What time should we plan on arriving at Art of Animation after our cruise?

magicmountainmama

Mouseketeer
Joined
Aug 11, 2017
We'll be on the Mariner of the Seas in April & then heading to Art of Animation for the weekend. Our 180 day mark is coming up soon & I'm planning out our park days & ADR's. What time is it safe to assume we'll be at Disney? And what's the best way to get from Port Canaveral to AoA? We have a 5 year old, so still need a carseat. Thanks for your input!
 
Not sure what to recommend. Mears and other shuttle services --including Uber and cabs-- definitely do this (PC to Disney resorts) but at a certain price tag. :/
 
I've heard that Royal has improved their debarkation process at Port Canaveral. If you get an early debarkation time (recommended) you'll probably be off by 8am.

Fastest way is probably to get a car service, taxi or Uber. That will probably cost you some $$.

Cheapest is to rent a car, but that can take time to happen, as you'll need to get a shuttle to the rental agency, possibly wait for a car, then get going. If you have Costco membership it's worth looking and booking "just in case", since you get free cancellation.

I think there are shuttles to MCO, at which point you can (maybe?) get DME to WDW, but that seems like more of a logistical nightmare than going to the rental agency.
 
We have same plan after our Mariner cruise next summer (but to Pop Century) and plan on taking taxi or uber to get there as quick as we can.
 


We are planning the same thing for our January trip. We’ve never done this before so just writing on my research not personal experience. There are a few rental agencies right next to the RCCL port (Alamo/enterprise/national). There are shuttles that will take you.

One way rentals are pretty cheap. Standard cars were running for about 70$ (Plus gas and tolls) but if you shop around you could get a sweet deal. We got a mini van for 100$. Renting a vehicle you could make a grocery or lunch stop on your way. When you get to the hotel drop your bags off and check in. Then return the car. If you rent from Alamo or national they have onsite drop off at the car care center. They will drive you to the ticket and transportation center and you can bus/monorail it to a park And you won’t have to pay hotel parking fees.

the fastest way would be a private shuttle. Tony Hinds is highly recommended on these boards. He has a ten passenger van with car seats. He will pick you right at the terminal and take you right to your hotel. His services are about 180$ one way plus tip. He will also make a grocery stop if you like.

A car rental would probably be faster than a shared shuttle as they stop at multiple hotels. a shared shuttle is in, I think, the middle of convenience and time.

not sure about Uber and taxis. The only complication I could see is the car seat. Not sure how many Uber XLs with car seats would be there to accommodate Since you can’t preplan it. Unless you bring your own.
 
OP it depends on both when the ship is cleared & how you plan on getting to WDW.

Frankly, I’m the type that sees the value in having FP later in the afternoon in this sort of situation. As for food, i’d Go with CS the first day. After a cruise & indulging in the delicious offerings, food is the last thing on my mind at WDW.

If you are in a hurry, can self disembark as long as you can carry off all your own luggage. Otherwise you will be assigned a number. Those with stated early flights get priority after the top levels of RCCL/suites.

We eat a quick breakfast, self disembark and

A) grab car in garage/lot (have stopped doing that, tired of paying for both a rental & parking)

B) hustle for shuttle to our rental car pick up, sometimes it takes a few minutes, longest wait has been half an hour.

This trip, if i can’t grab a decent car rental rate at PC, considering following advice I’ve received...to book one of the smaller, shared non-ship shuttles back to MCO. then, pick up a (cheaper rental car) at MCO for the next 5 days at WDW. All depends on the difference in price.

You can also book a shuttle from PC directly to WDW

Some say they shuttle to MCO, then jump onto ME (insert indicating whatever flight time). Won’t work for us as we are at Wyndham Bonnet Creek this trip but I can see it making sense for many who are trying to cut costs.
 
If considering rental cars, be sure to check the prices on all the major agencies. There is a small difference in the distance between the closest and the furthest, but its probably not more than 10 minutes shuttle time difference.
 



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