The Magic is Back - Share your Experience! Superthread

[jackbo487]

I'm loving all these photos & stories about the low wait times and general casualness of everything so far .. I really hope it stays that way into June when we have two park-hopper days!

 

[amyg1975]

I found that most wait times were over-estimated. Toy Story Midway Mania said 40 minutes, but we were on in 16 minutes. Splash Mountain said 30, and we were on in 15. The longest wait we had was Snow White Friday morning (our first ride) and Rise of the Resistance on Saturday (still under 30 minutes). The Millennium Falcon was always walk-on for us. It said 10 minutes, but that is because the walk takes forever! Haha!

 

[midnight star]

I found that most wait times were over-estimated. Toy Story Midway Mania said 40 minutes, but we were on in 16 minutes. Splash Mountain said 30, and we were on in 15. The longest wait we had was Snow White Friday morning (our first ride) and Rise of the Resistance on Saturday (still under 30 minutes). The Millennium Falcon was always walk-on for us. It said 10 minutes, but that is because the walk takes forever! Haha!

I noticed the same thing!

 

[crystal1313]

I found that most wait times were over-estimated. Toy Story Midway Mania said 40 minutes, but we were on in 16 minutes. Splash Mountain said 30, and we were on in 15. The longest wait we had was Snow White Friday morning (our first ride) and Rise of the Resistance on Saturday (still under 30 minutes). The Millennium Falcon was always walk-on for us. It said 10 minutes, but that is because the walk takes forever! Haha!

We noticed the same as well!

We didn’t wait long at all for ROTR. That’s interesting!

 

[amyg1975]

We noticed the same as well!

We didn’t wait long at all for ROTR. That’s interesting!

Our first time on ROTR was a very short wait. The second one was at 5:30 and much slower. I think part of the problem was scanning everyone’s passes- they were having issues and there was someone learning how to use the scanner.

 

[GBRforWDW]

With opening weekend behind us, I'm wondering how mornings are now? What time are people getting there? Is Disney keeping parking lots/garages closed until a certain time? Any other useful arrival changes yesterday and today that are different than the weekend?

 

[Kender]

Reports I'm seeing are saying the garages are not opening until the half hour before posted opening time like we were told it would be post opening weekend. And that security isn't being opened until then either. Pictures I've seen still look like a decent line up on Harbor for pedestrian traffic as well.

Has anyone tried ART yet with the free rides until the end of this month? Also I'm curious about that pin and what it looks like in person .

 

[Princess Katelet]

The window is open, so’s that door,
I didn’t know they did that anymore!
Finally they’re opening up the gaaaates!!
There’ll be actual, real live people…it’ll be totally strange…
Wow am I so ready for this chaaaange!
Cause for the first time in forever…there’ll be music, there’ll be light….
Cause for the first time in forever, there’ll be magic, there’ll be fun!
For the first time in forever…I’m getting what I’m dreaming of…
Tell the guards to open up the gaaaaates! The gaaaates!!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

It is so beautiful here today!! I went on Rise of the Resistance for the first time. WOW!

 

[WonkaKid]

I went to DL on both Friday (opening day) and the following Sunday. Here's my brief report.

I arrived at the Harbor entrance at around 6:00 on Friday morning. There were several hundred people ahead of me. In fact, I was told that some people had been there since 3:00 a..m. Despite the length of the line, it moved quickly. Once through all three security checkpoints, we were placed in a queue on the tram road. At that time, we were allowed access the the bathrooms. On Sunday I arrived at about 6:15 and the line was easily half as long as it had been on Friday. Presumably more people wanted to be there on opening day.

We moved to the park gates after about twenty minutes and on Friday were admitted nearly an hour early (only 25 mins early on Sunday) . Main Street was lined with CMs on both sides welcoming us back, which was nice. At the head of MS I met Josh D'Amaro, who's the chairman of Disney parks, as many of you know. That was a nice surprise. Also: on both days I noticed that the ratio of guests in line at DL vs. DCA was something like 10:1.

I went immediately, of course, to PP. The line was only about seven minutes long. As others have pointed out several times, Snow White seems to be the bigger draw these days and I rode it both on Friday and Sunday. Both time the wait was about 25 minutes. I actively avoided watching any videos about the changes. I wanted to be completely surprised. And I was. I returned to PP at around 10:00 and it was still only about a five-minute wait. I've never seen anything like that in my entire time visiting DL.

Although crowds were among the lowest I've ever seen, lines for several attractions still meant a long wait. At one point POTC was about 30 minutes and HM was nearly an hour. I think that was more a function of slower loadings and fewer people per boats/Stretching Room.

In short, my big takeaway was that it felt strange to be back but to not see anyone I knew. As I said to a plaid towards the end of my visit on Friday, it was like being popular in high school, returning ten years later and not being recognized by a single person. I did bump into six CMs who did know me, however, and three greeted me by name, which was nice. Lower crowds also made the park feel vacant at times. For example, Sunday at around 11:00 I got in line at the SBUX on MS. I snapped a few pics of the street and it felt nearly empty. It was a strange feeling. There needs to be a good number of people at the park to elevate the excitement and to make it feel like an event. Going to DL with so few guests in attendance felt a little lonely -- almost felt like drinking alone (I don't drink but I can imagine the feeling ;-)).

On Friday, all BGs for ROTR were gone in about 20 seconds. I got one on Sunday -- #67 -- and made it on the ride at about 2:20.

A number of characters were out but, of course, social distance was maintained.

I'll go again this Sunday. In short, though, I don't think I'll resume weekly visits until things have returned more to normal. Buzz being closed was more of a downer than I expected. A plaid I spoke with on Friday said that she thought it's closure was due to COVID concerns rather an actual refurb. It's a "high-touch" attraction and someone must have made the call to err on the side of caution.

One other thing I noticed: I got a big buzz (pun intended) from being able to move quickly from one attraction to the other, pre-pandemic. That it, using SR and FPs made it a lot more fun to weave through crowds and not have to wait a long time for a ride. Toad, Dumbo, Space Mountain and others were virtual walk-ons early on both days. Without the thrill of feeling that I was actually accomplishing something, a lot of the fun was absent. I was reminded of what Tom Sawyer noted when he, Huck and Joe Harper ran away to Jackson's Island. Much of the fun of fishing and swimming was gone when there wasn't someone to tell you not to do it. Peter Pan isn't the most amazing ride I've ever been on. But it was always a thrill to rush for it on Sunday mornings and be among the first to board.

A few places -- Jolly Holiday, for example -- had cups of water set out on a table for the taking. It was nice not to have to wait in a line for a mere cup of water. It was also reassuring to see that Disney wanted to help guests stay hydrated.

Some pics:

 

[WonkaKid]

More pics.

 

[WonkaKid]

Even more pics.

 

[CO2CA]

Excellent report and pictures! Thank you for sharing!

 

[WonkaKid]

And yet even more!





Carnation Cafe... without any tables or guests.












Main Street lined with CMs when the park opened on Sunday.

 

[coaches24]

I'll go again this Sunday. In short, though, I don't think I'll resume weekly visits until things have returned more to normal. Buzz being closed was more of a downer than I expected. A plaid I spoke with on Friday said that she thought it's closure was due to COVID concerns rather an actual refurb. It's a "high-touch" attraction and someone must have made the call to err on the side of caution.

Isnt toy story mania in DCA also high touch similar to buzz? Im not sure why Buzz would be closed due to covid and not TSM. Just a thought I had while reading the comment about buzz.

 

[GBRforWDW]

Isnt toy story mania in DCA also high touch similar to buzz? Im not sure why Buzz would be closed due to covid and not TSM. Just a thought I had while reading the comment about buzz.

Is it maybe because TSM stops for loading and unloading, therefore can be cleaned vs buzz being a continuously running attraction and harder to clean?

 

[WonkaKid]

Believe it or not, even more pics!














Looking up and down Main Street at around 11:00 on Sunday morning. Notice how many other guests there aren’t ;-).

 

[edhmom]

We just returned from being in the parks Sunday and Monday. A few observations:

• There are a ton of characters around. They are all socially distanced but you can still interact with them. It was great to see.
• The train stop running early. I heard reports, even from the CM working on the train, it stops anywhere from 1-3PM. If you want to ride it, don't wait.
• There are benches literally everywhere (Star Wars is a little sparse) and every bench I saw had "designated eating area" on it. If you try to eat somewhere that's not designated, even if you are stationary, they will shoo you away.
• On Monday they didn't let us into the park until just a few minutes before 9, so don't count on the early opening.
• They don't let you hop until exactly 1:00.
• There are more photopass photographers in DL than DCA. There is not one stationed at the top of Main Street.
• Pirates line is in the sun. If it's a hot day, do it early. Indiana Jones seemed pretty shaded.
• Fantasyland was really crowded on Monday, the other lands were better. We never set foot in Tomorrowland.
• The park didn't seem that crowded until closing. On Monday, we were at the castle at closing. They made the announcement and people started streaming out of the lands. We have a service dog with us so decided to just hang out with him at a bench rather go thru the throngs of people. Around 7:15 or so the exodus slowed down, but still a lot of people. As we walked down Main Street we realized a bunch of people were in line for the stores, so get your shopping done early.

Overall, an amazing time! The few people means you can get some great pictures if you time it right.

 

[cinder-ellah]

Believe it or not, even more pics!
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Looking up and down Main Street at around 11:00 on Sunday morning. Notice how many other guests there aren’t ;-).
View attachment 572943

View attachment 572944

Great pictures and information ! Thank you for sharing.

 

[BGinCali]

We just returned from being in the parks Sunday and Monday. A few observations:

• There are a ton of characters around. They are all socially distanced but you can still interact with them. It was great to see.
• The train stop running early. I heard reports, even from the CM working on the train, it stops anywhere from 1-3PM. If you want to ride it, don't wait.
• There are benches literally everywhere (Star Wars is a little sparse) and every bench I saw had "designated eating area" on it. If you try to eat somewhere that's not designated, even if you are stationary, they will shoo you away.
• On Monday they didn't let us into the park until just a few minutes before 9, so don't count on the early opening.
• They don't let you hop until exactly 1:00.
• There are more photopass photographers in DL than DCA. There is not one stationed at the top of Main Street.
• Pirates line is in the sun. If it's a hot day, do it early. Indiana Jones seemed pretty shaded.
• Fantasyland was really crowded on Monday, the other lands were better. We never set foot in Tomorrowland.
• The park didn't seem that crowded until closing. On Monday, we were at the castle at closing. They made the announcement and people started streaming out of the lands. We have a service dog with us so decided to just hang out with him at a bench rather go thru the throngs of people. Around 7:15 or so the exodus slowed down, but still a lot of people. As we walked down Main Street we realized a bunch of people were in line for the stores, so get your shopping done early.

Overall, an amazing time! The few people means you can get some great pictures if you time it right.

Beautiful dog and just love the one with Mickey!