Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[Ejw5]

Can I choose a later time though, and not just the first one that shows up?

I’ve seen many how to use genie plus videos that say to select the first time that pops up and then try modifying to a later time

 

[Ejw5]

I’ve seen many how to use genie plus videos that say to select the first time that pops up and then try modifying to a later time

Or you can simply refresh until you see a later time appear.

 

[leeniewdw]

I’ve seen many how to use genie plus videos that say to select the first time that pops up and then try modifying to a later time

Or you can simply refresh until you see a later time appear.

It’s better to grab a time/ride when you have a chance and then work on modifying that reservation. That way your 2 hour timer starts again for the next LL. If you wait to grab a ride, that “wait” time is wasted as your timer won’t start again until you make your selection.

This was my first trip with the modify option. In some cases it was instrumental to maximize the advantages of G+. In one case it was probably just a waste of my time. We had gone from DHS to AK in the evening (after a break) and we wanted an Everest LL but the return times were too soon. I spent time all afternoon when we were back at the hotel checking and modifying to get EE into the later evening. By the time we went to use it, the standby line would have been fine. In fact, our Dinosaur LL had been converted into a multi-experience pass, so we rode EE with 2 LLs back to back and then used the Standby line for a 3rd time. The only difference was we walked a few more steps because the standby queue was set up longer, lol.

 

[dizneedoll]

Can I choose a later time though, and not just the first one that shows up?

You can try modifying G+ for later times but you can't pick your times.

 

[gorkt]

Yeah I have had pretty good luck just refreshing to get times that I want - it can take 5 minutes or so but eventually something usually comes up.

 

[leeniewdw]

Yeah I have had pretty good luck just refreshing to get times that I want - it can take 5 minutes or so but eventually something usually comes up.

This was my experience the first 2 times I used G+. This trip (last Sat/Sun/Mon) it was a different story for HS (I didn't use for MK since we did an AH). It depends on the ride. We got a too early SDD return time and by the time I refreshed it was too late. I looked at TP and it ended up being an 8 day, so our experience in that park was vastly different than our other 2 G+ trips.

 

[NavyDad]

Here now! We went to MK yesterday and had a fantastic day. I signed up for Genie+ At midnight and booked our first LL for Splash at 7AM. I modified it a few times because we didn’t get to the parks until 11.

We arrived at the hotel to Goofy and Donald roaming in front of Pop Century and hopped on a bus around 10:30 (line was quite backed up at Pop but they dispatched 3 busses so that took care of things) and were in the parks shortly after. We reactivated my son’s DAS pass and enjoyed riding the train for the first time since 2018! We headed to Splash for a farewell ride and kicked off the day.

I won’t go into time stamp detail, but by the time we ended our day around 8:30 by utilizing the DAS and Genie+ we went on: Splash Mountain x3, Pirates x2, Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Seven Dwarves Mine Train, Winnie the Pooh, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Dumbo, Buzz, The Little Mermaid, the People Mover, and watched Philharmagic. We also had a fantastic lunch at Skipper Canteen. Genie+ was much much more effective this trip than the last time I tried to use it shortly after it’s launch. Obviously MK is a better park for it than some of the others.

It was a fantastic day and I was shocked to see the crowd levels were much lower than our last trip here. I expected mobs due to the marathon but I could actually walk without much difficulty in places that are traditionally crowded like the area in front of Small World. We are heading to MK after hours tonight, EPCOT tomorrow, and HS after hours Wednesday so I will try to keep you updated!

We have found that week in between the marathon and MKL weekend to be an absolute gem. Lowest crowd levels I have ever seen at WDW through the week and then pick up a little bit starting Friday of MLK weekend. You can usually catch the first day of the Arts Fest which is awesome. Just a great time to go to WDW.

 

[SkyGuy]

We have found that week in between the marathon and MKL weekend to be an absolute gem. Lowest crowd levels I have ever seen at WDW through the week and then pick up a little bit starting Friday of MLK weekend. You can usually catch the first day of the Arts Fest which is awesome. Just a great time to go to WDW.

We just left after five days post marathon. It was crazy crowded - way more humanity than I have seen in the past few years this week. So many marathoners (identified by wearing their medals several days after the events) stayed after the race, which we hadn’t seen in the past (or in the past the runners didn’t wear their medals for days). We had no issues using Genie+ to get everything we wanted when we wanted, but if you were flying by the seat of your pants, expected a lull, or not purchasing Genie+, you would have been in for a rude awakening. Disney Springs on Wednesday late morning/early afternoon was insane!

 

[bjscheel]

We just left after five days post marathon. It was crazy crowded - way more humanity than I have seen in the past few years this week. So many marathoners (identified by wearing their medals several days after the events) stayed after the race, which we hadn’t seen in the past (or in the past the runners didn’t wear their medals for days). We had no issues using Genie+ to get everything we wanted when we wanted, but if you were flying by the seat of your pants, expected a lull, or not purchasing Genie+, you would have been in for a rude awakening. Disney Springs on Wednesday late morning/early afternoon was insane!

Same, was there 1/8-1/13 and was expecting it to be quieter. We did not do Genie+ and did good with rope drops and evenings but HS on 1/9 would have been brutal had we not been part of a VIP tour.

 

[gorkt]

1/11 recap - I booked G+ but it was a bit of a waste, especially since we had no desire to ride Frozen and rode Remy earlier in the week. This was our Epcot to DHS day with After Hours at night. I got a boarding group for GOTG and booked Test Track LL. We arrived at 10:30, rode TT, then our GOTG virtual queue popped early so we rode that, and then rode Spaceship Earth, and Living with the Land, ate a late lunch at Space 220 and then went back for a midday rest. My husband wasn’t feeling great and wanted to be rested for After Hours, so the rest of the family headed to DHS early.

I booked a few afternoon DHS rides during the afternoon, but they were really unnecessary. We basically wandered around Star Wars and ate snacks. My husband got to the park around 9:15pm and we started the After Hours party which was great! We walked on every major ride, ate a bunch of “free” snacks, and even had time for a quick dinner at Woodys. I highly recommend that party. It was wonderful to have the park so quiet.

 

[bjscheel]

We were there last week (1/8-1/13). Sunshine Flyer worked timely and smoothly, once we found where they were in the airport.

Expecting a fairly low crowd week, we decided not to pay for Genie+. This was our 10th trip and we didn't need to ride everything, but this time we did have a first-timer with us so we did want to hit the highlights for him. We did end up riding nearly every ride and those we skipped were by choice such as Astro Orbiter, Triceratop Spin, etc. Our group was ages 21-52.

Our success was due to being at Skyliner or busses at 7:00 am for 8:30 early entries, the ability to walk quickly at rope drop, and also riding in the evenings/hitting the big ones during fireworks.

HS would have been the day for Genie+, the lines were outrageous most of the day.

 

[lorimt]

A summary of our experiences 1/1-1/6:

Crowds and wait times: Yowzers. Our last trip was March 2020 and I didn't feel like the crowds were much higher this time around but the wait times were outrageous. I was really good at the old fast pass system and was able to work the system to get Fast passes for most rides but I wasn't as successful with Genie+ so we had several 60+ wait times through the trip.

Genie+: I hated paying for it and it was $29 the first few days we were there but it was worth it. We skipped it our first day at Epcot since I saw so many say you don't need it at EP and AK but that 100 minute wait for Remy was awful. We bought it for every other park day. Refresh, refresh, refresh. We were able to modify to earlier times several times and get things that were previously gone. We were not able to get RnR or TT in HS because we prioritized MMRR and MFSR for our younger boys. Had no issues getting it for most rides at MK and AK. Bought ILL for Rise only since we haven't ridden it before and skipped the others since we got into the virtual queue for Guardians and have previously ridden FOP and SDMT.

Deluxe Extended Evening Hours: Amazing for MK. We were able to ride Seven Dwarves 2-3 times in a row with minimal waits and Big Thunder 5-6 times with only a wait the first time. Peter Pan had an extremely long line at around 30 minutes into the extra hours so we jumped out of line. Didn't try to ride anything else and we left the park with about 20 minute left because we were exhausted. Didn't enjoy the extra hours at Epcot. We got in line for Remy about an hour before the parked closed (probably a poor choice) and that ate up the first 40 minutes of EEH. We split up after that and half went to TT and half to FEA and those had wait times of around 30 minutes each. We could have hopped on another ride at the end but we were tired so we left. We were able to get into the virtual queue for Guardians but somehow missed the notification when it was our time but we had ridden it earlier in the day and were ok with missing it the second time. We saw several people that weren't staying in deluxe resorts trying to bully cast members into letting them on rides at both parks and multiple rides. Please be nice to cast members. They don't make the rules.

Quick service: Do the mobile order and plan early. It was such a time saver but sometimes you would have to waIt an hour for an available time so start working on your order an hour before you want to eat.

Table service: We had all good meals but Tiffins is hands down the best meal we have ever had at WDW. Mama Melrose was good and the service was great but we had to wait 40 minutes for our table which threw off our evening ride plans. I had stacked LL and we ran out of time and lost our TSMM LL because the park closed before we could get there.

Shoes: I have had issues with blisters in the past so I brought Body Glide and moleskin and needed neither! I wore Adidas Cloudfoams which were comfy the whole trip except in the rain. Zero water protection. Within a few minutes of it starting to rain my shoes and socks were soaked!

Caribbean Beach Resort: we stayed there our first night because prices on 1/1 for hotels were outrageous. We were in one of the new Little Mermaid rooms. Great layout for a small room with 5. We love the pull down beds which gives more room during the day when it is folded up but that couch is as hard as a rock!

BLT: Our first time there. Loved the convenience of being on the monorail and walkable to MK. The monorail was down when we tried to go back to the room for a mid day break so that was a bummer to walk when we were tired but transportation was great every other time. Staff was great as well and housekeeping came every day when we were expecting every other day. Loved seeing fireworks from the bridge at night. We had a one bedroom and love the extra space and the extra bathroom. Other than location, I can't say that the resort was worth the price we paid. It was a very average hotel room for $900 a night and it does need a renovation. The carpet and couch had stains. Who puts a cream colored couch in a hotel room?!?!? We stayed at Kidani last time and much prefer that resort except for the inconvenient location.

Southwest Airlines: Boy were we nervous leading up to our trip but we has zero issues. Both flights were on time. We decided to carry on which we don't normally do but I wasn't putting my bags in the hands of Southwest when there were still thousands of bags stranded across the nation.

MCO: Our flight left at 9pm so I was expecting lower crowds. Checked the website for security waits before we left and they looked good but we thought it was best to still get there 3 hours in advance. My DH and I have precheck and there wasn't a single person in line but our adult son doesn't and it took him 45 minutes to get through security. We had plenty of time but I'm glad we got there early or I would have been very stressed.

 

[Disneyhanna]

A summary of our experiences 1/1-1/6:

Crowds and wait times: Yowzers. Our last trip was March 2020 and I didn't feel like the crowds were much higher this time around but the wait times were outrageous. I was really good at the old fast pass system and was able to work the system to get Fast passes for most rides but I wasn't as successful with Genie+ so we had several 60+ wait times through the trip.

Genie+: I hated paying for it and it was $29 the first few days we were there but it was worth it. We skipped it our first day at Epcot since I saw so many say you don't need it at EP and AK but that 100 minute wait for Remy was awful. We bought it for every other park day. Refresh, refresh, refresh. We were able to modify to earlier times several times and get things that were previously gone. We were not able to get RnR or TT in HS because we prioritized MMRR and MFSR for our younger boys. Had no issues getting it for most rides at MK and AK. Bought ILL for Rise only since we haven't ridden it before and skipped the others since we got into the virtual queue for Guardians and have previously ridden FOP and SDMT.

Deluxe Extended Evening Hours: Amazing for MK. We were able to ride Seven Dwarves 2-3 times in a row with minimal waits and Big Thunder 5-6 times with only a wait the first time. Peter Pan had an extremely long line at around 30 minutes into the extra hours so we jumped out of line. Didn't try to ride anything else and we left the park with about 20 minute left because we were exhausted. Didn't enjoy the extra hours at Epcot. We got in line for Remy about an hour before the parked closed (probably a poor choice) and that ate up the first 40 minutes of EEH. We split up after that and half went to TT and half to FEA and those had wait times of around 30 minutes each. We could have hopped on another ride at the end but we were tired so we left. We were able to get into the virtual queue for Guardians but somehow missed the notification when it was our time but we had ridden it earlier in the day and were ok with missing it the second time. We saw several people that weren't staying in deluxe resorts trying to bully cast members into letting them on rides at both parks and multiple rides. Please be nice to cast members. They don't make the rules.

Quick service: Do the mobile order and plan early. It was such a time saver but sometimes you would have to waIt an hour for an available time so start working on your order an hour before you want to eat.

Table service: We had all good meals but Tiffins is hands down the best meal we have ever had at WDW. Mama Melrose was good and the service was great but we had to wait 40 minutes for our table which threw off our evening ride plans. I had stacked LL and we ran out of time and lost our TSMM LL because the park closed before we could get there.

Shoes: I have had issues with blisters in the past so I brought Body Glide and moleskin and needed neither! I wore Adidas Cloudfoams which were comfy the whole trip except in the rain. Zero water protection. Within a few minutes of it starting to rain my shoes and socks were soaked!

Caribbean Beach Resort: we stayed there our first night because prices on 1/1 for hotels were outrageous. We were in one of the new Little Mermaid rooms. Great layout for a small room with 5. We love the pull down beds which gives more room during the day when it is folded up but that couch is as hard as a rock!

BLT: Our first time there. Loved the convenience of being on the monorail and walkable to MK. The monorail was down when we tried to go back to the room for a mid day break so that was a bummer to walk when we were tired but transportation was great every other time. Staff was great as well and housekeeping came every day when we were expecting every other day. Loved seeing fireworks from the bridge at night. We had a one bedroom and love the extra space and the extra bathroom. Other than location, I can't say that the resort was worth the price we paid. It was a very average hotel room for $900 a night and it does need a renovation. The carpet and couch had stains. Who puts a cream colored couch in a hotel room?!?!? We stayed at Kidani last time and much prefer that resort except for the inconvenient location.

Southwest Airlines: Boy were we nervous leading up to our trip but we has zero issues. Both flights were on time. We decided to carry on which we don't normally do but I wasn't putting my bags in the hands of Southwest when there were still thousands of bags stranded across the nation.

MCO: Our flight left at 9pm so I was expecting lower crowds. Checked the website for security waits before we left and they looked good but we thought it was best to still get there 3 hours in advance. My DH and I have precheck and there wasn't a single person in line but our adult son doesn't and it took him 45 minutes to get through security. We had plenty of time but I'm glad we got there early or I would have been very stressed.

I thought the crowds seemed very normal but totally agree on wait times, those were some of the longest waits I've seen across the parks! I suppose it definitely feel that crowded because everyone was in lines! Maybe too late to matter but I never had any trouble riding Guardians anytime after my VQ had been called. I had boarding group 1 and didn't scan in til evening without issue.

 

[gorkt]

1/12 Recap - Got G+ for AK mostly because we weren't rope dropping and it was only $15pp. Also bought a LL for FoP. Booked a 10am safari and rode that - animals were still pretty active but beginning to slow down. Then I booked Navi for right around the same time as FoP. Everest was a 20 minute wait so some of my party rode before lunch. Then we ate at Yak and Yeti - good food but not as awesome as I remember.

We rode the Pandora rides next - boy is Navi overrated!!! I can't imagine waiting an hour for that! FoP is great as always, although my age is starting to make these 3D rides tough on me.

ETA: Got my dates mixed up - we went to HDDR this evening - my husband and son left AK early to rest at Beach Club, while my daughter and I chilled at Nomad lounge. Then we took the bus to MK in order to make a 6:15 HDDR reservation. We always see that show ever since my son was chosen to be in the show when he was 5. Great show as always. I feel like the sides are better now than they were before. The mac and cheese was delicious and we asked for more.

 

[gorkt]

1/13 recap: Bought G+ for a MK morning, mostly to get on Splash mountain and a few other rides we missed before. Then Crystal Palace at noon - good but overpriced - the Country Fried Chicken was excellent - I have had more fried chicken in a week here than I normally eat in a year! The character interaction was great though - Tigger challenged my son to a bouncing contest.

We left around 2:30pm to rest, then went to Epcot for the first night of Festival of the Arts. It was COLD. The wind was whipping which made it worse. We did one circle around World Showcase, bought a few things - but the lines were pretty long despite the cold. Then we went back for an early night at the hotel.

 

[DisneyMama811]

Here now at MK and having a fantastic time. arrived for 830 EMH rode Small world. it's 12:15pm now just finished eating at Pinocchio's we've done 7 rides including LL for Peter Pan and iLL for SDMT (which was amaaaazing) I'm extremely pleased with how the day is going, the crowds are much lower than I was expecting, we also have a "stroller as a wheelchair" tag which has helped cut down on wait times and I'm very glad we have it as it is allowing DD6 (low muscle tone) to enjoy the day and last much longer than she would otherwise

 

[WeatherbySwann]

This thread was so helpful in knowing what to expect ... and also got me so excited the closer my family's trip got! So firstly thank you to everyone who's shared their experiences here!

We stayed onsite 1/8-1/13. We were curious how the Marathon would influence crowds earlier in the week and how MLK Weekend would influence crowds later in the week. On both fronts, not much at all. A great week to visit crowds-wise, and lower temps probably kept many locals at home too. Definitely had to bundle up but otherwise couldn't have asked for better weather. Really felt like a perfect window to visit for both crowds and weather.

-----

Monday 1/9

Rope-dropped Everest and rode twice!

ILL'd Flight of Passage. Didn't buy Genie+ and so glad we didn't. Never needed it for anything, except maybe Na'vi but at that point we literally hadn't waited for anything all day, so we didn't mind waiting. It was posted 60 (probably about an hour before park closing) and took about that long.

-----

Tuesday 1/10 was the emptiest I've ever seen Epcot. 0-minute wait to meet Mickey (literally... the sign said 0 minutes and we walked right up... to meet MICKEY!) and plenty of empty space against the lagoon for Harmonious even right before it started. Almost bizarre. Maybe people were waiting for Festival of the Arts to start later in the week?

Rope-dropped Test Track, then went to Soarin'. No wait for either.

Tuesday 1/10 LLs

• 11:30ish Ratatouille
• 2:30ish Frozen
• 4:30ish Guardians

-----

Thursday 1/12 Rise was down at opening. So instead we did Smugglers Run walk-on and then made our way to Slinky, where it was a 40-minute wait. Probably waited closer to 30. Rise seemed to be on and off all day. We ended up doing it with ILLs in the evening.

On this day, I tried the tip where you pre-select your "favorite" attraction so that it populates the top of your screen when it's time to select your first LL ... rookie mistake, make sure you select everyone in your party when you begin your "itinerary"/when you select that "favorite" attraction .... I didn't and it meant the "shortcut" actually took longer because I had to edit the party when choosing the LL. And by then, the return times were much later for our first LL. Womp womp.

Thursday 1/12 LLs

• 12:30ish Tower of Terror
• 1:00ish Rock n Roller Coaster (stacked)
• 4:30ish Runaway Railway
• 6:00ish Rise of the Resistance

-----

Friday 1/13

Rope-dropped Space Mountain, then did Buzz no wait

Enchantment started 25 minutes late. Maybe because of wind? They never stated a reason. Tink didn't fly tho. They also closed a lot of Fantasyland during fireworks that I don't think ordinarily gets shut down. This meant after fireworks, there was essentially another rope drop (a weird feeling to do a rope drop at night!) and Seven Dwarves LL was backed up for a bit.

Friday 1/13 LLs

• 10:30ish Meet 50th anniversary Mickey
• 12:30ish Haunted Mansion
• 1:00 Small World
• 1:30 Little Mermaid
• 4:00 Winnie the Pooh
• 8:30 Seven Dwarves
• 9:00 Peter Pan's Flight
• 10:00 Jungle Cruise (ended up not using it tho bc Big Thunder unexpectedly opened... surprise completed its refurb mid-day)
• 10:15 Space Mountain

Not exactly the best "strategic" order, I know, but worked best for us with a party of 9 and trying to do things that were important to everyone, make time for people to split up, etc.

 

[WIll C]

We are here now until the 24th. MK was not very crowded today. Had no problems with rides and the weather was perfect. Even during the parades the crowd level wasn't bad. Only stayed for lunch then back to the resort and off to the party at HS. Rides were next to nothing even at 8pm before the party started. Certainly the way to go if you want to ride everything, multiple times.
We shall see how Epcot is tomorrow with the FARTS going on.

 

[gorkt]

Instead of continuing to do daily recaps I will just post some general impressions:

1) The magic is still there IMO. I never ran into an impolite cast member, everyone seemed to go out of their way to be friendly and helpful. The character interactions are back and are great!
2) You can have a better experience than you have ever had before at WDW.....if you are willing to pay for it, and do a lot of research. It also helps if you are more technologically savvy. Use the guest services people in the parks to help if you run into issues.
3) G+ works incredibly well in some situations and parks, and is a waste of money in others, and you don't know which is which until you try it. Paying for it the day of feels bad, and they should give you back the option of paying for the entire trip. Yes, it might be a waste in some parks, but I really disliked starting my day with a transaction.
4) You can get a lot done with G+ without rope dropping, and if you rope drop, G+ may not be necessary, particularly in Epcot and AK. In HS, I would recommend rope drop AND G+ OR doing the after hours party.
5) The After Hours parties are incredible for people who can stay up. Its actually a good value, which is hard to find at Disney. I would recommend having a rest day during the day of the party. I made the mistake of going to a park in the morning and I was pretty tired for the party (but it was still great!).
6) GOTG is a fantastic ride, and if you preselect your party and refresh every 5 sec starting from X:59 to the time it is supposed to start (7am,1pm,6pm) you have a good shot of getting a boarding group. Sometimes the time they give you pops REALLY early (i had one that was supposed to hit at 2pm and I got a notification to board at 11:30am) so be prepared for that.
7) Extras that are worth it: After hours party at HS, Spice Road table Fireworks party (if you like more adventurous food), Hoop de doo (if you like a corny family show with BBQ style food), Topolino's breakfast - so good!
8) Extras that are NOT worth it: Dessert parties at MK, Magicband +, Space 220 sit down meals if you are not a Sci-Fi type person - do the lounge.
9) Best food: Topolino's, Spice Road, Sebastians Bistro, Satuli, Kona Cafe breakfast, Beaches and Cream
10) Best snacks - Dole whip in POG juice - you can get this at Aloha Isle, Popcorn in Star Wars area, bread service and drinks at Nomad Lounge.

 

[SkyGuy]

Instead of continuing to do daily recaps I will just post some general impressions:

1) The magic is still there IMO. I never ran into an impolite cast member, everyone seemed to go out of their way to be friendly and helpful. The character interactions are back and are great!
2) You can have a better experience than you have ever had before at WDW.....if you are willing to pay for it, and do a lot of research. It also helps if you are more technologically savvy. Use the guest services people in the parks to help if you run into issues.
3) G+ works incredibly well in some situations and parks, and is a waste of money in others, and you don't know which is which until you try it. Paying for it the day of feels bad, and they should give you back the option of paying for the entire trip. Yes, it might be a waste in some parks, but I really disliked starting my day with a transaction.
4) You can get a lot done with G+ without rope dropping, and if you rope drop, G+ may not be necessary, particularly in Epcot and AK. In HS, I would recommend rope drop AND G+ OR doing the after hours party.
5) The After Hours parties are incredible for people who can stay up. Its actually a good value, which is hard to find at Disney. I would recommend having a rest day during the day of the party. I made the mistake of going to a park in the morning and I was pretty tired for the party (but it was still great!).
6) GOTG is a fantastic ride, and if you preselect your party and refresh every 5 sec starting from X:59 to the time it is supposed to start (7am,1pm,6pm) you have a good shot of getting a boarding group. Sometimes the time they give you pops REALLY early (i had one that was supposed to hit at 2pm and I got a notification to board at 11:30am) so be prepared for that.
7) Extras that are worth it: After hours party at HS, Spice Road table Fireworks party (if you like more adventurous food), Hoop de doo (if you like a corny family show with BBQ style food), Topolino's breakfast - so good!
8) Extras that are NOT worth it: Dessert parties at MK, Magicband +, Space 220 sit down meals if you are not a Sci-Fi type person - do the lounge.
9) Best food: Topolino's, Spice Road, Sebastians Bistro, Satuli, Kona Cafe breakfast, Beaches and Cream
10) Best snacks - Dole whip in POG juice - you can get this at Aloha Isle, Popcorn in Star Wars area, bread service and drinks at Nomad Lounge.

You can ride anytime after your BG is called, so no need to rush to the ride for your one-hour window - just an FYI for those out there who may not know. If you’ve purchased an ILL$, then you should arrive during your selected time.