Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[kylenne]

For Magic Kingdom, what time have they been opening parking at the Ticket and Transportation Center for rope drop? And for those staying at the Contemporary, how early is the walkway to the Magic Kingdom open?

I am here now at rope for Mine Train, got here on the first bus from Coronado. When we passed the toll plaza at 8am vehicles were still being held there.

 

[londonderrydisneyfan]

For Magic Kingdom, what time have they been opening parking at the Ticket and Transportation Center for rope drop? And for those staying at the Contemporary, how early is the walkway to the Magic Kingdom open?

We're staying at Bay Lake Tower and walked over to MK around 7:50 so the walkway opens very early. We ended up going to Big Thunder Mountain first and we were about 15-20 people back at rope drop.

 

[Davey Jones II]

We've rope dropped 3 Caballeros twice this trip because my son LOVES it and it keeps going up to a 40 min wait later in the day. Definitely the weirdest trip yet but many memories are being made!

That's a big jump from it's usual 5 minute wait times

 

[minnie56]

• #1

Not sure where best to post this .. will also add to community thread
Wondering what it feels like in the parks/restaurants now as far as safety. With no or few social distancing boundaries , does it feel ‘ok’? We’re scheduled to come October 30 for 10 days and just a bit hesitant .... it’s been a long haul to get to this point.

Thank you!

 

[easyas123]

We felt perfectly "ok"!
We were there for a few days in October or last year-
A few days in early Feb. of this year,
and overnighted/spent the afternoon at the Springs about 2 days before the first mask lifting (outside) was announced this spring. It was HOT then and crowded there, folks really seemed ready to get out and about and have a bit of fun

Always felt perfectly fine. Doesn't look like we will be back until next January/Feb. and looking forward to a more freeing trip then. I'm hoping for more restaurants/FP and hopefully a teeny lull after the October celebrations and Halloween/Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Years holidays. Go! I think you'll have a wonderful time!

 

[minnie56]

Many thanks ! Sounds like you’ve enjoyed some good visits there during this craziness!

 

[NotTheBatesMotel]

• #1

Not sure where best to post this .. will also add to community thread
Wondering what it feels like in the parks/restaurants now as far as safety. With no or few social distancing boundaries , does it feel ‘ok’? We’re scheduled to come October 30 for 10 days and just a bit hesitant .... it’s been a long haul to get to this point.

Thank you!

If you're hesitant of crowds, I'd wait. We just got back yesterday from a 9 day trip and it is crowded! They've removed most of the partitions and I'd say at least 98% of people of all ages aren't wearing masks including indoor rides. Tons of people were coughing-hopefully from allergies. There's no distancing of any kind anymore and they CM's tell you to fill in all available space including indoor spaces. We've reached the point (mentally) where we're okay in crowds so we still had a great trip but if we weren't okay with it, I would've found it stressful.

 

[Sarahslay]

If you're hesitant of crowds, I'd wait. We just got back yesterday from a 9 day trip and it is crowded! They've removed most of the partitions and I'd say at least 98% of people of all ages aren't wearing masks including indoor rides. Tons of people were coughing-hopefully from allergies. There's no distancing of any kind anymore and they CM's tell you to fill in all available space including indoor spaces. We've reached the point (mentally) where we're okay in crowds so we still had a great trip but if we weren't okay with it, I would've found it stressful.

I will say, I was coughed on (right in the face, I mean, square in the face at close distance) by a kid walking over to the queue for Haunted Mansion (he was walking over to Momento Mori from the ride and we crossed paths) and two days later I woke up with a screaming soar throat. This was towards the end of our Memorial day week trip, and thankfully I didn't get sick until the day we were leaving anyway. People coughing everywhere that trip and masks were only being required on rides and indoors at that time. Thankfully I was the only one that got sick and it was just a regular cold. Three of us are vaccinated, one of us can't be vaccinated due to age, so while we feel pretty comfortable we are still cautious with her; she still wanted to wear a mask most of the time, and we still wear them when we feel it's needed so we don't accidentally have a break through infection and bring it home to her. That being said, if I were unvaccinated I would think twice about going right now, unless I'm feeling lucky, people aren't canceling their trips because they or their kids are sick.

I have no issue going on my solo trip next month, but I've also gotten used to it now over several trips with the easing of restrictions over that time, but I don't want to be like "oh yeah, it's totally fine" when someone else has a completely different "fine" tolerance than I do. It's pretty much business as usual, if you can't go out in your normal day and feel "fine" without masks and other safety measures then the parks aren't going to feel all that fine.

 

[pasta]

Has anyone noticed ride closures not due to inclement weather?

 

[kylenne]

Has anyone noticed ride closures not due to inclement weather?

Splash opened very late this morning and Space just went down. It’s been a very rough afternoon at MK.

Will continue to preach rope drop for that reason. I was literally up at the rope for Fantasyland this morning and walked on the first train of the day for Mine Train, then hit Peter Pan (12min), Big Thunder (walk on), Jungle Cruise (5 min), Pirates (walk on), went back to Splash as it was finally open (15 min), and this was all before 11.

Weather’s been atrocious today but it kept crowds low this morning. It’s still not bad at all for a holiday weekend compared to pre covid.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Just got home from a 10 day trip which is the longest trip we've done at a Disney park but boy we had fun. Here's some random but slightly organized thoughts!

Pop Century/Transportation

• I loved this hotel! I think this is definitely going to be our go to resort at Disney World from now on. I paid for the preferred pool view room and we were right next to the gate for the pool- loved the close proximity to everything. Everything about this hotel was great it just worked out so well for my family. I liked it better than CBR!
• Bus transportation was great- we only had to wait long once for a bus (and that's bc the Skyliner was down at Epcot) and every other time one showed up within minutes. Never waited long at all at open close or taking breaks.
• Skyliner isn't as convenient in rainy weather- we only got to use it in the mornings usually. Lines moved fast since they're seating groups together which we didn't mind. In fact, on our way to Epcot a storm was coming in and I was having a bit of a panic attack since the wind was making the gondola swing a bit (Im terrified of heights so I really shouldn't even be riding the Skyliner haha!) and the lady we were sharing with was so sweet and kept me talking to help me relax. So thank you, kind woman! I really don't mind sharing a gondola but I'm an extrovert by nature so I'm chatty. When we stepped off the Skyliner they shut it down so we just barely made it before they closed it! After that I wasn't too keen on riding it when the sky looked questionable. Something to keep in mind for the summer months!
• DME was great both there and back to the airport. Not sure if we got lucky but no stops made either way and was quick. Really going to miss it.

As for the parks, our experience was similar to other folks recently- here's some quick takeaways:

• The rain seems to pick up more in afternoon/evenings sometimes all night long. Personally, even with ponchos/umbrellas I found it miserable- I live in a dry climate so probably just a culture shock for me haha! In the future, we'd avoid this time of year or just do the park all day without a break and just leave for the day when the rain starts. But this is mainly a personal opinion for most when it comes to rain.
• The heat didn't bother me as much as I thought but the humidity makes it real rough in the afternoon. Cooling towels and fans were a big help- recommend bringing them! I'd take heat over rain any day but I'm sure I'm the minority on that!
• So many ride breakdowns! It happened to us constantly at all the parks. On our last night we were just about to board Seven Dwarfs and it went down so we couldn't ride which was really disappointing. Same thing happened with Frozen too. And many other days 2-4 rides wouldn't even be working at park open. Not sure what's going on with all that but if you have your heart set on riding something, ride it early! Luckily we had already done Frozen and Seven Dwarfs or I would have been so upset.
• Having a dining reservation each day was wonderful when we wanted a break from the weather. Highly recommend it when coming in the summer.
• Disney Springs was busy but not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. None of the stores had a line except World of Disney and that seemed more of a way to just streamline guests in one door. I spent way too much moola in the Vera Bradley store when I saw the Disney prints- heads up ladies!
• Universal Orlando was a hot mess. They opened everything wide open without the staff to handle it. Many of the locations in Harry Potter only had one or maybe two people working! We waited about an hour for ice-cream because there was only one person making it and taking orders. We only stuck it out bc that place was one of our todo items. Most of the team members were miserable and rude (hard to blame them, I'd be miserable too!) and the food lines were long everywhere. I know this is likely temporary but really soured me on coming back anytime soon.
• Blizzard Beach was a great time. We got there at opening and found a spot with shade easily. In fact, there were many spots with shade all day. Lines for the two big slides for long but my son did them right at open and walked right on. Everything else was no wait or moved quickly. Those stairs though.... it's not much of a rest day when you factor the stairs in. We ended up skipping many things just because the stairs were so rough. Especially barefoot- if you have water shoes, bring them. I have ones for kayaking and was kicking myself for not bringing them!
• Everything is entirely back to normal with the 'fill the available space' - we are vaccinated so I was fine with it but I noticed a few folks that were clearly uncomfortable. If you feel that way, I would wait - it's really unavoidable now.

We are primarily Disneyland folks but had such a great time that I think WDW is now officially made its way into my trip rotation!

 

[kylenne]

FYI: the solo rider shortcut on Space Mountain is available again. I made a beeline for it after HEA, and it was about 25 minutes before I got to that split in the queue.

(For those who don’t know, this isn’t a “single rider” like elsewhere, about halfway thru the normal standby queue if you tell the CM you’re a party of one they will let you skip straight to the loading area. Despite signs posted towards the start of the queue almost nobody knows this trick.)

 

[Naomeri]

FYI: the solo rider shortcut on Space Mountain is available again. I made a beeline for it after HEA, and it was about 25 minutes before I got to that split in the queue.

(For those who don’t know, this isn’t a “single rider” like elsewhere, about halfway thru the normal standby queue if you tell the CM you’re a party of one they will let you skip straight to the loading area. Despite signs posted towards the start of the queue almost nobody knows this trick.)

I think I’m part of the almost everybody who didn’t know this trick, thanks for sharing!

 

[kylenne]

At AK right now. AK is back to normal rope drop procedures. I’m in the first group of guests holding on the bridge to Pandora.

 

[pasta]

At AK right now. AK is back to normal rope drop procedures. I’m in the first group of guests holding on the bridge to Pandora.

Have a great day! Keep us updated on opening procedures if you can

 

[kylenne]

Have a great day! Keep us updated on opening procedures if you can

Rough morning so far. I was in the first group to ride FoP but the Safari didn’t start running until 8:30 (I got in line anyway and walked on when it opened) and Dinosaur went down just after I got in the vehicle.

 

[cdurham1]

Rough morning so far. I was in the first group to ride FoP but the Safari didn’t start running until 8:30 (I got in line anyway and walked on when it opened) and Dinosaur went down just after I got in the vehicle.

Besides Dinosaur, sounds pretty ideal! You were in the first group of FOP and then one of the first trucks on KS? Sounds exactly what I want my day to go like on the the 27th when we am there!!

 

[Makmak]

At AK right now. AK is back to normal rope drop procedures. I’m in the first group of guests holding on the bridge to Pandora.

I just wanted to say I’m always happy to read your report/posts and probably a lot of others are as well that may not always click “like” etc. —basically you are likely helping tons of ppl and it’s appreciated! We are going soon and with all of the daily changes these details and things like the RD at AK and single rider at SM are very important to us.

 

[kylenne]

Besides Dinosaur, sounds pretty ideal! You were in the first group of FOP and then one of the first trucks on KS? Sounds exactly what I want my day to go like on the the 27th when we am there!!

Best advice I can give is get on the first bus of the day. We arrived at 7:05 and from there it was just running of the bulls lol.

In general I’ve been really impressed with the transportation at Coronado, I’ve done well with buses at rope drop so far.

 

[Farro]

Best advice I can give is get on the first bus of the day. We arrived at 7:05 and from there it was just running of the bulls lol.

In general I’ve been really impressed with the transportation at Coronado, I’ve done well with buses at rope drop so far.

How do you like Gran Destino??? Dahlia? Three Bridges?