I just decided that we are going to fly for our June trip instead of drive. We always drive and I am not sure what to expect. Best place to rent a car from? Where to get the cheapest rate? Anything else to know? Tips from experienced flyers? My kids are 16 and 13.
Not cheapest, but National Car lets you walk straight to the garage and drive up for check out. Worth it at MCO as the rental car counters are ridiculously full all the time. You could spend 30 min in line for your car. I’m usually out of the garage in less than 5 min with National.
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Unfortunately there are no affordable rentals at this time.
Alamo does provide that same direct to car service as the poster above shares that National offers. I believe Enterprise does as well.
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Any chance you have a Costco membership? Costco travel usually has decent rates. I book early (no payment) and cancel/re-book as rates drop.
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We’ve flown every trip for over a decade, stay on property, and never felt the need to rent a car. We just use Disney transportation. I know some people love a car, but I love not having to drive. That’s part of the vacation for me.
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Undercover Tourist if you buy a ticket from them has good prices. You pre-pay, but they have free cancellation. Otherwise, the cheapest prices are generally in the 4 weeks leading up to a trip. I make a reservation, then just keep checking prices. (Last trip, cheapest ended up being Budget Pre-Pay, that I did 2 days before trip)
Good info about the counters and ones being closest to the garage. I was wondering about that. I know we don’t need a car but I know my husband would prefer one plus we like to visit a lot of resorts and that can be time consuming with Disney buses.
Most resorts will not let you arrive via car/Lyft/Uber unless you are staying there or have an ADR. You will have no problem if walking or using Disney transportation (bus, boat, monorail, skyliner). This is especially true of the monorail resorts and the Disney ones on Crescent Lake (between EP and HS).
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If you’re staying at a Skyliner resort, the Skyliner makes it far less time consuming to get from resort to resort IF the buses are on schedule. For example, I went from Riviera to HS to a bus to Contemporary and Wilderness Lodge in 30 minutes.
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Resorts WILL let you on property via car if you are staying at another resort. We took Lyft to Beach Club to access International Gateway entry, we said we were staying at Riverside and he said we are fine since we are staying on property.
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Have honestly never heard this before. 
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I think you got a very friendly gate person. I got heckled for arriving to my Cape May reservation too early one day. And Riviera 100% will not even let you through the gate without a room or dining reservation regardless of if you are staying at Caribbean Beach or any other hotel. I’ve been hassled at many resorts arriving via uber even with dining reservations. It’s not always the case, but I would not count on it always being true just bc you are a WDW guest somewhere.
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I was too early one day a few weeks ago, and the guard said, “I don’t care as long as I can find your name in the ADR listing”. But I’ve also been turned away for being too early too.
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I’ve had this happen as well, but also got the hard time for getting there too early. Even for a 9 pm ADR, when it was obvious we weren’t staying or going to a park after.
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Yes, Enterprise has a kiosk to check in, need a CC & Drivers license then print the ticket and take to garage. I like picking our own car vs some companies surprises. Budget put us in a Juke when I booked a standard size.
Depending on where you live, you may want to look into an EZ-Pass transponder that suctions to the windshield for tolls. Don’t use the rental agency toll transponder if you can avoid it, we were told transponder would work with all. But I ended up with 5 toll by plate bills 3 months later that the transponder didn’t work on, totaling around $100 by the time fees were added.
Is this a Covid thing? We have always visited other resorts when we have been at Disney. Sometimes with ADr’s and sometimes to just check them out.
No, it’s been that way for a few years, especially with the Contemporary. If you have an ADR, then it’s not a problem - unless the guard thinks you’re way too early for it (i.e. an ADR for supper but you arrive early morning). As others have said, exact response from the guard depends so much on that individual, some like to play hardball, some can be talked into it if you nicely explain you’re just looking around/shopping/eating QS. But far better to know in advance that you may be shot down, and you’re one of the lucky ones if you do get in.
I rented thru Budget at MCO, but the line was long and their Fastbreak can be hit and miss. Avis next door had a short line and I’ll probably go with them next time.
I’m soooper not the most knowledgeable person here, and I have always driven to WDW, too. I’m flying in a few weeks just to visit my son (in the Disney College Program) for just a few little short tiny days, and I thought Allegiant would be smart/affordable/cool.
So let my idiocy be your warning: Allegiant flies to some out-of-the-way airport almost an hour away from WDW, and there are no affordable shuttles from there. (Sanford. The airport that Allegiant goes to is Sanford.)
My sister is flying in to MCO, and she is renting a car through turo.com, and she’s going to pick me up. $15 parking per day at the ASMov is more affordable than the cost of a Lyft from Sanford to ASMov, so… yeah, that’s what we’re doing. I hate to sacrifice the morning of the first day to the car-on-the-turnpike gods, but that’s what I get for booking Allegiant.
I hope you have an easy flight and an easier transfer from the airport to your hotel. 
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