WDW Trip Report - Aug 1-9

[Covergirl82]

I've debated posting this, but I thought I would share a some things about my family's recent trip to WDW.  Maybe people who are on the fence about going will find this helpful.  

We flew down (direct flight into MCO, about 2.5 hours) on Delta.  We were very impressed with how clean the plane was.  Each passenger received a Purell wipe to further wipe their seat, tray, armrests, etc.  The middle seat was left empty, unless a family was sitting together.  The main cabin was about 2/3 full. 
    -MCO Arrival:  We had planned to get a quick lunch at the airport before getting on ME, because our plane arrived around lunch time.  Be aware, if you are flying into MCO, that we didn't see any open restaurants at MCO upon arrival (at least on the route we took from the gate to ground transportation).  We were able to get a snack at a newsstand store for the ME bus ride.  We got right on an ME bus.  Groups needed to leave one row of seating in between. 
    -MCO Departure:  ME made about six resort pick-ups (including ours, which was the second stop) on the way to the airport.  We were a bit nervous about getting to MCO only 1.25 hours before our flight started boarding, but it was definitely not the normal experience for departing from MCO, so that was more than enough time.  There was one person in front of us when we dropped our two large suitcases at the Delta counter to be tagged and sent to the plane.  There was no wait at MCO security for our gates. After we got off the tram to our gates, there was a Starbucks and a snack kiosk open that we walked past on the way to our gate. 

We stayed at Contemporary, as that's where we were moved from Boardwalk Inn.  We were able to get a free upgrade to a theme park view in the main tower.  The room was nice, but my only complaint is how big the sinks are, which resulted in barely any counter space.  Housekeeping was scheduled to come every-other day to take out trash and refresh towels.  We called multiple times to ask for more toiletries (my daughter's hair is so thick and long that she basically used a whole tube of conditioner on her own!) and coffee, and each time, housekeeping generously brought us more than we had asked for.  The coffee maker was a small Keurig.  There was also a small fridge, but no microwave.  We were able to use our refillable mugs, but instead of self-service, they had a CM fill a disposable cup and then you could pour that into your mug (or just drink it out of the cup provided).

We went to Epcot (2 days), HS (2 days), and MK (1 day).  Below are some reflections on the parks.
    -Buses:  The Epcot monorail isn't running, so we had to take a bus there.  The buses had limited seating - only up to six groups/families (typically each seating group had 4-5 seats) could ride on one bus.  Even though it was limited seating, it made it comfortable as the bus wasn't packed full with a bunch of people standing over you. 
    -Park entry:  Temp check stations were at the front of the park, then security.  We typically arrived at the parks about 30 minutes before official opening, and we were able to get in and start going on rides. 
    -Crowds/rides:  Crowds were generally low, although our second day at HS (a Thursday) was the busiest park day of our trip.  Epcot was not very busy.  Most wait times were 5-30 minutes, although more popular rides (e.g., Mine Train, Splash Mtn, Frozen, Slinky Dog Dash, Mickey & Minnie Runaway Railway) were typically 40-45 minutes.  Lines had markers for social distancing, and everyone we encountered with the exception of only a few people followed the markers.  We were able to get a boarding group for ROTR in the 2 pm group on our 1st HS day and 10 am on our 2nd HS day.  We were missing two people in our party for the 10 am group, but a cast member at the ride was willing to add them to our group so we could all go on it. 
    -Cleanliness:  Some rides were stopped a few times a day for cleaning.  There was hand sanitizer at entry and exit for all rides.  There were some handwashing stations throughout the parks.  Bathrooms were very clean, in general.  This was probably the cleanest we've ever seen the rides and bathrooms.  We frequently saw CMs spraying and wiping down surfaces and places people touch.  In general, between the temp checks and cleanliness we experienced at the parks, we felt very safe.
    -Shopping:  Not all stores were open.  Some countries in Epcot didn't have any stores open (e.g., Italy and France).  Each store had designated doors for entry and exit.  Pin trading was also limited.  For example, the pin trading store at Disney Springs was not doing any pin trading.
    -Restaurants:  Not all restaurants were open.  (I would say more QS were closed than TS.)  Due to the heat, we ended up eating more TS meals than usual so we could get a longer break from the heat, humidity, and masks.  Also being able to get more to drink was a plus of eating at TS restaurants - we would each drink at least one cup of water and usually the kids had a cup of lemonade in addition to the cup of water.  (We were able to add a few reservations while we were there, sometimes only an hour or two in advance of the reservation time we selected.)  All QSs, except for the kiosks at Epcot, required mobile ordering.  (There were F&WF kiosks open at Epcot, so we tried food from a few of those.) 
    -Characters:  There were occasional character parades at MK and HS. They had a short Kylo Ren show at HS.  My kids are older, and not really into characters anymore, so we were fine with not really seeing characters.  
    -Masks:  Not looking for any debate here, just sharing our experience.  We went when it was very hot and humid - temps in the mid-to-upper 90s with a real-feel in the mid 100s.  We made sure we had at least one mask per person, per day, but carried an extra set of masks in our backpack when we went to the parks.  We bought masks from Old Navy and LOFT.  (Of the two, I preferred the LOFT masks.)  I've heard some feedback that some people thought the disposable masks were more comfortable in the heat, so something to consider.  We felt it would have been more comfortable to wear a mask if the temp and humidity were lower.  Just due to the heat alone, we sat down and took breaks often for drinks to stay hydrated, which also provided an opportunity for a break from masks.  We did utilize the "relaxation" areas where you could sit with your masks off.  Tables in these areas were distanced.

We did miss being able to park hop - it would have been nice to use one of our park days to go to MK for the first half of the day, and then Epcot the second half, to better utilize the park hours.

Overall, we were happy we decided to go rather than reschedule.

Happy to try to answer any questions. 

[Deleted]

Are they still doing fast passes or anything similar?

[meganew]

Did you Covid test before going and do you have to quarantine now that you’re home?

[Covergirl82]

@villainv, no FPs unless you are in Club 33 or were able to get a disability pass, or if the ride breaks down while you're on it (which happened to us while on Soarin'). Due to the low wait times, we didn't really miss not having FPs.

meganew, we did not Covid test before we left (not required and we didn't have any symptoms, and none of the four of us have been sick since before March) and we didn't quarantine coming home (not required in my state or by our employers (because we're 100% WFH right now)), although we limited our outings (really just to get groceries and take out a few times) for the first week or so.

[Deleted]

Covergirl82, thanks! I’m oddly relieved to not have to worry about booking fast passes. We will definitely book a table-service restaurant though.