How are we getting from the airport to WDW nowadays?
We booked a bounce back offer for a resort only stay and invited my mother-in-law so 8000 questions to come.
The first of which is, what are the options to get her from the airport to Port Orleans? Traditional lyft and Uber are out. She will not feel safe in them. My husband floated us going to pick her up which sounds like a terrible idea to me. Unless somebody wants to vouch for passenger pick up at Orlando airport being super smooth and easy.
Are my options Mears bus and Minnie Van? Actually… do Minnie Vans even go to the airport?
From MCO we’ve done Mears on two trips. I have to take my time up the steep steps, and going down. The aisle is narrow but the seats close to the front are usually not taken so I grab the first seat available. Usually comfy. Especially after navigating MCO.
The return trip is somewhat off putting as a bus won’t wait. We arrived at least 15 early and waited.
We have not done passenger pickup since 2019, so not helpful.
Will she be arranging transport once you point her to the best option, or is that something you are handling?
I believe they do for some instances (or at least the “to” airport leg), but would you be able to even schedule this and manage for her if she isn’t arranging the transport herself? I thought it was through Lyft, and she would still have to walk outside to the rideshare for pickup which might make her feel weird.
If safety is a concern, I would assume best options are either (a) traditional-ish airport pickup with someone that meets you inside with your name on a card or (b) Mears, any iteration, since there is a place that you report to and a reservation you set up ahead of time.
If she’s traveling alone - and you’re in a rental car - consider looking for flights to Sanford.
MCO is big and congested with lots of walking and stuff going on and walking and signs can be difficult to notice and have I mentioned walking?
I flew into Sanford in 2024 and it’s a small airport. You walk away from the gate you deplaned at and there’s a baggage sign and you go down the escalator and there’s the guy with the town car waiting on you.
Town cars only cost about twice the actual airfare.
But if you’ve a rental car, you could pick her up.
Is she a chatty sort? I enjoyed the town car drivers.
If I were traveling solo through MCO I might ask for an escort from the airline. We did this for DH on two different trips - not to FL - and he was all I don’t need help but by the time he switched planes once and arrived at the second airport he was glad of the assist. He could walk just fine but sometimes the signage and airport announcements weren’t understandable. Everyone seeming to be in such a hurry can increase travel anxiety.
What’s most likely is that I will find out the best option, The one that makes her the most comfortable, and I will arrange it for her one way or another.
She’s well used to traveling by air! That’s a great idea to look at other airports. We’re driving from SC and she was looking at Orlando because it’s cheaper, but maybe we can find a happy medium somewhere between
My husband suggested we tell her that we’ll be tracking her location the whole drive in an uber/lyft and it made me think that we can do one better and talk to her on the phone the whole time. We can pass her around to the kids or something. But I am going to look into Sanford too.
I used Florida Town Car in 2022 on a solo trip, and I absolutely loved them. They pick up from MCO and Sanford. I felt very safe and definitely taken care of. They only take cash, but it’s for the ride there and the ride back.
It was about $100 at the time, but it was from the train station. Keep in mind that the price was for both ways of the trip. I’ll see if I can find them online again.
Also, I used them based on @PrincipalTinker’s recommendation. She may have more info on how they do things at the airport. I know that they helped me with my luggage at the train station.
