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OPINION: If it were LeBron, he'd be home now

Aug. 6—As I continue my plunge into what's new at Walt Disney World, I'll remind everyone, first and foremost, that the COVID-19 pandemic isn't over with. Disney knows this, and although I expect the crowds this year to be just as bad as they ever are, they still require you to take certain steps to make you feel safer. You won't, but you can have fun, anyway.

One thing Disney started when they began the "gradual reopening" was to require guests to make reservations to visit any of the four parks. This is confusing to some; they figure if they have a ticket, they can get in, but that's not the case. Park hoppers have also changed. Originally, you could take in as many parks as you wanted, and and even return time and again during the same day. But new limits have been imposed. For example, if you've purchased a four-day park hopper, and you intended to spend most of each day at one of the four parks, you can do that, but you have to go online and reserve a particular park for each individual day. If you wait until the last minute, there may be limited availability for certain parks. So making those reservations as far out as you can — let's say 60 days — is your best plan of action. And if you plan to "park hop" — move from one park to another — you have to wait until 2 p.m. each day to do it. That's presumably to help with crowd control.

Before you plan where you'll go and when, you should download the Disney World app. You'd think it would perform in stellar fashion, but Disney — much like AT&T — is a "communications" company that isn't always adept at communicating digitally. A lot of times, things don't work, but it's the best option you'll have. It's best to have one member of your party "manage" all your tickets and reservations — and of course, in the case of our family, I'm the appointed victim.

Booking your individual parks should be done as quickly as possible. Some recommend checking availability before you even get your tickets, but I don't share that view. That's mainly because we are eligible to get military tickets at significantly reduced rates, and I always advise that option if possible. There are other ways to get discounts, like through AAA, but any way you slice it, these tickets aren't cheap — just comparatively so, if you find discounts. I also think it's best to book at Disney resort, though you'll pay through the nose for some of these properties. Some "moderate" resorts are priced in a manner that might not cause you to faint from sticker shock; $300 a night is a steal at Disney. Resort prices have skyrocketed over the past 10 or so years, so we can no longer afford to stay at one of the so-called "monorail resorts" — the four constructed on the monorail system that takes passengers to and from Magic Kingdom, with a separate monorail heading to Epcot. We really liked the Polynesian Village — called The Poly by those in the know — but it's been out of range for us for several years now.

The best choice, in my opinion, is either the Swan or the Dolphin — or perhaps the recently opened Swan Reserve — that are very close to Epcot. These were originally Sheraton properties but have now been absorbed by Marriott, so you can either book on the BonVoy app, or call the resorts directly. I'd do the latter because sometimes you can get a better deal. If you're 62 like I am, you qualify for the "senior discount," which is a bit better than the military one. These resorts are luxurious, comfortable, convenient, and feature a selection of good restaurants. You get bottles of water every day, which is no small feat, since you'll pay $4 for those in the parks. This is part of the "resort fee" they charge, but even with the extra $40 a night, these properties are still more economical than all but the Disney "value" resorts.

If you want to book some of the best restaurants I mentioned earlier, you'll need to get up at 4:30 a.m. the first day of your 60-day booking window, and when reservations open for that morning, work quickly. You can book for the duration of your resort stay, so plan the most coveted restaurants — like Victoria and Albert's, Space near the end of your trip. There's strategy involved, too; you'll want to plan your restaurant according to which park you're visiting on what day. Check the park calendars to see what time each of them closes. A revamped feature is "Extra Magic Hours." Those used to be for everyone who stayed on site, but now, it's only for deluxe hotels. Swan and Dolphin are among those. As far as I can tell, only Magic Kingdom and Epcot are on the list, usually from two to three hours after the park closes. That's disappointing, because our favorite park of the moment is Hollywood Studios, which has several new features.

One more word about tickets: You can also get a "plus" feature that adds sports venues, like the water parks (though only one is open now, and the closure of the other for renovations seems indefinite) and both the miniature and standard golf course options. My husband and son played the nine-hole Oak Trail golf course last year and plan to do so again this year. Reservations for tee times are recommended, and players are required to dress appropriately. Golfers know what that means, and non-golfers probably don't need the information. There are three miniature golf courses on Disney property; we've played all of them, and they're all fun. Fantasia Gardens is just across the street from Swan and Dolphin, while the other two are farther afield, near the temporarily closed water park.

Next, we'll look at some of the "don't miss" features at the parks.