ThemeParkCommando

Thanks for sharing, it was a great trip report, it will also help some folks maneuver around some of all the new things in WDW.

Foot pain can really mess up a good day.  Sorry you have to deal with that.
I am old. 
I use a flip phone.
Can I use that for the menus?
Liked your idea to read menu before getting to restaurant.

My guess is your flip phone will do just as good a job as a smart phone in keeping the paper menu from flying off your table.

Thank you for sharing your trip with us!

Final thoughts:

I probably should have put this at the beginning of the report, because it has the most useful information about traveling to WDW right now. Well, call this the reward for traveling there with me, as I reminisced.

Mousekeeping is limited. Something I must have missed in all my reading, but mousekeeping is still not doing sheets or bedding changes. Neither will they make the bed on their days in the room. Mousekeeping comes every other day for light cleanup and to replace towels and sundries. If you want to come back to a freshly made up room, you will need to make your beds before you leave. If you want new sheets, just call down to the concierge, and they will have new bedding delivered. Mousekeeping will pick up dirty sheets on their cleaning days.

Genie+: For us, just 2 people wandering the parks, Genie+ was worth it. We used it daily and probably averaged about 5 rides using it, at each park. The only 2 rides we never managed to grab were Test Track and Slinky Dog. We didn't try real hard with TT, because we just weren't that into it. So that's $75 to save about 1 to 2 hours a day in line. Worth it to my feet.

Mobile Ordering: I LOVE this feature and took advantage of it wherever I could. I can understand how it would be hard to work with if you have any kind of severe allergy or food intolerance. Not a whole lot of options on most items. But when you can use it, nothing like just ordering while in line, and having your food ready when you are ready to eat.

QR codes for full restaurant menu's: This is the hardest thing to get used to. If I am eating in a full service restaurant, I don't want to stare at the tiny screen of my phone for the menu, I want a full, page turning menu. Can't put my finger on exactly why, maybe because the explanations of each dish are easier to compare that way? After our first dinner at Nine Dragons, we decided to study the menu's before we got to our restaurant, so we would know what we wanted, and didn't even have to use the menu in house. It just felt better that way. At Skipper Canteen and at Morimoto's, both our servers there brought us paper menu's when we tried to explain we'd already chosen our options before arriving. I think they are used to the older crowd griping at them about it.

Crowds and attitudes: We did not see a lot of crowding, except on that Saturday. Probably a lot of locals coming to enjoy the Christmas season. The only time I saw upset guests was in front of Columbia Harbor House. The mobile order 'required' seemed to really rub people the wrong way, there. Outside of Sat'uli Canteen, there was a general air of "yes, mobile order is how it's done!". Also, Docking Bay 9 at HS had happy people using mobile order.
I never once saw a cranky CM while at the parks. Everyone we waved at or spoke to seemed to be in a great mood. It was what I expect of WDW, I felt the CM's were happy to be back. Or they were great at faking it.

Thank you all for taking the time to read my trip report. Not sure when I'll be back to WDW. We have Disneyland and a Disney cruise on tap for our next adventures.

Final thoughts:

I probably should have put this at the beginning of the report, because it has the most useful information about traveling to WDW right now. Well, call this the reward for traveling there with me, as I reminisced.

Mousekeeping is limited. Something I must have missed in all my reading, but mousekeeping is still not doing sheets or bedding changes. Neither will they make the bed on their days in the room. Mousekeeping comes every other day for light cleanup and to replace towels and sundries. If you want to come back to a freshly made up room, you will need to make your beds before you leave. If you want new sheets, just call down to the concierge, and they will have new bedding delivered. Mousekeeping will pick up dirty sheets on their cleaning days.

Genie+: For us, just 2 people wandering the parks, Genie+ was worth it. We used it daily and probably averaged about 5 rides using it, at each park. The only 2 rides we never managed to grab were Test Track and Slinky Dog. We didn't try real hard with TT, because we just weren't that into it. So that's $75 to save about 1 to 2 hours a day in line. Worth it to my feet.

Mobile Ordering: I LOVE this feature and took advantage of it wherever I could. I can understand how it would be hard to work with if you have any kind of severe allergy or food intolerance. Not a whole lot of options on most items. But when you can use it, nothing like just ordering while in line, and having your food ready when you are ready to eat.

QR codes for full restaurant menu's: This is the hardest thing to get used to. If I am eating in a full service restaurant, I don't want to stare at the tiny screen of my phone for the menu, I want a full, page turning menu. Can't put my finger on exactly why, maybe because the explanations of each dish are easier to compare that way? After our first dinner at Nine Dragons, we decided to study the menu's before we got to our restaurant, so we would know what we wanted, and didn't even have to use the menu in house. It just felt better that way. At Skipper Canteen and at Morimoto's, both our servers there brought us paper menu's when we tried to explain we'd already chosen our options before arriving. I think they are used to the older crowd griping at them about it.

Crowds and attitudes: We did not see a lot of crowding, except on that Saturday. Probably a lot of locals coming to enjoy the Christmas season. The only time I saw upset guests was in front of Columbia Harbor House. The mobile order 'required' seemed to really rub people the wrong way, there. Outside of Sat'uli Canteen, there was a general air of "yes, mobile order is how it's done!". Also, Docking Bay 9 at HS had happy people using mobile order.
I never once saw a cranky CM while at the parks. Everyone we waved at or spoke to seemed to be in a great mood. It was what I expect of WDW, I felt the CM's were happy to be back. Or they were great at faking it.

Thank you all for taking the time to read my trip report. Not sure when I'll be back to WDW. We have Disneyland and a Disney cruise on tap for our next adventures.

My husband said the same thing.. lol.  I was trying for 'suprised' , but my hand is just in the wrong place.
 

Thank you for sharing your adventures and have a great time on your trip to CA and your cruise... Always a fun thing to do.

We stopped by the Indiana Jones stadium to pull the rope on the mine shaft / well / whatever that is. It was fun, and we startled a few passerby. I’m glad that little easter egg is still there. We got in line for our Mickey and Minnie Railway journey, and I was very happy to have purchased the ILL. The line was at 70 minutes. We only had to wait about 10 minutes overall. The ride was a fun little jaunt, but it is not going to become a favorite of ours. We don’t like the new animation of the Disney characters. Goofy is just too scruffy for our liking, we much prefer the older animation. Also, it just wasn’t as much fun as the old ‘Ride the Movies’ ride. Stepping out, I made a LL for Alien Swirling Saucers for about 20 minutes into the future, and we walked into Toy Story land to look around. Toy Story Mania had no available LL options, and we didn’t want to wait in the 50 minute line, so we just took pictures, and enjoyed some people watching. We bought some water to help stay hydrated, as the temperatures were heading into the upper 80’s. Toy Story land suffers from the same issue as the carnival area of Animal Kingdom. Too much heat reflecting asphalt and no shade.
 
 


We actually enjoyed the ride on ASS ( sorry, I just HAD to use that acronym once, lol), it was a cute little ride and I love the voices of the Toy Story green aliens. I also like being flung around in circles, so that helps. Afterward, we walked back into Galaxy’s edge and explored the area. We stopped for a photo pass opportunity, and then wandered over to the milk stand and got our blue milk and green milk to try. We opted not to get an alcoholic variety. Both of us prefer the blue milk, which surprised me. Considering what is in them, I thought I’d like green milk better, since I love all thing citrus. But the green milk just tasted too bitter. Maybe they put more grapefruit juice in it than the other flavors? Dunno, but blue milk was the winner, although neither was good enough for us to get a refill.
 


Then we went into the droid store, so we could considered our ‘extra’ options to purchase for our upcoming droid. That shop was very busy and very noisy, so hearing the sounds of the extra sound chips you can buy for your droid was pretty challenging. They have a BUNCH of extra’s for the droids, more so than for the lightsabers. We checked in for our droid build with the CM holding a clipboard, and waited outside in the shade for our turn.

The droid build was much more chaotic and ‘self serve’ than the lightsaber build. You get in line, pay for your droid and wait your turn. A droid wrangler will come to you with a basket, and guide you to the conveyer belt with all the droid parts. You are shown the instruction graphic so you know which parts to pick, and left on your own. After you choose your parts, you turn around and face away from the conveyer, and another droid shop employee will direct you to your build space. Each build space has a diagram on how to assemble the droid. They are very tight together with others, there is no space to video your builder actually assembling the droid. Also, it is really noisy in there, cannot stress that enough. Not sure if they could put in sound dampeners but wow, I was a little overwhelmed.
 
 


When you have your droid assembled, the engineer will come over and get the electronics working, and make sure your droid’s chip and wheel gears are all working. You get a little tutorial on how to run the droid and they pack it up in a nice cardboard case for you. Leave your droid on when you are done, because there are some cute effects to play with. We exited the building, and started walking back to First Order Cargo to ship our droid home. As you pass other droids in the outpost, they talk to each other. Your box may start shaking as your droid discusses whatever news droids find important, with the droids waiting outside their respective buildings. It’s adorable. They will also talk to other boxed up droids if you happen to pass close to someone else carrying their new droid.
 


Back at First Order Cargo, we were met by a much more stern First Order cadet, who agreed to ship our droid off planet, but first needed to inspect the droid for contraband. (Basically, opening the box to turn the droid off, lol... a fun way to do it). Outside of the shop, we were near the Tie Fighter stage area, and more Stormtroopers were out, being gruff and trying to maintain order. There were a lot of lightsabers out, as it was dusk and they glowed beautifully, making for great photo opportunities with the lighted ship and Stormtroopers in the background. We watched the people for a while.

We stopped by the Indiana Jones stadium to pull the rope on the mine shaft / well / whatever that is. It was fun, and we startled a few passerby. I’m glad that little easter egg is still there. We got in line for our Mickey and Minnie Railway journey, and I was very happy to have purchased the ILL. The line was at 70 minutes. We only had to wait about 10 minutes overall. The ride was a fun little jaunt, but it is not going to become a favorite of ours. We don’t like the new animation of the Disney characters. Goofy is just too scruffy for our liking, we much prefer the older animation. Also, it just wasn’t as much fun as the old ‘Ride the Movies’ ride. Stepping out, I made a LL for Alien Swirling Saucers for about 20 minutes into the future, and we walked into Toy Story land to look around. Toy Story Mania had no available LL options, and we didn’t want to wait in the 50 minute line, so we just took pictures, and enjoyed some people watching. We bought some water to help stay hydrated, as the temperatures were heading into the upper 80’s. Toy Story land suffers from the same issue as the carnival area of Animal Kingdom. Too much heat reflecting asphalt and no shade.
 
 


We actually enjoyed the ride on ASS ( sorry, I just HAD to use that acronym once, lol), it was a cute little ride and I love the voices of the Toy Story green aliens. I also like being flung around in circles, so that helps. Afterward, we walked back into Galaxy’s edge and explored the area. We stopped for a photo pass opportunity, and then wandered over to the milk stand and got our blue milk and green milk to try. We opted not to get an alcoholic variety. Both of us prefer the blue milk, which surprised me. Considering what is in them, I thought I’d like green milk better, since I love all thing citrus. But the green milk just tasted too bitter. Maybe they put more grapefruit juice in it than the other flavors? Dunno, but blue milk was the winner, although neither was good enough for us to get a refill.
 


Then we went into the droid store, so we could considered our ‘extra’ options to purchase for our upcoming droid. That shop was very busy and very noisy, so hearing the sounds of the extra sound chips you can buy for your droid was pretty challenging. They have a BUNCH of extra’s for the droids, more so than for the lightsabers. We checked in for our droid build with the CM holding a clipboard, and waited outside in the shade for our turn.

The droid build was much more chaotic and ‘self serve’ than the lightsaber build. You get in line, pay for your droid and wait your turn. A droid wrangler will come to you with a basket, and guide you to the conveyer belt with all the droid parts. You are shown the instruction graphic so you know which parts to pick, and left on your own. After you choose your parts, you turn around and face away from the conveyer, and another droid shop employee will direct you to your build space. Each build space has a diagram on how to assemble the droid. They are very tight together with others, there is no space to video your builder actually assembling the droid. Also, it is really noisy in there, cannot stress that enough. Not sure if they could put in sound dampeners but wow, I was a little overwhelmed.
 
 


When you have your droid assembled, the engineer will come over and get the electronics working, and make sure your droid’s chip and wheel gears are all working. You get a little tutorial on how to run the droid and they pack it up in a nice cardboard case for you. Leave your droid on when you are done, because there are some cute effects to play with. We exited the building, and started walking back to First Order Cargo to ship our droid home. As you pass other droids in the outpost, they talk to each other. Your box may start shaking as your droid discusses whatever news droids find important, with the droids waiting outside their respective buildings. It’s adorable. They will also talk to other boxed up droids if you happen to pass close to someone else carrying their new droid.
 


Back at First Order Cargo, we were met by a much more stern First Order cadet, who agreed to ship our droid off planet, but first needed to inspect the droid for contraband. (Basically, opening the box to turn the droid off, lol... a fun way to do it). Outside of the shop, we were near the Tie Fighter stage area, and more Stormtroopers were out, being gruff and trying to maintain order. There were a lot of lightsabers out, as it was dusk and they glowed beautifully, making for great photo opportunities with the lighted ship and Stormtroopers in the background. We watched the people for a while.

There’s an acronym I can get on board with.  

What a sweet memory❤️
 
 
Okay... lots to catch up.  First, thanks for taking the time to share your trip.  I know it's a lot of work.   We were at the Fort at the beginning of November and did the halloween party at the MK and one day at MGM.  For us, so much feels different... it's a little sad.  But, I still like hearing about the joy others find.  I know this trip was bittersweet, mama.  My heart ached for you when you described the fireworks moment.  I am, again, so sorry for your loss.
Sorry that there were some technical bumps, but all-in-all it sounds like a nice trip.   The comment on the Hall of Presidents made me laugh.  We thought those Star Wars Lego characters were amazing!  But I do wonder if I'm the only one who misses the old DTD.  When we'd go to the Fort, we used to go to DTD 2 or 3 times.  This time we were in the area for 11 nights and only spent about an hour or two in "Disney Springs".  Bleh... just not my thing.  Expensive shops and restaurants and truly a "if you build it they will come" environment because it always feels SO crowded.  To each his own I guess.  Obviously LOTS of people like it    Tree at The Polynesian was really pretty!

Daughter number two would have loved the Nightmare Before Christmas tree. In fact it is her favorite Christmas movie which she introduced our granddaughter to last night. I think it will end up being GD's favorite too as the rest of the evening it was a 15 month old going around the house saying "Jack".
Duck can be fatty but drying it for 24 hours in the fridge and pricking the skin before cooking will help a lot of fat to render out. I like to smoke ducks, no Dave not that way, and the longer cooking time tends to render more fat than what I can achieve in the oven. We aren't big on turkey so it is not uncommon for us to serve smoked duck along with another poultry such as pheasant and ham for Thanksgiving.

Couple of comments. 
First, that's some nose on that dog!  I'll have to keep that in mind when I encounter explosive sniffing dogs.  Hasn't happened to me to this point. 
Second, my mouth is watering over that duck!  Peking Duck is one of my favorite dishes...I love finding an authentic restaurant that carves it up tableside.  So delicious.  I like duck in general, but prepared that way is so good.  I also enjoy a good roasted duck with sauerkraut.  But, as you noted, it can be quite fatty.  When prepared properly in a Chinese place I think a lot of the fat renders out of it and it's not so "bathroom inducing".  LOL.   

Sounds like you had a great day and even better making a young person's day great as well.

The MK report took 3 posts. We really did have a nice day there, and did a lot!

Time to check in for our Skipper Canteen supper! 4:10 pm was our reservation time, and we were called up at about 4:20. After all my research and perusing about this restaurant, somehow the ‘secret menu’ concept was completely missed. Apparently, there is one. Our server recommended the Pao de Quiejo secret appetizer, so we tried it. It’s a cheese bread bite, and they are served with a chimichurri and cream cheese sauce. So glad we got it, it was delicious. Apparently, the ‘secret menu’ changes almost daily. I guess it’s what they have on hand that’s a bit ‘extra’, lol.

For entrée, I got the Hardy Har Char Sui pork and hubby got the ‘Tastes like Chicken, because it is!’ dish. Every interaction with our server was chock full of bad jokes, we had a blast. As we were waiting for entrees, a different server came by and tried to give us another round of appetizers. We politely told him we had not ordered them, and he left to confer with our regular server. She came over and started to profusely apologize for the mixup. We thought it was a lead up to another joke, but no… they had given our entrée’s to another table, who had actually ordered the same thing we had, but they were given their entrée’s before the appetizer. It was, for us, hilarious. We weren’t in a hurry, and had no issue waiting for another few minutes. We told our server it was the best joke of the day. I felt a little sorry for her, because she looked absolutely terrified to tell us, so you know she’s had to deal with some angry guests before. Anyway, we got food quickly ( I guess it was the order for that other table), and enjoyed it thoroughly. Sorry for not having pictures. I rarely take pictures of food. In fact, I only took one all week, you'll see it a bit later.

We got the Panna-Connie’s Congo Lime Delight for dessert. We passed up the Kungaloosh dessert, and had a spirited discussion with our server about whether it was originally a drink or a dessert at WDW, since I’ve been offered the liquid version before. She’d never seen the recipe for the drink, but admitted it looked better than the dessert’s ingredients.
 


We left at about 6:15, and went to wander the stores in the area, before needing to find a place to watch the fireworks. The show was scheduled for 8pm, and crowds were already gathering in the hub. No way were we going to make Pirates before the show. We got an awesome spot right in front of the ‘Chip and Dale’ 50th anniversary statue, at about 7pm. (see pic above, C&D in lower right) There was no way I was standing for an hour, so I sat down there and started chatting with the other families near us. No social distancing was observed. No one was wearing masks. I’m pretty happy to try to get back to ‘normal’, but this still made me a bit nervous. Another sign of the times.
 
 


The fireworks show was great. I admit, I ended up sobbing hard about halfway through. I grabbed tissues and cried quietly for my son for the rest of the show. It’s just so heartwrenching to have lost him. I miss him so much. We enjoyed so many of the Disney movies and songs together. When it was over, we stayed put to let the crowd disperse, and to let me gather myself.

Hubby and I decided to check if the 15 minute grace period on LL ‘s work like they used to work on FP+. We went back to Pirates, and sure enough, we tapped in at 8:34, 14 minutes after the hour of our LL. Green light, good to go! In line, we were playing Pokemon Go! We were trying hard to get all the WDW presents to send out to fellow gamers. A young child in line behind us saw us playing and got ALL excited. He politely asked me if he could talk to me about the game. So cute! I said of course! And we talked about the game for the rest of our time in line. The kid then told his dad this was the best day EVER! Because he talked to grown ups who play Pokemon Go!. Dad looked at me and said softly “ Thousands of dollars on a Disney vacation, and talking about Pokemon makes it the best day ever.” We both chortled together sympathetically. It certainly raised my spirits. In the pic below, my little Pokemon friend is sitting behind us.
 


After the ride, we slowly walked back to Main street and went shopping for the presents we decided on earlier in the day. We wanted to stay for ‘The kiss goodnight’. At 10:15 pm, I finally asked someone about it, and found out they haven’t done it since re-opening the parks. Oh well. We wandered out to the ferry, and were on the boat with about 7 other people. This day was a win.
 
 
 
 

Sounds like you're having a good time despite all the new restrictions and systems that need to be dealt with.
Grandma and I still enjoy the TIKI Room and probably since it was one of the first attractions we saw when we were at DL in 1969.  (I know we're old). It was our first trip to the park together since she came to visit me when I was stationed in San Diego.

For some reason that made me chuckle.  Then I was wondering if anyone threw toast at the stage, but I guess I’m confusing it with another show.  

Me too Dave, thanks for asking.  Also thank you for answers.

Thank you.  I’m sure most readers know those acronyms but I haven’t paid much attention to the details of the Genie system so it was all Greek to me.  

Your last update makes me realize how long it’s been since I’ve been to WDW, and how much has changed.  I need some help…LL? VQ?  BatB?   I know what Rat is because I’ve read about it but otherwise you could be talking about a theme park in Bangladesh and I’d be no more lost.  😂

Thanks for sharing your trip report will be following along

Sure you can post a TR here.... Once a FF always a FF.  Looking forward to more updates.

I'm in and sending hugs

I look forward to reading more about your trip. I understand stand about the mix of emotions. I am glad among the tears there was also some happiness. Praying for you and your family during this Holiday season.