Feeling the Love for the Disney Skyliner

I love the new Skyliner at Disney. It makes traveling to a park feel like an attraction! On our last trip we stayed at the Riviera Resort, so we could experience what it’s like to use the Skyliner as a primary mode of transpiration. Currently, under Covid operating procedures, there is no bus as a back up for Epcot and Hollywood Studios when you are at a Skyliner resort which includes Pop Century, Art of Animation, Caribbean Beach, and Riviera Resort.  So, like it or not, you will rely solely on the Skyliner for two parks during your stay unless you have a car or want to use an Uber or Lyft option. Here are some Pros and Cons to consider if you plan to stay at one of Disney’s resorts on the Skyliner.

The Disney Moderate Resort Hotel That Feels Like a Deluxe

On our last trip, we did a split stay wanting to experience two different Disney Resort hotels. My family has their favorites, so we often find ourselves returning to the same hotels over and over! However, as a Disney Travel Planner I think it's important to have experience at as many hotels as possible. Since I was traveling with another Disney Travel Planner, we decided to try two "new to us" hotels-- the Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs and Riviera Resort.

Poolside Cabanas at Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa

After our previous blog about Aulani's reopening, we got lots of questions about the poolside cabanas. Here are some of the details and our experiences after several cabana rentals:

Disney's Aulani Experience After Reopening

Disney's Aulani resort on the Hawaiian island of Oahu reopened on November 1 after being closed since mid-May. Hawaii's strict restrictions on visitors meant that resorts and hotels in Hawaii have taken even longer to reopen than in other parts of the country.

On many forums and Facebook groups, Aulani has come under heavy fire from guests for a number of reasons including lack of dining availability, very long waits (up to 90 minutes) for quick service orders, heavy crowds, no available chairs at the pool or on the beach, and lack of services that were available previously. Additionally, the restaurants immediately across the street have not reopened yet leaving guests with very few options for meals without driving into the town of Kapolei.

However, our guest blogger spent the last week at Aulani and had a completely different experience! She has visited Aulani multiple times and currently lives on Oahu. With her extensive understanding and familiarity of the resort before and after COVID, she gives us a positive and affirmative viewpoint of her family's recent visit:

Which Is Better: A Cruise or an All-Inclusive Vacation?

 

Let’s talk vacations – cause well, that’s kind of my thing. If you know my family personally, we are devoted Disney Cruise Line fans. We love the customer service, programming for families, food, Castaway Cay, the Broadway style shows, and the Magic a Disney Cruise offers. For us, like many of you, 2020 had a way of changing plans. No doubt about it, things are different, and I believe experiences will continue to be different as we all navigate a new normal and do our best to enjoy life while keeping one another safe.

 

This summer, in light of the Coronavirus restrictions and cruising limitations, we traded our floating vacation plans in for an all-inclusive land vacation at Beaches Negril. We had an amazing time ,and I found myself comparing the two at times when thinking about what our next trip should be.