Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[emtgirl4]

I’m not really a Star Wars fan but I find the immersion and offerings of Galaxy’s Edge to be really fun and interesting, we have had a blast the past few times. We were also there today and agree that mask compliance has been good, lots of places to pull over to have a drink or a snack, no problems with mobile ordering. The posted waits were longer than pre-Labor Day weekend but SDD posted at 50 on in 25, MFSR posted 50 on it in about 35, RnR was closer to 15 but that’s because we were held for cleaning (it only took 6 or 7 minutes and they were thorough). We left around 2:30 to take a pool break and clean up, planning to go back in a bit to finish up w/ TSMM and whatever else we can do before our 6:15 at Oga’s.

I totally agree with you. It's has been amazing with the immersion. Its been a great day here. We will see you at Oga’s. Our reservation is at 630!

 

[yulilin3]

@DSLRuser merged you to the existing thread

 

[DSLRuser]

I’m not really a Star Wars fan but I find the immersion and offerings of Galaxy’s Edge to be really fun and interesting, we have had a blast the past few times. We were also there today and agree that mask compliance has been good, lots of places to pull over to have a drink or a snack, no problems with mobile ordering. The posted waits were longer than pre-Labor Day weekend but SDD posted at 50 on in 25, MFSR posted 50 on it in about 35, RnR was closer to 15 but that’s because we were held for cleaning (it only took 6 or 7 minutes and they were thorough). We left around 2:30 to take a pool break and clean up, planning to go back in a bit to finish up w/ TSMM and whatever else we can do before our 6:15 at Oga’s.

Moderators...quit moving posts....this post lost it's point when you removed the subject line.

 

[DSLRuser]

@DSLRuser merged you to the existing thread

why...it had nothing to do with this thread...it was for open discussion talking about the desire to not have fast pass return...and the reasons behind it

 

[yulilin3]

why...it had nothing to do with this thread...it was for open discussion talking about the desire to not have fast pass return...and the reasons behind it

That would go in the community forum then, not this forum

 

[shjrc371]

Stayed from August 25 through Sept. 1 at CR. Spent 4 days at MK, 2 at HS, 1 at AK, and 1 at EP. Masks were tough for DW and my oldest DS in the 100+ Real-Feel heat. The other DS, DD, and I thrive in hot weather so it was bearable just to be able to be back in WDW. Mask compliance was 99 % and social distancing measures by Disney were superb. Obviously, some people had different definitions of social distancing and proper mask wearing, but when dealing with the unpredictability inherent in human nature it is not unexpected. The measures I observed in FL were far better than anything I've seen in PA or NJ. Simply though, if one is worried about exposure to a disease in a pandemic, visiting the world's largest theme park during said pandemic is not advisable. Weekends were far more crowded than weekdays, but still far below crowd levels from the pre-Covid era.

We had a great time overall. Mobile ordering was easy, yet I miss the human interaction in ordering meals in person. Masks and distancing detract greatly from the customer experience that is the Disney brand.

 

[lelew]

W

I was also at MK yesterday and I'm always surprised by the amount of people that walk around in the rain with their paper/disposable masks on. It wasn't a light sprinkle either. Waterboarding yourself doesn't sound fun.

We were riding big thunder and as soon as the train pulled off it starting pouring rain. It was so bad I couldn't see on the ride. Our disposable mask was nasty including our backups because everything was drenched by the time we got off the ride. Thankfully the cast member told us to stay with her and she would have someone bring us new mask

 

[ksromack]

The highlight came at the end of the evening when we had a reservation for Oga's after park close. Reservation was for 7:45 but we weren't called in until about 8:00. By the time we finished at 8:45 we were not only the only ones left in the cantina but the last ones in GE! Had a CM meet us at the door as we exited and escorted us out of the land while giving us time to take a few last photos. Might be the highlight of the entire trip right there! Attaching a few pics from the end of the night although it looks like I didn't take any with my phone after leaving Oga's.

Oh, man. We have a "after park close" dinner ADR at 50's Prime Time, which I love btw but I really should have made it for Oga's since that is the area I find the most amazing in the dark. I may have to stalk for a late Oga's. Your pictures are lovely! We did see the land in the dark when we were there for the grand opening only it wasn't late at night, it was super early "before the sun rose" early morning. Nothing like the view of GE!

 

[ghtx]

Question for those that have been to AK in the last few days. Kali River Rapids, have they turned up the water force yet? When WDW first re-opened, I think I read here that someone was disappointed that Kali River Rapids had barely a splash. I go on that ride specifically to cool off by getting drenched. I will be there this weekend, I hope they turned up the splash!

We rode it on Sunday; there was still hardly any water.

 

[oceanmarina]

Stayed from August 25 through Sept. 1 at CR. Spent 4 days at MK, 2 at HS, 1 at AK, and 1 at EP. Masks were tough for DW and my oldest DS in the 100+ Real-Feel heat. The other DS, DD, and I thrive in hot weather so it was bearable just to be able to be back in WDW. Mask compliance was 99 % and social distancing measures by Disney were superb. Obviously, some people had different definitions of social distancing and proper mask wearing, but when dealing with the unpredictability inherent in human nature it is not unexpected. The measures I observed in FL were far better than anything I've seen in PA or NJ. Simply though, if one is worried about exposure to a disease in a pandemic, visiting the world's largest theme park during said pandemic is not advisable. Weekends were far more crowded than weekdays, but still far below crowd levels from the pre-Covid era.

We had a great time overall. Mobile ordering was easy, yet I miss the human interaction in ordering meals in person. Masks and distancing detract greatly from the customer experience that is the Disney brand.

Thanks for the update. We had similar dates (8/27-9/1) but unfortunately we had to canceled because Florida got put on the quarantine list and I had work starting 9/3. Your post made me feel better about how hot it was with the masks. Real feel 100* temps must have been ROUGH with masks. My DD ave DH are really heat sensitive. We go every August and are used to the heat when we go there but never wearing masks with heat like that. So your post made me feel better about canceling.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

I totally agree with you. It's has been amazing with the immersion. Its been a great day here. We will see you at Oga’s. Our reservation is at 630!

Lol I feel like such a creep any time I look at the people around me and think, do I possibly know them from the DIS?

FWIW we’re standing at a table by the door and I have a rather ostentatious dress on.

 

[ghtx]

We just got back from a five-night stay at OKW. Drove from Atlanta on Friday, Saturday at DHS, Sunday at AK, Monday at MK, Tuesday at resort pool and Disney Springs for dinner, Wednesday (today) drove home.

Overall a great trip (as always)! A lot more similar to previous trips than I thought it would be. Disney World is basically the same as it's always been, except that everyone is wearing masks and there's no more FastPass.

The wait times were pretty short. Basically, almost everything was a 20-minute wait all the time. I did not ever experience the parks being "empty;" it usually looked almost as crowded as it has in the past. Some parts were really congested, e.g. at lunchtime in the MK in the small world/Peter Pan bottleneck.

Saturday morning we arrived at DHS parking lot gate around 9:05 and were about 10 cars back. They started letting in cars around 9:15; we were in a slow lane (just one attendant for two lanes), so got through and parked around 9:25, then through temp check, security, and entry quickly and straight to MMRR queue, arriving around 9:35. The CM said it was about a 55-minute wait, which ended up being right. The line didn't start moving until 9:45. We were outside and three of us went for the ROTR boarding group at 10; I think my son had fastest fingers and got us BG #9! Which ended up actually cutting it a bit close; we were called while still in the MMRR queue and were worried about missing it, but ended up with about 20 minutes to spare. So we did MMRR (~1 hour wait, including before ride opened), ROTR (about 15 minute wait), MFSR (posted 30 but actually about 45, got stuck in a cleaning cycle), SDD (20 min), then lunch at 1:20 at Brown Derby (delicious), then Tot and RnRC (each about 20 min), then TSMM and Alien Saucers (each walk-ons), then our Oga's reservation (disappointed that we had a standing table w/ no chairs - wasn't much of a break), then some Galaxy's Edge souvenir shopping, then my daughter's Droid depot appt, and my other kids and I rode Star Tours twice, about 5 min wait each. We left around 5, having done every ride, plus Star Tours twice, plus a nice lunch and drinks at Oga's.

Sunday morning we arrived at AK parking lot around 7:30, went straight through, and were in the FoP queue by 7:45. Basically walked straight through the queue then waited about 5 min in the loading area. Then Na'vi river (about 15 min wait), Safari (5 min), Kali River (walk-on - no water), Everest (25 min), Dinosaur (25 min), and Triceratops (walk-on). Then it was 11am, and we had already done all seven rides in the park! We shopped a bit then had an early lunch at Tiffin's. Afterwards we decided to do one more ride on FoP, and it was just about a 25-minute wait. By then it was hot as blazes, and I wanted to stay longer to do the animal trails but no one else did, so we left around 1 or 1:30, having done every ride plus FoP twice. It rained most of the rest of the afternoon so I'm glad we left.

Monday morning 8:00 at the MK parking lot gate, let us in right around 8:00, ferry boat across then in the Mine Train queue by about 8:35. It was already running; we waited 30 min. Then Big Thunder (walk-on), Splash (20 min), Pirates (15 min), Jungle Cruise (20 min - cleaning cycle), Dole Whip break (no wait! - mobile order), Haunted Mansion (20 min - including an interminable 10 min without moving, presumably a cleaning), small world (20 min). Then monorail to Contemporary for lunch at Contempo cafe, back to the park a couple hours later (about 3pm). Barnstormer, Dumbo (got rained on), Teacups, all walk-on, then Space Mtn twice, about 5 min wait each time. Then the family left but I stayed on; the rain and clouds brought the temps down a lot and it wasn't raining anymore. Did Buzz (5 min), astro orbiter (15 min), Sorcerers for about 15 minutes, Swiss treehouse, Hall of Presidents, which let out perfectly right as the "Rainy Day Cavalcade" was coming through Liberty Square. Left around 6pm on the bus. That made about 15 rides, plus a few other attractions, and a 2-hour out-of-park lunch break, from 9-6.

So I would call that a pretty good trip! Wearing the face masks didn't bother me so much. The heat was horrible, true, but I don't think the masks really made it that much worse (maybe 1% worse). We usually park hop, but after this trip I might give that up. I liked focusing on just one park, taking a break via a sit-down air-conditioned lunch, and finishing early-ish. We aren't much for fireworks or parades either. I was really impressed with all of the meals we had (Brown Derby, Tiffins, Contempo, and Frontera at DS). We had a kitchen at OKW so cooked most breakfasts and dinners. Kind of getting nostalgic or whatever that our kids won't be kids forever! (They're now 8, 10, and 13.)

Can't wait to come back! Maybe next summer; I'm curious about how things will look by then.

 

[chicagoshannon]

We got group 14 this morning at DHS. I thought the crowds were incredibly heavy this morning. We probably went in the absolute wrong order for rides though. By about 4:30 crowds dearly started to thin out.

We had a fabulous day. Was pleasantly surprised by the mask situation. They seemed to have found a good balance of strict enforcement and reasonableness. It seemed as long as you were sitting at a table you could have your mask off. This was great because there aren't many no mask zones.

I fyi have to say it's not easy finding ice water at dhs. There is no where in you story land to get any. We also really miss having refillable chips like you can get at Sea World and Universal.

We can't wait to go on Ride again next week.

 

[ghtx]

More than enough coverage of mask compliance so a quick report of our experience beyond masks (we just arrived yesterday (Saturday))...

Checked in online at OKW. Worked flawlessly. Went direct to our room and used the app to open the door. We had reserved a 1BR and were thrilled to find that we were upgraded to a 2BR. It's just me & my wife on this trip so we don't need the extra space but it's really nice to experience the larger room. Wow, is it nice!

Jealous! We checked into OKW on Friday, with a 1 BR reservation, and didn't get upgraded. And there are five of us; we could have used the extra space!

 

[lelew]

We just got back from a five-night stay at OKW. Drove from Atlanta on Friday, Saturday at DHS, Sunday at AK, Monday at MK, Tuesday at resort pool and Disney Springs for dinner, Wednesday (today) drove home.

Overall a great trip (as always)! A lot more similar to previous trips than I thought it would be. Disney World is basically the same as it's always been, except that everyone is wearing masks and there's no more FastPass.

The wait times were pretty short. Basically, almost everything was a 20-minute wait all the time. I did not ever experience the parks being "empty;" it usually looked almost as crowded as it has in the past. Some parts were really congested, e.g. at lunchtime in the MK in the small world/Peter Pan bottleneck.

Saturday morning we arrived at DHS parking lot gate around 9:05 and were about 10 cars back. They started letting in cars around 9:15; we were in a slow lane (just one attendant for two lanes), so got through and parked around 9:25, then through temp check, security, and entry quickly and straight to MMRR queue, arriving around 9:35. The CM said it was about a 55-minute wait, which ended up being right. The line didn't start moving until 9:45. We were outside and three of us went for the ROTR boarding group at 10; I think my son had fastest fingers and got us BG #9! Which ended up actually cutting it a bit close; we were called while still in the MMRR queue and were worried about missing it, but ended up with about 20 minutes to spare. So we did MMRR (~1 hour wait, including before ride opened), ROTR (about 15 minute wait), MFSR (posted 30 but actually about 45, got stuck in a cleaning cycle), SDD (20 min), then lunch at 1:20 at Brown Derby (delicious), then Tot and RnRC (each about 20 min), then TSMM and Alien Saucers (each walk-ons), then our Oga's reservation (disappointed that we had a standing table w/ no chairs - wasn't much of a break), then some Galaxy's Edge souvenir shopping, then my daughter's Droid depot appt, and my other kids and I rode Star Tours twice, about 5 min wait each. We left around 5, having done every ride, plus Star Tours twice, plus a nice lunch and drinks at Oga's.

Sunday morning we arrived at AK parking lot around 7:30, went straight through, and were in the FoP queue by 7:45. Basically walked straight through the queue then waited about 5 min in the loading area. Then Na'vi river (about 15 min wait), Safari (5 min), Kali River (walk-on - no water), Everest (25 min), Dinosaur (25 min), and Triceratops (walk-on). Then it was 11am, and we had already done all seven rides in the park! We shopped a bit then had an early lunch at Tiffin's. Afterwards we decided to do one more ride on FoP, and it was just about a 25-minute wait. By then it was hot as blazes, and I wanted to stay longer to do the animal trails but no one else did, so we left around 1 or 1:30, having done every ride plus FoP twice. It rained most of the rest of the afternoon so I'm glad we left.

Monday morning 8:00 at the MK parking lot gate, let us in right around 8:00, ferry boat across then in the Mine Train queue by about 8:35. It was already running; we waited 30 min. Then Big Thunder (walk-on), Splash (20 min), Pirates (15 min), Jungle Cruise (20 min - cleaning cycle), Dole Whip break (no wait! - mobile order), Haunted Mansion (20 min - including an interminable 10 min without moving, presumably a cleaning), small world (20 min). Then monorail to Contemporary for lunch at Contempo cafe, back to the park a couple hours later (about 3pm). Barnstormer, Dumbo (got rained on), Teacups, all walk-on, then Space Mtn twice, about 5 min wait each time. Then the family left but I stayed on; the rain and clouds brought the temps down a lot and it wasn't raining anymore. Did Buzz (5 min), astro orbiter (15 min), Sorcerers for about 15 minutes, Swiss treehouse, Hall of Presidents, which let out perfectly right as the "Rainy Day Cavalcade" was coming through Liberty Square. Left around 6pm on the bus. That made about 15 rides, plus a few other attractions, and a 2-hour out-of-park lunch break, from 9-6.

So I would call that a pretty good trip! Wearing the face masks didn't bother me so much. The heat was horrible, true, but I don't think the masks really made it that much worse (maybe 1% worse). We usually park hop, but after this trip I might give that up. I liked focusing on just one park, taking a break via a sit-down air-conditioned lunch, and finishing early-ish. We aren't much for fireworks or parades either. I was really impressed with all of the meals we had (Brown Derby, Tiffins, Contempo, and Frontera at DS). We had a kitchen at OKW so cooked most breakfasts and dinners. Kind of getting nostalgic or whatever that our kids won't be kids forever! (They're now 8, 10, and 13.)

Can't wait to come back! Maybe next summer; I'm curious about how things will look by then.

My kids are 14 and over we been coming since they were babies. Sometimes I just want to cry when I dont see that sparkle in their eyes at Disney like when they where younger. Now I just smile at all the other little Angel's running around so happy to be here

 

[lindsaydavis1982]

Arrived at the park and thru security by 9:25.....got in line for Minnie and Mickey RR and were off the ride by 9:55. Went o Rock n Rollercoaster and walked on...were done by 9:58. Got a boarding group for star wars #23.

Do you happen to know if there were any other HS rides that open before 10am, besides MMRR and RnR?

 

[Buzz2014]

Can anyone tell me is they are selling Clorox to go wipes or any travel size wipes in the shops either in the park or any resorts. It would be nice to know if I run out while in the park I have options vs just sanitizer. A blog stated they were in AKL for 2.49 but not sure if that was one day and gone. Thanks

 

[backfire103]

Anyone gotten tested just to be safe when they get back? Going to try to go down in a few months when my work slows down and I can quarantine. Thinking about getting one of those Labcorp kits if I go.

 

[emtgirl4]

Lol I feel like such a creep any time I look at the people around me and think, do I possibly know them from the DIS?

FWIW we’re standing at a table by the door and I have a rather ostentatious dress on.

Oh shoot I'm just seeing this now. My daughter had on a white very in depth mickey and Minnie star wars dress. You might have seen her.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

Do you happen to know if there were any other HS rides that open before 10am, besides MMRR and RnR?

Slinky Dog Dash!

Can anyone tell me is they are selling Clorox to go wipes or any travel size wipes in the shops either in the park or any resorts. It would be nice to know if I run out while in the park I have options vs just sanitizer. A blog stated they were in AKL for 2.49 but not sure if that was one day and gone. Thanks

I have not seen them at our hotel (YC) or in any of the park shops we’ve stopped at (MK Emporium, DHS the big main one) - not to say they aren’t available somewhere but if that’s a concern for you i’d recommend packing some.