Transfer to Magic Kingdom Shore Excursion

[hacejm]

We will be on the March 5th Anthem sailing. Our ship will be docketed in Port Canaveral from noon pm to 9:30 pm. We have twin four years old and this would be a chance to take them to Disney (Magic Kingdom) for the first time. If you have done this excursion, can you please let me know what time the bus got you to Magic Kingdom and what time you had to be back at the bus to go back to the ship? The excursion is transportation only so we would be buying the tickets in advance. While we realize our time at Disney would be limited, this is a chance for our kids to experience Disney magic, even if for only a little bit. Thanks for your help.

[msmayor]

Have not done this specific excursion, but did do a day at the Magic Kingdom when our Carnival Pride cruise stopped there a few years ago. In our case though, we are Disney veterans with quite a few visits under our belt, and our kids were teens and prepared for what the visit would entail.

 

If you are docking from Noon to 9:30pm, that is a VERY short window for a Disney excursion, especially for a first-time visitor. Planning to use the ship's transfer, at the absolute best your are on your way at 12:30pm (more likely closer to 1pm). It takes about an hour to get to the drop-off spot (which will not be the gates to the park...it will be to the Ticket and Transportation Center). Assuming you have your tickets in hand already you will then need to board the monorail, the ferry or a bus to get to the gate of the park. If not, you'll need to get tickets at the kiosks there.

 

With luck, you're through the gates between 1:30-2pm but probably closer to 2:30.

 

If your ship is in port until 9:30pm all aboard will be 9pm. That means you'll need to be on your way back to Disney no later than 8pm, so I would guess the time to meet up with your bus back would be around 7:30pm. You'll need to be exiting the part by 7pm to get the monorail/ferry/bus back to the Ticket and Transportation Center.

With

If those times are accurate, that gives you five or six hours in the park. You will be at the park during the daily peak period for crowds, so your wait times will be higher for attractions. You can probably expect to get four or five rides/attractions in, less if you get stuck in one of the dead zones during the afternoon parade.

 

As long as you are realistic about what this excursion entails (a huge amount of $$ for not a lot of time), and keep expectations about what you will see and do at a minimum, it is wonderful to see the park. It can be an overwhelming place for a first time visitor. If you do decide to do this, get your hands on a park map and learn where things are, and choose just a few 'must do' things. Accept that anything more is a bonus.

[momoftheseas]

I haven't done this excursion, but I live in Orlando. Port Canaveral is just over an hour from WDW. So the tour time is 12:30 the earliest you would be at the Ticket and Transportation Center is 1:30. You then have to take the monorail or boat to the MK and go through security to get into the park. So my guess is you would be in the park at 2 assuming you already had your park tickets in hand. If you have to pick up or buy tickets it will take a little longer.

 

Your ship leaves at 9:30 so all aboard is usually 9. I don't know what time the bus will pick you up hopefully someone else will know but my guess is around 7:30. Keep in mind it will take you a little while to get from the park back to the Ticket and transportation center.

 

Personally with the cost of admission for MK being around 400 for all four of you and really only about 5 hours in the park, I don't know if it's worth it. For my family I would say now, but for you it might be. If you go I would recommend buying your tickets in advance so you can make your Fastpass reservations online before you go so that you can make sure you have at least 3 rides you know you won't have to wait long for!

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

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[hacejm]

Thank you both for replying. You answers are very helpful.

[stobe1]

If you want a ''free'' Disney experience with the kids, you could go to Downtown Disney (I believe it is called Disney Boardwalk or something like that now). You can walk around there for free and let the kids have somewhat of an experience. There are lots of shops, restaurants and other things to do there, but there are no themed rides that Disney is known for.

 

 

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[momoftheseas]

If you want a ''free'' Disney experience with the kids, you could go to Downtown Disney (I believe it is called Disney Boardwalk or something like that now). You can walk around there for free and let the kids have somewhat of an experience. There are lots of shops, restaurants and other things to do there, but there are no themed rides that Disney is known for.

 

 

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What Strobe is talking about is called Disney Springs. It is a decent option if you want a taste of Disney but don't want to pay the admission price. The only issue is that there isn't direct transportation from the Ticket and Transportation center to Disney Springs.

 

Though you could take the resort monorail to one of the resorts then take a bus from there. Or take a cab. Not sure if that is of interest to you.

 

 

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[sunset785]

I wouldn't do it. You wouldn't get to Disney until the peak of the day, when all the rides are long wait times. It may also be extra crowded due to spring break.

 

 

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[Pedal/Paddle]

I wouldn't do it. You wouldn't get to Disney until the peak of the day, when all the rides are long wait times. It may also be extra crowded due to spring break.

 

This.

Lots of driving and standing in line.

Having said that if your kids are adventurous and easy going and the cost doesn't freak you out then go for it. Just be aware of what you are in for. :)

[Rogueperson]

I've done the theme parks (universal) off the cruise ships before. Both times I had good experiences, BUT I would never recommend it.

 

1st time, I seriously lucked out in the beginning of December. Barely anyone there, no lines. 2nd time in September, much more crowded, but this time my friend who works there hooked us up with discount tickets (for both parks) and front of the line passes. She was supposed to do that in the December trip, but got sick and cancelled on us. Carnival offers the package, but apparently Royal Caribbean only offers a shuttle.

 

There is way too many unknown factors to consider, with crowds being one of them. Universal is doable as its smaller, but Disney, I spent 10 nights at Disney and I didn't do everything. To spend a 1/2 day there (at 150/day tickets) is expensive and really not worth it. If you want to take the kids to Disney, i highly recommend a specific trip to Disney, and not try to squeeze it in with the short time you have. It is about an hour EACH way between port and park.

 

Oh, and a third reason. Magic Kingdom is HUGE.

[ocean waves]

I was looking into this myself, however I think the window of time is too short. I've been to the magic kingdom many times and know my way around, even still I wouldn't do it. Taking young kids on a whirlwind could get very stressful for everyone. The crowds will be heavy, wait times long, and just getting from the ship to the ticket and transportation and then getting into the park will eat up lots of valuable time. Why not just wait and plan a Disney vacation in the future where you won't be on a time crunch and enjoy the experience much better. Just my thoughts. By the way, we are on this same cruise.

 

 

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[msmayor]

When we did it, our arrival time to Port Canaveral was 7:30am...big difference from noon.

 

We also (a) had non-expiring Park Hoppers left over from a prior trip, so no extra cost for admission which gave us money to (b) hire private transportation instead of the ship bus.

 

We were among the first group off the ship and our limo was waiting and ready to whisk us off while the ship Disney buses were awaiting everyone to load up. We easily beat them to Disney by 45 minutes, arriving at the gates by 9am just after rope drop. With no tickets to buy, we were off.

 

Our many visits there meant no park map needed as we knew exactly where to go...straight to the big rides. We got a ton of stuff done but that's because we were there early and knew how to work the lines and Fast Passes (at the time, they were all paper at the kiosks outside the rides).

 

Our all aboard was 6:30pm and we planned our exit for 4pm. We'd heard the ship excursion was leaving at 5...so leaving BEFORE them meant there was virtually no chance we'd miss the ship. There's just one main road back to the port and we'd be ahead of the bus.

 

This ONLY worked because of our Disney experience and our kids being 18 and 16 years old. Not recommended for someone unfamiliar with the parks.

[Homosassa]

OP, you mentioned your twins are four years old. The Magic Kingdom can be exhausting for a little one.

 

When my daughter was four, her limit was about three hours before crankiness set in (her, my husband's limit was about a half hour longer).

 

At four, a stroller is highly advisable for both of them. The strollers can be rented as you enter the park (used to be in the section under the train station, I don't know if the stroller rental is still there.)