Love the World Showcase shirt!
Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping
Love the World Showcase shirt!
POOH&PIGLET
I love my DW, DDs, & DVC!
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2001
Lines today at Epcot were great.
Food lines in France (& some other places) were long in the evening.
Food lines in France (& some other places) were long in the evening.
jbrinkm
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2015
Thursday 8/19 Epcot
10:30 walk on frozen
10:45 Around the world, Visited all pavilions & watched shows. Ate from Greece, drank bubble tea, ate school bread, ice cream in France, Japan store (hours 2-9pm) - really fun store!
3:00pm Leave for break (sooo hot)
5pm Back to IG, did UK & Canada, kids got apple cider, also noodles & poutine
6pm started rides
walk on Figment
walk on Soarin
15 minute wait for Mission Space Orange (would have been 5 but there was a problem, held for 10 minutes extra)
walk on Spaceship Earth
23 minutes for Test Track (including car design)
8:30pm got impossible sliders & chili at Earth Eats, back to France for dessert but line was too long so we plopped down on the bridge and watched the fireworks. A crowd, but not huge, and no problems getting out of the park.
10:30 walk on frozen
10:45 Around the world, Visited all pavilions & watched shows. Ate from Greece, drank bubble tea, ate school bread, ice cream in France, Japan store (hours 2-9pm) - really fun store!
3:00pm Leave for break (sooo hot)
5pm Back to IG, did UK & Canada, kids got apple cider, also noodles & poutine
6pm started rides
walk on Figment
walk on Soarin
15 minute wait for Mission Space Orange (would have been 5 but there was a problem, held for 10 minutes extra)
walk on Spaceship Earth
23 minutes for Test Track (including car design)
8:30pm got impossible sliders & chili at Earth Eats, back to France for dessert but line was too long so we plopped down on the bridge and watched the fireworks. A crowd, but not huge, and no problems getting out of the park.
alicat130
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2014
we arrived this afternoon and didn’t get to a lot at MK, due to being evacuated off the peoplemover. Masks were required on the ride, but saw many passengers removing their masks (before the ride broke down).
DeeBee3
I'm not grumpy; you're too happy.
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2020
Trip 8/12-8/19 (LONGish):
We just finished our most magical trip. I am so glad we went and even though we were anxious about covid; we really needed the break. Haven't been anywhere outside our immediate area since our last Disney trip in 2019 (haha).
Although I complained continuously about the humidity, we had the most fabulous time. Hardly any waits for rides in any park. I think longest was for Runaway Railway. MK was the most crowded, but still we really didn't wait more than 20-30 and that was only for BTMR and SDMT. Everything else was literally a walk-on or close to it.
We hit all 4 parks.
HS: Did not get BG.
Completed everything else we wanted to do even with break in middle of day and back at night.
Epcot: We spent 2 days just enjoying the festival and doing Remy's scavenger hunt with our kids. They loved it. No waits for any rides, including Frozen. The park was "empty" on Sunday. It was marvelous.
MK: The most crowded, but we sorta went where there was space. Again, we spent 2 days and took our time and breaks in the day. Even did SDMT within 30 mins.
AK: Might have been the hottest and we definitely walked the most. We enjoyed it all. What else can I say?
Covid-related: I still do curbside groceries at home, and we don't eat in restaurants so we loved mobile order at Disney. We were vigilant about washing hands, and I did not let my kids play with all the interactive items in the queues. Some touching is unavoidable, and that's why we wash hands! I also had about a million antibacterial hand wipes with me.
Cast members were great as usual. I saw them literally on hands and needs cleaning up messes on floors and really keeping up the place so I think they do a great job. And how do they keep those white uniforms so clean??? I could not keep that up.
(writing in caps for excitement now) SPEAKING OF BOMA, we were wandering around Jambo looking at the animals and the different outlooks and we stumbled upon a cast promotional photo shoot for the opening of the restaurant!!!! They let us stay outside and look at the savanna and then we had to wait for them to finish before going back in. The cool thing was they showed us the pics of the shoot and the manager spoke to us and everyone said hello. Guys, it was literally magical and I started crying. I held in sobbing, but there were tears and I had to dab them.
A grown woman with a family and I cry over Disney things. I mean, I started laughing at the same time. It was a great trip and I hope you all had or will have a great time this month and in the future!
We just finished our most magical trip. I am so glad we went and even though we were anxious about covid; we really needed the break. Haven't been anywhere outside our immediate area since our last Disney trip in 2019 (haha).
Although I complained continuously about the humidity, we had the most fabulous time. Hardly any waits for rides in any park. I think longest was for Runaway Railway. MK was the most crowded, but still we really didn't wait more than 20-30 and that was only for BTMR and SDMT. Everything else was literally a walk-on or close to it.
We hit all 4 parks.
HS: Did not get BG.
Completed everything else we wanted to do even with break in middle of day and back at night.Epcot: We spent 2 days just enjoying the festival and doing Remy's scavenger hunt with our kids. They loved it. No waits for any rides, including Frozen. The park was "empty" on Sunday. It was marvelous.
MK: The most crowded, but we sorta went where there was space. Again, we spent 2 days and took our time and breaks in the day. Even did SDMT within 30 mins.
AK: Might have been the hottest and we definitely walked the most. We enjoyed it all. What else can I say?
Covid-related: I still do curbside groceries at home, and we don't eat in restaurants so we loved mobile order at Disney. We were vigilant about washing hands, and I did not let my kids play with all the interactive items in the queues. Some touching is unavoidable, and that's why we wash hands! I also had about a million antibacterial hand wipes with me.
Cast members were great as usual. I saw them literally on hands and needs cleaning up messes on floors and really keeping up the place so I think they do a great job. And how do they keep those white uniforms so clean??? I could not keep that up.
(writing in caps for excitement now) SPEAKING OF BOMA, we were wandering around Jambo looking at the animals and the different outlooks and we stumbled upon a cast promotional photo shoot for the opening of the restaurant!!!! They let us stay outside and look at the savanna and then we had to wait for them to finish before going back in. The cool thing was they showed us the pics of the shoot and the manager spoke to us and everyone said hello. Guys, it was literally magical and I started crying. I held in sobbing, but there were tears and I had to dab them.
A grown woman with a family and I cry over Disney things. I mean, I started laughing at the same time. It was a great trip and I hope you all had or will have a great time this month and in the future!
Bibbobboo2u
Always planning something Disney!
- Joined
- Oct 1, 2016
Hoping someone at WDW now can tell us if masks are required on BTMR, Splash, 7DMT based on their inside and outside design. Thanks!
BroadwayHermione5
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2017
I saw on another thread BTMRR is on once you reach inside portion.
Been here since 8/15. Some thoughts:
Checked in BRV 8/15 & RR 8/19, both 2-bedroom. Room-ready times were exactly 4:40PM for both.
Very light crowds overall. Seems like the best time to go is at night. Without fastpass, people don’t want to risk not getting stuff done so the mornings are more packed. Most attractions seemed like walk ons later in the day, at least this week. Flight Passage was never posted below 25 mins but a walk on as soon as 5PM on Wednesday.
When we arrived on Sunday we were in Galaxy’s Edge and found out after leaving they accepted stand-by waiting for RoTR as we walked by it. We had just assumed it was boarding groups only so there was no clear indication they were accepting stand by. Maybe on the app? It was dark though and we were conditioned to the current system.
Edit: One other thing, Park Pass reservations have been available for every park all day, so this allowed us to make last minute changes. We figured we would actually try getting a boarding group for RoTR everyday and change the park if we didn’t go. Today we got Group 8 which was waaaay too early for our group so we ended up canceling it.
Checked in BRV 8/15 & RR 8/19, both 2-bedroom. Room-ready times were exactly 4:40PM for both.
Very light crowds overall. Seems like the best time to go is at night. Without fastpass, people don’t want to risk not getting stuff done so the mornings are more packed. Most attractions seemed like walk ons later in the day, at least this week. Flight Passage was never posted below 25 mins but a walk on as soon as 5PM on Wednesday.
When we arrived on Sunday we were in Galaxy’s Edge and found out after leaving they accepted stand-by waiting for RoTR as we walked by it. We had just assumed it was boarding groups only so there was no clear indication they were accepting stand by. Maybe on the app? It was dark though and we were conditioned to the current system.
Edit: One other thing, Park Pass reservations have been available for every park all day, so this allowed us to make last minute changes. We figured we would actually try getting a boarding group for RoTR everyday and change the park if we didn’t go. Today we got Group 8 which was waaaay too early for our group so we ended up canceling it.
Last edited:
mantysk8coach
Proud member of the DIS chapter of NKOTB Anonymous
- Joined
- May 30, 2005
Question - do they still sell those mister bottle/fans in the parks?
POOH&PIGLET
I love my DW, DDs, & DVC!
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2001
Mask info ...
At AK today & are in the Safari queue.
CM at the entrance greeted us (all masked as we approached) with, "Masks are optional, we are an outdoor attraction."
At AK today & are in the Safari queue.
CM at the entrance greeted us (all masked as we approached) with, "Masks are optional, we are an outdoor attraction."
Mamabun
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 16, 2017
Yep, all over the place.
We spent the morning in MK today, 8/19. We decided not to really rope drop like we normally would because wait times have been pretty decent and we figured it would be nicer to wait for space later while we could be inside instead of waiting before park open outside. So we ended up near main street bakery at 9 when the park opened. We were able to accomplish Buzz 2x, Space (20 min wait), tea cups, dumbo 2x, ariel, waffle break, philharmagic, princess cavalcade, dole whip break, and main street shopping by 1230. We could have done plenty more rides with little to no wait but after walking 14k steps each day for the past few days, we were ready to be carted out of there XD
Mask compliance was mostly good. There was an incident in space when a couple had their masks under their chins almost the entire queue, another when the duo in the clamshell next to us on ariel took theirs off and we asked them to put them back on, and while waiting in the inside queue area for philharmagic, a man was not wearing a mask at all even though his entire group had them on. We thought maybe he had a medical excuse but nope! He put it on when he got close to the cast member
Also in case anyone is staying at contemporary, they are not running any boats from MK to or from contemp, nor are they running boats between the other resorts and contemp. Took us a hot minute to get back from Wilderness Lodge today lol
Why are they not running boats? Is that a temporary thing or have they not been running for awhile?
Geomom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 17, 2010
Since they reopened last July--no boats to/from contemporary. Wilderness Lodge boat stops at fort wilderness on the way to magic kingdom...or at least it did the other night. And I believe magic kingdom boats to poly and grand Floridian are running.
That's just odd. I confirmed that boats are running from the Poly
jbrinkm
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2015
Friday AM 8/20 Animal Kingdom
7:00am waiting for bus (bus came at 7:20, I think it might have been the first one)
7:35 arrive AK
7:50 walk through FOP line (really only "waited" two times, approximately 5-min each
8:38 off FOP, walk on Na'vi
9 something, walk on Everest
9 something, walk on Dinosaur
10:00 walk on Safari
10:30am hot, hungry & tired, went to Yak & Yeti to see if we could eat early (had 11:30 reservation & Landy's) which they accommodated!
11:45 two more walk on Everest's
12:45 on bus back to YC
@POOH&PIGLET, we are on the same schedule so far! I was looking for you at Epcot yesterday in your disboards shirt, but alas, no such luck...
7:00am waiting for bus (bus came at 7:20, I think it might have been the first one)
7:35 arrive AK
7:50 walk through FOP line (really only "waited" two times, approximately 5-min each
8:38 off FOP, walk on Na'vi
9 something, walk on Everest
9 something, walk on Dinosaur
10:00 walk on Safari
10:30am hot, hungry & tired, went to Yak & Yeti to see if we could eat early (had 11:30 reservation & Landy's) which they accommodated!
11:45 two more walk on Everest's
12:45 on bus back to YC
@POOH&PIGLET, we are on the same schedule so far! I was looking for you at Epcot yesterday in your disboards shirt, but alas, no such luck...
jbrinkm
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2015
We'll be at MK later today. Not going on Splash, but I'll see about the other two!
Sounds like the parks are empty
POOH&PIGLET
I love my DW, DDs, & DVC!
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2001
Today is our last of 10 park days (3 MK, 3 Epcot, 2 Studios & 2 AK).
AK & Epcot have seemed empty & we did everything we wanted.
Studios is a shell of a park - not much to do & somewhat long (unshaded lines). MK was a disappointment all 3 days for me w/o FP+ & crowds / long lines (never were able to hit Jungle Cruise) lines were consistently long.
Crowds way down this week compared to last week.
tofubeast
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 10, 2006
We visited from 8/11 to 8/16. It was hot, but we knew what we were getting into. Most people were masked indoors and I didn't see any big problems thank goodness. Mobile QS ordering was easy and never had trouble getting the times we wanted. Line times were a bit inflated except for Haunted Mansion.
Skyliner: Pretty much a walk-on with no wait every time. I rode it first thing from BC to DHS, and in the afternoon. We had the gondola to ourselves. Only once was it shut down due to weather. CM told me that lightning and/or winds over 30 miles cause temporary shutdowns.
DHS: We were successful in getting BG for Rise. Follow the tips in the pinned thread. I used cell service vs. wifi as I found the speeds to be stronger for cell at Beach Club. Got to park around 8:10 both mornings shortly before the turnstiles opened. Rope drop (8:30 am) for Slinky and on very quickly. Plenty of time to get over to MickeyMinnieRR with a short wait. We did single rider over and over (zero wait) for SR and often got to ride together. I highly recommend the single rider line. Docking Bay 7 is DELICIOUS!!!! No problem getting a quick food order window there. We helped friends get Rise BG at 1pm while there with cellphone service. We also rode Slinky toward the end of the night with just a 15-minute wait. I strongly recommend taking a break and then heading to DHS around 7pm to closing as wait times go WAY down esp for TSM, TT, and RnRC.
EPCOT: Did not go in the AM hours, so I cannot speak about rope drop, etc. Walked on Soarin' a couple of times and Spaceship Earth. We did single rider for TT and ended up being in the same car 2 of 3 times with little to no wait. Food lines were some of the longest I have ever seen (yes, weekends in past too) for Food Booths. I was surprised how empty Via Napoli was for a 6pm ADR despite it being very hard to get an ADR there. I am guessing due to staffing issues. I did not stay any night for EPCOT Forever, but there didn't appear to be any heavy crowds around the lake to watch it as I'd seen in previous years with IllumiNations. Food at San Angel and Biergarten was (still) good, with the former being better. Great service at all EPCOT restaurants. Regal Eagle was delicious (even for a veggie like me). The berry mule is yummy! CM interaction was great and friendly.
MK: Rope dropped and ended up waiting on the bridge to Tomorrowland until 9 in the hot sun for well over half an hour. Probably could have gotten there a little later for RD. We rode Space with little wait and then marched over to Splash. Probably a 30m wait, followed by a short wait on Thunder. Then went to Jungle and it was maybe 15 minutes or so, same with Pirates. We then took a 'much needed' Dole Whip break and caught the tail end of a cavalcade. Happy to catch The Three Caballeros sans Donald. REsted in HAll of Prez and then an easy mobile order experience with Columbia House (which I had ordered while in JC line earlier). The longest afternoon wait was for Haunted (nearly an hour). Short afternoon waits for Dumbo, Little Mermaid, and Goofy. We then headed out to EPCOT.
Random Notes:
--We had our best TS meal hands down at Sebastian's Bistro. Best bang for the buck. Excellent food and services. I also appreciated that the tables were still spaced out for distancing. If going there from the Skyliner, take the Riviera exit and walk as it is closer to there.
--Beach Club: Can you believe someone stole my daughter's shoes at Stormalong Bay? They were under a table with our other shoes. VERY random. CM was super surprised. Plenty of seating available for SB and no wait to enter. Slide wait was minimal if at all. Lunch at B&C was nice.
--We did a one-night "pre" Disney resort stay at Homewood Suites by Hilton at Flamingo Crossing. It just opened in Feb '21. The room was clean and very nice with a kitchen. The pool has a slide and zero entry. Free parking and hot breakfast. It is just minutes away (West) from Coronado Springs for reference. This area has LOTS of hotels that have just opened or are opening. There will be restaurants, shops, Target, and Walgreens. Disney college program apartments are opening here. Very convenient so keep in mind for a future stay.
Skyliner: Pretty much a walk-on with no wait every time. I rode it first thing from BC to DHS, and in the afternoon. We had the gondola to ourselves. Only once was it shut down due to weather. CM told me that lightning and/or winds over 30 miles cause temporary shutdowns.
DHS: We were successful in getting BG for Rise. Follow the tips in the pinned thread. I used cell service vs. wifi as I found the speeds to be stronger for cell at Beach Club. Got to park around 8:10 both mornings shortly before the turnstiles opened. Rope drop (8:30 am) for Slinky and on very quickly. Plenty of time to get over to MickeyMinnieRR with a short wait. We did single rider over and over (zero wait) for SR and often got to ride together. I highly recommend the single rider line. Docking Bay 7 is DELICIOUS!!!! No problem getting a quick food order window there. We helped friends get Rise BG at 1pm while there with cellphone service. We also rode Slinky toward the end of the night with just a 15-minute wait. I strongly recommend taking a break and then heading to DHS around 7pm to closing as wait times go WAY down esp for TSM, TT, and RnRC.
EPCOT: Did not go in the AM hours, so I cannot speak about rope drop, etc. Walked on Soarin' a couple of times and Spaceship Earth. We did single rider for TT and ended up being in the same car 2 of 3 times with little to no wait. Food lines were some of the longest I have ever seen (yes, weekends in past too) for Food Booths. I was surprised how empty Via Napoli was for a 6pm ADR despite it being very hard to get an ADR there. I am guessing due to staffing issues. I did not stay any night for EPCOT Forever, but there didn't appear to be any heavy crowds around the lake to watch it as I'd seen in previous years with IllumiNations. Food at San Angel and Biergarten was (still) good, with the former being better. Great service at all EPCOT restaurants. Regal Eagle was delicious (even for a veggie like me). The berry mule is yummy! CM interaction was great and friendly.
MK: Rope dropped and ended up waiting on the bridge to Tomorrowland until 9 in the hot sun for well over half an hour. Probably could have gotten there a little later for RD. We rode Space with little wait and then marched over to Splash. Probably a 30m wait, followed by a short wait on Thunder. Then went to Jungle and it was maybe 15 minutes or so, same with Pirates. We then took a 'much needed' Dole Whip break and caught the tail end of a cavalcade. Happy to catch The Three Caballeros sans Donald. REsted in HAll of Prez and then an easy mobile order experience with Columbia House (which I had ordered while in JC line earlier). The longest afternoon wait was for Haunted (nearly an hour). Short afternoon waits for Dumbo, Little Mermaid, and Goofy. We then headed out to EPCOT.
Random Notes:
--We had our best TS meal hands down at Sebastian's Bistro. Best bang for the buck. Excellent food and services. I also appreciated that the tables were still spaced out for distancing. If going there from the Skyliner, take the Riviera exit and walk as it is closer to there.
--Beach Club: Can you believe someone stole my daughter's shoes at Stormalong Bay? They were under a table with our other shoes. VERY random. CM was super surprised. Plenty of seating available for SB and no wait to enter. Slide wait was minimal if at all. Lunch at B&C was nice.
--We did a one-night "pre" Disney resort stay at Homewood Suites by Hilton at Flamingo Crossing. It just opened in Feb '21. The room was clean and very nice with a kitchen. The pool has a slide and zero entry. Free parking and hot breakfast. It is just minutes away (West) from Coronado Springs for reference. This area has LOTS of hotels that have just opened or are opening. There will be restaurants, shops, Target, and Walgreens. Disney college program apartments are opening here. Very convenient so keep in mind for a future stay.
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