Who has made an 11:30 flight out of MCO on debarkation day?

[bobbiwoz]

Has anyone not made it?

What time does Disney’s First busses leave for the airport?

We would be willing to take our luggage off.

We would be OK to rent a rental car.

 

[Shanti]

Has anyone not made it?

What time does Disney’s First busses leave for the airport?

We would be willing to take our luggage off.

We would be OK to rent a rental car.

On Christmas Eve 2016, we made an 11:50am flight out of MCO after having a second seating breakfast and taking the DCL bus to the airport. We do have TSA Pre-Check, but it wasn't necessary. We still had well over an hour wait at the gate before boarding began for our on-time flight. We let DCL manage our check-in bags via Onboard Airline Check-In.

I think renting a car is the slowest option, because returning it will take up time at the airport, and if you get into a fender bender... Stick with a DCL bus & if you're worried about time, get either first seating breakfast or eat at Cabanas asap in the morning. But as I said, we even had 2nd seating breakfast & had no issue making our flight.

The conservative recommendation is to be at the airport 2 hours before a domestic flight, so for an 11:30 flight, that's 9:30. Allow about an hour & 15 minutes for the DCL bus to depart the port & drive to the airport, so that's 8:15. Allow 15-30 minutes max for customs, so that leaves 7:45am as a conservatively early time to leave the ship and have no worries about making the flight, barring a catastrophe.

 

[bobbiwoz]

On Christmas Eve 2016, we made an 11:50am flight out of MCO after having a second seating breakfast and taking the DCL bus to the airport. We do have TSA Pre-Check, but it wasn't necessary. We still had well over an hour wait at the gate before boarding began for our on-time flight. We let DCL manage our check-in bags via Onboard Airline Check-In.

I think renting a car is the slowest option, because returning it will take up time at the airport, and if you get into a fender bender... Stick with a DCL bus & if you're worried about time, get either first seating breakfast or eat at Cabanas asap in the morning. But as I said, we even had 2nd seating breakfast & had no issue making our flight.

Thank you. We also have TSA pre check.
Do you know what time DCL buses begin leaving to MCO?

 

[Shanti]

Thank you. We also have TSA pre check.
Do you know what time DCL buses begin leaving to MCO?

They start leaving as soon as enough passengers are off the ship to fill up the first bus. They're eager to get everyone out of there. I've read about it taking longer for buses to leave for the WDW resorts, but a lot more people are just flying home, so the buses start driving back to MCO pretty much immediately once debarkation begins.

 

[OKW Lover]

Has anyone not made it?

What time does Disney’s First busses leave for the airport?

We would be willing to take our luggage off.

We would be OK to rent a rental car.

I'd really be surprised if you didn't make it as long as the ship docks at its "usual" time. We live very, very close to WDW and when we cruise we are often home at 10-ish. Our route takes us right past MCO which is only ~45 minutes from the port. Of course if you had a rental car you would have to add on time to pickup and return a rental. It would probably be better to use a car service instead.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Ok...we will take our luggage off ourselves and take the first bus to MCO.

We found that our usual car rental place does not open until 7:30, and then there’s time to get gas. I do think the bus will be best for us.

Thank you....we are very close to booking.

Bobbi

 

[cariann77]

Our flight was 11:55am. We made it with plenty of time to spare! We had breakfast, shopped, and still sat around waiting for our flight. We took the Disney bus but I can't recall what time we actually left.

 

[Kesohio63]

We made an 11:05 flight after our first DCL cruise in 2014. We had to run to make it, and we were very lucky that there was no line at security, and we didn’t have to wait for the tram! No, we were not reckless enough to book that flight, but when we got to the airport anticipating a day-long wait for a 5:00 flight, we asked if there was an earlier one just for the heck of it. The very nice guy at the Southwest check-in desk put us on standby for a non-stop flight (our original flight had a layover in Baltimore). He warned us that our checked luggage probably wouldn’t make it, but you can imagine our delight when our suitcases rolled off the conveyor!

After our 2nd cruise, we stood in the baggage line for over an hour at MCO; that time our flight was at 1:00, which gave us time to eat lunch at the airport. Personally, I wouldn’t book anything before noon, and then be prepared to hustle if the baggage or security lines are long. If your airline allows you to check your bags on the ship, then you don’t have to worry about the baggage checking line. I would also recommend you have PreCheck so you can go in the quicker security line.

Edited to add: we took the DCL bus both times.

 

[Malibustyle23]

He warned us that our checked luggage probably wouldn’t make it, but you can imagine our delight when our suitcases rolled off the conveyor!

I am curious what happens if they didn't make it on your flight? Do you have to wait around the airport for your luggage to land?

 

[Kesohio63]

We were mentally prepared to have to go back to the airport to get our luggage if we needed to, although we would have tried to get them to deliver the luggage like they do when a piece gets lost. Even if we had to go back to get our suitcases, it was still worth it to get home early and not have to deal with a connecting flight!

 

[tigerchic89]

We've never flown out after a cruise, but we do 1st seating breakfast and check our luggage the night before, and we're always in our car by 8:15-8:30. We're halfway back to Atlanta by noon. My mom cruises with us and flies out of Orlando using DCL busses. Her bus is always within 15 minutes of our departure, and that's even with her checking bags, having breakfast and not concierge walk off.

I do remember a few cases of weather (hurricanes, winds or fog) causing the ship to not make it back on time, but that is rare. I'd totally book the early flight!

 

[undertheradar]

Has anyone not made it?

What time does Disney’s First busses leave for the airport?

We would be willing to take our luggage off.

We would be OK to rent a rental car.

Why add stress to the end of a cruise? There are so many variables that are out of your control that it does not make sense to have to try and rush to make the flight. Better to leave a window and have a little extra time, than to have a narrow window and risk missing your flight.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Why add stress to the end of a cruise? There are so many variables that are out of your control that it does not make sense to have to try and rush to make the flight. Better to leave a window and have a little extra time, than to have a narrow window and risk missing your flight.

Yes... found a 4 something flight that eases our minds! Thank you!

 

[Kesohio63]

As long as the ship docks on time, getting to the airport shouldn’t be an issue. It’s the unforeseen delays that can happen at the airport that will trip you up.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Thanks everyone! We booked the cruise, we booked the 4 something flight, we booked transfers to MCO, PALO, and a shore excursion in St Martaan.

Even with this later flight, we will be able to pick Gus, our hound dog up from the kennel before we get home.