How early should I get to MCO?

MCO publishes no typical wait figures. On a spring-break Monday morning in March 2026, local news reported waits of about 40 minutes, with lines at times stretching down terminal hallways. In TSA's hourly screening counts for Mar 15-21 and Sep 13-19, 2026, volume stayed high from about 4am through 6pm, and the heaviest hours were 5-9am.

Busiest times: 5:00-9:00am, Late afternoon (per local news), Sundays (busiest day in both TSA sample weeks).

Nationally, TSA checkpoints are busiest from 5 to 7 AM local time. See TSA's hourly numbers and the busiest days to fly.

TSA PreCheck: The airport lists normal TSA PreCheck operating hours as 4:00am to 8:30pm and says to check TSA's site to confirm the lanes will be open for your flight time. The airline directory lists PreCheck for nearly every carrier; GOL (Terminal C) is shown as not participating. PreCheck enrollment is offered at the three CLEAR locations at the checkpoints.

CLEAR: Available at this airport (see terminals below for which checkpoints).

Touchless ID: TSA PreCheck Touchless ID has a dedicated lane at MCO, reported in place since at least winter 2026. An April 2026 travel-blog report names Alaska, American, Delta, Southwest and United as participating airlines; you must opt in through your airline profile with your Known Traveler Number and passport. The writer used it at the Gates 70-129 checkpoint and said other checkpoints may differ.

Between terminals: Terminals A and B: walk across Level 3 of the shared building (525 ft). Terminal C: ride the 24-hour Terminal Link people mover from Terminal B to the Train Station, then walk about 1,200 ft through Parking Garage C, or take the 24-hour shuttle bus between Terminal B Level 1 (space B65) and Terminal C Level 1 (space C272). All of these are pre-security, so you must clear security again.

Terminals are not connected after security. Go to the right terminal the first time.

Rideshare and taxi: Uber, Lyft and other ride-share drop-offs: Departures curb Level 3 at Terminals A and B, Level 2 at Terminal C. Pickups: Arrivals curb Level 2 at A and B 24 hours a day (also the Level 3 Departures curb from 9:00pm to 2:00am); Arrivals curb Level 6 at Terminal C.

Transit: Lynx local buses leave from Terminal A, Level 1, Commercial Lane spaces A38-A41 ($2 per trip or $4.50 all day). They serve Downtown Orlando, the Convention Center and the Sand Lake Road SunRail station; SunRail runs Monday to Friday, 5:30am-9:30pm. Brightline trains to South Florida use the MCO Train Station, open daily 5am-11pm. The airport's approximate taxi fare to downtown Orlando is $38-$45.

Driving and parking: Jeff Fuqua Blvd is the main entry road. Private cars drop off at Level 3 (Departures) at Terminals A and B or Level 2 at Terminal C, and cannot wait at the curb. The Quick Park ramp at the end of the Departures curb leads to Garages A and B. Free cell phone lots are available for pickups.

• Gate Link tram replacement for Gates 70-129 ($253M) runs December 2025 to Fall 2027, with one tram line out of service at a time. Departing passengers to Gates 100-129 may be routed by tram to Gates 70-99 and then by COBUS shuttle, and shuttles are routine overnight (11pm-4am). The airport says to expect only a few extra minutes.
• The first upgraded Gate Link track to Gates 100-129 entered service October 1, 2026. The second 100-129 track is scheduled to be worked on through December 2026, then the Gates 70-99 lines from December 2026 to October 2027.
• Terminal C opened four new gates on June 30, 2026, and Virgin Atlantic moved from Terminal A to Terminal C
• Florida directed $2.5M (posted January 2026) to improve the congested Jeff Fuqua Blvd / Station Loop Road junction, the main road into the airport; no construction timeline has been announced

Terminal C has early bag storage within its baggage system, so ask your airline how far ahead you can check bags. No airline-specific bag cutoffs for MCO were verified.

• MCO's 2-hour advice is for arriving at the security checkpoint, not the curb. Add time for parking, rental-car return and bag check.
• Without PreCheck or CLEAR, you can book a free MCO Reserve security time slot up to 7 days ahead. Reserve lanes run 5am-5pm at Terminals A and B (flights 6:30am-8:30pm) and 5am-7pm at Terminal C (flights 6:30am-10:30pm), with limited slots.
• Check your terminal before you leave: JetBlue and most international airlines are in Terminal C, which has its own entrance, Level 2 drop-off and checkpoint. It is not reachable airside from Terminals A and B.
• At Terminals A and B, pick the checkpoint by gate number (1-59 or 70-129). Once through, you can reach only the paired gate area, and a Gate Link tram ride is still needed to reach your gate.
• Through Fall 2027, trips to Gates 70-129 may include a COBUS shuttle hop during the Gate Link replacement, so build a few extra minutes in after security

• MCO - Security
• MCO - Airlines (terminal, checkpoint, gates by airline)
• MCO - Frequently Asked Questions
• MCO - Ride Share
• MCO - Ground Transportation (approximate rates)
• MCO - Local Bus
• MCO - SunRail
• MCO - Brightline Trains
• MCO - Gate Link Replacement, Gates 70-129
• BlogMickey - MCO launches new Gate Link trams (Oct 2, 2026)
• InsideFlyer - MCO adds four gates, Virgin Atlantic moves to Terminal C (Jun 30, 2026)
• NationGraph - Orlando airport's busiest entry road getting capacity upgrades (Mar 24, 2026)
• WFTV - Travelers face long lines at Orlando International amid spring break surge (Mar 23, 2026)
• Disney Tourist Blog - TSA PreCheck Touchless is Pointless at Orlando Airport (Apr 11, 2026)
• TSA throughput data, March 15-21, 2026 (hourly screening counts by checkpoint)
• TSA throughput data, September 13-19, 2026

Airport conditions change. Always follow your airline's check-in and bag-drop deadlines.

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