[tophcfa]

Warning, do not use this service. My wife landed in Orlando tonight at 9:25 and was booked to be on the 10:00 Van. They say they leave every half hour 24/7. The Van just left MCO at 11:45 PM. They waited for over 2 hours until another flight landed. Every half hour my a$$! And now she will get a grand tour of the Villages and probably be the last drop off at about 1:45 AM. Never again. Do not use this service!

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

Warning, do not use this service. My wife landed in Orlando tonight at 9:25 and was booked to be on the 10:00 Van. They say they leave every half hour 24/7. The Van just left MCO at 11:45 PM. They waited for over 2 hours until another flight landed. Every half hour my a$$! And now she will get a grand tour of the Villages and probably be the last drop off at about 1:45 AM. Never again. Do not use this service!

I am confused. It looks as if there are two separate services both with The Villages name attached. One is The Villages Airport Van that says it leaves every half hour and The other, The Villages Transportation with the schedule that coincides with your wife's travel this evening;

Car Rental Website | Our Schedule

[PaulDenise]

We also used the Villages Airport Van (the one that picks you up and drops you off at your home) last night.

We got to the van at about 8:10 and left at about 8:15 and were home an hour later.

They leave 'about' every half hour or so, not necessarily 'on' the hour and half hour.

Sorry to hear of your experience if indeed it was the yellow and white van service.

We have used them about 50 times in the last 4-5 years. Maybe 1 or 2 times, the wait has been an hour. The other times it has been 0 to 30 minutes.

[Kahuna32162]

We will only use private drivers to go to either Orlando or Sanford. Cost is the same (except tip) and it's door to door without all the stops. PM me if you want a list of drivers.

[Sonny Craven]

I, too, have used this service quite a few times. And, like the complainant, I have experienced long delays, but not on pick up, but shuttling from Sanford to Orlando, then on to The Villages. Twice, form Orlando to The Village inwhich we left within 15 minutes of the scheduled departure, but to took 3 1/2 hours to drop me at my home near Lake Sumter Landing in Sunset Pointe because we were 1) full, 2) and we hubbed at a motel, to wait for another van to arrive to transfer some passengers. If you are unlucky enough to be cued for drop-off at the tail-end of the journey, it can be miserable, especially if you traveling in the evening.

What's the alternative, if you want home pickup and drop-off? Apparently, shuttle service operations are expensive, and the van company is struggling to make a profit, although prices have escalated, especially to Sanford. Another service which featured roomy, newer vans, on-time service and courteous drivers, went out of business last year without notice.

There have been low-level rumors that Leesburg airport may someday be expanded due to the growth of The Villages, to handle larger aircraft, including some direct flights to major destinations. I'm sure the airlines have been approached, but even those operating fuel-efficient Boeing 737 aircraft long ago abandoned small cities because commuter traffic wasn't steady-enough to turn a profit. If passenger traffic from and to The Villages and surrounding area could be accurately measured, airlines might find it feasible to offer service from Leesburg, but with two major international airports only a little more than 60-90 minutes away, it would be a tough sell.

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I am confused. It looks as if there are two separate services both with The Villages name attached. One is The Villages Airport Van that says it leaves every half hour and The other, The Villages Transportation with the schedule that coincides with your wife's travel this evening;

Car Rental Website | Our Schedule

We would prefer to take the Villages Transportation bus that you referenced, if I was there to pick up my wife at LSL. However, I am currently up north so she needed a service that would drop her at the house. Unfortunately, she could have taken the Bus to LSL and walked home much faster than the Van service got her there. We will never use the Van service again.

[Rga20]

I frequently use the Villages Transportation service and they will arrange a cab that will be waiting for you at either Brownwood or LSL and take you home, cost $10. As for the van, I've only used it when I'm arriving after the other service has made their last run. A van driver explained to me one time that they are supposed to start a 30 minute clock when the first passenger gets on, but there are too many stories to the contrary for me to believe that. When possible, it's the Villages Transportation service for me. They've even called to see where I am if I'm on a tight connection, but even if I missed it, I'd be happy to wait for the next scheduled run.

[SFSkol]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

Warning, do not use this service. My wife landed in Orlando tonight at 9:25 and was booked to be on the 10:00 Van. They say they leave every half hour 24/7. The Van just left MCO at 11:45 PM. They waited for over 2 hours until another flight landed. Every half hour my a$$! And now she will get a grand tour of the Villages and probably be the last drop off at about 1:45 AM. Never again. Do not use this service!

This does not sound like 'The Village Airport Van' company. The white vans with a yellow stripe and a huge black carry-all on top. There are no specific time vans for pickup. You said the 10:00 van. Vans are dispatched to the airport according to your scheduled arrival time. There are usually vans waiting every 1/2 hour.

You might want to be more specific as to the company name when posting as to not defame another organization.

[BobnBev]

There are 2 separate businesses 1) Anything that refers to "The Villages" (note the 's') is only allowed to be used by The Villages, ie: The Villages Transportation.

2) The yellow and white vans that say "Village Airport Van" (note, no "s") is the other company that everyone is complaining about. Just sayin---

[collie1228]

I agree with the OP, and will never use The Village Airport Van again. It took longer for me to be dropped off once I reached The Villages than it took for the ride from the Airport to The Villages. I was ninth of ten drop offs. I only used them as it was a last second trip and The Villages Transportation couldn't accommodate me. I think The Villages Transportation does a fine job with airport connections.

[SFSkol]

2) The yellow and white vans that say "Village Airport Van" (note, no "s") is the other company that everyone is complaining about. Just sayin---

And which complaints might these be?

The OP was definitely referring to "The Villages Transportation Service", since the "Village Airport Van," does not book in half-hour intervals. The book based on your specific arrival/ departure time.

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by SFSkol

This does not sound like 'The Village Airport Van' company. The white vans with a yellow stripe and a huge black carry-all on top. There are no specific time vans for pickup. You said the 10:00 van. Vans are dispatched to the airport according to your scheduled arrival time. There are usually vans waiting every 1/2 hour.

You might want to be more specific as to the company name when posting as to not defame another organization.

The company I am naming is the Village Airport Van company, the one with the white vans with a yellow stripe and a huge black carry-all on the top. If you check other threads complaining about them, you will see that I have supported them in the past, but not any more.

Their service has gone way downhill over the last year. We know that living north of 466 that we will always be one of the last drop offs and first pick ups but still used them despite this when we need door to door service or when we have a late flight that could miss the last Villages Transportation shuttle if the flight gets delayed. However, when they advertise that they have vans running approximately every half hour 24/7 and then are proven to be blatantly lying, thats when we draw the line. When someone gets to the parked Van at 9:30 and has to wait until 11:45 before the Van pulls out of the parking space, no one can convince me that they run Vans approximately every half hour. Perhaps they should advertise that they run Vans every half hour as long as the Vans are full, otherwise be prepared to wait as long as necessary for the Van to get filled. Although that would be honest advertising, I doubt it would get them much business. We will never use them again.

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by SFSkol

And which complaints might these be?

The OP was definitely referring to "The Villages Transportation Service", since the "Village Airport Van," does not book in half-hour intervals. The book based on your specific arrival/ departure time.

I am posting about the Villages Airport Van, not the Villages Transportation Service. I agree that the The Villages Airport Van books based on your specific arrival/departure time, but they also advertise that their Vans run approximately every half hour 24/7. This implies that regardless of what time you get to the parked Van, the Van will be pulling out of the parking spot at a maximum of 30 minutes, not after 2 hours and 15 minutes.

[Marathon Man]

We have used both services successfully several times. I don't believe that a single incident would put me off of either one. Certainly not before giving them the opportunity to explain what was going on. The driver must have had some information. A delayed flight? A flat tire on the next van? I realize that when we hire shared services such as this one that these kind of delays can happen. Sometimes I make the drive and pay for parking when I want to make sure that delays don't interfere with other plans. Another option would be to hire private transportation.

[PapaPhil]

I think the OP has to manage his expectations. I've used this service many times and find it's no better or worse that the average shared van services I've used all over the country for 40 years. Emphasis is on "shared." This wait in this case, was, admittedly, unreasonable, but if one wants first class service, one must pay first class prices. There are any number of sedan services that will be at your beck and call, for a fee.