Corinne...first of all, congratulations on starting your new job. I hope it provides the fulfillment that you are looking for in the job.
Groupies...we have just returned from the World, and it was a very nice trip. Temperatures were well below normal with highs in the 50's and 60's on many days. The parks were rather busy overall, and last Saturday (December 8) MK was almost as crowded as Christmas week! Even the People Mover had a 1/2 hour wait as the line went halfway to Space Mountain! It was supposed to be a 5/10 crowd day but after the fact TouringPlans recorded it as an 8 level crowd. All week long they underforecasted the crowd levels as we found the parks and Disney Springs to be pretty crowded every day.
Despite that, we enjoyed our trip. We were able to thoroughly enjoy much quality time with our good friends
@Dizny Dad and
@DiznyDi. While we went to the parks every day, we only experienced a handful of attractions. We had several FastPasses that lapsed as we just didn't want to deal with the crowds, cool weather and occasional rain all that much. I will say that I was impressed with Toy Story Land as far as design, attention to detail, and general atmosphere of the area. I think they did a really good job capturing the Toy Story spirit of fun and adventure, and the lines were long for all the attractions there. Star Wars land continues to take shape and DHS will soon be turning from 1/2 of a park to a real destination park for many, many WDW guests.
Wilderness Lodge did not disappoint as the decorations were out in full force and the Christmas music was playing throughout the resort. The resort seemed to be at full capacity with the main lobby being crowded much of the time. They opened the new Snow White character meal the day after we left, but we were able to see some of the "forest" decorations that had been added to the restaurant. I'm sure they did a good job converting Artist Point over to the new theme. They moved the DVC sales desk to the front door area to clear out that area, possibly for people waiting for reservations for the character meal? Once they start getting those meals booked, it will undoubtedly add to the noise level of the lobby floor of Wilderness Lodge. All in all, it was a bustling area...far from the quiet area it has been in the past.
But the VWL lobby retained its quietness and seclusion. And we spent some quality time in the Iron Spike room in front of the fire. So our home managed to keep its wonderful feel of warmth and seclusion, with the Christmas music wafting through the air.
Kirk the VWL CM was busy each day with people at his concierge desk in the VWL lobby. Didn't have a chance to say much more than hello to him, but every time we went past he was explaining the
MDE phone app to someone...it sounds like he is very well versed on the app. We did use it to open our room door a couple of times just as a novelty, but mostly just used our Magic Bands.
So we had a quick (6 night) stay and enjoyed it very much. I am so glad that we have DVC, and therefore don't worry about the parks and attractions all that much since we know we can experience them on a future trip. This past trip was all about enjoying WL and good friends, and that is what made it a great trip!