Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[Mambo Junkie]

Originally I was hesitant to come this week because so much is going to happen in just over a week, but this week has turned out to be so special! One of the factors in my decision to come this week was that my passes I bought for last year were set to expire on 9/26. First, we got to AK at park opening and had minimal wait time for both FOP and Na’vi. Low crowds all day. Next day, there was the opening of Space 220 (technically day #2) with walk up reservations. Glad I wasn’t there for opening day as it was chaotic; and now (thank you sooo much, Dis members!) I got BG 4 for ROTR. Even if I hadn’t gotten a BG there was the backup plan for the first standby line starting tomorrow. Knowing I could do a walk up took a lot of the stress off of trying for the BG. Tomorrow is our MK day so I’m looking forward to another magical day! That said, for the better part the masking has been pretty good, social distancing (in lines and in crowded areas outside) not so good, but I feel pretty safe as I have been avoiding large groups and have been able to keep space in lines because of using a wheelchair. I am especially vigilant when it comes to social distancing as I work with many elderly clients. For peace of mind, I will test when I arrive home. Lastly, there were many empty tables in Space 220 so I would say if you are unsuccessful getting an ADR for your upcoming trip, keep trying because I feel sure they will open up more availability after the initial opening. Maybe they will see how it goes or they may not be fully staffed yet. Excellent experience. We did lunch.

 

[DisneyByMarriage]

Question for anyone there now- how is the Skyliner when leaving HS within 20 minutes of park close? We are going to book Savi’s for our son (he saved the money himself so I agreed we could do it). I’m leaning towards night but I’m not sure if I’m better off booking it so we will be done around park close or after park close to let the crowds die down.

 

[scrappinginontario]

We've done so well for so long. Let's keep this thread on topic.

 

[loves to dive]

Thanks!! I love my Cobb salad!! I'm so excited!

Just to let you know, they are only serving the full Cobb Salad and not the app. one. We ate there a few weeks ago, my son's SO and I shared the salad and still had some left over. They used to serve the smaller one at the lounge. Still great to be able to eat at the lounge again.

 

[cdurham1]

Outside of WDW, few people are wearing masks in the Orlando area. If you are concerned about COVID, take note

 

[Princess.Pocahotmess]

I wanted to add my takeaways from my day at the parks last Saturday 9/18. I went to Universal, Islands of Adventure, Animal Kingdom, and Magic Kingdom. I did not find crowds or wait times to be too crazy anywhere which was nice.

App: Wait times in the app were way off again for almost everything I went on at MK. It could just be me, but it feels like that has gotten progressively worse over the past month or two. I've also been having so many glitches with the app in the last several weeks especially with mobile ordering so hopefully that is not a bad sign for things to come. Going from Universal to Animal Kingdom, it was really noticeable how much more the Disney app drains my phone battery than the Universal app.

Flametree BBQ: So I am now done eating at Flametree for the time being. It's usually my go to at AK but the birds have gotten so aggressive and out of control in my opinion. While I was there, I saw three different birds jump up on a table and snatch food from a guest's plate or hands. So that's gonna be a no from me

Celebration of FOTLK: While I am so so glad to have any live entertainment back, I really miss the old show. The birds have always been my favorite and it makes me sad to see the aerial work and all of their partnering gone. I feel the same with Beauty and the Beast at HS where I think the cuts are even more noticeable/impacting. To me it reads as awkward/off that Belle and Beast never touch or are near each other and I really miss the waltz choreography. Still both good shows with amazing performers worth seeing though.

Safari: Had a really good safari in the rain. We saw the elephants swimming in the water, the rhinos running and splashing in the mud with the baby rhino, both the okapis, and heard and saw the lions roaring.

MK Exit: I am not a fireworks person so I always try to be out of MK before fireworks start, and now I remember why. The fireworks were at 8:15 and the park closed at 9. The last thing I did was Philarmagic and when I got to the front of MK at 9:12 the transportation lines were still crazy. Went with the ferry and it took 33 minutes from front of park to land at the TTC. Another 12 minutes and I was back at my car ready to head home. They really pack you in waiting for the ferry and on the ferry obviously but what made me more uncomfortable was other guest behavior. There were quite a few people who were trying to push their way through everyone else and several parents yelling at their small crying children.

Anyways, I had a great and full day in the parks as usual and will definitely do some things differently next time

 

[armerida]

Just to let you know, they are only serving the full Cobb Salad and not the app. one. We ate there a few weeks ago, my son's SO and I shared the salad and still had some left over. They used to serve the smaller one at the lounge. Still great to be able to eat at the lounge again.

Do you know if they will still let you order off the indoor menu in the outdoor lounge?

 

[jrsharp21]

Flametree BBQ: So I am now done eating at Flametree for the time being. It's usually my go to at AK but the birds have gotten so aggressive and out of control in my opinion. While I was there, I saw three different birds jump up on a table and snatch food from a guest's plate or hands. So that's gonna be a no from me

I had this happened to me before. We were sitting at a table along the edge of the sitting area. I had a pulled pork sandwich. I was about 3/4 of the way done with it when I reached down to my bag to pull out something and one of those white crane type birds swooped in landed on the wood on fence next to the table and snatched the last of my sandwich off my plate and flew off. My daughter was in tears she was laughing so hard.

 

[Dakota731]

Sigh. I've already explained more than once what I observed which does not fall into either of these categories. The coughs I heard were very productive and sounded coincidentally identical to the cough I developed. And the same old pre-covid excuses for infecting others during a trip are coming back I see. Super. By the way, I am going on day four of sick time used since I'm not allowed to go back to work with symptoms and I wouldn't anyway since I have consideration for others. I've also had two tests done. But by all means, if people have paid money than they should absolutely be entitled to go to the parks sick. Sorry, but I am just fed up with humanity lately. Don't mind me.

ETA: And now I'm wondering if I actually do have Covid and because I did rapid tests they were inaccurate. I did lose my sense of smell for two days and it's just coming back now.

As someone whose immediate family (and most of my extended family) have had covid, I can tell you loss of smell is the one symptom they all had. And FYI most of them had a dry cough, so you can’t judge people’s cough trying to guess if they have allergies or covid. The chance of being in a theme park with thousands of people and expect no one to have covid or a cold is slim to none and totally unrealistic.

 

[bastraker]

Just to let you know, they are only serving the full Cobb Salad and not the app. one. We ate there a few weeks ago, my son's SO and I shared the salad and still had some left over. They used to serve the smaller one at the lounge. Still great to be able to eat at the lounge again.

That's perfect. My daughter and I can share. I wonder how hard it will be to get a table tomorrow.

 

[crazy43]

Flying home from 9/17-9/22 visit…

Overall, we had a great visit. 6 adults, all vaxed, stayed at Boardwalk Inn. Weather, as others have said, was very hot when in the sun and it rained most afternoons/early evenings. We all had umbrellas which worked just fine so we forged ahead. In general we didn’t really feel that the rain did anything to shorten lines or reduce crowds, fyi.

Crowds at the parks felt fairly large at times tho nothing like spring break crowds we’ve been in before Covid. Just don’t expect the light crowds like some had during the couple weeks before Labor Day. Worst crowds were at Epcot on Saturday in the World Showcase. Posted Wait times were high at times (95 mins at TSMM yesterday!), but with a few exceptions like MFSR and RNRC, they were inflated by 20-50% which seems crazy to me. One time we were walking to Haunted Mansion cuz it had a 20 min posted wait time. When we got to the start of the queue it switched from 20-35 mins when in reality it was a walk on. No clue why they’re doing that, it was not at closing time or anything. My best advice is to not let a long posted queue time discourage you, because in almost all cases it will be shorter than posted.

Few observations…mask compliance seemed very high in queues, on rides and on buses in our opinion. Cast members seemed just as friendly as usual. Food and wine offerings were excellent for us, highlights being the chilaquile (spelling?) in Mexico, griddle cheese in Greece, everything in Canada, poutine at Refreshment Port, chocolate bread pudding in Ireland and falafel in Morocco. We didn’t experience any prolonged ride breakdowns, the only 2 that impacted us were the delayed opening of 7D yesterday and Space being down for several hours starting at opening Sunday. But we were never on a ride that broke down. We also felt like there weren’t nearly as many Photo Pass people all over the parks like in the past, mostly at entrances and key places like Main St at MK and Tree of Life at AK

Boo Bash on Sunday was fun, lines were good, many walk ons, plenty of candy and after the first hour, the snack lines were basically gone. Only real line wait was 7D which was posted 45, but was 20.

Enjoyed being at the Boardwalk again, can’t beat it for convenience. Some in our party tho really missed having ESPN open on Sunday for the football games.

Thank you to all who posted here before my trip to help me plan ahead. Much appreciated!

 

[Dentam]

As someone whose immediate family (and most of my extended family) have had covid, I can tell you loss of smell is the one symptom they all had. And FYI most of them had a dry cough, so you can’t judge people’s cough trying to guess if they have allergies or covid. The chance of being in a theme park with thousands of people and expect no one to have covid or a cold is slim to none and totally unrealistic.

You completely missed my point. And I never said that I expected no one to have a cold or Covid. I do expect people to not continue to go to the parks with symptoms and ignore the mask guidelines while doing it.

 

[CBMom01]

As someone whose immediate family (and most of my extended family) have had covid, I can tell you loss of smell is the one symptom they all had. And FYI most of them had a dry cough, so you can’t judge people’s cough trying to guess if they have allergies or covid. The chance of being in a theme park with thousands of people and expect no one to have covid or a cold is slim to none and totally unrealistic.

I agree, actually. People with Covid are going to go to the parks knowingly and unknowingly. That seems unavoidable. Many of us are trying to get a sense of the risk inherent in WDW crowds from trip reports, firsthand accounts of Disney’s adherence to standards, and other publicly available information.

So I like hearing folks’ accounts and like threads that stick to those observations relevant to planning and don’t go off the rails

 

[Dentam]

I agree, actually. People with Covid are going to go to the parks knowingly and unknowingly. That seems unavoidable. Many of us are trying to get a sense of the risk inherent in WDW crowds from trip reports, firsthand accounts of Disney’s adherence to standards, and other publicly available information.

So I like hearing folks’ accounts and like threads that stick to those observations relevant to planning and don’t go off the rails

Which is what I was trying to do with my report but it's a pattern with these boards that anything considered remotely negative is downplayed and argued with. It is what it is but hopefully people will be aware that the risk is pretty high now with going to WDW and to any place with similar crowds since there will always unfortunately be people who think the rules don't apply to them and Disney isn't practicing social distancing anymore or consistently enforcing its mask guidelines.

 

[honeymo78]

Do you know if they will still let you order off the indoor menu in the outdoor lounge?

We ate at Brown Derby Lounge last Thursday and we were able to order from the lounge menu or the full indoor menu, including dessert. We ordered an app and dessert from the indoor menu.

 

[TexanInTheMidwest]

We ate at Brown Derby Lounge last Thursday and we were able to order from the lounge menu or the full indoor menu, including dessert. We ordered an app and dessert from the indoor menu.

Are they back to having someone come to your table? Or do you have to order at the bar before you sit down? (Before they brought the food back, it was order at the bar only)

 

[honeymo78]

Are they back to having someone come to your table? Or do you have to order at the bar before you sit down? (Before they brought the food back, it was order at the bar only)

Someone will seat you and a server will come to your table.

 

[TexanInTheMidwest]

Someone will seat you and a server will come to your table.

Hooray! Back to what it was like pre-Covid!

 

[cdurham1]

We are at MCO right now waiting on our flight after 5 days at Disney. Best 5 days I think I have ever had here. Weather was hot, but not miserable. Lines were the best maybe I have ever experienced. First time i did a DAH event (Boo Bash), and I will do every single one I can from now on. We were here at the end of July and had probably the worst time I had ever had at Disney. This trip was the polar opposite.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

We are at MCO right now waiting on our flight after 5 days at Disney. Best 5 days I think I have ever had here. Weather was hot, but not miserable. Lines were the best maybe I have ever experienced. First time i did a DAH event (Boo Bash), and I will do every single one I can from now on. We were here at the end of July and had probably the worst time I had ever had at Disney. This trip was the polar opposite.

Glad you had a great time! Quick question which night did you do Boo Bash? We did Sunday and thought it was WAY more crowded than we were expecting but maybe that was just the day we picked? We have tickets for Very Merriest in November on a Friday and are hoping for a better experience.