I went to Disney World, and here’s what changed

Last week, I wrote about my fears surrounding our planned trip to Disney World just days after the terrorist attack in Orlando, and the alligator attack that killed a 2-year-old boy.

Well, we just returned from Florida, and everything was fine. But, as a seasoned Disney visitor, I can tell you I did notice a few changes made to the parks based on recent events.

For one thing, Disney World has installed signs that warn guests about the dangers of alligators, and snakes near fresh bodies of water on property.

Sadly, and very regrettably, Disney World did not post these signs previous to the attack on little Lane Graves. I recall my husband once remarking how odd it was that Disney, which in our experience is always on top of every aspect of the guest experience, failed to warn people about the potential for alligators to get into the canals and lagoons surrounding the property.

Well, now the warnings are definitely there.

Even with Disney’s renewed attention to the gator risk for guests, we did see an alligator during our visit. It was moving slowly and silently through the canal that runs along guest walkways at the Port Orleans Riverside resort on property.

We saw the alligator not in the daytime, but before sunrise, when we woke up early to catch a flight home. Watching the dark animal glide through the water, it was eerily easy to see how a gator could sneak up on an unsuspecting family playing near the water’s edge.

I do feel compelled to point out that I don’t blame Disney World for having alligators on property. It’s Florida! There’s not much they can do to completely eradicate alligators from the area. However, it’s extremely important for cast members, as Disney staff are called, to warn guests about the presence of gators; not just at the Grand Floridian where Lane died, and not just at the Port Orleans Riverside where we most recently stayed, but at all resorts bordered by water, which include many, if not most of them.

So another major change I noticed during our Disney vacation was that metal detectors were more visible near the entrance to the parks.

While the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios may have used metal detectors in the past, they were not placed front and center like they are currently.

It did surprise me, however, that not everyone was subject to being scanned as I’d understood was taking place from reading other accounts online days prior to our trip. Guests were screened on a random basis, and no one in my party was searched on any of the days during our stay. We did have our bags inspected, but that has always been part of the standard entry process; at least for the past couple of years.

It’s also worth noting crowd volume didn’t seem to suffer, although admittedly, we’ve never visited Disney World in June before.

Nothing else felt that different to me during our visit, but I did hear many families talking about the alligator attack. I’ll also admit feeling deeply saddened when I saw the Grand Floridian resort. Just the sight of it pretty much made me sick for the poor Graves family.

But I didn’t worry about a terrorist attack, which I thought might preoccupy my mind during what was supposed to be a fun, relaxing, worry-free, and very much needed family vacation. And it was; overall, we had a really enjoyable time despite the many tragedies that have recently taken place in Orlando.

In fact, I feel really lucky to have enjoyed this special time with my family.

We have a lot to celebrate: birthdays, graduations, but most of all, just having each other.

In the end, I still believe you can’t let fear control your life. We even visited Disney Springs, where the Pulse nightclub gunman allegedly scouted for a potential attack.

And we made memories to last a lifetime. Again. And we plan to go back soon.

Do you think Disney World has done enough to address safety concerns?

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Photos: Melissa Willets

See more of my posts about Disney:

16 reasons to go to Disney while pregnant

5 tips for planning a Disney trip last minute

How my life changed when I went tech-free for 5 days (at Disney)

7 things to know about Disney World at Christmastime