Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

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e_yerger said:
I’m kind of.... shocked? by how many people are still genuinely so excited about going to a theme park in florida considering their rising cases...
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I know we are in the minority but DW and I aren’t even a little bit frightened of this virus. We wear the masks because it is the right thing to do but would happily go into a theme park or to a music concert tomorrow with no fear.
 
Tjddis said:
So I took a few days off the board and came back to catch up but sort of threw in the towel. Just more unhappiness. A few months ago I got real into it with people debating how serious the virus was. We are not planning on making our rescheduled trip in late August, in part because some in our party could be considered high risk. So news of uptick in FLA I guess adds to that. But an interesting thing has happened here in our house. When we talk about cancelling it is more chalked up to how bad Disney is handling all of this and how limited the experience would be. No idea if we have our hotel, no ADR, no FP, no FW, no Halloween Party, no characters and not knowing if we can even reserve park days. I also remember when masks were the biggest complaint here. And we are at the end of August. I can’t imagine if it were a July trip.
So I know it’s a pandemic, and it’s not their fault and blah blah blah. They closed how many months ago? They have had forever to devise scenarios, ramp up systems, train phone CMS and devise effective communication strategy. You don’t have to look further than this mornings fiasco to see how bad they are doing. 2 hours for such a limited group of customers/restaurants? The system overrun by 400 people in a queue? People please...
So spare me the lecture if you are inclined about how people should be patient and just be happy they are opening. It costs a ton to go there. People deserve better
I said when this all started they should stay closed until Fall/Winter. Those that need a vacation can go somewhere. Those addicted to go to WDW would come back whenever. Open DVC resorts and move on.
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Early this morning was a mess for sure but it was a bit self inflicted. Everyone jumped in to call for their ADRs First thing and swamped the system. We called about 1pm Eastern time after getting blown off by DVC Member Services and only had to wait about 10 min (less than the time to get through to DVC MS btw). For the week of July 4th to 11th we got all our requested ADRs no problem.

As to risking going into a Covid 19 hotspot well we are going in eyes wide open. We both work in clinical laboratory medicine so know the risks. We will wear our masks, social distance, wash our hands and use hand sanitizer. There is still a better chance of use getting axed by a car accident on the way to the airport than checking out from an infection on this trip. Heck, we may have gotten it already from out last trip based upon our symptoms of last Feb.
 
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kverdon said:
Early this morning was a mess for sure but it was a bit self inflicted. Everyone jumped in to call for their ADRs First thing and swamped the system. We called about 1pm Eastern time after getting blown off by DVC Member Services and only had to wait about 10 min (less than the time to get through to DVC MS btw). For the week of July 4th to 11th we got all our requested ADRs no problem.

As to risking going into a Covid 19 hotspot well we are going in eyes wide open. We both work in clinical laboratory medicine so know the risks. We will wear our masks, social distance, wash our hands and use hand sanitizer. There is still a better chance of use getting axed by a car accident on the way to the airport than checking out from an infection on this trip. Heck, we may have gotten it already from out last trip based upon our symptoms of last Feb.
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Yeah I hear you on the covid stuff. You certainly sound well informed/prepared and probably know as much as anyone can about it. For us we just would not enjoy it with all the extra angst it would bring our folks with underlying conditions. Add in all the restrictions and stuff you mentioned having to do plus limited experience at the high price and were out. No judgement though. Glad you got what you want res wise and hope you have a great time. Can I ask what your prime motivation is for going ahead with the trip? Most people I talk to about this have a pretty strong factor contributing to their decision so I’m just wondering.
 
Tjddis said:
Yeah I hear you on the covid stuff. You certainly sound well informed/prepared and probably know as much as anyone can about it. For us we just would not enjoy it with all the extra angst it would bring our folks with underlying conditions. Add in all the restrictions and stuff you mentioned having to do plus limited experience at the high price and were out. No judgement though. Glad you got what you want res wise and hope you have a great time. Can I ask what your prime motivation is for going ahead with the trip? Most people I talk to about this have a pretty strong factor contributing to their decision so I’m just wondering.
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Obv not the person you're responding to, but DH and I are going ahead w our trip bc we need a vacation. We've tried doing "staycations" before, but bc of the nature of DH's work, if we're anywhere near work, he WILL go in. Really, if he's got internet and phone access, he'll answer calls but at least I know he won't be working all hours when we're at WDW. He'll excuse himself to answer the phone, but I know if we're walking around the parks, he's not on his computer. When we're out of town on vacation is also the only time his assistants get any breaks. He works ~70 hours a week outside the home, and another 30+ from home. That never slowed down during quarantine. I've also been at home with 4 kids since March 17.
We go to WDW a few times a year, and this year DH had planned on doing every runDisney event (including May and Sept in Paris). Obv those plans were derailed (postponed), but we can at least salvage some of our vacations. Also, because we go fairly often, and because we're not bringing kids, not knowing exactly where we're staying and having some things unavailable (fireworks, parades) isn't the end of the world.
 
rteetz said:
Genuinely curious, what if we are worse off in the fall and winter with a much larger bounce back of the virus? Should they still open in the fall then?

I don’t think anyone would disagree that Disney costs a lot of money because it certainly does.

I guess I am asking what do people deserve that they aren’t getting?
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Not

well first off I’m not even entirely sure “bounce back” is fair. It never really went away. But we can leave that aside As I’m sure being from NY may give me a little different perspective from folks who may not yet have experienced a peak.

and I guess I should clarify. What I should say (and have been saying) is that imo they should have set a Fall/Winter reopen as an earliest possible open date and dedicated all of their IT and customer experience resources to conjuring scenarios/designing systems and procedures to help manage towards reduced capacity. BTW they did NOT have to do this in March. Once 6/1 was deemed undoable they could have shifted to this strategy. So say on 5/21 they say closed until 11/15. Cancel everybody booked before then. The rolling weekly waiting for stuff to disappear was a terrible strategy for them to employ. The continued lack of info, you cannot leave people in limbo a couple of weeks before they get on a plane. If they cannot handle rolling things out for a 7/11 open in a way that can be effectively communicated to the customers then don’t do it. The idea that they are doing this as some sort of strategy to get people to cancel is not at all a smart strategy if it is remotely true. But you know what, that’s what a segment of their customers now believe as a result of their actions so it’s out there, fair or not And from what I can gather from the board most AP holders aren’t real happy with the way they are being handled either. I am not an AP holder so will not comment further on what I don’t know.

As far as the cost I will put it to you this way. We come down every 2 years and stay on property, usually in a deluxe with a DDP. In my neighborhood people know I am a big WDW planner and often ask me for advice on trip planning. No way I would be comfortable right now saying anyone should go ahead with a trip to WDW. Too expensive for what will be available in the foreseeable future. I judge nobody who wants to go or is going. Wish em all a great time and will eagerly await trip reports. And I HOPE I AM WRONG and it’s a magical experience for them.
BTW I thank you for the great work you do in being a moderator. In honor of you I did not mention masks at all
 
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TXAKDisneyFan said:
Obv not the person you're responding to, but DH and I are going ahead w our trip bc we need a vacation. We've tried doing "staycations" before, but bc of the nature of DH's work, if we're anywhere near work, he WILL go in. Really, if he's got internet and phone access, he'll answer calls but at least I know he won't be working all hours when we're at WDW. He'll excuse himself to answer the phone, but I know if we're walking around the parks, he's not on his computer. When we're out of town on vacation is also the only time his assistants get any breaks. He works ~70 hours a week outside the home, and another 30+ from home. That never slowed down during quarantine. I've also been at home with 4 kids since March 17.
We go to WDW a few times a year, and this year DH had planned on doing every runDisney event (including May and Sept in Paris). Obv those plans were derailed (postponed), but we can at least salvage some of our vacations. Also, because we go fairly often, and because we're not bringing kids, not knowing exactly where we're staying and having some things unavailable (fireworks, parades) isn't the end of the world.
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Thank you for your perspective. Sounds like you really deserve a great time and I truly hope you have one.
 
HorizonOne said:
I respect your thoughts and opinion as they are your own. For me personally I'm glad Disney is making a run at opening. I went to Universal since its been opened and we had a blast. Little crowds, few waits. I'm hoping Disney will be the same or similar. Yes Disney has been terrible about communication we find out more here at Disboards then we do from Disney itself. All together, through the ups and downs of news we hear from Disney, in all perspective these are first world problems so to each his own is the best policy.
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I appreciate your points. It sounds like maybe you are local? Or travel to Orlando area often? Starting to think that is a bit of a factor here that I should be more clear about. I guess if I was a person who went multiple times a year or every year maybe I would feel different. We go every 2 years or so and save up to do it the way we like to. So to not be able to do that greatly influences my perception of the value. Hope that gives a little more clarity to my opinion. Thanks to you and others here for steering me to that clarification.
 
WonderlandisReality said:
Did chat with a cm last night about a different issue with my MDE.
Per that CM Alana there will be advance email notification before the reservation system opens up. It won’t just drop then we all scramble.
She was vague about everything else though. Never said “soon” but she did say “shortly.”
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We are victims of the subtleties, complexities, vagueries and intricacies of the English language. 😂
 
rteetz said:
I also think we still have a lot of unknown about the virus though too. I don’t think Disney wants to announce things too soon and then have to backtrack.
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I think that's it. Maintaining radio silence (especially with those unknowns) is often better than attempting damage control in the public eye(s).
 
Our trip is in early august, as a biologist I can't help but watch the numbers closely. It is important to remember that its not just the raw positives that matter. 3,000 new cases in an area with the population and density of NYC (where most of NY's early cases were located) is a very different epidemiological story compared to 3,000 cases in the areas of FL that new cases appear to be coming from. Density is a major factor to how this virus spreads and I'm not sure anywhere in FL can really model the population and density distribution seen in NYC and its surrounding areas.

Personally, I'd be more worried if I had rebooked for December through the rest of the winter. Combined with flu season and a resurgence in air travel, well, there is a reason Disney is already tempering expectations for their Christmas party....
 
Today`s UK email from Disney. I don`t see anything new (except they need 14 days to make changes on someone`s booking ) but I know some of you like to speculate on every word :)


Dear Guest,

On Friday 12th June we wrote to advise you about the changes to the Walt Disney World Resort in relation to your booking and the options available to you as a result of these changes, which you can review in the original email included below. You were provided with several options to select from, with instructions on where to register your decision. We also advised that your decision was required by 27 June, 2020, otherwise we would assume that you did not wish to keep your booking and it would be cancelled with a full refund. We are writing again to remind you to make your selection on the Manage My Booking tool no later than 27 June, 2020. If you have already submitted your decision there is nothing further that you need to do.

To help you understand what will happen next we have included some additional information below. If you have selected to accept the changes to your booking, there is nothing more that you need to do. An updated invoice will0020be with you once we have fully processed your booking. Please also allow up to 14 days for any changes to your booking to be reflected in My Disney Experience. If you have not yet linked your booking on My Disney Experience please do so now, so you are ready to make park reservations when the system opens.

If you have selected to cancel your booking, there is nothing more that you need to do. Your decision has been stored and we are working through them as quickly as we can. Your booking will be cancelled and refunded as quickly as possible, but it will show as live in the Manage My Booking section until this time. Please allow up to 14 days for us to cancel and refund your booking, and for this change to be reflected in My Disney Experience.

If you have made your selection already please disregard this email. We are working through our guest’ selections and it will take us some time to fully update your booking.

Kind Regards

Walt Disney Travel Company International
 
JayhawkCruiser said:
Anyone care to hazard a guess what “a taste of...” means for F&W? Obviously won’t have any eat to the beat, but do you think there will still be the same number of food items were used to at each stand?
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My guess, based on no information whatsoever, is that they have "20 different food booths," but not all will be open at the same time, and some booths may be "retired" early in the season, and a new booth will take its place. They may also have a mix of booths from F&G and some from F&W, at least at the beginning.

Just thinking about attendence, staffing, and food availability, this makes sense in my mind.
:P
 
Tjddis said:
Yeah I hear you on the covid stuff. You certainly sound well informed/prepared and probably know as much as anyone can about it. For us we just would not enjoy it with all the extra angst it would bring our folks with underlying conditions. Add in all the restrictions and stuff you mentioned having to do plus limited experience at the high price and were out. No judgement though. Glad you got what you want res wise and hope you have a great time. Can I ask what your prime motivation is for going ahead with the trip? Most people I talk to about this have a pretty strong factor contributing to their decision so I’m just wondering.
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Sure, our prime motivation is to get away and go to a place we enjoy and and relax. It has been a stressful 4 months with work and worrying about my Mother in Law who is in an retirement home. We’ve been lucky they’ve only had 2 cases there with workers who had minimal contact with others. This will be our 3rd trip we’ve planned. The other 2, a trans Canadian rail trip and a trip to Hawaii got canned. As the trip to Hawaii got increasingly less likely we booked a trip to AKL for a 1BR on the AP discount as a backup. We figured, if nothing else, we could relax in the room and just watch the animals and cook our own meals, something my wife enjoys. We’d talked about a resort only vacation in the past when we bought DVC. We are also active AP holders so figure if we do happen to get into a park on a preview or on the 11th it would make for an interesting experience.

I certainly understand your reluctance to go if you have anyone who has an underlying health issue or otherwise at risk. We are older but in good health so decided to go for it.
 
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TXAKDisneyFan said:
DH and I are going ahead w our trip bc we need a vacation. We've tried doing "staycations" before...
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I'm with you on the importance of actually going somewhere else on vacation as opposed to having a "staycation", especially now.

Satisfying staycations require a person to be really happy to get more time to hang out at home (nope, not for us after 3 months of working at home, and not in our town, which is more restrictive than others in the area). They also require people to be able to really relax and pamper themselves at home (nope, not when I'm the one who does most of the cooking & housework). They also require people to have something interesting & absorbing to do at home during the staycation (I can entertain myself, but it's a chore for me to try to entertain others at home when I'm trying to relax.)

So no, staycation and vacation are far from equal. We really need the latter.
 
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