WDW Park Planners, a Disney Concierge Vacation Planning Service
By: Colleen Bentley, Owner
ABOUT WDW PARK PLANNERS
Planning a trip to Disney World can be stressful and overwhelming, even for the most organized of moms! Traveling to The Most Magical Place on Earth is unlike any other vacation planning process; you can’t just show up and expect the Disney magic to take care of everything (as great as that would be!). Lots of advance prep work and planning needs to be done so that you can enjoy the actual vacation part!
WDW Park Planners is a Disney Concierge Vacation Planning Service that helps you every step of the way to make your vacation planning experience seamless and stress-free. We do everything from booking accommodations, purchasing tickets, making dining reservations and confirming park reservations (a new process Disney released upon reopening!). Then, we create an itinerary with line-by-line directions to follow in the parks, completely tailored to your family. You’ll never be waiting in long lines or trying to figure out where to go next!
With the recent reopening of the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL, things are changing very quickly at the parks and resorts. Now more than ever it is SO important to have an expert planner to work with on your vacation. Whether you’ve been to Disney before or are traveling there for the first time, this Concierge Service is for you. We use our Disney expertise to plan the perfect vacation for YOUR family so you can Make Every Minute Magical when you’re there.
DISNEY REOPENED: OUR TRIP EXPERIENCE
Walt Disney World was very cautious with reopening the parks and resorts, and since reopening in mid-July, they have continued to take every precautionary measure for guests. From temperature checks and mask requirements to social distancing markers and limited capacities, these are just some of the ways Disney has created a safe environment for guests to be able to return to the magic.
A week after the parks reopened, my husband and I spent a week down in Orlando at the Walt Disney World Resort. We knew our experience would be unlike any other trip to Disney but were unsure of what to fully expect. Would the magic still be there? Read below to find out what it was really like!
DID WE FEEL “SAFE?”
Overall, YES, we felt very safe at the parks. Disney has done everything right to create a socially distanced, safe experience for guests, including the requirement for all guests ages 2+ to wear masks. It’s up to guests to follow the rules – which was done most of the time. We had very few instances of other guests getting too close to us in queues (and when they did, the Cast Members were quick to ask them to step back). We definitely saw guests wearing their mask below their nose, but again, Cast Members almost always immediately asked them to cover their nose and face. A huge thank you to all of the Cast Members who helped to enforce the new rules so we could enjoy the magic!
If you’re going to be visiting the parks soon, one piece of advice is to just be aware of your surroundings. I’ll be honest, I was not perfect at this. There were plenty of times when my husband would have to remind me to keep my distance from guests – it’s so easy to get caught up in the excitement and fun of it all that you don’t realize how close you are to people! Getting off of rides was when the crowds tended to bottleneck, so we either jumped off first or waited for the crowds to pass before exiting! Overall, if there was ever a time when we felt uncomfortable with the crowds, we just removed ourselves from the situation.
In terms of sanitation and cleanliness, Disney had many new protocols in place (even though Disney is already very clean!). A thorough attraction cleaning takes place about every two hours, but Cast Members also work to keep guests distanced on rides and are conscious of which rows are being used (i.e. you typically have at least one row in between another group if not your own ride vehicle). Hand sanitizing stations were at the start and end of every single attraction, as well as some hand washing stations throughout the parks. We brought our own wipes to use on certain attractions that you “touch” more (i.e. Buzz Lightyear for shooting at the targets). We always carry our own hand sanitizer, so we had that with us at all times.
WHAT WAS GREAT ABOUT VISITING WDW NOW
No crowds or long wait times! While Disney has not released any percentages or numbers for park capacity, it felt very quiet and empty most of the time. Being able to walk right on all of the “big” attractions with little to no wait was the best! We got to ride our favorite attractions multiple times – including my favorite, Flight of Passage, twice in a row, which is usually a 2-3 HOUR wait. After how busy and crowded the parks have been the last few years, it was a nice break from the craziness and felt less stressful being there.
Character experiences in the parks! The character experiences blew us away at the parks. Given that you can’t meet the characters up close or get autographs, Disney did a phenomenal job working around this. Having Mickey and friends greet you from the Main Street Train Station as you enter the park was magical! We saw Mickey more times on this trip than ever before. Disney also knocked it out of the park with their new character cavalcades. Each park had different “mini parades” with characters on floats, in cars or walking. They did not release schedules for these, so the spontaneity added a bit of magic as well! It was so much more exciting to just stumble across Anna and Elsa or Tinkerbell than to stand waiting in the crowds for the parade to go by. And best of all, the characters engaged with every single person they passed by, which I’ve never experienced before! I really hope these spontaneous character cavalcades continue in the future.
Cast Members! I cannot say enough good things about the Cast Members on this trip. Aside from being genuinely happy and excited to see the guests (every time I received a “Welcome back!” or a “We missed you!” I was instantly in tears), they did an INCREDIBLE job enforcing the new rules. They were polite but firm when asking guests to adjust their mask, keep their distance, etc. which was much appreciated by us! We want the parks to stay open (and so do the Cast Members!), so if that means wearing a mask and following the rules, then it’s a no brainer!
WHAT WAS AN ADJUSTMENT TO VISITING WDW NOW
Masks. This was an obvious adjustment but not as difficult as we expected it to be. Honestly, it’s all about your attitude. We told ourselves we weren’t going to complain about it or make it a big deal, so it wasn’t! While yes, it was hot and humid, and yes, it was a long day in the masks – the trade off was that we got to walk on ALL of the attractions at the parks! Also, being from Illinois, we’re pretty used to wearing masks all the time, but for families who are not used to wearing masks frequently, I could see this being more of an adjustment. The key to making masks more bearable was to take frequent breaks. Having a sit down lunch almost every day and a sit down dinner every night gave us an hour+ of mask-free AC time. Breaks are something I already included in my clients’ itineraries, but now I strategically include them to get them some mask-free time 🙂
Modified Pre-Shows in Attractions. This was one of the only times I was a *little* sad while we were down there. Disney is different from other theme parks because of the immersive experience they provide on each and every attraction. They tell a story to their guests as they wind through the queues, and a lot of the attractions include some sort of pre-show and video to set the stage for the ride. To keep guests from congregating and standing still for too long, Disney eliminated some of the pre-shows and modified others. Having been to Disney so many times and knowing the story each attraction is telling, it was okay for us (other than making me a little sad!). But for guests who have never been before, I feel like they’re missing out on a part of the Disney magic.
No Park Hopping. As someone who LOVES to go to multiple parks in a day (one in the morning for Rope Drop, break in the afternoon, and then a different park in the evening), it was weird not being able to park hop. Since we were staying at the Beach Club for most of the week, I did miss being able to just walk over the bridge to Epcot whenever we wanted. That being said, because we only were allowed to go to one park per day, I felt less rushed and stressed trying to get everything in. If we didn’t make it on a ride in the morning, we could just do it when we came back later that evening. I have tons of clients who only want to do one park per day normally, but for me personally, I love park hopping!
WHEN IS THE RIGHT TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY TO TRAVEL TO DISNEY?
My motto these last few months has been “To each his own.” Traveling to Disney is a personal decision, as is everything right now in the midst of a pandemic. Everyone handles things differently, and that is okay. We know there is a LOT to think about when making this decision, so we’re happy to talk with you and help bring some clarity to your questions and concerns 🙂
IS 2021 A BETTER OPTION?
If you know that traveling is not an option this year, don’t miss out on booking a trip for 2021! We all need something to look forward to in these crazy times, so why not have it be a magical vacation to Disney World?!
Things are changing so quickly at the parks and resorts, so now more than ever it is SO important to work with an expert! We would love to take the stress of planning away and help make your vacation extra magical 🙂
CONTACT US TODAY
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This post is sponsored by Colleen Bentley, WDW Park Planners
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