Who was at WDW during last years hurricanes??

[disneygirl1977k]

Hey guys,
Just wondering who happened to be at WDW during last years hurricanes?? What was it like during this time? Were you able to go into the parks and ride? Just curious, I read this morning they are predicting another bad hurrican season and I am starting to freak out....I will be there Aug.27th - Sept.4th......just wondering if someone could give me some up close and personal expectations....thanks guys.
Kristy

 

[goofy4tink]

We arrived at the Contemporary on August 13, around 1:00 in the afternoon. They had just announced that the parks were closing around 3 that day. Hurricane CHarley arrived that night. The restuarants all closed very early in the resorts. We were told that we would be fed in one of the big convention halls. But, when we got there, we were told to go back to our rooms. Then, that changed and we were told to line up at the two doors. Then we would go in, grab a styrofoam box, fill up on the food offerings, and head back to our rooms to eat. All complimentary of course. That worked pretty well, except for a few people that stuffed their pockets with bread and desserts. Actually say one woman put 7 cupcakes in a second styro box and shove it into her tote bag!! none left for my poor dd.
But, the CM's were all terrific. They kept us informed at all times. The tv had about 4 different DIsney films showing all night. We were told that after we got back to our rooms, around 7, we were to stay there, away from the windows, with the drapes closed. We were not to leave our rooms until we got the all-clear messege on the phone messege system. The next morning all was fine. We ate at the Concourse Steakhouse. The server kept apologizing for the limited menu. And she pointed out the poor people that had been there for almost 36 hours by this time. The Hurricane Team worked their tails off. They had to bring all the pool chaises in and then a lot of them slept on them!! But, for the most part everyone was cheery and a sense of having been through it together was prevelant.

As far as the parks go....MK opened the next day, on time. Some attractions were closed due to tree damage. The railroad was one with a lot of trees across the tracks. MGM opened on time I believe.
AK did not! Because of all the openess and the huge amount of trees there, they suffered a lot more damage. But, they did open the next day!!
Fort Wlderness was evacuated the day of the storm. And it was closed for 2 days after.

I have to say that I was very nervous about flying in with a hurricane coming. But Disney handled it incredibly well. Everyone had a job and they did it. WDW didn't sustain a lot of damage. They built accordingly, knowing that these storms come thru occasionally. Everything seemed back to normal within a day or two. I wouldn't have any issues with the hurricanes again, other than the ability to get in or out of the airport.

 

[disneyvoice]

We were there in September last year for one of the hurricanes (Hurricane Jeanne, I think). It wasn't that bad. They closed the parks early on the evening of the hurricanes arrival. We went to the parks that day and they were EMPTY, it was kind of eerie!! We spent that evening and the next afternoon in our room at the Poly. We did have water come in through the sliding glass doors so the carpet was soaked on that end of the room but didn't bother us. They opened the GCH around 2:00, I think. We had stocked up pn snacks at the gift shop prior to the hurricane's arrival so we had food that evening and the next morning. They did open 'Ohana for late lunch / early dinner since some folks were really hungry. They kept the parks closed all that day and cleaned up broken tree branches, etc. By that evening you couldn't even tell anything had happened, and the next day things were back to normal. Oh, they also played free movies on several of the TV stations which was nice - it gave you something to do to pass the time while you had to wait in your room.

It wasn't bad, but it was a bummer missing out on one evening and another whole day in the parks. Because of that I don't think we will plan on attending during hurricane season again.

 

[westjones]

Hey guys,
Just wondering who happened to be at WDW during last years hurricanes?? What was it like during this time? Were you able to go into the parks and ride? Just curious, I read this morning they are predicting another bad hurrican season and I am starting to freak out....I will be there Aug.27th - Sept.4th......just wondering if someone could give me some up close and personal expectations....thanks guys.
Kristy

We were there for Hurricane Jeanne in September. Actually, we were on the Disney Magic (cruise) and they left us off early (Friday night) and bussed us over to the Dolphin to spend the night. We had reservations at the Poly for Saturday night (was suppose to leave on Sunday, but the airports closed that day because of the hurricane).

We ended up staying 2 nights at the Poly. They made up breakfast bags for us to buy on Saturday because we were suppose to stay in our rooms all day on Sunday during the hurricane. They also put on extra movies on the TV for you to watch in your room.

Sunday was the hurricane and it was very noisey. I have never been in a hurricane before, so we weren't sure what to expect.

As things died down some, we got an automated call from the resort telling us the restuarants would open at noon, and when we went over we found that they had set up entertainment for the guest. In different parts of the lobby area (both bottom and top floors) they had African Dancers, a candy maker, crafts, music, characters for pictures (Lelo & Stitch), etc. It helped.

Now from what I remember reading, this is something that only happened at the Deluxe resorts (I remember someone at Pop Century saying they had no entertainment at their resort--so I am not sure what happened at other places).

Disney handled it well. The next day the sun came out, and the parks opened and we had the BEST day at the MK we ever had. There was hardly anyone there and we could just walk up and ride whatever we want (went on Buzz Orbiter 3 times!). We got to set at a table at an outdoor restaurant and eat while we watched the parade! It was super!

We never lost electricity. The off site resorts did. There were a LOT of Florida residents checking in the resort when we checked in, I talked to a couple of them and they said they always come to Disney during hurricanes because they feel safer there (and Disney rarely loses electricity because they have their own power source--that is what they said, I don't know for sure).

So anyway, it was an adventure. We were all fine, we will always have interesting memories from that trip. I wouldn't want to repeat the hurricane part, but loved our day at MK afterwards.

DJ

 

[Going Broke]

We were there last year during Charley. We arrived the day before it hit. We went to MK the morning of Charley and were told everything would be closing down, I believe around 1:00. I'm certain they were only letting resort guests in and they also credited our passes for the day, so we enjoyed as much as we could for FREE! Back at the resort, ASMo, we were encouraged to stay in our rooms, and updated on the situation via voice mail left on our room phone. It did get a little hectic in the food court just as everyone was coming back from the parks--the shelves actually went bare! I'm guessing no one knew how long they would be stuck in their rooms so they stocked up! That evening, Charley hit, our kids were curled up in bed and watching a rotation of Disney Movies. We never felt unsafe and I think Disney did a remarkable job handling the whole ordeal. The day after, the parks reopened, the water parks took a while longer and I'm sketchy as to whether or not AK opened. My DH did a little golfing on the trip and mentioned that one of the courses looked like it got hit pretty hard, rows of trees down, etc. Other than the hurricane day, the weather on our trip was beautiful! I'm sure we'll be back again in August. My husband is a teacher and we're pretty much confined to summer vacationing!

 

[Sammy]

We were there for Hurricane Jeanne in late September. This was our very first adults only trip...for our 15th Anniversary...and we celebrated with pretty much an 18-hour lockdown at BCV! We arrived very late Thursday night (I believe it was 9/24), and the hurricane was due to arrive Saturday night. We enjoyed ourselves silly all day Friday....gorgeous weather. Saturday dawned sunny and warm so we spent the morning touring a couple resorts. Everywhere we went, CMs were stacking chairs and lashing down anything that moved. There were sandbags stacked at every doorway. It was a little unnerving to say the least. As the day wore on, the sky really started clouding over and a light, steady rain starting falling. We went over to the ESPN club around 3 pm to get some take-out to bring back to BCV for the night. The parks and all restaurants closed very early (like 5-6 PM). We really weren't sure when the worst of the storm was going to come in, so we stayed in our room for the most part of that evening. Around 8 pm, we did take a short stroll up to the Epcot gate, and it was eerie to look through and see no one around!

The storm finally came in overnight Saturday and we spent the next 18 hours or so in lockdown. Because the BCV is separated from the BC, were not allowed to cross over for food or entertainment (they brought in all sorts of entertainment into the lobby of the BC to keep everyone from going stir-crazy!). They brought over bagged breakfasts and boxed lunches that you could purchase right off the lobby of the BCV. For a long time, you weren't even supposed to be out of your room, but eventually, as the storm wound down Saturday afternoon, we were able to hang out in the common area of BCV. And finally, by the late afternoon, they were allowing people to cross over to the BC. Cape May was open for a limited buffet, but the line just to give your name was 30 minutes long! Then they estimated a 90-minute wait from that point! DH and I walked over to the YC via the SAB walkway and ended up at the Yachtsman's Galley where they were offering basically the same buffet....but there was NO ONE in line....at all!!! They seated us right away. By the time we finished and walked back to BC, the CMs were preventing people from traveling between the two resorts. They allowed us to go through because we were returning to our resort. I'm glad we went through when we did....we might still be waiting to eat at Cape May today!!

They called the "all-clear" around 8 PM that night, and people just exploded out into the YC/BC/Boardwalk area....just to get outside for a breath of fresh air!!

There were lots of tree branches down, many lights broken, roof shingles everywhere, and a carpet of tree litter wherever you walked. But I didn't see any major damage to the buildings.

The next day, Monday, all the parks opened on time except for AK which sustained much more damage due to all the trees and landscape. Unfortunately, we were only there for the long weekend, so Monday was our day to go home. So out of a 4-day Anniversary trip, we got to enjoy 1.5 days of Disney. I tell everyone, "you know you've been married too long when the prospect of an 18-hour lockdown in a deluxe hotel, alone with your hubby, doesn't exactly thrill you!!!" I mean....after all.....it DID cut into our Disney time!!

The CM's we encountered were upbeat and cheery the entire time....considering some of them had been onsite for the duration. We had a wonderful CM assigned to the Lobby of the BCV, she was actually a Magic Kingdom CM, but they go where they are needed during a hurricane. The hotel did a wonderful job trying to entertain the masses in the Lobby of the BC. Most everyone seemed to be in good spirits despite the storm and we met some very nice people during the experience.

Sammy

 

[strmtroopr96]

We were there for Hurricane Jeanne. We were actually scheduled to fly home the evening before it arrived but the airports closed early, forcing us to stay an extra 2 nights. We were at Pop Century and had to wait a few hours to see if we could stay in our room or even at that resort because they had a long list of people to try and accommodate along with the ones who were there to check in.

Everything went fine though, My family split up for the rest of that Saturday. My Mom took my daughter to Blizzard Beach and said the place was empty. The parks closed early so by 6 pm, our food court was jam packed. Lines were 1/2 hour or more long and people were just grabbing anything and everything. LOL Both Saturday and Sunday nights, the characters visited in the lobby. We saw Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, and Pluto. We were confined to our rooms for most of Sunday although we did go into the pool for a bit that afternoon. The foodcourt reopened with limited options later that day as well.

Everyone was also given a 1 day Adult Ultimate Hopper ticket good for 20 years. That was very nice because technically out tickets ran out Saturday so we weren't out any days.

Overall, it wasn't too bad of an experience although that many hours stuck in one room with my parents and my almost 5 year old DD almost caused me to go bonkers! LOL Rebecca

 

[crcormier]

I got there Saturday, the day after Hurricaine Charley. Barely. My connecting flight was cancelled and I had to waitlist a couple of flights before I got one of the later flights, so I got in about 12 hours after I was supposed to. The parks were open the next day except AK and had already been cleaned up pretty well. I went to MK on Sunday morning though and it was great because it was DESERTED for the morning.

 

[ValerieK]

We were at the Dolphin for Hurricane Jeanne in September. It wasn't that bad. The parks closed early the evening Jeanne arrived and were closed the following day. I know that Epcot opened late the day after, but everything was cleaned up fairly quickly. The staff at the Dolphin was great. We were never told to stay in our rooms and were able to walk around the lobby and most of the restaurants were open. The CM's at the Disney Store were there Saturday Pm then opened the store the next morning. All of them stayed there at he Dolphin that night and next day and brought there families with them. They were wonderful.

Overall it wasn't a bad experience. We still had a great time. And it worked out well, DH was there for a conference and most people didn't show up, so he got to spend more time in the parks with us.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Wasn't there during the hurricanes, but I don't think I'd get too upset over these "advanced" hurricane predictions. I think they "claim" a 53% accuracy rate--which isn't much better than tossing a coin.
Will there be hurricanes? Most likely. Will they hit Florida (or WDW)?
Who knows--.

 

[safetymom]

I have pictures of the parks from the Hurricanes last year. Just look at both links below.

 

[angey77]

We were there during Hurricane Jeanne. We had planned to go the weekend before, but Ivan came storming into the Gulf and wrecked every possible route we could have taken by car to Orlando.
We arrived Thursday and knew there was a chance of Jeanne coming for us. We stayed at AKL and the staff did a GREAT job of keeping everyone updated of the situation. We had notes slipped under our doors and such periodically. The morning before the hurricane came in, we had an appointment to meet with our reverend and headed to the Wedding Pavillion. They were still doing weddings until 5p that night! We were told in advance the parks would be closing early that day, so we heading to Epcot for some Christmas shopping. The place was EMPTY! It was pretty nice, but all the kiosks were closed and bolted to the ground.
Once curfew went into effect, AKL turned into party central. They brought in a band and characters to interact with everyone. They came in and out periodically throughout the lock-down. It was funny after a while to see kids so used to Pooh, they just have him hanging out with them as they color! But there were tons of activities in the resort and Boma and Jiko were open at a discount buffet for lunch (dinner was normal prices). Counter service was shut down because you had to go outside to get to it, but there were plenty of snacks and such in the gift shop.
We were warned in advance we could be confined to our rooms if the hurricane got really bad, since the lobby's back is all glass. But we were told on Monday, as we were "released back into the wild" that with hurricanes, AKL and WL are the ways to go, since the resorts are self-contained.

 

[frannn]

and the second was headed towards FL. We had an early AM flight scheduled for Fri. Needless to say, I hardly slept at all Thurs night, as I was constantly watching the Weather Channel. As it got later into the evening, the hurricane was veering a little bit more away from Orlando, so we decided not to cancel our flight and go to WDW. I'm glad we did, since that hurricane missed Orlando. There was a lot of rain, of course, but there's still stuff to do at Disney in the rain. We had a great, uncrowded trip the first week. It did get a bit crowded on our last few days, due to all the locals locking down their homes and going to the resorts for shelter, as there was yet another hurricane scheduled. The evening we left, I think one of the hurricanes actually "revisited" FL (maybe it was Jeanne?). So, we timed our visit just right. We were there 9/10-9/20/04, arriving after one, narrowly missing one, and beating one home. Other than seeing trees bent over, roof damage and some stores boarded up offsite, there wasn't much evidence of the hurricanes at WDW. I think they were out of certain food items also, due to the trucks not being able to make their deliveries. Had the Weather Channel not shown the hurricane heading slightly away from FL, we probably would have delayed our trip a few days.