Reviews of Walt Disney World Minnie Van Service
Reviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 10/24/2019
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
You can never actually get a car. Tried multiple times beginning from 6:30am and again at 4:45pm to schedule and it kept timing out searching for a driver.
Pros:
If you can get a car, curbside drop off.Cons:
You can’t actually get a car.Reviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 09/27/2019
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
We have waited for over an hour and people who were 5 families behind us got through on the “app” and here we are still waiting. We will never do this again. Called customer service and was told to take alternate forms of transportation. We will never do this again. I’m so disappointed with this service. Was told it was easy and reliable but paying 40 dollars to wait over an hour and told to just take the bus is absolutely ridiculous.
Pros:
Nothing.Cons:
Everything about this service is ridiculous. Do not recommend.Reviewed by Jennifer Stevens Review Date: 09/27/2018
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
Way overpriced. The first time we attempted to get a minnie van we called for a car and it took 30 minutes without any confirmed car. We had to get to the Magic Kingdom for a dining reservation and could not wait so we hopped on a bus. For $38 from Animal Kingdom Lodge to Magic Kingdom I would have hoped we could have gotten a minnie van within 15 minutes or so. Will never use
Pros:
NoneCons:
Good luck getting a minnie vanReviewed by TonyB95 Review Date: 08/06/2019
Rating: (2) Not Recommended
Lack of clarity for using the service. We were told by Epcot center staff that pickup was at normal rideshare service. But driver went to bus service. App did not clarify that we would have to wait 20+ minutes to pickup: u could have used a different ride for half the price. The whole crowd was gone, defeated the purpose of using the service.
Pros:
Nice driver once we got picked upCons:
PlentyReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 05/08/2019
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
Hope you don’t like late service...They say they run till 12:30pm but at a 11pm on Tuesday there were zero drivers available. Thinking that this could be a good option for a sober ride home after dinner at Cal. Grill I was wrong
Pros:
Good pickupCons:
Came up empty on later serviceReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 10/24/2018
Rating: (7) Recommended
We just returned from a WDW stay (Oct 2018) and experienced the new pricing - and requesting - system for Minnie Vans. We also were at WDW in the spring of 2018 and experienced the $25 flat fee and old requesting system. In both instances drivers did accept gratuities. Under the flat fee system a gratuity was included but it was made clear you could tip your driver. Under the new system rolled out October 2018 a tip is not included.
The new pricing system is more expensive than getting a taxi (which we have also done). Comparing similar trips (via data from our Lyft app, the platform the Minnie Van service is based on) to illustrate the price hike: in April 2018 an 8.6 mile trip was the flat fee of $25. In Oct 2018 an 8.4 mile trip (so slightly shorter) was $41.35 - and that was with a 10% discount I had through Lyft so in actuality the ride was a bit more expensive. Again, tip is not included with the new pricing structure. I would estimate that the same ride in a cab would probably cost you $15 - $20 at the outside.
But, the Minnie Vans are all new and clean (they are Chevy Traverse vehicles) and obviously very well maintained. There are chargers readily available for multiple devices (and device types). They play Disney music. They are supposed to have water but we have found that isn't always the case. We heard from our last driver that the newest ones have satellite radio available and they will have onboard entertainment players that you can watch Disney movies on. One advantage of Minnie Vans is that they have access to places other vehicles don't. There are roads between resorts that are not open to the public but Minnie Vans can take them. They can get closer to the parks than almost any other vehicle. They can also go back to the cabins and campsites at Fort Wilderness (making it much easier to get to the Hoop-Dee-Doo Review or Mickey's Backyard BBQ - they can drive you right to the exact location). Another big bonus: they all have car seats with them and drivers have been trained to correctly install them (in theory - we don't have a need for a car seat so I can't attest to the install part directly).
Unfortunately I think Disney expanded this program too much, too quickly and did not have the infrastructure in place to support the additional growth. Our drivers this past trip were NOT of the same caliber as the drivers in the Spring (when the service was smaller). Our drivers in the spring were consummate Disney professionals and had clearly been very well trained. They were pleasant, courteous, helpful...everything you would expect. Our drivers this past trip (Oct 2018) were clearly not trained well. There was a noticable and significant difference. Some were unsure how to get places. Some were downright surly and one was a bit rude. One gave flat out wrong information and once it became clear he really didn't know what he was talking about he just kept talking which made it worse. They were more lax, less pleasant, and had lost the "Disney Magic" quality the drivers in the spring had. What has also suffered from the expansion is the requesting system. During the spring trip - and granted the program was much smaller and not as popular - we never had any issues requesting a Minnie Van. You would request via the Lyft app, it would look for a nearby driver, and then it would tell you how long it would be before the Minnie Van arrived. This fall we found out that along with the rate hike there have been some changes with how the app works and how requests are handled. In theory you should request a Minnie Van, the app tells you how much the trip will be, you confirm you want a Minnie Van, it puts the request out, if they are all busy it tells you and tells you are put in a queue, and then once one is found it tells you how long you have to wait for the Minnie Van to arrive (it was usually longer than the app said). Of the four times we requested Minnie Vans during our last trip the app never worked correctly. It took us a minimum of four requests each time to even get put into a queue. We would request and it would look and eventually time out so we would have to request again (essentially being kicked to the bottom of the queue even though you've been requesting via the app for 5+ min already). When we brought it up to some of the drivers they acknowledged it was a known glitch but didn't seem overly concerned or that they even really cared. In one instance, trying to leave Animal Kingdom Lodge, it took 4 attempts via the app (a 20 min wait) and then an additional 17 min wait for a Minnie Van. In another instance, trying to leave Hollywood Studios at night, it took 5 attempts via the app (so there is 25 min) and then an additional 25 minute wait for a Minnie Van. I will say the Hollywood Studios night was not at park closing time but was on a night where Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party was going on so there could have been higher demand. But the required multiple requests (and never being put in a queue unless you got lucky) that night was not an isolated incident but rather it appeared to be the de facto standard. Also for some reason the app now doesn't tell drivers exactly where you are. In Spring 2018 under the old request system the drivers knew exactly where you were (even down to campsite number or cabin number if you were at Fort Wilderness). Now the app gives the drivers a general idea so you have to be on the look-out for them and flag them down in some cases.
Pros:
Clean, well maintained, can get closer to parks and go places other vehicles can't, chargers for devices, whimsical and fun, some drivers truly bring the Disney magic!Cons:
Driver training seems to have suffered and it's noticeable, significant pricing hike makes them very expensive, requesting is unreliable and does not function correctly, once you are able to get in a queue for a Minnie Van you may still experience a further significant wait time waiting for one.Reviewed by sand935 Review Date: 10/29/2019
Rating: (8) Recommended
good for getting to the parks for early hours
before the crowds, takes you right up front for MK
Pros:
knowledgeable drivers, they know their disney stuff reliable to get you in for early hoursCons:
expensiveReviewed by nlg0517 Review Date: 10/25/2019
Rating: (8) Recommended
Minnie Vans are pretty awesome. The drivers were very friendly & knowledgeable about how to get around property quickly. The cars are always clean, much more so than Uber or Lyft. The time to get from place to place is much better than other options at WDW. However, the price can be steep and sometimes it’s hard to find a Minnie Van. Another bonus you get dropped off in the first line of buses at MK
Pros:
Fast, clean & friendlyCons:
Over pricedReviewed by mcarolla Review Date: 03/31/2020
Rating: (9) Recommended
We loved it! We had an early morning reservation at Boma when we were staying at the POP. We decided that rather than busing to one place to bus to another we would splurge and get the Minnie Van. The driver was so kind and knowledgeable. He had a fun playlist for transitioning you to the different areas. He had information on the parks and things we drove past that were very helpful. Literal only downside is having to pay for the service but it wasn't that expensive anyway.
Pros:
All but payingCons:
payingReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 11/10/2019
Rating: (9) Recommended
My daughter and I had the opportunity to use the Minnie van transportation from MCO to Sarasota Springs Resort. Our driver way friendly and professional. Beverages and chocolates were provided. Would definitely do it again.
