Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[WEDWDW]

Just returned from a 5-night trip with my 11 year old, 1/3-1/8. I thought I had lowered my expectations, but I guess they weren't low enough. There were a few good things but overall, the magic wasn't there for us.

The Good-

We stayed at Pop. The transportation was plentiful enough, keeping in mind it seemed very light on capacity at the resort and parks. Buses came often and loaded with social distancing in mind. The Skyliner was convenient, although the day we went to Epcot, getting off at Caribbean beach and standing in a huge line of 90% Hollywood studios people was annoying. They could really do something better there. Skyliner back from parks was convenient and fast, but we did not leave at peak times.

Disney Springs-unexpectedly we went here 3 times in 5 days. We didn't find it too crowded at all, again, crowds are lower now than over the holidays. We were able to sit outside at every restaurant we ate at and even if they didn't have reservations available in the app, they seated us right away- we ate at The Boathouse twice and it seemed to have the least availability on the app for reservations. Standing in lines to get in some of the stores deterred us from shopping in many places, but they were doing what they felt necessary.

Ride wait times, for the most part, are over-exaggerated in the app. Some rides, like Star Tours listed 40 mins, it was 10 mins. Most were a third of their advertised times, some half, with the exception of TOT which was actually longer and sits at 70-80 mins at almost all times.

Covid rule compliance was fairly strong and if you're worried about covid, they are enforcing their rules even if they are doing some things that are inconsistent.

The weather- not controlled by anything, but that was the best part of the week- we're from PA and I could get used to winters like that!

The Bad-

Christmas decorations and music still everywhere and maybe for some, you like that. But I felt it was like someone forgot to take the stuff down- like that song- "I leave my Christmas lights up all year long..." I don't want to hear Hark the Herald Angels Sing two weeks after Christmas- that's just me. I'm fine with it before, but take it down and turn it off already.

Lines so long on rides that they make you wait outside of the traditional park. This completely ruins the Disney experience IMO because those aren't the things you are supposed to see- the scaffold holding up the makings of GE at HS. We waited outside normally closed gates in line for the MFSE and snaked through an area full of trailers and backs of buildings not intended to be seen. They attempted to hide some of it with shrubs- fail. This was the case for many rides at HS. Also lines so long you were in different lands- like you're all the way in Frontierland waiting in a line for POTC or all the way outside of the park though normally closed barriers near where the old entrance to TSM was in line for TSM. Just finding the end of some lines was ridiculous.

Some rides rode every seat, others spaced them ridiculously far apart only adding to the wait times which would probably have been nearly nothing in many cases. It makes no logical sense why you only fill the first and last row of POTC but fill every row in other rides like RNR. Filling rows 1-3-5 of POC would still be distanced sufficiently.

Loss of in-line experiences was a real bummer for me. That is the magic of many rides. Everything from personalizing your experience (like in TT) to telling the story or setting up the experience that goes along with the ride (like in TOT) was removed or diminished. I felt like I was waiting in line at your typical amusement park except that those are often 'rides of thrill'- that is what you're waiting for- not so at Disney- your wait is often part of the ride experience.

So many things are closed- I'm not talking rides or shows (thankful for the bird show at AK still!)- lack of shows was a real loss for us but we knew that going in- I'm talking shuddered food places from restaurants to food stands and carts. Epcot looked like it was only half open and while you can use the app to order ahead- that is only at a few places per park. The order-ahead worked fine for us but the limited choices and long lines for simple things because so much else was closed was both frustrating and ridiculous if the plan is not to have people crowded together.

Epcot was a waste IMO. The construction and walls erected not only ruins the whole look and feel, but they're also a pain to walk around. I felt Disney did a better job of concealing the pain of expansion in the past, maybe it's just harder to do when it's right in the middle of everything. The lack of almost anything happening in each of the countries made it pointless, I guess the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts this week could help, but it was a major disappointment.

We finished each park by midday every day- hence the reason we made it to Disney Springs so many times. There was just nothing left to do, nothing interesting to check out as so many things that you would normally do- shows, character M&Gs or parades- weren't happening and there was nothing to wait around for at the end- like fireworks or laser shows- maybe we missed something because we left. We saw the same mini parades (HS, MK) or characters on boats (AK) over and over and over-it was boring. AK dino area was a ghost town. Over half of the games shuddered and of course no boneyard or play area open, primeval whirl shut down for good, it was just sad looking.

In the end, we were glad we got 5 days of good weather but couldn't wait to leave to rid ourselves of constant masking and line markers and sights of closed and shut down places- a mirror of the current state of the outside world we were hoping we could escape for a little bit in small ways with the magic of Disney that just wasn't there for us this time.

We went in September and had a BLAST and are going again next week BUT we tell everyone that Covid WDW is ONLY for the HARDEST of the HARDCORE WDW Fans who need their "WDW Fix" and DEFINITELY not for First-timers.

 

[TravelandLeisure]

Just returned from a 5-night trip with my 11 year old, 1/3-1/8. I thought I had lowered my expectations, but I guess they weren't low enough. There were a few good things but overall, the magic wasn't there for us.

The Good-

We stayed at Pop. The transportation was plentiful enough, keeping in mind it seemed very light on capacity at the resort and parks. Buses came often and loaded with social distancing in mind. The Skyliner was convenient, although the day we went to Epcot, getting off at Caribbean beach and standing in a huge line of 90% Hollywood studios people was annoying. They could really do something better there. Skyliner back from parks was convenient and fast, but we did not leave at peak times.

Disney Springs-unexpectedly we went here 3 times in 5 days. We didn't find it too crowded at all, again, crowds are lower now than over the holidays. We were able to sit outside at every restaurant we ate at and even if they didn't have reservations available in the app, they seated us right away- we ate at The Boathouse twice and it seemed to have the least availability on the app for reservations. Standing in lines to get in some of the stores deterred us from shopping in many places, but they were doing what they felt necessary.

Ride wait times, for the most part, are over-exaggerated in the app. Some rides, like Star Tours listed 40 mins, it was 10 mins. Most were a third of their advertised times, some half, with the exception of TOT which was actually longer and sits at 70-80 mins at almost all times.

Covid rule compliance was fairly strong and if you're worried about covid, they are enforcing their rules even if they are doing some things that are inconsistent.

The weather- not controlled by anything, but that was the best part of the week- we're from PA and I could get used to winters like that!

The Bad-

Christmas decorations and music still everywhere and maybe for some, you like that. But I felt it was like someone forgot to take the stuff down- like that song- "I leave my Christmas lights up all year long..." I don't want to hear Hark the Herald Angels Sing two weeks after Christmas- that's just me. I'm fine with it before, but take it down and turn it off already.

Lines so long on rides that they make you wait outside of the traditional park. This completely ruins the Disney experience IMO because those aren't the things you are supposed to see- the scaffold holding up the makings of GE at HS. We waited outside normally closed gates in line for the MFSE and snaked through an area full of trailers and backs of buildings not intended to be seen. They attempted to hide some of it with shrubs- fail. This was the case for many rides at HS. Also lines so long you were in different lands- like you're all the way in Frontierland waiting in a line for POTC or all the way outside of the park though normally closed barriers near where the old entrance to TSM was in line for TSM. Just finding the end of some lines was ridiculous.

Some rides rode every seat, others spaced them ridiculously far apart only adding to the wait times which would probably have been nearly nothing in many cases. It makes no logical sense why you only fill the first and last row of POTC but fill every row in other rides like RNR. Filling rows 1-3-5 of POC would still be distanced sufficiently.

Loss of in-line experiences was a real bummer for me. That is the magic of many rides. Everything from personalizing your experience (like in TT) to telling the story or setting up the experience that goes along with the ride (like in TOT) was removed or diminished. I felt like I was waiting in line at your typical amusement park except that those are often 'rides of thrill'- that is what you're waiting for- not so at Disney- your wait is often part of the ride experience.

So many things are closed- I'm not talking rides or shows (thankful for the bird show at AK still!)- lack of shows was a real loss for us but we knew that going in- I'm talking shuddered food places from restaurants to food stands and carts. Epcot looked like it was only half open and while you can use the app to order ahead- that is only at a few places per park. The order-ahead worked fine for us but the limited choices and long lines for simple things because so much else was closed was both frustrating and ridiculous if the plan is not to have people crowded together.

Epcot was a waste IMO. The construction and walls erected not only ruins the whole look and feel, but they're also a pain to walk around. I felt Disney did a better job of concealing the pain of expansion in the past, maybe it's just harder to do when it's right in the middle of everything. The lack of almost anything happening in each of the countries made it pointless, I guess the Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts this week could help, but it was a major disappointment.

We finished each park by midday every day- hence the reason we made it to Disney Springs so many times. There was just nothing left to do, nothing interesting to check out as so many things that you would normally do- shows, character M&Gs or parades- weren't happening and there was nothing to wait around for at the end- like fireworks or laser shows- maybe we missed something because we left. We saw the same mini parades (HS, MK) or characters on boats (AK) over and over and over-it was boring. AK dino area was a ghost town. Over half of the games shuddered and of course no boneyard or play area open, primeval whirl shut down for good, it was just sad looking.

In the end, we were glad we got 5 days of good weather but couldn't wait to leave to rid ourselves of constant masking and line markers and sights of closed and shut down places- a mirror of the current state of the outside world we were hoping we could escape for a little bit in small ways with the magic of Disney that just wasn't there for us this time.

Thanks for sharing your experience. This is exactly why we are choosing to wait until 2022 at the earliest. I am just not comfortable paying full price (which is NOT cheap, by any means) for such a watered down park experience. We are instead doing Discovery Cove, Sea World, Busch, and Aquatica this summer for a fraction of what we normally pay for Disney.

 

[TravelandLeisure]

We went in September and had a BLAST and are going again next week BUT we tell everyone that Covid WDW is ONLY for the HARDEST of the HARDCORE WDW Fans who need their "WDW Fix" and DEFINITELY not for First-timers.

I’m definitely not a first timer and do consider myself a huge WDW fan, however I have my limits on what I feel is an acceptable value and experience for the price charged. Sadly, it’s just nowhere near worth it to me at this time.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Epcot looked like it was only half open and while you can use the app to order ahead- that is only at a few places per park. The order-ahead worked fine for us but the limited choices and long lines for simple things because so much else was closed was both frustrating and ridiculous if the plan is not to have people crowded together.

I agree about Epcot. So many closed shops, dining, and experiences. We were WDW first timers (DL vets tho) in November and even though I had nothing to compare it to the park felt incomplete.

However, my son LOVED Epcot and barely noticed it. Eyes through the mind of a kid and all that. He said it was one of his favorite days.

I really hope they do open up more dining and shops soon in general. They’re slowly increasing capacity so let’s get some other things open too then.

 

[ksw5261]

Thank you for that report. I am on the fence about going to disney at this time, but we Really need to get away!
We are show people and love to enjoy those while at disney. We do the rides too, but wonder if missing the shows would be a deal breaker?

I'm not a big show person, so I didn't miss these much. However, we did see parades/cavalcades very frequently and it was nice to see when walking through the park! I'm not sure if these have a schedule where you could plan to see them, but they were especially frequent at Magic Kingdom. Best of luck with your planning!

 

[disneygirlsng]

We went in September and had a BLAST and are going again next week BUT we tell everyone that Covid WDW is ONLY for the HARDEST of the HARDCORE WDW Fans who need their "WDW Fix" and DEFINITELY not for First-timers.

I also feel like it depends on how you normally do the parks. My trip in August was about 95% a completely normal trip for me. So it was absolutely worth it. I would easily go again now if I could take the time off work.

 

[Amy M]

I’m definitely not a first timer and do consider myself a huge WDW fan, however I have my limits on what I feel is an acceptable value and experience for the price charged. Sadly, it’s just nowhere near worth it to me at this time.

I agree 100%!!!

 

[stitchfan18]

We had a great day at HS today! I’m assuming a lot of local pass holders book HS on the weekends and take their time showing up, or only actually come if they can snag a RoTR BG. We accomplished a lot more in the first couple hours than we did on Thursday. We walked over from the BW right before 8, and were sent over to the left set of temp check tents. You really want to be at the left set of tents because they have at least 3 security scanners once you pass through, and the right set of temp check tents, closest to Disney transportation, only has 1 if I remember correctly from Thursday. We were through our temp screening and security check much faster today because we didn’t get held up going through security. We were through the entrance by 8:10, and headed straight to TSL. SDD was already running, so we managed 4 rides in about 20 minutes. We are a family of 5, and our kids are 6,5 & 3, so I wasn’t sure how SDD would work out for us with 3 kids under 7. Our 6 year old rode by herself right in front of me each time without any problems. No one asked her about her age, and she’s pretty average size.
We rode the other 2 TSL rides once before heading to MMRR right after 9:00. We waited about 30 minutes. We rode MMRR 2 more times around 5:00, and waited about 20-25 minutes those times.
We did all the shows today, and had no problems getting seats, we arrived 15-20 minutes before each show.

HS and Epcot feel the most normal for us and our typical touring style, but being there early is so important without FP right now. We wouldn’t have been able to do everything we did today if we had to wait in longer lines in TSL.

We are still planning 2 more days at Epcot, but from the time we’ve spent in the parks, I’d definitely consider another trip soon just to go to Epcot and HS. I doubt we’ll be back to MK without FP, and AK needs more to open before we’d go back without park hoppers.

We definitely still feel the magic, but our younger kids have needed an escape and are just soaking up all the Disney magic they can. Seeing the happiness on their faces makes this trip worthwhile for us, even with all the current changes.

 

[ajc1991]

Do the temperature check lines take long?

 

[ksw5261]

Do the temperature check lines take long?

I went everyday and arrived just before official park opening and they didn't take long at all! I'm not sure how this varies during different parts of the day.

 

[Leight19]

Question: with hopping back, what is Epcot like at night? Are people heading over in the PM hours after other parks close/to eat dinner? Is it crowded, or doable/pleasant?

I saw this question and was interested in answer (I go to Wdw for 14days with 10 day park hopper tomorrow) but didn’t see response. What I can say is I have been stalking wait times on app at Epcot and even with ph it appears to have similar if not shorter ride waits in evening vs morning. This is limited info so far and I don’t see whose in line for booths but thought I’d share. I’ll update next week after I experience first hand.

 

[GBRforWDW]

We had a great day at HS today! I’m assuming a lot of local pass holders book HS on the weekends and take their time showing up, or only actually come if they can snag a RoTR BG. We accomplished a lot more in the first couple hours than we did on Thursday. We walked over from the BW right before 8, and were sent over to the left set of temp check tents. You really want to be at the left set of tents because they have at least 3 security scanners once you pass through, and the right set of temp check tents, closest to Disney transportation, only has 1 if I remember correctly from Thursday. We were through our temp screening and security check much faster today because we didn’t get held up going through security. We were through the entrance by 8:10, and headed straight to TSL. SDD was already running, so we managed 4 rides in about 20 minutes. We are a family of 5, and our kids are 6,5 & 3, so I wasn’t sure how SDD would work out for us with 3 kids under 7. Our 6 year old rode by herself right in front of me each time without any problems. No one asked her about her age, and she’s pretty average size.
We rode the other 2 TSL rides once before heading to MMRR right after 9:00. We waited about 30 minutes. We rode MMRR 2 more times around 5:00, and waited about 20-25 minutes those times.
We did all the shows today, and had no problems getting seats, we arrived 15-20 minutes before each show.

HS and Epcot feel the most normal for us and our typical touring style, but being there early is so important without FP right now. We wouldn’t have been able to do everything we did today if we had to wait in longer lines in TSL.

We are still planning 2 more days at Epcot, but from the time we’ve spent in the parks, I’d definitely consider another trip soon just to go to Epcot and HS. I doubt we’ll be back to MK without FP, and AK needs more to open before we’d go back without park hoppers.

We definitely still feel the magic, but our younger kids have needed an escape and are just soaking up all the Disney magic they can. Seeing the happiness on their faces makes this trip worthwhile for us, even with all the current changes.

Sounds like a great day!

My 6yo freaked out on slinky yesterday. She had wanted to ride it for 2+ years, our last trip when she was 4, she wasn’t quite tall enough and the ride line was too long to try to see if she squeezed in the limit, so was a total bummer when she hated it. Glad your kids did great!

 

[ksw5261]

I saw this question and was interested in answer (I go to Wdw for 14days with 10 day park hopper tomorrow) but didn’t see response. What I can say is I have been stalking wait times on app at Epcot and even with ph it appears to have similar if not shorter ride waits in evening vs morning. This is limited info so far and I don’t see whose in line for booths but thought I’d share. I’ll update next week after I experience first hand.

From my experience this past week, Epcot at night was pretty empty. It seemed that people were more likely to show up earlier in the day, check all their boxes, then park hop to another park! We pretty much walked on to Soarin at 8, and the posted wait for TT around 8 was half of what it was all morning!

 

[GBRforWDW]

I saw this question and was interested in answer (I go to Wdw for 14days with 10 day park hopper tomorrow) but didn’t see response. What I can say is I have been stalking wait times on app at Epcot and even with ph it appears to have similar if not shorter ride waits in evening vs morning. This is limited info so far and I don’t see whose in line for booths but thought I’d share. I’ll update next week after I experience first hand.

Was at Epcot tonight, Saturday, and while there were what seemed like a bunch of people, it didn’t feel crowded. Temp was down to 50 before we left the park, so cool weather may have kept some away. Ride wait times were between 5-15 minutes for everything but soarin, test track and mission space. We didn’t plan to ride those so I didn’t keep close track on those waits, but saw 45-70 minutes during the day. Frozen was a 10-20 minutes most of the morning then 30 or more after that the rest of the day.

I honestly didn’t see long waits for most festival lines. I didn’t get in too many, but the ones I saw were about 20-30 people or groups deep.

 

[Beachmom0317]

Having just gone over Thanksgiving week, I do think your plan to reschedule is probably best. Nothing to do with lack of "precautions and safety measures" more to do with lack of things a 4 y.o. would love. We definitely enjoyed our vacation but it just felt "different". It was definitely needed "mentally" and was wonderful to see all of the holiday decorations but for "me" a lot of the Disney vibe was missing, some of it due to lack of characters, parades, fireworks, food etc but some of it was due to constantly trying to make sure we are being safe and not forgetting to mask up when getting up a from a table to go the restroom (found I did this multiple times..ugh), sanitizing etc. If you don't mind waiting to go, I think the experience will be much better a bit later on in 2021 for a 4 y.o. Good luck in whichever you decide to do, I know it's a tough decision..

This was completely my experience back in November with my 4 and 6 year old. We’re not planning on coming back until spring 2022 the earliest. My littles love meet and greets, parades and fireworks so we really missed those. I have to say I was very impressed by Disney’s safety measures and didn’t feel unsafe at all.

 

[stitchfan18]

Question: with hopping back, what is Epcot like at night? Are people heading over in the PM hours after other parks close/to eat dinner? Is it crowded, or doable/pleasant?

On Friday with Festival of the Arts, the WS area was busy, but FW was very quiet.

 

[Maribeth71]

Is Magic Kingdom continuing castle projections after the holidays?

 

[yulilin3]

Is Magic Kingdom continuing castle projections after the holidays?

no

 

[EEPETEZ]

We went in September and had a BLAST and are going again next week BUT we tell everyone that Covid WDW is ONLY for the HARDEST of the HARDCORE WDW Fans who need their "WDW Fix" and DEFINITELY not for First-timers.

I would completely 2nd this. We adore Disney and have been many many times-so our trip in December was great. I would not go if this was my 1st time, once in a lifetime or even the once every few years big trip.

 

[armerida]

We went in September and had a BLAST and are going again next week BUT we tell everyone that Covid WDW is ONLY for the HARDEST of the HARDCORE WDW Fans who need their "WDW Fix" and DEFINITELY not for First-timers.

Our family (bro and sis in law and 4 kiddos) joined us for their first ever trip in August and it was amazing! They had such a great time despite the limited offerings. I think the low wait times/empty parks played a huge role in the experience. I’m so glad they rescheduled that trip (it was originally going to be this February but they moved it up), since the parks are so much busier now. My husband and I still had a magical Christmas trip, but it’s definitely not a ghost town anymore like the summer.