Hi! I believe check in is 3:00 for Art of Animation.
If we get there at 1:00, Is it ever possible to get in the room sooner??
Coming from NJ. How long in your experince does it take to get your luggage?? is it really a 3 hr wait??
I suggest doing online check-in ahead of time. It gives you the option to tell them when you expect to arrive. I think it probably helps them have a room ready for you. There are no guarantees, but it seems like lots of people are able to check in early.
If you do the luggage delivery, then it can take up to 3 hours from check in time, not from when you arrive at the airport. Our flight landed at 8 pm after a bunch of airport/weather delays, and we didn’t get our luggage in our room until after midnight.
Have a great trip!
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Online check does help. We were able to check in to our room at POR at 10AM and AKL at 9am during our last trip.
It never hurts to go ahead and check in. If they have a room ready, they’ll let you have it early. Otherwise, they’ll text you when it’s ready. Last Jan. we checked in at AOA LK at 8 am and our room was ready. It probably depends on how busy the resort is, and what kind of room you want. If you have very specific requests, then it might take longer for them to have a room available. If you’re more flexible, they might be able to accommodate you early. I did online check in and put in the time we thought we would arrive.
I think that is what is bothering me. If we do the free bus, then we have to do the baggage claim from them??
I am kind of uncomfortable not being ble to change etc, or get what I need before going to a park for the afternoon/night. If I arrive at 1:00, I do not wait to wait till 6 to get my luggage. 
I really dont want to have to think about bringing a carry on for all of us either.
You don’t have to use the luggage service. Not at all! Just don’t put the yellow tags on your bags. You can pick up your luggage yourself and bring it on the bus with you. The driver will store it below and pull it off for you when you arrive. (Don’t forget to tip) This is the best plan with afternoon or evening flights.
Thats awesome!!! I thought we had too. And does it matter what bus I get on? Or is it any magical bus? How often do they come?
Thank you so much!!!
There’s a whole fleet of buses, and they each go to one or more resorts depending on how busy it is. After tou pick up your luggage, you will follow the signs to the Magical Express area. They will scan your Magic Band to check you in for the bus. Don’t forget to bring MBs in your carry on! They will then direct you to the appropriate line and from there to the right bus. Sometimes it does take a while for the bus to depart, so be patient. The ride is at least 40 minutes, and the bus might stop at multiple resorts before yours. I think 90 minutes is a good general estimate for the time it takes from stepping off the plane to entering your room. Sometimes it’s faster though!
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Excellent information. Thank you!
1st time we went, we brought our luggage on the bus. We never got the luggage tags and ME info and didn’t know any better. But it worked out great. Especially since my wedding dress was in the one bag! Less stressful.
I agree about doing online check-in. We did earlier this month, and we got our room right when we got there at about 11:30AM. (I stayed at ASSports, so what everyone is verifying/contributing definitely applies to values.
Well, we decided to come the day earlier to arrive at night! Now we can wake up refreshed and ready for the parks 
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