When Walt Disney World first reopened on July 11, 2020 after being closed since March 16 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot had changed. The parks now have limited capacity, park reservations were instituted, there was a push to contactless payment and a host of health and safety protocols. As the months progressed, more changes crept in—some good, some annoying.
Now, as we mark the first anniversary of the theme park’s closing and look forward to things getting back to normal by 2022 (as Disney CEO Bob Chapek believes), it’s time to think about what changes should remain once capacity returns to normal.
Some of the changes will remain, such as the contactless security where you walk through an artificial intelligence scanner that replaced bag checks and metal detectors. Others we’re not so sure about. Will the park reservation system remain? Will Park Hopping still be limited? We hope some other things will stick around.
Here’s our thoughts:
1. Personal space: I admit it. I enjoy the markers on the ground to make sure people don’t crowd me while in line and standing on the sidewalks watching the cavalcades, even if they don’t always work. I understand Disney can’t keep a 6-foot bubble around me once things go back to normal. But it can at least eliminate this message from the cast members’ playbook: “If you look down and can see empty carpet, you are not close enough to the person in front you.” Disney needs to find ways to keep people moving without packing us into locations like livestock. I never wanted to feel a person’s breath on the back of my neck before COVID-19, and I won’t want to feel it after.
2. Disney characters around the park: Due to health and safety regulations there are no meet-and-greets allowed, so no standing in long lines for photo ops and autographs. But something even better came out of it: serendipitous encounters with Winnie-the-Pooh and Joy running around EPCOT; Chip ‘n’ Dale sailing around the waterways in the Magic Kingdom or having a picnic at Hollywood Studios, and other characters leaning over railways, waving, smiling and even badgering passersby (yes, we’re talking about you, Anastasia and Drizella). This has brought a little more intimacy back, and I enjoy the surprise of running into a character unexpectedly
3. Character cavalcades: Everyone loves a parade, but there has been nothing more fun than watching character cavalcades going through the parks. This is especially true at EPCOT and Animal Kingdom, parks that have not had parades for some time.
4. Mobile order seating: I have alwasy been a fan of Mobile Ordering and assume it will remain the primary method of ordering food at quick-service restaurants. Another thing that should remain is the practice of waiting to get a table until you have your food. Prior to the pandemic, people would sit at tables to take a break or make camp while their family waited in long lines to order. This is a bit more efficient and a lot less stressful.
5. Keep the Walk Up List: The addition of Walk-Up lists to the My Disney Experience app in September for sit-down restaurants has been a game changer if you don’t have a reservation and you’re not looking for a quick-service meal at a park or resort. While you may not like the types of restaurants available for now, this could be expanded and quickly let you know whether it’s even worth the effort to try and walk up to a restaurant.
6. New method for Rise of the Resistance virtual queue: This one is a biggie and is now contingent on the park reservation system. When Disney made the change in November to allow you to try to enter the virtual queue from home at 7 a.m., it lowered the stress level of having to join the queue while in the park. There were times when it was hard to deal with the disappointment while having to hear cheers and applause from those lucky ones who managed to get a boarding group. The at-home method is a bit more civilized and gives you a chance to come up with a plan B if you don’t get a boarding group. Keeping this is contingent upon Disney keeping the park reservation system, and that’s an entirely different discussion of pros and cons, which we will deal with another day.
7. Limiting the number of groups on the Disney Skyliner: The skyliner has become one of my favorite methods of transportation at Disney, allowing me to get between parks and even explore some resorts. Before the pandemic, there were many times we were squeezed into the gondolas with up to 10 people. To go back to my first point, personal space, the number of people in the gondola should be limited below 10. Either a single party or two parties, one group on one bench and a second on the other. While it is transportation it is also an attraction and should be a pleasant experience.
