Arrival day is often the most hectic day of your Disney vacation. Here I will lay out some tips on how to make your arrival day go smoothly as well as a few suggestions on how to make the most of the shortened Disney Day that you find yourself facing after using a portion of the day for travel.
Touchdown at Orlando International Airport
So much of the anticipation for your Disney vacation leads up to boarding your plane and taking off to the most magical place on Earth. Most people do not factor in the disappointing reality that when you touch down in Orlando, you have still not actually arrived in Disney. It can be slightly anti-climactic to deboard the plane and realize there is no Cinderella's Castle outside the airport window. You still have some logistics to take care of before you can truly feel in the "Disney bubble."
Unfortunately, the experience that is Orlando International Airport is far from Magical. This is one of the worst airports to travel through. It gets so crowded, it is difficult to find your way, and baggage claim takes forever. Once you have collected all of your bags and are ready to leave the airport, there are a couple of different ways to get to Walt Disney World.
Getting to Walt Disney World
You may not realize that Disney World is about a 25-30 minute drive from the Orlando International Airport. That is something to consider when budgeting for transportation costs associated with your trip. You will have to pay for some form of transportation to get you to Disney World. Once inside the Disney bubble, there will be a free form of transportation to reach everything else inside the Disney property. If you last went to Disney World before January 1, 2022, you may remember the Magical Express. This was free bus transportation provided by Disney that transported Disney Resort guests to their hotel from Orlando International Airport. Sadly, the Magical Express no longer exists, and Disney Resort guests are left to find their way to Disney World themselves.
1) Uber/Lyft
The first method of transportation to get you from the airport to the Disney property is Uber or Lyft. This is my personal recommendation and the method I have used ever since they got rid of the Magical Express. I feel it is a much more direct and faster option than other methods of transportation. You can book an Uber at the time that works best for you, it will go directly to the location in Disney World that you need to go to, and no one else will be sharing the ride with you. Typically an uber costs around $30 for the one-way ride.
2) Mears
Mears is the bus company that operated the Magical Express back when it existed. The service that they offer now is almost identical and the buses are exactly same, minus the Disney themed wrapping. It is a bus shared by other Disney Resort guests, that you can book for certain time blocks during the day. It costs $16-$20 per person for a one-way ride. I have not actually tried using Mears myself, as I do not think it would be as efficient as Uber is. First, it is a shared ride and will take a lot longer to reach your final destination as you will have to stop at other Disney resorts before you are dropped off at yours. Also, you book Mears ahead of time, by time block. That means that if there is a flight delay, you may be left scrambling upon arrival in Orlando to reschedule your time block.
Mears does offer private shuttles to and from the airport, which might be a consideration if flying during a time when an Uber is difficult to come by (such as a 6am flight). In those circumstances, I believe it would be convenient and bring peace of mind to have a private shuttle pre-scheduled for the early morning hours. However, this option is expensive, with the cheapest tier being over $100.
3) Rental Car
Another possible mode of transportation is a rental car. This is not one that I would recommend. Once on Disney property, you are able to get around the entire Disney World Resort with free, Disney provided transportation- whether it be bus, monorail, skyliner, or boat. Paying for a rental car for the entire length of your trip would be a waste of money, as it would most likely sit in your resort parking lot the entire time. Driving a rental car around the Disney property seems like more of a headache than a convenience, as parking in a parking lot would be a much further walk than where the Disney bus would drop you off. You would also have to battle traffic yourself rather than allowing the Disney bus driver to handle it. In my opinion, there are not many pros to renting a car.
Tips on What to Do Arrival Day
You are able to check-in to your Disney Resort on the My Disney Experience app, prior to arrival day. This allows you to skip the check in line and you will automatically be assigned a room when it is ready. You can then go straight to your room and enter the room by tapping your magic band or your phone (with the app open) on the door knob. This really streamlines the check-in process. Additionally, if you have an early morning flight and arrive at your Disney Resort before your room is ready, all resorts have a bell hop that will hold your bags for free until your room is ready. You can stow your bags and then you are free to go do anything you would like. This is a great perk and allows you to make the most of your arrival day, rather than having to sit with your luggage until your room is ready.
On your Arrival Day, you will most likely not make it to your Disney Resort until later in the Day. For that reason, I will never buy a Park Ticket for my arrival day. There are too many variable factors that make this a waste of money. Park tickets are expensive at Disney World, and in my opinion, not worth the expense if you are only able to use a full day park ticket for a half day or less at the park. Furthermore, flights could be delayed or cancelled, completely throwing a wrench into your plans. It just sounds like an extra layer of travel stress to have a park ticket that you are rushing to use, which is not a very magical way to start off your Disney trip. As such, here are a few things I suggest doing on your arrival day:
1) Disney Springs
Disney Springs is a great nighttime activity to do on the day you arrive. It is so magical there at night with the water and the lights and is a stress-free way to begin your trip. There are so many different restaurants to choose from and a bunch of souvenir shops to check out. World of Disney is the mothership for souvenirs and offers essentially every piece of Disney World merchandise there is to buy, all in one store in Disney Springs. Disney Springs stays open until 11pm or later, making it the perfect place to go after you've had time to check into your resort and freshen up from your day of travel. My favorite restaurant in Disney Springs is T-Rex. It offers American food and is dinosaur themed with a live dinosaur animatronics show every 15 minutes. It is a neat place to have dinner.
2) After-Hours Event
An After-Hours Event is another great option for your arrival day. I most recently attended the H2O Glow After-Hours Party on my arrival day and it worked out perfectly. After-Hours Events are separately ticketed, which means that a normal Park ticket will not give you admission. The Events also do not start until nighttime, when the park has closed to the general public. That gives the perfect opportunity to enjoy some park time without wasting a full day park ticket. After-Hours Events also include free snacks, so if you have to skip dinner coming straight from the airport, you are covered!
This option is riskier than other free arrival-day options, since you do have to buy the ticket in advance, and it is non-refundable. If for some reason your flight gets delayed or cancelled, you might miss the party and not receive your money back. Disney may however allow you to save the money as a credit to be used towards a future After-Hours Event.
3) Enjoy your Resort's Amenities
The majority of the Resorts at Disney World have amazing amenities, particularly when you get up to the Moderate and Deluxe Resorts. Part of the reason you are buying so much money to stay in a Disney Resort is for the amazing amenities, so you should make sure you take some time to enjoy them. Arrival day is the perfect time to tour your Resort, try out one of the restaurants, or take a dip in the themed pools. Also, most resorts have movies under the stars at nighttime and select resorts offer campfires and make you own s'mores at nighttime as well.
We recently stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and spent our entire arrival day viewing the animals on the savannah, swimming in the pool, and had dinner at Sanaa, one of the superb Table Service restaurants located in the resort. It was the perfect opportunity to enjoy the resort amenities, since we did not have to feel guilty about missing park time to do so.
5) Resort Hop
It can be fun to hop from resort to resort, checking out their amenities and restaurants. It is especially neat to do during the Christmas season, as the resorts are all decked out with Christmas trees and decorations. It is easiest and most convenient to resort hop between the resorts located on the monorail loop. That is the Grand Floridian, the Contemporary, and the Polynesian. Of course these are 3 of the fanciest Deluxe resorts at Disney World, and therefore have the most detailed theming to admire. It is fun to walk through the lobbies and pretend you are a guest staying there. My favorite restaurant on the monorail loop is 'Ohana at the Polynesian, which makes for a great arrival day dinner.
No matter what you decide to do on your arrival day at Disney World, make sure you are able to get to bed at a decent time and get plenty of rest before your first full day at Disney the following day. Sleep and rest is limited on a Disney vacation and you will want to make sure you start off on a good start- although there really is something about Disney World that makes you happy and excited to run off a mere 4 hours of sleep a night. Must be the Disney Magic!
コメント