Dodge Caravan rental car with 6 people + luggage -- Should I book DME too?

[BirdsOfPreyDave]

I have a Dollar minivan reserved for our upcoming trip. It says it will be a Dodge Caravan or similar. The symbol on Dollar's web site says it will hold 7 passengers and 5 suitcases. I'm looking at pictures of Caravans on Google and I'm a little skeptical about that. It's just hard to judge how much room there is from the pictures, though.

I know it will be plenty big enough for us during our stay, I'm just worried about getting from the airport to the resort. We'll have 4 adults and 2 kids in car seats. I'm guessing there will be at least 4 or 5 large suitcases and a double stroller. Does anyone have experience with getting this many people and their luggage into one of these minivans? Is a Caravan one of the cars where seats fold up into the floor? If the middle row seat by the door can fold down, I think we'd be ok. I'm assuming there room for luggage behind the 3rd row seats?

I wonder if I should make a DME reservation just in case we don't have enough room to fit everyone/everything. I'd hate to make two trips back and forth between the airport and the Contemporary, and I'd really hate to leave someone sitting at the airport waiting for me to get back. Is it still a requirement for someone to physically ride the bus if you've used the DME luggage tags? It's been a few years since we've done DME.

 

[seashoreCM]

Yes you should make a Magical Express reservation if there is a chance that you will be riding DME.

Yes it is still true that DME is not a luggage-only service. It is important to report to the DME welcoming area as procedures for coordinating luggage handling could change.

 

[gmeh1]

I have a Dollar minivan reserved for our upcoming trip. It says it will be a Dodge Caravan or similar. The symbol on Dollar's web site says it will hold 7 passengers and 5 suitcases. I'm looking at pictures of Caravans on Google and I'm a little skeptical about that. It's just hard to judge how much room there is from the pictures, though.

I know it will be plenty big enough for us during our stay, I'm just worried about getting from the airport to the resort. We'll have 4 adults and 2 kids in car seats. I'm guessing there will be at least 4 or 5 large suitcases and a double stroller. Does anyone have experience with getting this many people and their luggage into one of these minivans? Is a Caravan one of the cars where seats fold up into the floor? If the middle row seat by the door can fold down, I think we'd be ok. I'm assuming there room for luggage behind the 3rd row seats?

I wonder if I should make a DME reservation just in case we don't have enough room to fit everyone/everything. I'd hate to make two trips back and forth between the airport and the Contemporary, and I'd really hate to leave someone sitting at the airport waiting for me to get back. Is it still a requirement for someone to physically ride the bus if you've used the DME luggage tags? It's been a few years since we've done DME.

There is an entire thread going on about this very topic. I try to find it and link it,http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3100832

 

[BirdsOfPreyDave]

There is an entire thread going on about this very topic. I try to find it and link it,http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3100832

Thanks, that thread answered a lot of my questions. Sounds like the van will have stow & go seats, which I think will make it workable. I'll still make the DME reservation, just in case. We can put the luggage in the car and send some folks on the bus if we have to.

 

[tjmw2727]

If your going to reserve DME why not plan to send your bags via the luggage delivery service and have say 2 adults and the 2 kids ride the DME bus to the resort? This way the remaining two adults can skip baggage claim deal with getting the rental, installing the carseats and head to the resort to checkin. Meantime the others can also skip baggage claim and head to the DME bus and enjoy the coach bus ride with the videos to entertain the kids.

ON the way home you can use RAC for your bags so you can all fit in the rental

Thanks, that thread answered a lot of my questions. Sounds like the van will have stow & go seats, which I think will make it workable. I'll still make the DME reservation, just in case. We can put the luggage in the car and send some folks on the bus if we have to.

 

[suffieldhockeymom]

I rented a Dodge Caravan to take 5 boys to a hockey tournament. We all fit comfortably with all their gear and luggage for the weekend. I would still book ME just in case something goes wrong with the rental.

 

[sharadoc]

I would send as many people as possible on DME. First of all, that will handle your luggage and second, it's more fun! Why make everyone get bags, take a shuttle, and drive that whole distance in a Caravan when they can start their Disney magic immediately at the airport?

Just my opinion. We have two Dodge Grand Caravans and we love them. When the 99 goes, we most likely will buy another one. Fits everything and everybody when we need to. We have a 2005 with the Stow and Go seats and that's what we use for Disney trips. We use the well under one middle seat to store luggage, etc. and we put the other one into the floor to use that space for cooler, snacks, etc. The storage area is plenty large behind the third seat.