Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[Geomom]

For us the pop up character interactions are what made our summer trip magical. Characters up by the train station, in cavalcades, on stages for socially distanced pics, we loved them all.

Our first day back at magic kingdom... everything just seemed brighter to me...all the colors in small world, etc, after months of just being home and seeing the same scenery daily.

 

[emmabelle]

Well my husband didn’t miss any of those things because he just likes to go on rides. I just missed character interactions but I did like the cavalcades! Getting into a park with basically no wait at bag check and no finger scan was pretty awesome.

 

[OKW Lover]

The Disney magic is still alive and well. The attractions, atmosphere and CM's are just as wonderful as ever.

 

[crazymomof4]

I was taking the whole picture into consideration with my post, not just the foreground.

So from someone who actually walked into that crowd I will say, if a person is coming to the parks and having an expectation of "social distancing", it was absolutely NOT physically possible in that crowd. I read many many reports leading up to our trip where people wrote "it was crowded but social distancing was still possible". This weekend didn't match those reports. I'm just trying to be one of the ones giving an updated report from this weekend. I'm used to being in parks with this volume of guests during a normal Sept. and I think nothing of it. But this is not a normal Sept. I posted the pic and my report from this weekend for reader's who may not be comfortable in crowds of this density during a time when social distancing is still being advised by both health experts and WDW.

 

[emily nicole]

I have heard recommendations that you should go to DHS on a Saturday Or Sunday. It’s running at or near capacity every day so you won’t encounter more people than other days and allows you to visit other parks on the lesser busy days.

DHS is not always running at capacity on weekdays for hotel guests. I have recently done a bunch of changes for the week of Thanksgiving. I am not convinced of this advice. I know when we went in July, DHS on opening day was very busy. A week day we went was busy but not bad. A weekend day that we went was almost as bad as the opening day.

Well... conflicting advise, but thanks nonetheless!

What does the "hotel guests" part mean? Is that onsite guests? We'll be offsite, so I'm not sure what that will mean for us.

 

[DL1WDW2]

On a related note, is the pressed penny machine in Frontierland still operating? Several of the pennies are "Splash" themed, so I'm curious if they've discontinued those or if you can still purchase the complete set?

View attachment 527161

I just used the one next to the entrance to Liberty Belle , which is a strange location. It presses each Hitchhiking Ghost or the set of 3 plus the trio altogether (so 4 in a set.. Mickey is the Hatbox Ghost and Goofy and Donald Duck (forgot names but I am guessing Donald is short one with long beard )... They only take credit cards and set is $4 . Maybe it was $5
They turn out really cheap & thin pressed. It has been a long time since I did this. Sad it has been cheapened.
Never again fun for kids

 

[Leigh L]

On a related note, is the pressed penny machine in Frontierland still operating? Several of the pennies are "Splash" themed, so I'm curious if they've discontinued those or if you can still purchase the complete set?

View attachment 527161

We purchased a full set in August from the machine in the Splash gift shop. Pretty much all the splash merch was gone except one style of t-shirts and I think they were child-sized.

 

[smelton521]

Oops

 

[Leigh L]

My DGS will be heading down with a roll of shiny new pennies and 2 rolls of quarters. We will pick up a pressed penny book (hopefully) at Pop Century gift shop and he will spend the week happily running from machine to machine. Cheapest souvenirs ever!!

My 13YO still does this, great souvenirs and she has so much fun hunting them down and then choosing which ones from each machine. She doesn't want the credit card ones and pretty much walks by those (with a few exceptions).

 

[karen4546]

Has anyone used the TIW card since re-opening? If so, what was your experience?

 

[crazymomof4]

My 13YO still does this, great souvenirs and she has so much fun hunting them down and then choosing which ones from each machine. She doesn't want the credit card ones and pretty much walks by those (with a few exceptions).

My 20 yr old DD still does this! She brought her supply of quarters and shiny pennies. Disney is about holding on to the nuances of childhood and this is one inexpensive way of doing so!

 

[monorailmom]

Has anyone used the TIW card since re-opening? If so, what was your experience?

We just got back last night, had no problems using our Tables card!

 

[Jen Stauch]

For me the worry isn't crowded walkways. It's long lines with long wait times, limited food options with long waits and limited transportation with...long wait times.
We usually fastpass the rides we really want and if we come across anything with a short wait time we'll ride it.
We also watch all the shows.
Obviously the shows are off the table and we'll be fine with whatever food we get but I'd like to feel like I semi got my money's worth for the trip overall.
I love Disney World and we have a trip booked for early November that I'm very excited about.
But we spent 4k for this trip and I don't want to feel like it wasn't worth it.

If Disney doesn't improve transportation and increase ride capacity we are going to cancel.

We live in Vegas so it's not like we can go often. I think locals/AP's might have a different perspective. This is just my opinion based on my family and I don't mean to belittle anyone else's feelings or opinions.
I booked the trip with open eyes and I'm fully aware that it won't be like our other trips.
I know one person's perspective of crowds might not match another's.
I'm just going to wait and see what happens in the next few weeks and decide then.

Hello from Ohio !
I just got back from Disney and in my opinion you may not find it worth the money at this time ... Unless you are a ride person ... my good friend and I had a day at MK and HS ... we went in to our trip knowing it was going to be different as former annual pass holders for several years we have done a lot at Disney and I was really sad this time because we ended up leaving both parks early because we had ridden the rides and there is not much else ... we saw the calvalcades but those only last a minute or 2 and are very cute. But without the shows and limited food options we went back early and ate in our room and went swimming.
I really missed the stuff that makes the parks feel magical to me like the trolley show, dapper dans, the stage show, opening morning show on the castle stage, fireworks, projection show on the castle, etc.
Something to consider ... we did a day at Discovery cove and a day at Sea World and found much more value in both of those day ... we didn't want to leave either place when the park was closing... let me know if you would like to hear more about either of them. I hope you have a wonderful vacation and enjoy it !

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Has anyone used the TIW card since re-opening? If so, what was your experience?

I had no problem using my TIW card at any table service. We stayed at the Pop and I used it a few times but it was a hassle to go to an actual person to order and then wait that I ended up just using mobile order there the next couple times. I only gave up a couple bucks by not using the discount.

 

[allaboutthemouse]

Hello from Ohio !
I just got back from Disney and in my opinion you may not find it worth the money at this time ... Unless you are a ride person ... my good friend and I had a day at MK and HS ... we went in to our trip knowing it was going to be different as former annual pass holders for several years we have done a lot at Disney and I was really sad this time because we ended up leaving both parks early because we had ridden the rides and there is not much else ... we saw the calvalcades but those only last a minute or 2 and are very cute. But without the shows and limited food options we went back early and ate in our room and went swimming.
I really missed the stuff that makes the parks feel magical to me like the trolley show, dapper dans, the stage show, opening morning show on the castle stage, fireworks, projection show on the castle, etc.
Something to consider ... we did a day at Discovery cove and a day at Sea World and found much more value in both of those day ... we didn't want to leave either place when the park was closing... let me know if you would like to hear more about either of them. I hope you have a wonderful vacation and enjoy it !

Would love to hear about your discovery cove and sea world days! We have DC booked for October with a cabana and shark swim. How did you feel about the amount of people there and distancing? We have been before in April and felt like we had plenty of space, so I’m thinking with even less people allowed in it will be even less crowded feeling? Thanks!

 

[lelew]

Hello from Ohio !
I just got back from Disney and in my opinion you may not find it worth the money at this time ... Unless you are a ride person ... my good friend and I had a day at MK and HS ... we went in to our trip knowing it was going to be different as former annual pass holders for several years we have done a lot at Disney and I was really sad this time because we ended up leaving both parks early because we had ridden the rides and there is not much else ... we saw the calvalcades but those only last a minute or 2 and are very cute. But without the shows and limited food options we went back early and ate in our room and went swimming.
I really missed the stuff that makes the parks feel magical to me like the trolley show, dapper dans, the stage show, opening morning show on the castle stage, fireworks, projection show on the castle, etc.
Something to consider ... we did a day at Discovery cove and a day at Sea World and found much more value in both of those day ... we didn't want to leave either place when the park was closing... let me know if you would like to hear more about either of them. I hope you have a wonderful vacation and enjoy it !

On my last visit not stressing about FP and ADR I took the opportunity to explore the parks at a very slow pace. It was nice getting in a regular line and seeing things I never saw before because we always had FP to skip regular lines. But as I reflect back on my visit those things that you mentioned are truly missed. I really enjoyed my trip end of August/September and wanted to return this December but decided to wait until Disney is up and running with shows firework ect

 

[WEDWDW]

After finally giving in to our WDW Addiction and returning for the first time since the reopening,I am so glad we went!

We did miss many,many things though.

We missed:
The longer hours
The shows
F!,Epcot Forever,HEA
Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon!
Not being able to see everyone's smiles!
The College Program Cast Members
Not having the International Guests-one of the most fun and unique aspects of WDW
The "Normal" Food Court experience at Pop Century
Not having daily Housekeeping at Pop Century
Not being able to use the AoA buses and Food Court
Citizens of Hollywood
Concerts at America Gardens
Riding the FriendShips in Crescent Lake and Lake Hollywood
The ability to "meet" and have conversations with other Guests on the buses due to "Covid Dividers"
The ability to ride the Monorail from TTC to Epcot
Going to ESPN Club to watch the College Football games
Probably more than anything the International Cast Members in World Showcase
etc,.etc.


But we still had a BLAST!!!

THE CAST MEMBERS WITHOUT EXCEPTION WERE AMAZING!

Thank you to all of them and we are so sorry for the "abuse" you are receiving from some "Guests".

It was just so wonderful to hang out at the Hippy Dippy Pool listening to some Elvis Presley,flying high over WDW on the incredible Disney Skyliner,experiencing MMRR for the first time,experiencing the trailblazing Rise of the Resistance once again,catching a Movie on "The Green" at Pop Century,seeing 5 Cheetahs on Kilimanjaro Safari,etc.

We are huge Live Music people so probably the most fun we had was one night at Disney Springs in the Courtyard at House of Blues listening to David Schweizer/Life On Mars while enjoying a nice meal at a safe socially distanced table-our first Live Music experience since February.

The whole trip was such a stress reliever-Disney is doing all they can to protect the Guests!

We felt MUCH safer hanging out at WDW than going through our daily activities back at home!

My advice is this:
If you are like us and "addicted" to WDW and need a "Disney Fix",are willing to take the very small risk(IMHO) involved and can go in with the mindset "IT IS WHAT IT IS",by all means go(we will most likely be going back soon).

If you are "addicted" to WDW,BUT have doubts you can accept "IT IS WHAT IT IS",do not go-it will just "frustrate" you!

If you would be going for your First Time-do not get within ONE-HUNDRED MILES of WDW(Sorry Mickey!)-the experience now is just way too diminished for a First Timer.

One "positive" with this situation is that after experiencing "Covid Disney World" when we go back for our first visit after EVERYTHING is back to normal,it is going to almost feel like the feeling we had on our VERY first visit to WDW!

And when your trip is over you will be VERY familiar with this sign!lol

 

[hereforthechurros]

Has anyone used the TIW card since re-opening? If so, what was your experience?

We used ours everywhere we could in August and it was easy. They didn’t even take it most times, a few places didn’t even ask to see it, just mentioning it was enough. But it was accepted no issues.

 

[VeeHam]

I just hope they adjust capacity fairly quickly in response to increased crowds. I feel like there's going to be an unavoidable lag between keeping the reduced capacity and shorter hours, etc and the increased return of guests. Presumably they would need to see a pattern of guest demand before calling all the CM back. I just hope it doesn't happen November 7 to 15! Lol.

We are traveling the week of Thanksgiving. I am prepared for it to be busy. On the disney website calendar for park reservations, Thanksgiving week has no availability left for DHS. This lets me know 2 months out, it will be busy. I hope by November, they open a few more restaurants. On the whole, my moto is to be thankful we are able to go on a vacation and try to enjoy it even without FP and fireworks.

 

[soniam]

Well... conflicting advise, but thanks nonetheless!

What does the "hotel guests" part mean? Is that onsite guests? We'll be offsite, so I'm not sure what that will mean for us.

Yes, it is conflicting. I think we are darned if we and darned if we don't right now.

Hotel guest = onsite guest.
If you are offsite and have a day ticket (not AP), then that's a 3rd category. I know day ticket guests get more availability than APs. I don't know if they get more than onsite guests. Usually day tickets guest availability has been pretty good.

Here are links explaining the categories and the calendar of availability.
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/experience-updates/park-reservations/https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/a...ort,passholder,tickets&defaultSegment=tickets

We are traveling the week of Thanksgiving. I am prepared for it to be busy. On the disney website calendar for park reservations, Thanksgiving week has no availability left for DHS. This lets me know 2 months out, it will be busy. I hope by November, they open a few more restaurants. On the whole, my moto is to be thankful we are able to go on a vacation and try to enjoy it even without FP and fireworks.

It still shows AP availability, but I am sure that will disappear as it gets closer. Although, hopefully, local APs are smart enough to not go that week.