Feel like a new person after WDW spring trip, May 10-17

[jodifla]

After what felt like a long very absence (OK, only two years!), my family went WDW from May 10 thru 17 with a split trip between BCV in a studio and the Riviera in a one bedroom and had an excellent time. I had prepped my family that this would be a different trip, more expensive than we were used to, and that we would have to roll with the punches. The pandemic isn't over at WDW isn't up to full speed.

But at almost every step we were pleasantly surprised. It felt great to get on a plane, go somewhere different than the same house we'd spent the past 15 monthshole up in, and put down our work laptops for a week.

We found the parks crowded the Tuesday and Wednesday, but the crowds really let up after that. I watched Touring Plans and the Disney app for weeks ahead of time to gauge crowds. We were even able to nab on RotR boarding group with our rickety old phones.

Magic Kingdom is the best bet these days because it has so many more rides. We walked right on several of them. Epcot takes more work because of all the construction, but we just took our time and took the park in segments. Hollywood Studios gets crowded and hot fast in the Star Wars area! But it does have the upside of so many new things to see. We had the best safari ride we'd ever experienced and are so glad they stopped the poaching storyline, which was getting old.

I relied heavily on the Touring Plans app and found it accurate.

We had low expectations given the situation and Disney far exceeded them.

We did get stuck on Spaceship Earth and had to be evacuated, which was wild. They gave us a fastpass, so we were able to quickly get on Mission Space.

The biggest area of disappointment was the food. The quality wasn't there and the servers struggled. The exception was Topolino's, where everything was top notch.

In fact, we really, really liked the Riviera. The 1 bedroom had a ton of space. It was well appointed and very comfortable. The quiet pool was so inviting. And the Skyliner was very convenient and a ride in itself.

There were many moments at WDW that I totally forget we were in a pandemic -- even though we were wearing masks. We had 6 day tickets, and that helped take the pressure off as well. If our only days there had been Tuesday and Wednesday, that would have felt way less successful.

I look forward to more normal times there and at home; but for us, WDW remains our happy place.

 

[michelleiada]

We were there 5/15 - 5/26. I took the same attitude...low expectations. We were supposed to have gone last year but Covid happened so we rescheduled to this year. We were 6 adults, my husband, myself, our daughters, their guys, and my 9 month old grandson (his first visit). Our first three nights were in a grand villa at BLT with a Magic Kingdom view....not worth the points without fireworks but we still enjoyed it (room could use a refurb too). And then 8 nights at Beach Club in a two bedroom and studio. We enjoyed ourselves being there, especially after being locked in our houses for 15 months (and my daughter and I are both nurses and it was a stressful year). But I agree that the parks were crowded and the lines long. We were not able to accomplish nearly as much without Fast Pass. Food options were also limited and we dined at mostly signatures. It was wonderful to feel a sense of normalcy in our lives but I think we spent a lot of money for a lot less than what we are used to getting. Our park tickets were not any cheaper for parks that closed much earlier and did not offer the same return, in terms of entertainment. We missed our favorite shows, parades, character meet and greets, and mostly...night time spectaculars. We also found the bus system to be HORRIBLE!!! We spent wayyyyyy tooooooo much time waiting for buses both coming and going. Very frustrating. I love Disney. It is truly my happy place. It is where I dream of being when I’m feeling down or having a bad day. But I pray that the Disney I fell in love with returns. I want our children, and grandchildren, to continue enjoying the passion and love for Disney World that we have. I have concerns with Bob Cheapek running the show and hope he doesn’t continue on the trend of money grabbing and up charging for everything. He is taking away all of the perks that staying on property offered. I’m still very disappointed that Magical Express will be no more even though I know Mears is still offering the service without the Disney name on it...NOT THE SAME! Pay more for less seems to be the way Disney is heading...and I hate it. One thing I was particularly unhappy about was we had reservations at Savi’s Workshop to make custom light sabers, that I booked right at the 60 day mark. At the time it was $199 per person. Pricy...but ok we will try it once. I had seen the report that the price had gone up to $229 but that Disney would honor the $199 price for anyone that had booked prior to the increase. WELL...that was not the case. They charged me the new price and when I questioned, and complained, the girl was not very pleasant and told me “it states right on the web site that the price is subject to change”. This was not the Disney I know. She was not the Disney I know. Her customer service skills were severely lacking. Anyway....I bit the bullet and we did it anyway...I could not disappoint my son in laws and husband. But I still feel that was wrong. We are now thinking about our point usage for next year. We want to go back...but we want to return to Disney the way we knew it.