Travel Diary: Walt Disney World 2021
Getting to Walt Disney World
I had a great trip to Disney to celebrate Christmas with my daughters and friend. I flew Delta in Comfort + and it was a packed flight but we had early flights for both directions. As a not so recent traveler, getting to the Main terminal from Park and Fly was confusing as you need to take a tram to go up to the actual terminal. The TSA took 45 minutes on our way out and had it not been for a cart, we would have missed our flight. I would recommend people arrive at least 2 hours early as the airports in Minneapolis and Orlando were packed.
A Magical Welcome at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
I checked in ahead of time on My Disney Experience and our room at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge was ready as we got off the Magical Express. My daughter and her friend got off first and a Disney representative said "Hello Madison from Minnesota and Julien from Texas", and they did not have name badges! We noticed they also said goodbye to Julien on It’s a Small World at the end also. The room at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge was remodeled and lovely. We had a view of the pool and Bay Lake and I watched the water parade several nights from the deck.
Festive and Fun
We did the Christmas After Hours party the first night from 7 pm-1 am and were able to get on 11 rides, catch a parade and watch fireworks during that time. There were also snacks available for free during the party. It was an expensive ticket but I considered it worth to avoid having to deal with crowds, get unlimited access to photo pass and rides. Disney is relatively strict on their mask policy, if you are inside they have masked cast members reminding you to wear your mask. They did not require them if you were outdoors, walking or eating. People are still really adhering to the mandate at Disney.
Magic Kingdom & Hollywood Studios
The next day I got up at 7 am and signed up for Genie +. We paid for Space Mountain and got on 5 rides at Magic Kingdom in the morning. We hopped to Hollywood Studios and honestly, I could not figure out how to change my Genie to Hollywood Studios so I had to stop at Guest Services. They admitted they just learned how to do this, in that when in on your Genie Day on the app, you have to scroll under all your options, scheduled events to the bottom to find the change park option. With that, I was able to get more rides scheduled. The key to Genie is to go into the ride lightning lane and scan your band twice and once the second scan happens you can book your next ride.
Visit to Epcot
The last day, we went to Epcot and I used all the tricks I had learned. The candlelight processional was gorgeous and gave me goosebumps. Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is a fantastic ride. I was highly impressed with how they really have used all new technology along with 3D effects. It is worth the ILL price on Genie as the line for the virtual queue was crazy. I was never able to get on the Rise of the Resistance ride. I think if you want that ride, you need to make Hollywood Studios your first and primary park for the day.
The resorts were beautifully decorated. We took the time to ride the Skyliner just to see how convenient it was, and it truly is a great form of transportation. Much faster than the busses. I would choose a boat or skyliner over a bus any day.
Tip: If they ask about a character meal, I highly recommend Topolino’s at the Riviera resort. They had fantastic food and the characters from afar were very interactive. I have been to most character meals and this was the best view, food and all together ambiance I have been to, even compared to Be Our Guest.
