Transportation

Is DCL transfer to the ship easier and less stressful? We arrive at 11pm the night before outFantasy cruise inlate August so we are staying at the Hyatt inside MCO. We will be taking a private transfer from ship to WDW hotel after the cruise. So, should I do DCL transfer to the ship or private transfer?

We always use the DL buses, they are comfortable, clean, have Disney information and cartoons.

Now if your group is 2 or 3, the prices are going to be about the same or cheaper, if your group is 4 or more, private transfers will be cheaper.

Have a great cruise.

AKK

We are a party of 4.

We found with our family of 4 it was about break even using a private transportation company and DCL We opt for DCL transportation as it is comfortable and well... convenient since we always stay at MCO Hyatt the night before (we come in late the day before also). Plus staying at the Hyatt inside the airport we just leave our luggage in there with our disney tags on them and someone fromDCL comes and gets it (as long as you are on Hyatts list for bag pickup for the cruise).

Cost for 4 people is about the same on DCL transfers vs. a private limo/towncar service. Coming in so late, I would definitely use DCL transfers in the morning. Your luggage will be taken from your room at the Hyatt (so no need to deal with that). You and your carry ons present yourselves at the Welcome Center and will be directed to the next bus...to the terminal and to start your vacation.

On the way home--are you aware of the on board airline check in program? If you are on a participating airline, you can place your luggage outside your door on the last night and not see it again until you arrive at your HOME airport. This can only be done with DCL transfers as your transportation...but honestly, this service is worth the cost of the transfers especially if you have young children. NO charge for the service beyond the cost of the transfers.

We are going to Disney World after for a few days and we're going to do private transfer.

We are going to Disney World after for a few days and we're going to do private transfer.

Makes sense.

If time is a concern then the private transfer option will be faster in both directions than the DCL busses. Hop in a van and off you go on your own schedule rather than sitting around waiting for busses to load.

Actually, for airport to port, Disney transfers are as fast as you can go. They let bus traffic in the port before anyone else. If you want to be first in line and get as much ship time as possible, DCL busses are the way to go.

Actually, for airport to port, Disney transfers are as fast as you can go. They let bus traffic in the port before anyone else. If you want to be first in line and get as much ship time as possible, DCL busses are the way to go.

Arriving at the port early has nothing to do with being on the ship early. Boarding is done by boarding card number. Your boarding card number is tied to your PAT. It is true that if you arrive by DCL bus, you will be allowed into the terminal without waiting regardless of the time you arrive and will be allowed to check in. However, you will be issued the same boarding card number whether you arrive at your PAT or 2 hours before your PAT. You will just spend the extra time hanging out in the terminal.

For instance, if you have a PAT of 12:30 but arrive at the terminal via DCL bus at 10:30....you'll get into the terminal and checked in for the cruise. THen you will wait until your boarding number is called. You'll likely board before 12:30, but you won't board with people who had a PAT of 10:30 unless you are booked concierge or are a Platinum castaway club member.

You just confirmed exactly what I said.

If you take a DCL bus from the airport, you'll be checked in and ready to go by the time they call your boarding number thus getting on board as early as possible.

DCL bus from a resort gets you to the port after open boarding starts.

Self park and private transportation get you to the port after it is open. You'll probably wait in longer security and check in lines and might not be finished by the time your number is called.

DCL bus from the resort absolutely gets you there quite late.

Private transportation to the terminal--we've never had any issues with being thru the security and check in lines before boarding started, but that obviously depends on what time you arrive (terminal opens at 10:30, first bus from MCO arrives about 10:20 by which time there is typically a long line of people from private transportation. The DCL bus people are processed as soon as they arrive, the line starts processing as soon as the bus people are thru security).

I suppose, as you report, that someone could still be standing in line to check in or even hypothetically could be in line outside the terminal when their boarding card number is called. I can say that we've never had that happen, and as platinum, we are in the first numbered group. Currently this is group 1 and concierge boards first without a number; several years ago concierge was group 1 and platinum was group 2. It hasn't mattered whether we arrived on a DCL bus or thru private transportation. Which we use depends on a lot of factors--where we spent the night before the cruise, which relates to whether there was a WDW trip first, what time the flight got in, etc.

Taking a bus from the airport doesn't mean you will be checked in before your number is called--that will depend on what time you got on the airport bus. And that is totally up to you. Also, unless you arrive before the terminal opens to private transportation, it a DCL bus does not get you into any sort of priority check in. You will go thru security when the bus arrives and get in line for check in. Unless you are on the first bus, you will very likely be behind people who arrived by private transportation. But if you are going to spend 45 minutes or more in the terminal (it is 45 minutes from terminal opening to start of boarding IF everything is on schedule), it doesn't really matter whether you spend a portion of that time standing in line to check in or whether you are already checked in and just hanging out.

All we care about is being checked in before our number is called. That can be accomplished easily regardless of how we arrive at the terminal.

If you are coming from a WDW resort to the ship, you will be assigned a PAT based on when the bus will be picking you up at the resort.

It could be in the early pat or one of the last Pat.

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If you are coming from a WDW resort to the ship, you will be assigned a PAT based on when the bus will be picking you up at the resort.

It could be in the early pat or one of the last Pat.

 

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You are not assigned a PAT. You choose your PAT from those that are available when you do your on line check in. If you don't like what was available at the initial check in, you can keep checking back and choose another time if something you like better opens up. Many people choose a PAT before booking flights and then change it when they find out what time they will actually arrive at MCO....you know, those people who don't or can't come in a day in advance.

You are only assigned a PAT if you are coming from the WDW resorts on the Disney buses.

If you are coming from MCO, or other transportation, you can choose your Pat based on available times.

This could have changed and maybe if you are coming from a resort other then pop/all stars you get to pick.

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Actually, for airport to port, Disney transfers are as fast as you can go. They let bus traffic in the port before anyone else. If you want to be first in line and get as much ship time as possible, DCL busses are the way to go.

Not to take away from a good discussion, but I was actually referring to travel time, not port arrival time. ;) Busses are slow and take forever to load. Private transfers are generally faster and let you operate on a more flexible time schedule.

We were just at the port a few weeks ago and our group had two separate port arrival times. Got to the port around 10:45 and walked right in. We went up to the counter at the same time, but we got totally different boarding numbers. We got an early group like 3 or 4 because of our early port arrival time. Our friends got something like group 12 because they had to pick a later port arrival time. It ended up not mattering though as they let us all board with our earlier boarding number.

Not to take away from a good discussion, but I was actually referring to travel time, not port arrival time. ;) Busses are slow and take forever to load. Private transfers are generally faster and let you operate on a more flexible time schedule.

 

We were just at the port a few weeks ago and our group had two separate port arrival times. Got to the port around 10:45 and walked right in. We went up to the counter at the same time, but we got totally different boarding numbers. We got an early group like 3 or 4 because of our early port arrival time. Our friends got something like group 12 because they had to pick a later port arrival time. It ended up not mattering though as they let us all board with our earlier boarding number.

That may have happened as a fluke, or just because you were on a Magic class ship sailing. The OP is on a Dream class sailing on the Fantasy.

I've not read of this happening since the PAT's were introduced.

ex techie

Perhaps the buses were running late and the terminal was empty?

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Not to take away from a good discussion, but I was actually referring to travel time, not port arrival time. ;) Busses are slow and take forever to load. Private transfers are generally faster and let you operate on a more flexible time schedule.

 

We were just at the port a few weeks ago and our group had two separate port arrival times. Got to the port around 10:45 and walked right in. We went up to the counter at the same time, but we got totally different boarding numbers. We got an early group like 3 or 4 because of our early port arrival time. Our friends got something like group 12 because they had to pick a later port arrival time. It ended up not mattering though as they let us all board with our earlier boarding number.

You've just confirmed that the boarding cards are tied to the PATs.

As Techie implied, they are much less strict with the Magic and Wonder than they are with the Dream and Fantasy. 2500 guests vs. 4000 makes a huge difference in check in and boarding. The launch of the Dream is what lead to the PAT system. Allowing your friends to board with you was gracious, but totally luck of the draw on the CM doing the boarding. They could just as easily have suggested that you wait till group 12 if you wanted to board together.

It is rare on the Magic to have any delay in entering the terminal regardless of mode of arrival because the terminal can hold all of the Magic's guests and not exceed the fire marshal's regulations. The "delay" is usually a bottleneck at security if there is one at all.

Hope your trip was Magical.

You've just confirmed that the boarding cards are tied to the PATs.

 

As Techie implied' date=' they are much less strict with the Magic and Wonder than they are with the Dream and Fantasy. 2500 guests vs. 4000 makes a huge difference in check in and boarding. The launch of the Dream is what lead to the PAT system. Allowing your friends to board with you was gracious, but totally luck of the draw on the CM doing the boarding. They could just as easily have suggested that you wait till group 12 if you wanted to board together.

 

It is rare on the Magic to have any delay in entering the terminal regardless of mode of arrival because the terminal can hold all of the Magic's guests and not exceed the fire marshal's regulations. The "delay" is usually a bottleneck at security if there is one at all.

 

Hope your trip was Magical.[/quote']

 

Had a great trip, thanks for asking. We've only done 3 Disney cruises (2x Magic, Fantasy), but 30+ cruises including other lines. Disney does embarkation/debarkation better than anyone, IMHO.

 

I don't know if it was luck or what that we all got to board together. Nobody appeared to be checking the numbers very closely. I just handed them our boarding cards with the lowest number one on top and we all walked on through.

We got an early group like 3 or 4 because of our early port arrival time. Our friends got something like group 12 because they had to pick a later port arrival time. It ended up not mattering though as they let us all board with our earlier boarding number.

I don't know if it was luck or what that we all got to board together. Nobody appeared to be checking the numbers very closely. I just handed them our boarding cards with the lowest number one on top and we all walked on through.

Sorry, but those are two very different scenarios you have presented there.

The first is that the CM's did not care which boarding numbers your friends were allocated and knowingly waived everyone through.

The second indicates that your friends that were cruising with you, although allocated a later boarding time chose to deliberately try to board earlier with your family by skipping boarding groups, with you placing the higher boarding cards at the bottom of the stack.

The CM maybe giving you the benefit of doubt did not thoroughly check all of the boarding passes to ensure you all had your earlier assignment allowed everyone through.

ex techie

The boarding cards are typically "one per family." Obviously, on the Magic that "family" can range from 1 to 7 guests in the same cabin. OK, if there were 7 you'd have a gold card and be on board already without a boarding card.

By placing the lowest number on top, you were clearly hoping the CM wouldn't look....and it worked. Yes, they are busy. They are trying to board a minimum of 2500 guests as efficiently as possible. But it wasn't a case of the CM not caring. It was a case of you attempting to be deceptive. I can't say that it doesn't happen on a regular basis, but the honest approach would have been to hang in the terminal for another 30 minutes till the higher number was called. Jiminy Cricket might not approve, but Mickey didn't find out.

Sorry, wasn't trying to turn this thread into a discussion about boarding groups...

Of course I was hoping they would let all of us board at once at the earlier time. :p

Sorry, but we do enough Disney vacations to know you take what small advantages you can get with the mouse...

Jiminy Cricket was on our sailing for Earth Day, he did't come complaining to me. :D

Sorry, wasn't trying to turn this thread into a discussion about boarding groups...

 

Of course I was hoping they would let all of us board at once at the earlier time. :p

Sorry, but we do enough Disney vacations to know you take what small advantages you can get with the mouse...

 

Jiminy Cricket was on our sailing for Earth Day, he did't come complaining to me. :D

I don't know if it was luck or what that we all got to board together.

It obviously wasn't luck, it was deception/taking advantage that allowed you all to board using your earlier boarding card.

And if you did not mean to turn this thread into a discussion about boarding groups, then in addition to your relevant comment about taking a private hire to get to the port because it's quicker, why did you bring up how you purposely planned and successfully managed to cheat the CM's along with your friends to get earlier board for them?

Not something I would advertise online. But then you obviously are comfortable enough in your actions and behavior to feel like you did nothing wrong.

ex techie

My two cents:

We've done 7 Disney cruises now and have used literally every form of transportation combinations.

I prefer driving my own car and parking at the terminal the best (we've only been able to do that once). It is the simplest, quickest, and least stressful, but it sucks making the 12-13 hour drive for us.

Taxi is my second favorite. Very quick and only slightly more stressful than private automobile. (This is also the cheapest for our family of 3.)

Disney transfers are complicated. I'll NEVER transfer from a Disney resort again (did this 3 times and every one was a horrible experience that got us to the port very late and wasted most of our day). Experience also seems to vary according to how nice your resort at Disney is - Pop Century, we weren't picked up until 1:30 and we were the first stop of 5 so we didn't get to the port until almost 3. Missed lunch on the boat and barely had time to do anything before muster. Pick up time was also after checkout, so we had to wait around in the lobby for 2.5 hours. Port Orleans pickup wasn't a great experience, but better, and pickup from Animal Kingdom Lodge was the best, but still not a pleasurable time.

The only time I would use DCL transfers again would be if my airline participated in the express check in that takes your bags to the airport for you. That was a wonderful convenience. However, our most commonly used airline doesn't participate.

Keep in mind, that if you use the DCL transfers back to the airport and your flight is before 2pm, they kick you off the boat early and won't let you have the last day sit down breakfast - only allowed to do Cabanas.

Waiting in DCL Transfer buses seems like eternity. Many times we've been at the port but waited for an 30-60 minutes before they let us off the bus with no explanation. Even buses that arrived after us unloading before us.