Boy has Disney changed in the last few years. COVID has changed a lot of things in the world and yes it has even affected Disney. I was scheduled to vacation to Disneyworld in March 2020. I was on my way to the airport, when rumors started spreading that Disneyworld had closed. That's when it truly hit me how serious this pandemic was going to get. Luckily with science, we found a way to continue to live and explore. My trip was rescheduled for October 2020 and I couldn't have been happier. I did lose my dining plan option (and as I am typing this - it still hasn't returned). However, I got to experience October 31st being Halloween decorations and November 1st being Christmas decorations. I recommend this experience for everyone as it shows how magical Disney is and how hard the staff work to provide this magic. Yes we had to wear masks everywhere and in photos but the magic was alive and I never noticed my mask.
Fast forward 2 years to July 2022 and yet Disney has changed again. This time I had to have park tickets, park reservations, no mask, but in came Genie+ - goodbye by beloved fastpasses. I love Disney and my husband hadn't really gotten to experience Disney so yes, we bought Genie+ at $15/day for all 8 of the members of my family. On top of that came the Individual Lighting Lane options. There are options to purchase individual ride lightning lane and the fee for this changes depending on the demand of the ride. Again, to give my husband the full experience, we purchased the ILL for the Rise of the Resistance. This is one of my favorite rides at Disney and many others as well since the standby line was over 4 hours long. We ended up paying another $130ish to ride this ride once. Remember I love Disney but after all these extra expenses I was getting - well annoyed. Keeping it real here! I may sell Disney vacations but I also honor myself in being honest and upfront. I like extravagant vacations so I will chalk these prices as part of my experience and move on. It isn't for everyone of course and there are always options. Do you need Genie+? No. Do you need ILL? No. Do both of these options make your vacation more enjoyable? HECK YES! I do however LOVE the virtual queue option for Guardians of the Galaxy. Virtual Queues started a few years ago when rides were so popular and this made it fair for everyone to take their chances at 0700am and 1pm to get a "virtual ticket". I have done this in the past for Rise of the Resistance and again in 2022 for Guardians of the Galaxy. I rode the ride, I got motion sick but about 30 minutes after the ride I was fine. I don't recommend it for those who get sick but I rode it and my kids appreciated my trying.
Dining at Disney hasn't changed. Still lots of options, nice portion sizes and a variety of price differences. I really enjoyed Storybook at Artist Point in the Wilderness Lodge. If you can score one of those reservations consider yourself very luck as its a difficult one to get into. Not as bad as Space220, no, I tried and failed to get into Space220. Maybe next time. I also always love eating at the Beast castle at Be Our Guest. I do wish they bring back the meet and greet for this dining experience. The Beast will walk thru a couple times during your experience but no stopping for a photo opportunity.
Gosh, what else is new? Oh Capture the Moment photo sessions! YES DO THIS! Its private for just you and your guests for a fee of course but the fee is reasonable for the special photos received. And they try extremely hard to not have other guests in your photos. I do believe in coordinating your outfits and our choice of yellow/gold for the 50th celebration was a nice decision. We got lots of compliments and our party was easy to find as we walked from place to place.
Lastly, since I hadn't ever stayed at the Deluxe level, we did this trip with 8 of us. It made the most sense to get a 2 bedroom villa. We stayed at Copper Creek at the Wilderness Lodge. It has a full kitchen, full laundry, 2 bathrooms, 2 bedrooms, and a living area. Very spacious and we never felt like we were walking all over each other. If you haven't stayed Deluxe, give it a whirl once. Its a nice experience and typically closer to the Magic Kingdom.
As always, there is so much about Disney that could never fit in a blog so please consult with a travel agent to get the most out of your Disney vacation. Lastly, ALWAYS get photo pass or "memory maker". Its worth every dime! Many of the photos I am displaying are from Memory Maker photographers.
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