***Official September 2020 Thread***

[micandminforever]

I dislike the new hrs because they are during the heat of the day. My DH and I always were at rope drop, rested during heat of day then went back around 5:00. That will not happen this time, plus the mask will make it even hotter during the afternoon.

 

[mouselovenfamily]

I'm hopeful some restrictions are dropped by fall. 4 months ago the US was normal and none of this was haunting us. If 4 more months go by with less spread and decline, maybe some things will return. Watching and waiting will be key.

 

[GBRforWDW]

I dislike the new hrs because they are during the heat of the day. My DH and I always were at rope drop, rested during heat of day then went back around 5:00. That will not happen this time, plus the mask will make it even hotter during the afternoon.

It'll be interesting to see how the new hours with reduced crowds play out as well as the expanded virtual queues. you'll still get a little after dark hours at HS and Epcot during September, but I personally think MK after dark is the best experience.

I think the staggered hours will allow the Disney buses to run more frequently to each park/resort at the beginning and end of the day to minimize bus overcrowding, so that's one thing to look forward to!

 

[StageTek]

I think the staggered hours will allow the Disney buses to run more frequently to each park/resort at the beginning and end of the day to minimize bus overcrowding, so that's one thing to look forward to!

I've been thinking about that, too. I hope that's the case; more buses. I wouldn't mind an uncrowded bus at the end of a park day.

 

[Piglet843]

Checking in - Piglet Crew of 3 have a 8 night stay at the Contemporary. May cancel if it is still mask required and still a lot of modified experiences. But for now we will try to be excited. We scored the Free Dining offer for re-booking our cancelled April trip - so that will be nice. so - Hey everyone!

 

[rlk]

I posted in the August thread that my husband and I decided to cancel our late August/early September trip. while I am sad, I feel a sense of relief. Even though it seems like the NY 14-day quarantine will be lifted before our trip, it was causing me so much anxiety thinking about all the uncertainty. We do have our January trip still on the books, if only to use up our 84 banked points. We may wind up putting those points into RCI.

 

[btosh]

I'm hopeful some restrictions are dropped by fall. 4 months ago the US was normal and none of this was haunting us. If 4 more months go by with less spread and decline, maybe some things will return. Watching and waiting will be key.

We're right there with you on this. While the Wife and I don't need parades, fireworks, or character meet and greets, this is DD's first trip (she'll be 18 months old) so those things are definitely more important this time around. We're hoping at least meet and greets are back when we go towards the end of September; I know my mother in-law is already unhappy that they might not be available when we go.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

Just booked our flights for our dates. We discussed quickly right before booking and decided even if we can't hop and only do 1 park per day, with the Extra Magic Hours we have plenty of time to do everything we want to do. So we have a Hopping Plan, and a Non-Hopping Plan, and either way we're determined to enjoy ourselves

 

[Rusty2rules]

Just booked our flights for our dates. We discussed quickly right before booking and decided even if we can't hop and only do 1 park per day, with the Extra Magic Hours we have plenty of time to do everything we want to do. So we have a Hopping Plan, and a Non-Hopping Plan, and either way we're determined to enjoy ourselves

Are they doing Extra Magic Hours?

 

[butterscotchcollins]

Are they doing Extra Magic Hours?

One park each day currently has EMH listed on the website for our dates (9/7-9/13):

Monday - AK AM
Tues - EP PM
Wed - MK PM
Thurs - EP AM
Fri - MK AM
Sat - AK AM
Sun - HS AM

 

[mouselovenfamily]

One park each day currently has EMH listed on the website for our dates (9/7-9/13):

Monday - AK AM
Tues - EP PM
Wed - MK PM
Thurs - EP AM
Fri - MK AM
Sat - AK AM
Sun - HS AM

Thinking I had all this taken care of, now I guess this evening we will be going back and rechecking everything to see what has changed for our dates. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[A-Rose788]

I really don’t know how to feel about the new hours. I absolutely love MK at night and am bummed about that. I also have some ADRs booked after the closing times in MK and AK. Do we think hours might change or should I be trying to figure out new dinner times?
Usually we like to take a break mid-day and go back later on and have dinner around 7:30. I feel so overwhelmed with everything changing so quickly and not having a clear guide on what’s going on. I’m dizzy with trying to keep up with everything.
I’m slowly mentally preparing myself to move my trip for the third time if there are lots of restrictions still at the end of September.

 

[terrylily]

.

 

[A-Rose788]

I’m feeling all of this as well. I like to rope drop, and then leave for a few hours during the hottest part of the day and go back around 5. Now that seems pretty pointless. We also have dessert parties and such booked. I’m hoping by September the hours go back to normal. I don’t know how I feel about spending thousands on less than the full experience. I just hope we see changes or get answers soon. It would be nice to know if we decide to skip Disney this fall since we thankfully got a trip in earlier this year, if we could move that money to a different vacation.

My thoughts exactly!! Park hopping is such a huge part of my vacation, we start at one park with FPs take a break then head to another for dinner. I go frequently enough where I can handle certain things being cut- but to me, shortened hours on top of limited experiences just seems like I’m throwing away money. I feel like I’m just riding a wave of anxiety waiting for our trip to get closer to make a final decision on what to do when it should be exciting counting down the days!
I am trying to stay positive because I know things could be worse and there will always be another Disney trip on the other side of this mess. All we can do is wait and see!!

 

[chicagoshannon]

I'm sure hours will change by September. I honestly think they could still change by opening. I mean how often does Disney change the hours right before the month? Often. I'm really hoping park hopping is back to being a thing by September also. I also hope the pools are open later also. If the park that I'm at closes early for the day I'm gonna need some pool time to make up for it!

 

[Dentam]

I'm wondering how difficult it will be to even secure entry into a park. I don't want to spend the money to get there if I'm not guaranteed entry into a park each day. Waiting to see how this plays out once they open in July.

 

[chicagoshannon]

I'm wondering how difficult it will be to even secure entry into a park. I don't want to spend the money to get there if I'm not guaranteed entry into a park each day. Waiting to see how this plays out once they open in July.

yeah I'm a little worried about it. They say no new reservations until those that already have them get their days or whatever. However, I can't imagine they'd open up the reservations for September the same time they do for July. But maybe they will. I better get my days for which parks figured out!

 

[Carla1183]

I'm wondering how difficult it will be to even secure entry into a park. I don't want to spend the money to get there if I'm not guaranteed entry into a park each day. Waiting to see how this plays out once they open in July.

The good news is we should know in advance right? with the new res system?
Unlike just worrying about it getting to capacity like it does on a holiday, you'd know if you weren't able to get a gate reservation before you got out there so you could cancel or move your trip right?
(We have tickets booked for our September dates, and an offsite hotel, so I'd definitely assume I won't get the option to make reservation until onsite guests and passholders get a shot, which i think is fair).

 

[5kidsmommy]

I'm a little stressed about the reduced hours but it might just mean we do dinners at the resort or at Disney Springs. My husband has been great at telling me it will all work out. I'm glad we have a rental car too so I'm not stressed about transportation. So many unknowns and usually that'll throw me for a loop but these last few months have actually taught me to expect the unexpected and roll with it.

 

[one_cat]

I'm wondering how difficult it will be to even secure entry into a park. I don't want to spend the money to get there if I'm not guaranteed entry into a park each day. Waiting to see how this plays out once they open in July.

I wonder if pushing out the start date by a month is to allow a 30 day lead time for onsite guests to choose a park.