Getting to Disney in the wee morning hours About This Page:

[disney777]

I have friends who will be landing at MCO around 1:00am. They will be renting a car.
They are staying at POP.
Do you have any suggestions on what they can do before the parks open? The things we've come up with so far: Rush to Pleasure Island, maybe something will still be open. take a nap in the car in the POP parking lot, hang out in the TV room in the POP lobby / outside grounds, find a Denny's or go to the 24hr McD's for a late night/early morning snack.
I told them to at least check in, get their tickets taken care of. Maybe a CM will take pity on them and get them a room early in the morning. I've been in my room as early as 9:00am at POP in the past.
Any other advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[JKB]

I would at least ask if I could get into a room. The worse that can happen is they say no!

[janicelovesmickey]

they should call and tell them they are going to have a late arrival, it would not be fun to get no sleep. or they should get a cheap room off property for the night
we stayed at the ramada, it was just around the corner from the maingate, for 44.00 night.

[Colexis Mom]

When we got in late in past trips, we'd get a cheap hotel offsite for the first night

[elisa1006]

We are driving in, but will too be getting in reallllly late like that. I went ahead and booked a night at our hotel for that night. Several ppl suggested getting cheap hotel off property, but I decided I needed those dining credits for a 2 credit meal later in week, so we are gonna go ahead and stay at disney that first night.

[B.M.]

I second getting a room for the night, either add a night onto pop or get a cheap off site hotel. They will need a little rest to be ready to go in the morning and getting a nap in the car does not sound comfy. I think hanging out in the lobby or sitting in the car would be a not so fun start to their vacation. And yes they could find a dennys or mcd's but thats only going to kill an hour and it sounds like they will have much more time than that. They could get a hotel for as little as $30 off site and it will be a much better start to their vacation. Let us know the end result!

[Dave Marx]

I wouldn't advise a late night dash to Pleasure Island. With a 1:00am flight arrival, picking up the car, and the driving time from there... if they got to PI at 1:45pm it would be fast, and the bars probably already will have had Last Call by then. Nothing else will be happening there.

I've had those long, air travel-related sleepless nights, and I think for the sake of having a pleasant first day in the parks, it's best to find somewhere to catch a few hours of shuteye. Any cost savings gained by not taking a room have to be balanced with the lost value the following day and evening.

[RobDVC]

My recommendation would be for them to find, at the very least, an off-site hotel for some decent sleep.

[DisneyBri]

Originally Posted by disney777

They will be renting a car.

Just a bit of un-asked for advice... Make sure they are renting the car from a company that has an agent available 24/7. There are some off-site operators that do not rent during the overnight.