To rent a car or not to rent a car, that is the question. About This Page:

[All Ears]

Okay, so we used to always rent a car for any trip to WDW. Then we discovered TTC (thanks to these wonderful boards). Sooo...
now we are planning a 7-8 night trip to WDW in May. We are wondering if we should rent a car. Out trips are usually l-o-n-g weekends (4-5 days), so being a longer trip -- we wondered if we would want the car to check out other attractions, eat elsewhere, etc. I do not know if I can actually stand to separate myself from WDW, so I am not 100% sure about the likelihood of that. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]
For those of you that typically go for a week+, do you usually rent a car? If so, do you find you use it much? When we formerly rented cars, we found it sat in the lot the whole time. But then again, we were there for such short amounts of time, too.
So... to rent or not to rent, that IS the question!
Michelle

[Elliot'sDragon]

I always rent. The cost of the car rental is about not much diferent from the TC. I would never use Mears.
Having the car gives you opprotunity to drive to Downtown Disney or over to other rresort to look around. Little trips that don't neccesarily take you off property. You can also use the car for another fun trip that is a little longer but keeps you on property......Celebration. I highly recommend a side trip to Celebration for tours of the model homes. Vacation is a time for dreaming and that place fits the bill. They have anice cafe to grab lunch.

There's my two cents.

[Dave Marx]

It's really a matter of whether you want to pay for an (often unused) convenience. Figure that Tiffany including generous tips costs $100. For an eight-day stay that's $12.50 per day. Compare that to the cost of rentals (and don't forget to include any CDWs, LDWs, etc. that you may or not pay).

Generally, if we want to visit another resort we can head there from a theme park. On those few occasions where time is of the essence we'll take a cab. During our most recent (two-week) stay, we took cabs about four times, for a total of maybe $50.

We almost never go off-property, so that's not a factor. Off-property cab rides can get very expensive very quickly, though.

If the rental is only to save money dining or shopping off-property, don't forget to figure the cost of the car rental into your "savings."

If I had the itch to go off-property I'd plan my trip so I could do a short-term rental (1-3 days) rather than leave it sitting in the parking lot most of the time.

We've rented once in all our visits to WDW, regardless of the length of the visit, and when we've driven to WDW the car still sat unused in the parking lot.

[CinderellaPrincess]

I have found for our own personal preference, we do not like to rent a car, but that is just us. We have done both ways and have found that we tend to have a more relaxing time when we don't have a car. With a car, we felt we needed to use it, so we would go out for dinner. Or felt that we should be using it to go to the theme parks. Since it just DH and me, we don't mind Disney Transportation and really, a rental car is double for us than taking mears or TTC.

[TINKN]

We also never rent a car on vacation if we can help it. We also choose vacations where cars are not necessary. WDW fits the bill. We drive a lot at home so the real vacation is not having to drive even if riding the bus is a little slower.

[September]

We weren't going to rent a car but ended up getting a great deal through National's Emerald Isle. We had a full size car for eight days for $135. The marginal difference in price over TTC (which is what we were going to do) was more than made up for in convenience.

[All Ears]

Thanks so much for the responses. I think we are going to stick with TTC, afterall. Like Dave (and others mentioned), in the past -- the rental car (and once our own car), sat unused in the lot. So that is likely to happen again -- no matter how long our trip is.
Tinkn, good point about being a vacation -- and leaving the driving up to Disney. We have always found WDW transportation to be very reliable and efficient.
I think by not having a car, it will help us to slow down a bit, and just relax. We won't feel pressured to go here and there...
Thanks, again for helping me make my decision. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
Michelle

[DebiDebiDebi]

We never rent a car, just rely on Disney Transportation. We have used Mears and have no complaints there. The only time we left property was DEC 2000. We took Mears to Islands Of Adventure, and there was no problem there. I figure, why pay for something I really do not need?

[Louise]

Well since our main focus is not WDW, we are definitely renting a car...We plan to visit Epcot for 2 days, but after that we will be visiting Seaworld, Islands of Adventure and two day trips to Cocoa Beach and Tampa. So the car is definitely needed...But we had also decided that even if we were spending our whole week at WDW, we would have still gotten the car, because nothing could beat our AAA rates at the Marriott Grande Vista for a 1 bedroom villa..and since they do not offer transportation, cab fare would have been much more than a car rental...It really all depends on your intinerary!!

Have Fun!!!!!!! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Alice in Lawyerland]

In my opinion, there is no feeling in the world like sliding into your own quiet car after spending the day in loud crowded parks. Again, just my opinion, but it is so worth the added money to avoid having to stand on crowded busses with 100 other people. We use our car for everything - except MK when we just take the monorail from the hotel.

Also, I tend to need "breaks" from WDW. When I get overcrowded and overwhelmed, I usually take a quick trip over to TGI Fridays or Olive Garden. Not far from WDW, but far enough that I can forget the crowds and truly relax. Then I'm refreshed and right back at it!! [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img]

[Pooh's Pal]

On one vacation staying at CBR, the first day we took Disney transportation to DD, walked up the street to Crossroads, had dinner at TGIFriday's...did some (expensive) grocery shopping at Goodings and took a short cab ride back to DD and then Disney transportation back to CBR..We brought a small collapsible cooler with us from home and filled it with ice from the resort..Bought sodas, juices, milk etc.
A little roundabout way to the store, but worth it. No car for us that time.
But we have done both..Next time we are renting a car, as we are going off site to visit friends one day.

[shooter364]

Get the car! Definately!

[TiggerAlli]

I couldn't do anything more than, maybe, a weekend without the car but I am not a "public" transportation kind of person! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] I just can't stand around waiting for the bus when I know I could already be on my way!!!
Plus, some of our best videotaped memories come from the car ride home to our resort!!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Everytime we watch them we laugh hysterically so for us a car is a MUST, no matter the price! I find it to be much more relaxing that way.

[AKLRULZ]

We always rent a car, too - mainly b/c I do not like to be on anyone's time other than my own while I'm on a trip. Many days the car sits in the lot (especially on MK days - NO WAY, I'm driving there!), but more often than not we travel to WDW during the off season when the parks close a tad earlier - I want the car to be able to visit Downtown Disney and perhaps other resorts. I'm not a big public transportation fan, either - and I totally agree that after a long day at the park there is something relaxing about getting into your "own" car that has air conditioning and has music - just a nice wind down. It is certainly a personal choice - I just firmly believe it's worth the flexibility it affords one - all about options! Honestly, either way you can't go wrong.

[DisneyFan]

All Ears,
I can agree with all opinions here.

We personally like having a car since with the reduced hours we normally go offsite to eat once or twice, and love to visit the outlet malls.

National has a rental location on WDW property right by the race track and exit of MK. If you find that you want a car for a day, you can rent from them and then return the car without feeling like you have paid for an entire week and only used the car 1-2days
When we were at the Polynesian in Jan there was a couple that were being dropped off by a National bus after they returned their car.
If you can plan ahead and know the days you want the car, booking online will probably get you a better rate than if you wait and call the same day.
The most flexible way though would be to do just that. Wait, see what your plans are day to day and then call to see what the rate would be for a 1-2day rental. If it's too steep, then go with TTC,Mears or a taxi.
Disneyfan