Disney World Gets Rid of Free Airport Transportation — and Replaces It With These Paid Options. Companies like Mears Connect, Sunshine Flyer, and rideshares are available.
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Magical Express, the free bus transportation between Walt Disney World Resort Hotels and Orlando International Airport (MCO), was discontinued at the end of 2021 after more than 15 years in operation. Here's a roundup of your new, for-pay options when planning to get between the airport and Disney World.
There are a number of shared-ride shuttles and limousines available that can take you directly to the Disneyland Resort. Shuttles and taxicabs are available on the ground transportation island in front of Terminal A and Terminal B, although it's best to arrange your transportation prior to arriving at the airport.
Taking a standard Uber vehicle from Orlando International Airport to Walt Disney World Resort costs around $35. The price increases to above $40 if you request a specialty vehicle. Add to that, an Uber ride between the airport and Disney World takes less than 30 minutes.
Mears Connect1, 2022 — provides two types of service, Standard and Express service. Standard service mimics most of Magical Express in that there are dedicated buses from Orlando to the various Disney World resort hotels. It costs $16 per adult one-way and $13.50 per child (ages 3-9) one-way.
Vehicles depart the airport to each resort area every 20-30 minutes. Wait times can average 1-20 minutes and your vehicle will likely make multiple stops. Based on the distance from the airport to the Disney Resorts, you should expect your travel time to be 30-60 minutes.
Uber / Lyft.Our preferred way to get from Orlando airport to Disney World is Uber. While prices can surge and not everyone is comfortable with rideshare, we've made this trip probably a dozen times and used Uber overall probably over 100 times. The balance of convenience and typical price can't be beat in our mind.
In addition to our standard shared ride shuttle transportation service, Mears Connect offers express, direct, round-trip airport transfers to all Walt Disney World Resorts. Our express shuttle service comes with minimal wait. Connect directly to your hotel and back to the airport after your vacation – with no stops!
No, Disney's Magical Express is NOT coming back. Since the Magical Express ended, we've seen 2 major companies essentially “fill the void” of that service, transporting guests to and from the Orlando International Airport and their Disney World hotels (for a fee).
While you can get to all of the Disney World theme parks with Uber and Lyft, there are a couple of trips to use when entering the destination for your trip. Magic Kingdom: The standard pickup/drop off location is the “Ticket and Transportation Center”.
Local bus. : The Lynx Bus, Orlando's local bus system, makes airport pick-ups and drop-offs about every 30 minutes; and about every hour on Sundays and holidays. The buses run select routes including MCO to downtown Orlando, International Drive and the Florida Mall/SeaWorld area. The cost is $2 per passenger, per ride.
Anyone is free to use the bus system regardless of where they are staying, on or off Disney property. There are, however, a few exceptions to this. What exceptions? The Disney buses that bring guests to/from Orlando International Airport are totally separate from the buses that operate within Walt Disney World.
Lyft's app is easier to useWe have found the Lyft app to just be a lot easier to use at Walt Disney World than the Uber app. It automatically populates with ALL the approved pick-up and drop-off locations, which is very handy when you are in an unfamiliar spot. Uber doesn't always do that.
If you drive your own vehicle or a rental car, and you aren't staying at a Disney resort, you'll need to pay $25 per day to leave your car in a Disney lot—up to $50 a day if you want a preferred spot closer to the gates. With the exception of Magic Kingdom, an Uber or Lyft can get you closer for a much lower cost.
Vehicles depart the airport to each resort area every 20-30 minutes. Wait times can average 1-20 minutes and your vehicle will likely make multiple stops. Based on the distance from the airport to the Disney Resorts, you should expect your travel time to be 30-60 minutes.