where to stay/transportation/Uber thoughts

[mickey+minnie91]

First trip to WDW for hubby and I. It will be just the two of us and trying to decide where to stay. Convenience to parks/transportation options are important to us. We aren't opposed to using uber if needed to get to the parks. How does Uber work within WDW? If we have a rental car, are there any benefits of driving yourself to the parks?

 

[CapnJacksGirl]

Convenience to parks/transportation options is rather dependent on which park(s) are your highest priority. If HS and Epcot are big priorities for you, being able to walk from BW, BC, YC, Swan/Dolphin is huge. HUGE. Want to walk to MK....Contemporary. Want monorail access to MK....CR, Poly, GF. No direct access to AK from a resort so bus, your own car, or Uber/Lyft are your plays there.

With new COVID practices, using Disney bus transportation is more tricky than when we all packed in there like sardines since they only allow a certain number of parties on each bus when it arrives to pick you up. Still definitely doable, just more time-consuming. Plan for a decent amount of time waiting at the bus stop at the resort and the parks if you are wanting to get on a bus at opening or closing times.

Driving yourself to the parks allows you to come and go whenever you want, without waiting for Disney transportation, which can be nice. You will have to pay a nightly fee to park at the resort if you rent a car so that's an extra expense. You don't have to pay again to go to the parks though. And there aren't any trams/shuttles from parking to the park entrance so your walk into and out of the park can be long. If you plan to arrive at the parks early/pre-park opening, know that they hold cars at the parking entrance so you can't get there TOO early.

Uber/Lyft are super simple on property. Same process as anywhere else...use the app. They are usually readily available. If you plan to get to the parks early/pre-opening, same process as driving your own car....they are held at the parking entrance until 45 min-hour prior to opening (rough estimate). I have found Lyft rates to be very affordable, surprisingly. (I haven't used Uber so I can't speak to that one specifically.) The only catch I've found to Lyft on property is knowing where to meet them for pick-up. We were at Pop last time and needed to get to CR for an early morning fishing trip. We figured he would pick us up at the main Pop entrance but couldn't find him. Nobody seemed to know if there was a "standard" Uber/Lyft pick-up area so we had to call the guy and figure out where he was. Cost us some time so try to make sure you know where you're meeting your driver.

Hope that helps a little! Not a comprehensive "where should I stay" but a couple of things to consider! Have a magical trip!!!

 

[_19disnA]

No Disney hotel is closest to every Disney park. I would first decide which park(s) you plan to visit and look at the Disney map of hotels. Depending on your budget, off-site hotels will be cheaper. If staying off-site, having a car will be far more convenient then paying for an on-line taxi every time you decide to go to the parks/shopping/dining, etc. When we last stayed at Disney (pre-covid), we stayed onsite, did not rent a car and used Disney transportation. Thought it worked out fine. Yes, sometimes the bus just left and we had to wait a few minutes for the next one, but we didn't find that any big deal. We were on vacation, so who cares if you have to wait a bit longer for the next bus? If you are the go-go-go type (as it appears some on here are) and expect things to happen instantly, having your own car would be the way to go.

While covid is still an issue, I would feel more comfortable having my own rental car vs. getting into a taxi where you have no idea how clean it is or who else has previously been in the vehicle (regardless of what the driver might say).

 

[The WDW 3]

I would NEVER rent a car unless you are possibly looking to travel a decent distance outside of the Disney bubble.

 

[CarolynFH]

When we stay onsite and have a car, we tend to drive the car to all the parks except for MK. If you drive to MK, you have to park at the TTC and then take the monorail or the ferry across the lagoon to the MK entrance, whereas the resort bus drops you off at that entrance and eliminates the extra step. If you stay at a MK resort (CR, Poly, GF) you don't have that issue.

 

[MaizeRage25]

I would NEVER rent a car unless you are possibly looking to travel a decent distance outside of the Disney bubble.

Under normal circumstances we wouldn't either, but with COVID we are considering it to avoid the buses. Honestly it seems that is the worst exposure risk, especially on longer rides.

 

[sam_gordon]

When we used to stay on site, cost is our #1 factor. It doesn't matter that you can walk to the MK from GF or CR if you can't afford it. If you plan/want to go to all parks equally (MK 1 day, EC 1 day, HS 1 day, AK 1 day), location isn't as important (IMO).

That being said, the HS & EC resorts (Yacht/Beach Club, Swan/Dolphin, and Boardwalk) give you the easiest access to both EC and HS. I would probably go with the Boardwalk if I can afford it.

 

[JimMIA]

With Uber/Lyft, my advice is to have both apps on your phone and price-check your rides. Most drivers drive for both companies. About the only ones who don't are those who rent the car they are driving through one company and are therefore limited to that company.

If you put the apps on both of your phones, you will potentially get double promotions. With the promotions, be sure you understand them. Sometimes promotions are market-specific, so if you get a promotion at home it might not apply at WDW.

The reason I say use both is that the two companies both use dynamic pricing. If one is busier than the other (common), you may get either a) a quicker pickup with one, or b) better pricing. Both companies have an abundance of drivers in the Orlando market, and especially in the WDW area. You should not have significant waits for rides. One big key to timely pickups is NOT to move after you order your ride. The driver's app shows where you ordered the ride from and if you move after ordering that can create all sorts of problems, including cancellations.

It's also important to understand the driver/rider rating system. Both companies use a 5-Star system, but many riders don't understand how it works. 5 stars is an "A," but 4 stars is an "F!" If a driver's average drops below 4.8 (a 96 average if you're in school), they are on the verge of termination. So always give a driver 5 stars unless there is something significantly wrong with the ride.

I also tip in cash -- NOT in the app -- for several reasons. First, it's an immediate "Thank you" to the driver, and they know immediately that it came from you, not some other rider. Tips are appropriately identified with rides, but not until later when the driver has time to look over their days results. Tips are also not always posted immediately, so cash is better.

Secondly, Lyft often actually counts in-app tips against drivers if the driver is working on a special promotion. Lyft's promotions are usually "guarantees" that the driver will achieve a certain amount of pay for a certain time period. The problem is, they count in-app tips in that guarantee -- which means they pay less in guarantee if the driver falls short of what they promise. In other words, with an in-app tip you could effectively be tipping LYFT, not the driver. It's messed up, but that's Lyft. Uber doesn't play games with driver's tips.