Walt Disney World officially closed as of March 16th, and though the initial closure announcement said that the resort would be closed at least two weeks, through the end of the month, it seems unlikely at this point that Disney will make this deadline as current CDC guidelines are recommending an 8-week ban on public gatherings. So with Disney basically closed until further notice, many are wondering what the resort could look like when it reopens, in the near future. And while we don’t know for sure, WDWMagic reports that several measures are being considered that would change the Disney experience when it returns
1. Scaled down operations
One of the biggest changes we could see when the parks reopen would be smaller openings at first, with parks re-opening in phases with a limited selection of attractions and shows at first, and then scaling up over a period of time. In addition to fewer attractions, Disney may also be looking at severely limiting both the amount of guests who can enter the park as well as the number of people who will be let in to indoor queue spaces. This restriction could be managed with a wider rollout of the virtual queue system, which has thus far been used only for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
2. Maintaining social distance
Though it would be impossible to truly have social distancing inside a theme park, Disney may be looking at employing some light distancing methods, which would include eliminating entertainment that requires close gathering, such as nightly firework shows and parades and keeping table service restaurant capacity down to 50% occupancy with tables being spaced at least six feet apart. In addition, Disney could roll out a “no line” policy at quick service restaurants, with Mobile Order via My Disney Experience being required for all orders.
3. Less guest exposure to Cast Members
In line with potential social distancing moves to keep guests away from each other, Disney could potentially be looking at limiting Cast Member interaction with guests, suspending meet and greets with face characters,reducing maximum capacity of transportation options like buses, boats, and monorails.
In addition to all of these moves, Disney could also be keeping the hand washing stations and sanitizers installed last week before the closing throughout property in place for the foreseeable future.
Though these measures might seem extreme, they could be necessary if Walt Disney World wants to reopen any time in the near future. Though most estimates seem to indicate that a closure later this spring could be possible, a lot will depend on the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the coming weeks.
As we’ve said previously, there is no way to know exactly how long theme parks will be dealing with the effects of Coronavirus, but while this situation is continuing, all travelers should check out the CDC’s official site here, which has information on the virus and how to prevent its spread.
