The day is finally here! After months of closed doors, the Walt Disney World parks are finally beginning to reopen their gates and resume making magic once more! While the official opening date of Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom is July 11th, I was lucky enough to enter Magic Kingdom a little earlier for the first day of cast previews.
Here is everything that I experienced on my day in the park and how Disney is handling its reopening procedures to keep everyone safe. Keep in mind that I entered the park on a preview day for cast members and their chosen guests only. The behavior of guests in the park could be very different when it opens for regular guests that don’t work for the company. Also, cast members in the parks are still working through learning some new operating procedures so some things may change by the time parks officially open.
I’m not going to lie, I was a bit nervous about going to the parks with these new procedures. Would it still feel like Disney? Would the magic still be there even with all guests and casts required to wear masks in the Florida heat? As soon as I walked through the gates I was thrilled to discover that the answer is most definitely YES! I had the most magical day and wish I could go again and again in the coming weeks.
The first thing that was different was the parking. We did get held a little bit at the gate before entering the lot. We arrived at 8:15 for a 9:00 open time so we were lucky enough to only be held there for a few minutes, but I heard that some people that arrived a little later did have to wait a while before being let through. My advice here is that if you want to enter the park for opening, plan to arrive early.
The reason why we were backed up a little is because Disney is taking the extra precaution to park cars a space apart. Since I arrived day 1 this is the first time the parking cast members got to experience parking cars in in this new way. With some practice this week it should be running smoother by opening!
I was also surprised to find that when I exited the park, the spaces in between had been filled in. I was happy to see this because it allows extra guests to park closer to the entrance instead of getting pushed way back into the lot. There were no parking trams running on this day (not sure when that will start) but as a result I actually got to park closer than I ever have before!
Before you get to security, each guest goes through a temperature check station. This is similar to the ones already implemented at Disney Springs.
The bag check and security operation is quite different from before. To ensure everyone’s safety, security does not open up and look through everyone’s personal items. Instead, clear bags are distributed, and all your metal items go in there. You hand that bag to security as you pass through the metal detector. I found this operation to be much smoother.
The monorail and the ferry boat were both in operation to transport guests from the TTC to the kingdom. We took the monorail both times. To enforce social distancing, one party is seated on each side of each monorail car. No one stands in the middle, so you are not crowded with other guests.
Now, we are finally at the park! We got there just in time for official opening and, for lack of better words, it was truly just magical. We were greeted by Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and some of their other friends waving down to us. Cast members lined the street welcoming us back home.
I was instantly overwhelmed and cried the whole way down Main Street. There was so much happiness in both the working cast and the guests. I will never forget that feeling. (To support that last statement, I just cried again writing about it.)
The reopening of the park unveils the new look of our beloved Cinderella Castle. While the transformation is not yet totally complete, we did get a good look at it. Honestly after seeing photos I was a little nervous about the new look, but I will say it does look much prettier in person! The blue is really a striking and eye catching color, giving the whole castle a much more royal feel.
Disney is currently limiting capacity per day in each park. While it does make it harder to claim a reservation for entry, it really does make for a fabulous experience inside. I have never seen the park so empty!!! It was so much more magical when you could see the streets not crowded with people and take photos wherever you wanted.
The limited capacity also really helped with another thing… rides! I’m not joking when I say some rides had ZERO wait! 5 minutes for Space Mountain? Yes please! We were able to get on Space, Splash and Thunder Mountain, Seven Dwarves Mine Train, Pirates, Jungle Cruise, and Peter Pan’s Flight all within about 2.5 hours… and this is including many photo stops in between!
The only line that did have a bit of a wait was Jungle Cruise. The entrance said 15 minutes, but we actually ended up waiting around 30 due to an announced cleaning delay. Again, it was just day 1 of opening so cast are still working out all the kinks. Throughout the day, wait times listed on the app generally said between 5 and 15 minutes.
Fastpass has currently been eliminated so there is just one line for all riders. This allows Disney to use up that extra space for a socially distanced queue. There are place markers on the floor throughout the queues to tell parties where to stand. High touch and play areas in the queues such as the gems in Seven Dwarves and the instruments at the Haunted Mansion have been roped off. Sanitizer is provided at the entrance and exits of rides if you want to use it.
One interesting thing that Disney did was install plexiglass dividers in between some of the weaving lines in queues where ropes used to be. This further helps you keep your distance from others even just while walking. Many cast members working the attractions are also wearing face shields since they come in closer contact with guests and cannot stand behind plexiglass.
One bummer is that to avoid shutting guests in close quarters together, the Haunted Mansion preshow has been eliminated for the time being. I was sad because that is my favorite part of the ride. However, it was actually quite interesting just to see the room opened up as you walk right through it.
Cast members are also enforcing social distancing protocol in how they are seating on ride vehicles. On coasters, guests are spread one or even two rows apart! On rides like Jungle Cruise, cast take care to seat parties in exact spots around the boat, and are make sure to only put a limited number of parties per ride.
Some rides were so empty that we got to experience riding alone! On Big Thunder Mountain, we sat a ways back and had no one in front of us so it just looked like one big, empty train. Splash Mountain was sending many empty boats, and we got a whole log to ourselves!
Since shops also have a limited capacity, sometimes there are lines to get in. The place that we noticed the longest line was the Splash Mountain gift shop, due to the recent announcement that the ride is soon going to be reimagined to The Princess and the Frog. For the most part though it looked like the shops were open upon arrival. We only had one short wait outside on Main Street. Place markers are on the floor outside and cast are located at the doors to tell you when to enter.
Masks are required at all times unless you are eating or drinking. If wearing a mask is too much and you need a break, there are a few rest areas located around the park where you can stop and try to cool off. However, I was so excited to be there that I didn’t really notice the mask that much!
From what I noticed, guests were very good about keeping their masks on. However, again these were almost all cast members that know the protocol. Once it is open to all, the compliance might go down.
While mobile ordering was an option before for quick service dining locations, it is now the only way to order. Cast members no longer stand inside to take your order. Instead a sign with a QR code is located outside each quick service location to help you easily pull up the menu. After you pick your arrival time and order, you wait outside until you are notified that your order is ready. Then you can proceed to the counter to pick it up.
I found this whole operation so much easier than before. Usually around lunch time, lines to get to the register to order can get long and confusing. This new process creates a virtual queue and allows for so much extra space inside the building. Signs are posted on some tables that are too close to others to keep them empty. After you are done, cast members are quick to sanitize your spot and get it ready for the next guest.
One thing to note with dining is that while Disney is currently working on phasing into reopening and calling cast members back from furlough, some locations such as Casey’s Corner and Columbia Harbour House remain closed. Table service restaurants that include buffets and character dining also are currently closed .
A major thing that has been concerning people is character appearances. All meet and greet options have been eliminated. How could Disney still create that character magic? Easy! Characters made several magical appearances by parading through the streets or waving from a distance. Over the course of our day we saw Mickey and friends wave from above, Tinkerbell on her parade float, a trolley of some of our favorite characters from the Hundred Acre Wood, Chip and Dale float by on the water near Frontierland, a very royal parade of princesses, and even got distanced photos with Buzz!
The character appearance times weren’t really known, so they didn’t draw a huge crowd of people like Disney’s normal parades and shows. Each appearance still really captured that Disney character and story magic.
Sadly, another thing to go right now is the firework show, Happily Ever After. However, with modified park hours the sky won’t even be dark when Magic Kingdom closes.
Overall, I was thrilled to see how much excitement and magic can still be found at the park. I am so happy and lucky that I was able to experience all this on day one after this crazy time. I am currently not sure when I’ll be back at Magic Kingdom, but I can’t wait until I can go again! One thing is for sure…. the Disney magic is truly back!
