Hi Kelly,
We are thrilled to see you stopping by planDisney with a question!
I have to admit, this question made me smile. We just cruised on the
Disney Wish in January and had a similar dilemma. Since we were staying at a
Disney Resorts Collection hotel, I did consider adding
Ground Transportation through Disney Cruise Line. Given the cost, we decided to use a ride share service. Although we did arrive a few minutes prior to our boarding time, I will add a few cautionary notes. It took far longer than I anticipated for the ride to be confirmed through the ride share app. And while the driver was good and we got there safely, the trip was not magical at all until we arrived and saw our ship! As you make your decision, take a look at this
answer from one of my fellow panelists, Shannon.
If you cannot add ground transportation through the cruise line and decide to use a ride share service, I would start trying to book the ride at least two hours in advance. The estimated time from our resort hotel (which was Disney's Bay Lake Tower) to the cruise terminal was about an hour and fifteen minutes on the day we were set to depart. On our return to the airport, we rented a car. After we got off of the ship, we waited for the rental car company shuttle, picked up the car, and then went to visit Kennedy Space Center prior to heading back to the airport to catch our flight home.
As you continue to make plans, I do have a few final tips! Consider
tickets to at least one of the theme parks. Also, take a look at the
Special Offers to be sure you have the best deal for your resort hotel. If you do not make plans to visit a theme park prior to the cruise, consider relaxing at the resort in the morning and visiting Disney Springs in the afternoon. My family loves to head out to the movies at
AMC® Disney Springs 24 Dine-In Theaters. It truly is an experience!
Kelly, keep up the
practically perfect planning!
Magic and memories,
Donyell