Tropical threat?? Leaving in 9 days...

[lilkitty819]

Flying in on 09/29 from Maryland hoping we have no problem with our flight out of BWI.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

A few things I remember from when Irma hit in September 2017.. . We had just finished up our 10 days and flew out 3 days before it hit. Our friends arrived as we left and were staying at the Contemporary. We stayed in touch via text and facetime throughout the storm. The hotel was, as all Disney was.. in emergency mode. No restaurants open, Food offered was boxed lunch type things.. sandwich, chips, fruit, cookie, and juice box. I believe the cost was $13 or $15 per box - the line ups were long to get the food. Coffee was available not sure if tea was.. Vending machines ran out of snacks and pop pretty quickly.
The deluxe hotels with indoor corridors were the best case scenario, they allowed for lobby activities and character visits due to indoor corridors.. the deluxe resorts without central/indoor hallways, (OKW, SS, Poly, GF, DVC villa’s that are separate from the main building) all the moderates (except GDT) and the values were told to remain in their rooms and not to go outside until they received the all clear phone call, which came a day and a half after being told to stay indoors. The guests at the campground and cabins were moved to hotel rooms. I recall seeing pictures of large trees uprooted at the Poly and a damaged leaking roof at one of the Value resorts.. power wasn’t a concern as Disney is on their own power grid.

Best advice.. If you decide to go and ride out the storm be prepared. Pack some food if that is feasible or Do a grocery order in advance keeping in mind that the closer the storm, the less likely delivery will be available or the things you want may be out of stock as locals will be stocking up too. Plan for meals & snacks for at least a few days.

I’d bring my roku or fire stick, there’s only so much disney tv/movies I would want to watch.. Pack cards, a game or two, a book to read and maybe a art/craft bag for the kiddos. Pack a flashlight too, just in case.

This storm is expected to be a major when it reaches Florida (a 3,4 or 5 due to the 89/90° water temps as it passes over the Caribbean)
It won’t lose too much strength over the Everglades as it traverses Florida.

24 Counties have already declared a state of emergency based on what the NHC is predicting. Osceola being one of them - part of WDW is in Osceola county. The rest is in Orange county.

Last thing.. if you want accurate and solid info on the storm before, during and after.. Mike’s Weather page on fb and on twitter is a great source. Meteorologist Dennis Phillips is another

 

[fla4fun]

Thank you! Yes read your post and heard the same! then I looked at pics of pieces of houses blowing off including the roofs during a cat 3 lol. But as you posted, perhaps Disney is "built" stronger? than your normal building?

Buildings are built to withstand winds of a specific speed by building codes. I don’t know the current codes for Orlando, but let’s say the building code requires that all new construction had to be able to withstand a category three. That is just the minimum. So if Disney decides to build a hotel that withstands a category five instead, they are going above and beyond the requirements. It would be in their best interest to do so, because codes can become more strict over time and because it minimizes the damage to their property. We were fortunate that we didn’t start building our house until after they upgraded the building codes due to Hurricane Andrew, and then we still went above and beyond. Doesn’t mean I want to ride out a hurricane alone here though.

I would not request a ground floor room during a hurricane, especially if you are at a resort with exterior corridors. Disney doesn’t always drain well, and water could come in under the door if it starts backing up. It could also come in under sliding patio doors at resorts with interior corridors. Not saying it will, but we have all seen photos of standing water around WDW, and we have had a lot of rain this summer, so in some areas the ground is saturated.

 

[Dkbldev]

We are flying down from OH first thing tomorrow and returning home Wednesday afternoon. Regardless of what happens, will be interesting to see how everything plays out. Hope everyone stays safe and does not regret any choices they make.

 

[billybobblockhead]

Good thread, and much needed info for me and my family. We're actually leaving Saturday AM from NC, and will check in on Sunday for the week. Based on what everyone is saying here, I think we're going to ride it out and HOPE that it gets a big westward kick. My only issue is that DD has to fly out Thursday to be back to work on Friday since she's in a new program at her work - that's my biggest concern right now....

 

[DVC4US]

Same. We went in 2019 the weekend Galaxy Edge opened and Dorian was suppose to come. It was as empty as I have ever seen. We were prepared to leave early if needed (we drove but did not want to get stuck in evacuation traffic or gas shortages).

We were there for Dorian too. We drove(live in the panhandle of Florida), while other family members flew. Dorian was expected to hit Florida and come across Disney on the day we were planning to leave. They got on the phone with the airlines and changed their flight and we were going home early. By that afternoon Dorian had stalled over the Bahamas and wasn't expected until a few days later, so they got on the phone again and changed their flights back to the original day. Parks were so empty after that - we rode It's a Small World and had our own row per person and all other boats around us were empty. Dorian brushed the east coast of Florida but didn't make landfall.

It's a hard decision to make, but you have to do what is best for your circumstances. As a Floridian, I know that things can change minute by minute and after living through Michael they can take some people unawares.

 

[VandVsmama]

We are supposed to fly in to MCO on Saturday, 10/1. Been waiting a year and a half to go on this trip with our friends and it's their first ever trip to WDW. We are not rescheduling.

 

[Tonyz]

We are supposed to fly in to MCO on Saturday, 10/1. Been waiting a year and a half to go on this trip with our friends and it's their first ever trip to WDW. We are not rescheduling.

Barring some crazy airport closure it looks like it will be far gone by 10/1 and shouldn’t affect you.

 

[Tonyz]

FYI I called Disney and they said they got an updated email this morning that any cancellations for next week due to the storm will be refunded. Hopefully the agent I talked to knew what she was talking about but she did seem like she was telling me the most up to date info

 

[vinotinto]

We really have the worst luck. We were stuck at WDW during Matthew in a Oct 2016, left in Sept 2017 right as Irma was coming, and we’re supposed to arrive on Wednesday right as this TD 9 is supposed to arrive. I realize it’s rare for hurricanes to get to Orlando, but we have experienced them and we know that it is not the vacation planned. Ugh!

 

[Princess Merida]

We are supposed to land at MCO on Wednesday at 2:25pm. Looks like I need to add a night and switch my flight to Tuesday morning. I’m really hoping a DVC room opens up at Boardwalk so we don’t have to switch hotels on Wednesday during a storm.

 

[Tonyz]

We are supposed to land at MCO on Wednesday at 2:25pm. Looks like I need to add a night and switch my flight to Tuesday morning. I’m really hoping a DVC room opens up at Boardwalk so we don’t have to switch hotels on Wednesday during a storm.

I get there Tuesday morning too… you feeling like the airport will be open?

 

[LadylovesTramp]

I am due to arrive Tuesday as well. Flying from Chicago. Have not yet decided if I will cancel. Would be sad to lose the money from my DVC rental (I rented points) and not be able to go to my first Halloween party, Discon and Epcot After Hours Party.

 

[Floridagal23]

We live in South Florida and are supposed to stay over (and go to MNSSHP) on Thursday night. Room only reservation, we have AP. Any chance they will reaccomodate the Halloween party tickets to another night? It’s sold out for every date and my kiddo will be so disappointed. Right now we are going to wait and see (and call to see if they are offering a different cancellation policy for the hotel). It seems like the storm should be over by Thursday evening.

 

[Tonyz]

We live in South Florida and are supposed to stay over (and go to MNSSHP) on Thursday night. Room only reservation, we have AP. Any chance they will reaccomodate the Halloween party tickets to another night? It’s sold out for every date and my kiddo will be so disappointed. Right now we are going to wait and see (and call to see if they are offering a different cancellation policy for the hotel). It seems like the storm should be over by Thursday evening.

You should be able to cancel the hotel and get the refund. And the party you’ll either be refunded or I BELIEVE have a chance to use it at a different one within the next year.

Yeah as someone coming Tuesday morning I’m hoping that what we have to end up dealing with is a messy rainy Wed (potentially a washout day with parks closed) but then back to normal after that.

 

[Princess Merida]

I get there Tuesday morning too… you feeling like the airport will be open?

I’m not too sure. If this model stays Tuesday could be an issue as well. I’m not sure when they shut down flights. I have to work on Monday but I may have to just take a late flight that night and add two nights. I’m worried we will miss MNSSHP on Thursday if we don’t get in before the winds arrive. Who knows when they will reopen the airport after the storm.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

We have thought about cancelling Wednesday night at CCV and trying to arrive Thursday for one night there before moving to Poly for two nights and then on to HHI for four nights. We will be driving from KY. I'm thinking we would probably have to drive through lots of rain on Thursday coming through GA, so I'm not sure that is a good idea. But trying to arrive Wednesday afternoon also seems like not so good of an idea because that's the exact time it is supposed to hit Orlando. We also booked flights to New England as a Plan B, but now I'm wondering if this could impact the East coast in Maine, MA, and Cape Cod later next week/early the first week of October. We have to decide something on Monday.

 

[CalvaryMike]

"Florida's governor on Friday declared a pre-landfall state of emergency for 24 counties as the threat of a damaging hurricane strike next week escalated."

https://www.accuweather.com/en/hurr...d-to-hit-florida-as-a-major-hurricane/1251877

 

[Tonyz]

I’m not too sure. If this model stays Tuesday could be an issue as well. I’m not sure when they shut down flights. I have to work on Monday but I may have to just take a late flight that night and add two nights. I’m worried we will miss MNSSHP on Thursday if we don’t get in before the winds arrive. Who knows when they will reopen the airport after the storm. View attachment 704660

Yeah very true. I may end up flying out on Thursday instead if it’s done by then.

 

[Floridagal23]

"Florida's governor on Friday declared a pre-landfall state of emergency for 24 counties as the threat of a damaging hurricane strike next week escalated."

https://www.accuweather.com/en/hurr...d-to-hit-florida-as-a-major-hurricane/1251877

He has to do this to line up assistance from the national guard, etc. It is standard when there is an upcoming storm risk.