Soooo...How Does One Book and Visit Disney World These Days? Clueless...

[Princess Katelet]

Okay, so, I have been gifted a free DVC hotel stay and park hoppers, but the trip needs to happen in May. THIS May. Yeah. I'm a former WDW vet who went to DL in 2012 and feel deeply in love and never looked back! But I'm not a CA resident so my precious DL doesn't love me back and won't let me in.

I had FABULOUS WDW trips before 2012 but then FP+ came on the scene with SO many restrictions (only three per day! must book in advance from home! cannot hop with them!) that even if I weren't in a monogamous relationship with DL the thought of booking a WDW vacation did not appeal for that reason alone.

I'm trying to decide if I should rekindle the flame with WDW, but I don't know exactly how one books a trip these days. Is it true you have to book the park you want to go to? And you can't park hop? And if you leave in the afternoon to head to your hotel you can't go back to the park later that day?

And the FP+ I feared so much is...gone? And NOTHING is in its place? One must just...wait in line? LOL! Sorry, but I was a FP legacy master and am not used to that. Also, is single rider still available??

I don't care about meet and greets and fireworks and shows. I do care about crowds and lines. Masks don't thrill me, but neither does catching Covid so I'm okay with them.

Please help! How does one book and experience a trip these days??

ETA: Did I hear Magical Express is gone??

Thanks!

 

[Marionnette]

Okay, so, I have been gifted a free DVC hotel stay and park hoppers, but the trip needs to happen in May. THIS May. Yeah. I'm a former WDW vet who went to DL in 2012 and feel deeply in love and never looked back! But I'm not a CA resident so my precious DL doesn't love me back and won't let me in.

I had FABULOUS WDW trips before 2012 but then FP+ came on the scene with SO many restrictions (only three per day! must book in advance from home! cannot hop with them!) that even if I weren't in a monogamous relationship with DL the thought of booking a WDW vacation did not appeal for that reason alone.

I'm trying to decide if I should rekindle the flame with WDW, but I don't know exactly how one books a trip these days. Is it true you have to book the park you want to go to? And you can't park hop? And if you leave in the afternoon to head to your hotel you can't go back to the park later that day?

And the FP+ I feared so much is...gone? And NOTHING is in its place? One must just...wait in line? LOL! Sorry, but I was a FP legacy master and am not used to that. Also, is single rider still available??

I don't care about meet and greets and fireworks and shows. I do care about crowds and lines. Masks don't thrill me, but neither does catching Covid so I'm okay with them.

Please help! How does one book and experience a trip these days??

Thanks!

Is it true you have to book the park you want to go to?
Yes

And you can't park hop?
Park hopping can be done after 2 PM if you have a park hopper ticket AND you have visited the park for which you have a reservation for that day already AND the park you want to hop to has not reached capacity.

And if you leave in the afternoon to head to your hotel you can't go back to the park later that day?
Untrue. You can leave and return as usual.

And the FP+ I feared so much is...gone?
Suspended for now. No word on whether the suspension is permanent.

And NOTHING is in its place?
No.

One must just...wait in line?
Yes.

Also, is single rider still available??
No

 

[Tom_E_D]

Yes, you have to make a park reservation for the park you want to go to first each day.

If you have park hopper tickets, you can park hop starting at 2:00 p.m., subject to capacity limits in the park you are hopping to. To date, no parks have closed to capacity limits, but Disney has very explicitly reserved the right to limit hopping.

You can always leave the park you have a reservation for and return to it later (no capacity limit for that park).

There are no fastpasses, except for times when rides break down and people waiting are given fastpasses to compensate. Unless you have some special status, everyone waits in line.

I believe there are no single rider lines, which makes sense since they are not putting people who aren't together in seats next to each other.

 

[subtchr]

I'm not sure where you heard or read some of the information in your post...

I had FABULOUS WDW trips before 2012 but then FP+ came on the scene with SO many restrictions (only three per day! must book in advance from home! cannot hop with them!) that even if I weren't in a monogamous relationship with DL the thought of booking a WDW vacation did not appeal for that reason alone.

Um, it was never just 3 per day. You could book 3 per day in advance, but once those were used, you could book many more during the day, if you were a "FP legacy master"... (sorry, couldn't resist...) And you could definitely hop to another park and get FP there. Not the same as DL/DCA, but it was possible.

I'm trying to decide if I should rekindle the flame with WDW, but I don't know exactly how one books a trip these days. Is it true you have to book the park you want to go to? And you can't park hop? And if you leave in the afternoon to head to your hotel you can't go back to the park later that day?

Yes, you have to book park reservations each day. Start in that park, then hop wherever you want starting at 2:00. Park hopping has been permitted (for those with a park hopper or AP, of course) since 1/1/21.

Not sure where you would have heard that you couldn't leave and then return. You've been able to do that since reopening last July.

And the FP+ I feared so much is...gone? And NOTHING is in its place? One must just...wait in line? LOL! Sorry, but I was a FP legacy master and am not used to that. Also, is single rider still available??

Yes, but the lines are generally shorter (time-wise) than before Covid. No single rider lines, but then again, there were only 4 single rider lines in all of WDW. So not a huge loss.

I hope you end up visiting and having fun!

 

[Jeskova26]

The people above pretty much answered everything. You seem to be pretty laid back about what you want to do so make sure you get your park reservations and then just enjoy. Without FP, it’s a little more straightforward and the lines aren’t that bad

 

[luv2cheer92]

Yea, there's definitely a misunderstanding of FP+ there. But, that is not in use right now (and I'd guess pretty likely won't be by May), so you don't have to worry about that.

But other than planning for Rise, if you want to ride it, not much more to it than booking hotel, park reservations, ADRs (if you want them), and go have fun!

 

[Princess Katelet]

Thank you everyone! Will it be too late to reserve park days for May?? Do they book up in advance like Cindy's always did??

Does Magical Express still take you to and from the airport? I added that question later so most haven't seen it.

 

[luv2cheer92]

You can use this to check park reservation availability by day. Most of May looks pretty open.
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/a...,resort,passholder&defaultSegment=tickets
Yes, you will be able to use Magical Express.

 

[Tom_E_D]

Thank you everyone! Will it be too late to reserve park days for May?? Do they book up in advance like Cindy's always did??

Does Magical Express still take you to and from the airport? I added that question later so most haven't seen it.

Disney's Magical Express will end at the end of this year. You can still get it for May. To book, call 407-939-1936 or fill out the online form: https://secure.reservations.disney.go.com/ibcwdw/en_US/dme/dmeform

Edit: Disney no longer handles luggage transfer. Be sure to pick up your checked bags at the airport before going to the DME bus.