Should I consider postponing Sept 10th trip?

[frannn]

We are supposed to arrive in Orlando 10:45 AM on Fri, Sept 10th. I don't know if DH can resched his vacation- he is a NYC cop. Our annual passes expire 10/20. Will the power, airports, and everything be back up and running this Fri, as well as a supply of rental cars, etc? Even if Ivan doesn't hit FL, will there still be torrential rain showers caused by this hurricane? What do you think?

 

[Dizzy4Dizney]

You should go. Florida needs it's tourism money. We'll see you in the Magic Kingdom!

 

[Blueberry]

I agree, WDW has no major damage and never lost power....all is well and they need people to come and visit as they lost so many tourism dollars....see ya there this weekend....

 

[Shelle&Dave]

Hopefully we will be there too. I'm trying to get more excited about it. I have been very excited, but I've had a rough couple of days and now I'm just drained.

 

[dansyr]

As long as the planes are flying we'll be there wed. 9/8.

 

[Skylarr29]

I live in south florida and I say come. I have a friend in Ocala and went to check it out. She said no major damage was done. Disney will still be great ... go and have a super great time!!!!!

 

[Eeyoreluver]

Go and have fun! My DD and I will be there too. We are flying in on Thursday. We can't wait. See you all there!
Gina
Krystal

 

[rupprath]

I think she may be worried more about Hurricane Ivan than what happened this weekend. I'm due to arrive on Friday as well. At this point we're still going...

Here is weather.com's current projected path for Ivan:
http://www.weather.com/maps/news/atlstorm9/projectedpath_large.html

Though at this far out who knows what will happen. It looks like we're safe Fri/Sat. Sunday and Monday may be a different story.

On the other hand we could have hit the jackpot and see WDW in a perfect spot between two hurricanes when nobody will be there. Let's hope for the wishful thinking.

 

[RoLaren]

We're in the same boat, due to arrive at MCO about 1pm Friday. Relatives are flying from out east to meet us there and should arrive a couple hours before that.

I am thinking that WDW will really need the tourist income, if it's safe and they're not cancelling ressies like they did last weekend, we're hoping to go. Of course, I'm worried about my daughter's safety and I don't want to put her in harm's way if it looks like the storm is going to be bad there.

So basically, we're in limbo. It's too late for us to cancel without losing our deposits and such now anyway (unless NWA and Disney waive at the last minute like they did for Frances) so we have no reason not to wait till the very last minute to decide. Deposit or no deposit if they say don't come, we'll stay home of course.

Hopefully we'll all be there contributing to the FL economy this time next week.

Good luck everyone, especially those who live in FL, I am wishing and hoping hoping with all my might for no more storms for you all. If cancelling my vacation would protect you guys and make it certain Ivan would pass you by of course I'd do it in a heartbeat!

We just have to wait and see at this point. I was thinking of people with weddings scheduled this and last weekend, how hard that must have been and worrisome it must be!

Frankly, my biggest concern about being in WDW during a storm is water safety. We've had to be on boil water orders before at home and it's no fun, I can't imagine managing that kind of thing on vacation. It doesn't sound like that has been an issue on property during the previous storms.

Does anyone know if Disney has its own water treatment plant like they have a lot of their own electrical? My husband was wondering about that.

 

[sodaseller]

Frances was the exception in that it soaked all of Florida due to its size. That is not normally the case. We survived the front end without incident but the back end hit Tampa last evening and took out power (just got ours back - most still haven't).

 

[PhillyPiglet]

We're still going on the 8th. I just hope Ivan stays away!!!

 

[jimmytammy]

Go and have fun. All is well in the World. MCO is up and running so no problem there.

 

[bugbugmom]

We're also due Fri 9/10. I'm so overwhelmed right now. I'm worried about the FL residents and of course Ivan. We still going as scheduled, but I feel that we could wait to the last minute to cancel.

 

[disneyfuntime]

We're set to arrive on 9-12 hopefully ivan stays away. Florida needs to dry out. Many prayers for the residents of Fl.

PS don't cancel

 

[Viki]

We're leaving this morning and we'll have our green mickey ears on!

Have a good trip all!

Peace,
Viki

 

[n2mm]

My only concern would be the gas shortage, esp. since you're renting a car. I was glued to Fox news and the weather channel this weekend and there was a gas shortage after Charlie that had not gotten better. Now Bush has signed an E.O. making emergency vechicles first to get the gas if it's found in FL. I would call the rental company and find out what to do if you can't find gas or don't have several hours to wait in line to buy it. It might be worth the high price the rental car company charges. I'll be watching this issue for my trip next month.

 

[dvcgirl]

Definitely come down! Central Florida did not sustain nearly the damage that the east coast of Florida did during Frances. Charely was far worse for us. Everything is up and running. Disney never lost power and only had some trees down (but nothing like they lost in Charley). Even the gas situation will be cleared up within a day or two when people realize that they don't need to panic.

The only thing I would keep a wary eye on is the path of Ivan. Right now it looks like he *might* head into the Gulf of Mexico and Florida is always at risk during hurricane season. But Ivan is way out and we should all have a better idea by THursday where he's headed.

But this is a wonderful time of the year to visit WDW. Crowds are essentially non-existant and the weather is still great!

 

[tc]

We're stil coming. I need this vacation so bad, and Florida needs my money. I am keeping a close eye on Ivan, but, at this point, it looks like my flight on 9/11 will be fine. Like rupprath said, Friday and Sat still look good, it's Sunday and Monday we may need to look at. If I have to sit in my room by candlelight, and watch Finding Nemo at the Boardwalk Villas, it's still better than being home right now. I need to get away, rest my brain and my body.

I just hope Ivan decides to veer away or diminish so that Floridians and I can have a dry week next week.

Hopefully I'll see some of you at WDW!!!

 

[Buzzfan]

I say go!! We just got back last night and survived Frances. Disney is the safest place to be and if you are on the resort you have no worries. Just be prepared to stay in your room while the storm passes. We were locked in our room for 30 hours with no food (well we had a bag of chips and some pop - the kids enjoyed that for breakfast). If Ivan does get close, stock up on some food items and some bottled water. The only stress was that the airport closed and we were told if our flight got cancelled (Monday Sept. 6 at 12:15), it would be a week before they could get us on another flight - so we were stuck there (although I can't think of any other place I's rather be stuck). Luckily the airport opened up and after a very, very, long wait we took off four hours late.

The one great thing was the parks were empty. We literally got off a ride and then right back on. We never had to wait, even for the more popular rides. At one point I took a picture because we were walking to Dinoland in AK and there was not a person to be found. It was awesome!! We were able to do the whole MK in one day and we even took a three hour break and went back to the hotel (too swim and cool off - very hot!!) and we even did a lot of ride two and three times.

So definately go - WDW needs the money and they will make sure you are totally safe. Have a magical trip!!

 

[rupprath]

Also note that the hours for MK on Thurs/Fri/Sat this week are 9AM - 6PM. I don't know if this was originally planned, but since they are the only days with these hours I would suspect it is to help maintenance.

This is only for MK. The other parks appear to be open on their normal schedule.

Here is the link to the park hours I was using:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/calendar/parkhours/index?id=MKCalendarParkHoursMonthlyViewPage