Recently we took a trip to Walt Disney World as a quick getaway. Originally, I had planned to run the Star Wars Rival Run half marathon. However, that race unfortunately had gone virtual due to safety measures surrounding the global pandemic. We decided go anyway to get an idea of how visiting the resort might be during this unprecedented time. In this post we describe our honest thoughts on our experiences during our recent visit to Walt Disney World.
Traveling by Air
We took a flight to Orlando from Chicago in the early morning hours to get to our destination. The flight itself really wasn’t surprising or any different than what we had seen or read in previous media accounts. However, masks are now required for the duration of all flights. Overall, things felt pretty “normal” aside from wearing our masks throughout the duration of the flight.
The Resort
During our visit we stayed at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. It is located near Hollywood Studios and Epcot and is the hub spot for the Disney Skyliner transportation system. I absolutely LOVE the Skyliner so that made it an easy choice for us to stay at this resort. We found this resort to be clean, friendly and the atmosphere to be fun and inviting upon arrival.
We utilized the online check-in through the My Disney Experience app and that made things pretty sufficient in getting into our room, although I did need to check with the front desk about obtaining our exact room number. As a helpful tip, if you don’t receive your room number after arriving to your resort after an hour or so, check with your front desk to see where things stand. We weren’t in a rush but it does help at times when you want to start unpacking after traveling and to settle in to your room. Disney is always happy to do what they can to help you arrive with ease to start off your vacation the right way.
Our room was very clean upon arrival. As new health and safety measures have been implemented even things like the tv remotes were wrapped in plastic. We felt as though the room was thoroughly cleaned prior to our arrival.
Visiting The Parks
Our first steps into the parks were just as magical and amazing as they always have been in the past. However, there are a few things that are different during the phased reopening process. For example, guests must undergo temperature screenings when entering the theme parks and when visiting resort property restaurants*. Additionally, during the security checkpoint, security staff is not reviewing each bag by hand, rather guests now are going through x-ray screening machines and bags are hand reviewed only if an object must be looked at in closer detail.
*At the time of posting the temperature screening safety measure has since been removed
As for another detail, the finger touch point stands when entering the gates is not being used, simply scan your ticket or magic band to enter.
In regards to lines and attraction wait times, we experienced moderate to low waits overall. However, that is dependent on the time of day and season on which you may be visiting. In the lines themselves, many attractions have the pre-show opportunities turned off for now to eliminate areas in which social distancing isn’t possible. For example, The Haunted Mansion in Magic Kingdom, guests will not experience the stretching room at this time (yes I miss it too).
Social distancing reminders and markers line the grounds and ride floors to remind guests where to stand in order to maintain social distancing.
Mobile Order
Another aspect of the parks that has changed somewhat is the ability to use mobile order at most resort restaurant locations. The process is quite simple and saves guests from standing in lines to order and pick up their food. Using the My Disney Experience app, guests simply place their order at the dining location of choice. Then guests will choose a pickup time. Once the order is ready, guests receive a prompt via a text or push notification and go straight to the pickup window location. Voila..that’s it! I personally hope this new change is here to stay. It is a very easy and efficient process where lines are minimal and the order processing is fast.
The Biggest Changes
There are quite a few changes due to safety measures surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic. Some of them are temporary cancellations of large parades, fireworks displays, character meet and greets and more. Some of them are a little more subtle. For example, when using Disney bus transportation (this includes Disney’s Magical Express), guests are assigned seats and a capacity limit is set on each bus. To be perfectly honest, I like this change and am hoping it stays. Well, maybe not the assigned seats part, but the capacity limit on the buses is great. This means the buses are no longer so packed that guests are standing in the aisles and it’s a jammed packed ride back to your hotel or other destination.
With regard to missing the large parades and fireworks shows, of course we missed those tremendously. But that’s not to say that Disney World is lacking any special magic. There are smaller scale cavalcade parades throughout the day in each of the parks. Characters such as Mickey and Minnie star in the parades and the Disney princesses such as Merida, Cinderella, Belle and others star in other special cavalcades. These parades occur at random to prevent crowding. To watch a video of one of the afternoon parades click here.
However, the biggest thing that I noticed within the parks aside from the above were the plastic dividers on most of the attraction ride vehicles and within the line queues. This is done to help further prevent the transmission of any virus or bacteria, most notably the Covid-19 virus. This is another example of Disney taking every precaution to help keep all guests and staff safe during this time.
Traveling With Masks
We were asked a lot on how visiting the parks was while wearing masks. We won’t lie, it wasn’t easy at first, it took getting used to. But I myself found it tolerable. For me personally, I found it much easier with a few breaks during the day. For example, we’d take a bit of a longer snack break or longer meal so that we could relieve ourselves of the masks for a bit (especially while in the Florida sun). Additionally, we found that using a standard surgical mask is found to be a bit more breathable than the standard fabric masks. Our recommendation is to take a few breaks and bring a few different types of masks to determine which types are most comfortable for you and your travel party.
Would We Go Again
In one word-YES! While things look a little different right now, the magic is definitely still at the parks. The attractions are all still alive and full of smiles and thrills. Better yet, the cast members are happy…happy to be where they can make guests smile, where magic is alive again. Further, as each day passes, more and more restrictions are slowly being lifted. For example, as of the posting of this article, temperature checks at park and restaurant entrances are no longer required. Additionally, more resort restaurants are opening and adding to their menus post pandemic closure.
Let’s Plan The Next Trip
I personally am very eager to take my next visit to Walt Disney World. In fact, I am visiting again with my family very soon. Stay tuned for more posts about the experience as things progress and restrictions ease. In the meantime, if you’d like to hear more about our experience or have questions about planning a visit to the resort, contact us today. We can help you plan your next vacation to Walt Disney World or other amazing vacation spots or cruises around the world. Let us know if you’d like a free, no-obligation quote on a popular vacation spot by clicking here.