finishing being loaded and getting ready to leave so walked on and the bus pulled out. CBR was the first stop.

The longest was 120 minutes. Furthest gate from the monorail-lite. Multiple planes all landing at the same time so there was a long line to get on. Waited in line for our Magical Express going to the Beach Club for 45 minutes. Beach Club was the 3rd and final drop off.

And does anyone know the length of the actual bus ride?

Depending on traffic ~35 minutes.

We are trying to figure out lunch and Fast passes for the day. Any other info or tips would be appreciated.

We never make any ADRs at our resort for at least 3 hours after our plane is expected to land. And any type of reservation at a park, ADR or FP+, at least 4 hours.

 

[goopysolelady]

Arriving at 11 AM, I would not feel comfortable with a dining reservation until the evening meal. I'd say 6 PM at the earliest which would allow for any flight delays you may have also. As for FP's, you could begin them between 2 & 3. This would give you a little extra room if you happen to be on one of those ME buses that seem to take forever to get to the resort! During our Dec. trip, we were the first ones on the ME and waited at least 30 minutes before it departed. You may want to designate your arrival day for resort exploring and/or Disney Springs. I, myself, would not want to "waste" a days park ticket for an arrival, at minimum, after 2 PM. The Poly is a beautiful resort and worthy of time to explore. You could take the monorail loop to give you a "taste" of "Disney", walk to the GF and explore that resort, walk to the TTC and monorail the loop to/from Epcot and/or make evening reservations at the Poly and later watch the fireworks from the beach. All of these options give you time to unpack (ME won't deliver your luggage immediately...usually a couple hours before it arrives), explore and relax for your vacation.

 

[tinkerbella16]

It depends on the day. We always arrive early, around 9am. This past September was probably the quickest things have ever gone upon arriving. Our flight landed at 8:30am. We walked down to Magical Express and it was empty, we literally walked right on a bus and off we went. We were at the resort by 9:15am. It was wonderful!

 

[alliecat523]

My average is about an hour. The worst part is sitting on the bus waiting to leave.

 

[Hopefully]

The stated average time discussed by the "experts" on the Transportation Forum here on the DIS is 90 minutes from deplaning to resort arrival. The ride itself is about 35 minutes.
I agree, I never make an ADR sooner than 5 hours after scheduled arrival. Travel day is full of uncontrollable delays. Your luggage will be delivered to your room 3 - 4 hours after check in (not landing). Have everything you need for the first day in a carry on you can leave with Bell Services at the Poly.
I would also make FP+ starting after 2.
Have a great trip.

 

[Pmlocke]

My average is about an hour. The worst part is sitting on the bus waiting to leave.

Boy do I feel your pain. Isn't that the truth that you are now sitting on the ME Bus and you want everyone to get aboard so you can start the travel to the Happiest Place on Earth. My wife is always telling me to stop mumbl;ing because of someone standing outside talking to the bus driver. I just want to get going, what's wrong with that? My best trip from airport to hotel was much like tinkerbella16's. We walked down to ME Zone, no one there. We walked right onto the bus and we were at our hotel in about 40 minutes. I think the longest I have ever had to wait was 25 minutes for a bus and to get on the road. One of the perks of traveling during off season.

 

[DisBuckMan]

Wife flew in to MCO this past Sunday. Flight was delayed due to weather about 90 minutes. Took her 1:15 on DME...she was staying at AKL and the bus went to POP and AoA first. So, that put her at 3 hours after scheduled arrival into MCO to get to her resort.

Flights are often on time, and they are often late. I would give PLENTY of time before making any concrete plans for after your arrival, and quite frankly, I wouldn't make ANY scheduled plans. Arrival day is always a "just wing it" day for us, even when we drive in. Too much can go wrong.

 

[maranara]

Have everything you need for the first day in a carry on you can leave with Bell Services at the Poly.
I would also make FP+ starting after 2.
Have a great trip.

We're staying at AKL but I would imagine it's similar for all the resorts...if we have our stuff for the day in a carry on, and we leave it with bell services when we arrive, will we be able to get in and out of those bags easily? We're planning a resort day for arrival day - our flight lands around 11, so we'll have a few hours to play before our room is ready. If we leave our bags at bell services so we can have lunch and walk around, will we be able to get back into them to get bathing suits for a swim? We arrive Sunday and I'm trying to figure out the logistics...THANKS!

 

[Hopefully]

We're staying at AKL but I would imagine it's similar for all the resorts...if we have our stuff for the day in a carry on, and we leave it with bell services when we arrive, will we be able to get in and out of those bags easily? We're planning a resort day for arrival day - our flight lands around 11, so we'll have a few hours to play before our room is ready. If we leave our bags at bell services so we can have lunch and walk around, will we be able to get back into them to get bathing suits for a swim? We arrive Sunday and I'm trying to figure out the logistics...THANKS!

Yes Bell Services can give you access to your carry ons during the day. It just may take a few minutes
Personally, I would tip them each time.

 

[cwis]

My average is about an hour. The worst part is sitting on the bus waiting to leave.

It did not occur to me that you could have to wait for more than a few minutes… how long was your worst wait?

 

[maranara]

Yes Bell Services can give you access to your carry ons during the day. It just may take a few minutes
Personally, I would tip them each time.

Thanks! I'll throw some extra cash in my husband's wallet for this - will happily tip each time to avoid having to lug the bags around all day!

 

[westie55]

I always seem to wait a long time on the Magical Express bus at the airport waiting for it to depart (maybe 30 minutes just sitting on the bus waiting). This happened for my 3 most recent trips, which were to YC, AoA, and SSR. The Magical Express stops at multiple resorts, so that can add time. However, those stops are fairly quick. Thank goodness you don't spend 30 minutes waiting at each resort. I would make your FP and ADRs for the evening just to be safe. You are staying at the Poly so it you may be able to make it into the Magic Kingdom for a late lunch, but I wouldn't bank on it.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

One thing to remember that I don't think I saw above is that the busses usually don't just drop off at just one hotel. I've had Poly MDE rides which stopped at WL and CR first and some that were just going to Poly/GF (in that order). The time it stopped at CR and WL first seemed like it took FOREVER, probably because at that point we were so close and antsy to get there.

 

[mco65]

45 minutes has to be some kind of record!

I think we average around 1-1.5 hours.. easy. Usually a good 2 hours before we can expect to walk into a room assuming its even ready..

 

[Rikariko12]

We figured that the first day was more of a day that we would wing it. We are going to be there for 8 days so we consider anything on the first day to be bonus b/c until we saw that we could get a really early flight we didn't have anything planned for that day. I just like to prepare myself for the longer time and have an idea of what to expect. My daughter and I both aren't very good with going with the flow unless we kind of know what to expect.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

Logistically, how long does it take to pick up your luggage at MCO then take it on the ME?

I has been 10+ years since we've been at MCO, but I remember having to take a monorail to the baggage pick up(?)

 

[Mousemommy1]

In 10+ trips using Magical Express, it has never taken us longer than 90 minutes to get to the resort.

Usually, it's around an hour from getting off the plane to stepping off the bus at the resort.

 

[DisBuckMan]

Logistically, how long does it take to pick up your luggage at MCO then take it on the ME?

I has been 10+ years since we've been at MCO, but I remember having to take a monorail to the baggage pick up(?)

Assuming you book early enough, and you arrive before 10pm, you don't claim your own baggage at MCO...Disney takes care of all that. You just deboard your plane, then head straight to DME.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

Our flight would likely land late morning / early afternoon, and we would have a carry-on bag for the day-of festivities, which would likely only be Disney Springs - no parks.

And the fact that we would be going end of January (2018), would that speed the process up with possibly less crowds?