Will we regret not renting a car?

[Mickeyhugger]

We're planning a trip to WDW January, and will be staying at the Wilderness Lodge.

We're seriously considering (for the first time after 7 WDW visits,) NOT renting a car. Previously, we'd sometimes only use the car 2 or 3 times (usually to drive from one resort to another for dinner.) We also used to take 'rest' days and go to the nearby mall. This time though, we've really no plans to leave the property, and are eager to use the complimentary Disney bus from the airport (ANOTHER plus, not having to get to the airport earlier to drop off the car! )

I am wondering, though..is it a pain the neck trying to get from one resort to another? For example, we'd like to go to Beaches and Cream one night (maybe the first night,) and Chef Mickey's. (I think we could take the boat to the MK, and catch the monorail to the Contemporary for Chef Mickey's.)

Thanks for any tips or info!

 

[ldo]

It is easy to go for meals at monorail hotels--get to MK and hop on monorail. Also, from WL, you can take boat to Contemp, I believe. We loved bus riding--just leave extra time before ADRs--if you get there early, you can tour hotel, gift shop or have kids play in game room.
Re. airport--ME picks you up 3 hrs before your flight--so, you'll be there WAY ahead of time--so no benefit over dropping a car early. This was our 1st time EVER without a car-- I would go car less again, no problem.

 

[Amy&Dan]

Our first four trips we had a car. The next three, no car and didn't miss it one bit! Its easy enough to get from resort to resort. You can always call a cab. I did that when we went with my inlaws as they are older and we needed the fastest route. From SSR, we cabbed to AKL, CR and the Poly. It was never more than $20 plus tip. That was also for a party of seven in a van which was probably more.

Other good ways are to bus to DTD from your resort, then hop on the other resort's bus. For Chef MIckey's you could take the boat to MK, then just walk over rather than monorail. Its an easy less than 10 minute walk and easier in my opinion than walking up to the monorail, waiting for that and then going over to the CR. The Epcot resorts work well if you are in Epcot already or you can do the DTD route from your resort or monorail if you are in the MK. I find it easies sometimes to go to a resort restaurant directly from a park. I just get on their bus then do the DTD thing to get back to my resort. Its easy, just always allow ample time. At least one hour.

We are renting a car this next trip for the first time in over two years. I just found a great deal but it wouldn't suprise me if we cancel and go back to our carefree method of letting Disney do the driving!

 

[Mr. Pig]

I know a lot of people would not go without a car but when we don't drive we don't miss one. It does take a little longer to get from resort to resort and some people just HATE the buses but we don't mind. If you are not in a hurry it is not a hassle. AKL to CR is not bad at all - the boat + monorail is actually a kind of fun trip. I would not take a car from WL to CR myself even if I had one. When we go in Oct. we will be there for 12 nights and we will rent a car for a few days just to do a few things offsite but otherwise will not use one.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

Thank you for all your tips!

 

[Marthasor]

We rented a car on our last trip and I don't think I will ever go without renting one again! The best part about it was that we could really be spontaneous. For example, we stayed at BWI and drove to AKL one morning to have breakfast at Boma, then went to AK and then on our way out just decided to go visit WL for the fun of it. It took no time to drive around and we probably wouldn't have tried it if we didn't have the car. It really made the trip so much more enjoyable - we definitely saw more and, I think, saved a lot on travel time because of the car!

 

[mport]

We never have rented a car and never will. (really no stress about getting lost.) The transportation is fine that Disney offers. At times you may have to get creative to get to another hotel from a hotel but the TTC is the key in most cases.

Mickeyhugger, when in January are you going, we are going 15-22 and at the WL.

 

[alldiz]

We never rented a car.....and I don't miss it....

Whenever we don't want to take disney transportation....
usually coming home from another resort from dinner...
We take a cab....very convenient......and they will take you to
Your building...
I'm sure the few cab rides was cheaper and more convenient than
worrying about a car.
Kerri

 

[MiaSRN62]

We do prefer to rent a car. We like the added freedom and independence. Been to WDW enough times to call it our second home---so we never get lost driving around, and we find the car return to be a very quick and painless process (usually only costs us an extra 15 min for airport dropoff and this includes the short walk from the garage).
We do alot of resort to resort dining plus we go offsite from time to time. If you only plan on a couple resort meals and no offsite touring I'm sure you'll be fine. But we've tried the busses for resort dining. What takes 10 min with a car, can take up to 90 min utilizing disney busses. For us, riding around and transferring busses just eats up too much precious vacation time for us. But if you go into it, allowing yourself the extra time, and you don't mind losing some added transportation time you'll be fine. We have done both with and without a car. So no car is doable, but we feel our vacation time is more efficiently utilized using a car.
Have a great stay at the WL. Great resort.

 

[madalex]

It is a pain in the neck trying to get from one resort to another without a car. It can be done, but requires planning and devoting significantly more time to just getting around than if you have a car. Personally, I can't imagine not having a car while at WDW (even the airport drop off at the end of the trip takes all of 5 minutes, so it is not like that is a big deal), but to each his own.

 

[RJD]

We've never rented a car while onsite and have never wished that we had. The getting from resort to resort for meals can be a bit of pain but all in all, we don't think it's that big a deal. The early breakfast times can be a challenge. We had a 7:45 at Ohanas and were staying at AllStars. We just grabbed a taxi and were there in about 10 minutes. I don't remember how much the cab ride plus tip was, but it wasn't alot as far as I do remember. It was worth it not to have to worry about catching the bus at 7 AM.

 

[msmayor]

For us, it boils down to the fact that at Disney time = money. The more time we spend trying to figure out and utilize their transportation system, the less time we have getting value for our entertainment dollar.

Its really personal preference.

 

[Colleen27]

We're planning a trip to WDW January, and will be staying at the Wilderness Lodge.

We're seriously considering (for the first time after 7 WDW visits,) NOT renting a car. Previously, we'd sometimes only use the car 2 or 3 times (usually to drive from one resort to another for dinner.) We also used to take 'rest' days and go to the nearby mall. This time though, we've really no plans to leave the property, and are eager to use the complimentary Disney bus from the airport (ANOTHER plus, not having to get to the airport earlier to drop off the car! )

I am wondering, though..is it a pain the neck trying to get from one resort to another? For example, we'd like to go to Beaches and Cream one night (maybe the first night,) and Chef Mickey's. (I think we could take the boat to the MK, and catch the monorail to the Contemporary for Chef Mickey's.)

Thanks for any tips or info!

CM is easy - take the boat directly from WL to the Contemporary. B&C is a little more time consuming, but bus to MGM and boat to Beach Club wouldn't be a bad ride IMO. I don't think getting to/from the MK and Epcot area resorts for dinners is a problem at all, and if you're pressed for time or just don't feel like riding another bus, an occasional cab is cheaper and easier than a rental car.

When in January are you going to be there? I just upgraded to WL for our trip, Jan 16 to 27.

 

[Disney Ella]

You may not miss the car, but we certainly did. We used the buses on our first trip and have driven ever since. This time, DH said he didn't wanted to be bothered with driving and parking. He wanted to use ME and the buses, so we did. Now he says he'll never be without a rental car again. We wasted so much time waiting around for buses and on buses that stopped at multiple places. We stayed at WL and usually shared buses with the GF or Fort Wildnerness Lodge.

We tried to make it to EMH at AK, but the first bus was too full and the second bus didn't come for another half-hour. No extra buses at opening times! So we got to spend a whole five minutes at AK before the regular crowd got in. We had an ADR at Spoodles one night and we left two hours before the reservation to make sure we would get there on time. We got there exactly on time. If we had a car, we could have driven there in 15 or 20 minutes.

Using ME and not having to drive to and from the airport was nice, but for us, the convenience of a rental car beats ME any day.

 

[simonkodousek]

When we stayed at the Wilderness Lodge in 2004 the transportation system (bus, boat) was satisfactory. The only problem I can recall is a 45 minute wait for a bus to DTD.

 

[MEK]

I have rented a car 3 times and gone without it twice. Here's my opinion:

1. I like ME better for getting to the resort.

2. I like the car better for getting back to the airport. IMO, ME gets you there way in advance of your flight. I leave an hour later with the rental car.

3. For MK, I always use the bus.

4. For other parks, I like having the car. Sometimes the buses get old.

5. For eating at another resort - having the rental car wins - HANDS down! If I don't have a car I will not go to another resort unless it is on the monorail. For example, I will not go to Boma or Whispering Canyon without a car. I will go to the Epcot resorts, but I prefer the car or to walk through Epcot and the International gateway to get there. I personally do not like having two transfers in each direction. Even the monorail resorts are time consuming, so I would limit it to one monrail resort a trip.

6. Don't forget - you can always take a taxi. I have never done this, but I would if needed.

If you decide to forget the rental car, just look at it as another way to experience Disney. You will see things from a different perspective and sometimes that is part of the fun.

 

[Stinky_Pete]

After one trip without renting a car I have vowed never to do it again.

• I like to take afternoon breaks - the buses don't run as frequently in the afternoon so waiting for them wastes a lot of time I could spend relaxing in the resort pool.
• I like to dine at the resorts more often than the parks. Staying at WL does open up the monorail resort restaurants to pretty easy access (boat to Contemporary then hop monorail) but AKL or the Epcot resorts are not so easy to get to by bus.
• I also like to go off property (gasp!) to pick up water/snacks at the store and have an occasional meal off-site.
• No buses direct to or from DTD and a theme park.

You can also rent a car on property if you don't want to have one the entire time. But I keep getting these awesome deals through National so I just get one for the entire time.

 

[D&R love Disney]

I wouldn't go without a car! We love the convenience of having one to go to other resorts and the water parks. It's also nice for DTD and going to US, SeaWorld and anywhere else we may go.

 

[MickeyNicki]

We drive up there each time (3 hrs away) and when we check in we leave the car and rely on WDW transportation the entire stay

 

[pepe of ohio]

Just finished our 39th visit on the 17th of September and have never rented a car while at WDW or used ours when we did drive to get there. Disney transportation serves us just fine and its free and only 15 minutes of a wait usually.