Hiya Suzanne,
Welcome back to planDisney! I still remember taking both of my little Mouseketeers when they were a few months old to Walt Disney World Resort. My daughter’s first trip was actually where I fell in love with the
Minnie Van Service. My Prince Charming jokes that if we are planning a visit to the Most Magical Place on Earth, he'd better set aside budget for the Minnie Van since I’m hooked.
Let’s get to your question, Suzanne! I think it’s a great idea to use the Minnie Van to get to your reservation at
‘Ohana from
Port Orleans – Riverside. In my experience, you cannot schedule Minnie Van rides in advance; they are available on demand. This typically isn’t an issue, especially for mid-day requests; however, there are some peak times, such as when theme parks are opening, holidays, and after theme parks close, that your wait can be longer due to availability. In my experience, my wait has never exceeded 30 minutes (and that was during a peak time); however, with a dining reservation, I can understand your caution. Given your reservation is at 8:15 am, I recommend being ready to request your ride in the Lyft app by no later than 7:40 am. With the car seat set up, it can add a little extra time to get in the Minnie Van, so 35-40 minutes should give you a nice buffer to get everyone in the car, drive to the
Polynesian Village, unload, and check in at ‘Ohana. Through the app, you can see an estimate of how long your trip will take, which you can use to adjust your timeline as needed (note that while it is dynamic, it isn’t always the most accurate, so use it only to help estimate). I like to check the app after I know everyone is dressed, and we can make it out the door in less than 5 minutes if needed. If I notice the wait time getting longer, I will request my ride while I’m shuffling everyone at the door.
I hope this was helpful, Suzanne. I know with a baby, everything takes just a little extra time, so it's always better to be safe than sorry. My motto is always that it is better to be early than scrambling to get there. If you do get there early, head all the way to the back of the resort and out of the lobby doors, just beside
Pineapple Lanai. They have a little turf area that my littles used to love to crawl and walk around, especially when we were waiting for our tables to be ready. The sound of the pools was always soothing to all of us, so we didn’t mind the wait. If you need anything else, please come back and see us. I’ve become quite the pro at traveling with babies (mine are now almost 4 and 1, and we've been on over 10 trips with them), so I’m always happy to share tips and tricks.
Happy Planning,
Ashley F.