If all goes to plan, we could be riding a train from Orlando International Airport directly to Disney World in the future.
Would You Take a Train to Disney World? ©Brightline
But, that’s the thing — there’s still a LOT left to plan. Recently, we shared that one division from the State of Florida essentially set a deadline for Brightlight to meet when it comes to some necessary agreements and plans for its route from the airport through a Disney station and on to Tampa. Today, we got an update on those plans, potential complications, and when the train to Disney World could be operating!
According to the Orlando Sentinel, earlier today, Brightline shared a more detailed explanation on potential costs and routes from Orlando International Airport to the Disney World station. Currently, two different routes appear to be under consideration. One route would piggyback on Road 417 through Hunters Creek. Another route would go along State Road 528 to International Drive. You can see the 2 routes identified below.
©Brightline | Obtained via the Orlando Sentinel
Brightline has indicated that the two routes are about the same in terms of length. The 417 route was dawn by Brightline. The SR 528 route, on the other hand, comes from a 2010 proposal for a high-speed rail between Tampa and Orlando.
The 417 route, which is the one Brightline prefers, would cost $1.03 billion, require 342,000 square feet of bridges, and involve 3 private properties. It would also offer “efficient sharing of corridor space with a proposed SunRail link between the airport and its main line.” But, Hunters Creek residents are worried about the noise and vibration from trains running parallel to SR 417.
©Brightline
The SR 528 route, on the other hand, would cost $2.1 billion, require 1.9 million square feet in bridges, affect over 70 private properties, and involve a complex arrangement with SunRail. Proponents of this route want it to be used because they want Brighline to link the Orlando airport to International Drive’s tourism areas and Orange County Convention Center hotels.
A Brightline executive has noted that they prefer the 417 route and that they feel there are other, better ways to connect International Drive and the Convention Center area to the airport.
Virgin Trains
A Brightline executive has spoken with leaders of the Central Florida Expressway Authority, which owns much of SR 417 and SR 528. One board member has asked for more analysis on costs and other factors.
Here’s a peek at part of the proposed routes specifically as they get close to Walt Disney World property.
©Brightline
The expansion from the airport to Disney was previously targeting a 2023 opening. But, according to the Sentinel, passenger service from the airport to the Disney Springs station is now slated to start in 5 years. That means, guests may not be able to ride on those trains until 2026.
©Brightline
In the meantime, Brightline is working on more stations in Florida. Currently, it has a service from Miami to Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach. That has been suspended due to the pandemic, but is expected to be operational again by the end of this year.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that Brighline is 50% complete in its extension from West Palm Beach to Orlando’s airport. That extension is set to begin passenger service in 2023 (previously it was set for a 2022 opening, but it appears that has been delayed).
©Brightline
So, it seems we might have to wait just a bit longer to take that train from the airport to Disney World. In the meantime, Brightline still has a lot of work to do regarding agreements with local and state authorities, the selection of the route from the airport to Disney, the expansion from there to Tampa, and more.
We’ll continue to keep you updated as we learn more.
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There was a time when every guest truly felt like they were in the Happiest Place on Earth. Despite the high costs,Disney created a magical experience that was worth annual increase in cost. Large families will often pay the extra cost for the convenience and ease of the beginning and end of the vacation. The Magical Express did just that! It provided a convenience that growing families appreciated. The vacation experience, the Disney Magic, began right off the plane. It was the most helpful magic yet! We grabbed the hands of our happy children and merrily walked towards the Mickey hands, right towards the Magical Express. It was a joy, an ease, a luxury that every parent looked forward to! Disney made families, as large as ours, a priority. Taking away the Magical Express is a mistake….A huge failure for large families who were willing to pay the high cost of a Disney vacation with a smile. By eliminating the Magical Express you have created a very complicated situation for families like ours. Now we question whether a Disney vacation will be in our foreseeable future. Sadly, it may not be. Believe me, that is a sad reality for our family. Transportation ease from the airport is essential. First you charge a substantial parking fee if we decided to drive to Disney and now you eliminate the Magical Express. You have created a tremendous financial strain on families like ours that may prevent family traditions to continue. Very disappointing! Very un-Disney like!
I agree with Tanya wholeheartedly. There is an implied connection between the pending train service and the decision to cancel Magical Express. Without the Magical Express as an option a trip to WDW is that much more daunting, especially for those of who are flying in. My now grown son and I were just discussing that the ME is something we look forward to as much as our favorite WDW snack or a ride even. It’s a big part of the overall experience, and the luggage service was phenomenal if you had an early flight and wanted to visit a park before the room was ready. I hope they can address that if they start a partnership with rideshares, or even more, I hope they reconsider the decision to end the ME service.
Tanya, I completely agree. Also, what about solo people, many people go alone, and a single person would appreciate the safety of riding the ME to arrive at their hotel without having to look for Uber or Lyft rides. I guess I’m glad that I didn’t know that my family trip in 2019 was most likely my last. Would have been pretty sad.
Although we now drive for health reasons, if I were to fly to WDW again, I would not hesitate to take the train. I have used airport trains to get to my hotel in central London, with multiple bags and no real problem, so why wouldn’t I do so in Orlando?. I wonder how people think we got to WDW before Magical Express? I started flying to WDW in the early 70s. We rented a car on those trips, but these days, you have many options, including taxi, town car, rental car and of course, Uber and Lyft. If getting from the airport through your own arrangements somehow makes you feel your trip has been destroyed, then maybe travel isn’t your thing.
DME as we know it was going to go away at some point, or at least change. It’s days were numbered, not by Disney, but by the airport.
DME is only perceived to be a part of the Disney experience. It isn’t owned by Disney. It’s contracted service, for both bus and luggage, two separate services. Doesn’t anyone else kind of notice that Disney doesn’t drive off its property for anything?
DME is owned by Mears Transportation. Mears contracted with Disney to provide DME service along with the buses to the cruise port. The airport is building a new south terminal. The terminal doesn’t have a location for DME in it because next to the terminal is the new Intermodal Terminal Facility. Nearly all ground transportation options are going to this facility at some point. All taxis, limos, shuttle vans, charter buses, Uber & Lyft, rail service and car rentals are moving here. There’s also an 1,800 space parking garage. It’s been part of the airport’s master plan since the early 1990’s. If you’re getting on a bus, this is where you’d get it.
Mears doesn’t touch your luggage. It’s handled by BAGS. They serve many of the hotels in Orlando. BAGS also handles airport check in at Orlando hotels. BAGS collects your luggage at the airport, bring it to your hotel at Disney and Disney takes it to your room. Luggage service and bus service are separate operations. Disney just makes it appear to be one operation owned and run by them.
Without a DME option in the south terminal, the airport needing more space in the north terminal for its operations and the construction of their long awaited Intermodal facility the days of walking off a plane and onto DME as I wrote, were already numbered.
And Mears has already announced they will be providing an alternate service. Sandra is right, “I wonder how people think we got to WDW before Magical Express?” Mears was has been and will be one of the options between MCO and Disney.
For us flying into MCO, the train option is a non-starter vs the Magical Express! Disney is making a grave mistake for discontinuing this very nice perk!
What a huge government boondoggle. The rail line to Disney will never work. The logistics and time of the journey will ensure that taxi, rental cars and private car service will be around for a long time. The money invested will never be recouped or justified. What a joke to think otherwise. To bad, under Eisner ME was a great idea and huge winner for the guest. The new CEO Bob C. should kill this and invest Disney’s money into another endever.
I understand those who think the cancelling of the DME will cause them to not go back to WDW for awhile, or at all. For many, it is the straw that broke the camel’s back.
The hotel prices, food, and ticket prices continue to rise way more than inflation. Parking now costs about $25/day, even at a Disney hotel. Instead of Fastpass, you now have to pay for Genie+, and even more for newer rides. Fastpass used to have 3 tickets, Genie+ is one at a time. DME was part of the experience, it will soon be gone. At least for now, no meet and greet characters. And soon, maybe smaller portions at restaurants.
12 years ago, a week before Thanksgiving, I decided to visit WDW for 6 days between Christmas and New Years. My daughter spent hours finding a campsite for 3 nights and a value room for the other 3 nights. She booked one or two nights at a time as people cancelled their reservations. About 8 weeks ago I tried to book a value room for two nights for the following week. I could only get mid-level and above. But I could book 4 nights at a Value hotel, Disney just wanted us to spend more money. We decided to visit Kennedy Space Center instead.
When you look at TripAdvisor, it certainly isn’t as magical as it used to be for many. Some of that is the pandemic, but I think some of that is just the overall feeling that Disney management is out of touch with their customers, and no one wants to feel that someone is taking advantage of them.
For many, WDW is really at the edge of what they consider a decent value. It is very expensive. And at some point the experience simply isn’t worth the money.
So this Brightline will drop passengers off at Disney Springs. Then what? How are guests supposed to get to their hotels? Resort shuttles don’t accommodate luggage. This whole plan seems overpriced and not well thought out
Elaine, I think there are many details that remain to be shared (or ironed out behind the scenes, possibly). We’ll keep our eyes and ears open and report when there’s more.
Pleaae bring back the magic and let people pay to use the disney bus again from airport. Its more convenient and still a part of the disney experience. Makes more sense to do it that way.