Should I cancel since there's no FP+, fireworks, limited dining, etc.? When will it return?

MJJME

Active Member
I have had to cancel 2 trips due to COVID (April 2020 canceled and August 2020 rescheduled b of travel ban)...……….We are currently rescheduled for April 2021 but we will not come if there are no FP+, limited dining, no fireworks, no shows, facemasks, etc...……….Its not worth all the money to travel and not have those options...………….Are there any educated guesses or opinions when WDW will be "back to normal"?
 

JohnD

Well-Known Member
I have had to cancel 2 trips due to COVID (April 2020 canceled and August 2020 rescheduled b of travel ban)...……….We are currently rescheduled for April 2021 but we will not come if there are no FP+, limited dining, no fireworks, no shows, facemasks, etc...……….Its not worth all the money to travel and not have those options...………….Are there any educated guesses or opinions when WDW will be "back to normal"?

"Are there any educated guesses or opinions when WDW will be "back to normal"?" Short answer: No.

The rest is up to you and what you put into it. I'm going in about a month. Having no FP+ is a good thing. No long standby lines. I'm game for everything else.
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
"Are there any educated guesses or opinions when WDW will be "back to normal"?" Short answer: No.

The rest is up to you and what you put into it. I'm going in about a month. Having no FP+ is a good thing. No long standby lines. I'm game for everything else.
We wouldn't go without FP+...… We want to know that we can get on the rides that we want before we get there...……..Its one of the best perks for a family like mine that only goes once every other year...………..
 
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JohnD

Well-Known Member
We wouldn't go without FP+...… We want to know that we can get on the rides that we want before we get there...……..Its one of the best perks for a family like mine that only goes once every other year...………..

I don't see it as a "perk". You have to figure out 60 days out which three attractions you want, not to mention what attraction in the tiers in three of the parks. The great thing now is that wait times "even out". Previously for those without FP+, wait times in standby were extremely long. Now everyone has the "same" length of time, given the time of day, etc. If everything else comes back in some form and your only hook is FP+, then you might as well cancel your trip now. I don't see it coming back any time soon. The only advice I can give you is keep your reservation then decide as it gets closer. Right now you can cancel a day prior through December 31 without a penalty. Just keep up to date on the cancellation policy for next April and decide no later than the cancel-without-penalty date. Good luck!
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
I don't see it as a "perk". You have to figure out 60 days out which three attractions you want, not to mention what attraction in the tiers in three of the parks. The great thing now is that wait times "even out". Previously for those without FP+, wait times in standby were extremely long. Now everyone has the "same" length of time, given the time of day, etc. If everything else comes back in some form and your only hook is FP+, then you might as well cancel your trip now. I don't see it coming back any time soon. The only advice I can give you is keep your reservation then decide as it gets closer. Right now you can cancel a day prior through December 31 without a penalty. Just keep up to date on the cancellation policy for next April and decide no later than the cancel-without-penalty date. Good luck!
Thanks for the advice......…..Also, we will have to agree to disagree on the FP thing...…….Total time saved is WAY higher for us with 3 FP+ and waiting in the standby line for the other rides...…..Our last trip alone FOP was 180 min wait......…..That's longer than I had to wait in 5 other lines combined...…………….thats WAY too long and we wouldn't even go to WDW if we had to wait that long in lines
 
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Wendy Pleakley

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the advice......…..Also, we will have to agree to disagree on the FP thing...…….Total time saved is WAY higher for us with 3 FP+ and waiting in the standby line for the other rides...…..Our last trip alone FOP was 180 min wait......…..That's longer than I had to wait in 5 other lines combined...…………….thats WAY too long and we wouldn't even go to WDW if we had to wait that long in lines

Have you looked at the current wait times? FOP tends to be in the 15-25 minutes range. My last trip I did a FOP FP and standby so I could ride it a second time. To do the same now (ride twice in a day) would require far less time in line.

You can't compare the current conditions at WDW to your last trip, it's totally different. I think you'd be making a mistake by making access to FB+ your deciding factor.

As for everything else, nobody knows when things will be back to normal. My educated guess is that assuming vaccines start to roll out in early 2021, it will still take some time for enough people to get them to get us to a point where we have herd immunity. I would not be surprised for the current conditions to last into Summer 2021.
 
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networkpro

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
Yes
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Have you looked at the current wait times? FOP tends to be in the 15-25 minutes range. My last trip I did a FOP FP and standby so I could ride it a second time. To do the same now (ride twice in a day) would require far less time in line.

You can't compare the current conditions at WDW to your last trip, it's totally different. I think you'd be making a mistake by making access to FB+ your deciding factor.

As for everything else, nobody knows when things will be back to normal. My educated guess is that assuming vaccines start to roll out in early 2021, it will still take some time for enough people to get them to get us to a point where we have herd immunity. I would not be surprised for the current conditions to last into Summer 2021.

Our FoP wait time was as long as it took to walk from the entrance through the queue to the theater three times in a row last Friday. I dont get folks trying to compare how it was then vs now. Apples and Oranges. California Grill, Tupolinos, BoG, Yak, all were delicious last week,
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
Cancelling is all up to you.
No one knows when things will return to normal.
If it were me, I'd wait it out for a while you have 7 months....
Yes but April vacation is only week my family will have off this spring so if WDW isn't back to normal my family is planning on going somewhere else (non Disney/Bahamas) and need to plan that soon so was just curious if there was anyone with info about when normal conditions could return
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
Have you looked at the current wait times? FOP tends to be in the 15-25 minutes range. My last trip I did a FOP FP and standby so I could ride it a second time. To do the same now (ride twice in a day) would require far less time in line.

You can't compare the current conditions at WDW to your last trip, it's totally different. I think you'd be making a mistake by making access to FB+ your deciding factor.

As for everything else, nobody knows when things will be back to normal. My educated guess is that assuming vaccines start to roll out in early 2021, it will still take some time for enough people to get them to get us to a point where we have herd immunity. I would not be surprised for the current conditions to last into Summer 2021.
Yes I saw FOP was 90-120 mins on labor day weekend with no FP availability and that was with estimated 25% limited capacity so that doesn't match with your logic
 
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Wendy Pleakley

Well-Known Member
Yes I saw FOP was 90-120 mins on labor day weekend with no FP availability and that was with estimated 25% limited capacity so that doesn't match with your logic

The holiday weekend is not reflective of recent typical wait times. Unless you're planning to go to AK on a holiday weekend, I would personally use a different comparison for your decision.
 
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Queen of the WDW Scene

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Yes but April vacation is only week my family will have off this spring so if WDW isn't back to normal my family is planning on going somewhere else (non Disney/Bahamas) and need to plan that soon so was just curious if there was anyone with info about when normal conditions could return

No one has info.
Disney doesn't even have the info as to when things can get more back to normal.
It seems like you would rather do something else anyways.
So yes do go ahead and cancel now.
Book somewhere else.
 
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nickys

Premium Member
We wouldn't go without FP+...… We want to know that we can get on the rides that we want before we get there...……..Its one of the best perks for a family like mine that only goes once every other year...………..
So it’s possible that when Fastpasses return, it may well be a different system to what was there before. Just as they’ve cut the dining window to 60 days, there could well be other changes. Dining options will increase when guest numbers increase and more resorts open.

As for things like parades and fireworks, well it will be when Disney feels it is safe to have crowds gathering again. That is the only limiting factor.
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
The holiday weekend is not reflective of recent typical wait times. Unless you're planning to go to AK on a holiday weekend, I would personally use a different comparison for your decision.
The comparison is when parks are back to 100% capacity is April that it will be worse...….you disagree?
 
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HouCuseChickie

Well-Known Member
As I type this, the app is showing FOP as a 15 minute standby. Sure, it's September and it's historically slow at this time of year. April will likely be busier, but nobody knows...really on any of this. Basically, you're taking a shot in the dark with trip planning right now and it's on you to decide if it's worth it. For me, I'm planning based on how things are right now. If more opens up before I go, great...but if not, my expectations are managed. I think if any of these things are deal breakers for you, you may be better off planning something else unless you have a deadline you've set for yourself on a "wait and see" approach where you could safely get out of a Disney booking and still have time to book something else.
 
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MJJME

Active Member
Original Poster
No one has info.
Disney doesn't even have the info as to when things can get more back to normal.
It seems like you would rather do something else anyways.
So yes do go ahead and cancel now.
Book somewhere else.
No, you're missing the point and seem to be getting very confused by a simple question......We WANT to go if its back to normal, but only if it is.....So I was asking if anyone knew if it would be by then...…..
 
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Wendy Pleakley

Well-Known Member
No, you're missing the point and seem to be getting very confused by a simple question......We WANT to go if its back to normal, but only if it is.....So I was asking if anyone knew if it would be by then...…..

This question gets asked constantly for reasons that elude me.

Nobody knows.

If someone knew when WDW would be back to normal, we'd have heard about it by now. Even then, things could change.

As of right now, WDW requires a reservation for theme park attendance through September 2021. That is the best answer you're going to get, that current rules and restrictions at WDW are in place through at least that date.
 
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Schweino

Well-Known Member
What is ALL the criteria you are using to define 'normal'? With that information we can give more pointed guesses - but thats all anyone will have is a guess. Everyone here could be 100% wrong.
 
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