Car Rental Versus Disney Transporation

[pbdennis]

We plan to arrive at Disney on December 17th and leave on December 23rd. I know the park will be crowded starting a few days before Christmas. We have been to Disney plenty of times and love using Disney Transportation. As of now, that is still the plan. Right now we are staying at French Quarter. I am debating making the switch to Pop Century, but renting a car to get to the parks each day if needed. By doing this, I can avoid the long lines each morning and night at the bus stop. Of course, I know PCs will be long, but so will FQs due to the time of year. I would save $240 downgrading the room, but spend that amount or just a little more on a car. Thoughts? Ideas? Opinions? Thanks.

[Pirate Granny]

We were at the Pop in 07 the week between Xmas and New Years...which is the craziest of times...and we took the bus each day...granted, we didn't make any of the opening hours...but never had an issue but once, and we smiled and took a cab...it was $18 and worth the time not waiting...we had them drop us off at the Poly and took the monorail into the park...although the Contemporary would've been cheaper...so, imagine, if the bus would be crowded think of the parking lot...and the wait for trams...I think it's a wash...and unless you need a car, I would opt for ME and no car...and save a couple of bucks for a cab if you need. We'll be at FQ from Dec 20 to 24th...can't wait.

[Tigerinvestigator]

You asked for my opinion, so..... the last thing I want to do during my Walt Disney World escape from reality is drive a car! Even worse drive a car in WDW traffic at park closing! Imagine if you have a fender bender, speeding ticket, flat tire, or lose your rental car amongst the hundreds of other rental cars! That would make for a bad day and then you would be hitting yourself in the head saying "I should have listened to Tigerinvestigator on intercot and I would have had a much better trip". Meanwhile thousands of other WDW guests are safely traveling back to their resort laughing at the family getting a speeding ticket on the side of the road from Orlando's Finest!

[seanyred]

Having had several trips in the past 5 years I have used a rental and used Disney Transportation and in all honesty I don't think either is more effecient. As you probably know the property down there is so large that often people forget how far apart everything but still seem to think a car will save them time.

As said before when you figure in the 1)Showing your resort ID at the parking lot gate 2) walking to a tram stop 3) waiting for a tram and then 4) getting to the gate with bus people who got dropped off at front...its a wash.

The only advantage to having a car is if you want to leave property or if you want to resort hop.

[WDWCrazyKaren]

I've only done one trip out of my last 10 with a car. The last trip we took was my first one without a car. I was terrified of the waiting times and getting around, but we actually had no problems at all. We were at All Stars, and just never had an issue. We found a few taxis throughout the week helped out a bit, however what we spent on taxi fare was nowhere near what we would have spent on a car. I may not rent a car at Disney again!

[RBrooksC]

I HATE going to Disney without a Rental Car. For my son's benefit and to just enjoy the ride, we took the monorail to and from Epcot. That seemed to take forever and a day.

The car gives me the freedom come and go as a please. At the end of the day, I don't have to wait with other people for a cramped bus for a slow ride back to my hotel. I don't have to have the experience of getting to the stop just in time to see the bus leaving and knowing I am going to have to wait 10-20 min for another bus.

I can go to other resorts or DTD without having a convoluted mess of public transportation.

If I want to go to the supermarket or need something from the Walmart of elsewhere, I have a way to get there.

I know people on here want to praise Disney transportation but it is no better than any other public transportation system. When one gets away from the boat rides from the Deluxe Resorts and the Monorail, it is nothing but a sorry bus system.

Give me a rental car any day.

[KylesMom]

I HATE going to Disney without a Rental Car.

Ditto. I have to tell you that renting a car is different for each family, but we wouldn't even consider Disney without one - and we just celebrated our tenth annual trip with a car. Although we utilize the boat from WL to MK, we drive to all other locations on property - and of course we then can hit the grocery store or any off-site entertainment when we want.

Now, if you you aren't comfortable driving in a foreign environment, I would second-guess that option. But as a park-hopping family, we've always found the car to be a better option for us - especially when we need to get to a dining reservation and don't want to leave our resort an hour or more ahead of time just to ensure we can make the ADR. We've been in this position before, and I'd downgrade to POP with the car option versus keeping FQ with the Disney transport option.

I'll say it again, however - this is really an individual choice based on your comfort in driving around Disney property as much as it is a "money" decision.

[RBrooksC]

I agree. When it is more convenient, I will take Disney Transportation. From the WL, it is nicer and easier to take the boat. The monorail to the MK from the Monorail resorts is a better option, but for true speed and ease, a car cannot be beat.

It also allows one to tour on their own schedule and not on Disney Transportation schedule.

I would rather sit and wait in line to get out of a parking lot as opposed to being cramped in a bus at the end of the day. At least if I am stuck in traffic, it is only until I get out of the lot. When I am stuck, I am with my family (ONLY!) and I am listening to the radio or having a nice quiet chat about what happened that day.

Nothing leaves me in more a sour mood than to be cramped in a vehicle I cannot control around people I don't know.

[jnfr2424]

I HATE going to Disney without a Rental Car.
I know people on here want to praise Disney transportation but it is no better than any other public transportation system. When one gets away from the boat rides from the Deluxe Resorts and the Monorail, it is nothing but a sorry bus system.

Give me a rental car any day.

Another one for Rental car - When I book my vacation, I book a rental as well
We usually stay at 2 or more different resorts while vacationing so its convienent for us to have a rental. Besides I get the best pictures (think Magic Kingdom entrance, or the Tower of Terror, or the cool McDonalds near Epcot Blvd) that I would not get if I was using the bus transportation. Don't get me wrong I do use Disney transportation but when I am shopping in DTD or going to the water parks, I want a rental

[LoriSan]

as long as I have a stroller to mess with, I'll get a rental

[Ed]

...or lose your rental car amongst the hundreds of other rental cars!

That reminded me of one of the funniest things I've encountered on the parking lots. We once heard a harried guest explaining to a parking lot CM that he couldn't remember where he parked the rental car, what make/model it was, or the tag number, but that "it's a small white car with Florida tags." I'm sure that narrowed it down to only about 17,000 cars on the lot.

Here's a free hint for guests ~~

When you first get your rental car, take a digital picture (I'm assuming here that EVERYBODY has a digital camera or cellphone camera) of the rear of the car showing the license plate and the color/make/model of the car. And when you park each day, snap a picture of the sign that identifies the section of the lot where you are parked.

[NJGIRL]

We stay off property and always have a car.....our friends stay on property and use Disney transporation. If we leave our rooms at the same time we always arrive at the parks first.

The Disney area is so easy to drive in. Everything is so well marked you can't get lost.

Getting out of the parks at closing time is no big deal either.

[RBrooksC]

When we stayed at Caribbean Beach, we would always drive by the bus stops. Each and every time, there would be a group of people standing there waiting for the bus while we drove out of the lot on our way to our destination.

Also, when one is leaving, let say, Epcot, you see hoards of people standing in the queue for the Monorail while we walk to the lot, to our car and drive back to our hotel.

There is just something so relaxing about controlling one's situation.

[Aggie97]

I think it just depends on your personal vacation preferences. When we are on vacation, we don't like to drive. Not because we are fearful of navigation or traffic, but because we spend a lot of time sitting in our cars every day at home! So for us, taking WDW transportation is relaxing and contributes to the feeling of "getting away from it all."

With that said, we were at WDW Dec. 16 - 26, 2006, and we did not have any transportation issues. We were staying at the Polynesian.

Whatever you decide, have a great time!

[GrandFlo]

We used to be the type that thought a rental was crazy.....That is until we drove down one year. That time we had our own car and it was soo much easier for us. We stay at the GF and took boat or monorail to MK and monorail to EPCOT. All other parks or hotel visiting we used our own car. We liked that we could leave when we wanted and not have to wait for busses or stand on busses. Now when we fly, we always rent a car.

As for switching your resort, I would deal with the bus if the FQ is really where you want to stay. If you like the POP then it works well.

FYI--research car rentals. We got a quote from one company for over $200 with our AAA discount then found a deal from another for under $150 and it was a better car.

[pbdennis]

Great responses. Thanks for all of them. To be honest, I don't want to rent a car. I love WDW transportation. The only reason I was considering it was for those very crowded days we expected to encounter December 20-23 at the parks. I was thinking about having that option. I have used a car on two previous trips in 2004. Most of the time we used WDW Trans. then, but it was nice to have a car....Again, thanks for all the insight.