Best car rental from MCO to Port Canaveral

Just decided to cancel my ground transportation thru disney since I don't want my toddler going unrestrained on the bus. Any recommendations for which car rental company is the best to use for one way from airport to the port? I can drop off my husband and daughter at the ship then return the car and cab it back to the port but it would be nice if the car rental place was close by.

I think most rental companies have complimentary shuttles service to the port ... check with them. We used Hertz last time and they were good.

You could get delayed catching the shuttle bus and your embarkation.

I don't want to mislead you but to make things easier get a company that is right outside of the baggage area of the airport. They are soo close. I know there are at least 4 of them. No need for transportation to the lot to pick up car. I'm sure someone can here can give you their names. The other thing is if you are traveling with a child you lose backseat space for luggage and therefore many normal size trunks could never carry your luggage. I remember seeing a couple picking up a car (not small at all) and they are trying to stuff all their luggage into it. It was funny to me not them lol. I would therefore try to get a minivan. We priced out one for January to take family to Port Can. and it was about $110 for 24 hrs. Then I made a few inquiries for private transportation and it was $125 each way so I did that because figuring in gas it paid to. And for you just request a car seat.

Done this several times. There are a few that are only a roughly 5 minute drive to ship. Longest thing will be paperwork but only 15 minutes at worst for us.

You pull up to security, tell them you are dropping folks off, pull to the left area, porters right there. Family goes into terminal to wait.

Drop off car, take shuttle to dock. Make sure all have id/paperwork to get through security before terminal. This whole process normally 1/2 hour.

On return do in reverse but we all go on shuttle. Unless you are packing monster cases and tiny car, we've always been able to get four people in car and four cases in trunk. Only other note is beware of gas station just north of the highway by the airport as they didn't publish gas prices and are very expensive. This would be the east west highway to PC. Drive a couple miles north.

I don't ever remember in 30 years of cruising taking just one suitcase per person. Even if 2nd was carry on. And like I said having a carseat in rear for child and packing for a child can be just as cumbersome as packing for 2 people in my experience. jmho

Unless you are packing monster cases and tiny car, we've always been able to get four people in car and four cases in trunk.

If it is four airline checked suitcases, I would like to know which car is that, I will buy it today :p

Or is it four carry-on bags ?

I'd opt for the DCL transport and a car service. Are you just using the airplane seat belts? If your child does o.k. with them and doesn't get fidgety etc., I think he/she would be fine on the bus ride over. MCO is an efficient airport but I'd allow 45 minutes to get luggage and pick up a car. The ride to the Port is 45/an hour. There are tolls along the way, around $5 each way. Then there's the concern of accidents/delays on the expressway. We're down there quite a bit to see grandma and more than once we've been dead stopped due to accidents etc. One time it was an hour. You also need to watch your timing getting the the DCL terminal. I've been reading that if you're earlier than your time, you may be asked to wait outside until your time or the terminal clears a bit. With the one way rental, you can be charged the daily rental fees etc. along with a fee to return the car to a different office than the one you picked it up at. That's happened to us on several occasions and each time it's been between $75/$100. I just think DCL or prearranged transportation is just easier.

Thank you all for your replies. I'm pretty sure I'm going to forego the disney transportation and rent with budget or hertz. This is my timeline:

11:20-arrive in orlando

12:30-be in rental car hitting the road

1:30-drop hubby and daughter off at ship, then return car

2:00-be back at ship via cab

Does this sound attainable for all of those who have done this? I know someone mentioned frequent accidents but if I'm stuck then so is the disney transport...plus that's why I'm not comfortable taking my daughter on transportation where she is not properly restrained.

So same day arrival ... Looks feasible but if I were you I wouldn't do it. Cutting a bit too close. I want to feel starting my vacation when the flight landed at MCO, not a few hours later when th cab drop me off at the cruise terminal.

So same day arrival ... Looks feasible but if I were you I wouldn't do it. Cutting a bit too close. I want to feel starting my vacation when the flight landed at MCO, not a few hours later when th cab drop me off at the cruise terminal.

You wouldn't do it because you would be afraid of missing the boat or because you would want to feel like you were on vacation a few hours earlier. I'm not worried about the latter, just want to make sure I make it too the boat:)

Thank you all for your replies. I'm pretty sure I'm going to forego the disney transportation and rent with budget or hertz. This is my timeline:

 

11:20-arrive in orlando

12:30-be in rental car hitting the road

1:30-drop hubby and daughter off at ship, then return car

2:00-be back at ship via cab

 

Does this sound attainable for all of those who have done this? I know someone mentioned frequent accidents but if I'm stuck then so is the disney transport...plus that's why I'm not comfortable taking my daughter on transportation where she is not properly restrained.

As PP noted, it looks like it might work. But you're also assuming that the plane will land on time, and go directly to the gate and you'll able to navigate through the airport to car rental place, through the rental line and load up your car in one hour.

I will point out with the DCL transfers, if your plane is late, or there is too much traffic on the freeway, they know you are coming and will get you to the ship, the other way, you're on your own.

:)

You wouldn't do it because you would be afraid of missing the boat or because you would want to feel like you were on vacation a few hours earlier. I'm not worried about the latter, just want to make sure I make it too the boat:)

I wouldn't do it because I do not want to have the feeling that if something in-between goes wrong that can cause a delay and then I can run out of alternative because of the limited amount of time I have.

If I flew in a day early, then I'll do car rental and can enjoy the flexibility it gives. If I flew in same day, then DCL transfer will be my preference.

I've learned a lot from the generous people on this board and registered today in hopes of returning the favor! We just recently rented one way from MCO to port and then port to MCO after the cruise. We used Budget, and because of my experience, we will not use Budget again when going on a cruise from Port Canaveral. At MCO it took 45 minutes to get our luggage, and 1 1/2 hours to get our van. I had a prepaid reservation with a code, had a great price, but the run around was unbelievable. Even though there were lots of vans in the lot, "my" van wasn't ready, we were forced to buy insurance even though we didn't need or want it, and he kept trying to get us to pay for an upgrade to a SUV because he was extremely worried about 6 people in the van with our suitcases being more than the tires could handle! :confused: (The highest weight in our party was 215 and the lowest was 120!) Dropping off at the port took close to one hour from car return to terminal. Renting after the cruise was not any better. We waited in the rental shuttle line for 15 minutes, couldn't get on that one so had to wait 45 minutes for the next one. Once there we waited another 40 minutes to reach the counter that had only one woman working it, and we were 4th in line.

I learned a few things from the CM managing the rental shuttle lines while we were waiting. Budget only has 1 shuttle van to service all the ships in port, while the other companies have several. Getting to your cruise after returning your car with Budget, Disney is the last stop. After the cruise, the number of shuttles available for customer pick-up becomes even more important because Disney has a secure pier. No vehicle is allowed in with anyone who has not gone through security so if your car shuttle picks up passengers from other cruise lines they have to drop them off before they come to Disney. They can only get on Disney's pier with an empty van. With Budget only having 1 shuttle, it creates a long wait. We saw the other car companies' vans come through 3 or 4 times and leave empty while we waited. In fact Hertz had to help our Budget driver shuttle people. At both MCO and the pier, Budget was the only one with a long line. All the other companies had very small lines or no lines at all. So for me, spending a little more with the Hertz, Avis or Enterprise will be money well spent because of all of the time and hassle I will gain back.

All this to say that we flew in the day before our cruise so we had the time to deal with the delays. If I were flying in the day of the cruise, I wouldn't do a one way rental car, from any company, unless I was coming in very early in the morning. Renting and parking at the port would be better, but still with the relatively late time your flight comes in, and the time baggage claim takes, I would be very, very nervous. You might seriously reconsider the Disney transport. I'm not dismissing your reasons for not wanting to use it, because I've had lots of eye-rolling opinions about things I did not want to compromise on concerning my own children, but I think it is your safest option all things considered. You are guaranteed to not miss your cruise with Disney transport. Disney runs cartoons so your child will have something to occupy his time and hold his attention. I think the second safest option for making the cruise boarding time is to hire a very reputable car company and use carry on luggage to avoid the baggage claim delay. (but no guarantees like with Disney transport) Good luck with your decision!

I'm sorry this is long, but I hope it helps someone! :)

I've learned a lot from the generous people on this board and registered today in hopes of returning the favor! We just recently rented one way from MCO to port and then port to MCO after the cruise. We used Budget, and because of my experience, we will not use Budget again when going on a cruise from Port Canaveral. At MCO it took 45 minutes to get our luggage, and 1 1/2 hours to get our van. I had a prepaid reservation with a code, had a great price, but the run around was unbelievable. Even though there were lots of vans in the lot, "my" van wasn't ready, we were forced to buy insurance even though we didn't need or want it, and he kept trying to get us to pay for an upgrade to a SUV because he was extremely worried about 6 people in the van with our suitcases being more than the tires could handle! :confused: (The highest weight in our party was 215 and the lowest was 120!) Dropping off at the port took close to one hour from car return to terminal. Renting after the cruise was not any better. We waited in the rental shuttle line for 15 minutes, couldn't get on that one so had to wait 45 minutes for the next one. Once there we waited another 40 minutes to reach the counter that had only one woman working it, and we were 4th in line.

I learned a few things from the CM managing the rental shuttle lines while we were waiting. Budget only has 1 shuttle van to service all the ships in port, while the other companies have several. Getting to your cruise after returning your car with Budget, Disney is the last stop. After the cruise, the number of shuttles available for customer pick-up becomes even more important because Disney has a secure pier. No vehicle is allowed in with anyone who has not gone through security so if your car shuttle picks up passengers from other cruise lines they have to drop them off before they come to Disney. They can only get on Disney's pier with an empty van. With Budget only having 1 shuttle, it creates a long wait. We saw the other car companies' vans come through 3 or 4 times and leave empty while we waited. In fact Hertz had to help our Budget driver shuttle people. At both MCO and the pier, Budget was the only one with a long line. All the other companies had very small lines or no lines at all. So for me, spending a little more with the Hertz, Avis or Enterprise will be money well spent because of all of the time and hassle I will gain back.

All this to say that we flew in the day before our cruise so we had the time to deal with the delays. If I were flying in the day of the cruise, I wouldn't do a one way rental car, from any company, unless I was coming in very early in the morning. Renting and parking at the port would be better, but still with the relatively late time your flight comes in, and the time baggage claim takes, I would be very, very nervous. You might seriously reconsider the Disney transport. I'm not dismissing your reasons for not wanting to use it, because I've had lots of eye-rolling opinions about things I did not want to compromise on concerning my own children, but I think it is your safest option all things considered. You are guaranteed to not miss your cruise with Disney transport. Disney runs cartoons so your child will have something to occupy his time and hold his attention. I think the second safest option for making the cruise boarding time is to hire a very reputable car company and use carry on luggage to avoid the baggage claim delay. (but no guarantees like with Disney transport) Good luck with your decision!

I'm sorry this is long, but I hope it helps someone! :)

It is long, but a good first post, and all make sense to me. The time we used car rental both ways, we flew in a day early pre-cruise and flew back 2 days post-cruise. I have plenty of rooms allowed for things not to go as planned, even 10 minutes here and 20 minutes there can easily add up. Last time when we flew in and out same day of cruise, DCL all the way for me, even my flight was scheduled to arrive at MCO at 9:45am, and was on time.

We travel to Orlando a couple of times a year and always rent a car. We have been in and out in 30-40 minutes, but we have also had to wait up to and past an hour. It all depends on what day, time of day and what time of year.

The other thing to worry about is traffic on the way to the port. We have heard about accidents that have stopped people from cruising. The local band here in town just went to FL and there was a chemical spill on the highway and they sat for 2 hours. The ship will not wait for you if you are driving on your own. I have heard they have and will wait for a DCL bus.

If it were me, I would use DCL transportation for peace of mind. We used the buses once when our daughter was 2 1/2 and she did fine. They played Disney cartoons on the way from the resort to the airport. I think you will be fine, but ultimatley only you can make that choice.

I think you will be fine, but ultimatley only you can make that choice.

You can take a horse to the water but you cannot make him drink ;)

DCL coach drivers are in direct communication link with the port terminal crew and the ship won't depart if any of the DCL buses are delayed on the way to the port. That is an insurance policy in itself and worth paying for the bus trip.

I've learned a lot from the generous people on this board and registered today in hopes of returning the favor! We just recently rented one way from MCO to port and then port to MCO after the cruise. We used Budget, and because of my experience, we will not use Budget again when going on a cruise from Port Canaveral. At MCO it took 45 minutes to get our luggage, and 1 1/2 hours to get our van. I had a prepaid reservation with a code, had a great price, but the run around was unbelievable. Even though there were lots of vans in the lot, "my" van wasn't ready, we were forced to buy insurance even though we didn't need or want it, and he kept trying to get us to pay for an upgrade to a SUV because he was extremely worried about 6 people in the van with our suitcases being more than the tires could handle! :confused: (The highest weight in our party was 215 and the lowest was 120!) Dropping off at the port took close to one hour from car return to terminal. Renting after the cruise was not any better. We waited in the rental shuttle line for 15 minutes, couldn't get on that one so had to wait 45 minutes for the next one. Once there we waited another 40 minutes to reach the counter that had only one woman working it, and we were 4th in line.

I learned a few things from the CM managing the rental shuttle lines while we were waiting. Budget only has 1 shuttle van to service all the ships in port, while the other companies have several. Getting to your cruise after returning your car with Budget, Disney is the last stop. After the cruise, the number of shuttles available for customer pick-up becomes even more important because Disney has a secure pier. No vehicle is allowed in with anyone who has not gone through security so if your car shuttle picks up passengers from other cruise lines they have to drop them off before they come to Disney. They can only get on Disney's pier with an empty van. With Budget only having 1 shuttle, it creates a long wait. We saw the other car companies' vans come through 3 or 4 times and leave empty while we waited. In fact Hertz had to help our Budget driver shuttle people. At both MCO and the pier, Budget was the only one with a long line. All the other companies had very small lines or no lines at all. So for me, spending a little more with the Hertz, Avis or Enterprise will be money well spent because of all of the time and hassle I will gain back.

All this to say that we flew in the day before our cruise so we had the time to deal with the delays. If I were flying in the day of the cruise, I wouldn't do a one way rental car, from any company, unless I was coming in very early in the morning. Renting and parking at the port would be better, but still with the relatively late time your flight comes in, and the time baggage claim takes, I would be very, very nervous. You might seriously reconsider the Disney transport. I'm not dismissing your reasons for not wanting to use it, because I've had lots of eye-rolling opinions about things I did not want to compromise on concerning my own children, but I think it is your safest option all things considered. You are guaranteed to not miss your cruise with Disney transport. Disney runs cartoons so your child will have something to occupy his time and hold his attention. I think the second safest option for making the cruise boarding time is to hire a very reputable car company and use carry on luggage to avoid the baggage claim delay. (but no guarantees like with Disney transport) Good luck with your decision!

I'm sorry this is long, but I hope it helps someone! :)

Thank you Beachbabysc! This is the type of information that I am looking for. Thanks for taking the time to reply:)

Although true, a lot of my replies are tongue in cheek. I appreciate people helping me by sharing their experiences since this is my first disney cruise but I sense that you may just be trouble making and insulting. It's okay if you have a different preference for doing things than I but criticism is uncalled for and childlike...but thanks for your attempt to make my vacation go smoother:)

I am not trouble making and insulting.Just being facetious. I just felt that people here are giving you good sincere advises but you just insisted on having your own viewpoint. So coming here to ask advise was just a front to show off your "elite" status and not actually to seek advise.

You finally saw daylight after a first time poster actually gave her bad experiences. Most of us here don't have to actually suffer bad experiences to know what can happen, unlike you ;)

I thank my lucky stars that my wife is not like you even though we have a four old and we have gone on many long vacations with him since he was 6 months old, by air, sea , rental cars and TOURIST BUSES!!

we considered a one-way rental car but did not want to waste time in picking-up/dropping vehicle. Limo service seemed better alternative and more economical considering the cost of time,tolls and gas. We paid one way $135 plus gratuity for 6 of us for an Escalade with https://orlandoairportlimotransportation.com

I'm figuring that OP has taken their trip and resolved their issues (thread is from 5 years ago).

Lots of opinions. We have been on 20 Disney cruises. I would never consider coming in day of because of all the potential issues. And if I did I would arrive on the earliest possible flight in the am and get on a Disney bus asap. We have waited in ground for a gate for up to 30 min at Orlando and for luggage for over 30 min. Getting a car takes a while. You are very optimistic to think you can be in a car within an hour of arriving. But good luck.

I did an early Saturday morning flight recently. At the next gate was a direct flight to Orlando (hey, they started one again!) and several families with shirts indicating that they were cruising on the Fantasy...and a couple of little kids, 2-3 years old, already whining. All I could think was that at least it was a direct flight, but how much more pleasant had they come in a day early and allowed the kids to start the cruise well rested rather than hauling them out of bed at 4am for a 6am flight. And I thought of them again as my flight to Phoenix sat on the taxiway for 45 minutes while some issues were resolved.