Would you recommend renting a car?

[pluto377]

We usually rely on bus transport, but I'm wondering if that's a bad idea right now with all the changes? We're traveling Nov 10-14, just me and DS (4). So I'll need a carseat and I'll have a stroller. We've never been bothered by the bus before, but I'm wondering if it's just too much hassle right now?

 

[Pooh2]

I would highly recommend renting a car.
We just price it into the vacation now.
I have mobility issues and waiting a long time or standing on a bus is miserable for me.
It makes our trips much more pleasant.
If you don't book a prepaid car, you can keep checking back for the price to come down. It often comes down about a month out then goes back up again.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

To me it’s very much personal preference.

I’m normally anti-car on WDW trips.... let other people do 100% of the driving, it’s vacation, etc.

But with COVID and such, we’d rather control our own trip/space to/from the airport and also have the option of driving to a park when needed. We’ve been mixing up between driving and buses to the parks based on the time of day/plan, but ultimately I like having options depending on conditions (although I’ll be honest, we parked out car over Labor Day weekend and never touched it).

I’ve found the rental car prices annoyingly high on the two trips we’ve flown so far, but to us it’s worth it for that bit of environmental and timing control.

 

[TamaraQT]

I ABSOLUTELY recommend renting a car. The car pays for itself with the money you save by having more options to eat off-site. Also the convenience to come and go as you please also makes it cost effective.

 

[Cynt]

Yes rent a car. I'm here now and the busses are terrible. No way of knowing where a bus is. You could wait 15 minutes or 40 minutes. You never know since there's not an app tracking the busses available for resort guest.

We opted to rely on busses this trip to save $350 car rental costs. We wish we would have rented a car. We usually pay $200 to rent a car so we didn't want to pay $350. We're fairly patient people so we just sucked it up and packed extra patience dealing with the bus situation.

 

[Brett Wyman]

Another vote for renting a car. We usually love Disney transportation as its normally all part of the fun for us. But right now a personal vehicle gives you a lot more control over your time. Boats arent running, the Skyliner is over burdened, and the busses and Monorail are backed up due to reduced capacity. Not to mention that’s one less confined space to be in with strangers!

 

[quandrea]

We were die hard bus people after years of car rentals, but next trip we plan to rent a car. Easier with all the changes in place. We are fortunate however, as dvc members that we don’t pay parking fees.

 

[Lewisc]

DME is no longer handling inbound luggage and RAC is history. As a Southwest customer I wouldn't bother with DME. Under normal circumstances I might take Uber/Lyft. Today I'd rent a car.

 

[pluto377]

We were die hard bus people after years of car rentals, but next trip we plan to rent a car. Easier with all the changes in place. We are fortunate however, as dvc members that we don’t pay parking fees.

Thanks for mentioning the DVC bit. We rented points, so not paying for parking makes a big difference in my calculations! I'm thinking I will get a car this time around. Appreciate all the advice from everyone!

 

[Heather07438]

Thanks for mentioning the DVC bit. We rented points, so not paying for parking makes a big difference in my calculations! I'm thinking I will get a car this time around. Appreciate all the advice from everyone!

We always rent a car as personal preference and we'll be renting a car for our Jan '21 trip too.

One potential drawback is only a concern for those planning to ropedrop. I've been reading reports the terminals for car lots are often only opening 30 mins prior to official park opening time, which puts guests with cars way behind the hoards already being dropped off by Resort Bus. This can really mess up ropedrop plans. I'm keeping an eye on the situation for now.

 

[LizzyDragon]

We usually rely on bus transport, but I'm wondering if that's a bad idea right now with all the changes? We're traveling Nov 10-14, just me and DS (4). So I'll need a carseat and I'll have a stroller. We've never been bothered by the bus before, but I'm wondering if it's just too much hassle right now?

If you plan to bus with having an Uber/Lyft/taxi as a backup if the bus doesn't work out, keep in mind that getting a carseat with the taxi options can be challenging.

 

[LizzyDragon]

One potential drawback is only a concern for those planning to ropedrop. I've been reading reports the terminals for car lots are often only opening 30 mins prior to official park opening time, which puts guests with cars way behind the hoards already being dropped off by Resort Bus. This can really mess up ropedrop plans. I'm keeping an eye on the situation for now.

For the lots- AK/Epcot open 30 min before; MK at 45 min before; and DHS an hour before open. I'm not sure when the other transit options start dropping people off at the parks.