2024 Daytona 24 Hours - how to get from Orlando to Daytona?

[dalhalvaig]

Hi there

Title says it all really. I'm going to the Daytona 24 in January and am struggling to find public transport to get from Orlando International airport to Daytona Beach. I land about 1630, but the last Greyhound leaves Orlando downtown about 1630. That would be about $20. Found a Shuttle service that can do door to door for about $60, but recent Tripadvsor comments have been poor, was great till 2020...what happened then?

A taxi via Uber starts about $90.

I'm try to avoid hiring a car - that's coming in about £350+ as I'm there for 12 days - as not going far other than airport-accommodation-airport.

Anyone been recently and found a good reliable and not too expensive way to get Orland to Daytona...and back obvs.

Cheers

D

[richhead]

Used to work in daytona, its not a great place to get around without a car the whole place is built around people having a car, if it was me i would rent one, you can get some low cost cars if you look further a field than the airport, i never owned one for a year or so and just rented, only pain was i had to have to go back to orlando every month or so to change it. Also look at flying to sanford nr orlando, always used to be miles cheaper, thats where i used to get cars, cant remember the name of the company tho

[K50 DEL]

Budget (at least, so likely most) don't seem to charge for a one-way rental.
I'd pick yourself up the cheapest category of car at MCO, booked on a one way to drop off the next day in Daytona, do the same in reverse to go back.
It'll cost you a little more than a bus, but having travelled extensively via Greyhound I'd say it was well worth the extra!!

[dalhalvaig]

K50 DEL said:

Budget (at least, so likely most) don't seem to charge for a one-way rental.
I'd pick yourself up the cheapest category of car at MCO, booked on a one way to drop off the next day in Daytona, do the same in reverse to go back.
It'll cost you a little more than a bus, but having travelled extensively via Greyhound I'd say it was well worth the extra!!

Good Idea. Hadn't considered that. Will investigate

[Matt Harper]

I live in Orlando and have done the Rolex 24 about 15 times.

Are you planning to spend your entire visit in Daytona Beach? I ask, because there is very, very little going on there in late Jan/early Feb, other than that event and the Roar.

Public transport here sucks balls. Bite the bullet and rent a car or at the absolute worst Uber/Lyft it.

Also bear in mind the the weather can get a bit gnarly (cold and wet) - if you don't have a vehicle to shelter/sleep in, overnight at the Speedway could be a bit of a miserable experience.

Edited by Matt Harper on Monday 9th October 23:19

[Truckosaurus]

dalhalvaig said:

...
I'm try to avoid hiring a car ...

Having visited the USA multiple times, the only places I'd not bother with a motorcar is if you were only visiting the centres of any of the big north eastern cities (NYC, Boston, DC etc) that have european levels of public transport.

Trying to do Florida or the west without a car is verging on the impossible.

[dalhalvaig]

Truckosaurus said:

Trying to do Florida or the west without a car is verging on the impossible.

I am beginning to get this feeling as I try to find some level of public transport...Thanks for the info

[dalhalvaig]

Matt Harper said:

I live in Orlando and have done the Rolex 24 about 15 times.

Are you planning to spend your entire visit in Daytona Beach? I ask, because there is very, very little going on there in late Jan/early Feb, other than that event and the Roar.

Public transport here sucks balls. Bite the bullet and rent a car or at the absolute worst Uber/Lyft it.

Also bear in mind the the weather can get a bit gnarly (cold and wet) - if you don't have a vehicle to shelter/sleep in, overnight at the Speedway could be a bit of a miserable experience.

Edited by Matt Harper on Monday 9th October 23:19

Hi there...thanks for this.

Basically just flying in for the Roar through to the Rolex 24, staying in an apartment in Daytona Beach. The Daytona 24 has been on my list for quite a while, as I regularly attend the Le Man 24.

That's a good point about overnight. Obviously, I could head back to the appartment for a break...but that's not the point, is it?

I've got a bit of time to figure out my plan and this is all useful info

Is access to the grandstands included in the ticket? I can't find any seat sales info on the Daytona website. I've got myself a 4 day pass.

Thanks

D

[Matt Harper]

dalhalvaig said:

Hi there...thanks for this.

Basically just flying in for the Roar through to the Rolex 24, staying in an apartment in Daytona Beach. The Daytona 24 has been on my list for quite a while, as I regularly attend the Le Man 24.

That's a good point about overnight. Obviously, I could head back to the appartment for a break...but that's not the point, is it?

I've got a bit of time to figure out my plan and this is all useful info

Is access to the grandstands included in the ticket? I can't find any seat sales info on the Daytona website. I've got myself a 4 day pass.

Thanks

D

Yes, access to the grandstands in the tri-oval is included in the general admission. The reality of this is that the Speedway is a huge facility that kind of drowns the Rolex 24 - meaning that the event seems a bit desolate, compared to the 500 when it is jammed with people. It is nothing like Le Mans, though the quality of racing is high, there's just something missing that stops it from feeling like a really big deal.

I'm going to be a little controversial now and suggest that you are actually attending the wrong FL sportscar event. The 12 Hours of Sebring is a much more intense experience - the weather is a LOT nicer in March and the spectating opportunities are far superior. The week-long party is a fun aspect also.

I also have to suggest that being stuck in Daytona Beach for more than 48 hours at the ass-end of January could be tedious in the extreme.

[dalhalvaig]

Matt Harper said:

Yes, access to the grandstands in the tri-oval is included in the general admission. The reality of this is that the Speedway is a huge facility that kind of drowns the Rolex 24 - meaning that the event seems a bit desolate, compared to the 500 when it is jammed with people. It is nothing like Le Mans, though the quality of racing is high, there's just something missing that stops it from feeling like a really big deal.

I'm going to be a little controversial now and suggest that you are actually attending the wrong FL sportscar event. The 12 Hours of Sebring is a much more intense experience - the weather is a LOT nicer in March and the spectating opportunities are far superior. The week-long party is a fun aspect also.

I also have to suggest that being stuck in Daytona Beach for more than 48 hours at the ass-end of January could be tedious in the extreme.

Appreciate your candid comments...We did the Daytona 400 in August and that was a blast. I can understand that the 24 will be much different...but bucket lists...
That said, The Sebring 12 hours is also on the list.

[ecsrobin]

Matt Harper said:

I also have to suggest that being stuck in Daytona Beach for more than 48 hours at the ass-end of January could be tedious in the extreme.

We visited at Easter and thought the same then!

[Matt Harper]

... and maybe I could have worded that better - I don't want anyone to think that the Rolex 24 is crap - it is absolutely not - but unlike most other high-profile sporting events, it doesn't have quite the same sense of 'occasion'. I think the venue is so much more suited to the massive NASCAR crowds - IMSA seems a bit lost, with all those colossal (but essentially empty) structures overlooking it.

Unlike the summer night race you attended, the 24 can be a cold, windy and sometimes rain-drenched experience - particularly overnight. That you have a rental apartment to escape to, might be a huge benefit to you, if the weather gets unpleasant. I've been there on a couple of occasions where they have actually temporarily red-flagged the race, because the weather was so bad.

It is still a spectacle - the speed disparity of the various classes makes for some hair-raising racing, particularly in the infield sections (where you can get up close) and the bus-stop at the end of the super-stretch (where, sadly, you can't).

Postscript - if you like Le Mans, you will absolutely love Sebring.

[dalhalvaig]

Matt Harper said:

... and maybe I could have worded that better - I don't want anyone to think that the Rolex 24 is crap - it is absolutely not - but unlike most other high-profile sporting events, it doesn't have quite the same sense of 'occasion'. I think the venue is so much more suited to the massive NASCAR crowds - IMSA seems a bit lost, with all those colossal (but essentially empty) structures overlooking it.

Unlike the summer night race you attended, the 24 can be a cold, windy and sometimes rain-drenched experience - particularly overnight. That you have a rental apartment to escape to, might be a huge benefit to you, if the weather gets unpleasant. I've been there on a couple of occasions where they have actually temporarily red-flagged the race, because the weather was so bad.

It is still a spectacle - the speed disparity of the various classes makes for some hair-raising racing, particularly in the infield sections (where you can get up close) and the bus-stop at the end of the super-stretch (where, sadly, you can't).

Postscript - if you like Le Mans, you will absolutely love Sebring.

No worries. It all helps the preparation. Cheers

[dalhalvaig]

ecsrobin said:

Matt Harper said:

I also have to suggest that being stuck in Daytona Beach for more than 48 hours at the ass-end of January could be tedious in the extreme.

We visited at Easter and thought the same then!

LOL...I'm based in Scotland. The apartment I have has a view out over the Atlantic. I can be happy watching waves coming in for hours!

[richhead]

Matt Harper said:

dalhalvaig said:

Hi there...thanks for this.

Basically just flying in for the Roar through to the Rolex 24, staying in an apartment in Daytona Beach. The Daytona 24 has been on my list for quite a while, as I regularly attend the Le Man 24.

That's a good point about overnight. Obviously, I could head back to the appartment for a break...but that's not the point, is it?

I've got a bit of time to figure out my plan and this is all useful info

Is access to the grandstands included in the ticket? I can't find any seat sales info on the Daytona website. I've got myself a 4 day pass.

Thanks

D

Yes, access to the grandstands in the tri-oval is included in the general admission. The reality of this is that the Speedway is a huge facility that kind of drowns the Rolex 24 - meaning that the event seems a bit desolate, compared to the 500 when it is jammed with people. It is nothing like Le Mans, though the quality of racing is high, there's just something missing that stops it from feeling like a really big deal.

I'm going to be a little controversial now and suggest that you are actually attending the wrong FL sportscar event. The 12 Hours of Sebring is a much more intense experience - the weather is a LOT nicer in March and the spectating opportunities are far superior. The week-long party is a fun aspect also.

I also have to suggest that being stuck in Daytona Beach for more than 48 hours at the ass-end of January could be tedious in the extreme.

I would agree with all of that, when i said i worked in daytona, i was based nr there, and worked in motorsport, so have worked the 24 many times, as well as alot of others, sebring is always the one i recomend friends go to rather than daytona, but if your going anyway then why not, but you will need a car, as the speedway has not alot around it, ant apart from the strip clubs in the town, then daytona doesnt have a huge amount

[RUSTILLDOWN]

Personally I wouldn’t bother with visiting Daytona… big disappointment when I went there.