Real Talk - Should we go?

[mamamelody2]

Don't the cars for that only have two rows? I will have a party of six, I wonder if they will let my group ride together? If that's the case my wife can ride in the front since she is looking forward to that SO MUCH. We even got an extra park ticket in case we can't ride it the first day. If there isn't plexiglass in the front that would really make me feel better.

You should definitely all be put in one vehicle. I would put 4 people in the front row, then the two in the back should sit on the ends, leaving the middle seats empty. My husband and I sat in the back row, and did the two end seats like that, and I didn't have to look through the plexiglass much at all and really barely noticed it.

 

[MainMom]

I drove myself and BIL (50s) and 3 college aged kids to WDW and Uni the 3rd week of December (the week before Christmas week). DS2's GF had never been to FL at all, BIL had not been in more than 20 years.

We had a BLAST.

Yes, there were lines. Most of them went quickly. No, we did not ride every ride we wanted to, but the crowd levels were high because it was almost Christmas. We did ride everything we got in line for, and the things we didn't ride came down to time and choosing the best rides for the group. We barely saw the cavalcades, but we are not parade / fireworks types, so we didn't really miss them.

We ate outside practically every meal, and the online orders went very well. We would order well before we headed to the location where we wanted to eat, and picked the best time slot for how long we thought it would take us to arrive.

Cons: the lines looked long and the spillover outside the ride buildings was weird. The lines at food carts were long. We found that we didn't snack the way we usually do in the parks. We arrived 1 hour after rope drop and closed the parks every night. An extra hour per park would have been nice, but it wasn't bad. We didn't hit the Emporium on our way out like usual because the line was 45 min. We just didn't want to wait that long at the end of the day. With no trams, the walk to the car was hard after being in the parks for 8+ hours (we stayed offsite).

Overall, I'd do it again. Wait, I am doing it again. Hubby and I are flying down alone at the end of the month. We'll be there a week, mostly to do Universal, with a day at MK. Can't wait.

Where were the best places to eat outside that you found?

 

[mamamelody2]

So to answer the OP:

My husband and I (late 40s) went in November, flew from Michigan. We had a GREAT time!

I would have struggled HARD with the masks in summer, but with the November weather it was fine.
I love the fireworks, but I did not miss them. Lovely not to have to think about staking out a spot.
I am our family's designated FP-finder. So, after we use our 3rd, I'm on the hunt for the next one. Because there are no FPs, I had no reason to be on my phone and was able to look around a lot more.
Cavalcades are cute and a fun way to see the characters without having to take a bunch of time out of your day for meet-n-greets. I always feel awkward at the meets, too, but still feel I should do them. HA!
Shorter hours meant we were not exhausted when we went home. LOL.
Bus service was very good at POP.
It was nice to never be smacked by a backpack or have your ankles trod upon!
Mobile order worked great except for our last morning at POP. After waiting 30 minutes for Mickey waffles we had to cancel the order and head to our DME bus. Oh well.

Like many others have said, if this would be a first or once-in-a-lifetime trip, I would definitely not do it. For veterans with realistic expectations, it's a great time to go!

 

[Kitty & Covs Covs]

Is anyone worried that WDW won’t keep up with an increase of spring crowds—that is, with limited hours and no FPs things are “okay” now with 30-50 min waits and tolerable gift shop lines, but come March/April those protocols will causes 70-90 minute waits and the trade off of low crowds but high closures won’t make sense? They seem to increasing capacity without changing too much operationally to accommodate it (though I could be wrong!)

 

[MomOTwins]

Is anyone worried that WDW won’t keep up with an increase of spring crowds—that is, with limited hours and no FPs things are “okay” now with 30-50 min waits and tolerable gift shop lines, but come March/April those protocols will causes 70-90 minute waits and the trade off of low crowds but high closures won’t make sense? They seem to increasing capacity without changing too much operationally to accommodate it (though I could be wrong!)

We had 60-90 min waits for pretty much everything in October. I think maybe waits are better now because of AP blackouts.

We're a bit odd because we've been twice in 2020 and had very mixed experiences (some good days, some horrible ones), but we're still going back in early 2021! We had lots of looong waits for rides and transportation, limited menu options at restaurants, early park closures with little to do in the evenings (we missed fireworks so much), crowds of people with poor mask compliance. BUT when it came to planning a spring break trip, we kind of just looked at our options and came up short on anything better. We don't want to risk an international trip with potential flight changes and border closures. And we don't want to just hole up in an airbnb somewhere (done that, too much work with all the cooking and cleaning). Plus, we're thinking of maybe buying DVC but want to try out a couple DVC resorts first. So back we go!

I do really hope they bring back more evening park hours and nighttime shows though. That was a big part of the Disney experience.

 

[ZumaTree]

Wow! This has been so helpful. We really appreciate everyone's honest opinions and we've loved reading the variety of responses.

A few more details: we will be driving, so no flights to worry about, and no children. We try to make it once a year, so the idea of adding this unique experience to our list of trips is very intriguing. We're booked at Caribbean Beach for the Skyliner, and we'd use our car for MK and AK. Our favorite things at WDW are rides, fireworks, food, and soaking in the ambience. We don't care much about parades or waiting in line for characters, so the cavalcades seem like upgrades of those experiences to us.

Today, we're leaning towards going. Yesterday, we were leaning towards rescheduling. I think we'll keep going back and forth until we can't wait anymore, so we continue to appreciate any new perspectives. Keep them coming! Thanks for the tip to scour the trip report forum as well.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

Don't the cars for that only have two rows? I will have a party of six, I wonder if they will let my group ride together? If that's the case my wife can ride in the front since she is looking forward to that SO MUCH. We even got an extra park ticket in case we can't ride it the first day. If there isn't plexiglass in the front that would really make me feel better.

There’s no plexiglass in the front. We lucked out and got the front row both times which was awesome.

Plexiglass was put on MMRR when we were there and it’s not really that noticeable. I didn’t even think about it during the ride because you’re mainly looking up and to the sides.

Agree with what folks said about safari- the weird plastic thing doesn’t really do much anyways and detracts more from the experience. Was surprised to see them seating every row- I think we were there (Nov 2020) in the midst of the switch to plexiglass and boarding full capacity again. I will say I did notice our wait times improve once they made those changes so .

IMO, the lack of physical distancing in the park was so noticeable (especially in MK!) that being seated closer to folks on rides didn’t matter at that point. Just a roll of the dice overall.

I’m glad we went and already planning a 2021 trip. But we’re Disneyland vets so we go often. And it was my first time at WDW so I also didn’t really notice what was missing either. Now if it were Disneyland, I might have been more disappointed if things I have attachments too weren’t open. But hey... at least WDW is open! I say go for it. I also enjoyed not having to worry about FP times. It was really relaxing in that sense!

Honestly, we needed the magic. It was a big recharge and after coming back to a huge covid surge in my area... and finding out I might have to still work remotely the rest of the year... and just general isolation from family/friends during all this... I’m so happy we went. We haven’t laughed that hard in so long and it was just what I needed.

 

[nkereina]

We are in the same boat and wondering if it's prudent. Many of you have said you wouldn't come if it was a first visit, and that is what it will be for my daughters. My oldest is turning 21 and had to cancel her March 2020 trip but she said she'd rather spend her birthday at a stripped-down Disneyworld than anywhere else. We have adjusted our expectations, but it is a gamble. We are supposed to leave January 26th and we will have to make a decision by the 20th to cancel the Yacht Club.

I don't think its an optimal time to visit WDW since there's so much of the experience missing. But I think if a first time visitor keeps that in mind and manages expectations, they will still have a great time. They have nothing to compare it to anyway. Hopefully they'll be able to visit again when things are "normal" and their second trip will be even better than the first!

I have a larger concern with the "once in a lifetime" visitor going now - the families who save for years and years and have no idea if or when they'll ever be back. I would strongly advise to postpone in this case so you can get the full experience someday.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

Where were the best places to eat outside that you found?

We only ate one meal a day in the parks. At MK, we ate at Pecos Bills, HS was Backlot Express - great covered, open air space, EPCOT we gorged on small plates at Spice Road Table - another great covered open air space. We didn't do AK.

We were offsite, so we did curbside on our way back to the condo (on our way to EPCOT for lunch).

 

[TiggerBouncy]

You should definitely all be put in one vehicle. I would put 4 people in the front row, then the two in the back should sit on the ends, leaving the middle seats empty. My husband and I sat in the back row, and did the two end seats like that, and I didn't have to look through the plexiglass much at all and really barely noticed it.

We are talking RotR, right? It's only 4 per vehicle (2 front / 2 back). Or were we talking about a different ride?

 

[yulilin3]

We are talking RotR, right? It's only 4 per vehicle (2 front / 2 back). Or were we talking about a different ride?

RotR has 2 rows of 4 each. Plexiglass only impedes people in the back row

 

[Orion Nebula]

We are talking RotR, right? It's only 4 per vehicle (2 front / 2 back). Or were we talking about a different ride?

Ya that is what I was talking about and the no barrier in the front news was awesome for me. I have a party of six and it is nice to know my wife will get an unobstructed view (she is a huge fan).

 

[TiggerBouncy]

RotR has 2 rows of 4 each. Plexiglass only impedes people in the back row

Sorry. My memory stunk. And each time I have ridden it, they have not seated anyone next to us so I guess I glossed over. But I found a picture of the vehicle and you're right.

 

[tlmadden73]

I don't think its an optimal time to visit WDW since there's so much of the experience missing. But I think if a first time visitor keeps that in mind and manages expectations, they will still have a great time. They have nothing to compare it to anyway. Hopefully they'll be able to visit again when things are "normal" and their second trip will be even better than the first!

I have a larger concern with the "once in a lifetime" visitor going now - the families who save for years and years and have no idea if or when they'll ever be back. I would strongly advise to postpone in this case so you can get the full experience someday.

My in-laws went in November and had a great time. They are "once or twice" in a lifetime visitors. They last went in 2015 (compared to my family who has gone like 6-7 times since our 2015 trip with them).

They had a great time and while found the COVID restrictions "exhausting" (like wearing masks all day) .. they go so infrequently that they don't know what they are missing from an attraction standpoint. Didn't miss FP, didn't know which attractions were closed. They big thing they missed was the in-person M&Gs. The littlest girl wanted to meet the princesses and could not .. but they all enjoyed the new cavalcades.


The main reason I am going now is because I am far from the "once in a lifetime" visitor. While I will notice all the little and big things "missing" .. I know I'll be back so having a "taste" of the Magic is better than nothing. (or at least that's my thought) . I still worry that it will be less magical since I am so versed in the parks and I will notice all the differences (No FP, closed attractions, long, winding queues, looking an ugly, empty Rivers of America) ..etc.

 

[nkereina]

My in-laws went in November and had a great time. They are "once or twice" in a lifetime visitors. They last went in 2015 (compared to my family who has gone like 6-7 times since our 2015 trip with them).

They had a great time and while found the COVID restrictions "exhausting" (like wearing masks all day) .. they go so infrequently that they don't know what they are missing from an attraction standpoint. Didn't miss FP, didn't know which attractions were closed. They big thing they missed was the in-person M&Gs. The littlest girl wanted to meet the princesses and could not .. but they all enjoyed the new cavalcades.


The main reason I am going now is because I am far from the "once in a lifetime" visitor. While I will notice all the little and big things "missing" .. I know I'll be back so having a "taste" of the Magic is better than nothing. (or at least that's my thought) . I still worry that it will be less magical since I am so versed in the parks and I will notice all the differences (No FP, closed attractions, long, winding queues, looking an ugly, empty Rivers of America) ..etc.

Its a very subjective thing. DH and I typically visit once or twice a year. We went in October and had a great time and wouldn't hesitate to go again in the current environment either.

I'm glad your in-laws had a good time, but I was referring to the true one-time only type of people. For example, my SIL and BIL have two kids, none of them have ever been, and they've been saving money for the last two years to hopefully take a trip this summer. They know it will be their only opportunity to go due to cost, work schedules, kids getting older with commitments, etc. They are weighing whether they should push it to 2022 in hopes of more normalcy and to get the full experience and value. Or, should they say to heck with it and just go and take what they can get. Its hard to take the emotions of excitement and anticipation and weigh that against the practical side that considers cost to value and even risk. What side wins out will differ for every family.

 

[LiteBrite]

Wow! This has been so helpful. We really appreciate everyone's honest opinions and we've loved reading the variety of responses.

A few more details: we will be driving, so no flights to worry about, and no children. We try to make it once a year, so the idea of adding this unique experience to our list of trips is very intriguing. We're booked at Caribbean Beach for the Skyliner, and we'd use our car for MK and AK. Our favorite things at WDW are rides, fireworks, food, and soaking in the ambience. We don't care much about parades or waiting in line for characters, so the cavalcades seem like upgrades of those experiences to us.

Today, we're leaning towards going. Yesterday, we were leaning towards rescheduling. I think we'll keep going back and forth until we can't wait anymore, so we continue to appreciate any new perspectives. Keep them coming! Thanks for the tip to scour the trip report forum as well.

Hubby and I were there in mid December. We stayed off-site, so that's a little different, but in other ways we are very similar to you. It was just us, and we drove there and used our car to go to all the parks, but we did take a break from Epcot for an afternoon Skyliner tour (which we enjoyed very much, we adore the Skyliner).

We have been frequent visitors for many years, but this was our first trip back since the closures. Like you, we don't care much about parades or character meetings, and we like all the things you do.

It was a mixed bag of a trip for sure. Getting the negatives out of the way first, the hardest thing to swallow for us was just how many things are not running. We missed the shows very much, especially Festival of the Lion King, and having some of the restaurants not be open sucked too. Wearing masks all day was not that big of a deal, but it was harder to find water than we expected, and we tended to get dehydrated because of that. We typically get lots of free cups of ice water from the counter service places, and that was much more challenging this time with the emphasis on mobile ordering, especially in the MK. To be fair, we were there on the first day and getting our bearings, so maybe we could have done better there. We did better at the other parks.

The cavalcades were a fun surprise whenever we saw them. I'd be happy if they keep those in the future. However, be careful, because crowds do sometimes form around them.

Lines were not that big of a deal, and honestly it was kind of fun doing it like we used to do it back in the day before FP. Social distancing was pretty good in the lines. We had one exception with a party of 4 who kept getting too close to us, so I invited them to pass us. They gave us a confused look, and I said, "no really, please, just go in front of us" kind of firmly, and they did, although I don't think they understood why.

Overall, I think you're good candidates for going during this time. It's not your first trip and it likely won't be your last, so just go have some fun. Just manage your expectations and appreciate it for the unique experience it will be. For us, we made our decision to go based on how much we wanted some kind of a vacation experience after our very challenging year, and we're not sorry we went.

 

[Pixie Dust x3]

I don't think its an optimal time to visit WDW since there's so much of the experience missing. But I think if a first time visitor keeps that in mind and manages expectations, they will still have a great time. They have nothing to compare it to anyway. Hopefully they'll be able to visit again when things are "normal" and their second trip will be even better than the first!

I have a larger concern with the "once in a lifetime" visitor going now - the families who save for years and years and have no idea if or when they'll ever be back. I would strongly advise to postpone in this case so you can get the full experience someday.

Thank you, that is a great point -- this is not a "once in a lifetime" trip for us. It's a quick four-day visit with cheap airfare and less expensive lodging at the resort. My daughters are already saying how this will be a good chance to plan trip #2! We are regulars at Disneyland and just really miss the magic.

 

[disneyanddogs]

We visited in November and it was great! Surprising crowds in Epcot (likely had everything to do with being a Saturday festival day), but the other parks were great. We just went with our expectations slightly lower than normal and made a point to try out some new restaurants at the resorts. Hoping to go again soon....as you said, there is a definite need for Disney joy right now.

 

[blistex]

Thank for this thread, struggling with the same ourselves today. Have to pay for our trip tomorrow if we're going, and half of me says no way and half of me says yes please.

 

[glocon]

If you want all the magic, I say wait. If you are just craving a little bit of magic, I say go. I totally would go! Even a little Disney Magic is welcome in these trying times. As long as you feel safe so that doesn’t ruin it for you, go!