Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[DisneyFive]

I agree, it’s a HUGE eyesore. I was so disappointed seeing it in person. It totally ruins the view IMO

So they fixed the entrance (which I love now) but destroyed the lagoon. We'll pass judgement until our trip in July but hoping it's not as bad as it looks now.

Dan

 

[Princess Katelet]

At MCO waiting for my flight home after spending the last 4 days at Dolphin, here’s some observations from my trip...

Thur

- Arrived at Dolphin at 5pm from MCO, had a ADR for Topolinos at 9:45pm.

- Grabbed an Uber to RR, dinner at Topolinos was fantastic. The veal chop and the sole were both cooked to perfection. Service was a little rushed (entrees arriving while apps still there) but I worked in a restaurant and understand what it’s like when you want to just get that last seating out of the restaurant so you can go home. Super nice server, dinner was about $220 for 2 after tip.

Fri

- Got to HS around 930am, took the boat over from Dolphin, about a 20min wait for the boat (this was the only time we used Disney transport all trip, more on that later)

- Did Star Tours (10 min wait), Rise (10 min wait), and MFSR (walk on; DAS) all by 11:45.

- Everything in the park had 30-75min wait by 11:30, decided to leave and go back to the pool.

- Hung out at Dolphin pool till about 4:30, then got an Uber over to Epcot main entrance (We used Uber for all of our transport around WDW/Orlando, never waiting more than 8mins for a ride. All of our trips within WDW were roughly $9ish each way and was MUCH more efficient than waiting for busses or diving ourselves. I don’t understand the appeal of cattle call Disney busses, they’re gross and at times unreliable)

- Got to Epcot around 5pm, did SE (5mins), Soarin (10mins) and then strolled around WS starting in Canada, stopping at a lot stores and grabbing some snacks/drinks. Made it to Mexico around 8:15, grabbed a DAS return time for TT (65mins) and did Mission Space Green (walk-on). Returned for TT (walk-on with DAS).

- Had a 9:45 ADR at La Hacienda, had a great meal. The guac with mango and the vegan “Chicken” enchiladas were incredible. Left the park at 10:50 and grabbed a boat back to Dolphin.

Saturday

- Got CBD massages at Waldorf Astoria Spain the the AM...very pricey ($485 for 2 50min massages) but my body felt amazing the remainder of the day.

- Hung out at Dolphin pool until 3:30, took an Uber over to Universal for the Orlando Informer Meetup (AMAZING event, ratchet crowd during the day when general public was still there)

Sunday

- Went to AK around 9:45am, got a DAS return time for FOP (75mins) and went to do Kilimanjaro Safari (40min wait) while we waited. Went back to FOP (walk-on with DAS)...ok, now here’s a hot take...this ride is severely overrated! I don’t get the hype, the screen gets blurry at times and it’s just a souped-up Soarin. Not impressed.

- Placed a mobile order at Flame Tree for 1:10-1:40 window, hit I’ve Arrived at 1:10, food was ready at 1:35, good food though.

- Got a return time for Kali (35mins) and it was then a walk-on, same with Everest. Left AK after this around 2:30.

- More pool time then went to MK at 5:45, between 5:45 and 8:50 we hit Buzz (this ride needs to go, it’s not even Six Flags quality), Peoplemover, HM, BTMR, Splash, and Pirates. Never waiting more than 10mins for anything, used DAS for Splash (40mins).

- Had a 9:45 ADR at CA Grill. AMAZING dinner, the Colorado Lamb w/gnudi was great, as was the Halibut. We also tried the goat cheese ravioli, roasted squash soup, and sushi. Got the green tea mousse as dessert. Bill ran us about $270 after tip for 2, wellllllllll worth it!

Does that Uber quote of $9ish include tip? People use the Disney buses because they are free.

 

[goodferry]

For people who are taking Uber to the parks, are you getting there an hour before opening or going later in the day? I would LOVE to not take Disney Transportation, but we also want to arrive early

 

[Bobb_o]

Just want to voice frustration that some girl in my ride photo flipped off the camera. It's not that I needed or care about the photo but just how disrespectful it is. She was also crossing me in line even when she could tell I was clearly filming things.

 

[Gearbm95]

Does that Uber quote of $9ish include tip? People use the Disney buses because they are free.

No, usually tipped an additional $2. The money was well spent to not have to be on a bus with a bunch of loud, stinky strangers.

 

[Gearbm95]

For people who are taking Uber to the parks, are you getting there an hour before opening or going later in the day? I would LOVE to not take Disney Transportation, but we also want to arrive early

I didn’t rope drop any parks, not interested in running a rat race, it’s vacation. It felt so nice to move at a leisurely pace, sleep in, hit 3-4 rides in the late morning then back to the pool and return to the parks around 5-6pm.

 

[goodferry]

When you wake up at 5 am without trying, it's not a rat race, you have had a leisurely breakfast and the pool isn't even open yet lol

 

[Leigh L]

When you wake up at 5 am without trying, it's not a rat race, you have had a leisurely breakfast and the pool isn't even open yet lol

I can relate!!
We always do rope drop because 3/4 of us are up anyway

 

[hauntedcity]

Which resort were you at? I felt the buses were pretty awful…. They arrived okay in the morning at SSR but often were too full, but leaving parks we would wait an hour at a time for buses to come and there to be room on them.

we are in a split stay. Transportation at Boardwalk was great: boats ,skyliner, and even buses.

Animal Kingdom Lodge bussing has been HORRIBLE, with multiple waits 30-45 minutes. I always say to be prepared for ONE bad bus situation per visit, but we are up to 3 in 2.5 days.

 

[HollyMD]

Hate to hear that. We will be staying at kidani in a couple of weeks

 

[KBoopaloo]

we are in a split stay. Transportation at Boardwalk was great: boats ,skyliner, and even buses.

Animal Kingdom Lodge bussing has been HORRIBLE, with multiple waits 30-45 minutes. I always say to be prepared for ONE bad bus situation per visit, but we are up to 3 in 2.5 days.

I had similar experiences at WL last week.

 

[brockash]

we are in a split stay. Transportation at Boardwalk was great: boats ,skyliner, and even buses.

Animal Kingdom Lodge bussing has been HORRIBLE, with multiple waits 30-45 minutes. I always say to be prepared for ONE bad bus situation per visit, but we are up to 3 in 2.5 days.

This was our experience with AKL buses back in Oct as well. It reallt put a damper on our trip. One of the worst parts was how we just could not get to any park (other than AK) early enough. Every other resort we've stayed at post Covid (3 others ) we've consistently gotten to every park before they even open the turnstiles which is a must for getting a cpl rides in before super long lines, but we could not do it at AKL...their buses don't start early enough (we were always on the 1st bus) snd they're a good amount further away from the parks (exception AK) than most other resorts

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

I’m curious how people there now feel crowds are flowing. They’ve been increasing capacity and I just checked MDE wait times and all of the headliners are 50 minutes or under- that seems pretty great, in my opinion.

I had been wishing for a return of free FP because I was worried about horrible 90+minute waits for everything, but now I may be on the other side of that- to be able to tour freely without the necessity of FP (or wait 2-3 hours for something like FOP) sounds pretty nice.

although I know things will continue to change as crowds heat up, will keep watching those wait times to see if increased staff/ride capacity balance out the increased crowds without FP.

Not trying to start another thread on FP vs no FP (we have plenty of those!) - just want to get a feel for people’s impressions of crowd flow and wait times and if it is as manageable as it seems while I sit at home looking at my MDE app

 

[elittleton]

Is the Pick a Pearl experience open in Epcot yet?

It wasn’t today and the cases were pushed into a corner. I did see a small place open in Disney Springs close to World of Disney on Saturday morning.

I totally spaced out that in summer the sunsets are later! In November we were able to see most of the parks when it was dark. Really crossing my fingers they extend hours for this month- we leave in two weeks so not sure how likely it is at this point!

I keep reading about this crazy Florida UV index? Does that just mean you apply more sunscreen than normal? I burn easily so want to make sure I'm prepared. I bought the higher spf and plan to carry it in our park bag.

I apply sunscreen before leaving the room, mid morning, after lunch, then later afternoon. If not I will burn.

 

[CarolynFH]

I’m curious how people there now feel crowds are flowing. They’ve been increasing capacity and I just checked MDE wait times and all of the headliners are 50 minutes or under- that seems pretty great, in my opinion.

I had been wishing for a return of free FP because I was worried about horrible 90+minute waits for everything, but now I may be on the other side of that- to be able to tour freely without the necessity of FP (or wait 2-3 hours for something like FOP) sounds pretty nice.

although I know things will continue to change as crowds heat up, will keep watching those wait times to see if increased staff/ride capacity balance out the increased crowds without FP.

Not trying to start another thread on FP vs no FP (we have plenty of those!) - just want to get a feel for people’s impressions of crowd flow and wait times and if it is as manageable as it seems while I sit at home looking at my MDE app

Admittedly, we’ve intentionally been going late to the parks because of the heat. Got to AK around 4 on Saturday, Epcot around 6:30 yesterday, DHS about 4 today. Overall, crowds have seemed lighter than our trips in December and March, maybe about the same as or even lighter than November. Wait times have definitely been less - we walked on to Star Tours at 5:30, had a 30-minute queue for MMRR and 50-minute wait for RnR, then got into line for SDD around 7:35 and were off at 8:05. Just walking around, the walkways weren’t nearly as jammed as many previous trips.

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

Admittedly, we’ve intentionally been going late to the parks because of the heat. Got to AK around 4 on Saturday, Epcot around 6:30 yesterday, DHS about 4 today. Overall, crowds have seemed lighter than our trips in December and March, maybe about the same as or even lighter than November. Wait times have definitely been less - we walked on to Star Tours at 5:30, had a 30-minute queue for MMRR and 50-minute wait for RnR, then got into line for SDD around 7:35 and were off at 8:05. Just walking around, the walkways weren’t nearly as jammed as many previous trips.

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[kylenne]

For people who are taking Uber to the parks, are you getting there an hour before opening or going later in the day? I would LOVE to not take Disney Transportation, but we also want to arrive early

I split my stay between GF and YC specifically to avoid transportation so the only park I rope dropped that I had to drive to was AK and my Lyft got me there at 6:50a. There was only one other vehicle there at that hour, and we pulled in next to them as we were held at the cones until 7. I was still able to walk onto FOP when they opened the ride and walk onto Navi with the Safari being a trivial wait afterwards. It’s fully possible to have a successful rope drop with rideshare.

 

[cdurham1]

Went to HS today from CBR. At 6:55am, went outside to get better internet (did internet speed test and Verizon was better than the WiFi). Got BG 46 for ROTR. Decided to drive our car over for rope drop. Pulled up to parking booths at 7:55am. There were 3 cars in front of us at our booth. Waited there until 8:10 and they opened the booths. Parked, walked quickly, but had to get stroller through security so it took a few extra minutes. Into park at 8:27. Went straight to SDD. Line marker said 60 minutes when we joined but it moved really quickly. Total wait was only 32 mins. Next went to TSM for 10 min wait and then to SWGE for some blue and green milk. Made a mistake and got in 50 min posted line for MFSR at 10:05am but it ended up being 65 mins. We had an 11:35 ADR at B&C and had to race out of the park, jump on boat to get there. We were 10 mins past the check in time for the ADR but the CM was nice and let us take the next available outside table. Back to CBR via skyliner to rest/pool until 3. Then back to HS via skyliner. Went to ROTR first. Our BG was called at 11:30 (we were on our way to lunch) but the CM was fine to let us ride at 3:45. It was a 25 min wait so not too bad. Then ADR at Sci-Fi at 4:45 but they were running 25 mins behind so snuck in ST while waiting. After dinner, 15 min wait for ToT, built a droid, Ogas at 7 and then jumped in line for MMRR at 7:58. It was very hot but we got water everywhere and took the afternoon break. Masks in line weren’t fun but it was great that we could take them off once out of a ride and drink water while walking. That really makes a difference. Overall a great day!

Sounds like fun! I used to get to the park so early, no one was manning the booth to the parking lot and we would drive right thru. You can't do that anymore?

You were 10 minutes late for your actual ADR time? Is that even considered late?

 

[Kerr84]

Here now and we are having a great time! I cannot stress enough how much you will want a mask lanyard! There are cheap ones on Amazon. Buy extras in case you lose one. I bet we are taking out masks on/off 30 times a day.

 

[G719]

I'm at fort wilderness and I am hearing some fireworks right now.