Who else is waiting until WDW is “back to normal”?

[NickC]

We usually go once a year, but had to skip 2020 due to the timing and uncertainty. We will most likely be skipping 2021 as well. It's not really the masks that we have an issue with. It's no HDDR, fireworks, street performers, limited dining, reduced hours, etc. The rides are fun and all, but they are not the main event for us. I might even go as far as saying that if the rides were not running, but the entertainment was, we would probably consider going.

 

[Disneyguy1]

I appear to be the lone ranger here. lol I have been to Disney World over 30 times and my wife and I went in August 2020 and it was my 2nd favorite trip (only my honeymoon takes 1st place, lol). THAT SAID, I do understand why it would not be a good time to go for people who go primarily for shows and fireworks. On the other hand, however, I loved the light crowds at night due to no parades or nighttime shows. I am personally not a fan of fireworks or nighttime shows, so that part has actually been a benefit for my experience.

The resorts we love are opened and only a handful of restaurants were closed. As far as rides, everything is opened. I also love the fact that people have to be at least six feet apart in lines (wish they would keep this rule forever, lol). I also liked not having to worry about FP. As someone who lived by FB and has used Touring Plans for years, I thought not having FB would really be a bummer. However, after being there without it, I actually preferred it.

I do hate the fact that so many people have lost their jobs during this time at Disney (I have friends who lost their jobs). That is what is most bothersome and sobering to me. However, as far as the actual functionality of Disney World right now? I think it is fantastic. We have another trip planned in May. As a Disney pro, I can say I love the "new normal" and want to take advantage of it as much as possible before things go back to "old normal."

 

[dledger]

We were supposed to go this year but put it off until next year (so far). While masks being optional is a part of it, I agree that limited dining, parades, fireworks, shows and even the removal of magical express play a much bigger role in our decision to go or not. One of these alone would make or break the choice but together? It’s a pretty big chunk. I do not mind planning, I don’t mind having my day set up before we go. But the thought of having to mobile order Peco Bills and still having a 2 hr wait for food? Not appealing. Also, currently my sons daycare has not said if they would be lifting the 2 week quarantine post travel so that’s another factor.

 

[BostonEd]

I'm still kicking myself because we were completely booked for February 2020,

I was THISCLOSE to booking one of those special Christmas packages they offered for Dec 2019. I said "nah, I'll do it next year." Talk about kicking yourself!

I don't care too much about masks but my "sign" that I can go back is when all the firework shows come back.

 

[Bellhop97]

I am going to wait also.. can't wear a mask for that long., my anxiety would kick in. Going to wait and see what happens, hopefully masks will be an option., or not needed.

 

[Wendysofftoneverland]

We have tickets that expire in September, but otherwise we would wait. We aren't buying any more tickets until masks aren't required, shows are back, and interactive elements like at the end of the Mission:Space and Spaceship Earth rides, the Dumbo playground, and the interactive Pooh line elements are back. I have little kids and they like some of that stuff better than some rides. However, we are planning resort only stays for after our tickets expire. We love how Ft. Wilderness sites decorate for the holiday, my son enjoys riding the train at Disney Springs, and he considers the monorail, Skyliner, and Disney boats as rides. So after September 26, it will be resort only, as we experience other central Florida attractions. I can't see paying more money for tickets for a lesser experience.

 

[Shughart]

I was THISCLOSE to booking one of those special Christmas packages they offered for Dec 2019. I said "nah, I'll do it next year." Talk about kicking yourself!

I don't care too much about masks but my "sign" that I can go back is when all the firework shows come back.

We went December 2019, we had such a chaotic October 19-January 20, and then Covid hit. I'm really glad we went!

 

[kitkat4622]

I am definitely in the minority. I am actually taking my first solo trip in May (I need the mental break from working from home since March 202 that was supposed to be a "few weeks) I am going with expectations of knowing what is and isn't running. I just need to get away and for me this is my happy place even with limitations

 

[DisLiss]

We are. We realize that future "normal" will most likely be different than past "normal", but that's how things often are at WDW anyway.

But yes, we wish to wait until as many experiences and amenities are available as possible and when we can be as comfortable as possible. We live a distance away and just the travel expenses are substantial for us, so we just don't wish to put forth that amount of money to go when things are still restricted. Also, we go in the summer due to it being the best time for us to schedule our trips, and the combo of masks and summer was difficult for a few of us last year, so we don't want to bring those difficulties into a Disney trip if we don't have to.

We're a pretty patient bunch. We'll just wait. The good news is that the longer we wait, the more progress Disney makes on new attractions on current projects.

 

[salisboss]

Just booked our first trip with my four year old for the first week of November 2021. A certain amount of risk of closures was factored in but by then the Poly should be open (plan to use the Poly monorail while staying at SoG) and anyone who wants a vaccine will have gotten one by then so we expect COVID protocols to be greatly reduced by then.

 

[kevind2112]

We are "sort of" waiting. We have a trip booked for December this year. We have only put the down payment down, and have bought refundable air fare. We are hoping over the next 9 months a large majority of "normalcy" will return. It doesn't have to be everything, but as long as a good amount is back, that's fine by us. What constitutes a "large majority"? Well, we don't know right now, but we'll know it when we see it

One definite is at least voluntary mask wearing. I'm not sure I'd be thrilled with still having to wear a mask 100% of the time by December. We'll see....

 

[holden]

We own DVC, go frequently and have APs. I think that's why the reduced offerings do not bother us. We usually watch the fireworks once during a trip. We've seen the shows and don't need to see them again. Same with meeting characters. We are hoping reduced crowds this summer let us relax a little more and really soak in the atmosphere.

 

[fla4fun]

I am waiting too... but not sure how long I will resist

I only lasted until Epcot reopened last July. . .

I can understand people wanting to wait until masks are at least optional, but as slow as vaccinations are going here in Florida, I doubt Disney will be relaxing their rules on masks any time soon. They are still only vaccinating the 65+, front line, and vulnerable (with a doctor’s note) at this time, with no word on when anyone else can get it. I want to be vaccinated but I am forced to wait, and I am sure a lot of CMs are in the same boat. I expect social distancing to be reduced or removed before masks.

Personally, I don’t think things will go back to the old normal. We will have some new things, and some of the old favorites will not return. Whether that makes the WDW experience better or worse remains to be seen, but it will definitely be different.

 

[zebrastreyepz]

Booked for February 2022 in hopes that mask requirement is eliminated, meet and greets have returned, shows & fireworks have returned, and character dining is in pre-19 mode.

If I don't get my way, we will still go for DH's sake so he can judge for himself whether or not it's worth it with the way it's running now. After that trip, we will re-evaluate.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

When all of the fireworks, shows, character meet & greets, etc. are back, we will consider going back. We're not going to pay the same high ticket prices for a lesser experience. Masks don't bother us. In fact, we discussed continuing to wear masks into the future in crowded places even when they're not mandated.

 

[loves to dive]

Another minority here, I'm going solo mid-April. The only reason I even put it off that long was hubby wasn't thrilled with me going to I didn't to humor him. I went in Jan 2020 before all the closures and I'm one of those people that goes at least twice a year if not 3 times. Skipping a whole year was enough so I told hubby I was going and I would gladly self isolate either upstairs or in the basement when I got home if it bothered him. I am taking all the precautions and am hoping to have at least my first shot done by then. I live in Georgia and we just opened up on Monday for anyone over 55, which is me but I can't get one booked anywhere within 75 miles of my home. I keep trying every day. I have bought some really comfy masks from a place that sells ballet clothes and have a whole box of disposable, I have a small bottle of hand sanitizer to take with me into the parks to use in case the ones in parks are too busy or empty. I bought individual packs of sanitizing wipes to throw in a pocket so I can wipe down tables and such. I probably won't eat in any TS restaurants that don't have outside seating but that's just because the majority of meals are going to come from F&G.

I never watched the shows before unless I happened to be walking by when one was happening, I stopped going to most of the night time shows when they went projection bases because I'm height challenged and no matter how early I got there and got the perfect spot, some tall dude or a man with a kid on his shoulders would get in front of me. I rarely watched the parades unless, again, one was passing by and I got stuck. We didn't use FP that often, we just like to do things on the fly and didn't like having to schedule our day, the advantage of having been going so long is we have been going since before FP so standing in line was just what you did. We made ADRs the afternoon of while walking around, heck I even booked V&A only 4 days in advance (got lucky there). So for me the only thing will be having to wear a mask and that's just normal now. Oh, even though I have had an AP for the last 7 or 8 years, I never used memory maker either so don't get pictures taken. I might actually do it now since I'll have a mask on.

 

[StuckInKS]

I may be in the minority, but I actually like the mask policy. We just returned from a March 6-15 trip and this is the first time ever that we went through the entire vacation without someone getting sick in he middle of it. It is too early to know if we caught COVID of course, but we didn't catch anything with a shorter incubation period like a cold or stomach bug. Yes we spent $12,000 for a "lesser" experience with no shows or fireworks, but we still had a great time and I don't feel it was money wasted. We even decided to plan another trip for October. Wearing masks all day did not bother us at all, the only issue we had is that with 5 kids, there was a lot of "snacking" and we had to sit down every time someone wanted an ice cream or slushy, which really cut down on the time we had for rides.

 

[chicagodisneyguy]

We were there March 5-13 and had no problem with the masks. For us, the biggest issue was no fastpass. We only did 2 park (week)days and we got through far less than we normally do. The first two hours we were in the park were great. But after that everything pretty much ballooned to 45-60+ minutes. We are more accustomed to using ropedrop and our original fastpasses then grabbing additional ones through the day. Not being able to grab additional made us pretty much bail on rides and just booze it up

I was really hoping all the reports of "posted wait time was 60 minutes and we only waited 20" would hold true for our trip. It did not.

 

[hrhdhd]

I only lasted until Epcot reopened last July. . .

I can understand people wanting to wait until masks are at least optional, but as slow as vaccinations are going here in Florida, I doubt Disney will be relaxing their rules on masks any time soon. They are still only vaccinating the 65+, front line, and vulnerable (with a doctor’s note) at this time, with no word on when anyone else can get it. I want to be vaccinated but I am forced to wait, and I am sure a lot of CMs are in the same boat. I expect social distancing to be reduced or removed before masks.

Your info is a little old. Now 60+ can get the vaccine, along with K-12 and college and university employees. The age will soon decrease to 55+ according to Gov. DeSantis.

 

[stsomewhere]

I said that I would not go back until it was normal. My 20 yr old daughter talked me into going on a short trip the first week of March. The magic was gone. I did not mind that I had to wear a mask. I missed the all the stores being open. I was disappointed at the limited snacks that were available. I missed the characters, shows and live entertainment. We have a trip scheduled for January. Right now we are thinking of cancelling if more things do not open back up.