Everything You Need to Know about a Fall Disney Vacation
Over the last seven days, the state of Florida registered its lowest COVID-19 case totals since the start of July.
With outbreaks finally under control, Disney has readied its parks for an influx of customers.
As a Disney fan, you’re probably considering a park visit.
Here’s everything you need to know about a fall Disney vacation.
Hotel Status
The first thing you’ll need to know about your fall Disney vacation is which hotels have reopened. Disney hasn’t brought back all of them yet.
There’s no need, as the parks aren’t operating at full capacity. With a smaller number of guests, Disney has less need for hotel inventory.
So, the company has kept several properties offline. You can describe it as a cost-cutting measure if you like, but it’s a reasonably straightforward business decision.
A coffee shop doesn’t buy tens of thousands of square feet of retail space. After the first 50 tables, everything else would go unused.
Disney has taken the same approach here. And the timing of some hotel reopenings doubles as a guideline for when we should expect park capacity increases.
Disney’s Yacht Club Resort will reopen next week, but its deal doesn’t have to do with attendance. NBA players had used these facilities before their seasons ended.
The next wave of returning hotels will begin on September 21st. On that day, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa returns.
In October, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort and Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort will join the Grand Floridian.
So, we’ll bring back three resorts in the early fall. On November 1st, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will join them.
Based on this information, Disney plans to ramp up its activities and park attendance by November 1st.
Obviously, this timeline could change in case of another COVID-19 outbreak. Still, it looks like Disney will return to something resembling normal by the fall.
Park Status
All four Walt Disney World theme parks reopened more than a month ago. However, the two Disney water parks haven’t returned yet if that matters to you.
Disney will reduce operating hours at the parks, starting on September 8th. The hours are as follows:
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom – 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios – 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- EPCOT – 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Magic Kingdom – 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Obviously, these changes signify substantially less time during a park day.
We’ll discuss why this isn’t a big deal in the next section, but I want you to be aware of it.
The vital change about your next park visit involves the new Disney Park Pass.
Until the Coronavirus threat subsides, Disney has disabled Park Hopping. Also, you need more than an admission ticket or annual pass to enter the park.
The new thing is the Disney Park Pass, which you must schedule ahead of your trip.
This pass will entitle you to admission to a specific theme park.
Let’s say that you want to go to EPCOT on November 3rd. You must book a Park Pass for that park for that date.
Otherwise, you cannot attend even if you have tickets. Also, the reverse is true. Even if you have a Park Pass, you cannot get in unless you have valid admission, too.
So, you need a Park Pass AND a theme park ticket to visit right now.
Crowd Status
Here’s why park officials feel comfortable with reduced operating hours.
Attendance at Walt Disney World theme parks is historically low at the moment.
When Disney executives planned the park’s reopening, Coronavirus numbers were worrisome but not terrifying.
In the weeks that followed the announcement but preceded the reopening date, Florida took a sharp turn for the worse.
During the most recent earnings call, CEO Bob Chapek admitted that many guests canceled their summer trips due to the outbreak, which is perfectly reasonable.
The universe rewarded the Disney fans who braved the pandemic.
With unexpectedly few guests at the parks, wait-times for lines have been ludicrous.
People have ridden Avatar Flight of Passage, exited the attraction, got back in line, and immediately ridden it again.
Just today, someone informed me that their wait for Peter Pan’s Flight was less than 10 minutes.
On an ordinary day, I won’t even consider Peter Pan’s Flight unless I have a FastPass. The wait is usually at least 45 minutes.
If you’ve followed MickeyBlog’s livestreams on Facebook – and you really should! – you’ve watched plenty of confirmation regarding the short lines.
Vloggers have proven that they can pack in a full park day of attractions into a four-hour period due to the limited capacities.
Disney expects its visitors to experience nine attractions in a day. Vloggers are finishing 10-12 in four hours!
In short, as long as nothing changes, park crowds are the lowest that you’ll ever see at Disney.
Transportation Status
Given Coronavirus concerns, transportation matters a lot. And I have great news on this front!
All primary forms of free transportation are back up and running.
Disney has implemented new safety measures, of course, but you’ll feel right at home on the buses, boats, and monorails.
On monorails, cast members have placed temporary barriers between the seats to prevent guests from sitting back to back and risk infection.
Similarly, on buses, Disney has introduced plastic guards between some seats. Parties group together in assigned spaces to ensure social distancing.
Since boats are open-air, they’re not quite as difficult to safeguard. And most of these vessels are operating like usual.
Finally, the Disney Skyliner has changed only one aspect of its setup. Traveling parties get their own gondolas!
Yes, even if you’re traveling alone, Disney won’t make you share a gondola with a stranger. It’s phenomenal!
Meal Status
Some Disney restaurants haven’t reopened yet for the same reasons as hotels.
There aren’t enough customers to justify the expense. Also, it’s wasteful. So, you’ll want to check twice on your favorite eateries before finalizing plans.
Park officials have altered the check-in process at most of its restaurants, too.
Rather than interacting with a server, you’ll scan a QR code and let the system know you’re ready to eat.
At your table, you may find another QR code or a disposable paper menu. Disney has eliminated all high-touch areas at its restaurants.
The only thing you should know is that the menus have been stripped down.
Even Disney doesn’t have an easy time stocking ingredients during the pandemic. And if they could, they’d be selfish to take so many.The company has done the responsible thing by streamlining menus to emphasize comfort foods.
Don’t worry, though! The new plant-based food items remain on the menus! You can still eat healthy if so inclined.
Or, you can be like me and scarf down as much junk as humanly possible while on vacation.
To a larger point, a Disney visit this fall will be different, but that’s not a bad thing. You’ll experience some stuff that will never happen again in your lifetime.
However, with so many changes, you may not feel comfortable planning everything on your own.
I strongly suggest that you contact one of the agents at MickeyTravels to help you with fall Disney vacation.
These professionals possess more Disney vacation knowledge than anyone else you’ll ever know, and the price is right, too!
MickeyTravels trip planning advice is free to you! So, you have plenty of incentive to use their services to ensure that your fall Disney vacation is perfect.