Guide to Minnie Vans at Disney World: Review, Prices, Info & Tips
Minnie Vans are private vehicle service at Walt Disney World, operated by Lyft (and similarly to Uber), but operated by Cast Members in fun cars. This reviews our experiences using the paid transportation, pricing info & cost comparisons to alternatives, plus tips & info for best using it.
For those who are unfamiliar with Minnie Vans, the vehicle service can be requested at every Walt Disney World resort via the Lyft app. Disney has made a significant investment in the program, with a huge number of vans and SUVs added to the fleet. Walt Disney World considers it a ‘priority’ transportation option, with private point-to-point service that’s almost always more efficient than buses.
When the Minnie Vans were first announced, and their initial price was released, we didn’t have much interest. The service was–and is–significantly more expensive than Uber or Lyft, so I thought “what’s the point?” After using the Minnie Vans on a recent trip to Walt Disney World, I have a more favorable opinion of the service, albeit one that has been tempered significantly by price increases.
Speaking of which, let’s start with Minnie Van pricing, because that’s going to be the threshold issue for most families visiting Walt Disney World. Minnie Vans now have dynamic pricing. This means that the cost will be different by destination and time of day, with rates largely dictated by supply and demand.
As you can see from the screenshots below, Minnie Vans are often more than 3 times the price of a base Lyft vehicle for the exact same destination. They’re often double the price of Lyft XL, which is the more apples to apples comparison since both Minnie Vans and Lyft XL seat 6 people.
In some instances, this price gap is even larger. For the longest routes at Walt Disney World, we’ve found prices as high as $60 at times when Uber or Lyft were around $15 to $17. One example of that is in the screenshot below (left), which goes between Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Fort Wilderness and Jambo House at Animal Kingdom Lodge.
It’s a similar story with Magic Kingdom to AKL (right). These routes were chosen deliberately both for their duration and because, as discussed below, the Minnie Van service is fundamentally different (and thus a bit incomparable) due to drop-off locations.
On the pricing front, there are a couple of unique wrinkles with Minnie Vans vs. Lyft or Uber. First, Minnie Vans are often in higher demand than regular rideshare, which leads to both higher prices and longer wait times. There have been instances of near-immediate availability via regular Lyft vehicles (or Uber–but that’s a different app so it’s more difficult for the direct comparisons), whereas Minnie Vans had lengthy waits.
However, there is a flip side to that. Since Minnie Vans are almost always in high demand, the gap closes when regular Lyft vehicles are also in high demand. Meaning that when Lyft or Uber have surge pricing in the mornings or (especially) in the evenings after fireworks, Minnie Vans are still more expensive, but not triple the price of a regular Lyft or Uber.
Moreover, the Minnie Van service is not more expensive than all Lyft or Uber options. We’ve found that Minnie Van costs are typically slightly less expensive than the Lyft Lux Black XL, pretty consistently by about $10. (Even then we’ve found that the wait is usually longer for a Minnie Van, so if your vacation time has value–and it should–Minnie Vans usually lose on efficiency.)
When you consider that Walt Disney World resorts typically charge a luxury-caliber premium for their themed resorts, it’s easier (and perhaps more palatable?) to pay extra for the Minnie Van service. After all, you are getting a friendly Cast Member, a fun polka-dot vehicle, and in-car entertainment. (We aren’t suggesting it’s worth it or these services are comparable, just that the case could be made–and that this is consistent with the surcharge for Disney-branded resorts.)
For families, the biggest selling point for Minnie Vans, that might overshadow everything else about pricing, is that each Minnie Van vehicle comes equipped with two car seats and the Cast Member has been trained to properly install them. Unfortunately, this can otherwise be very hit or miss in the Orlando rideshare market. So if you need a car seat for your kid(s), the Minnie Van service might not just be your best choice–it could be your only option that isn’t a gamble.
Limited Minnie Van service to and from Orlando International Airport is now offered. Airport Minnie Van service is only available for guests staying Club Level, and is bookable by the resort concierge team (also known as Disney Signature Services).
Pricing is $199 plus tax for a one-way trip between any Club Level resort at Walt Disney World and MCO. 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 airport Minnie Van 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.
As of 2024, Minnie Van service between Walt Disney World and Orlando International Airport is not available for any other guests. Between this and the end of Disney’s Magical Express, 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.
Let’s turn to our review of Minnie Vans. As I’ve learned from reader comments to our Tips for Using Lyft & Uber at Walt Disney World post, there are many people who are distrustful of these ride-sharing services. There are a variety of reasons for this; some valid, others based on anecdotal fear-mongering (if you think taxis are safe, I have a documentary for you to watch). Regardless of the logic of the rationales, that’s how it is.
When it comes to Minnie Vans versus taxis, there is no comparison. Minnie Vans are (on average) cheaper, offer better service, are more reliable, and more comfortable. There are also accessible Minnie Vans, which is a huge selling point for those who might otherwise have challenges using other services, be it taxis or ride-sharing services.
With Uber or Lyft versus Minnie Vans, the scale tips in favor of the former–at least for us. On average, Minnie Vans are much more expensive. With the new per mile pricing, you’re looking at rates that are around triple the cost of Lyft or Uber. If price is your bottom line, it’s a no-brainer. You should stick with those ride-sharing services.
There are a few scenarios when Minnie Vans will arguably be better. For families, it’s also noteworthy that car seats do not incur an additional fee with Minnie Vans. The most notable of these is that Magic Kingdom drop-offs actually take you to Magic Kingdom instead of the Ticket & Transportation Center. In the past, we’ve recommend guests heading to Magic Kingdom be dropped off at the Contemporary and walk to Magic Kingdom. This obviates the need for such a ‘hack.’
There are other situations where the Minnie Van drop-off point offers a distinct advantage. If you’re going to Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue or Trail’s End at Fort Wilderness, you will be dropped off at Pioneer Hall (no internal bus system!). At Disney Springs, there are drop-off points beyond those for Uber and Lyft.
However, price is not what makes Minnie Vans a closer call as compared to Uber/Lyft. Instead, it’s the caliber of the service Cast Members offer. In the past, I’ve praised Uber and Lyft for offering better service than taxis. I think that’s definitely true, but those ride-sharing services can still be hit or miss.
Uber and Lyft drivers usually engage in polite conversation, and the vast majority of the time this is either interesting or enjoyable. About 10% of the time, I’d say it’s uncomfortable or mildly irritating. Some of our most “notable” experiences with Uber in Florida have been a driver explaining to us how awful California is after we told him that’s we live, the nitty-gritty lowdown on a driver’s child custody dispute, and almost any time a driver brings up politics. (Made-up Walt Disney World trivia is another common one that might bug some people, but I legitimately love hearing stuff like that. So much creativity out there!)
Again, this is a small minority of the time we use Uber or Lyft, with most rides being pleasant or uneventful. In deference to the drivers, they are not professional conversationalists (whatever that means) and not trained in the art of polite conversation. Many are driving as side gigs, and it wouldn’t surprise me if in the culture of their normal workplace, the topics they bring up are perfectly normal.
Every Minnie Van ride is like the very best Uber experience. If our encounters with drivers thus far are any indication, these are the creme de la creme of Cast Members, of a similar caliber to those you’d have on a VIP tour or when dealing with Guest Services. One of our drivers also worked in entertainment, which was unsurprising given her friendliness and affability.
I strongly suspect the drivers for the initial rollout of Minnie Vans were cherry-picked, and the result is like a mini-VIP tour during your ride (no joke!). The dynamic of this type of intimate interaction with a Cast Member is great, and is a reminder of just how much of the Walt Disney World experience is built upon the exemplary qualities of Cast Members. (I could honestly see Walt Disney World trying to use the Minnie Vans as a way to pique curiosity about private tours in the future.)
As the Minnie Van program continues to grow, one question we have is whether Walt Disney World can maintain this high degree of service as it’s scaled. Right now, the Minnie Van fleet is still small and has the feel of an upstart program. Cast Members are clearly proud to be a part of the program, and the guest experience is seriously good as a result.
I’m optimistic that this can remain the case. The price point is going to make it prohibitive for the majority of guests who will elect to either use the free bus (or other) transportation, or opt to save money with Uber or Lyft. Unless those ride-sharing apps are banned from Walt Disney World (unlikely given that they’ve partnered with Lyft on this, and banning only Uber would run afoul of the FTC Act), there’s only so big the Minnie Van program can get. Keeping it relatively small-scale will prevent the type of quality-erosion that would inevitably occur if the service becomes bloated.
Alright, now let’s cover some tips and info about the Minnie Vans. The vehicles used as Minnie Vans are brand-new Chevy Traverse mid-size SUVs. (Plus other Chevrolet vans for guests with wheelchairs or ECVs.) One nice perk worth mentioning is that these cars feature USB charging ports.
Minnie Vans can seat up to 6 guests, versus the 4 people that can be seated in the lowest tier of Uber or Lyft vehicles. Definitely a selling point for guests with larger parties, and factor to consider if ‘doing the math’ comparing the services.
As of right now, Minnie Vans have been rolled out to all Deluxe Resorts at Walt Disney World. We also were able to request a Minnie Van at Coronado Springs, so you might have luck with a pickup beyond the “official” resorts.
To use the service, you need to have the Lyft app on your smartphone (Minnie Vans are “powered by Lyft”). Once activated, you can use the Lyft app to request a Minnie Van pick-up. It works the same way as the standard Lyft or Uber experience, with available vehicles being shown on the map, and time/price estimates being given. (You can get free ride credits on Lyft via this link.)
In the screenshots throughout this post, you should be able to see how we had the option to select a Minnie Van (the top option) as well as any other Lyft vehicle while traveling on-site around Walt Disney World. In terms of logistics, Minnie Vans are nearly identical to Uber and Lyft.
You are picked up and dropped off at designated locations identified in the app(s), albeit with some differences between Minnie Vans and the “traditional” ride-sharing companies. There are other quirks to the pick-up and drop-off locations, but those are the significant ones (to our knowledge) on Walt Disney World property.
Beyond that, there is one restriction with Minnie Vans: drivers can only take you to on-property locations, and the service only operates between 6:30 a.m. and 12:30 a.m. That means you’ll need to stick with Uber or Lyft when visiting Universal or the Waffle House on Vineland at 2 a.m.
Overall, the Minnie Vans score very high marks from us. To be frank, we used them for the sake of writing a review, and but for that, we would have never considered Minnie Vans for personal use. We are more “bottom line price” type of people, so Minnie Vans did not seem targeted at us.
After using Minnie Vans at Walt Disney World, we were really impressed. They offer an air of light-luxury in a themed vehicle with a friendly Cast Member that could potentially justify them over one of the higher tiers of Uber or Lyft for those who want a luxury-adjacent private vehicle service that’s efficient and comfortable. This is especially true on longer routes (like the aforementioned one to Fort Wilderness), or at the end of a long day when we don’t feel like rolling the dice on a potentially uncomfortable conversation and just want high-quality Disney Cast Member service.
Due to the cost, we will never use Minnie Vans as an exclusive form of transportation. In fact, it’s unlikely that we’ll use Minnie Vans for personal use much, as they are simply so much more expensive than other ride-sharing services. Instead, we will continue to use Uber and Lyft as a supplement to Walt Disney World’s buses, monorails, and other Disney transportation, using whatever the situation might warrant.
However, that doesn’t mean Minnie Vans are a poor choice, especially for those with large budgets or families wanting a more “Disney” experience than Lyft. Likewise, those doing an early-morning ADR, transferring resorts, or in other point-to-point situations, might find Minnie Vans to be a worthwhile option.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
If you’ve used a Minnie Van, do you agree or disagree with our review? What do you think of the pricing–too high, or fair for what’s offered? Any questions about Minnie Vans we can help you answer? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment of the Minnie Van service and how it compares to Lyft or Uber? 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 LOVED using the Minnie Van service this past trip!! I have a loathing for the busses though, and extreme affection for anything that gives me a VIP type experience at Disney, so I may be quite biased. We did tip though, and were not told we shouldn’t. I think $25 from AKL to MK is a STEAL.
We LOVED using the Minnie Van service this past trip!! I have a loathing for the busses though, and extreme affection for anything that gives me a VIP type experience at Disney, so I may be quite biased. We did tip though, and were not told we shouldn’t. I think $25 from AKL to MK is a STEAL.
Tom, we’re in our park/ADR planning stages for our May 2018 trip, and we’re considering going to the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue for the first time ever. However, given that’s a 2-hour show at a location that doesn’t seem quickly accessible (and requires arrival 30 minutes prior), I’m concerned that with the travel time to/fro, our overall time commitment to this one event/dinner may be approaching 4-5 hours (depending on what our starting location will be). My thought is that we would go there after a day in either Magic Kingdom (Disney recommends allowing 1.5 hour travel time and I can only assume that’s one-way) or Epcot. The latter would either be a bus from the park to resort (about 30 minutes), followed by (I’m assuming) the internal bus (possibly another 30 minutes), or based on your blog, a Minnie Van from the Boardwalk Inn, which obviously requires some walking time before getting into the van, plus the additional $20 charge, but possibly a much quicker drive and dropped off closer to the actual show location.
I would appreciate any thoughts/recommendations you may have on this that would help save on overall time required.
Thanks,
Jim
I think you’ve pretty much covered the pertinent considerations. Hopefully by May 2018, many more Minnie Vans are rolled out, and they’re easy to catch from the parks themselves, and you don’t have to mess with walking out to International Gateway?
Failing that, I’d probably just use the boat from Magic Kingdom. That takes you directly to the area of Fort Wilderness where Pioneer Hall is located. Disney recommends 1.5 hours as a safety net, but that trip can pretty easily be accomplished in ~45 minutes or less.
So, if I am reading correctly you have already answered this question but I’m going to double check anyway. We are a family of 6 (4 kids God help us), and we are staying at Art of Animation in late January-early Feb. We would like to take the kids mini golfing at Fantasia Gardens and visit the Boardwalk on one of our days. Art of Animation to Boardwalk sounds like a perfect opportunity for Minnie Vans but it sounds like they won’t pick up there? What would be your plan for making that trip assuming taking a bus to Hollywood just to board another bus to Boardwalk would be the worst.
As of right now, Minnie Vans are technically not yet available at Art of Animation. By early 2018, that could be different.
We used the Minnie Vans three times between 9/23 and 9/29 during our stay at Kidani Village and had a few takeaways.
The first CM we met, Christopher from Chicago, told us that each driver receives 5 hours of training on how to properly instal the car seats!!! The other thing is that they will install them both forward and rear facing which is wonderful if you have a small 2yo like us who we have elected to not turn around yet. Seriously this is service that we have never had from Uber.
Second, at the end of the day, when it’s hot, and you and everyone else are leaving the MK after HEA, the $20 to sit in a cool calm vehicle for the 20 minute ride back to Kidani instead of standing in a crowded bit holding a folded stroller is worth it pretty much every time.
I’ve personally always had a pretty good experience with Uber but the Minnie Vans are worth the money from a value and quality standpoint. There is no comparison.
Hi, Do they have car seats on hand?? I assume you do not haul them around the parks with you?
Each Minnie Van can have up to two car seats. When not I. Use they are kept in the back of the vehicle. Every time they pulled up the driver would hop out of the car, ask is how old our Daughter was and if we wanted forward or rear facing. The car seats were Graco brand. I’m not sure if the model but they were quite substantial and my daughter never fussed about sitting in them.
Oh no, I’m so disappointed to read it is only working for US customers. I’m from UK, staying at Yacht club in November, have mobility problems and was going to use them a lot
It may be helpful to your international readers to know that we were told you CANNOT use this service without a US phone number (unlike uber and Lyft generally).
I was at the Beach Club 21-28 Sep, and while my phone got the pop up on our first day, the number you enter cannot be more than 10 digits (so no country dialling code). This is despite the fact that I had pre downloaded Lyft and successfully linked my U.K. number.
I asked the front desk about it and they said that it was US guests only at the moment, which was really disapponting for us. So uber got our money instead! Hope they figure it out as I would think international guests would be a big market as we take longer trips and are probably less likely to rent a car (driving on the wrong side of the road!).
I’m excited to try the Minnie Vans! My first experience with Uber was this year in Orlando. The driver told us to fake a disability at Disney World so we wouldn’t have to wait in lines. He said he gives that tip to everyone. Our Uber rides after that were hit or miss, but none as distasteful as that one. I’m eager to try something new and looking forward to the friendly, professional drivers in the Minnie Vans.
We used the Minnie Van service on our trip the last week of September. It was actually our first trip to Disney and I had read about this service initially on your blog (I think the news and rumors from D23 blogpost).
Our 2 year old had an epic meltdown on the bus on the way back from the park on Wednesday and we decided then that we would try the Minnie Van service the next night when leaving the park. We are a family of 6, with 3 still in car seats or boosters. The Minnie Van was totally worth it for us.
I agree it would not be our main mode of transportation, but when you need some relief from the buses and/or have a larger family with lots of littles, this is a great option.
By the way, your blog was my go to source for this first trip and I would say you are pretty much spot on with everything. The only thing we disagree on is Hollywood Studios. It easily could have been a full day park for us, even with all the construction. But, we are a family full of Star Wars and Disney Jr fans:-). We already plan on going back next year for Toy Story Land and then again in 2020 for Galaxy’s Edge. By then it will be a multi day park for us:-)
On a side side note: I won’t ride in Taxis ever because I saw the movie Bone collector. I’m the odd duck who thinks Uber’s are safer…
I think the Minnie Vans would be a nice alternative for sure. Since we’re a bit the park and stay all day type of family, I could see it as an option at the end of each day at least.
“I’m the odd duck who thinks Uber’s are safer…”
If it makes you feel any better, it’s a view I also hold. Most cities do not track data on taxis so there is no way to make a definitive declaration on safety, but the scattering of anecdotal reports about incidents in Ubers I find to be unpersuasive.
It’s akin to reading about a bus accident at Walt Disney World. The reason it’s being reported in the first place is because it’s a “sexier” story due to Disney being involved. It doesn’t make buses at WDW less safe–the same story just isn’t reported elsewhere because no one cares.
We can a lot for resort to resort dinner trips, and we tried Uber twice. For the second ride, the guy didn’t know where the Poly was to pick us up there. He didn’t even know WHAT the Polynesian was. That’s besides the point that the app should be telling him where we are. We went right back to the yellow taxis after that. No question we’ll be going with the Minnie Vans now instead!!
That should’ve said we CAB a lot…
We are going to Disney World next month and staying at POR but having an early breakfast at the Beach Club one of the mornings that we are there. Since they might not have the Minnie Vans at POR yet but they do have them at Beach Club do you know if this is something we might be able to use to go to breakfast there? We have 2 kids in car seats so it would be perfect for us
The problem you’re going to have is that the Minnie Vans “hang out” at the Deluxe Resorts at which they’re stationed when not doing routes, so even if you are able to request one via Lyft (and that’s no guarantee), it could take a bit of time for the van to arrive.
It is my understanding that you have to be a registered guest at the resorts that offers the Minnie Van service in order to use it, or at least that is how it was back in September when we stayed at the Boardwalk Inn.
If you need to request an accessible Minnie van, does that option just pop up through the app?
We tried the service from Wilderness Lodge last week and it kept cancelling our request making us late for a reservation. We made at least 3 requests ended up getting a regular Lyft driver.
Any guess on when they’ll be officially rolled out to the moderates? We’re booked at POR at the end of January, and I’d like to give this a try.
It has taken them <3 months to go from 3 Deluxe Resorts to all of them, so I think another 3 months to roll-out to the Moderate Resorts makes sense.
That's just a guess, though. Who knows--maybe they placed an order on those vehicles a while ago, and didn't receive all of them at first, and the next order will take longer? (In other words, I don't have any actual insight--just guesses.)
Has this rolled out to DVC resorts or just the traditional Deluxe resorts.
I know it has rolled out to the standard Deluxe resorts with DVC wings/extensions (meaning Bay Lake Tower, Kidani, etc.), but I’m not sure about Old Key West.
We saw these vans several times during our most recent stay at WDW (August 20-26). I’m sure my 8 year old daughter would love to ride in one of these once, but alas, we usually do value or moderate resorts (though we got a good deal on AKL for a short stay in October 2016).
It sounds like you visit about once per year–I’d fully expect these to roll out to Value and Moderate Resorts well before Summer 2018.
We used the Minnie Vans exclusively when we needed to get somewhere on our trip in September, with the exception of leaving the Night of Joy event at 1:15am. Unbeknown to us, the Minnie Van service had already closed down for the day. We found it to be a pleasant ride with great cast members who each had interesting stories. We also waited lessons than 5 minutes each time we needed a ride, and in fact, if we planned the pickup while we were still in the hotel room, the van was usually less than a minute away when we got to the pickup location. We felt like this saved considerable time in the parks since we didn’t have to wait on busses to arrive and then stop at multiple resorts to get get us to our destination. We were thankful for your Lyft discount code that you provided in an earlier post that saved us $5 for our first four rides! That made the price point a bit better to swallow. We definitely plan on using the Minnie Van program again on our next trip, which will be with our kids and will make the value even better!
Oh wow! I didn’t realize the Lyft promo code worked on the Minnie Van. Now I feel like a chump for overpaying by $5 on each of our rides!
We used the minnie van service during our last trip and it was perfect for us, mostly due to my father using an evc. While there are handicap accessible taxis and the *rare* uber/lyft regular vehicles that can hold that beast, for the most part, we’re stuck with either a rental car or all disney transportation. This was a game changer
For those curious on how to request an accessible vehicle, it cannot be done on the app. On our first day, I asked concierge how to request the accessible vehicle and they gave me a direct number. We never waited more than 10 minutes for an accessible vehicle. You still had to use the app to pay, but otherwise, it’s all done by telephone.
Thanks for the insight with regard to the accessible vehicles. Another way we were told this works or can work is by telling whichever driver is there or shows up that you need an accessible vehicle.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this is one detail that changes and becomes an in-app feature at some point.
If Minnie Vans were around during our previous Disney World visits we, as a family of six, would have used the service. Traveling to MK resorts or AK resort for dining from BWI, where we would have used our van, is cost comparable re gas and valet charge or tipping. We (I) probably wouldn’t substitute bus transportation to the Parks. Did you get any bus driver rumors from your van driver?
“Did you get any bus driver rumors from your van driver?”
Haha, unfortunately not. All of the advice and info our Minnie Van drivers gave us was accurate.
I did get some intel on the opening of EPCOT Center (in 1950!) from one of our Uber drivers this trip, though!
Just thought you might like to know it was 1982