Hurricane Irma?

[Kenzientysmom]

I'am about to go read some trip reports to hopefully get my mind off Irma for a few.

 

[#1hoosierfan]

Haven't been able to find this answer in the wdw hurricane info....my plane leaves at 8 am...I will be there til the 13th. If the parks close for a day or 2, will I be given tickets for the missed days to use at a later date? Also I have a dessert party booked for the 11th...I know we don't get a refund if the fireworks are cancelled but I assune we would if the entire party is cancelled right? Anything else I need to be aware of? Staying at Pop, packed some extra clothes, food to avoid the box meals and flashlights. I will make sure to get some water ASAP when we get there.

I went to guest services at the MK the day after park closing last year. Waited in line about 45 minutes. I asked very nicely about what could be done about the day we missed. They offered a refund on the unused day... which was very little on a seven day ticket or one day non-expiring park hoppers. That is what we chose. I can't answer for the party because we did not have tickets for that.

 

[AngiTN]

There was food, but there were long lines of people waiting for what amounted to sandwiches in a box. All ADRs were canceled, table service restaurants had a limited menu available for those staying at their resort only. We got tacos to eat the thursday night (when the parks closed early) and grabbed some flatbreads to eat cold the next day. We were able to leave the room at 11am or noon that friday (when the storm hit the space coast) because the system wobbled at the last minute.

It seems as if Saturday might be dicey right? I'm not sure of the timing based on these charts but if you are still going, bring some non perishables and try to see if you can make moana mercantile your first stop to see if they have anything left.

Edit: based on the current model, you could try to put in a grocery order or amazon now order and grab some lunch meat, bread, cheese, etc. But I'm not sure if they will have much available.

We were there for Matthew last year. We were booked thru the storm, so of course no change to our rate. We had friends staying at AoA. They were given their rate for the extra two nights they had to stay due to flight cancellations. We knew others that were staying at the Contemporary, and they had to pay the rack rate for the two extra nights. Very expensive.

The lines for the box lunches were crazy. Plus they were very expensive for what you got. We chose to get a couple of pizzas and eat one hot that day and cold the next if there was no electricity. We also had some cereal, PB, bread, juice in the room.

The line for the pool bar was CRAZY busy that night too. Just an FYI.

Disney did a great job of keeping us informed via the telephone messages in the room. The evening of the storm someone came around with a flashlight and told us to be prepared to not leave the room at all that night and potentially until the next afternoon. The storm came in over night on Thursday and we already knew the parks would be closed Friday.

The storm was not nearly as bad as predicted. The food courts were open by lunch. They made the arcades free and they brought Disney characters to the resort for photo ops. The pool was closed that day, so we walked around Pop and AoA.

They did open a few restaurants at Disney Springs for dinner, but it was CRAZY busy. My sister had driven down, so we hopped in the car with them. It did take QUITE a while to find an open restaurant in Orlando.

By Saturday morning it was business completely as usual.

I was also there for Matthew. Not all resorts did box lunches. We were at BWI and had no lines of any sort, no box lunches. I think there was just a pretty big range in what they offered and how things were handled. As for how they charged for the rooms, I'm no help there, we were already booked so didn't add on last minute so no idea.

 

[HopperFan]

Sounds like they may not have done a thorough credit background check on their insurance company and claims/fulfillment duration. I remember Wilma and the fiasco with insurance companies; didn't the state of FL change the fiduciary requirements for home insurers afterwards?

Believe me, my stepdad is way ahead in all this and they also had the condo assoc insurance (double high rise). The cost of repair simply put many insurance companies out of business because they couldn't pay for the huge repairs. I certainly hope insurance companies are better suited for this since I now have property, but we over-insured and bought flood insurance in addition to great condo insurance. Fingers are crossed that we don't have to test this out.

 

[BigMac3001]

I'll just leave these updated consensus models right here....along with my earlier comment about the trend east.

No fair using facts!

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Oh my gosh you guys ....... ...... IRMA will do what IRMA wants to do, she doesn't read computer modules.

You can find very reliable sources that say it will go west into gulf and impact west coast, it will go in to the everglades and straight up the state, it will hit Miami and cross over covering most the state, it will bump it's way up the east coast and it will be pulled east traveling up and hit the Carolinas. Every few hours most those modules adjust to something different.

We don't know what we don't know ............... and unless this thing quits, we won't probably know for a couple more days anything more definitive ........... but the Governor and gang have to start all procedures or else they will be playing catch up.

Stop arguing that you are all right ....... it's pointless ... since no one is going to be right until this thing is over and then it was just because you picked the right team.



Well ............ I have all kinds of insurance ............but so did my folks when Wilma hit. Planned on those upgraded hurricane windows/doors .......... so many claims from Wilma many insurance companies including theirs bellied up. SO ..... they got their windows ... at great expense .... after being out 4 years.

I'm not trying to say I'm right. I've said plenty of times that no one knows where Irma is going. But I also trust the experts that are assessing the data collected by the hurricane hunters and producing updated consensus models and those in turn are informing the NHC's updated track. I don't wish this storm on anyone sot it's not like I'm celebrating that it might hit SC or NC or anywhere.

 

[disneycountrygirl]

We too moved our trip from Sept 8-16 to Sept 12-20. Now sorting through new fast passes and ADR's!

 

[hertamaniac]

Believe me, my stepdad is way ahead in all this and they also had the condo assoc insurance (double high rise). The cost of repair simply put many insurance companies out of business because they couldn't pay for the huge repairs. I certainly hope insurance companies are better suited for this since I now have property, but we over-insured and bought flood insurance in addition to great condo insurance. Fingers are crossed that we don't have to test this out.

We used the demotech rating system to choose our insurer. Ours is rated A, exceptional, for FSR (financial stability rating) as of Aug. 30, 2017. Some folks believe the size of the insurer is more important than the FSR. Sadly, that can be a very costly mistake.

 

[zuzu310]

With very sad heart, I am on hold also to try to move our trip to December. I know it might not be possible, but I am going to push to keep my free dining since free dining for these new dates was offered in April and I had free dining booked on a bounceback in 2016.

 

[HopperFan]

We used the demotech rating system to choose our insurer. Ours is rated A, exceptional, for FSR (financial stability rating) as of Aug. 30, 2017. Some folks believe the size of the insurer is more important than the FSR. Sadly, that can be a very costly mistake.

Again, you don't know anything about their insurance and I have total confidence in their ability to choose. Wilma was a game changer. We also have A, Exceptional from Demotech rated insurance ...... but this storm is just about as big as Wilma and if it direct hits, it again could change business as we know it.

 

[abooch]

Man the US and Euro models tell a completely different story from one another.

 

[Jerseylocks]

Not sure this is the time or the place.

I cancelled all my reservations. I wish I could give someone my Halloween Tix.

 

[OhhBother]

I live on the coast of South Carolina, and I have a 10-day Disney vacation booked beginning Sept. 16. Guess which one I'm worried about? Hint -- it's not my vacation. For those of us who live literally across the street from the ocean, this is a terrifying time. It's probably difficult to understand that if you've not lived through it. I work for a health system and am essential personnel, so I don't get to evacuate. There's a real possibility I'll be sending my husband and dog out of state while I hunker down here to ride out a catastrophic storm. Anyway, enough of that -- just wanted to offer some perspective.

Interestingly, I was at Disney last year during Matthew. The best advice I can give you is to make an ADR at your hotel's table service restaurant --we grabbed one the day before it was announced everything was closing. We were at SSR, and, on the night everything was closed, they were allowing resort guests who had ADRs at Turf Club to order to-go orders only from the restaurant. You had to stand in a line, but it was a heck of a lot shorter line than the line for box lunches at Artist Palette. Plus, we got actual hot food - steaks, chicken, etc.

We were also literally the last people in Earl of Sandwich before they closed the afternoon everything shut down. We got several sandwiches and soups to go -- they gave us extra soups -- and we had that to eat the following day. We were in a villa, so we had a full kitchen.

In short, a little bit of prep went a long way relative to the food situation. We were eating better food -- and certainly paying less -- than the people standing in line for hours for sad box lunches.

 

[spartankid34]

What happens if you need a room due to a flight change/cancellation while you are there?

 

[Tinkerbell2017]

I cancelled all my reservations. I wish I could give someone my Halloween Tix.

are they during the hurricane timeline?

 

[TheRustyScupper]

LATEST NEWS (11:00pm, EST, TUESDAY):

1) Irma Eye to hit Orlando, per U.S.A. forecasters.
2) Irma Eye to make a "hard right turn" and miss Florida, per British Forecasters.
3) WDW is already considering closing parks for second year in a row.
4) I am hoping the Brit Forecasters are right.

 

[AngiTN]

I'll just leave these updated consensus models right here....along with my earlier comment about the trend east.

This tracks closely to what our local weather man said could happen due to a system that was moving across the US this afternoon. That this same system was enough to steer Irma some, to the East. Still much to wait and see but tracking along those lines so far

Man the US and Euro models tell a completely different story from one another.

As they often do with everything weather related

 

[Tinkerbell2017]

are they during the hurricane timeline?

I don't get there until the 16th. I'd buy them from you but sadly it's probably earlier.

 

[KateP85]

What happens if you need a room due to a flight change/cancellation while you are there?

You hope that there's one available. Disney will accommodate you if they can, but if they're fully booked, you're out of luck. Be prepared to pay rack rate for a room.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

This tracks closely to what our local weather man said could happen due to a system that was moving across the US this afternoon. That this same system was enough to steer Irma some, to the East. Still much to wait and see but tracking along those lines so far


As they often do with everything weather related

Exactly. I've seen several meteorologists comment on it saying that it might have been too early to toss out the "it will curve east" chances. I'll be keeping my fingers, toes, eyes and anything else crossed that this does indeed become a "fish storm" (out to sea).