When I decided to book this trip back in March the idea of hurricane season was lost on my western US brain. Then within about a week of travel we were watching the weather channel and set a final decision yes or no for Wednesday the 13th. On Tuesday WDW opened back up after being closed due to the storm. With all the other weather looking sound we decided to keep our halloween tradition alive.
This was the first time I've stayed 'off' property in a few years. The Swan and Dolphin do reside within WDW but you quickly see that you aren't exactly a traditional guest. We needed to link some tickets and magic bands which we had to go to separate area to work with Disney cast members. It is an odd feeling being 'at' Disney while not.
Thankfully the park crowd levels were pretty normal for the season. We had fast passes for the boat in Avatar land and did bite the bullet for the 120 minute flight ride. A great analogy we heard from someone was 'motorcycle Soaring' and that does seem to fit.
There were almost no signs that the storm had gone through the park. It is a huge credit to the staff that they cleaned so much up and areas which hadn't been immediately addressed were all but invisible, you had to really look in order to see downed tree branches or issues.
Halloween Party 2017 was another high point, moderate level to lower level for a Sunday night. Great parade, Fireworks and cast members being loose with the trick r treat candy as always. Watching the MK transition out of the building phase for fantasy land and seeing so much construction at the HS I think we may take next year off and let those lands develop.
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
-Avatar Land: It's pretty, well themed but there was one movie, unless someone has fleshed out back story similar to Star Wars and everyone consumed that I'm completely lost on just about everything there except for the Banshee ride.
-The Swal-Phin: I used my hotel points Marriott and Starwood recently merged. For a 'free' room it was fine though I don't see myself staying there again.
-If you and your group are going to dress up as Seagulls a la Finding Nemo, you better be ready to yell 'mine' early and often. We followed a group between trick r treat locations and started counting after the fourth time someone 'got them going' and stopped at 12 when we got our treats. They are halloween MVP's in my book.
This was the first time I've stayed 'off' property in a few years. The Swan and Dolphin do reside within WDW but you quickly see that you aren't exactly a traditional guest. We needed to link some tickets and magic bands which we had to go to separate area to work with Disney cast members. It is an odd feeling being 'at' Disney while not.
Thankfully the park crowd levels were pretty normal for the season. We had fast passes for the boat in Avatar land and did bite the bullet for the 120 minute flight ride. A great analogy we heard from someone was 'motorcycle Soaring' and that does seem to fit.
There were almost no signs that the storm had gone through the park. It is a huge credit to the staff that they cleaned so much up and areas which hadn't been immediately addressed were all but invisible, you had to really look in order to see downed tree branches or issues.
Halloween Party 2017 was another high point, moderate level to lower level for a Sunday night. Great parade, Fireworks and cast members being loose with the trick r treat candy as always. Watching the MK transition out of the building phase for fantasy land and seeing so much construction at the HS I think we may take next year off and let those lands develop.
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
-Avatar Land: It's pretty, well themed but there was one movie, unless someone has fleshed out back story similar to Star Wars and everyone consumed that I'm completely lost on just about everything there except for the Banshee ride.
-The Swal-Phin: I used my hotel points Marriott and Starwood recently merged. For a 'free' room it was fine though I don't see myself staying there again.
-If you and your group are going to dress up as Seagulls a la Finding Nemo, you better be ready to yell 'mine' early and often. We followed a group between trick r treat locations and started counting after the fourth time someone 'got them going' and stopped at 12 when we got our treats. They are halloween MVP's in my book.