Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[MinnierellaMama]

Hi all! Sharing our experience today 3/25 at MK. Pretty successful day all around. I purchased Genie+ at $25pp and was well worth it. Half of our party of six was staying Deluxe and the other half off property, so I felt we would need it to make the most of the time we had today. At 7am, I first tried to get a VQ for Tron (unsuccessful) and then got our first G+ for Peter Pan at 10:05. Next, I purchased $ILL for SDMT at 3:25pm. I could only book for 4/6 people bc the other two are offsite and ineligible until park open, so I chose a later window in the hopes I could get theirs to lineup when I purchased at park open.

We arrived at MK at 9am and first I booked the $ILL for SDMT for the two others in our party. I lucked out with the same window I had purchased for the rest of us at 7am (3:25-4:25)! We then decided to head toward fantasyland. It started to rain while we were walking that way so we ducked into the teacups for a quick ride (and break from the rain!). The rain stopped almost right after so we continued on to Dumbo and then the Goofy rollercoaster as we have young kids and those were on their must-do lists. Honestly, with the weather forecasted to be so warm today (90+), we wanted to get that area of the park off our list as it’s the worst place (other than Adventureland) to be stuck in the afternoon heat. The kids rode Dumbo once, Goofy 3 times and then we made our way over to Peter Pan for our first G+. After tapping in, I snagged our second G+ for Jungle Cruise at 11:45am. We rode Pan and then headed back to fantasyland to ride Under the Sea (5 min wait) twice — again to get that part of the park out of the way!

Then we started to trek to Jungle Cruise. We stopped for a ride on the carousel (5min wait) and then continued down toward where we found ourselves at the start of the parade route approaching noon. We found a shady spot and decided to watch as my youngest hasn’t seen the whole parade yet. Turned out to be a great plan as the kids had a great view and received some extra pixie dust from a CM who gave them each a Mickey pop to watch the parade with. Once that finished, we went down to tap in at Jungle Cruise. From there, I booked our third G+ for Pirates at 12:45. We decided to have lunch first before riding Pirates and to give me a chance to try for a VQ for Tron at 1pm.

We grabbed lunch and I successfully got a boarding group (71!) for Tron with an estimated callback of 3:10pm. After lunch we went to tap in at Pirates. I snagged our fourth G+ for Aladdin for 2:05. Again, not the best use of a G+ but I wasn’t in the mood to snake all around the park and was eager to finish off the rides in that area with it getting so hot. We went from Pirates over toward Aladdin and I received a notification that our boarding group we being called for Tron and we had until 3:24 to return.

We rode Aladdin and then trekked over to Tron. We arrived at Tron a few minutes before 3pm and the VQ line was super long. We got in line and made it to the tap station literally right at 3:24 and from there had to wait another 40minutes before riding (an hour in total). Just a heads up for those of you who are doing the VQ, be prepared to wait. Definitely worth it though! Great ride!

From Tron, we went to SDMT for our paid $ILL and then off to our fifth G+ which was Small World. Then our sixth for Pooh. I booked a seventh G+ after that for BTMR and we all rode at about 5:45pm. After there were still plenty of G+ (Haunted Mansion, Space Mtn, and others were still available) but we had dinner plans on the Boardwalk so we decided to head out. All in all a great MK day and G+ was well worth it IMO.

 

[Mango7100]

I'm so glad to hear this. I'm going with my college-age kids in a couple of weeks and I know that we'll be doing afternoons/evenings in the parks rather than mornings and this is exactly what I was hoping we could do. I also love that going in the afternoons means we (or at least I) will enjoy the resorts some more - I feel like we didn't take much advantage of that on our previous trips.

We have done this many times as well. For days we are driving down or just wanting to spend the evenings in the park, we have several times entered either MK or HS at around 4-5 pm with 4-5 LLs stacked for the evening (and this was during busy times like New Years and President's Day). It works really well!

 

[thanxfornoticin]

I'm so glad to hear this. I'm going with my college-age kids in a couple of weeks and I know that we'll be doing afternoons/evenings in the parks rather than mornings and this is exactly what I was hoping we could do. I also love that going in the afternoons means we (or at least I) will enjoy the resorts some more - I feel like we didn't take much advantage of that on our previous trips.

Take advantage of the new modify feature for LL reservations. Grab an attraction as soon as you can, and then modify until later in the day when you actually want it - by using this method, the '2-hr clock' starts and doesn't reset, meaning you can make another 2 hours later. If you wait for the time range to move and then make the reservation, the clock only starts at that point - hope that makes sense.

 

[shosh1530]

Just got back from our first ever WDW trip (we are Disneyland people) with my 11 year old. We planned at the last minute with reward airline travel and only had 3 park days so it was a fast-paced whirlwind of a trip!

Crowds - The parks were busy, but not anywhere close to level of spring break craziness that I was prepared for. I think we lucked out as many cast members commented that the week before was bonkers. My son uses DAS and it worked smoothly for us each day with about 10-15 minute waits once we entered the lightning lanes.

Resort - Stayed at CBR and enjoyed it even though we didn't have much time to really hang out at the resort. Appreciated the Skyliner access, so would consider staying here again. Staff were particularly helpful and wonderful. DS thought the pool was just ok, but wished the water slides were bigger.

Food - Overall thought the food was great and I appreciated that many places had plant-based options! We did table service at Sebastian's, Jungle Skipper Canteen, Nomad's Lounge (walk up), and the new Roundup Rodeo and enjoyed them all. Nomad's Lounge is now my favorite out of all the Disney parks I've been to. We enjoyed the food booths at Flower and Garden (mostly Trowel & Trellis for the plant-based options). We got decent quick service from Pinnochio's, Casey's Corner, and the food court at CBR.

Epcot - Got the virtual queue for Guardians at 7 am, but couldn't get DS moving to the park until almost 10 am (3 hour time difference was harder to adjust to than I anticipated). Rode Remy, Guardians, Test Track, Spaceship Earth and Frozen. Took a long hotel break and then came back on the Skyliner about 20 minutes before closing to watch Harmonious. Got a decent spot to watch over by Rose and Crown and thought the show was great. Got stuck in a massive line for the Skyliner to get back to CBR.

Magic Kingdom - Got the virtual queue for Tron at 7am, but again didn't make it the park until almost 10. Rode Haunted Mansion, SDMT, Winnie the Pooh, Tron (was so amazing), BTMRR, Pirates, Space Mountain, People Mover, SDMT (again), and DS did the tea cups. We ended up pushing through for a longer day rather than taking a break and riding the bus twice. So mid-day we did Country Bear Jamboree, Hall of Presidents, and the Pooh and Tigger character meet and greet. We randomly ran into the parade as we were crossing the park at noon and loved it. Did the fireworks pre-party dessert event (meh, too crowded and chaotic IMO) but was glad to have an easy spot to watch the show with a good view.

AK/HS - Got Genie+ as we were planning to park hop this day and wanted to maximize our time at HS in the evening. At AK we rode Na'vi, Expedition Everest (too intense for our tastes), Dinosaur, and Flight of Passage (amazing!). We also did the Safari in the morning. We originally wanted to take a hotel break, but realized we would miss the IJ stunt show if we did that so we took the bus directly to HS. We had already gotten Genie+ times Slinky Dog, MMRR, and Tower of Terror earlier in the day. Did the stunt show and Star Tours as well. Really, really loved Slinky Dog and I wish we could have ridden it a second time (no DAS left after our first ride as too close to park closing). Skipped Fantasmic as we didn't want to be in a huge Skyliner line again.

Weather - I was not anticipating it being so hot! I can't imagine visiting in the summer. The days before we arrived were cool and rainy so I guess it is just luck of the draw. Was very glad for table service reservations to have a cooler place to rest and eat.

Overall - We had a great time and with lots of magical moments. It was hard not to constantly compare Disneyland and WDW and for the most part we felt like DL wins on almost every front, especially for not having to take transportation to get to the parks. But I also feel like we only scratched the surface on the parks and have much more to discover. Would definitely plan a longer trip next time with rest days in between the park days

 

[NavyDad]

I'm so glad to hear this. I'm going with my college-age kids in a couple of weeks and I know that we'll be doing afternoons/evenings in the parks rather than mornings and this is exactly what I was hoping we could do. I also love that going in the afternoons means we (or at least I) will enjoy the resorts some more - I feel like we didn't take much advantage of that on our previous trips.

We have always been a RD family but my wife absolutely hates getting up early. I usually have to drag her kicking and screaming.

Our last trip we used Genie+ every day and stacked rides for the afternoon and evening. It worked out fantastic because I was able to get up at 7 and start booking while my wife slept in and then enjoyed coffee on the balcony and then we ate a late breakfast at the resort. Some days we didn't leave the resort until noon.

Wife got to sleep in, we rode every single ride without waiting more than a few minutes in line. We spent more time at the resort relaxing and spent more time in the parks during our favorite time of day: evening. Win-win for our entire family.

I will say that we did get way more use out of G+ at MK and DHS than the other parks.

 

[BridgetR3]

Are there quite a few things that can use Magicband Plus already or is that not at WDW yet? I know the website says interactive activities but how many are there and do you need the magic band for them?

 

[scrappinginontario]

There are not a lot of activities and also not sure what will happen after the 50th Anniversary ends later this week.

The main activity remaining will be in Batuu and fireworks. Not sure what else may remain?

 

[loves to dive]

Are there quite a few things that can use Magicband Plus already or is that not at WDW yet? I know the website says interactive activities but how many are there and do you need the magic band for them?

There is a game you can play in GE and the statues for the 50th used to do things but I'm not sure if those will still be active after the 50th. It will light up different colors on some rides and during shows and FWs and when you tap into the park. Unless you want to play the game in GE, right now I don't think it's worth the price. Having said that, I do own one but just because I wanted the design on it.

 

[SkyGuy]

Are there quite a few things that can use Magicband Plus already or is that not at WDW yet? I know the website says interactive activities but how many are there and do you need the magic band for them?

You’ll know where the activities are in Batuu because instead of figuring it out for yourself, you’ll see a line of people waiting to wave their MB+ for the interaction - so you also get to hear/see that “special moment” six times before it’s your turn. So fun…

 

[lovethattink]

Are there quite a few things that can use Magicband Plus already or is that not at WDW yet? I know the website says interactive activities but how many are there and do you need the magic band for them?

I have so many issues with my new MB. I don’t bother wearing it anymore and use one of my old ones. Nighttime shows interact with it. But unless you’re holding your arm up in front of you, you aren’t going to be able to both watch the show and see the mb.

The Galaxy’s edge interactive game sucks up battery so fast. Within an hour or so of play, the battery was too dead to continue and had to use an external charger.

The 50th statues interactions are cool. The mb buzzes when you are close. Just give your hand a wave and listen closely to the statue.

Certain rides will light it up. Usually it vibrates as it’s lighting up. I haven’t noticed it light up on attractions, but I have felt the buzz.

It’s made of a thinner material and mine is longer than the old mb.

Charging and linking to phone with Bluetooth have been troublesome for me almost every time.

When it charges the light flashes. I charge it at home out of my bedroom. But in a hotel room, I think the light would annoy me.

In my opinion, there’s a lot of improvement that needs to be done on the new mb. The novelty was cool the first time I used it, but I’ll stick to my old ones.

 

[JoJoGirl]

I have so many issues with my new MB. I don’t bother wearing it anymore and use one of my old ones. Nighttime shows interact with it. But unless you’re holding your arm up in front of you, you aren’t going to be able to both watch the show and see the mb.



When it charges the light flashes. I charge it at home out of my bedroom. But in a hotel room, I think the light would annoy me.

You are absolutely correct! My routine is to put the band on the charger, then cover it with a couple of hats to block that flashing green light. Every single time, I wonder just whose brilliant idea it was to create something that blinks on and off all night in a hotel room where people are trying to sleep after an exhausting day. Not a lot of thought went into that feature.

 

[Melissa Perez]

Just back from a quick visit 3/24 - 3/27 at BWV. Did notice that Guardians had some trouble on a few of the days - on 24th (Fri) the virtual queue line at 7pm took 75 min to clear bc of a backup due to being offline for a bit. On 25th (Sat) after 8pm I got stuck at the very end of the ride (at the hologram) and our car was escorted to ride again. Our group even received a Disney survey asking if our plans had been impacted by the downtime / if we noticed what ride effects weren't working.

 

[Sparrow'sLady]

Just use the hotel, restaurants, Stormalong bay, walk the boardwalk, use the skyliner, go to other resorts, maybe do hoop de doo, dine in other resorts. Get out of the rat race of bumping into people, lines, broken rides. A less expensive, less stressful vacation. As older experienced Disney travelers, the rides become less important.

Makes sense.
Next time we go to Florida I think we will rent a house and a car. We were talking about it this past weekend. We plan to do things besides Disney. None of our group wants to return. We all love Florida, but not the new Disney. We were considering Disneyland next March, but we have all had a change of heart on that, too.

 

[samsonjs]

Tuesday March 29: We had a fantastic day at Epcot though MK ended up being more packed than I’ve ever seen it.

I was having trouble with our tickets, I had confirmed reservations but when I went to book VQ for Guardians it said we didn’t have tickets to preselect our group before 7am. I knew that wasn’t true. I saved screenshots. I was able to book genie+. I went to epcot at 7am and spoke with guest services to confirm we could enter the park and that we wouldn’t have any problems. Guest services took some time and realized there was an issue with our tickets/resort package. So he gave us a huge sprinkle of pixie dust. I was very polite and didn’t ask or demand anything. He gave us VQ for guardians and hopper tickets. Imo it was completely unnecessary for my trouble which is why I am describing it as pixie dust rather than something Disney had to do to “make it right”. I was totally blown away and so thankful. It was such a treat. I will definitely write a compliment when we get home.

Epcot was great, we got a lot done and Skyliner put us early at ratatouille. They let us ride and exited before early morning hours technically started at 8:30. I booked test track genie+, then focused on collecting LL for MK after 5pm. Then we walked along and got photos of the kids in empty countries around the world. We rode standby for frozen around 8:45 and it was half the stated wait. We then met Donald, rode Mexico (walk on), met pluto while half our party did soarin. We got coffee then rode test track LL and spaceship earth standby (a little over half the standby wait). We got fish and chips lunch, met Minnie and Daisy. And then noticed the surprise character area was open and met rafiki and goofy before it closed. Then did our VQ for guardians. We waited about 20min in the VQ. That ride is amazing. Highly recommend. It’s like a better space Mountain.

Then Skyliner to the hotel (we had to switch hotels). We went to MK and did our four genie plus around 6pm. We focused on some classics; Peter Pan, Haunted Mansion, BTMR, Pirates, had dinner at a last minute reservation for skippers canteen (it was good. Nice to have something that had protein/veggies). Then watch the castle show at the back and ran to the bus to get some sleep. The crowds at MK were insane. I’ve gone on spring break and never seen this many crowds. It’s making me want to skip MK tomorrow evening and just do a RD morning then go somewhere else.

Crowds didn’t seem as out of control at Epcot. All the character meet and greets had short waits, we saw a lot of people leave the line when the character needed a break, only for the character to come back a few minutes later. Definitely don’t leave the line if you can just wait a few more minutes!

So far I am torn on how I feel about hoppers after one day. I think our family would have been just as happy to finish the day at Epcot. Im glad I get to try it for free, I’m not sure if it works for our family for the cost. Im very thankful for the chance to try it though!

 

[Mome Rath]

In parks March 26th through 28th. I had planned these dates on purpose, as I researched when the bulk of Spring Break would happen. I surmised it would mainly be over, and then be before Easter crowds and Tron opening. Well, it did work, but Tron soft-open did impact MK days I think. Stayed on property.

First day was AK and MGM (DHS for others lol); AK was slightly below average crowd, and MGM was low crowds (I was shocked). Did purchase G+ and ILL$ FoP and Rise. That's were my only downfall in planning was; Disney still priced both those options as the "busy" price. Used D+ for both parks, and did get the times and rides I wanted (including Slinky at the time I wanted, even after I took time to get FoP and Rise). Still wish park hopping was allowed earlier. Note; missing elements to Rise were the movement of the first transport was missing, Kylo's saber cut was missing (and part of his power moves in main encounter), and of course gun banks did not move.

Second day was MK in morning, and EPCOT in afternoon/evening. MK was average crowds, I've definitely seen busier (any day you can see pavement in Fantasyland is a good day lol). Did purchase Tron ILL$ and Dwarves. Did purchase G+. Purchasing Tron, I sacrificed Peter Pan, as it jumped to evening fast of course, but I knew that was a risk. Used G+ for EPCOT including getting Remy for the time I wanted after making my ILL$ purchase. EPCOT crowds were slightly above average, but the lines for the food booths weren't bad at all. Had a Via Napoli ressie at 2:40 pm, and got in slightly early and seated immediately. Line times were less than shown.

Third day was EPCOT in morn, then MGM, then EPCOT, then MK. This was the day I didn't buy G+, but did grab Guardians ILL$, then got 1:00 boarding group for that evening. Boma breakfast was the favorite part of our trip, never had it before and was loverly. EPCOT was up first, crowds average, smaller rides, then Guardians then countries, then Skyliner to MGM, Tower of Terror, skyliner back to EPCOT, Guardians #2, food at Poly on way to MK. Line times definitely less than shown (ex: Tower showed 50, and was 35ish).

What else? Perfect weather for us, no problem on any flights or time through security. Mobile order worked really well each time we used it, picked times we wanted, wait was short, food was fresh. Great trip! Only downside, spent more money on G+ and ILL$ than I had planned. Also, not really happy with the magic band direction, we just used older ones.

Stayed at AKL if I can answer an questions, let me know.

 

[katyringo]

Folks that have just got back- is there a big selection of the Magic band plus on site? Shop Disney doesn't have much..

 

[NashvilleMama]

Good stuff

• We booked a private fireworks cruise for the MK and it was 100% hands down worth the money. Even on a chilly night. We will totally do this again, even if its just our nuclear family and not the larger group we traveled with this time. Cannot think of a better way to watch the fireworks and significantly better than a dessert party.

I've never heard of a private fireworks cruise! Do you mind sharing details? @Dulcee

 

[scrappinginontario]

I've never heard of a private fireworks cruise! Do you mind sharing details? @Dulcee

Not the OP but this is a link to the information on the Disney website.

 

[loves to dive]

Here now, arrived Sat. around 1:30, 7 1/2 hour drive from Georgia, solo. I'll try to report wait times every day. I'm doing a split stay, Sat and Sun night at All Star Music and 5 more nights at Dolphin. My room at All Stars wasn't ready when I got here but before I could get back in my car I got notification it was ready.

Took bus walked into Epcot at 2:39. Took the newly opened path to the right. Don't take it unless you just want to go to the area around The Land, otherwise it's quicker to continue to go left. Got about to SSE and remembered I wanted a F&G book so back to the entrance I went. Got to Honey Bistro and remembered I wanted a wrist gift card so left and went to the shop at the lake and got one. Back to Honey Bistro, had the flatbread. I was o.k. the bread was a bit hard. Went to Earth Eats and had the lumpia. It was o.k. but very chewy. To the Florida Fresh Booth for a cucumber/watermelon smoothie with Gin. It was good.

Rode the following:
Soarin - listed as 35 min. wait, in line at 3:35 and into the pre-show at 3:51.
Living With the Land - listed as 10 min. wait, in line at 4:08 in the numbered que by 4:09
Space Ship Earth - listed at 5 min. wait, in line at 4:38, on ride at 4:43.

Left the park and headed to MK on the monorail. Through the gates by 5:38.
I had a park reservation to MK the next day so just wanted to knock out a few rides.

Jungle Cruise - posted 40 min., in line at 5:45, the wait switched to 50 and then 60 before I got under the wait sign. Got into boat at 6:40.
Pirates - posed 25 min, in line at 6:56 in ride que for boat at 7:00
Haunted Mansion - posted 35 min, in line at 7:15 in preshow 7:36
Peoplemover - posted 10 min., in line 8:00 on ride 8:07

It was starting to rain so I didn't want to deal with it so back to room to grab some food.

Sunday - April 16. Genie+ was $20, I didn't buy it and didn't get the virtual que for Tron at 7.

Seven Dwarves - posted 80 min, in line 8:40 in numbered que 9:13
Big Thunder - posted 10 min, in line 9:25 in numbered que 9:32

Took a break to get a Fruit,nutella waffle

Peter Pan - posted 45 min, in line 10:10 in numbered que 10:45
Went and sat on the curb in the shade in front of Country Bears to wait on noon parade
After parade went to train station waited about 5 min. for train, got on at 12:35
Got Virtual Que for Tron at 1. Group 76 they were on group 51 thru 61

CoP walked in at 1:16
Pooh - posted 35 min. in line 1:47 in numbered que 2:05
Tron called 2:31, 2:34 in preshow, 2:41 in locker room, 3:02 in numbered que to board

Left and bussed to Animal Kingdom
Walked into gate at 4:20.
Joined Wait list for Nomad Lounge at 4:21, told 15 min wait, table ready at 4:30
Navi - Posted 40 min, in line 5:46 in numbered que 5:53
FoP - Posted 75 min, in line 6:07 in pre-show 6:35.
Left park, one of the longest waits of the day 45 min. for bus back to Music

Switching to Dolphin tomorrow. Reservation for AK so will go there first then move my car when I'm ready. So far, other than Sat. at MK, lines have been not bad. Because I have hoppers and am here for 6 1/2 park days I'm not trying to do a whole lot every day. I meant to come back to the room today and rest but since I got the Tron VC couldn't leave MK.

 

[philliplc]

Arrived, yay, and about to start at Epcot this morning (Mon 4/17) in the rain which hopefully is ending soon. Got GG boarding group 49 at 7:00,. Seems potentially like a comparatively slow week. Per the App everything at HS except Slinky was more or less walk on for the last 2 hours Sunday night inc. Rise and MMRR.