For those if you who have been to SW/Aquatica/BG recently...

[MichiganScott]

For both SW and BG...

Yes, the parking is every other space initially, then not long after (after people are out of their cars from the "first wave"), they go back and fill in the spaces.

Masks are greatly enforced everywhere, a lot. The only exceptions are the waterparks, where masks are prohibited on all rides & pools, required in closed spaces (shops, indoor restaurants) and optional everywhere else.

We bought Florida platinum passes and frankly, it's been great being a passholder that isn't treated like garbage.

 

[Melissa S]

This was not our experience last week at all. We were there 3 different days, and each day we saw roving teams of 3-4 people whose sole job was to ask people to wear masks correctly and keep social distance. There were some places it wasn't totally working; the penguin exhibit was too crowded, for example. But between the emptiness of the parks, the lack of lines for rides, and these crews going around, we found it to be a very comfortable place for our family to be.

Now, I wasn't in a Disney or Universal park, so I can't compare, but we were more comfortable at SW than Aquatica, where social distancing seemed to be a foreign concept to all. We even ended up in an argument with one group when we just asked them to quit crowding right behind us on a stairway. I took to standing behind the rest of my family so that I could create some space between them and people behind us when I felt they were staying too close.

Did you find some days/ time of day were better than others? For example is Monday morning better than Saturday mid afternoon or is it all the same.

 

[tinkerbelllacey]

 

[Doofenshmirtz513]

Did you find some days/ time of day were better than others? For example is Monday morning better than Saturday mid afternoon or is it all the same.

Crowds were lightest early in the morning, so that was the best time. We avoided the big shows and found that those were good times to be in nearby exhibits. We bailed when it would start to look like rain and rides were starting to close, so I can't speak to later in the day. Certainly at Aquatica, Wednesday was better than Friday, which was probably better than the weekend. I suspect the same is true for SeaWorld but don't know for sure as we were there Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning. Those times all seemed about equal for crowds.

 

[billster]

Thanks for the information regarding the parking. I was happy to hear that they are parking every other space, but then disappointed to learn that they fill in the spaces. I wasn't concerned about the parking from a social distancing standpoint. I feel that we can easily keep away from others in the parking lot. I was hoping that this would be a chance to avoid some door dings. We usually drive our older vehicle to Orlando because we have had bad luck in the parking lots of the theme parks.

 

[MichiganScott]

is Monday morning better than Saturday mid afternoon?

I can't think of any time this isn't true.

 

[Joanna71985]

Did you find some days/ time of day were better than others? For example is Monday morning better than Saturday mid afternoon or is it all the same.

Saturday will always be busier 99% of the time

 

[Melissa S]

I can't think of any time this isn't true.

My parents live in Orlando and we visit for about 4 weeks each year. We tend to go during school breaks and Christmas and there really isn’t any difference in crowds for weekdays vs weekends. I’m sure in the “off season” weekdays are dead. With capacity restrictions I wasn’t sure if the day of week really mattered but it seems it does which is good to know.

 

[MichiganScott]

My parents live in Orlando and we visit for about 4 weeks each year. We tend to go during school breaks and Christmas and there really isn’t any difference in crowds for weekdays vs weekends. I’m sure in the “off season” weekdays are dead. With capacity restrictions I wasn’t sure if the day of week really mattered but it seems it does which is good to know.

I think maybe it's a relativity thing. For example in the on-season, all days are busy, so even a Monday will have long lines, etc., but (all other things being equal like weather) a Saturday will always be busier. Think of it this way, in the (normal) on-season, Saturday could easily be 100% capacity and a Monday might be 80%, with both seeming "busy as hell." Then in the off-season, Saturday might be 75% and Monday 40%, where it ends up being more readily apparent that a Monday is nicer.

 

[Alicefan]

I'm sure I'm in the minority but I'm glad to hear they aren't all over people about masks. I'm so sick of it all. I'd be more likely to go to Sea World knowing it wasn't going to be a huge downer with mask nazis. I look at it this way, if you are one of the many that are THAT worried about it, then a theme park probably isn't the best choice. I feel like people are just LOOKING for a problem at this point and people seem to find great delight in tattling and shaming people these days and it completely sucks.