Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[java]

Final thoughts as we are driving home.

The Bad
Heat oh my it was hot and we always go in July. It was the waiting in the blazing sun for the rides.
Lines were long- bring back FP please.
Major downpours a few days
We really missed the foreigners that used to work the Epcot countries.(via Napoli I’m looking at you!)

the Great
Bartenders were heavy handed making the drinks all seem like a bargain.

Thanks to this board we were able to score ROR boarding group 4 our first day and we were 12 today. What a great ride. My family thought I was a magician.

food and wine was way better than last year. More booths and prices seemed fair.

those resort boats from MK at the end of the night are heaven. We stayed off site so it was TTC for us except the night we ate at the Poly!

tons of new and happy CM’s.

finally got to see happily ever after and I cried through the whole thing.

got in early at all parks except Mk- HS was probably the best at getting us on rides before opening time- same with Epcot.

Final final thoughts. They reinstated masks indoors yesterday- compliance was about 70%. I am all for the protection. It did seem strange that they were still packing us in like sardines. So if you are concerned I would not go now. I’m guessing the masking will increase to everywhere. I wish they kept social distancing too. I had someone using my shoulder to rest their phone on- not for long as I am not a doormat. This was an overdue vacation and we had a blast being together. ROR was the highlight.

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

We are headed to WDW for a stay at BC in less than 48 hours- YAY!! We have probably been almost 30 times in the last 10 years but have not been since right before the pandemic hit. We have had a rough last year as a family (like many others) and we desperately need a good experience at our happy place. I am not backing out now but so discouraged by all the negative reports. Can anyone report on having a surprisingly good experience in the last week or so??? Besides tempered expectations (my tweens/teens are so tired of me using this phrase) any specific advice for a seasoned veteran with no post-covid experience? I am desperately seeking positive experiences (hoping they still exist).

Aw, hang in there! I was feeling quite down at the 48 hour mark pre-trip as well. I've been to WDW over 25 times and this trip was definitely different, but we still came home with great memories! We tried to focus on doing the things that were new to us as the absolute priority and also things that aren't always there like Food and Wine Festival booths. I'd say decide each day what's most important to your family to accomplish and focus on that. When we had to skip something it really helped my mindset to keep reminding myself that we've done (insert whatever) before and we will be back! Our break day from the parks ended up being lovely - we did breakfast at Topolino's then rode the Skyliner to explore CBR and then back to EPCOT followed by pool time. Wishing you the best!

 

[LiteBrite]

Last observation post - Crowds and Wait Times from July 22-29

This was the biggest challenge of this trip. There were simply way too many people in the parks.

We have gone this same week of July for at least the past five years, and this past week was FAR busier than I have ever seen it during this comparable time. It was even far busier than most Spring Breaks we've visited. It was miserable.

We have a specific order that allows us to experience almost all of what we enjoy. We were still able to do that, but if you were a typical family, you would have seen 40 minute minimum waits for very simple attractions, and over hour waits for almost everything else. You could maybe get Animal, Hollywood, and most of Epcot done in a day, but Magic was overwhelmingly busy with crazy waits.

Ride breakdowns were also a real problem. On our first day at Magic, we rope dropped only to have Seven Dwarves, Pirates, and Space ALL broken down at open - so you had a huge pack of very angry people who had just been packed together for over an hour...for nothing. It was UGLY. Not sure why this is happening with such an increased frequency.

It's hard to be told to "set your expectations low" for a vacation that is a once in a lifetime, very expensive splurge for most families. I think the combination of over-crowding, wait times, and attraction breakdowns makes Magic a rough go right now.

We LOVE Happily Ever After! I was very sad to watch it for the last time. But the crowds were totally insane.

Thanks so much for these very detailed and well written reports.

 

[cakebaker]

Lunch at Tomorrowland Terrace. They may be serving items from CHH, but it is definitely not the same quality. The shrimp and fish were just absolutely inedible and I seriously had to ask twice to actually get a full cup of ice. Once had 3 cubes in it, half melted. The second one was less than half full, but mostly not melted. If I wanted to spend the time, I’d ask for a refund on the food- it was that bad.

 

[Neener16]

We are headed to WDW for a stay at BC in less than 48 hours- YAY!! We have probably been almost 30 times in the last 10 years but have not been since right before the pandemic hit. We have had a rough last year as a family (like many others) and we desperately need a good experience at our happy place. I am not backing out now but so discouraged by all the negative reports. Can anyone report on having a surprisingly good experience in the last week or so??? Besides tempered expectations (my tweens/teens are so tired of me using this phrase) any specific advice for a seasoned veteran with no post-covid experience? I am desperately seeking positive experiences (hoping they still exist).

I was in Disney from 7/19-7/24 with my 30ish daughters. While we all said we probably won't go again until there are Fastpasses, we had a wonderful time. I realize this is pre- masking changes, but we did wear masks at times when it got uncomfortably crowded. We had low expectations and vowed to not get ticked off by little things. There were so many things that went our way that we were grateful for- a great room at the Yacht Club with very quiet neighbors, the weather, while hot, was good, lucked out with getting FOP through very early rope drop, ROTR and Millennium Falcon just by luck, had positive experiences with CMs, good luck with mobile ordering, had some dinner reservations which helped get out of the heat, plus had great meals, and did not seem to run into other annoying guests. We picked a couple must do rides, and did them. MK is just insane. With the age of your kids, I would try arriving MK late, and try and ride some stuff during the fireworks. Rides like Peter Pan didn't seem to have much of a line at all during this time. My daughters love Space Mountain and we still waited about 45 minutes even during the fireworks. When we went earlier in the day and realized it was a zoo, we left. We had an EPCOT park pass day and went over early and rode Frozen, then hit the food. The earlier you go the less crowded it is. We rode Soarin 3 times; that was usually not a tough line at all.
There is way less pressure to do everything at Disney if you go often. We did everything we wanted to and then some. I hope you have as good a time as we had!

 

[cdurham1]

Lunch at Tomorrowland Terrace. They may be serving items from CHH, but it is definitely not the same quality. The shrimp and fish were just absolutely inedible and I seriously had to ask twice to actually get a full cup of ice. Once had 3 cubes in it, half melted. The second one was less than half full, but mostly not melted. If I wanted to spend the time, I’d ask for a refund on the food- it was that bad.

CHH was always terrible. I had better fish and chips from Long John Silver's

 

[mdmost]

CHH was always terrible. I had better fish and chips from Long John Silver's

The upstairs seating section was great though to get a break from the hustle and bustle.

All the negative reports has gotten me to dial back my expectations a bit. We haven't been since 2015 and that was a truly magical vacation for us. Our kids were right in the sweet spot of adolescence at 7 and 5. They're 13 and 11 now but still as excited as ever. We had a tough year and due to various circumstances, we couldn't take a summer vacation. Our trip around Labor Day is a quick one which I never enjoy doing as Disneyworld needs a long trip to really maximize your money and to get everything in.

This trip has turned into more about doing things we haven't done in the past and making those the highlights. We haven't experienced any of the Star Wars and Toy Story parts so those each get a morning at HS. We haven't gotten to fully enjoy World Showcase so that will get some time on this trip. We go to Disneyland enough that we're going to focus on rides they don't have over there or ones that are different. We never got to see the Hall of Presidents so that's high up on our list. We never got to eat at Ohana, which my wife always wanted to do so that's now got a reservation. I've tried to reinforce to our kids that this will be different but I think I'll be more stressed about things than they will. We'll still hit the highlights but we did things specifically so we don't have to stress if we don't get them all in. I bought Boo Bash tickets for the oldest and I so we could have our evening at MK that we both wanted to do. My youngest loves to swim so we're making sure we pack in some time at the pool. We're trying to find something that each person can enjoy. Even with all the negative posts, I'm still excited to go on our trip.

 

[rlk]

Walking around MK today it seems less congested than last week and even yesterday. Wait times are down too.

 

[Sarahslay]

We are headed to WDW for a stay at BC in less than 48 hours- YAY!! We have probably been almost 30 times in the last 10 years but have not been since right before the pandemic hit. We have had a rough last year as a family (like many others) and we desperately need a good experience at our happy place. I am not backing out now but so discouraged by all the negative reports. Can anyone report on having a surprisingly good experience in the last week or so??? Besides tempered expectations (my tweens/teens are so tired of me using this phrase) any specific advice for a seasoned veteran with no post-covid experience? I am desperately seeking positive experiences (hoping they still exist).

This isn't from me, but a friend of mine who just got back this past week with her family. She hadn't been since she was in high school, and her kids (13 and 7) and husband had never been. She didn't really research, didn't know what to expect, didn't have these boards to tell her anything, and they had an amazing time. It really is all in what you make it right now honestly, I know we all want to go and have this out of this world experience, and have that time we thought we would get when we first booked where there were lower crowds and low waits but that's just not what it's like now. The good news is that schools are starting back and the reservation calendar hints at crowds lowering in the next week, but I say just go and have a good time. That's it, go in to each day happy to be there. Take in the day, sit on a bench with a snack and enjoy the atmosphere. My friend had absolutely zero expectations going in, she just knew she wanted to get away from home after a stressful year+ and give her kids a good vacation, and they did just that and had an amazing trip. If you look for the negative you'll find it, trust me. I've been 6 times since reopening, and have gone during the same time that some people have come on here complaining about all kinds of stuff while I had a completely different experience. Each of you should pick a ride a day you want to do and do it, pick a snack, and explore a resort you've never been to as a break (I like to go to Riviera during the day from Epcot or HS because they have a great little coffee shop with nice little treats and iced coffee). Relax, enjoy, it'll be ok.

 

[Memorymakerfor4]

I've seen a few posts about DAS (I'm sorry those people had rough experiences and this is not a response to those) and thought I'd post about how it went for us. We used it well at all 4 parks. Like everyone else, we didn't get as many rides in as usual, but viewed through the lens of how crazy the parks are right now, it was immensely helpful with my son. My observations:

There was usually a line to get a return time. Lots of people being turned away because ____ (they didn't have DAS set up correctly, they just wandered into a shorter line, they wanted "those fast passes like all of these other people," etc etc). I got BIG smiles from cast members almost every time when they saw I knew what I was doing.

You WILL have to wait the entire return time. If they say 3:58, they mean 3:58! I know in previous times they sometimes allowed people to just walk in or return a little early, but not anymore. We saw a lot of people trying to abuse this.

Many people don't know that you don't have to have your entire party present to get a return time. Me and my husband took turns getting it while the other walked around with the kids. On the flip side, you MUST have your entire party present when it's time to ride. Cast members were very strict about not letting people hold places in line for others.

When getting a return time for a very popular ride like 7DMT, we tried to get them right before meals, so we were in a/c while we waited. Also remember they don't have an expiration window like traditional fast passes. You can get one before leaving a park to go rest or swim, them come back and use it later. They do expire end of day though.

After tapping in, we still encountered waits in about 50% of lines. Still shorter than the standby line though.

Lastly, and this one was a new discovery for us - any Guest Experience member under a blue umbrella can make a DAS reservation for you. I got one by the center entrance to World Showcase (by where the Christmas tree goes up) with no wait. Asking nicely helps

 

[DL1WDW2]

I happened to drive on property last Thursday to get to castmember costuming… unbelievable crowds pouring off ferries and monorail and then parking lot with no trams and looked to be almost full. Then I wondered if everybody local was going before the mask mandate on Friday .
Maybe the MKTTC was so crowded because the Epcot Monorail has also opened creating lots of locals planning to visit .Hopefully more went to Epcot that day…

 

[jlwhitney]

Final thoughts as we are driving home.

The Bad
Heat oh my it was hot and we always go in July. It was the waiting in the blazing sun for the rides.
Lines were long- bring back FP please.
Major downpours a few days
We really missed the foreigners that used to work the Epcot countries.(via Napoli I’m looking at you!)

the Great
Bartenders were heavy handed making the drinks all seem like a bargain.

Thanks to this board we were able to score ROR boarding group 4 our first day and we were 12 today. What a great ride. My family thought I was a magician.

food and wine was way better than last year. More booths and prices seemed fair.

those resort boats from MK at the end of the night are heaven. We stayed off site so it was TTC for us except the night we ate at the Poly!

tons of new and happy CM’s.

finally got to see happily ever after and I cried through the whole thing.

got in early at all parks except Mk- HS was probably the best at getting us on rides before opening time- same with Epcot.

Final final thoughts. They reinstated masks indoors yesterday- compliance was about 70%. I am all for the protection. It did seem strange that they were still packing us in like sardines. So if you are concerned I would not go now. I’m guessing the masking will increase to everywhere. I wish they kept social distancing too. I had someone using my shoulder to rest their phone on- not for long as I am not a doormat. This was an overdue vacation and we had a blast being together. ROR was the highlight.

masking is not gonna increase to everywhere.

 

[DL1WDW2]

masking is not gonna increase to everywhere.

?

 

[DisneyFive]

Walking around MK today it seems less congested than last week and even yesterday. Wait times are down too.

I said the same thing to my wife as we were waiting before rope drop. Crowds seem less than they were just four days ago this morning. Hopefully that continues.

update. Walking out of the park at 1:15 PM to go swim and nap at the boardwalk. Looking a little busier now, especially Main St.

-Dan

 

[notatallmagic]

Can you tell me, how much walking is there at BB? What I mean is for some of the slides. At Volcano Bay, there are so many steps. It was daunting and my mother, who is in good shape for her age, just hated it. Mind you, we won’t be doing the huge slides. We stick to the tamer ones. We usually do Typhoon Lagoon and I know they don’t have too many bad climbs to get to their slides.

It depends if you can split your party up if you have folks who want to do the big slides and ride everything. If you CAN (we handled it that way in late June) the kids had a great time riding everything, and my sister in law and I spent lots of time in the lazy river and on the beach by the wave pool. It was a great day for everyone!

 

[dachsie]

They have a Smores one that sounds really good!

 

[123SA]

Can you tell me, how much walking is there at BB? What I mean is for some of the slides. At Volcano Bay, there are so many steps. It was daunting and my mother, who is in good shape for her age, just hated it. Mind you, we won’t be doing the huge slides. We stick to the tamer ones. We usually do Typhoon Lagoon and I know they don’t have too many bad climbs to get to their slides.

According to my kids, Volcano Bay has way more steps than Blizzard Beach.

 

[dachsie]

Oh No - I posted this in wrong forum. Sorry!! I meant to do it in the restaurant one.

 

[lovethattink]

At IOA today. Maybe 10% of people indoors are wearing masks.

We have Express Passes. After 4 days at Disney, I think my 10 and 19 year olds are going to be bigger Universal fans than Disney

I’m sitting in my off site hotel room listening to the news. Disney and now Sea World (not sure if Sea World is effective immediately or not) are the only local theme parks requiring masking indoors.

Yesterday my friend went to Epcot. She said all indoor cm wore masks. But outdoor at F&W the cm didn’t. This was her first venture to Disney to since March 2020, and are felt a bit apprehensive being only a plate away from someone handing her food.She hopped to MK and left because she was overwhelmed.

The hotel I’m staying at has all employees wearing masks, indoor and outdoors. The convention here (my son is attending) has everyone wearing masks as well. There is no housekeeping until after check out. There’s a number to text if we need anything from housekeeping. Not all restaurants in the hotel are open. Most guests I pass in the hallway are not masked.

And I just want to mention how hard it is to stay here while ds is at his convention. Disney is so close!

 

[IluvMGM]

It opened back up?