How to make the most of a Disney World vacation now

Several people have asked us since Walt Disney World reopened in July whether it’s worth it to visit now. Without fireworks, parades and character greetings, it sounds “less magical” than it used to be. And while that might be true, there’s another side to the story. A visit to Disney World now is more relaxed than it used to be, yes, even with wearing face masks and physical distancing. It has a very 1980 vibe — charming, wholesome, not overly packaged, or crowded.

We’ve had two brief stays at Disney resorts since the parks reopened — at Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary Resort, and at Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge. We learned a lot about making the most of a Disney World vacation in the time of coronavirus:

Enjoy the slow pace: If you’re used to going home from a Disney World vacation exhausted, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. The pace of a vacation here has slowed tremendously. While we mourn the days of park-hopping and late nights at the Magic Kingdom, the absence of both has made a vacation here much more relaxing. And with ride lines generally a lot shorter, there’s less running around to squeeze in everything you want to do. This is a very different kind of vacation. Enjoy it!

Ride the rides. And then ride them again! If you are all about the rides, now is a great time for a Disney vacation. While you’ll still find 45-minute waits at some of the most popular rides, most don’t have long lines at all. And if you stay at the park until late afternoon, even those wait times dwindle to almost nothing as it gets closer to park closing.

Keep your eyes open: No, you can’t hug Mickey Mouse anymore, and there are no parades or fireworks. But you can find Winnie the Pooh hunting for butterflies on a hillside in Epcot, Chip and Dale floating on a raft on the Rivers of America, and the Country Bears waving from a balcony above the Jamboree theater. There’s something really delightful about rounding a corner and coming almost face-to-muzzle with Eeyore. And the “character caravans” are both surprising and delightful.

Splurge on your resort: If you’ve always said, “Why bother paying more for a fancy resort when all we do is sleep and shower there” — now may be the time to rethink your strategy. With shorter park hours, a room is no longer just a place to lay your head when you’re too exhausted to keep going. It may be the place where you do a puzzle in the evening or get take-out for dinner and watch a movie. So look into both dining and recreation options at your resort, keeping in mind that you might be spending more time there than you normally would.

Scope out the pool: One of the most important features of a great resort is the pool, but not all Disney pools are created equal. We stayed recently at Bay Lake Tower and left the pool after about five minutes because of a complete lack of social distancing. On the other hand, the pools at Animal Kingdom Lodge were wonderfully uncrowded. So check out the pools before you book your resort. And when you get there, swing by to see how the crowds are. Off-hours at the pools can be really nice — you can spend a couple of hours in the pool in the morning before Epcot opens at 11 or close the pools down at 9 at night.

Think differently about dinner: With capacity limited and parks closing early, dining choices can be a bit slim. So be sure to check out what’s available at your resort. Resorts with quick-service restaurants encourage you to order ahead on the My Disney Experience app and then take the food back to your room — or find a table in the common area. Or, you can get on a walk-up list for a table-service restaurant. You also can order with DoorDash or UberEats and meet the driver at the portico, and there are lots of local restaurants to choose from. We recommend having one or two nice Disney dinners. We’ve found that the ambiance is much nicer with half the crowd (and half the noise), and the quality of the food has been much improved, so treat yourself. (Just a reminder: You can now make dining reservations just 60 days before your stay, rather than six months.)

Make a plan for the evenings: This is maybe the biggest challenge of a Disney trip right now, with parks closing so early. There’s just not that much to do after hours. During one recent stay, we took a puzzle to work on at night. And now you can watch fireworks on demand in your resort room, so you can make an event of that with your family. Disney resorts also have movies under the stars, which generally don’t draw much of a crowd — and might just be the perfect diversion right now. So keep this in mind when you’re planning your trip, and take something to entertain yourselves at night. We don’t recommend spending evenings at Disney Springs, unless you’re comfortable with crowds. Which leads me to …

Do your shopping in the morning: Disney Springs in the morning is delightful, although we think word is getting out that 10 a.m. is the best time to shop. The crowds grow throughout the day and especially around dinner time, so unless you’re ok with that, it’s best to visit the Springs as soon as the stores open at 10.