Disney World Reopening Date Set
I have to admit it has been a little depressing. For the last couple of months the magic of Disney Parks has been missing from the world. Thankfully it returned recently with the reopening of Shanghai Disneyland, but it’s about time we find out about the reopening of some of the U.S. parks.
While we still don’t know anything about the fate of the original Disneyland in Anaheim, we now know when the parks of the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando will reopen.
Walt Disney World Reopening Date Set – July 11, 2020
As part of his presentation to the Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force (see video at the end of this post), Walt Disney World Vice President Jim MacPhee announced a phased reopening of the theme parks. Here are the dates you can expect the Disney World theme parks to reopen.
- Magic Kingdom & Animal Kingdom – Saturday July 11, 2020
- EPCOT & Hollywood Studios – Wednesday July 15, 2020
“We believe our reopening proposal for our property reflects a very thoughtful, methodical and phased approach and we’ve incorporated all of the reopening protocols throughout our guest experience and our cast experience,” MacPhee said. There will be cast previews and soft opening preview days before the July 11 reopening as well.
Disney World Reopening Date – Reservations Required
As part of the announcement Disney has said capacity will be limited and that guests will require a reservation to visit the Walt Disney World theme parks when the reopen. “We will be managing our overall attendance demand through a new theme park reservation system that will require our guests to obtain a reservation for park entry in advance.” More details on the new Disney World reservation system are to come.
Walt Disney World Reopening Health & Safety Protocols
Walt Disney World has announced a number of new health and safety protocols, “…for a responsible re-opening of Walt Disney World Resort.” Among the new Disney World health and safety protocols are:
- Enhanced Protective Measures – Face coverings, hand washing and sanitizing stations and physical barriers where appropriate
- Physical Distancing – Reducing capacity at restaurants, theme parks, retail, buses, monorails, etc. plus temporary suspension of parades, fireworks and other events that create crowds.
- Enhanced Cleaning/Sanitation – Heightened protocols for cleaning and sanitizing in the theme parks. More frequent cleaning.
- Temperature/Health Screening – Temperature checks for guests at park entrances and for Cast Members in Guest-facing areas.
- Limited Contact Enhanacements – Reduction of Guest & Cast Member contact points. More cashless payments, etc.
All of these procedures are in line with what we saw during the reopening of Shanghai Disneyland and aren’t unexpected. I’m sure we’ll see tweaks and alterations as needed over time as well.
When Will Disney Vacation Club Re-Open?
Despite the theme parks not re-opening until July, the Disney Vacation club properties along with Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground will begin to reopen on June 22, 2020. DVC properties in Vero Beach and Hilton Head will open starting on June 15, 2020.
Disney Pausing Guest Reservations & Ticket Sales
While the Walt Disney World parks are reopening, because of capacity constraints they aren’t selling any new reservations or tickets as of now. According to the Disney Parks Blog, “At this time, we are temporarily pausing new ticket sales and Disney Resort hotel reservations so we can focus on guests with existing tickets and reservations (Disney Vacation Club members can still make new reservations). Existing ticket holders and Annual Passholders will be able to make reservation requests in phases before new tickets are sold; we’ll be reaching out to these guests soon to provide additional details.”
Walt Disney World Reopening New Signage
In keeping with Disney theming, there will of course be new signs to help guests maintain social distancing and comply with the many new health and safety protocols. I personally love the look of these new signs. What do you think?
Disney World Reopening Date – Bottom Line
The Walt Disney World reopening date is July 11, 2020 with some parks opening a few days later. There will be previews and soft openings before that date as well. While the parks are coming back, new procedures for health and safety will keep things different for awhile.
What do you think of the Walt Disney World reopening date? Are you going to wear a face mask and practice social distancing in exchange for visiting Disney World? Let us know in the comments!
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Having been to DisneyWorld in August every year for the last 25 years and with reservations to go in mid August, I will be cancelling if they still require the wearing of a mask by then. My experience in previous years is that the average daily temperature is 95 degrees, and wearing a mask all day is not enjoyable or feasible to me at that temperature.
The real question is do they open with the face mask requirement and drop it say by August or do they continue with it through the whole summer. I think the people who are fearful of the virus are more likely to stay away from DisneyWorld mask or no mask requirement while the people who are less fearful are more likely not to go with a face mask requirement. So from an economic standpoint, I think they need to get into the no mask phase ASAP.
I agree wearing a mask outdoors will be incredibly uncomfortable. Things may change between now and opening and who knows if they’ll adjust the rules like only requiring a mask indoors, etc. but it’s going to take awhile to figure it out. The one benefit of visiting during this time will be the reduced crowds, although I expect attraction capacity will be reduced to match.