Tropical threat?? Leaving in 9 days...

[CherishL]

New question: living in South LA we are very familiar with hurricanes. Our state declares state of emergencies also which usually follows with evacuations. Is that what FL/ WDW does also?
Traveling wise, those that have drove, what are your experiences and thoughts on the drive after the storm? My husband is concerned about the interstates and getting to WDW from south LA.

 

[Floridagal23]

We went ahead and cancelled the WDW part of our trip but kept the HHI portion for now. I wasn’t going to cancel until Monday, but when a DVC Poly room popped up for the end of October, I couldn’t miss that opportunity! I was able to modify the reservation with no problem. We just didn’t want to chance driving into Orlando on Wednesday and then having several rainy days. Even if the hurricane missed Orlando, there will still be lots of rain. That doesn’t sound like a fun vacation. I want good weather for our trip since this is the last trip we are taking for awhile. So hoping for no more hurricanes! We are still watching the track to see if it goes to HHI. If so, we have flights booked for New England Tuesday as a back-up plan.

I also had MNSSHP tickets. When I called I got through immediately but had to be transferred and then a 2-hour wait. The first person said that the party tickets would probably have to be used for a Christmas party but I explained that my trip is at the end of October. She said they probably couldn’t switch it to another Halloween party since they are sold out. I didn’t pursue that because we had decided that without being able to go into AK for the Moonlight Magic party then we wanted 2-day PHs instead. The second person was able to credit the MNSSHP tickets and apply it to upgrading our 1-day PHs. So you should be able to get a credit to use toward any ticket media. Good luck!

Thanks for the info! Still riding it out here and waiting to decide. It’s good to know we can transfer to a Christmas party.

 

[Floridagal23]

So bright side to this…I was able to snag a Rose and Crown reservation when it was all booked the week we are there

My notification for Chef Mickey’s on Friday morning has been going crazy all day with availability as people cancel!

 

[strike4]

I'm in the midwest and was going to be at MK on Tuesday leaving on Wednesday morning. I'm not sure if it would be worth it to go or not because of wind and rain. I have no experience with this.

 

[Sam60]

I'm in the midwest and was going to be at MK on Tuesday leaving on Wednesday morning. I'm not sure if it would be worth it to go or not because of wind and rain. I have no experience with this.

If you are flying down, you may not get out on Wednesday. Even when flights resume, they will have a big backlog of rescheduling to work through. It could take a couple of days or longer to get home. I guess the question is, how critical is it that you are home on Wednesday?

 

[strike4]

If you are flying down, you may not get out on Wednesday. Even when flights resume, they will have a big backlog of rescheduling to work through. It could take a couple of days or longer to get home. I guess the question is, how critical is it that you are home on Wednesday?

Very. I guess I'm cancelling.

 

[scrapquitler]

Hi everyone!

So talk to me about hurricane season at Disney. I live on the gulf coast and am more than familiar with hurricane season. What I am not familiar with is hurricane season at Disney. There is a tropical wave we are keeping track of that could impact the gulf coast next week around the time we leave. Is this something we should be concerned about? I know Disney has a FAQ section for hurricane policies but what I am wondering is has anyone had any experience with tropical storms and hurricanes at Disney.
Thank you in advance!

Irma was in the middle of a trip we took. Disney was fantastic about handing all the craziness that went along with hurricane, and we felt very safe. We ended up having to stay three extra days because of our airline, and Disney was great about it...they let us stay in our same room at All Star Sports for the discounted hurricane price, which at that time was just $60/night. We were limited to the resort the night before the storm hit, and to our room after a certain point in that day and until after the storm passed. One thing that you will notice is that a lot of locals will end up at the resort to ride out the storm because they know that the power is much more likely to stay on at Disney than at home. There were a ton of people around at the resort because of this. The parks the day before the closing for the storm and the couple days after the storm were the emptiest we've ever seen them.

 

[Tonyz]

I feel bad for my travel agent because I’m gonna have to wait until like literal hours before my trip is supposed to start to make a decision!

 

[lovethattink]

Very. I guess I'm cancelling.

The timeline of Ian keeps changing.

 

[Richie248]

Made the decision to change my trip....now flying in on October 1st (as opposed to 9/30), will miss being in Epcot in the morning but doesn't seem to be much lined up for the 40th (aside from merch and food). We'll see if the proactivity pays off. It's all a game of chance at this point!

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

The most likely bad outcome here is a washout/rainy day with *maybe* the parks closed. I think people cancelling trips are being premature here. Orlando is not on the ocean, the odds of hurricane force winds affecting Orlando are exceedingly remote, and even if they do, you’re safe. Now if you’re due to land or take off around the time the storm may impact Florida, that is a different story.

 

[RunDisney Matriarch]

The most likely bad outcome here is a washout/rainy day with *maybe* the parks closed. I think people cancelling trips are being premature here. Orlando is not on the ocean, the odds of hurricane force winds affecting Orlando are exceedingly remote, and even if they do, you’re safe. Now if you’re due to land or take off around the time the storm may impact Florida, that is a different story.

I think that's what a lot of us reading this thread are dealing with. And with the NWS most recently only committing to "Tuesday to Thursday" for Florida being affected, none of us are quite certain what to do about flights. Hopefully we'll have a better idea tomorrow.

 

[strike4]

The timeline of Ian keeps changing.

I have one more day before I have to make a decision. I just am so inexperienced with how things run. Thank you for the reply.

 

[RoseGold]

New question: living in South LA we are very familiar with hurricanes. Our state declares state of emergencies also which usually follows with evacuations. Is that what FL/ WDW does also?
Traveling wise, those that have drove, what are your experiences and thoughts on the drive after the storm? My husband is concerned about the interstates and getting to WDW from south LA.

State of emergency has to do with funding not actual conditions. Coastal Florida already has a state of emergency and nothing has happened. This might even be true in your area, they declare it when it might mean nothing for what is currently happening.

In the gulf in general, freeways in this area are designed for drainage. So driving on them near the time of a hurricane could be a particularly bad idea. They will be the most dangerous place to be in hurricane or heavy rain conditions and the first thing shut down, even in non-hurricane storms. That said, Orlando is nowhere near the Gulf. So you have to decide what roads you think will be safe.

Example: !-10 Tropical Storm Imelda

 

[wabbott]

New question: living in South LA we are very familiar with hurricanes. Our state declares state of emergencies also which usually follows with evacuations. Is that what FL/ WDW does also?
Traveling wise, those that have drove, what are your experiences and thoughts on the drive after the storm? My husband is concerned about the interstates and getting to WDW from south LA.

I'm from Ruston, LA, and like you quite familiar with our storms. Interstate 10 will be open within a few hours after the storm has passed., unless bridges are taken out. Recall that the 1-10 Escambia Bay Bridge east of Pensacola lost some spans after Ivan in 2004. Opening up supply routes is the very first priority after a storm. We drove to Florida the morning after Katrina went through NOLA and north Mississippi. The roads were ok, but be prepared for power to be out, and fuel to be unavailable in areas where a storm has passed. Plan accordingly.

 

[hildarumpole]

Accuweather is currently predicting Ian impacts to Orlando will be Tues. 10 p.m. through Thurs. 8 a.m. with peak sustained winds of 56 mph, peak wind gusts of 80 mph, and 4-8 inches of rain. Yes, Orlando isn't on the coast, but hurricanes are large and can spread their mess far and wide.

 

[RoseGold]

We drove to Florida the morning after Katrina went through NOLA and north Mississippi. The roads were ok, but be prepared for power to be out, and fuel to be unavailable in areas where a storm has passed.

Katrina did not hit Florida, so sure roads were open where it did not hit and going the other way. Highways are drainage for hurricanes, so I would not bet on them being open or undamaged where a storm actually goes. But your other points are very important. Big evacuations cause big disruptions in fuel supplies. Bringing your own gasoline is not a terrible idea.

 

[LoveOlaf]

Looking for advice- we work in weather industry so following forecast closely. We are on Wish now- get off Monday morning and going back to WDW to French quarter. Were supposed to go to MNSSHP Tuesday night if that even happens. Were not supposed to fly home until Wednesday evening 8pm which I doubt will happen because of storm. Do we go ahead and book a few days extra ? We can work virtually if needed. Or once airlines give ok potentially try to get out Tuesday if we can change without penalty and try to get refund for party & French quarter for one night if Disney will even do that? Gah so confusing and stressful

 

[wabbott]

Katrina did not hit Florida, so sure roads were open where it did not hit and going the other way. Highways are drainage for hurricanes, so I would not bet on them being open or undamaged where a storm actually goes. But your other points are very important. Big evacuations cause big disruptions in fuel supplies. Bringing your own gasoline is not a terrible idea.

Recall Katrina went north through Mississippi from NOLA crossing Interstate 20 between Jackson and Meridian, MS. When we crossed the Mississippi River at Vicksburg, it was evident the power was out. Quite a bit of limbs and such on the shoulders around Meridian, but the roads were open. Gas wasn't available until we got to south of Montgomery, AL.

 

[SkyGuy]

The most likely bad outcome here is a washout/rainy day with *maybe* the parks closed. I think people cancelling trips are being premature here. Orlando is not on the ocean, the odds of hurricane force winds affecting Orlando are exceedingly remote, and even if they do, you’re safe. Now if you’re due to land or take off around the time the storm may impact Florida, that is a different story.

Exactly. My issue isn’t with a day of heavy rain, it’s with the airport. If it closes and they have to scramble to catch back up, we can’t have a delay on returning. We need to leave on Sunday.