Magical Express questions

[CajunDisneyDad]

Greetings Programs (a little Tron reference there lol)

We will be flying into MCO for the first time soon. We have made arrangements with Magical Express to pick us up (gave them flight info etc) Can someone tell me exactly what happens. Disney doesnt really give too many details other than they will pick us up... Do we have to go to a specific area of the airport... is someone waiting for us at the airport? Will we have time to grab something or are we assigned to a specific bus? Any information would be helpful lol, save me from having to call the helpline :) Thanks everyone
:mickey:

[SBETigg]

It's not really a matter of "Disney will pick you up" which makes it sound as if they are there with a sign with your name on it and they just whisk you away. There is a specific area of the airport, with a desk where you check in and then file into the appropriate line/waiting area for your specific resort.

You don't have to pick your bags up or wait for baggage. You can use the yellow DME tags and Disney will pick up your checked bags and deliver them to the resort later. When you get off the plane, you need to find the Disney Magic Express area down in the ground transport area (they have their own space), stand in line to sign in (if you're lucky, no line), and then wait in your resort designated area. You can take time between getting off the plane and checking in, if you want. There's no rush. When a bus comes for you, they will lead you all out to it and you board and you're on your way. The whole process from sign in to arrival at resort can take just under an hour, or about two hours depending.

[sassafras]

You're definitely not assigned to a specific time on the bus. We always seem to land around noon, so we stop at the McDonalds in the airport and grab a sandwich before we go on to the bus. It's really a pretty simple procedure and much more relaxing than trying to drive through all that traffic.:thumbsup:

[mgmnut]

MY DME packet arrived just yesterday...... You know what that means.....:yay: Getting closer...... Everyone is getting so excited!!


From my packet:

DME Welcome Center is on the B side on level 1 (Ground Transportation)

Upon exiting the aircraft, take the Tram to the main terminal. You will arrive on level 3

Proceed to the B side and take the elevator or escelator from level 3 to level 1 and bypass baggage clain on level 2 if you do not need to claim your luggage.

Check in at the Disney magical Express Welcome Center inside the terminal and a Disney Rep will direct you to your motorcoach transportation.

If you arrive after 10pm you will need to claim your baggage on level 2 before proceeeding to the DME Welcome Center.

Arrival at the Resort:

-Proceed to the resort front desk check-in
-Your luggage may take up to 3 hours to arrive after you have checked in to your resort.
- You do not have to be present for your luggage to be delivered to your room.

Departure:

- Day Prior to check out, you will recieve a Transportation notice with your motorcoach pickup time and location.

- Pick up times are approximately 3 hours prior to flight to ensure you do not miss your flight. 4 hours for international flights.

_ If you choose not to check you luggage with Resort Airline Check-in, have your luggage loaded on the motorcoach you will be using for transportation back to the airport. Bell service luggage assistance is available upon request.


34 More Days To Go!!!!!!!!!

[Mickey'sIrishPAl]

Is it neceasary to "check in" upon arrival at MCO? I have always just taken the packet that accompanied the "yellow tags" and walked to the line that will designate you to your particular bus. I have never stood in line to go to the desk for check in.

Oh, and how long before your trip does this packet with the yellow tags come in the mail?

[spoiledraf]

Arriving about 7:15 in the evening in August. Are there less busses in the evening and can I expect a knock on the door with my luggage after I'm in bed???

[mgmnut]

Is it neceasary to "check in" upon arrival at MCO? I have always just taken the packet that accompanied the "yellow tags" and walked to the line that will designate you to your particular bus. I have never stood in line to go to the desk for check in.

Oh, and how long before your trip does this packet with the yellow tags come in the mail?

We have only used DME once before on our last trip in 2006, and we checked in. Not sure if you can bypass that part of the process. It is probably to get a head count for bus capacity.

I think it is suppose to be around 3-4 weeks prior to your trip that your tags arrive. Ours just arrived last week, but that would be 5 weeks out as we just hit the 30 day mark today. I called and arranged DME about 2 months ago.

[cer]

We have only used DME once before on our last trip in 2006, and we checked in. Not sure if you can bypass that part of the process. It is probably to get a head count for bus capacity.

They have improved the procedure. You no longer check-in at the desk area. There is a podium now right at the queue area and you hand your papers to the cast member there and they direct you to the correct line. It is much more efficient than before. :thumbsup:

[sherriepaul]

Thanks for the information, I think I'm more excited than the kids 76 days and counting!:blush::thumbsup:

[Disney-4-Me]

Your Magical Express packet, which will come in the mail, has all of the information you will need.:thumbsup:

[flipadeeflop]

I'm glad you posted this, and I'm glad for all the great responses!!! I just booked DME yesterday for the first time (we've always driven before) so I was wondering the same things!!! It's nice to know they will just send the luggage tags! I thought after I called, "Should I have asked for them?" but after reading this, I feel more confident that they are going to take care of me!!!:mickey:

[Fastpasssteve]

Remember NOT to pack your Magical Express info in your checked luggage. Keep it with you in your carry-on luggage. You will need to have it with you to get on the buses.

[andmomlau]

We just made last minute reservations for 2 nights at POP before we leave for Naples on July 6. flying into Orlando the morning of
July 4th. Not sure what to do...booking the 2 nights with AAA...can we get the ME with them or do we arrange it on our own....I've usually just done it in the package with reservations, dining, etc....

We have a car reserved but are thinking of just taking ME to POP and then renting the car for the morning we leave for Naples,,,can't see paying for a rental car for 2 days while we are at Disney...
Thoughts???

[EJS-Houston]

...I've never had a problem with lost luggage the 3 times I've had Magical Express service...the luggage has always shown up in my room about an hour or two after I checked in. Nonetheless, I still make sure not only to have my Magical Express tickets in my carry on, but medications and a light change of clothes...just in case.

[LudwigVonDrake]

I'm overly cautious and make sure I have all my baggage with me when I get on the DME bus :bus:

[mgmnut]

I'm overly cautious and make sure I have all my baggage with me when I get on the DME bus :bus:

Is it an option to bring your luggage on the bus? I was thinking this would only be if you have a late flight in. I like this better, we are packing 4 people into only 2 bags, I have no issues grabbing my own luggage to ensure we have it when we check in. We will be leaving our house around 4am, after traveling 1/2 the day I am sure I (and the fam) are going to want to change into something comfortable after we check in and don't want to worry if the bags got to the room/resort ok.

[brian2000boston]

so happy to hear they removed the desk, this should make things move much quicker.

[mariak]

Is it an option to bring your luggage on the bus? I was thinking this would only be if you have a late flight in. I like this better, we are packing 4 people into only 2 bags, I have no issues grabbing my own luggage to ensure we have it when we check in. We will be leaving our house around 4am, after traveling 1/2 the day I am sure I (and the fam) are going to want to change into something comfortable after we check in and don't want to worry if the bags got to the room/resort ok.
It is definitely an option to pick up your own luggage and take it with you on the bus. We learned this the hard way. Several years ago, we took advantage of ME for the first time thinking it would be a great idea. I don’t know what we were thinking but we typically don’t go to bed until 11 or midnight so I’m sure we didn’t think it would be too late. Plus, I think we were under the impression that we HAD to do it that way. We were traveling with our DDs (then 1 and 5yrs). We arrived at MCO around 8 or 9 pm but our luggage didn’t arrive at our room until 2am. Because we were so exhausted from waiting up half the night, our first day in the parks was practically ruined.

We generally arrive late so we have grabbed our own luggage on every trip since. We did have a 12 noon arrival a couple years ago and we did consider letting ME deliver our bags. But we were so glad we didn’t as it was much warmer in Orlando when we arrived than it was Missouri when we left. We were able to get cooler clothes from our bags and the wonderful cast members at the Polynesian locked them up until our rooms were ready. We were able to hit the Magic Kingdom right away without having to wait for comfy clothes.

Although I’m sure it’s not typical for luggage to arrive 4-6 hours after arrival, it’s definitely a good idea to take into consideration what time you are arriving and think about whether ME will be operating on a skeleton crew or not? If you do choose to check your luggage all the way through with ME, as someone else mentioned in a previous post, it is a good idea to take a change of clothes (especially jammies and/or swimsuits for the little ones) in a carry-on bag just in case you have to wait on your luggage. If you choose to get your own, just don't use the yellow ME tags. You can get your own luggage and head to ME at your own pace.

Have a magical trip!
:mickey:

[brivers222]

This is good to know that I can get my own luggage at MCO and take it to ME bus.... We are arriving at 2:45PM but I would really like to know my luggage is at my room when we arrive for check-in. Since check-in is 3pm and I am assuming it will take until 4pm to get to BWI anyways our room should be ready.

Can we still use the ME luggage tags on our luggage even if we grab our own bags from the turnstiles?

[applecore72]

Arriving about 7:15 in the evening in August. Are there less busses in the evening and can I expect a knock on the door with my luggage after I'm in bed???

Since we usually arrive late (international flights) we pack everything we need for the night in our carry-ons and tell the front desk at the hotel to hold our luggage until morning. When we wake up we just call bell service and ask for our bags and they will bring them to our room before breakfast. We have never experienced any problems with DME :mickey:

[CajunDisneyDad]

Thanks to everyone for the great information :) We are 8 days from our trip!! Even DS is getting excited lol.

[Mickey'sIrishPAl]

so happy to hear they removed the desk, this should make things move much quicker.

I don't believe that they actually removed the desk. I believe the desk is there for those who maybe haved misplaced their information and tags and/ or have issues, questions, inquiries, etc. with their reservations. But, witht he the person walking with a handheld scanner and directing traffic, the process is so much easier.

[iceicebritney]

Is there a route for ME as far as the resort drop off? Does everyone ride the same bus or is there a seperate bus for deluxe, moderate and value resorts?

[Lisaj13]

We leave in 19 days. We haven't received anything regarding Magical Express. If we don't receive anything before we leave can we still use ME?

Thanks.

[Mickey'sIrishPAl]

Is there a route for ME as far as the resort drop off? Does everyone ride the same bus or is there a seperate bus for deluxe, moderate and value resorts?

If I am not mistaken, I believe that the bus lines go according to proximity of the resorts. So for instance, the All Stars have one bus that will drop off at those resorts only. I am staying at the CBR and I am assuming that our bus will consist of other resorts in our around the EPCOT area.

Hope this helps. :mickey::thumbsup:

[Tinkerbella16]

Is there a route for ME as far as the resort drop off? Does everyone ride the same bus or is there a seperate bus for deluxe, moderate and value resorts?

They usally split it up between the resorts that are nearest to one another.. When we used DME for both our stays at POR & POFQ, the bus took guests staying at OKW, SSR, POFQ & POR together on one. When we stayed at Pop a few years ago, the bus was just for Pop Century because it was filled with just Pop guests.

[CleveRocks]

Is there a route for ME as far as the resort drop off? Does everyone ride the same bus or is there a seperate bus for deluxe, moderate and value resorts?There is no pre-set grouping of resorts for Disney's Magical Express. Disney collects reservations so that they can know about how many people are going to which resorts at around what times. With that info, they make the most efficient bus groupings for that time frame ... it can and will change as the day goes on, because, as I said, it's based upon when people are going where.

That being said, there are four geographical zones (called MK, EC, AK and DD). If there were an equal number of people going to each resort all the time, then the DME buses would always be grouped by these zones. However, it doesn't usually work that way.

When a bus has resorts within only a single zone, that bus will hold guests from up to 4 resorts (that is, will make stops at up to 4 resorts). When a bus must has resorts from two or more zones, then the bus will make a maximum of 3 stops (to make up for the increased travel time).

As you ask people's experiences, you will hear people say that their bus had resorts A, B and C, or their bus had resorts D, E, F and G, and so on ... just keep in mind that their experiences don't necessarily have any bearing on the experience you will have. As I said, it totally depends on the reservations, and what Disney thinks is the most efficient way to get everyone to their resorts.

As for the order of drop-offs for any particular bus, THAT is decided 100% by the driver. The driver is told what resorts are on the bus, but the driver is NOT told what order to do the drop-offs in. [There is a single exception to that rule that involves Polynesian and Grand Floridian, due to a logisitical concern.]

[texas211]

Just in case, its like $60 bucks via taxi each way.

[sainter]

This is good to know that I can get my own luggage at MCO and take it to ME bus.... We are arriving at 2:45PM but I would really like to know my luggage is at my room when we arrive for check-in. Since check-in is 3pm and I am assuming it will take until 4pm to get to BWI anyways our room should be ready.

Can we still use the ME luggage tags on our luggage even if we grab our own bags from the turnstiles?

DON"T put the yellow ME tags on your luggage if you want to pick it up yourself. If you do, the bags will never show up at the luggage turnstiles -- they will be whisked away before that by ME to be taken to your resort.

[lylone]

Even a better idea than using ME or a taxi. Grab your own bags and meet QuickSilver for a ride to your resort. That way no waiting, no lost/damaged bad confusion and you get your own quiet ride to your resort. We used them for the first time this year and will use them from now on. It is definitely worth it!:waycool:

[brivers222]

DON"T put the yellow ME tags on your luggage if you want to pick it up yourself. If you do, the bags will never show up at the luggage turnstiles -- they will be whisked away before that by ME to be taken to your resort.

Ahh thanks for that info! We decided upon renting a car so we are cancelling ME all together.