Mickey's BBQ if we land MCO at 3:15?

[DisneyFave]

Mickey's BBQ starts at 5:30 and they start letting people in around 4:30. We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

We wouldn't want to pass up Magical Express either. :/

TIA

 

[sharonabe]

Mickey's BBQ starts at 5:30 and they start letting people in around 4:30. We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

We wouldn't want to pass up Magical Express either. :/

TIA

Do you really want that kind of stress on Day 1 of your trip?

Your flight lands at 3:15. I think the EARLIEST you could be at BLT is 4:45, and that's if everything aligns and goes just right. So technically, you might be able to get there before the show starts at 5:30. I have no idea how late they will seat you, so that might be worth another question.

Still, all it takes is one little glitch somewhere along the way and you will miss this meal completely.

 

[WishICouldSpeakWhale]

You will not make it. There is a slight chance that you might, but really it is not likely. Most people say ME takes 90 minutes, which means you'll get to BLT at 5 if there are no delays and you're the first people off the plane. But then you still have to get to Ft. Wilderness.

It has never taken us less than 2 hours and one time it took almost 2.5 hours from landing - we had actually landed early too. We were at Poly that trip and our ME bus still hadn't dropped off the contemporary guests yet.

 

[kniquy]

We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

that is pushing it -- can you put this reservation on another day? If your flight is delayed even 30 minutes you will likely not make it.

Even if your flight lands on time, getting to the ME area can take another 30 minutes (figuring you can't just jump off the plane), so maybe getting on a ME bus by 3:45 and then a 30-45 minute ride to the resort. Really not worth the stress on your first day. It is typically advised not to book ADR's on your first day simply because you will be charged if you don't make it.

In April arriving at the ME counter on a Saturday morning there was just a sea of people for all resort buses. I think there might have been some bus troubles or just a major influx of people arriving that morning. I have never seen it like that. Other days the ME area is like a ghost town, but not that morning. We probably waited 45 minutes + just to get on the bus. So in this situation other transportation could be quicker. But again i don't think a 4:30 reservation is a good idea, push it to another day if you must eat there

 

[Tink9721]

I agree with everyone else. The whole process between landing and arriving at your hotel can easily take a couple hours. Just getting off the plane can take a good 20 minutes unless you’re right up front. ME to the Contemporary takes a long time too. I’m pretty sure they’re the last stop on the MK area bus. We always stay at WL and I don’t remember the bus ever stopping at the Contemporary before dropping us off, and we’re usually after Poly and GF, I think.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Mickey's BBQ starts at 5:30 and they start letting people in around 4:30. We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

We wouldn't want to pass up Magical Express either. :/

TIA

I'm with everyone else. The chances of you getting there before the BBQ starts are slim to none. The only thing faster than taking the boat from CR to Ft. W is a Minnie Van (Uber can't drop off at the Settlement at Ft. W) and getting a Minnie Van quickly is hit or miss.

 

[DWillowBay]

Too much stress....too much money....so many other options! Not a great way to start a trip.

 

[GoingSince1990]

Instead of ME, use a luggage shipping service to send your big bags to BLT in advance, so you only have a small carry-on backpack on the plane. Then as soon as you land walk out of the airport directly into an Uber, straight to WL. This way even if your flight is delayed by an hour you will be fine.

 

[Pumbaa_]

You are assuming you will land in time. There is no guarantee that you will arrive in time.

My personal policy is nothing non refundable on arrival day. If you were arriving at 9 am, I would still be hesitant

 

[Nancyg56]

Oh dear, this is a level of stress I would not be able to handle. One of the issues is seating. Do you really want to skate in there at 5:30 and be seated at whatever row is open? This BBQ is set up with very long tables and there are several of them leading towards the outside of the pavilion. Even if you arrive at your resort, you still need to wait for a boat, and those things, while relaxing, are SLOOOOOOOOOWWWW.

 

[marielynn724]

Mickey's BBQ starts at 5:30 and they start letting people in around 4:30. We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

We wouldn't want to pass up Magical Express either. :/

TIA

You will not make it unless you take a cab directly from landing at the airport to Fort Wilderness without checking in at your resort first at all. When you land in MCO, you need to get to the Magic Express bus terminal, which in itself can take in excess of 20 minutes depending on what gate you land at (I always fly Jet Blue and you need to take an airport monorail ride just to get to the other side of the airport where ME is). Then you'll need to wait at ME gate to board your bus (can be another 20 minutes or more) and then the ride from MCO takes about 45 minutes to arrive on WDW property. Then you need to get dropped off at Bay Lake Tower which can take even more time if you have other resort drop-offs first on your bus. Then you'll need to check into your resort (your room may or may not be ready yet) and find transportation to Fort Wilderness which is either taking a ferry or monorail to Magic Kingdom and transferring to another ferry to Fort Wilderness OR taking a lyft from Bay Lake Tower directly to Fort Wilderness. Either way, it's not going to be less than 2 hours from landing at MCO to arriving at your destination in WDW.

 

[Hopefully]

No way! Your flight is scheduled to land a 3:15. Flight delays are frequent and uncontrollable. I never schedule an ADR sooner than 5 hours after scheduled arrival. And I would not make an ADR for a prepaid dinner show on arrival day. That would be one very expensive delay

 

[Hopefully]

Instead of ME, use a luggage shipping service to send your big bags to BLT in advance, so you only have a small carry-on backpack on the plane. Then as soon as you land walk out of the airport directly into an Uber, straight to WL. This way even if your flight is delayed by an hour you will be fine.

The Backyard Barbeque is at Fort Wilderness, not Wilderness Lodge. Uber must drop passengers off at the Outpost, at the front of the Campground. From there guests have to catch an internal bus to Pioneer Hall.

 

[Nancyg56]

The Backyard Barbeque is at Fort Wilderness, not Wilderness Lodge. Uber must drop passengers off at the Outpost, at the front of the Campground. From there guests have to catch an internal bus to Pioneer Hall.

And that takes time.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

You will not make it unless you take a cab directly from landing at the airport to Fort Wilderness without checking in at your resort first at all. When you land in MCO, you need to get to the Magic Express bus terminal, which in itself can take in excess of 20 minutes depending on what gate you land at (I always fly Jet Blue and you need to take an airport monorail ride just to get to the other side of the airport where ME is). Then you'll need to wait at ME gate to board your bus (can be another 20 minutes or more) and then the ride from MCO takes about 45 minutes to arrive on WDW property. Then you need to get dropped off at Bay Lake Tower which can take even more time if you have other resort drop-offs first on your bus. Then you'll need to check into your resort (your room may or may not be ready yet) and find transportation to Fort Wilderness which is either taking a ferry or monorail to Magic Kingdom and transferring to another ferry to Fort Wilderness OR taking a lyft from Bay Lake Tower directly to Fort Wilderness. Either way, it's not going to be less than 2 hours from landing at MCO to arriving at your destination in WDW.

Just for future reference, there is a separate boat route the goes around Bay Lake with stops at CR/BLT, WL and Ft. W (this is separate from the MK route), so there is no need to go to MK to get a boat to Ft. W. I still wouldn't recommend OP do this with the time constraint they are working with. I just wanted to make sure you knew this was a transportation option in case you ever needed it.

 

[GoingSince1990]

The Backyard Barbeque is at Fort Wilderness, not Wilderness Lodge. Uber must drop passengers off at the Outpost, at the front of the Campground. From there guests have to catch an internal bus to Pioneer Hall.

Whoops, my bad. Thanks.

 

[karrit2000]

Not to burst your bubble but many unofficial websites have reported that Mickey's Backyard BBQ will end at the end of this year. There are currently no dates scheduled beyond 12/31/2018 on the Disney Website.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Mickey's BBQ starts at 5:30 and they start letting people in around 4:30. We plan to use ME from MCO on a flight arriving at 3:15 on a Saturday in June and are staying at Bay Lake Tower. We will use ME luggage tags, so no bag claim stop. If we get Cat 1 seats for the BBQ, would we be able to make it? I assume we wouldn't be able to take the boat and would have to Uber or something faster?

We wouldn't want to pass up Magical Express either. :/

TIA

I see 2 problems with your timing there was a post just this week about her ME bus having a flat tire on the way to hotel and sitting waiting for another bus to get them to their hotel. and second UBER will not save time as you would have to take an internal bus back to BBQ as cars UBER included are not allowed in that area as there is no place to park and this includes handicapped stickers. boat would get you closer than car/UBER and internal bus

 

[CraigInPA]

I think the possibility of you getting there on time is virtually zero using DME. The number of people arriving on Saturday just overwhelms them. You might get there on time by uber or cab from the airport directly to FW.

 

[nkereina]

Agree with PPs. If you land at 3:15 with no delays, take DME and arrive at BLT around 4:45 with no delays, store your carry on bags or drop them off at your room, Uber to FW - in the best case scenario, you'd be there right as the show is starting. But there's too many variables. Even if you Ubered or took a taxi instead of DME, its still calling it too close. IMO, Mickey's Backyard BBQ is not worth that kind of rush or stress, or potential to lose the cost you are paying if you had to miss it due to unforeseen circumstances.