Breezy2

We were shocked and saddened also by the response that we got. Hopefully others will have a much more positive experience such as mouseketab....Carol. Just didn't work for us on that particular day. 

"At the first aid stations, nurses are available to offer over-the-counter medications, bandages and other quick remedies for free." This quote from the Tampa Tribune is so not true. We stopped by the First Aid Station at Epcot, found 5 "medical" personnel laughing, joking, and so not interested in helping us. We politely asked for help which required a simple bandaid for a wound, and they told us to "exit the property and drive to the nearest drug store." We were shocked and totally disallusioned by DW first aid support and lack of compassion or concern.  Based on that experience, and past lack of "heat" issue concern at Hollywood Studios temporary bus stops, I'm not expecting any consideration or assistance what so ever to make guests comfortable at Galaxy's Edge. It makes me sad how this attitude has evolved at DW. Sure has changed.

I've never seen them use that extra overflow lot either. Didn't even know it existed. Must have been one heck of a day for BG visitors. Certainly one of those days I would have continued driving by and never pulled in. Thanks for the history lesson on Henderson Airport and Mel's. It is a fascinating tidbit of Tampa history. Looking at the area today it's hard to imagine what it looked like pre-BG and USF. 

We went to Busch Gardens for a concert once and they actually has us parked in the overflow lot at Adventure Island. I'll never do that again! Is that the overflow lot you are referring to? The crowds were totally unmanageable.

Thanks for the update.  At least that answers the question about what was happening months ago on the waterfront behind the Discovery Center.  It used to be our favorite "quiet" spot to get in some shade and relax for a while. Was so disappointed when it was closed off during our last visit.  But, this is exciting news for coaster people!

Checkmate! Locked up the lucrative Orange County Convention Center area. Now if the South Florida train comes to fruition with a stop at the Orange County Convention Center they've showed their hand. Not to mention they are a "Gold Key Attraction Sponsor" of the Convention Center. Good move, Universal and Orange County. Done and done. 

All depends upon how sensitive your body is to drinking water other than what you have at home. Disney World/Orlando water is well known to be the culprit causing what is known as the "Disney Trots". The water smells of sulfur and has a strong aftertaste. It can be pretty harsh for some people and ruins many a vacation. I'm one of those people that can't tolerate it and as a result I simply rely on bottled water to drink. I have even had issues with the drinking fountains in the parks. You can get a cup of filtered ice water at any quick service counter in the parks but local laws do not allow them to refill your bottle. Although I've heard at the Pandora Na'vi River ride in Animal Kingdom they now have the first filtered water bottle refill station so hopefully they will continue to place them throughout the parks. I've never tried using a filter but I'm sure others may be able to give you advice on that. Your question should cause quite a conversation as the quality of the water at DW gets discussed a lot but that alone should be your clue that it is definitely something to ponder. If you don't have any issues when you travel drinking " different" water then you'll probably be OK but if your like me and have a low tolerance stick to bottled water. Enjoy your visit!

Interesting perspective and insight as to what is happening at Universal Orlando and Disneyland. The assumptive reasoning for low attendance at DL is a fascinating read. Will truly be something to watch when Galaxy's Edge opens in Orlando, without the reservation system, and the massive number of hotel guests with early admission as compared to DL guest numbers. Obviously it's going to be a totally different game with a different set of rules, dictated by the shear number of onsite guests. I think there's going to be a "big reveal" on crowd control coming soon. I truly do wonder how it's going to be handled. All we know so far is no reservation system but I would say its a sure bet some creative crowd control will be in place. We have our reservations in for October so hopefully it'll all be sorted out by then. Can't wait!

16 hours ago, Travisma said:

You mean the Mickey Intelligence Agency is tracking down moles?

 The MIA! Love it-LOL! 

Well, wdwnt.com got the responses they were “fishing” for. Just when you think there’s a site with reliable news you find out it’s not. Very disappointed with the author of the article and feel bad for Travisma taking the bait. Just goes to show how easy it is for any of us to get sucked in. Anyone else feel like they were scammed and subjected to some twisted marketing? Going forward wdwnt just lost some credibility. Something just smells fishy.

Great change at Epcot.  As we all know you can get pretty darn hot by the time you walk from the main entrance back to the Liberty Inn.  A cold refreshing "Craft Draft" with some BBQ, a place to hang out and cool off and "have another" sounds pretty awesome. Thanks, Disney!

The Fastpass/Maxpass system for DW just like DL could be a step in the right direction. No more advanced reservations and placing all guests on the same level playing field. Good point djsamuel! 

It isn’t so much the Fast Pass system that sucks as it’s evolution. All the “special privileged” advance 60 day and 180 bookings is what is killing the system and causing discontent. However it’s a sign of the times and an indicator of the planned culture shift on how we will visit Disney in the future. It’s all about the $$$ and the chosen few.  I’d like to see all the advanced FP and ADR’s go away and possibly go to a version of Volcano Bays Tapu Tapu where your presence is required. Disney knows something has got to change but they have gotten off track for in the long run greed never elicits happiness. 

8 hours ago, kadancer said:

We once rented a pontoon boat at the Contemporary marina with a cast member's assurance that we had plenty of time before the storm would affect us.  Boy was he mistaken, storms converged from 3 directions over Bay Lake and we were trying to return to our dock at top pontoon boat speed before the heavens opened up, when the Lake Patrol pulled up alongside and directed us to climb into their much faster boat - not an easy feat with toddlers in tow.  My four year old, however, was ecstatic because that was the boat he wanted us to rent in the first place.  As we disembarked at the Contemporary dock, and ran for cover the cast member at the dock chased us yelling, "where's my boat?"  My DH paused long enough to explain that the Lake Patrol instructed us to abandon it.  It was quite an adventure.

Amazing storm story! Glad to hear the Lake Patrol was concerned with your safety and came to your rescue. Disney gets major points in storm safety for the training of the Lake Patrol in your situation. It is truly incredible how fast these storms can blow up and catch everyone by surprise. 

It was really impressive how quickly Disney's clean up crew came in after the storm. They were picking up the large branches blocking the loop roads,  walking thru the woods clearing all the fallen branches and when necessary trimming broken branches in trees.  Within a few hours you would have never known there was a storm. However, a boat crew member did tell us they got caught in the middle of Bay Lake as the storm moved in quicker than anticipated. They docked at The Lodge rather than continuing on to The Fort. Good move. 

Tuesday we went thru a hellacious afternoon severe thunderstorm at the Fort. Straight line winds and pea/nickel size hail created some real anxious moments. At Lake Magic RV Resort in Clermont on Rt 192 a trailer was blown over with people inside. https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2019/05/14/strong-winds-overturn-occupied-rv-florida Fortunately all were rescued and safe. At the Fort there were tents down, awnings ripped off RV's, and numerous trees and large limbs down. The Comfort Stations at the Fort seemed like a logical safety option and those that didn't feel safe headed for one when the severe thunderstorm alert was broadcast and the storm became REAL!  Once while traveling we pulled off the road and stayed at an RV park in Pennsylvania during a storm event where evacuation to a brick building was mandatory and it was a good call on their part. Wonder when Disney will start making storm safety suggestions, other than hurricane events, for those not familiar with the severity of Florida thunderstorms. 

I've just got this gut wrenching feeling that when Reflections is complete Ft. Wilderness is going to be totally rebranded. We are seeing the beginning signs of it now, the Barn, Mickeys BBQ, the beach, and we are not putting two and two together, as this was a convenient time to start making those changes.I think that's why we are hearing so many rumors about new "premium upscale loops" which would be indicative of the current state of the camping industry and where the money is. The proof of that theory is how high the seasonal rates have become. Which brings up the question, are the bungalows at Clementines Beach really part of Reflections or will they be rented out as part of The Fort experience?  I'm also feeling there will be changes coming concerning golf cart rentals and usage, specifically bringing personal carts, tent camping, and definitely no more "approved" fire pits. Can't have that smoke smell permeate Reflections. Once again, most newer campgrounds no longer allow campfires and I see Disney following suit on this one. The Fort is definitely changing and evolving, as all the older Disney resorts have, but hopefully the new Fort will be one that we can all enjoy but just in a different way. 

TCD, great pictures that are starting to answer a lot of questions we've all had about impact on the Fort. Presently it seems like "Wilderness" is dropping out of the name of the campground as we lose the "40 acre wood" on the way to the Lodge we all enjoyed so much. I'm sure Disney will make it all nice and pretty as they progress but it'll never be the same. Trees, animals, serenity and greenways don't pay the bills. 

It's really becoming very obvious what direction they are heading with this. I truly believe there is going to be, and its already started, a completely different pricing structure and a forced culture change in the way we all visit DW. It has to evolve to survive as a pleasant desirable experience.

On 3/17/2019 at 9:17 PM, Starbuc71 said:

You can get sites we can’t. That’s a big difference

Agree with Jason. When the announcement was made we booked a partial site at a Florida Resident rate (under $100) for the first week in October. At that time there were plenty of sites available for all of September thru the middle of October. The announcement didn't have the immediate impact we thought it was going to. That said, we are fortunate we can avoid The Fort on the weekend so it could be just weekdays that are available. 

Sounds to me like they’ve been very observant and have taken notice of the many “Class A only” RV Resorts that are popping up all over the country. Also those that don’t allow any RV’s over 10 years old. Disney is not one to miss out on a profitable trend. This is a very lucrative market.

$$$ They will be selling Star Wars “commerative/collector” portable phone chargers-LOL! 

20 hours ago, twiceblessed....nacole said:

Thank you.

Sigh... good and bad.  Some new things to look at, but a lot more folks will be running through the Fort.  So much nature, removed    Oh... and the boat.  Do you think this new resort will have it's own water taxi to the MK?  I imagine so. 

On Wednesday night our Boat Captain announced the Fort Marina was going to be REPLACED with a new marina that will be SHARED with Reflections.  Makes me sad. Sounds like the Fort is going to have a shared "Lake Walk" area and lose what makes it so unique and precious to us all.

Last time we were in Crockett's Tavern the bartender told us that will definitely be changing - hopefully more spacious.  It's going to get construction crazy for a while but hopefully for the better. Maybe they'll reduce the price of the sites due to inconvenience - LOL! Moving PH and TE to the Outpost area sounds a bit more like crowd control (expansion), managing boat traffic and more privacy for the campers. Maybe not such a bad idea.  Although I'm sure going to hate losing the view from the porch. Just a thought - maybe they'll turn the TE building into more of a quick service type restaurant which would be great for the campground.

Nice! This should also make it easier to get Fort reservations. Thanks, Disney, for closing a loophole. Very proactive and thoughtful for "real" guests vs "phantom" guests.