Disneyland Trip Flexibility Gone

[Aspencreek]

First post so hopefully this is the correct place!

Trying to plan a summer DL trip with the family but it looks like any flexibility is gone currently. We usually do a trip down there from Idaho once every year or so. Typically we stay for 6 or 7 days nearby and get 3 or 4 day passes. Once there we judge which days look best (weather, crowds, etc) and how everyone is feeling to decide when to go to DL or DCA. Now it seems that you have to book well in advance which exact days you are going and also have to plan/book eating options. Concerned that if I pick some days and there's a super hot day or rainy day or someone not feeling well or whatever, that the trip will be much less enjoyable because we HAVE to go then. Anyone know if this is just the new normal and will be this way for the foreseeable future so you just roll the dice and take your chances? Also, if we did buy tickets and got reservations can we cancel or move them last minute if need be without losing all the money?

Thanks in advance everybody!

 

[Living42Day]

I used to think that planning would take the enjoyment out of our trips, but it honestly wasn't bad. I didn't mind figuring out what days would work in advance or mobile ordering in the morning for lunch and dinner. For the tickets, they are technically nonrefundable. This does make it difficult if you are unsure of what days you want to visit the parks, because some advanced ticket purchasing and reservations are probably here for the foreseeable future.

 

[redleader74]

Yeah, for me, having set/reserved dates makes me a bit nervous too, especially if say, one of us gets sick that day, etc. On my last two trips (2017 and 2019), both were two day passes and both had one day that was very manageable weatherwise, sunny but not too hot and then another day that was unbearably hot, like crazy scorching weather. This time I'm gonna try to be prepared for anything. Amazon has these battery powered fans that also spray a water mist. I plan to keep a half frozen bottle of water with me to refill that water in the fan (check it out on Amazon)!

 

[PirateBrigade]

Yeah... the reservation thing kind of pivoted the style of planning more toward WDW-style planning (not in a good way), but it should be temporary for the most part. But I can see it being permanent for high-traffic time periods, similar to how they have had to block entry to ticketholders around Christmas.

AFAIK, you can cancel reservations and keep the tickets/value of the tickets for later.

Your best bet is to pick a time period that likely has better weather, but that's not a perfect solution either -- I've been to the parks in October and have had it 90+ degrees.

 

[SeaDis]

Bob Chapek, Disney CEO, said the Park Pass reservation system is here to stay. That doesn't necessarily mean permanently; but certainly through this Summer. WDW reservations already extend into 2023.

 

[PirateBrigade]

Bob Chapek, Disney CEO, said the Park Pass reservation system is here to stay. That doesn't necessarily mean permanently; but certainly through this Summer. WDW reservations already extend into 2023.

I think the caps will be interesting -- with the Flex pass of yore, there were reservations available the day before + many open days. Might still require reservations, but potentially with such high caps, there's room for spontaneity .

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

A CM I spoke to recently at the ticket booth told me the reservation system was not going away. Now, if there were no capacity limits and the park reservations were not completely full like they are now you could in theory switch your days around last minute.

 

[dina444444]

A CM I spoke to recently at the ticket booth told me the reservation system was not going away. Now, if there were no capacity limits and the park reservations were not completely full like they are now you could in theory switch your days around last minute.

I think this will be the case. That unless it's a holiday or Xmas/NYE week you will have flexibility in moving your reservations around etc. once they are back to full staffing and occupancy capacity.

 

[downinit]

Once the capacity restrictions are gone, you will definitely want to stay far away from the park on any day that is fully booked up. The park rarely hit capacity pre-COVID, so I really do not see this as a major issue, one way or another, moving forward. Locals will get get tired of paying $150/day or being coerced into spending multiple full days in the park, when they are used to showing up for a few hours at a time. We are in a very transitional period right now, which will not last long in its current iteration.

 

[Aspencreek]

Yeah, for me, having set/reserved dates makes me a bit nervous too, especially if say, one of us gets sick that day, etc. On my last two trips (2017 and 2019), both were two day passes and both had one day that was very manageable weatherwise, sunny but not too hot and then another day that was unbearably hot, like crazy scorching weather.

Yeah, that's the concern. In the past we could just do something different if the weather was horrible or someone felt ill. Not sure if that will be possible for a summer trip this year.

Yeah... the reservation thing kind of pivoted the style of planning more toward WDW-style planning (not in a good way), but it should be temporary for the most part. But I can see it being permanent for high-traffic time periods, similar to how they have had to block entry to ticketholders around Christmas.

AFAIK, you can cancel reservations and keep the tickets/value of the tickets for later.

Your best bet is to pick a time period that likely has better weather, but that's not a perfect solution either -- I've been to the parks in October and have had it 90+ degrees.

That's the debate now - gamble on summer or wait until fall and hope things will have gotten better and more flexible by then. Never been there in the summer as we've always gone in Oct/Nov or Feb/Mar. But like everyone we are dying to travel again!