Airline Luggage Check-In Returning at Select Walt Disney World Resorts

Are you flying out of Orlando International Airport, otherwise known as MCO, on Southwest Airlines? Well, if you are and you’re staying at a select Walt Disney World Resort Hotel, you’ll be able to use Airline Luggage Check-In!

How does it work? Well, Guests will be able to visit the Luggage Assistance desk, speak with a representative, answer some questions, and then your luggage will be taken “magically” to the airport (by a third party) without you seeing it again until you land back at your home airport.

Keep in mind that this is a pilot of this service. However, if this sounds familiar, it’s because the Walt Disney World did previously offer Airline Luggage Check-In on a larger scale back when they had Disney Magical Express. (Meaning more airlines took advantage of this perk for Guests. Which we may see if this is a success moving forward.)

How Does Airline Luggage Check-In Work Currently?

This service is currently available at the following locations:

• Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort
• Disney’s All-Star Music Resort
• Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort
• Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• Disney’s Pop Century Resort

Take a look at the signage that can be found currently at Disney’s Pop Century Resort promoting this service:

This service does NOT include luggage transportation from the airport to a Disney Resort hotel. So you will still need to grab your bags when you land at the Orlando International Airport.

Now, there is one small caveat. If a Guest’s flight is scheduled to depart before 1 p.m., they must drop their bags off at Luggage Assistance by 1 a.m. the night before their flight. If their flight is scheduled to depart at 1 p.m. or later, they must drop their bags off at least 4 hours before departure and no later than 1 p.m.

So, while it may seem like a nice perk, you may also need to think about whether this service fits in with your family’s flight schedule. But if you don’t want to deal with the luggage aspect getting to the airport, this may be a great option.

If you have questions, Guests can contact or visit Luggage Assistance for further assistance.

What This Isn’t

This is NOT the return of Disney’s Magical Express. That was the bus transfers that would take you to and from the Orlando International Airport. While years ago, when Disney’s Magical Express was offered, the Airline Luggage Check-In option was sort of intertwined together, this is strictly the transfer of luggage only. Guests will still need to find their own transportation to and from the Orlando International Airport.

However, it is interesting that Walt Disney World has been talking about the Disney Bubble again, and both this and Disney’s Magical Express were two key pieces to keeping people inside the Disney Bubble (which means keeping Guests inside the Walt Disney World Resort.)

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But now, I want to know your thoughts. Are you planning to use Airline Luggage Check-In, if it’s offered during your trip? What do you think this means for the return of something like Disney’s Magical Express, which was a bus that took you to and from your resort? You can share with me in the comments or on social! Find me on Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram, Threads,  BlueSky, and TikTok.

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