What time do you have to be back at the hotel to catch the Magical express to the Air

[Queenbee2]

Just wondering so that I can plan the day that we are returning home. We have an 8:30 PM flight home.

[Tinker Fan]

They will let you know the night before what time to catch the bus, it has always been 3 hours before our flight.:mickey:

[faline]

Yes, it's generally 3 hours before your flight. Remember, though, that you need to leave a little bit of time to get any bags (such as your carry-ons) out of storage so you're ready when the bus arrives!

[DisneyDadfromPittsburgh]

Last trip August of 2009, it was 3 hours prior to your departure. We were told by Disney staff that the three hours is not a Disney decision but a TSA regulation.

[Tygger7]

I'm glad I saw this thread, as it leads me to another question. We'll be using Magical Express for the first time. For our trip home (leaving from WL), I noticed that the bell services desk opens at 5am (where they check your bags for your flight). We have a 7:55am flight, which means we'll need to catch the bus at 4:55am. Will we have to check our bags in at the airport instead of the hotel? Or can we go to bell services and check our bags in the night before?

[CleveRocks]

Last trip August of 2009, it was 3 hours prior to your departure. We were told by Disney staff that the three hours is not a Disney decision but a TSA regulation.

Ah, resort staff. Resort staff are not trained in DME procedures, but that never stops them from making things up.:mickey:

The United States Transportation Security Administration has no care about when people arrive at the airport. Whether someone is early or late for their flight has no bearing on homeland security.

Disney, on the other hand, wants to send people to the airport starting about 3 hours before flight time because Disney doesn't want to be responsible for people missing their flights ... that would cost them money and, more importantly, it would cost them customer satisfaction.

What the resort staff might have heard and then messed up is that it IS a TSA regulation that luggage be checked-in with the Resort Airline Check-in desk no later than 3 hours before a flight. This IS a matter of homeland security, as there needs to be ample time to send those bags through the usual security screenings at the airport.

But Resort Airline Check-in and a Disney's Magical Express bus ride are two completely different things, totally unrelated.

So now you know!:D

[CleveRocks]

I'm glad I saw this thread, as it leads me to another question. We'll be using Magical Express for the first time. For our trip home (leaving from WL), I noticed that the bell services desk opens at 5am (where they check your bags for your flight). We have a 7:55am flight, which means we'll need to catch the bus at 4:55am. Will we have to check our bags in at the airport instead of the hotel? Or can we go to bell services and check our bags in the night before?Before I answer, please allow me to explain that Resort Airline Check-in and your resort's Bell Services are two completely different entities. They are not related in any way. They do not share a staff, either; Bell Services is staffed by Disney cast members, and RAC is staffed by employees of a subcontractor called BAGS Inc. The RAC desk is open from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. only. Bell Services is open 24 hours a day.

Think of RAC like you think of curbside check-in at the airport, because they are IDENTICAL services, except for their locations. Just like at curbside check-in, at RAC you must show ID, you get checked-in for your flight, you receive your boarding passes, you check your luggage through to your final destination, your bags get tagged with those airline tags with the 3-letter airport code, you receive airline baggage claim checks, you no longer have access to your bags, it is customary to tip the RAC employee/skycap, and you skip your airline's ticket counter check-in line and go straight to security.

OK, so now that you know that RAC and resort Bell Services aren't the same thing ...

I'm sorry to report, but you are not eligible to use RAC. You will have no choice but to bring your own checked luggage to the airport and check it in with your airline. When you arrive at the airport via DME bus, you will be on Level 1, which is the "arrivals" level. You'll need to go inside and catch an elevator up to Level 3, which is the "departures" level. Once there, you can choose to either go to your airline's ticket/check-in counter OR go outside and use curbside check-in.

The reason you're dropped off on the "wrong" level is that the roadway adjacent to Level 3 is all a bridge, and that bridge can't safely withstand the weight of many large buses all at the same time.

The reason you aren't eligible to use RAC is that it is a TSA regulation that bags be checked-in no later than 3 hours before scheduled flight time. Since the RAC desk opens at 5:00 a.m., it opens less than 3 hours before your flight time. Sorry, but no, they won't open early. Even if your flight was scheduled for 8:05 a.m., it's doubtful you'd be able to use RAC because the entire process must be complete in their computer by 3 hours before flight time, and as you know, these things take a few minutes ... and that would be assuming there's no one already in line in front of you.

It's also a TSA regulation that bags can't be checked-in more than a certain number of hours before a flight, and therefore you can't possibly check them with RAC the day before.

The morning of the day before your departure day, you'll get written notice in your room of your DME pick-up time. It says to be there 15 minutes prior, and they really mean it. That time is actually the time that bus is supposed to LEAVE your resort, not arrive there. If you show up at exactly that time, it's possible you'll miss your bus.

Your assigned DME bus time will be 3 hours (plus/minus 20 minutes) before your flight time for domestic flights, 4 hours +/- 20 minutes for international flights (including Canada).

[Tygger7]

Thank you so much for the information & clarification! I knew it wasn't called "Bell Services", but couldn't for the life of me remember what to call it. I just remembered there was a little desk outside where you drive up. :D