June 2023 - Travel day
Thursday 22nd June 2023
We started our day at 3.30am! Yep 3.30am.
We left for Gatwick about 4am for the 3 hour drive. When we booked our flights nearly a year ago we also booked airport parking. This was extremely easy through the Gatwick airport website. It cost £105 to park for two weeks. Once we arrived at the South Terminal long stay car park, the number plate was scanned and we could enter without a ticket. There is a shuttle bus that runs every 12 minutes to the terminal from multiple bus stops dotted around the massive car park.
The bus drops you off at the South Terminal where you can either get the internal monorail to the North Terminal or enter departures.
We checked in online the night before and not long after we received an email to say that the flight was very busy and that we could check in our hand luggage for free. Once at the terminal we headed to the British Airways bag drop which is now self service. You scan your boarding pass and passport and we were then given the option to check in our hand luggage. We were pleased to find that there was no extra faff to checking in the bags, everything was very efficient. The machine printed our luggage tags and once attached we sent them off on their own adventure.
We passed through security without incident and were browsing the duty free within 40 minutes of parking the car.
Phillip likes to be at an airport early just incase there are any issues and thankfully this first part was a breeze.
Unfortunately we then found out that our flight was delayed by an hour so we purchased some lounge passes and relaxed before our flight. The lounge was nice, however I’m glad we only paid £20 each as the food selection wasn’t fantastic, but mimosa’s were included!
We finally took off about an hour late, the flight was uneventful until we got to Florida and had to circle for an hour due to thunderstorms.
We landed at the new terminal C at Orlando International airport, and it is so much nicer than the old terminal. Border patrol was the quickest I’ve ever experienced.
When booking our flights we also booked a hire car through the British Airways website. As there is no Disney transport from Orlando to the port of Miami we knew we would have to drive as a taxi would have been over $300!
Once through security and baggage claim we headed to the car hire desk. This was an extremely easy process, just remember you need your driving license and a credit card for any charges. In Florida there are a lot of toll roads so we opted to add the ‘Sun Pass’ to our car hire. This pass is $3.95 per day and means you can drive through any of the tolls without having to stop and pay. I would highly recommend this if you are hiring a car. If you don’t, you can still drive through the tolls and the number plate recognition means you will be charged at a later date, but the price doubles if you don’t have a pass.
We opted for a saloon car which came with a full tank of fuel, and then headed to Disney’s Old Key West in a typical Florida thunderstorm. (Top tip - find out where the window wipers and lights are before you leave the car park!)
Entering Disney’s Old Key West resort definitely felt like coming home and our room was all of a 1 minute walk from the reception at hospitality house. We had a ground floor disabled access room with walk in shower. The room was clean and very quiet.
After a quick freshen up we hopped on the bus to Disney Springs, and to be honest it felt like we were there just yesterday. We had burger and fries in D luxe burger which were amazing. 2 burgers and a fries and drink to share came to $51.66 (£40.58) so not the cheapest but definitely tasty. After dinner we off course went round the shops, Phillip unsurprisingly brought art and pins!
We started to crash about 9.30pm so headed back to the resort, popped into the Conch flats general store and brought the most amazing banana bread I’ve ever eaten and then slept pretty well.