I live in Washington DC and use Uber and Lyft quite often, but not nearly as often as my millenial colleagues. At worst I have had rookie drivers who don’t know where they are going.
Interestingly in Orlando there seem to be more “professional” Uber and Lyft drivers, ones with cars with chargers, bottled water, and in one case Moana playing in the Mini Van
Always rate your Uber and Lyft rides. These ratings help determine who gets to pick up at some airports, get them to the front of wait lines, etc. If their score falls below a certain point, they are no longer able to drive.
My worst experiences as a single rider has been with taxi services. I have ridden a few times in Mears taxis or cabs in DC I thought were going to fall apart. Because Mears drivers had a monopoly before ride share there was no incentive to provide excellent service.
One last point, my last WDW trip was combined with a work trip. I took a lot of ride shares to the parks in the evening and between my work hotel and WDW hotels at the beginning and end. On several occasions I got a surprised reaction to being the only passenger. That annoyed me, but that’s about it.
Thanks for the replies, everyone! It’s super helpful to hear your experiences!
It seems like there is no right or wrong answer here… Some folks are comfortable doing rideshares alone (armed with common sense and a few simple safety precautions) and others are not.
Using Uber/Lyft would streamline transportation around WDW for sure, but I’m still pretty hesitant. We’ll see if I get desperate enough (i.e. find myself running late enough for an important ADR!) to take the plunge.
I have and do. I used it in the middle of the night from Pop Century when I needed to get medicine for my daughter. I used it a few times during the day, including taking my daughter to Urgent Care, to a couple of parks. I have never felt unsafe. I do all of the recommended safety things. Uber allows you to send your ride info to a contact so they can keep track of you. Around WDW I think every driver I had was someone who was (I assume) doing it for a living. They all had tons of ratings and were professional.
It is sad that we all share this paranoid fear, no matter what spot on the map we’re in! I wonder if guys ever have worried or even thought about this!
Here in Mexico we always check their name and plate! Don’t share with other strangers, don’t drink the water bottle if open, always pre-check your route if possible. I think it’s the best option!
They are definitely more expensive, but remember Minnie Vans are an option. You book them through the Lyft app and can use discounts that you get for Lyft (which you usually do get as a new customer). However they are driven by Disney CMs. At MK they are able to pickup at the buses rather than TTC. I did notice they take a little longer to get because there don’t seem to be as many compared to regular lyft and Uber.
I feel completely comfortable. My 75 year old mom also does, though not at Disney, just in NY.
The drivers in Orlando seem especially friendly and laid back.
Yes, but you need to be cautious. Always check the model, plate and picture of your driver on the app, and make you sure the car you are getting into is the same that you booked. If the driver is someone else, which happened to me once, get out of the car immediately. Also ask them who are they picking up. If they don’t know your name, don’t get in the car.
After having used Uber a few times in WDW as a family, I would definitely use them solo. But I’d probably make sure I couldn’t first use Disney’s transportation even though it would take longer.
Yes. As in, this Dad doesn’t like the idea of his DD or DIL (or DW or niece, etc) using an Uber/Lyft. I’m not even keen on the idea of my boys using it, although I’m sexist in that it seems more okay to me from a safety perspective. (Sometimes, I’m okay with a little sexism!)
All the men I know thats had to use rideshare have no problems with it. That being said my DH would never want me to take one by myself unless I absolutely had to and then Im to be on the phone the entire ride. My DS has taken them home from work b4 he had a car but he’s almost 6’ and lifts weights. Would never want my DD to take one. Its just the world we live in.
I want to contribute to this thread, but I fear that if I did so openly and honestly I’d get into trouble again.
During my last trip I used Uber exclusively. When you are paired with a driver you are given his or her average rating, and the number of rides they have given. All mine were around 4.9 (out of five) with typically thousands of rides. Maybe a quarter of my drivers were women.
I found without exception my drivers to be friendly and professional. The app tells you the make, model, colour and licence plate of the car picking you up, along with the forename of the driver and a photo of the driver. You can follow your driver’s progress to your waiting spot in real time in the app and you can follow your own journey in real time in the app while you’re in the car.
Fear of crime is vastly, vastly overstated — especially in the US where news reports (in particular local news) focus all their attention on grisly details of crimes in order to get ratings.
Uber (and Lyft, whose system is essentially identical) is about as safe a mode of transport as any.
I get that women’s experience of the world is different to men’s. But you cannot live your life in a perpetual state of fear and suspicion. Sure, Minnie Vans might be safer (though I suspect there’s no appropriate data to judge this on.) They’re also wildly expensive and there are so few of them that at busy times you have zero chance of getting one.
I am a woman and I travel for work all the time (mostly alone). I regularly use Lyft in the US and Uber while in the UK (where Lyft is not available). I’ve never had a problem of any sort.
^This. Along a similar line, I read an analysis that showed that child abductions are extremely rare and are happening less frequently than in the past. However, the general public thinks that they are happening more frequently because of the 24/7 news monster, where we now hear about every single incident nationwide.
I take Uber/lyft all the time and so does my daughter. I think it’s a better option than a taxi, for instance, because there’s a record of exactly who you are with and when. You just want to be sure to ask their name and make sure the name and what they & their car look like matches the pics on the app.
And it’s a vastly better option than walking from a deserted bus/train/subway stop or driving after you’ve had a bit to drink. As a mom with two college age kids, (one who has a car and one who doesn’t) I think it offers peace of mind.
Once I was in NOLA and our driver was actually (the singer) Johnny Mathis’ granddaughter. She had us in stitches railing about “That @#% Hurricane Katrina.” What a story she had to tell, too, about that event, although she made it funny as heck. More often than not, Uber people are gregarious and can tell you anything you want to know about where you are at!
All day!