Category: Disney

Disney Cruise Line Testing Change

Disney Cruise Line just sent this announcement that testing is no longer required before cruises.

Beginning November 14, 2022, for sailings departing from the United States, Disney Cruise Line will no longer require Guests (regardless of vaccination status) to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test prior to sailing. Disney Cruise Line continues to highly recommend that all Guests be fully vaccinated and encourages unvaccinated Guests to take a COVID-19 test two days prior to sailing.

For sailings departing from International destinations, Disney Cruise Line adheres to the local laws, regulations and protocols in place, including those related to health and safety. Guests on these will be notified of any specific requirements closer to their sail date. In addition, we recommend that Guests review and stay up to date with any cruise-specific requirements, restrictions or recommendations that may be in place for travel to destinations outside of the United States. 

As our health and safety protocols and operational guidelines are subject to change, please visit the Know Before You Go section of our website for the latest information and answers to many frequently asked questions.

Guests booked on sailings departing from the U.S. on or after February 1, 2023, may modify or cancel their sailing by November 17, 2022 without any Disney-imposed cancellation fees. Please contact your travel agent for details on how to cancel or modify your booking. Please note that change fees and cancellation fees imposed by third-party suppliers, such as airlines and hotels, as well as travel insurance, are not refundable. Refunds will be processed back to the original form of payment. Standard cancellation policies and terms and conditions apply for any cancellation or modification requests received on or after November 18, 2022.

©Disney Cruise Line

Disney World phased reopening

Cinderella Castle

Disney World has announced a phased reopening of the theme parks and Disney Springs on Friday, Sept 30th, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.

  • Magic Kingdom
    • 8 a.m. Early Theme Park Entry 
    • 10 a.m. All Guest entry 
    • 6 p.m. Park close for non party guests
    • 7 p.m.-12 a.m. Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party 
  • EPCOT
    • 9 a.m. Early Theme Park Entry 
    • 11 a.m. All guest entry 
    • 9 p.m. Park close 
  • Disney’s Hollywood Studios 
    • 10 a.m. Early Theme Park Entry 
    • 12 p.m. All guest entry 
    • 9 p.m. Park close 
  • Disney’s Animal Kingdom 
    • 11 a.m. Early Theme Park Entry 
    • 1 p.m. All Guest entry 
    • 7 p.m. Park close 
  • Disney Springs
    • 10 a.m. – 11:30 p.m.
    • The Drawn to Life 5:30 p.m. show on Friday, Sept. 30 will be rescheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m.
  • Fantasia Fairways Miniature Golf Course 
    • 3 p.m. – 10 p.m. 

Theme park reservations are required. 

The early theme park entry benefit is available for guests staying at Disney Resort hotels and select other hotels.

Dining

All dining and Enchanted Extra experience reservations prior to the listed park hours above are canceled. 

Guests who have existing dining or Enchanted Extras experiences during the Early Theme Park Entry window will be allowed to enter the parks whether or not they are Resort Guests. 

Transportation 

Transportation will operate as normal, pending our current weather protocols. Transportation will begin operation 30 minutes prior to each park open. Resort Guests are encouraged to take their own vehicles if they choose to visit another location on property. 

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

For Guests with a Friday, Sept. 30 check-in, please arrive at your resort no earlier than 3 p.m. ET; Guests who arrive before 3 p.m. will not be able to check in. Guests may reschedule their trip or cancel their stay with us; any customary cancellation fees will be waived.

Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser

Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser will resume operations with voyages departing Saturday, Oct. 1. 

Continued temporary closures 

The following locations will remain temporarily closed:

  • Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground 
  • Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa 
  • Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park
  • Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park 
  • Winter Summerland Miniature Golf 

Please note that all reopening timelines are tentative, and subject to safety conditions.

For the most up-to-date information about temporary closures and impacts, check the My Disney Experience app and DisneyWorld.com/Weather

©Disney

Cruises impacted by Hurricane Ian

Disney cruises impacted by Hurricane Ian

Disney Cruise Lines has confirmed that the Disney Wish sailing currently out at sea will be delayed returning to Port Canaveral. Instead of returning this Friday as scheduled, it will now likely return on Saturday or Sunday, depending on when Port Canaveral reopens.

Unfortunately, that means the Wish sailing scheduled to start sailing on Friday will now be cancelled. If you were booked on that sailing, you should’ve gotten an email from DCL today with details on refunds and credits.

Norwegian Cruise Lines has also cancelled it’s Thursday sailing on the Norwegian Getaway.

Carnival Cruise Line cancelled its sailings out of Tampa and Jacksonville scheduled for Thursday on the Carnival Paradise and Carnival Elation.

The sailings of those ships that are out at sea now are going to be extended until their ports reopen as well.

Royal Caribbean, MSC, and Celebrity Cruises have announced route and port changes to several of their ships currently out at sea. I imagine most cruise lines with sailings thru the Caribbean will have route and port changes as well.

Chances are, if you have a sailing into or out of ports in Tampa, Port Canaveral and Jacksonville this week, you will be impacted. Check with your cruise line for the latest changes.

Florida theme parks announce closures

Disney World

In light of the impending landfall of Hurricane Ian thru central Florida, most major theme parks have announced closures for Wednesday and Thursday. So far, Disney World, Universal, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, and Legoland have confirmed closures of all of their Florida parks, as well as Disney Springs and CityWalk.

I expect that all other area attractions will be closing soon as well. Depending on the results of the hurricane, the closures may be extended. Double check before you go, if you still plan on going this week.

Stay safe!

Updates to Disney Cruise Line Health & Safety Policies

Disney cruise ships

Disney Cruise Lines has announced that beginning Oct. 14, 2022, for Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy, and Disney Wish sailings and Nov. 7, 2022 for Disney Magic sailings, Disney Cruise Line will no longer require Guests to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at the time of sailing, however, it is highly recommended.

All Guests ages 5 years and older who are not fully vaccinated (Unvaccinated Guests) will need to submit proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken 1-2 days before the sail date. So, if you are vaccinated, you will no longer need to test before sailing. Guests ages 4 years of age and younger do not require testing either.

To be exempt from testing requirements, fully vaccinated Guests must upload their proof of vaccination to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day. Unvaccinated Guests must upload a negative COVID-19 test result to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day. Uploading proof of vaccination or a COVID-19 test result is a requirement for adults and children, except for those ages 4 and younger. 

Fully vaccinated Guests are not required to be tested between back-to-back sailings anymore. Guests ages 5 years and older who are not fully vaccinated and traveling on back-to-back sailings will be required to complete a COVID-19 test between sailings, arranged by Disney Cruise Line.

If this changes your mind for a currently booked sailing, guests booked on the Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy or Disney Wish October 14, 2022, through January 31, 2023, may modify or cancel their sailing by October 11, 2022 without any Disney-imposed cancellation fees. You should’ve received an email this morning from DCL with this information as well.

Visit the Know Before You Go section of the DCL website for the latest information and answers to many frequently asked questions. These requirements can still change anytime.

If you would like to chat about this or anything related to Disney cruises, or would like me to help you plan your next Disney cruise, feel free to contact me below. We can’t wait for our next sailing!


©Disney Cruise Lines

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays

Disney World has announced the 2022 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays! It will begin this year on November 25, 2022 with additional holiday foods, activities, and merch.

One of the most popular events of the festival is the Candlelight Processional. You can see “a celebrity narrator tell the story of Christmas, recounting the biblical tale of a savior born in Bethlehem. Woven into the production are stirring songs of hope and joy performed by the orchestra and massed choir.”

Shows take place at 5:15 PM, 7:00 PM or 8:30 PM at the America Gardens Theatre at EPCOT at no additional cost besides your park ticket. It is a very beautiful production!

The schedule of celebrity narrators is subject to change, but here are the ones that have been revealed so far. Certain ones can get very popular so plan to line up very early or book a dining package that includes tickets to the show.

  • 11/25 – 11/26: Simu Liu
  • 11/27 – 11/29: Chita Rivera
  • 11/30 – 12/1: Raul Esparza (NEW)
  • 12/2 – 12/3: Whoopi Goldberg
  • 12/4 – 12/6: Isabella Rossellini
  • 12/7 – 12/9: Daymond John
  • 12/10 – 12/12: Josh Gad (NEW)
  • 12/13 – 12/14: Gloria Estefan (NEW)
  • 12/15 – 12/18: Neil Patrick Harris
  • 12/19 – 12/20: Mariska Hargitay (NEW)
  • 12/21 – 12/23: Cal Ripken Jr.
  • 12/24 – 12/26: Marie Osmond
  • 12/27 – 12/28: Courtney Vance
  • 12/29 – 12/30: Angela Bassett

Note: narrators can change. Check the official Disney festival page for the most recent updates on the schedule and additional details about the festival.

This is another fun EPCOT festival that we love. Feel free to contact me if you want to chat more about this or if you want me to help plan your trip.

Happy Holidays!

Candlelight Processional

©Disney

Disney waiving change fees due to Hurricane Ian

NOAA Hurricane Ian
NOAA

Due to the impending landfall of Hurricane Ian on the Orlando area, Disney World has announced that they are waiving all change and cancellation fees for dining and resort reservations between Sept 26 – Oct 3, 2022.

Some resorts and the water parks have already been announced with closures as well.

For the latest updates on Disney World weather related events, go to:

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/experience-updates/weather-updates/

I hope you’ll be safe if you’re within the path of the hurricane!

New Disney Cruises to Hawaii and the South Pacific

Disney cruise to South Pacific

Breaking news!!

Disney Cruise Line just announced that the Wonder will be sailing to the South Pacific and Hawaii from late 2023 to 2024!

Australia n New Zealand cruises
Disney sailings

Booking begins:
– October 3, 2022: Platinum Castaway Club Members & Golden Oak Members
– October 4, 2022: Gold Castaway Club Members
– October 5, 2022: Silver Castaway Club Members, eligible Disney Vacation Club Members and Adventure Insiders
– October 6, 2022: All Guests

For more details, view the Disney Cruise Line page:

Feel free to contact me if you’d like me to help book your cruise. These are going to go fast so book as soon as your window opens!

©Disney