top of page
Chad N.

Renting a Car in Walt Disney World: Smart Choice or Big Mistake?


basic rental car with rent me sign

Now that you've decided to make the fabulous Walt Disney World Resort your next vacation destination and plan to stay in the magic, you may wonder if a rental car would be a good idea for getting around the giant resort. With four major theme parks to visit, two fantastic water parks, and the fabulous Disney Springs shopping and dining district, you'll want a good, fast way to get you and your family around this 43-square-mile city within a city.


Upon your arrival at Orlando International Airport, you will need transportation to your resort hotel. Your PixieTrips.com personal travel consultant will help you find the best method at the best rate. Options include buses, private shuttles, ride-share cars, and, of course, rental car options. The WDW resort is less than 20 miles away, but be advised that specific routes in Florida may require you to pay a toll if you have a rental car.


If you decide to rent a car, all of the resort hotels offer self-parking, which is FREE to guests of the specific resort hotel as of the time of this writing. Upon entry, you will need to present your documentation to the guard station. Some resort locations offer express entry that can be linked to your Magic Band room key. Your friendly PixieTrips.com consultant can help you with the details for linking your Magic Bands to your account.


Should you choose not to rent a car, the Disney World Resort offers a plethora of different modes of transportation to get you from your resort hotel to your favorite park or attraction quickly and efficiently. The best part is that Disney's transportation around the resort is fun and FREE! The modes of available transportation include the famous Disney Monorail system, watercraft, buses, and the awesome Disney Skyliner. Minnie vans (similar to Uber or Lyft) are also available cost-per-ride.


Visiting the different resort hotels and restaurants is fun in itself. From the majestic Disney's Wilderness Lodge to a trip to the savanna to see the animals at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge and across Seven Seas Lagoon to visit Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. Given Disney's focus on making your travels between your favorite resort hotel and the parks as efficient as possible, some limitations to driving a rental car are worth considering. First, you must have a reason for being at a resort hotel other than your registered hotel before you can enter with a rental car. The guards are friendly but will only let you in another resort hotel with a dining reservation or similar. Then there is the time it takes to get from the resort hotel you are visiting to the park. You can only leave your car at a resort hotel for up to two hours unless it's the hotel you are staying at.


The parking lots at the parks are big. Really big! Having a rental car means you will likely walk a long way or fuss with trams to get to the park entrance. In some cases, you may even be parking your vehicle in the Ticketing and Transportation Center lot, only to find yourself walking to and getting onboard the same monorail as the family in front of you who didn't pay for a rental car. Disney's transportation system guarantees you a front-row spot, which drops you off at the front entrance every time.


Your Walt Disney World vacation offers exciting new adventures and experiences you will want to experience. The time you spend enjoying the attractions goes by fast, so getting around the property quickly and efficiently is critical to getting the most out of your Disney vacation. Driving a rental car off-property lets you see other non-Disney attractions such as Universal Studios Hollywood, the Kennedy Space Center, or a day at the beach. In most cases, though, your rental car sits at your hotel or in one of the giant parking lots baking in the Florida sun.


Disney's complimentary transportation network is hard to beat if you want to kick back, maximize every minute, always get on board a cool ride, and take in all Disney offers. Should you get midway through your vacation and have a burning desire for a rental car, the Car Care Center on property has cars available for daily rental.

Comentários


bottom of page