Thoughts/advice re: Magical Express?

Avatar for amythemom
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thoughts/advice re: Magical Express?
4
Wed, 05-31-2006 - 12:25pm

My family (me, dh, ds (8) and dd (7)) are going to Disneyworld 6/10-6/16 - and have signed up for Magical Express (we already have the luggage tags and other info, so I guess we're set there).

Does anyone have advice for making the most of it - I've heard good and bad.

Thanks!

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Avatar for gigi1976
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Registered: 03-27-2003
Wed, 05-31-2006 - 12:30pm

Make sure you have anything you want to use that day in parks or hotel in a carry-on because you won't see your luggage for a while. Also don't be in a hurry, you will only frustrate yourself by being out of control and on someone else's schedule. I don't really remember how long it took to get to WDW from airport, but I remember being antsy which made it worse. Plan on it taking a while and then you won't be disappointed.

Jennifer

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Avatar for laurieh88
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Registered: 03-25-2003
Wed, 05-31-2006 - 2:51pm

Make sure you have PLENTY of time to get to the airport, go through security, etc. on your way back home. We *thought* we had plenty of time (almost 3 hours), but we were the first pick-up. Because 2 families were late at other resorts and the bus waited on them (which I think is wrong, wrong, wrong), we were cutting it very close getting to the airport. Then we were not at the first airport drop-off point, but the second. THEN because our bags were way far behind everyone else's that came on after us, we almost missed our flight getting our bags. We had to sprint through the airport...which is really fun with 4 kids, let me tell you! Had our plane not been delayed (it was December), we would have missed it and been totally screwed. The ME driver seemed totally unconcerned at how late we were. It was so frustrating and not a good way to end our trip.

If (and that's a big IF) we take ME again, we will find out where we are in the pick-up order as well as how many hours before our flight leaves. We didn't think about the pick-up order last time.

Have a great trip! I'm sure you will be just fine because you know the pitfalls ahead of time.

Laurie, mom to
Alex, 11 years old
Julianne and Leah, 10 years old
Audrey, 2 years old

Disneyworld trips in 1973, 1986, 1987, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005!
Hoping for a trip in December 2006!

LAURIE IN OH, Mom to:


Alex, 1

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-13-2005
Wed, 05-31-2006 - 4:01pm

I agree with everyone else - expect delays...Disney moves a lot of people through this system and in my opinion they do it very well considering the volume they're dealing with. If you are arriving at the airport mid-day your wait will be longer than if you are arriving at an off-peak time. When you get to the airport one person from your party will be asked to wait in line and the rest of the group can wait in the chairs, outside - whatever... We took ME last February and I was travelling without DH, so all my girls had to wait in line with me. I think this is the hardest part because it takes a long time to get through the "check-in" line. However - in the past I've taken Mears transportation shuttles, and also rental cars...and their lines didn't move any faster. Be prepared for long waits and you can only be pleasantly surprised if it moves quickly!!

We didn't check our luggage through on the way to Disney, but from what I've heard you shouldn't count on having your bags until many hours after you've checked in - so make sure you have all items you need for the day with you in your carry-on. We did check the luggage at the hotel for our return trip - I love that service!! And our bags were the first off the plane when we arrived home - that's never happened to us before, I felt like I won a prize!!

What resort are you staying at? Maybe someone will know where you are in the pick-up / drop-off order. I remember being antsy getting back to the airport. We were the second stop and were not running late, as a matter of fact, we waited at the airport gate for over an hour - so you never can tell!!

Last January I stayed at the Swan, which doesn't participate in ME. We had to get our own transportation to/from the airport. We used Happy Limo (pre-paid roundtrip)and on the return trip they were 20 min. late picking us up before I finally called and told them not to come because we had to take a cab to the airport we were running so late. I spent some time but finally got them to return half of my fee. I just added that to show that there are no guarantees, even with car services!

When I go this Jan. I'm definitely going to stay at a Disney resort so that I can take advantage of ME.

HTH - have fun planning!
Mara

Avatar for laurieh88
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Wed, 05-31-2006 - 6:31pm

Ahh...that is the difference! We had used a limo service for 5 years before ME and never once had a problem. The driver was always just where we wanted him to be, on time. Which is why we're leaning towards just paying for this service again, even though we'll more than likely be staying in a Disney resort for our next trip.

You're right though, there's no sure thing when it comes to getting to and from the airport. I was really most upset that we waited so long for people who were not there for their scheduled time to get on ME, and it held the rest of us up. Hopefully there is some kind of fix for this by now!

Laurie, mom to
Alex, 11 years old
Julianne and Leah, 10 years old
Audrey, 2 years old

Disneyworld trips in 1973, 1986, 1987, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005!
Hoping for a December 2006 trip!

LAURIE IN OH, Mom to:


Alex, 1