If you thought the Disney bubble was gone for good, think again. Days after reintroducing its Resort Airline Check-In service, Walt Disney World Resort has gone full steam ahead on restoring the lost benefit to guests.
For those who aren’t fluent in Disney magic, Disney’s Resort Airline Check-In was basically curbside check-in, but with mouse magic. If you were flying with one of the participating airlines, you could check your bags at your Disney hotel—no airport counter required.
It was free, easy, and let you skip the luggage hassle so you could squeeze in one last Mickey waffle before heading home. All you had to do was drop your bags and go straight to security when you reached the airport.
Credit: Disney
However, Disney’s Resort Airline Check-In was sadly one of many Disney resort perks that didn’t survive the COVID-19 pandemic. That all changed this week, however, when Disney randomly brought the service back for a trial at Disney’s Pop Century Resort.
Disney Expands Airport Service
For now, this trial is extremely limited and is only available to guests flying with Southwest out of Orlando International Airport (MCO).
Credit: Disney
However, expect it to grow fast, as Disney has already expanded it to four other hotels: Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort, Disney’s All-Star Music Resort, Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort, and Disney’s Art of Animation Resort. In other words, to all of Disney’s Value Resorts.
The service is run by a third-party company called Bag Check, which seems to be a spinoff of the original team behind Resort Airline Check-In. Its owner, Craig Mateer, also founded Bags, Inc., the company that operated the service before it was shut down.
Disney Shares Statement on Resort Airline Check-In
In a new statement, a Disney spokesperson said the pilot program is an effort to “manage the high demand for travel to Central Florida and improve the experience for our guests and other airport passengers.” It also confirmed that the service is now called the Airport Luggage Transfer program.
Credit: Disney
Disney initially kept this program under the radar with minimal promotion. However, it has since released a statement and added a page to its website on which it breaks down the steps to using the service:
Save time at the airport by sending your bags ahead to Southwest Airlines. Simply follow these steps:
At the beginning of your stay, check in at your Disney Value Resort hotel and call or visit Luggage Assistance to take advantage of this service. For a smoother experience, leave your inbound Southwest Airlines tags on your bags.
The day before your departure, check in for your Southwest Airlines flight online.
Drop off your bags at Luggage Assistance in the Resort hotel lobby area by the required drop off time. Please be aware that you will need to provide a valid form of photo identification in order to drop off your bags. You can also call Luggage Assistance from your in-room telephone to ask for help with your bags.
Head to the airport, skip the check-in line, enjoy your flight and pick up your bags at baggage claim when you arrive at your destination.
It has also clarified that guests drop off their bags the night before their scheduled departure. If flying before 1 p.m., it says guests must drop off bags by 1 a.m. Flights after 1 p.m. require guests to drop off their bags either four hours before their scheduled departure time, or 1 p.m., whatever time comes first.
Credit: Disney
Disney Restores the Disney Bubble
Should this trial go smoothly, we imagine this will eventually be expanded to other Disney hotels in Orlando. Whenever it happens, it won’t be a moment too soon. There’s been plenty of talk in recent years about Disney eroding the Disney bubble, with many free perks that previously enticed guests to stay on property disappearing in the years since COVID-19.
For example, Extra Magic Hours gave way to more limited early entry options, while the Magical Express – the free shuttle transporting Disney guests from MCO to their hotel – was axed as of January 1, 2022. Today’s Disney World experience still has its perks, but the all-inclusive feel of the classic bubble has definitely shifted.
With Epic Universe on the way and Disney’s major projects still years out, the real question is how it plans to keep pace. Rebuilding the Disney Bubble might just be the move that makes it a serious competitor once again.
What do you think of Walt Disney World Resort introducing the Airport Luggage Transfer program?
Chloë is a theme park addict and self-proclaimed novelty hunter. She's obsessed with all things Star Wars, loves roller coasters (but hates Pixar Pal-A-Round), and lives for Disney's next Muppets project.
Never was available to those of us travelling across the Atlantic from the UK. So never used this service. Hope they extend to those of us floating BA or Virgin from the UK.
Never was available to those of us travelling across the Atlantic from the UK. So never used this service. Hope they extend to those of us floating BA or Virgin from the UK.