Disney World Expands Minnie Van Airport Service
Walt Disney World will soon be expanding eligibility for the Minnie Van Airport Service, which offers private transportation between Orlando International (MCO) and select resort hotels. Here are full dates & details on pricing, eligibility and more. Plus our commentary about what this means for the potential return of Disney’s Magical Express and whether this service is worth it or a rip-off.
For those who are unfamiliar with it, Minnie Vans are private vehicle service at Walt Disney World, powered by the Lyft, but operated by Cast Members in fun polka-dot covered cars. Each standard Minnie Van accommodates up to 6 guests, with the accessible Minnie Vans capable of seating 7. Critically for families, Minnie Vans each come equipped with 2 child safety seats that Cast Members can install for you.
Regular Minnie Vans within Walt Disney World can be requested at every resort via the Lyft app, plus the Swan & Dolphin and Four Seasons Orlando. Prices vary based on distance traveled from pick-up location to requested destination within Walt Disney World Resort; the Lyft app provides a fare estimate once you select a destination, so you know what to expect. Payments are processed directly through the Lyft app. Walt Disney World considers it a ‘priority’ transportation option, with private point-to-point service that’s almost always more efficient than buses. For everything you need to know, read our Guide to Minnie Vans at Walt Disney World.
Minnie Van Airport Service
All of the above concerns the normal Minnie Van point-to-point transportation within Walt Disney World. This is the more common option, which has been back for a while in full form. What’s rolling out this week to more guests is the Minnie Van Airport Service.
Walt Disney World has announced that starting Wednesday, August 13, 2025, all guests staying at a Disney Deluxe Resorts will be able to book the Minnie Van Airport Service. What’s unclear at this point is whether this will include Deluxe Villa Resorts or just standalone Deluxes. (We’ve reached out to Walt Disney World for clarification and will update if/when we receive a response.)
For those thinking, what’s the difference?!, if this is limited to Deluxe Resorts, it would basically just exclude Old Key West, Saratoga Springs, Riviera Resort, and the Cabins at Fort Wilderness. Those are the only villas that aren’t attached to a Deluxe Resort.
Up until now, limited Minnie Van Airport Service has been available to and from Orlando International Airport, only for guests staying Club Level. It’s been bookable by the resort concierge team (also known as Disney Signature Services). Unlike the point-to-point service, it’s not bookable via the Lyft app.
Pricing is $199 plus tax for a one-way trip between any Walt Disney World and Orlando International Airport. Reservations for airport Minnie Van transfers can be made up to 60 days prior to your arrival date by contacting Disney Signature Services at (407) 939-7777 or via email.
The Minnie Van Airport Service is offered to guests with airline flight departures out of MCO between 9 a.m. and midnight and flight arrivals 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. Airport Minnie Vans can accommodate up to 6 people per vehicle, including up to three car seats for guests. Availability is limited, but it’s unlikely you’ll need to book 60 days in advance. For return tips to MCO, you should be able to speak with the resort concierge for bookings.
As of August 13, 2025, the above changes to include all Deluxe Resort guests. Otherwise, none of the above is changing. Minnie Van transportation between Walt Disney World and Orlando International Airport is still not available for any other guests. Between this and the end of Disney’s Magical Express, other guests now need to find their own ground transportation from the airport to their hotel.
We cover the range of options in our Guide to Airport Transportation for Walt Disney World. There is no one-size-fits-all perfect solution–it depends on your party size, budget, and other factors.
Is This The Long-Awaited Disney’s Magical Express Replacement?
Of course not. I doubt anyone seriously thinks that a $199 (or $398 roundtrip) service is a comparable product offering to a free airport shuttle. However, I absolutely foresee some fans saying, “well now we know why they got rid of Disney’s Magical Express–so they could ‘force’ us to pay for this pricey upcharge instead!” Or “now Walt Disney World has no incentive to bring back DME or else nobody will book this!”
For fans with shorter memories, the Minnie Van Airport Service is nothing new. It launched back in Summer 2018, roughly one year after point-to-point Minnie Vans, and cost $150 each way at the time. Back then, the Minnie Van Airport Service actually had more expansive eligibility. It was available to all Disney-owned hotels–Value, Moderate, Deluxe and Villa Resorts–as well as a number of third party options. This included the Swan & Dolphin, Bonnet Creek, Disney Springs, and even Flamingo Crossing. (But oddly enough, not Shades of Green.)
At the risk of stating the obvious, Disney’s Magical Express existed back then. So unless Walt Disney World was playing the long game and was just waiting for a global pandemic to knock out the free service, and then let ~5 years lapse before bringing back the paid airport shuttle (and only to a small subset of the original eligibility pool), it’s highly unlikely that the Minnie Van Airport Shuttle has any relation whatsoever to Disney’s Magical Express. Both are airport transportation, but that’s where the similarities begin and end. Mopeds, mules, Maserati, and monorails are also types of airport transportation–but I wouldn’t compare them, either.
The other obvious difference is scalability. Minnie Vans simply do not scale. The fleet is not large enough to effectively transport all guests between MCO and WDW, and the price is prohibitive for the vast majority of guests. These facts are interrelated, and why the return of Minnie Van Airport Service has no bearing on the potential (but likely) comeback of Disney’s Magical Express. Just like the original launch of the service had nothing to do with the demise of DME.
There’s been renewed hope for the comeback of Disney’s Magical Express this year thanks to Return of Resort Airline Check-In Service at WDW as a Pilot Program. Although it’s been radio silence about that and the luggage handling hasn’t expanded at all since early April, so maybe we shouldn’t hold our breath. (As a non-update update to that, we haven’t heard anything. We’re shocked it hasn’t expanded again, but maybe more test & adjust and scale-up time is needed?)
Is Minnie Van Airport Service Worth It?
“You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”
That’s a concise summary of this commentary. If Walt Disney World made this announcement a few years ago, my commentary would’ve been scathing–that this is absurdly overpriced relative to the alternatives. I would’ve compared Minnie Vans to Uber or Lyft, noting that my average fee is a fraction of this price (in the last year, my WDW to MCO average is around $25 before tip). I would’ve done the same for Mears Connect, which offers a much cheaper service for those uncomfortable with traditional rideshare.
Speculation isn’t really necessary here, as this isn’t the first time Minnie Vans have expanded to the airport. I did those things before, albeit not with Mears Connect since it didn’t exist then. Instead, there was Disney’s Magical Express, which was free (or “free” in the sense that it was built into room rates, but the point is that it wasn’t an upcharge).
Unsurprisingly, that was the Walt Disney World fan consensus on the Minnie Van Airport Service. After all, it’s a very pricey upcharge and by its very nature, it’s a niche product offering aimed at a very small subset of guests. The vast majority of guests will never even consider using it since they aren’t the target audience. Opposing that type of thing is easy and obvious low-hanging fruit.
Now that I’m older and wiser dumber (or at least, have a different viewpoint thanks to a wider variety of experience), I have a slightly different perspective on the Minnie Van Airport Service.
Let me preface this by saying that, when traveling solo to Walt Disney World, I always use either the standard Mears Connect service or rideshare. I use the former about two-thirds of the time, and only use the latter at this point when returning to the airport. When I do use Uber or Lyft, I always select the ‘wait and save’ options. Both as a matter of frugality and because it’s an easy ‘hack’ since there are usually a ton of drivers so the wait is about the same, either way (I’ve never waited the full 15 minutes). Point being, it’s not as if I’m mindlessly making it rain on airport transportation.
Even when traveling as a couple, we’d always take Uber and Lyft. Doubling the cost of Mears Connect made Uber or Lyft a close enough call and we favored the efficiency. Plus, Sarah seems to enjoy chatting up rideshare drivers, whereas I do not. (I swear my accounts must be flagged with a notice: this dude likes hearing about conspiracy theories and fringe political movements.)
Those days are over for us now that we’re traveling as a family with a toddler.
Uber or Lyft are a nonstarter now. The simple reality is that I really don’t trust the maintenance and safety standards of a random stranger’s personal vehicle when traveling with our daughter. Ditto the driver’s safety behind the wheel–as it seems Uber and Lyft use Crazy Taxi and Grand Theft Auto for their training. While the vast majority of rideshare experiences are perfectly fine, I’ve had enough questionable ones to give me pause about gambling my daughter’s safety on it.
It’s funny. I had never given a second thought to any of that when using Uber or Lyft alone. It wasn’t even on my radar until our first rideshare experience with her; I was consumed with stress for the entire ride. Enough to make it a non-starter as a family. It’s to the point that this has even spilled over into solo travel, as I’m more cognizant of my own safety. Being a father brings your own mortality into sharp relief, but that’s slightly off-topic.
In any case, all of this makes Mears Connect our new de facto option when traveling as a family. Which is fine. We’ve used it several times to mixed results–nothing bad enough to push us over the edge towards a private transfer. (We have zero interest in driving on vacation unless absolutely necessary; Walt Disney World is far from a destination where it’s ‘absolutely necessary’ for us, so renting a car is out. YMMV.)
The real potential issue is for us as a family now that Megatron does not fly with a car seat but does need one in cars. This is of no concern on the big buses, but is a potential problem now that Mears is using smaller vans more frequently (in my experience).
According to the Mears Connect website: “While we are not required to offer a car seat in our small vehicle fleet, limited car seats are available in our shuttle vans should there be an on-demand need. We do have limited access to additional car seats if needed or the ability to get an alternative vehicle.”
Mears may not be required to have car seats under Florida law, but the law of the land in our family is dictated by Sarah. This is not a problem when traveling from MCO to WDW. If we were to get assigned a van as a family, we’d simply ask for a car seat and they’d have them on hand. We wouldn’t get into a vehicle until something was figured out, and would have plenty of options and time since we’re at the airport.
It’s a different story when traveling from our resort to the airport. There are no car seats simply on hand or alternative vehicles that can be easily deployed. Our solution is to call Mears Connect in advance and relay the ‘car seat needed’ information and hope for the best, which has been a winning strategy thus far. But we have friends who have run into problems with this, and it’s the #1 reason why several now use private airport transfers.
Prior to this announcement, I suspected/feared that would be us sooner or later. And in fact, I had already started pricing out Tiffany Towncar for our family Christmas trip. All of our friends seem to love that, and it’s also been highly recommended by countless readers. From what I’m seeing, Tiffany Towncar is about half the cost of the Minnie Van Airport Service.
Obviously, a price difference of ~$100 is fairly significant. There are also other reasons to use a private transfer, especially from MCO to Walt Disney World. But we’d use the standard Mears Connect service from MCO, and only the transfer when returning.
And although we probably will not opt for the Minnie Van, I can absolutely see the appeal. Having a vehicle that dispatches from within Walt Disney World, has experienced Cast Members, and is of a more on-demand nature are all really appealing. Probably not “pay $100 extra for peace of mind” level of worth it, but I can absolutely see the appeal. Certainly more so for something like this than Lightning Lane Premier Pass (or even Lightning Lane Multi-Pass for Animal Kingdom).
I also know what services like this cost in the real world, because we’ve priced them out for other trips. Orlando is actually one of the cheaper U.S. markets, presumably thanks to competition. We haven’t booked any private transfers yet, but one for us to LAX would actually cost around the price of the Minnie Van Airport Service. And that’s without polka-dots on the outside! Everyone knows that classes up a car, and each dot is worth a $2 pricing premium.
Ultimately, I guess what I’m saying is that I’m now less inclined to dismiss a Walt Disney World upcharge like this out of hand. Minnie Van Airport Service is not only for “suckers” or guests splurging without considering alternatives or those with bottomless budgets. As it turns out, different offerings have different target audiences and not everything that isn’t aimed squarely at me (past, present or future) is inherently bad or pointless. Who knew?!
I’m glad that the Minnie Van Airport Service exists and happy that we’ll have this option at our disposal, should we end up needing it getting from Walt Disney World to MCO. But you know what? I’d be even more happy if they’d bring back Disney’s Magical Express already! Then this would go back to being pointless for me, and I could bash the chumps who would even dare think about dropping $200 on a ride to the airport! 😉
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Your Thoughts
Thoughts on Minnie Van Airport Service rolling out to all Deluxe Resort guests? Wish this news were instead that Disney’s Magical Express were returning? What do you think of the $199 each way price point–too high, or fair for what’s offered? Any questions about Minnie Vans we can help you answer? Is this a good fit for your family, or too expensive of an upcharge? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment of airport transportation options? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We were really lucky. 1 that our kids fit into the infant car seat until they were a year, and 2 they didn’t cancel DME until after my youngest was big enough to be in a booster. I don’t remember the details, but we definitely had one car seat that was designated for the plane. We would bring it when we had to rent a car, which only happened a few times. We absolutely avoided Ubers while the kids needed a car seat. Shlepping it around a city or a country would be a no go! For exactly what you experienced!
One of the things to remember about Florida is so many transplants come from Michigan and New York… very aggressive and fast drivers. They’re not necessarily the ones driving the uber, but they are affected by those drivers. The mears bus (and even the DME) would pull some interesting stunts if you were paying attention.
As for the stroller… my youngest is old enough (and strong enough) that she can make it w/o the stroller. So I’ve started telling everyone that we have to get used to the idea. They’ve all come back at me with excellent questions: where will we put all of our stuff?? Our water bottles?? I do carry a backpack that often lives on the stroller so I don’t have to carry it on the rides. Hah. I may lose this battle for another year.
Thank you Tom! Super useful – I very well might book Tiffany’s for our upcoming trip. The last thing a parent needs is to have to entertain their kid for hours in the airport AFTER the flight while you wait for your ride.
Don’t let anyone wag their finger at your airplane carseat decisions. I have only rarely seen parents actually lugging carseats through airports. The burden is enormous. That said, we did use the CARES FlySafe FAA approved airplane harness until our kid was 4ish. It’s a good middle ground that folds into almost no space, doesn’t cost a fortune, and still provides a lot of extra safety for toddlers. Admittedly anything thing I saw recommended a lot online but have literally never seen anyone except us use in person, hah.
“That said, we did use the CARES FlySafe FAA approved airplane harness until our kid was 4ish.”
We bought this recently but have yet to use it. Will use that for takeoff, landing and turbulence, plus an inflatable thing that converts the seat to a quasi sleeping surface. A bit skeptical of that one, but I’ve heard good things!
We had an incredible experience with orlandoluxcarservice — their luxury cars were spotless, the chauffeur was professional, and the ride was smooth from start to finish. Their price was way better too.
It’s a shame the Minnie Vans aren’t actually, you know, vans. IMO, riding in the backseat of a minivan is much more pleasant than a large SUV if you suffer from even minor car sickness. A Suburban may be an expensive SUV but that does not make it a luxury vehicle with a smooth ride.
WOW! I thought the whole reason to book the Mears Connect Bus was to avoid the car seat issue? I had NO idea that you might be provided a van vs a bus. Having just used Mears Connect last week with our toddler, I had no idea that was a possibility, and am thanking God we were put on a bus and didn’t have to wait terribly long (although it did turn around after leaving the airport to pick up more guests).
Does anyone know when booking the Minnie Van airport service if you can choose your return pickup time? One of the reasons I hate using Mears connect is because of the super early pick up prior to your flight. We are TSA pre check, and the 3-4 hours in advance pick up is extremely unnecessary.
The ‘hack’ to that is specifying a different (later) flight than your actual departure time. So if your flight is at 2 pm, input a different one with a 3 pm time (or whatever).
Just don’t cut it too close, as Mears Connect is known to have delays and other issues.
Just curious:
Apologies if you addressed this in your post, but how does the price for a taxi to & from MCO to Disney resorts compare to the Minnie Vans?
Minnie Vans are much more expensive. Double.
I’m in a similar boat as a newer dad and even though I would’ve laughed at this a few years ago it definitely piqued my interest this time. We used away we go last year and it was great service for about the same price however we also rented our stroller through them which was really convenient and included in that price. Now that my daughter is old enough to fully recognize those dots I could see myself going for it just to get right into the Disney bubble right from the airport. If Disney did decide to add a stroller rental option as part of this, with good quality strollers, I probably wouldn’t even think twice about going this route honestly. We’re really not into unnecessary splurges either, but there is significant benefit to getting the most out of your vacation by going directly to your destination and not spending extra time on a bus with a toddler who just got off an airplane, and the cost differences aren’t great but also aren’t as bad as I might’ve expected.
Not the point of this post but…”I’m more cognizant of my own safety. Being a father brings your own mortality into sharp relief” really resonated with me and I appreciated reading it. My kids are 10 and 7 now, but since becoming a mother it’s insane how aware I am of my own mortality and thoroughly analyzing the what-ifs. Blessing and a curse? Just happy to be able to relate to that 🙂 (I’d never ride in an Uber with my kids either…*shudder*)
It’s interesting how one’s HOME circumstances determine how they think about these things.
We live in a big city with extremely expensive airport parking, so when our kids were little, on longer trips we never drove to the airport – we’d call a cab and strap the car seats in ourselves, then check them on our flight (it’s always free to check those on major airlines and most families with little ones are likely checking bags anyway on longer trips, given everything that needs to be packed). It’s been rare to encounter ANY Lyft/Uber driver in my life who’s driven as aggressively as the AVERAGE big city taxi driver. So it’s just a tolerance we’ve built up, and we became big ride-sharing service fans just based on how drivers seemed to be more “chill” generally. (The “XL” drivers also seem to usually be more family friendly by nature.)
My own personal circumstances/context also leaves me surprised that anyone would NOT bring their car seat(sl with them on a vacation. I’m not talking about purchasing a seat for under-2 infant/toddler and strapping them in on the plane (which is recommended by many, but we never did that – lap babies were necessary based on our budget). I’m just thinking about all of our many family trips… we either rented cars or took taxis or got picked up by family/friends. All those scenarios required our car seats (I’m not renting a random one from Alamo or Thrifty, etc.).
BUT I’m an outlier on this blog as we never did the “week in the Disney Bubble” vacation. And thinking deeply about this topic makes me realize that there are so many scenarios in which people would drive their own car to the airport and prefer to leave their car seats in their own vehicle (they’re not fun to lug into out of the airport), especially at WDW where if you’re staying on property you may never need to set foot in a car (other than at Tomorrow Speedway) for your entire vacation. And whether you’re a family with 1 kid, or twin toddlers, or three elementary-school children, or whatever, makes such a big difference as to what methods or “hacks” work for your family (not to mention whether your family is just scraping by financially or has the means to not worry at all about vacation spending). So ultimately I’ve learned not to judge parents’ decisions/perspectives, and that it’s just really hard to give general advice on this sort of topic without knowing the specific circumstances each family is operating under. Tom has a tough job for posts like this one!
It’s not just home circumstances–it’s other travel circumstances that come into play.
After lugging a car seat around Japan and Hong Kong for several weeks last year for absolutely no reason whatsoever except the flights (since literally everything else was public transit), we told ourselves that we’d be ditching the car seat for all future travel, whenever possible, as soon as possible.
Walt Disney World is one of the very few domestic destinations that can approximate the ‘international experience’ and we like to seize on that. Especially since everywhere at home–including Disneyland–involves a car seat.
I’d take it a step even further, and say that I can’t wait to be freed of the stroller, to travel as unencumbered as possible again. I think *we* are probably the outliers in this.
The “International Experience” as you mentioned, can be really eye-opening and refreshing. We just took our kids (now teens) through 4 countries in Europe and never got behind the wheel of a car… the transportation itself — trains, buses (unfortunately one plane leg, my least favorite), mountain lifts/gondolas, ferries, a few Ubers, etc. — was huge part of the adventure, just as it is often intrinsic to a WDW vacation as well.
The thing many don’t fully appreciate is the complexity of WDW planning. Relatively speaking, I spent more time per day planning/strategizing for my quick 2-day WDW trip this summer as I did for our extended European adventure. I enjoy the planning and research, but many WDW travelers might be surprised that if they can successfully tour Disney World, they have the skills to plan a trip ANYWHERE.
I think you are far from an outlier, Tom. In fact, I have read multiple stories about couples who decide to NOT have any more children and the number one reason is dealing with car seats. No kidding, you can look it up. Again and again young couples express frustration, futility and outright rage about dealing with car seats.
Hey Tom, given the signs that it may possibly happen, in your option, what are the odds that the Magical Express could really come back. Are you thinking 60/40 for it happening? or more like 30/70 against. Worst? Better? HA
For us, it would be a dream-come-true. Like you, we use Mears Connect almost exclusively for the MCO to WDW trip, not only for the cost and convenience, but also for pure nostalgia (really the biggest draw). However, we do not use it that much for the ride back to MOC given the 4-hour-before-flight pickup rule. To be honest, it has been so long, I can’t remember if that was also the case for TME.
I don’t want to get my hopes to high, so it would be interesting to know where you stand on the possibility of a return to the “good ole” airport transportation days.
As always, keep up the AMAZING work!
Given that they purposefully got rid of it, I don’t see the likelihood as being above 50%. Even though management and circumstances have changed since then, I still don’t see it as above 50/50.
But those changing circumstances are why I do think there’s a realistic, non-zero chance. I’ll go with 30/70, although it might be wishful thinking to have even that high of a number. I just know that a lot has changed in the last few years, and things that I thought were even more improbable have returned. Competition is only heightening, so who knows.
Okay, maybe this is a silly question but can someone please explain to me why car seats are needed in vans but not in a bus? If the bus crashes or gets hit, won’t small children who don’t weigh much still get thrown about?
As for chatty drivers with inappropriate conversation topics, this seems to be an “Orlando problem” in my experience. We typically take Lyfts when traveling (and also sometimes at home in NYC); normally the drivers don’t try to talk to us at all, which I prefer. But we have had *multiple* drivers in Orlando not only want to talk to us the whole trip, but about subjects I find absolutely wild to bring up with a complete stranger.
“As for chatty drivers with inappropriate conversation topics, this seems to be an “Orlando problem” in my experience.”
This has been my experience, as well.
With regard to car seats, I assume it’s the size difference? The differential between a van and an average SUV isn’t much, whereas it’s significant versus a bus.
they have always been super cute but that doesn’t justify the cost for me.
We had a bad experience with Tiffany Towncar back in December. We are a family a 5 and need one careseat , so we have a lot of luggage. We booked a large van for our transport with a grocery stop on the way to the resort. Our driver insisted we didn’t need a car seat because our 4 year old is in the 99th percentile, but we continually insisted. Then they were on their phone the entire time, talking, looking at messages, etc because they informed us they were a contractor for Tiffany and had several other cars that he owned and had to coordinate. His driving was a bit erratic because of all this. If you asked me right there in the moment I would have happily chosen to upgrade to a MinnieVan. We likely will in the future at least as long as a car seat is still needed making rideshare a better option. We have had good luck with rideshare, but have always used the XL/XXL options, which tends to be more family focused.
Yikes! Sorry to hear that–you might be the first person I’ve ever heard from that has had an issue with them.
Either way, this kind of speaks to the point about why we’d consider using this for getting from WDW to MCO. It’s a Disney service, and if there’s an issue with a vehicle, there’s a whole fleet of other Disney vehicles to fill the gap. When relying on a third party–any third party–your recovery options are going to be more limited. Not great in a situation with a ticking clock.
I’m really surprised you had a bad experience with Tiffany Town Car. Did you notify the management?
I also used Tiffany Town Car last December and got the typical, outstanding service. The driver was friendly, polite, professional and competent. He made some small talk, but no conspiracy theories. We did a grocery stop and assured us we could take our time as he didn’t have another ride coming up any time soon. Same driver on the way back and, again, outstanding service.
During the drive, I mentioned Disney Cruise Line to my wife. The driver politely suggested we call Tiffany if we decided to take a cruise. “You don’t want to ride a bus all the way to Port Canaveral. Just give us a call. I will take you directly to the piers!”. I just might do that.
Rob, I also had a bad experience with Tiffany Towncar in May (just posted my comment), and you mentioning the driver being on his phone and driving erratically makes me wonder if we might have had the same one…or is this just a recurring issue with the way they contract vehicle owners? It felt like the looooongest ride to the hotel, and like you said, we would’ve happily thrown $100 at someone to get us out of there and into a Minnie Van at the time. Even the better driver we had on the way back to the airport wasn’t friendly.
“While the vast majority of rideshare experiences are perfectly fine, I’ve had enough questionable ones to give me pause about gambling my daughter’s safety on it.”
I’ve only been to WDW a couple of times on business trips since becoming a dad, but I’ve had the same mixed results with Orlando rideshares. One was so bad that I considered verbally confronting the driver to tell him “Please stop driving so aggressively, I don’t want this”, but on balance I decided that would be counterproductive. There’s a 0% chance I’m putting me or my my family into another one of these Crazy App Taxis. I uninstalled the related apps and I don’t plan to add them back… ever.
Having lived in Orlando, I can totally see how this happens. Overgeneralizing, but you basically have a few types of drivers all sharing the same road:
1) Clueless tourists, a reasonably high percentage of whom are inexperienced at driving in the US.
2) Elderly individuals
3) Locals
Add to that ever-increasing traffic and it’s not hard to see how group #3 can get frustrated or develop aggressive driving behavior. Not that I speak from experience or anything. Can’t imagine how much ‘worse’ that tendency might get if you’re driving all-day, every day.
Let’s see, almost $450.00 (including a $20.00 tip each way as one OP does) round trip. Uh, that’s a hard no.
A rental car is probably ~$500, so I can see how people talk themselves into this, if they don’t want to ride a Mears Connect group bus. I join the many many people wishing there was regional rail service linking MCO to WDW. Walt reportedly loved trains but presumably the civic leaders of Orlando have had less of a Walt-like vision. Metro/Regional Transit is a tough issue but it’s a hard thing that’s worth doing and I do hope it happens for Orlando.
Never thought I would rent a car for Disney World, but when we were there this summer, I needed one for an appointment off property, and it was great! So easy to come and go to the parks, and especially enjoyed how easy it made it to go to dinner at different resorts. Picking it up was faster than waiting for a Lyft, and we still rode the skyliner and boat for fun…I might be a convert.
The freedom having your own car offers can be a gamechanger, especially at a sprawling place like Walt Disney World. Totally understand how it appeals to a lot of people, and I’d recommend many/most at least give it a try once.
It’s absolutely not for us, though. To each their own!
I do believe the drivers feel you want to get to your destination quickly so when i step into an Uber with family I tell the driver ‘No rush and I will tip you $20 if you drive carefully” and I do,.. I think that is a fair tip for a ride to or from the airport, less than what we all are required to tip a waiter who isn’t carrying our lives on a silver platter,.
That’s a smart move–kudos on the nice, tactful approach!
Last time we did Mears about a year ago it was a disaster. This was terminal C at MCO. We waited almost 2 hours in the terminal for pick up. We were told it was because the airport had “shut down” due to lightning in the area and they weren’t allowing vehicles to come & go… uh-huh. When it finally came it was a van. The family they were also picking up needed a car seat and while there was one in the van the driver had NO idea how to install it. We spent another 45 minutes of him trying. The Mom finally figured it out. The Mears staff in the terminal were not helpful at all (when we could get them to look up from their phones). Both myself & the other party called Mears for a refund which we were promised but never received. For our trip next month I booked a car service. I’m not comfortable with Uber or Lyft personally.
“We were told it was because the airport had “shut down” due to lightning in the area and they weren’t allowing vehicles to come & go”
I’ve had literally the exact same experience happen twice. On both occasions, I got incredibly lucky being on the first departing bus/van to leave, but it looked like other guests were going to be in for the long haul.
I’m surprised to read that you don’t travel with a carseat. It’s the best practice option for keeping small kids safe on a plane, and often helps keep them calm during a flight. a bonus is that you then have it available for airport transfers while you are there, rather than using a seat from Mears that may have a questionable history or be the wrong size and type.
Yes, it is a hassle hauling it through the airport. I’m grateful that after almost 10 years of it, my kids are now both old enough to use RideSafer Vests instead.
Recommended reading for all parents:
https://csftl.org/leaving-on-a-jet-plane-the-csftl-guide-to-safe-air-travel-with-children/
The last time we flew with a car seat, it was an unmitigated disaster.
Suffice to say, it’s not safer if all she wants to do is stand in the car seat and look at the rows behind her.
Our family has been lucky to use this service the past few years when we did Club Level stays and have been very happy with it! We first used it for the exact reason you suggested: car seats.
We had traveled to Disney as a family of 4 during the Magical Express days so never had to worry about car seats. When we returned as a family of 5, post-Magical Express, with a need for car seat equipped airport transport, we decided to try the Minnie Van option since it was available to us and the whole family loved it. Kids in particular liked it since they played Disney videos in the car and had a wide range of free snacks available to them. The SUVs also gave us the space we needed for luggage for 5 plus a stroller. And the drivers were really good at playing tour guide. Basically it is an upscale private version of the Magical Express and an option we have happily booked multiple times.
That said, we also had good experience with Mears’ limo service. Cheaper (though not materially so) and no issue getting car seats.
Thanks for sharing your experience!