Disney reopens: Annual passholders preview 2 theme parks

ORLANDO, Fla. — Annual passholders streamed through the gates of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom on Thursday as the theme park took another step in its phased reopening. The bulk of these visitors had not set foot on Disney property since the resort’s theme parks shut down March 15 due to COVID-19.

Passholders able to preview the parks Thursday and Friday are those who were quick to reply to an email invitation. Slots were filled in about 30 minutes.

Among the new sights are temperature screenings, face coverings on all workers and customers, signs that guide social-distancing efforts and clear partitions in locations from gift-shop counters to queues to some ride vehicles.

What other changes will visitors find following their coronavirus-forced four-month hiatus from the theme park?

We’ve had feet on the ground Thursday at Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom to answer that question, here’s what we found:

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Upon arrival

MAGIC KINGDOM: Immediately through the gate, Disney annual passholders returned to a Magic Kingdom that was different than the one they left in March. Just before 9 a.m., Thursday’s official opening, lines moved quickly to park and then go through a white tent where AdventHealth employees checked temperatures. The security bag check moved swiftly too with about a dozen queues open.

Once you’ve reached the Transportation and Ticket Center, you can ride the ferry or the Monorail like before or hop a bus (which one employee advised was the quicker option).

It’s a strange feeling to leave TTC, so close to the Magic Kingdom, and ride past the Contemporary Resort, but the new transit route only took a few short minutes in buses that were less than half full. Destination reached: The Magic Kingdom.

“Wait till you see that castle,” an employee said referencing the rose, purple and gold makeover to Cinderella Castle finished during the pandemic closures.

ANIMAL KINGDOM: Parking at Animal Kingdom is socially distanced, two cars per space but with a full parking space in between each pairing. For this reason, parking takes longer, so be sure to build in extra time if you want to be in the attraction first thing in the morning.

Entering the park has changed. Signs warn of COVID symptoms, give reminders about safety and lead up to AdventHealth temperature check tents. From there, guests proceed through a metal detector.

If the guest or their bag sets off the detector, they must wait in line for a bag check, which occurs one group at a time. All contents must be removed from the bag and emptied into a plastic tray for a Disney cast member to inspect. If cleared, guests repack their bag and proceed to the ticket scanners.

There are no fingerprint scans, merely cast members with handheld scanning devices.

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Crowds, wait times

MAGIC KINGDOM: It was a common refrain heard around Disney World: There was hardly a slow season anymore. Even buying a special ticket for the holiday parties at Magic Kingdom didn’t guarantee quick wait times. Your best bet for a crowd-free Magic Kingdom seemed to be to go during the Super Bowl or right before a hurricane struck. Otherwise good luck. Then the pandemic happened. As the Magic Kingdom reemerged Thursday, some passholders said they had never seen the park as empty as this. Disney has acknowledged it’s limiting crowds but has not said publicly by how much.

“It’s crazy,” said Brittany Reinsel, 27, a first-grade teacher from Kissimmee who visited the parks usually twice on weekdays and every weekend before the pandemic. Never did any of those times compare to Thursday’s passholder preview, she said.

The wide pathways around the park were missing the tight crowds and it took more time to walk through the winding queue of Space Mountain Thursday morning than it did to actually stand in line. Peter Pan’s Flight and Haunted Mansion were both practically walk-up rides early in the day. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, known for drawing long lines, was posted at 40 minutes at 9:45 a.m. The experience was every passholder’s dream, Reinsel said.

ANIMAL KINGDOM: Upon entering Animal Kingdom at 8:04 a.m., the walk to Expedition Everest was a straight shot as there were very few visitors in the park yet. The social distance markers for the Everest queue start over the bridge that leads to the “Nemo” show. No need Thursday morning. Wait time for the coaster said 5 minutes.

Several trains came down the mountain with no one aboard. Those with passengers had six to eight people. They were screaming, but the overall intensity felt less than before the pandemic. In 15 minutes only one other guest stopped to watch at the foot of the drop hill.

Kilimanjaro Safaris also had a nearly irresistible wait time of 5 minutes, although most passholders would call it “walk-on.” Each row of the truck was used, but parties were not mixed. Rows were divided by a plastic sheet, themed in brown to match the vehicle. It looked casual and themed. But it also looked like it could be snapped off in seconds if and when that time comes. Firmer dividers were in the part of the queue where visitors will be side by side.

Unlike reports from the cast member preview, our guide did not say it was OK to remove our face coverings during the ride. We all kept them on. There were about a dozen visitors on board. The animals were up to their usual antics: submerged hippos, ear-flapping elephants, wading flamingos, a road-blocking rhino and a dozing lion.

“They’re not always sleeping,” the guide said. “Sometimes they’re just conserving energy.”

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Safety measures

MAGIC KINGDOM: Custodians were visible cleaning seats, and hand sanitizer stations popped up in the queues. The empty park also made her feel comfortable, Reinsel said.

“I feel safer here than going to the grocery store,” she said.

Disney also made other modifications on its rides and entertainment throughout the park. At Haunted Mansion, for instance, visitors now walk right through the “stretching room” without stopping. Visitors won’t see the same elaborate daily parades, meet-and-greet-characters or fireworks. Instead, those have been replaced with smaller, spontaneous entertainment such as a marching band playing the Mickey Mouse theme song or a flash mob of dancers followed by a single float.

ANIMAL KINGDOM: “Please wait here” stickers are present for all the places you would wait in line: attractions, food kiosks, restaurants, bathrooms and more. All cast members are wearing face masks and some have plastic guards. There are sanitizing stations everywhere, including in line for rides. Signs and audio throughout the park give reminders about social distancing, washing your hands and other health tips.

Sometimes at Animal Kingdom, the green-and-white ground stickers stretch way beyond their destinations. Some rides with indoor queues now steer future passengers through a longer outdoor trek. But there are even stickers going both ways on the shortcut bridge that connects Harambe and Pandora. Their placement does help visitors keep right without an employee shouting that out.

Inside stores, there are signs encouraging social distance as well as asking guests to limit the handling of products. Registers have a barrier that notes Disney accepts contactless payment.

Restrooms have signs reminding guests to wash hands for 20 seconds. Bathroom attendants dutifully clean and sanitize high contact areas: sinks, faucets, handles and more.

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Where are the characters?

MAGIC KINGDOM: You can see characters often at the Magic Kingdom although it’s hard to pin down exactly who and when. They show up announced, usually riding on a single float that travels down the normal parade route through Frontierland and around to the front of the park. The spontaneous entertainment happens frequently.

On Thursday, Goofy waved from atop a float while dancers and a man on stilts performed below. Later in the day, a majority of the Disney princesses, including Cinderella, Tiana, Belle and Jasmine, greeted visitors. None of the characters wore masks but they were also at least six feet away from the light crowds who lined up to watch.

ANIMAL KINGDOM: Character photo ops have taken on a new, unique form at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. A variety of characters board boats in pairs or trios and cruise around the park’s waterways, waving to onlooking guests.

Visitors seemed to appreciate this new way of greeting characters, as many people rushed to get a good vantage point and picture as vessels floated by.

We saw Mickey, Pluto, Daisy, Donald, Launchpad McQuack, Timon, Rafiki, Chip, Dale, Goofy and the Swoto Waya drummers, who usually perform in Pandora — The World of Avatar. Characters who previously appeared in Donald’s Dino-Bash! in Dinoland U.S.A. donned their dino costumes on the floats in lieu of appearing in this DAK land.

Pro tip: Music grows louder in various parts of DAK to announce the arrival of a character float to that area. The music also travels with said characters throughout the park. So if you hear a loud change of tunes, make haste to the water’s edge.

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Relax and recharge

Visitors took advantage of new “relaxation stations,” which will be available in all four Disney World theme parks. The draw? This is where it’s OK to remove your mask and let your face breathe for a while. Tables and chairs have been rearranged to provide the recommended physical spacing.

MAGIC KINGDOM: At Magic Kingdom, there are three areas where visitors can take off their masks. One of the spaces — at Tomorrowland Terrace — is inside and air-conditioned.

ANIMAL KINGDOM: At Animal Kingdom, one of the stations is located on the waterfront dock across from the bird show. It has an uninterrupted view of the Tree of Life, the park’s centerpiece. You might catch a breeze here and truly relax.

The tranquility is occasionally interrupted with a public service announcement reminding visitors to wear masks, wash hands and keep their distance. That rings on speakers throughout the park.

The other relaxation station at Animal Kingdom is at Pizzafari restaurant. It has its own selling point: air-conditioning.

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Going forward

All visitors will need a date-specific park reservation, made through Disneyworld.com, in addition to their tickets or annual passes. Those reservations have also been in demand. Spots for annual passholder visits are fading away for the month of July.

Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom officially open to the public on Saturday. Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot will reopen Wednesday.

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©2020 The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.)

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