[Solved]Tight sched: Magical Express vs. get picked up by relative at MCO?

[skelooch]

OK Garth here you go.
Have your sister try to arrive at the airport earlier than your flight arrival time and have her wait in the cell lot.

When you get to the baggage claim area call sis and have her start driving to the arrival area of the terminal side that you are on A or B ( that's important ) and make sure she knows the airline you are arriving on because they are labeled outside the baggage claim, she should be able to get there before you get your bags. If she gets there to early and is just sitting there they may chase her out and she will have to loop around again.

When leaving the airport follow the signs for the South exit (417) you may have to loop around the airport terminal depending which side you arrived on.

From the South exit it is approx 4 miles to Rt 417, take entrance ramp toward WDW. I have never experienced heavy traffic on 417.

Proceed approx 11 miles on 417 to exit 6 (536), you will have two tolls on 417 each $1.25 and exit 6 is shortly after the second toll.

After exiting 417 onto 536 follow 536 approx 3.25 miles directly into WDW, you'll see the sign. you'll go thru several traffic lights.

Once in WDW the road technically becomes Epcot Center Dr. Take the third right, the sign will say Downtown Disney Resort Area and list the resorts for that exit.

Stay to the left when exiting as you will make a left at the light, that is Bonnet Creek Pkwy and POR will be approx 1/2 mile on your right, your will pass the entrance to POFQ before getting to the POR entrance make sure you don't enter the wrong resort.

Check-in, get your KTTW cards and your off to Ohana. Might as well just leave your bags in your sisters car seeing she will be bringing you back to POR.

When leaving POR for the Poly take a right out of the resort onto Bonnet Creek Pkwy, proceed 1/2 mile to light. take a left at the light (the new Golden Oaks developement will be right in front of you). You will now be on Vista Blvd. follow that for approx 2 miles (you'll pass Osprey Ridge golf course and Fort Wilderness). Bear right onto World Dr.
Follow that for approx 3/4 mile to the light at Seven Seas Dr, turn left at the light, the Poly entrance is 1/4 mile on the right.

I hope all goes smoothly and you make it on time, even if you're a little late they won't turn you away.

BON APPETIT

 

[Garth]

OK Garth here you go.
Have your sister try to arrive at the airport earlier than your flight arrival time and have her wait in the cell lot.

..snip..

I hope all goes smoothly and you make it on time, even if you're a little late they won't turn you away.

BON APPETIT

Thanks so much for the directions skelooch!! I can I taste it already! I sure appreciate your help.

I have one question, can you clarify "cell lot," I have not heard that term used before. Thanks!

Garth

 

[skelooch]

They call them cell lots because people will wait there for flight arrivals and then are called by cell phone from the people they are picking up when they arrive.
I know there is one in the South exit area. BTW there is no charge to park there.
This might help
http://www.orlandoairports.net/index.htm

click on parking and transportation and then parking and then cell phone lots

I'm not sure where your sister is arriving from, but if she comes in via 417 it will be very simple for her.

 

[skelooch]

I just checked Google Maps and if she comes up via I-4 have her take the exit 62 to 417 N off of I-4. it will say Walt Disney World/ Celebration and will have an airport symbol.
Then proceed to exit 17, Boggy Creek Rd, approx 17 miles, which is the airport exit, take a left off the exit into the airport 3-4 miles, the cell lot will be on her left as she approaches the terminal there is a sign for it.
I think there will be 3 tolls on 417 one of $1.75 and 2 @ $1.25 but don't quote me on that. If she has EZ Pass she's all set.

 

[Garth]

Thanks skelooch! Makes perfect sense. I feel confident that with your directions and an on time flight, we will be able to make it!

Looking forward to those skewers of meat!!

 

[mitsybella]

sorry wrong post

 

[maxiesmom]

Can you sign up for magical express and have them take your luggage to the resort but then your sister just pick you up and drive to to the resort, get checked in, might save time in waiting for luggage and magical express , not sure if this can be done but has anyone done this before??

Magical Express is not intended as a luggage delivery service. If you don't check in for the bus, they will not know how many bags you checked, so they may not get them all.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Here's a thought that will cost time in the long run, but save time in the short run.

Leave the luggage at the airport, then have your sister pick them up after the ressies.

 

[goofy4tink]

Magical Express is not intended as a luggage delivery service. If you don't check in for the bus, they will not know how many bags you checked, so they may not get them all.

While Disney will tell you that someone has to ride the bus if you want to have your tagged bags delivered to the resort, in actuality, it doesn't make a difference. I don't normally recommend tagging the bags with the yellow luggage tags and then not riding the bus, but this is one situation I would do it. In all probability, all the bags will arrive just fine.
But, that's up to you...it would save you some time...probably about 15-20 mins by not having to wait for your bags.
But....you didn't hear me telling you this.

 

[Garth]

While Disney will tell you that someone has to ride the bus if you want to have your tagged bags delivered to the resort, in actuality, it doesn't make a difference. I don't normally recommend tagging the bags with the yellow luggage tags and then not riding the bus, but this is one situation I would do it. In all probability, all the bags will arrive just fine.
But, that's up to you...it would save you some time...probably about 15-20 mins by not having to wait for your bags.
But....you didn't hear me telling you this.

Goofy4tink and mitsybella, that is a very nice idea. I'm wondering if it would help if we actually went to the DME counter as well. Do they scan the barcode of your ticket so that they know you have arrived? This would make sense to me so that luggage would get matched to actual guests. Think about it... they offer the service, why can't we just use a portion of it? It would also free up two seats on the next shuttle for other guests since we are getting our own ride. Makes good sense to me!

Are the waits at the DME counter usually long? I wonder if maybe this would also add the same time it would take to actually wait for the luggage. But then again, maybe not.

 

[maxiesmom]

Goofy4tink and mitsybella, that is a very nice idea. I'm wondering if it would help if we actually went to the DME counter as well. Do they scan the barcode of your ticket so that they know you have arrived? This would make sense to me so that luggage would get matched to actual guests. Think about it... they offer the service, why can't we just use a portion of it? It would also free up two seats on the next shuttle for other guests since we are getting our own ride. Makes good sense to me!

Are the waits at the DME counter usually long? I wonder if maybe this would also add the same time it would take to actually wait for the luggage. But then again, maybe not.

If you ask Disney, they will tell you someone must ride the bus in order for you to take advantage of the luggage delivery part of DME. They don't want you using only part of the service, they want you on the bus too.

Your question comes up on these boards A LOT. And the "official" policy is that you must ride the bus and cannot just send your luggage. The whole idea is to get you under Disney control as soon as possible.

Can you just send your luggage? Probably. The only problem you may run into is if your luggage doesn't show up in your room, you won't know if the airline misdirected it, or if DME misplaced it. And that would not be a good problem to have.

 

[goofy4tink]

Goofy4tink and mitsybella, that is a very nice idea. I'm wondering if it would help if we actually went to the DME counter as well. Do they scan the barcode of your ticket so that they know you have arrived? This would make sense to me so that luggage would get matched to actual guests. Think about it... they offer the service, why can't we just use a portion of it? It would also free up two seats on the next shuttle for other guests since we are getting our own ride. Makes good sense to me!

Are the waits at the DME counter usually long? I wonder if maybe this would also add the same time it would take to actually wait for the luggage. But then again, maybe not.

Yes, it would be wonderful if you could go down to the DME welcome area and have just one person go to the checkin desk, give the number of bags, and then head to the car. It shouldn't take long at all...maybe 10 mins.

If you ask Disney, they will tell you someone must ride the bus in order for you to take advantage of the luggage delivery part of DME. They don't want you using only part of the service, they want you on the bus too.

Your question comes up on these boards A LOT. And the "official" policy is that you must ride the bus and cannot just send your luggage. The whole idea is to get you under Disney control as soon as possible.

Can you just send your luggage? Probably. The only problem you may run into is if your luggage doesn't show up in your room, you won't know if the airline misdirected it, or if DME misplaced it. And that would not be a good problem to have.

I think I did state what Disney's 'official' policy is. We all know that. And as I said, I seldom recommend doing this. BUT....the number of reports we have had of people not getting their bags at the resort, when not riding the bus, is certainly minimal....in fact I don't think I remember more than one account and even that was not really this situation.
If the guest goes to the desk and gets checked in, there should be no issue. Believe me....guests are doing this all the time. If Disney truly wishes to stop it, they could.
Is it the wisest thing to do??? Maybe not. But the chances of your luggage not making it to the resort are slim. Yes, it can happen and if it did, it could be a nightmare. It's up to each person to decide if the risk is worth it.

 

[skelooch]

The only problem you may run into is if your luggage doesn't show up in your room, you won't know if the airline misdirected it, or if DME misplaced it. And that would not be a good problem to have.

I'm not sure I understand how riding on the DME bus will in anyway allow you to know whether the "airline misdirected it, or if DME misplaced it." It is not like your bags are transported on the same bus as you, (if that were the case it wouldn't take up to 3 hours to arrive in your room) and you can see them placed on the bus. Once you get on the DME bus you don't know if your bags are in Orlando or Los Angeles, or if DME misplaced them, if they don't show up in several hours, and will probably never know, all you can do is hope you see them again in the next day or two. I don't need or want to deal with that at the beginning of my vacations.

I have used DME in the past, and did and always will claim my own bags and bring them to the bus personally. The extra 15-20 minutes is worth my piece of mind. If they don't show up at baggage claim, or show up damaged I know it's the airlines fault and I can file a claim with the airline right then and there, not hours later (maybe not till the next day) and not knowing who lost or damaged them. My guess is that the airline and DME will blame each other, and you're in the middle, and have two parties to deal with instead of just one.
I know it probably doesn't happen very often and there have been few reported instances here on the boards, but I guess I just feel a little more warm and fuzzy having my personal property in my possession as much as possible.


But to each their own. Everyone has the right to decide what they are most comfortable with.

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm not sure I understand how riding on the DME bus will in anyway allow you to know whether the "airline misdirected it, or if DME misplaced it." It is not like your bags are transported on the same bus as you, (if that were the case it wouldn't take up to 3 hours to arrive in your room) and you can see them placed on the bus. Once you get on the DME bus you don't know if your bags are in Orlando or Los Angeles, or if DME misplaced them, if they don't show up in several hours, and will probably never know, all you can do is hope you see them again in the next day or two. I don't need or want to deal with that at the beginning of my vacations.

I have used DME in the past, and did and always will claim my own bags and bring them to the bus personally. The extra 15-20 minutes is worth my piece of mind. If they don't show up at baggage claim, or show up damaged I know it's the airlines fault and I can file a claim with the airline right then and there, not hours later (maybe not till the next day) and not knowing who lost or damaged them. My guess is that the airline and DME will blame each other, and you're in the middle, and have two parties to deal with instead of just one.
I know it probably doesn't happen very often and there have been few reported instances here on the boards, but I guess I just feel a little more warm and fuzzy having my personal property in my possession as much as possible.


But to each their own. Everyone has the right to decide what they are most comfortable with.

This is the issue. You tag your 4 bags with the yellow luggage tags. When you get to MCO, you just head to your resort via alternative transportation..not DME. You get to your resort, checkin and then head off to the parks for a fun day, fully expecting your bags to 'magically' appear in your room. Well, you get back to your room about 6 hrs later...only 3 bags have shown up. 'If' you had know there was a bag missing, back at MCO, you would have followed up on it, and most likely filled out a missing bag report (or some such thing). Now...that's going to be much harder to do since so much time has gone by.
When you check in at the DME counter, they ask you how many bags you have checked. So, you tell them 4 bags. Then, as your bags come through the system, they are noted. Well....it's going to pop up that only 3 bags have appeared, so DME CMs will start looking for them for you..right then, not 6 or so hrs later.

BUT...that just doesn't happen all that often. The vast majority of bags make it to the correct place. It is more often than not, the fault of the airline, not DME, if your bags are late or missing.

Now...for me personally, I would rather people tagged their bags and then went their own way vs those (no offense intended to skelooch) who don't tag their bags and then bring them to the bus. If many guests do that, then everyone else gets held up at each resort stop. The one time it took me almost 90 mins from MCO to my resort was the time that POP was the third stop of three and the first two stops lasted close to 15 mins each due to the huge amount of checked luggage that had been brought to the bus. The driver then has to unstow each bag and then that driver is going to be looking for his/her tip, so they aren't all that speedy about getting bags to people until their 'palms are crossed with silver'.
But again..to each his own.

 

[TisBit]

I agree that you will be cutting it close, but your best bet will be your sister picking you up and taking you. You will have a more true timeline that you can follow compared to DME, not knowing when the bus is leaving, etc. The major time savings is when you arrive at the resort, you check in and hop back into the car and are taken to Poly for your reservation, using Disney transportation will sink you for sure.

Also, keep a number for O'hana's ready in case you are running late. Tell them if you are going to be more then 15-20 minutes late, I think the rule is about 30 minutes after the reservation and you might miss out. Keeping them in the loop will help your case.

I wouldn't cancel the reservation and just see how it plays out.

 

[skelooch]

goofy4tink,

I couldn't agree more, that it would be important for DME to know how many bags you checked, whether you're riding on the bus or not, so that they could begin the search process ASAP. But in either case I'm not going to know that one or all of my bags are missing until hours later anyway, even if the process to find them has already begun, and I'm never going to know who's fault it is or was. And I guess I wouldn't care as long as they found it, and got it to me promptly.
That's why I personally would never leave the airport without knowing where my bags are, I would rather know immediately so I can begin the process than leaving it up to someone else who probably couldn't care less if it's found or not. As I said previously, if it doesn't come out on the conveyor I know who lost it.
My claim will be filed within minutes with the airline not when DME gets around to doing it.

You are never going to eliminate the buses from having to unload bags at the various resort stops because people will always have their carry-ons and more and more are relying only on carry-ons now because of baggage fees. So let's blame the airlines for the delays getting to your resort.

No offense taken, goofy4tink, I respect your opinions, and enjoy reading your responses to the vast variety of subjects here on the DIS.
And we do both agree, to each his own.

 

[Garth]

Great discussion by all! The DIS is so very unique this way. I love that we have differing opinions, but we can still be amicable and friendly about them (although, I know this is not always the case )

Also, keep a number for O'hana's ready in case you are running late. Tell them if you are going to be more then 15-20 minutes late, I think the rule is about 30 minutes after the reservation and you might miss out. Keeping them in the loop will help your case.

Great advice, I will get it programmed into my phone ASAP! Now to find it...

Garth

 

[maxiesmom]

Great discussion by all! The DIS is so very unique this way. I love that we have differing opinions, but we can still be amicable and friendly about them (although, I know this is not always the case )



Great advice, I will get it programmed into my phone ASAP! Now to find it...

Garth

Wow, someone complimented the Transportation Board?

Is there a way we can frame this post??

 

[goofy4tink]

goofy4tink,

I couldn't agree more, that it would be important for DME to know how many bags you checked, whether you're riding on the bus or not, so that they could begin the search process ASAP. But in either case I'm not going to know that one or all of my bags are missing until hours later anyway, even if the process to find them has already begun, and I'm never going to know who's fault it is or was. And I guess I wouldn't care as long as they found it, and got it to me promptly.
That's why I personally would never leave the airport without knowing where my bags are, I would rather know immediately so I can begin the process than leaving it up to someone else who probably couldn't care less if it's found or not. As I said previously, if it doesn't come out on the conveyor I know who lost it.
My claim will be filed within minutes with the airline not when DME gets around to doing it.

You are never going to eliminate the buses from having to unload bags at the various resort stops because people will always have their carry-ons and more and more are relying only on carry-ons now because of baggage fees. So let's blame the airlines for the delays getting to your resort.

No offense taken, goofy4tink, I respect your opinions, and enjoy reading your responses to the vast variety of subjects here on the DIS.
And we do both agree, to each his own.

Nope, can't blame the airlines for the delay..unless of course you're talking about the length of time it takes for them to get the darned bags to the carousel to begin with.
Here's my sad tale of woe for that 90 min trip....I would say that at least half the bus, and it was pretty full, had checked luggage with them. I have never seen anything like it. I have taken my carryon bag with me on many occasions. And when it comes time to get off the bus and get my bag, it's easy...grab the bag, hand the driver $3. But, when multiple families, with at least 5 or 6 checked bags per family, get off that bus, they now have to stand around and wait for the driver to get all the bags, and then make sure that each family has the correct bags. It 'should' take less than 5 mins at each resort..usually takes about 3 mins. Not long at all. But that trip?? Triple that time.....I'm telling you, it was horrific.
Glad no offense was taken. I can well understand those who wish to know if their bags got to MCO safely.
My favorite thing to watch???? Those guests with huge checked bags (obviously were checked due to the size), but as they stand in the bus line, waiting for their DME bus to come, what are they doing??? Putting on the yellow luggage tags!! Not sure why they didn't read their info packets.

Wow, someone complimented the Transportation Board?

Is there a way we can frame this post??

It happens every now and again!! Isn't it nice to see for a change??!!!

 

[skelooch]

goofy4tink,

I'm afraid it's a sign of the times, what with that many more carry-ons.

I don't use DME very often, I prefer having my own transportation so it's not a big issue for me, but I thought I would throw my $.02 into the discussion, that is what we are all here for. The Transportation Forum and DVC Forums are my favorites to lurk on and offer my opinions when I feel I have something to add or another view point. And when I need to know something I know where to ask.

I have been following the DIS since 2002 (fortunately for me my DVC guide recommended I check it out). I have probably learned 75% of what little I know of WDW (the rest from being there and doing that) and 99% of what I know about DVC from right here on the boards and the very knowledgable mods and Dis contributors.

I noticed in a thread a couple of weeks ago that even you will be renting a car for an upcoming trip, maybe you will see the light. JUST KIDDING
I'm sure you can tell from my posts on the subject at various times, (if you have read any) that I am not a huge fan of Disney Transportation, but I do use it occasionally when it suits my needs.
I do think that you are always fair and objective on the subject.

I see you will be in the world in early Dec, I'll be there Thanksgiving week, to bad I would enjoy the opportunity to perhaps get to meet you.

skelooch