One of the first hurdles of a Disney World vacation might be getting from the Orlando International Airport to the Disney World parks. Disney’s Magical Express was discontinued earlier this year, and a couple of different (paid) replacement services began around the same time. But several guests were expecting a different option to arrive as well: a train connecting the parks to the airport.
However, now Disney has backed out of the deal that would create a train stop in Disney Springs to connect the parks to the Orlando International Airport via a Brightline train. While Disney is no longer directly involved with this project, Brightline will still continue to build the tracks in a route from the airport to Tampa, FL. So could you still use this train to get to Disney World? It looks like it might be possible!
Brightline will move forward with their plan to build tracks from the Orlando International Airport to Tampa, FL, with the route going along State Road 528, stopping in the Orange County Convention Center/International Drive corridor, and continuing down Interstate 4 toward Tampa (Orlando Business Journal).
This route will include a train stop near Disney World property, although not directly on the property. The Orlando Business Journal reported that Brightline “plans to get riders as close as possible” to Disney World. The initial plan for the Brightline train to Disney World did include a stop directly on Disney World land.
Through a variety of meetings with many different stakeholders, Brightline decided to change the route. The updates moved the part of the tracks that would have crossed Disney World property to a new location. As a result, Disney has canceled the Disney Springs stop.
A Brightline representative stated that “one new station will be located at the Orange County Convention Center and an alternative station will be placed near the original Disney Springs site, albeit not on land owned by Disney.” There is still not a finalized location for the stop near Disney World.
Guests who use this stop will still need to plan for transportation from the stop to the parks or their hotel. Disney hasn’t commented on whether they might provide that transportation as either a free or paid service. It’s possible that a Magical Express-type service could be created for the station, but there has been no official word on whether that will happen.
Another stop along the updated Brightline train route will service both the convention center and Universal’s upcoming Epic Universe park (when it opens).
While we wait for more information and for the train route to be completed, guests flying into the Orlando International Airport can utilize one of the paid services to go from the airport to Disney World (and back again). Mears Connect and the Sunshine Flyer buses are both available at similar prices.
And remember that renting a car or using a rideshare app like Lyft or Uber are also possibilities.
See all your options for traveling between the airport and Disney World here.
We’ll continue to watch for more updates, so stay tuned with AllEars for all the latest Disney news!
Click here to learn more about Disney’s decision to cancel the Disney Springs stop.
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What’s your favorite way of getting from the airport to Disney World? Let us know in the comments.
Thinking about it…why would Disney want a bunch of people crowding out the buses at Disney Springs with themselves and their baggage. It would have been completely disruptive and required extra buses to accommodate everyone. Magical Express is long gone and I don’t expect to see it ever return. I have been 4 times since ME stopped and just rented a car. Way easier and much quicker to get around when park hopping. Plus you do not have to leave for the airport 3 hours early.
This does not make a lot of sense.
The train is essentially pointless as a replacement for Magical Express if it won’t take you all the way from the airport to Disney World, without having to transfer to a different type of transit again.
Once again politics and money have turned years and years of feasibility studies on their heads. The original route would have improved transportation & traffic in the region, and took the route through a less populated area. The new route might possibly snarl traffic as it now has to cross over I-4 in a much higher density, traffic filled area.
But hey, Universal and the I-Drive businesses got their way, and maybe if you’re only coming to Orlando for Epic Universe, the train will be great!