I, too, used to go to TE routinely when staying at the Lodge--walk over via the nature trail, or once that closed (grrrr), take the bike path. It wasn't a long walk, and after eating one of the better breakfast buffets on property, then the walk back helped work off some of the calories. They had a great pulled pork eggs benedict, and it was never crowded. And, yes, now that the boats aren't running, either, then it makes it way too difficult to get to TE anymore.
I believe the article said it would close during the spring of 2023,
Granny.
As I've mentioned before (like a stuck record--HA! that's a reference most of us on here get but likely not many younger than 40), Disney's goal is to maximize profits. While they used to do that by offering the best, most immersive experience and letting that do the "talking," the past couple of decades has seen a shift to modern day mega-conglomerate thinking--offer just enough new experiences to keep people buying the product, but cut costs at every possible place: services, CMs, performers. . .anything that doesn't pay a direct dividend back to the company. That's why we've seen a huge increase in paid events--they fit the paradigm amazingly well: offer more so that it makes people feel special but charge you for it.
Oh, well. So, if you have a team playing in the conference championship games today, I have a few bourbons I can recommend to sit back with and enjoy the action!
