Quick and dirty trip report:
1. Boardwalk for 7 nights. Limited quick food options close by. We ate a lot of pizza. Loved the hotel and clown pool, though the pool heater was broken and left me frigid and my daughter with blue lips LOL.
2. Parks seemed - I'm guessing - at half capacity. Not empty, but not packed either. It felt like maybe the 1990s? Epcot was the only park that actually seemed empty.
3. Food options were far more limited, and not flexible. I would strongly suggest making sit down lunch reservations at the (now) 60 day mark. It's a nice break for a meal and from masks. Don't count on making last minute reservations.
4. I'm a mask wearing person, but am not overly OCD about COVID. I felt fine and perfectly safe - just as safe as at my local store. I grabbed hand sanitizer when I saw it. Photopass to me is a bust with masks, though.
5. LOVED the mini parades. I hope they keep them.
6. We had a
DAS pass, so I can't comment on whether line times were accurate. I can say most rides had a 20-40 minute posted time. I feel like we are getting to the point that Fastpass would be needed. Use the mornings - we did a lot of Fantasyland at rope drop. Posted wait times for the best rides did not necessarily drop at the end of the day - but again, ACTUAL wait times I'm not sure of.
7. Mask wearing really did not bother us. Even my three year old was fine. She only had issues when she was wanting to nap - we have a cute picture of her napping in a stroller, her mask covering her face and thumb. I was more frustrated with the limited entrance and exits - necessary, I understand, but at times I had to walk a block to find an entrance.
8. Loved the newer rides. Mickey and Minnie's was a hit with us, even when half our party got stuck! ROTR was also awesome. Finally rode Slinky Dog. My 3 year old is tall, over 40 inches, and rode everything! Newer rides are MUCH better equipped to handle handicapped visitors.
The one incident that sticks out in my mind was at the Contemporary. We walked over from MK to catch a Disney Springs bus (again, dinner is limited, so Disney Springs or bust). Bus #1 was full, and a line of people were sitting on benches waiting. So we got in the back of the line, with Grandpa and his
scooter. Bus #2 came, and was filled. So at that point, Grandpa needed the restroom. I sat on the bench, front of the line of 15-20 people, waiting on Bus #3. A lady on a scooter comes past the line, and has a large group. Bus #3 comes, so we all stand to move forward. Grandpa is already back with his scooter, and Lady has a fit. She starts arguing that she was there, and has a party of NINE. The bus driver was young, kept saying he wasn't there, and puts the party of nine on the bus. Chaos ensues. Finally, a nice couple beside of me who were also arguing state they were in line, we were too, and that scooter lady was behind everyone. Bus driver loads us, then Grandpa with his scooter. At that point, party of 9 is on the bus and doesn't exit, but a man in the 9 says he "wants to stay with his wife" and gets off. Lady again starts yelling at the bus driver.
I am pretty sure Lady on Scooter did not realize that Grandpa was with me - Grandpa and Grandma ended up a couple of people behind me, and when boarded, sat by the scooter instead of us. That's an honest mistake. What I am flabbergasted about is that the Lady on the Scooter actually thought her party of 9, plus her, should skip the 15-20 people in line because she had a scooter. That was her goal. She thought she was the first scooter there, so she had her party of 9 board the bus before everyone else. They moved to the front of the line on arrival, and planned to jump the line. The issue was that we had a scooter too. Her husband left the bus because he "wanted to stay with his wife" - which would have happened naturally if they had not jumped the line. I feel so sorry for the groups of people behind us. I think Disney needs some "Line Starts Here" signs or something, because this was not necessary. Some folks said Contemporary had an employee there in the morning so it was not a problem then. They also really need a Disney Springs bus at the MK - there's no reason for us to walk all the way to Contemporary.
I'm exhausted, my daughter got a ton of toys, and I'm ready to go back to work - so all in all a good vacation! I'm hoping next trip we take it slower. We did a lot this week and went a lot faster than I had intended! My daughter and I are taking a special surprise trip in March, and I'm hoping to take it MUCH slower.
