Minnie Vans

[Nick]

Have you taken many recently? The last few I've taken have very little English skills, and barely any driving skills, let alone knowledge of the area.

I get to Orlando average 2 times a year, always hire a car and haven't used Maps app to get around for years now!

The amount of non-English speaking Uber drivers has definitely increased of late and as a local that ubers a lot, it's noticeable. I really wonder how much the vast number of Puerto Ricans that came to Orlando after Maria increased the driver count in Orlando. Many of the drivers i've had say they are from there and actually ask me advice about the area.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Have you taken many recently? The last few I've taken have very little English skills, and barely any driving skills, let alone knowledge of the area.

I get to Orlando average 2 times a year, always hire a car and haven't used Maps app to get around for years now!

Yes I have. Around UOR and MCO it’s more locals but WDW I hear/have seen more cast members. Unless this has changed recently.

 

[Jon84]

The amount of non-English speaking Uber drivers has definitely increased of late and as a local that ubers a lot, it's noticeable. I really wonder how much the vast number of Puerto Ricans that came to Orlando after Maria increased the driver count in Orlando. Many of the drivers i've had say they are from there and actually ask me advice about the area.

Good point, alot of foreced migration at the moment in the region.

Yes I have. Around UOR and MCO it’s more locals but WDW I hear/have seen more cast members. Unless this has changed recently.

It's actually around WDW where I've had the most non locals.

I even watched (on the app map) one driver literally do a U Turn over the Grass Median to get to me quicker. He admitted he did it too!

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Minnie Van pricing has gone up to $25 per trip.

 

[Nick]

Minnie Van pricing has gone up to $25 per trip.

This is getting comical

 

[Scott W.]

Minnie Van pricing has gone up to $25 per trip.

Must be working better than expected.

 

[jtsalien]

This is getting comical

Must be working better than expected.

Never underestimate the Disney Lifestylers. People can hate Disney as much as they want, but people buying enable this dumb stuff.

 

[GadgetGuru]

I actually think Disney could even price this higher.

Outside of large cities, I think there’s a lot of people are terrified of Ubers. Back home (Detroit Metropolitan area), people look at me like I’m crazy when I tell them I get into a stranger’s car and that stranger drives me places. Especially people who are older or don’t pay attention to the gig economy startups as much.

Those people vacation at Disney just like every other demographic. Plus, you get bonus perks that you can’t get from taxis.

I don’t necessarily think this is just Lifestylers buying all things Disney. I think it’s people who want faster transit and don’t trust the current options

 

[Nick]

I actually think Disney could even price this higher.

Outside of large cities, I think there’s a lot of people are terrified of Ubers. Back home (Detroit Metropolitan area), people look at me like I’m crazy when I tell them I get into a stranger’s car and that stranger drives me places. Especially people who are older or don’t pay attention to the gig economy startups as much.

Those people vacation at Disney just like every other demographic. Plus, you get bonus perks that you can’t get from taxis.

I don’t necessarily think this is just Lifestylers buying all things Disney. I think it’s people who want faster transit and don’t trust the current options

It's certainly not just Lifestylers and they are the vast minority. This service seems popular, likely for all the reasons you stated. Disney has continued to roll it out in different ways and now an increase in prices. Demand is there it seems.

I expected this whole experiment to fold rather quickly, but it seems to be doing pretty well.

 

[Nick]

Disney is expanding it's fleet of Chevy Traverse "Minnie Vans" with 40 new 2018 models.

Minnie Vans Expanding Fleet - Blog Mickey

 

[Viator]

Lyft has officially become the main rideshare service with Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, and will allow Minnie Vans to be further enhanced in the coming fall.

 

[Nick]

Lyft has officially become the main rideshare service with Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, and will allow Minnie Vans to be further enhanced in the coming fall.

Wonder if this is a bigger deal than it seems. Could it really kick Uber to the curb and make it harder for them to get rides in WDW? Could Lyft now maybe be allowed to use the taxi areas that only Mears has been able to use for years?

 

[GAcoaster]

Wonder if this is a bigger deal than it seems. Could it really kick Uber to the curb and make it harder for them to get rides in WDW? Could Lyft now maybe be allowed to use the taxi areas that only Mears has been able to use for years?

Especially with Mears and Uber having an agreement now, this could be interesting...

 

[Nick]

Especially with Mears and Uber having an agreement now, this could be interesting...

Problem is Disney needs Mears for Magical Express and Disney really has no other options besides them so they can't just totally kick mears to the side like i'm sure they would want to just yet.

 

[GAcoaster]

They don't need Mears Taxis to have their own designated load zone anymore though...

 

[Nick]

They don't need Mears Taxis to have their own designated load zone anymore though...

I agree on that, but I think that it's lumped in as a part of the agreement that Disney has with Mears.

 

[GadgetGuru]

Lyft has officially become the main rideshare service with Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, and will allow Minnie Vans to be further enhanced in the coming fall.

Never saw this coming.

I don't think Disney will start restricting Uber rides until congestion becomes an issue. Ride-sharing makes traffic worse, not better. The new Lyft agreement will probably just be marketing. Uber doesn't need the advertising as much because they're a much stronger brand name.

The Minnie Van part is where this gets interesting. I firmly believe that people get Minnie Vans because they don't trust ride-sharing. In 2019, there's a large segment of the population (more suburban, more car-oriented) that doesn't trust Lyft/Uber drivers because they're "unverified" strangers who might be serial-killers. Those people would trust Disney's Minnie Vans because those are driven by Disney cast members and therefore inherently trustworthy. Ride-sharing rider demographics don't completely overlap with Disney World visitor demographics.

But now, if Minnie Vans are being driven by regular Lyft drivers (i.e. strangers), the whole value proposition for Minnie Vans gets thrown out. Minnie Vans do get special pick-up/drop-off locations though. It makes me think Disney will lean more into priority access as the defining feature of Minnie Vans.

 

[Disneyhead]

Every time I read this thread's title, this is what I think of...

 

[fryoj]

Never saw this coming.

I don't think Disney will start restricting Uber rides until congestion becomes an issue. Ride-sharing makes traffic worse, not better. The new Lyft agreement will probably just be marketing. Uber doesn't need the advertising as much because they're a much stronger brand name.

The Minnie Van part is where this gets interesting. I firmly believe that people get Minnie Vans because they don't trust ride-sharing. In 2019, there's a large segment of the population (more suburban, more car-oriented) that doesn't trust Lyft/Uber drivers because they're "unverified" strangers who might be serial-killers. Those people would trust Disney's Minnie Vans because those are driven by Disney cast members and therefore inherently trustworthy. Ride-sharing rider demographics don't completely overlap with Disney World visitor demographics.

But now, if Minnie Vans are being driven by regular Lyft drivers (i.e. strangers), the whole value proposition for Minnie Vans gets thrown out. Minnie Vans do get special pick-up/drop-off locations though. It makes me think Disney will lean more into priority access as the defining feature of Minnie Vans.

If the van is pink and polka dotted, the guest would never know its a random stranger driving it. Actually, pretty much everyone who works at Disney is a random stranger for that matter.

 

[Nick]

So I just happened to see this screen shot from Blog Mickey (I hadn't seen Minnie Van pricing in awhile - especially compared to regular lyft pricing), so this made me literally laugh out loud, especially because I take Lyft and Uber frequently.

Lyft XL and Minnie Vans are essentially the same thing and it's $21 difference (and that $32.06 is REDUCED!). I don't know who's paying this, but they're out of their minds. I've gotten to Full Sail University from Magic Kingdom for less than $32 with a ride share when needed before and that's a solid 45-minute drive if not longer. I really don't know who this service is for and why Disney thinks they can charge 3x more for the same thing as Lyft XL. At least if it could fit more passengers it would have something going for it, but it can't even do that.