Returning as UK Retirees!!

[The Pea]

Hi all,

Its been a while since my husband and I (I sound like the Queen!) have visited Orlando and more importantly to the happiest place in the World, 'Disney'!

Over the years with our now grown up children we have visited about 8 times from the UK and are now planning a trip next year for just the 2 of us when we have finished work and finally retired.....how exciting!

In the past when travelling with our children. we've always hired a car at the airport which we've used not only for travel to and from the various Disney parks but also for food shopping, trips to outlet malls and to evening restaurants etc etc.

For this 3 week planned trip we are considering using Uber/Lyft etc instead of the expense of hiring a car and wondered if anyone could share their experience of maybe getting around this way?

We are looking at renting a small 1 bed apartment in a gated complex that we have stayed in before just off the 192 around 9 miles from the entrance of Animal Kingdom which gives an idea on distances we need to travel to get to various things.

We are not rich by any means but always like to spend what is necessary to make sure that the holiday is a success. We could afford car hire but the prices seem quite high by what I remember (its been a while) and including 14 days Disney parking charges on top of the cost, I'm wondering if just getting Ubers everywhere might be a more sensible option, would it work or do people think the freedom of your own car is a better option.....is it easy to get an Uber after a day in the theme parks when they close, can they pick up close to where you come out?

We've done the various drives to the coasts over the years so it literally would be just local trips and as I said for 14 days the car would just be sitting in a Disney car park!

Any advice on the above or and other tips on Disney and our planned trip with what might have changed over the last 8 years would be very much appreciated!

Many thanks

Pea....

 

[goofyernmost]

I have long been a supporter of having you own vehicle. I don't stay onsite though so the added expense of parking overnight was not a factor. It has been my experience that folks from the UK usually stay for a lengthy visit, and since you will be retired I suggest doing a little exploring. That is only financially possible with a rental auto. There are places like Universal, Sea World, Legoland, Kennedy Space center an hour to the east, Boc Towers, the orange groves just south of WDW. Not to mention all the other roadside attractions in the area.

I understand that many just like to snuggle into the Disney bubble but with so many things being a la carte now, the money could be used to see other places in Florida. The decision is yours, of course, but I highly suggest broadening the experience and make the first Retirement Adventure a memorial one.

 

[The Pea]

Thanks very much for your reply, it is much appreciated.

As you say, as UK visitors the length of the stay is usually longer, it's a long way to travel and a lot to see although this at 3 weeks will be our longest visit.

Over the years we have done the major tourist attractions (Sea World, Universal, Kennedy etc etc) and have taken trips to both the East & West coasts but of course there is plenty to see that we haven't considered which would of course require a rental car.

We are planning next year to try and do a fair bit of travelling worldwide as a 'big year of travel' after nearly 50 years of being on the employment treadmill but of course the pot of money isn't limitless and has to go a long way! Florida/Disney for UK visitors (and I guess everyone) is an expensive business and I expect the Disney experience which we have such fond memories of will be a lot more expensive this time around.

I guess I was thinking could we make a substantial enough saving by not hiring a car for 21 days if we intended to visit Disney for 14 of those days by the time you add parking fees as well. Maybe we could take a car locally for the last week and see and do other things then........now there's a thought?!

 

[Jangles]

I always used to hire a car and then one 21 day trip, I only used the car to drive to and from the airport, drive to and from UOR and a couple of beach trips. The rest of the time it sat in the car park gathering dust, so the following trip we decided to use Uber and Lyft. We downloaded the apps before we left and had no problem at all using them in Florida. Whilst at WDW walk/bus/monorail/skyliner to an hotel and book an Uber/Lyft from there, rather than from the parks. We usually explore the hotel, visit a bar and then call a car, so we have ended up seeing much more of the resorts then we did when driving a hire car. If you are visiting UOR ask to be dropped off at the HRH and just take the footpath from there.

 

[The Pea]

Great, thanks for that advice.

Could I just ask how easy would it be arriving at Orlando International at mid afternoon on a weekday and picking up an Uber/Lyft to our rental apartment or is it a case of having to have pre booked a ride?

Thanks!

 

[Jangles]

Great, thanks for that advice.

Could I just ask how easy would it be arriving at Orlando International at mid afternoon on a weekday and picking up an Uber/Lyft to our rental apartment or is it a case of having to have pre booked a ride?

Thanks!

We usually arrive from the U.K. on a flight that arrives around 16.00 and it’s always been easy. In Dec we got a Lyft XL from MCO to CBR and it was $31. It’s easy enough to follow signs to the ride share pick up point, but it is quite busy there and of course US cars don’t have a number plate in the front, so identifying ‘your’ car amoung the masses can be a bit of a challenge, particularly if, like me, you don’t recognise US car types. There is good WiFi at the car share pick up point, so you can track your car. I think last time we waited about 10 minutes.
Some U.K. folk recommend Tony Hinds but I have never been able to get him to answer my e mails. @schumigirl may be able to help with his details.

 

[The Pea]

Thank you very much for the advice.

 

[stephk1981]

Congratulations on your upcoming retirement! My parents still live in the UK. My DH, children and I are living in Orlando. I agree with a previous poster to broaden your area of touring. There is so much outside of the parks to enjoy. We love Wekiwa springs, and just leisurely walks through various parks and gardens in the area. Uber can get fairly pricey, but with prices rising I'm not sure how much a car hire would be for 3 weeks and parking fees at the park etc. Sit down and do a cost comparison of how many ubers you will actually be using, ...will you do anything a bit further away? The beach etc? The convenience of having a car really might be worth the cost. I wish you a magical retirement holiday!

 

[The Pea]

Congratulations on your upcoming retirement! My parents still live in the UK. My DH, children and I are living in Orlando. I agree with a previous poster to broaden your area of touring. There is so much outside of the parks to enjoy. We love Wekiwa springs, and just leisurely walks through various parks and gardens in the area. Uber can get fairly pricey, but with prices rising I'm not sure how much a car hire would be for 3 weeks and parking fees at the park etc. Sit down and do a cost comparison of how many ubers you will actually be using, ...will you do anything a bit further away? The beach etc? The convenience of having a car really might be worth the cost. I wish you a magical retirement holiday!

Thank you very much for your kind words and advice.

Yes, we are trying to do a cost comparison atm, for a small compact car inc all the insurances, parking & petrol etc. we think for 3 weeks the cost would be approximately £1300 minimum by what we have seen so far.

That seems like a lot of Uber rides and of course my husband has said that if he didn’t have to drive everywhere he could actually have a couple of beers in the evenings!

It obviously does restrict us venturing further afield which certainly is a shame and I’m sure that 21 days of Ubers will soon stack up adding in the airport transfers etc.

As I initially said, we always had a car on our previous visits and enjoyed the versatility of having that when we had 2 kids with us, I’m now wondering if we will miss that too much this time.

 

[Jangles]

Why not book a car rental with a relaxed cancellation policy for your final week or 10 days and see how you get on without having a car during your first week? It is nice being able to enjoy a drink. Have you considered staying onsite for part of your stay?

 

[The Pea]

Why not book a car rental with a relaxed cancellation policy for your final week or 10 days and see how you get on without having a car during your first week? It is nice being able to enjoy a drink. Have you considered staying onsite for part of your stay?

Yes, we were just discussing that as a good option, it would allow us a bit of the best of both worlds. We could Uber when we do the Disney overload over the first 10-14 days (if those ‘14 days for the price of 7 days’ available in UK are still available) as the car would just sit in a car park and then use a car for the last part to venture further.

Onsite would work for the Disney part but I think that would add quite a lot to the budget when we are planning other trips within that year.

I’ve just discovered this site never having previously been active on a forum, it’s lovely how people take the time and trouble to answer queries that have perhaps been asked previously.

Many thanks all!