Here Now & Just Back - A Place To Share Your Recent Experiences

[hereforthechurros]

For anyone who has stayed or currently staying at Pop, CBR or Riviera, if the skyliner stops running due to weather or whatever, and you are at Epcot, do you have to walk to the skyliner to find out that it isn’t running and then walk all the way to the front of the park to get a bus? Sorry if that’s a silly question, but say I was at Spaceship Earth and walked to the skyliner only to find out it isn’t running and then had to walk all the way back to the front of the park and out to the bus stops, well that could be pretty brutal, especially at the end of the night after walking in the heat all day long. Wasn’t sure if they had some way of letting folks know to go to the bus stops. Not sure how they would do that though. Thanks

At that point I’d walk to beach Club and Uber to Pop.

 

[Stratman50th]

FWIW, I did see a rumor that Tambu Lounge is opening later this month, not sure if that has been confirmed or not (I’m behind on the boards/info).

I'll be checking into the Fort Oct 15. Be there through the 19th. The Poly is supposed to open on the 4th. Fingers crossed on 'Ohana.

 

[Disneykate605]

Actual question: I've been seeing reports that Disney Springs has lower mask compliance/feels more crowded/feels more dangerous than the parks. Can folks who have been to DS please continue chiming in with reports and opinions about that?

We were there from 7/17-7/26 and I thought Disney springs did not have good mask compliance. Many were wearing them under the nose or chin, walking around with masks down and drinking (instead of staying stationary) and I also saw 4 different families with no masks. It was more crowded and much harder to socially distance there as well. We love Disney springs but don't plan on going back during our November trip if things there don't change.

 

[koquinn]

Just sat on a bench at DS waiting for dinner and watched masks. Overall I think it's decent here. It's not perfect, and the offenders are more obvious here (like chin strap vs nose peeking) but I would say it's not really worse than the parks.

 

[Disneyliscious]

Dont get your hopes up. 7DMT wait times on average seems to be about 40min per the app.

Is this because they are allowing more people into the parks now than before?

 

[yulilin3]

Is this because they are allowing more people into the parks now than before?

They haven't hit park capacity so far, as in all ticket pools being unavailable to book a park reservation, this just means more people are coming

 

[Geomom]

Is this because they are allowing more people into the parks now than before?

They aren't letting more people in, I don't think they've hit their initial limited capacity yet..so some days are closer to capacity or have very few people there.

We went to MK 5x from 7/26-8/7, rode 7DMT 3x. About a 30 minute wait each time, including a cleaning cycle. The ride goes down during storms.. almost every afternoon for a couple hours or more. After missing it the first day, we headed to this ride as soon as we entered the park... I'm sure we're not the only ones. Precovid, the normal wait times for times we visit were 120 minutes...we were happy to wait 30 minutes!

 

[Davey Jones II]

Which top 2 rides at MK should I prioritize for a 4th or 5th fastpass?

- HM
- IASW
- Pirates
- Buzz
- Pooh
- Under the Sea

Dont get your hopes up. 7DMT wait times on average seems to be about 40min per the app.

That`s still a lot shorter than usual...

 

[Leigh L]

I made my family let me sit up front today and it was much better. Still rough but better!

I agree, definitely the way to go!
Today, I finally was brave enough to go back on RnR today to put an extra smile on DD13's face since no one else in our family can ride it due to medical reasons. We were in the last car loaded and they weren't taking requests for seats (totally understandable). Oh boy, that way in the back was bad, lol. It took me a bit to recover on many levels haha.
Also, I do better with SM and Slinky in the front too

To keep myself from getting too OT. DHS was HOT today. but wait times were OK, a little higher than times I'm seeing listed at the other parks on the app, but still far lower than they were in January. It felt weird to stand on some lines though (not bad, just different) and saw/noticed queues I'd either missed because of FP or crowded queues where I can't see over people lol.

MMRR averaged about 40-50 minutes all day, ToT and RnR were 20-40 minutes. We got on those two at 25 minutes and it was about right for both rides. TSMM was pretty much a walk on both times we rode. I think we waited 10 minutes the first time. Star Tours was also a walk on for the most part.

 

[720L]

MK today. Didn't wait more than 20 mins for anything. Walked on Peter Pan!!!! What??!!

 

[Jennasis]

We are on a non park Orlando vacation and had lunch in DS on Wednesday 8/12. The place was empty for the most part. Mask compliance was good. We saw one ,maskless couple and 3 or 4 noses but that was it. We ate at Homecoming walk up and requested to sit outside where we were the only guests. There were people indoors but we haven't eaten at ANY indoor restaurants this whole trip.

We ran...literally...into WoD to nab a baby Yoda. The store was empty and we literally ran to the Star Wars section, grabbed it and ran to the counter. Total in store time was 5 min. We haven't been within 20 feet of another human all week aside from masked servers and cashiers.

This trip has been a lot of work to maintain distance and clean things constantly.

 

[Disneyguy1]

TRIP REPORT FOR 8/13/14.

My wife and I just got to DW today. It is just the two of us. I have taken over 30 separate trips to DW in my life and today has been one of the best days I can ever remember. It was absolutely fantastic and I cannot wait to see what the rest of the trip holds.

RESORT - We are staying at Pop Century. We arrived at the resort around 1:00 pm or so. There was no wait at the front counter and only a handful of people in the lobby. We ate lunch at the food court. I counted a total of 3 other people in the WHOLE food court. It was awesome. It felt and feels like we have this whole place to ourselves.

HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS (RIDES) - We went to HS today (arrived around 4:00). The park felt like a ghost town. I have NEVER seen it this empty in my life other than late at night after everybody has left. We started with Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway. We waited 40 mins for it (the longest we had to wait for anything). It was an easy wait as the weather was cooler and it was overcast when we were outside waiting. Plus, the whole time we were pretty much walking so it felt even shorter IMO. We then rode Slinky Dog. It posted a 40 min wait. However, it was a little under 25 mins in reality. Once again, felt even shorter because of the distance and the way they have the lines. You are constantly moving so you feel like you are getting somewhere. After that, we did Midway Mania. It was a walk-on, no wait at all (even though it posted at 15 mins). When we were done, they let us ride again without even having to get out. We could have done it 3 times in a row without having to get off, but our arms were hurting, lol. We then did the Alien Saucer Swirl and it was a walk-on. After that, we did the Millennium Falcon - it was about 20 mins or so.

HOLYWOOD STUDIOS (FOOD) - Mobile ordering was awesome. We ate at Docking Bay 7. It was empty. We later went to Oga's for drinks right before the park closed. Once again, it was pretty much empty (we had to wait maybe 10 mins max?).

MASK COMPLIANCE - I would say it was about 95% from what I could tell. A few folks wore it below their noses and one family, in particular, continued to take their masks off a few families down from us while we were waiting for Micky and Minnie's Railway. The CM did a FANTASTIC job of holding them responsible. I do not know what they said, but after the third time, someone (who looked like they were "higher up" at Disney) said something to them, and from that point forward they did not take their masks off again. Another CM told us that they will escort people out of the park if they catch you continuing to not wear your mask. I think they are really buckling down. Someone reported on here that it feels like Disney is getting looser. We DID NOT get that impression at all. If anything, they were firmer than what I had even expected.

SOCIAL DISTANCING -I was very impressed by the social distancing. I can honestly say that there was never a time I felt unsafe or where I felt Disney could improve. Typical Disney; above and beyond.

SKYLINER - The Skyliner was down both times when we needed to use it (weather). The first time, we hopped a bus with no problem (we waited about 10 mins). Coming back, it was a very long line, so we Ubered.

Overall, this is shaping up to perhaps be our best trip yet. We only spent 4 hours in the park today and got way more done than we expected while taking our time and not having anybody around us the whole time. It was fantastic!!! CM were great as always, too. They seemed to really be on their game.

 

[Disneyguy1]

One other thing is that I was wearing a cloth mask without any type of wire lining to be able to form to your nose. Within just a couple of hours, I was getting a blister on my nose. I switched to the basic 3 ply disposable masks with the wire lining (we bought like 50 lol). They worked A WHOLE lot better. As my wife put it, "They are not cutesy," but I told her I honestly did not care about cutesty if it meant I would be rubbing a blister on my nose for the whole trip, haha. So, if you are looking at what kind of masks, I personally recommend the kind that has a metal wiring so you can make them fit more snug where they do not rub as much.

Most people making them on Etsy will not make them with the wiring. They will be the standard cloth masks. I'm sure different people have different experiences with what works best, but I discovered that the masks with the wire works best for me.

 

[brockash]

That`s still a lot shorter than usual...

It is and it isn't. Yes, it's shorter than a regular day in stand-by; however there are many ppl. (myself included) who never wait in the standby line for that anyways...so it's definitely longer than the 5-10 mins that I'd usually wait.

 

[shoegal9]

FWIW, I did see a rumor that Tambu Lounge is opening later this month, not sure if that has been confirmed or not (I’m behind on the boards/info).

Yes! Tambu is confirmed to be opening this Sunday!

 

[pepperandchips]

Sounds like a great getaway to me! We purchased something very similar to your personal fans for our trip to the GE Passholder preview and subsequent August trip last year. I must say, they help a lot, especially coupled with the cooling towels. We may have to look into Camelbaks. Is that a brand name?

It is a brand name but the generic for what I mean is just “water bladder”. We have a 100 oz one for hiking that slips easily into a pocket of my backpack - the backpack wasn’t made specifically for that but it works great!

 

[Kyhome]

It is and it isn't. Yes, it's shorter than a regular day in stand-by; however there are many ppl. (myself included) who never wait in the standby line for that anyways...so it's definitely longer than the 5-10 mins that I'd usually wait.

We are a family that has never waited over 20 minutes for a ride at Disney b/c I always plan fast passes, ride order, etc. We were wondering how our trip would go a few weeks ago (we went mid week, no weekends) because we truly are spoiled with lack of waiting (first world problems, I know). However, this was the best trip ever. We did wait about 25 minutes for Mine Train and Splash and a 30 minute wait in HS (Mickey and Minnie)- but walking on the other rides was amazing. Just being able to walk through again and again and ride FOP, Everest, Space, Toy Story, Millineum Falcon, etc! I could not ride FOP anymore b/c I was getting motion sick. That's a great problem to have!

Even with fast passes in busy times (we usually go in the summer), we still have to wait later in the day because the FP line gets backed up.

 

[dachsie]

One other thing is that I was wearing a cloth mask without any type of wire lining to be able to form to your nose. Within just a couple of hours, I was getting a blister on my nose. I switched to the basic 3 ply disposable masks with the wire lining (we bought like 50 lol). They worked A WHOLE lot better. As my wife put it, "They are not cutesy," but I told her I honestly did not care about cutesty if it meant I would be rubbing a blister on my nose for the whole trip, haha. So, if you are looking at what kind of masks, I personally recommend the kind that has a metal wiring so you can make them fit more snug where they do not rub as much.

Most people making them on Etsy will not make them with the wiring. They will be the standard cloth masks. I'm sure different people have different experiences with what works best, but I discovered that the masks with the wire works best for me.

Emelee Originals uses a pipe cleaner. Works pretty good.

I have used floral wire in mine. You have to make a pocket to insert it in.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

I am going in September. 9 nights at OKW. I will just be happy to be in the Disney "bubble" again. If I don't care about character meet and greets, dining or parades and special events, basically just there for the rides and the ambiance, will it feel very different? Are there any rides that are not operating strictly because of Covid?

 

[koquinn]

We've been here since Friday and stay till Sunday. Here are my thoughts so far.

1) I was very paranoid about COVID and almost canceled this trip. Like, we hadn't really left the house other than work and a few runs for urgent groceries since 3/13. Getting here felt weird but good. We quickly acclimated to the Disney bubble for better or for worse, and now I'm not sure how to go back to reality. Do we eat in restaurants when we get home? I don't think so, but being here has somehow shifted my brain a bit so that I've kind of forgotten how worried we were. I'm not sure that's a good thing, but it doesn't take too long to feel more comfortable and assume Disney and the other guests are protecting you. It's very much a false sense of security if I'm being honest, but I think if you're going to enjoy your trip it may be that you have to assume the best of people and hope that the virus levels in the park are minimal. You will spend time closer to people than you have at home, and there's no way to avoid this. If you don't like that, now isn't the time to come.

2) That all said, I do think compliance with the rules is generally good. We have seen probably 95% mask compliance. It's very slightly worse at the hottest times of the day and then later evening at DS and EPCOT. My assumption is that by the end of the day people are either tired or have had some alcohol and their judgment isn't as good so they get more lax. Most of the time it's easy to avoid people because the crowds aren't much. But sometimes you get stuck in line with a group that clearly doesn't care and you just figure out how to stay a few more lines on the floor away from them.

3) The masks haven't bothered us nearly as much as the heat. Mask or not, it's hot. We have been unable to avoid drinking in line - there were a few times I felt like I might pass out and having some water was the only thing that saved me. We, and most people, do it in a safe-ish way, ie quick lift of the mask while facing away from people and staying back an extra line. It's just impossible not to with so many queues in the hot sun beyond the ride queue starts. Overall I don't think people are abusing this, mostly just trying to survive.

4) It's peaceful here. People have generally been friendly and excited to be back, and the usual arguments between families and such are at a minimum. CMs seem more wonderful than usual. We've had some great service all around.

5) Transportation is dodgy. When it works it's great - they do a good job separating people on buses and such. But if Skyliner is down, or they aren't sending enough buses for Pop, it's more frustrating than usual. The longest lines we've waited in have been for buses hands down.

6) Ride lines are great on the weekdays. The weekend was much busier as others have said. We love FP and rarely wait for rides, but overall we've felt like we've been able to do what we wanted and a decent pace. Getting in before rope drop is key, especially at HS. Plan to start early especially with the heat.

7) We brought extra trash bags for our room and ordered groceries. Both things have very much helped avoiding the morning rush for breakfast at Pop and keeping our room somewhat clean with limited housekeeping. I don't think I'd pay for housekeeping if I had it to do over. They are doing the bare minimum and we've had to call for a broom and extra towels.

8) I brought a bottle of detergent and some suction cup hooks for the mirror. Washing out the masks at night and hanging them to dry has worked well.

If you're a Disney fanatic and healthy, come. You'll have a great time. If you expect perfection and full service everything, or you have health risks or are really worried about getting sick, wait a bit. It's still very magical, and CMs are doing a great job, but it's not the same as normal. We've enjoyed it and have no regrets, but it is a very different trip than we're used to. We miss park hopping the most, and not having things to do early morning and later at night as we like full days. That said it's been relaxing too. Let me know if you have any questions!