Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

[Krandor]

Is this new system going to be working in time for opening? Is it going to be working for us to make Park reservations and dining reservations?

pretty much has to be.

 

[MKEMSE]

News

Kings Island is suing Ohio, asking to be allowed to reopen immediately.

https://www.fox19.com/2020/06/04/ki...y-acton-warren-county-health-district-reopen/

This also includes Cedar Point (Cedar Fair Company). https://www.cleveland.com/metro/202...ovie-theaters-and-other-ohio-attractions.html

 

[bclittle]

Quite intriguing. Especially the part about they will go through each reservation manually...

TLDR for those who don't want to look it up: For the love of all things Disney, if you really want to go on that WDW trip soon book a refundable backup now. (And if you think life isn't fair now- buckle up lol. Some may be fine, others not so much...)

How are people booking back up trips? I was under the impression nothing can be done right now except cancel current reservations...

 

[Remy is Up]

Is this new system going to be working in time for opening? Is it going to be working for us to make Park reservations and dining reservations?
[/QUOTE

That is the plan. Just taking longer than expected

 

[vinotinto]

Yup! I will be watching very closely how Universal and Disney handles the mask requirement for the 2-3 year old set. My 2 year old twins are never, ever going to wear one and we have a trip in late September on rented points. They won't even wear sunglasses so masks are a no-way. We will be coming down since our hotel is non-refundable BUT we will chose other activities if we won't be let in or shamed because my toddlers are well, toddlers. I think a lot of people on this thread either don't have kids or have much older children.

It's going to be very difficult for families with little kids. Not on purpose, it's just what it is, given that it s a theme park opening during a pandemic in the country with the most cases of the virus.

Disney has clearly outlined that everyone 2 and up must wear an appropriate face covering except when eating or swimming. Based on what I remember from my kids at that age, that will be *very* difficult for families. Disney will have Distancing Squad members whose sole job will be to ask everyone that is not maintaining the mask and social distancing rules to take a break at the "mask-free" stations. Families will not be shamed, they will just be required to go to the socially-distanced, mask-free area.

So if I had a 2 or 3 year old, I have to wonder if I would want to pay full price for a Disney vacation to spend 4 out of 5 park hours at the Storybook tent, socially-distanced from everyone else, while my kid happily entertained himself with the curb at the tent. Disney knows this is going to be difficult for families, but they don't have a choice and they have a plan for enforcing.

 

[MickeyEars]

I sure hope they get it right soon. I can’t even imagine what will happen if not.

 

[vinotinto]

This. Nobody here is trying to be mean or ruin a vacation. We’re just trying to encourage folks to manage expectations. The WDW that reopens this summer will not be the same one that closed in March. You may not get all extras Disney committed to or that you were promised or that you “paid” for. For the sake of CMs, manage your expectations. When we talk about things like SAB or DDP, we’re genuinely not trying to upset folks. We’re trying to give people an idea of what things might be in play and what possibilities to expect. It’s done with the best of intentions, so everyone here can walk away from their vacations feeling satisfied.

This is it. Whatever your expectations are based on previous visits, it will not be that way. Not even close. I believe there will still be a lot to enjoy, but it will be very different, and for many, it will be a lesser experience. Take a minute to read the reopening plan and really think through whether this is aligned with your idea of a vacation. For some it will be, but it won't be for everyone. better to realize it now than after you arrive on property.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/experience-updates/

 

[RWinNOLA]

They are struggling at the moment with the system and I think it has them preoccupied. The cms and leaders aren't getting information because until they finalize the system changes they cant make decisions

I’m generally in the camp that we need to be patient and certainly understand that this is a major challenge for Disney, but the communication is lacking. So much up in the air for so many people with upcoming vacations and very little information.

 

[skeeter31]

I’m generally in the camp that we need to be patient and certainly understand that this is a major challenge for Disney, but the communication is lacking. So much up in the air for so many people with upcoming vacations and very little information.

I disagree. They’ve given us a bunch of info, just nothing within the past few days. We’re still over a month from opening. There’s nothing else to tell right now, especially if they don’t have everything worked out and set up. If people don’t like the unknown going into this, they shouldn’t be traveling to Disney this summer. The entire trip is going to be filled with unknown.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Quick update for people wondering about status of some new rides and if they will be open when parks open. (and by "parks" I mean "Busch Gardens and Sea World", and by "if they will be open" I mean "no")

https://twitter.com/x/status/1268701658277654528

 

[gottalovepluto]

How are people booking back up trips? I was under the impression nothing can be done right now except cancel current reservations...

Off-site. If Disney cancels your hotel you won’t be on-site anymore but maybe you can snag a park reservation when they open to the general public.

 

[Rxdr2013]

a DVC rental ended up being our backup plan. Since it's nonrefundable it is now our only plan! I was scared of our reservations for July getting cancelled at All Star Movies.

 

[JPM4]

a DVC rental ended up being our backup plan. Since it's nonrefundable it is now our only plan! I was scared of our reservations for July getting cancelled at All Star Movies.

Lol. Did exactly this today. OKW for 3 days July 14-17.

 

[LSUmiss]

It's going to be very difficult for families with little kids. Not on purpose, it's just what it is, given that it s a theme park opening during a pandemic in the country with the most cases of the virus.

Disney has clearly outlined that everyone 2 and up must wear an appropriate face covering except when eating or swimming. Based on what I remember from my kids at that age, that will be *very* difficult for families. Disney will have Distancing Squad members whose sole job will be to ask everyone that is not maintaining the mask and social distancing rules to take a break at the "mask-free" stations. Families will not be shamed, they will just be required to go to the socially-distanced, mask-free area.

So if I had a 2 or 3 year old, I have to wonder if I would want to pay full price for a Disney vacation to spend 4 out of 5 park hours at the Storybook tent, socially-distanced from everyone else, while my kid happily entertained himself with the curb at the tent. Disney knows this is going to be difficult for families, but they don't have a choice and they have a plan for enforcing.

They have a choice on the age. At first they said 3 & under which is much more possible. They’re trying to weed out ppl b/c they are probably overbooked for their limited capacity b/c they allowed ppl to continue to book when they knew they would be closed.

 

[casaya95]

Here's what I wonder. If you're staying at X resort and Disney outright cancels on you, I wonder if they would still allow you to book park reservations in the priority window provided you have linked ticket media. Seems like that would be fair guest recovery for that inconvenience; if that's not the case though, that would ultimately be my tipping point.

 

[RWinNOLA]

I disagree. They’ve given us a bunch of info, just nothing within the past few days. We’re still over a month from opening. There’s nothing else to tell right now, especially if they don’t have everything worked out and set up. If people don’t like the unknown going into this, they shouldn’t be traveling to Disney this summer. The entire trip is going to be filled with unknown.

i’m not talking about minor unknowns such as will ROTR, SAB or OHANA be open. I’m talking major things like if people have reservations at non-DVC resorts will their reservation be canceled. Or if you have a reservation for say 6 days, will you be able to get a theme park reservation for most days or will you get only 2-3 days in parks. Will Skyliner be available if you are staying at one of the resorts that it serves (Riviera in particular). These are the kinds of things they may lead some people to cancel their WDW plans for the summer at a time when so many people just desperately want to get away from the house.

 

[bernina]

The annual pass site was up and running a couple days ago for new purchases. I haven't checked since then

I bought DVC Gold APs last Friday without issue. Linked immediately to MDE along with my cash SSR booking made through UCT on Thurs 5/28.

 

[DGsAtBLT]

Well, guess getting an opening date didn’t solve all the problems lol

 

[Bibbobboo2u]

The only rumor I've seen is today and it didn't say "a bunch" nor did it call out value/mods specifically. It could be linked to tickets/no tickets. It could be linked to date of booking. It could be linked to the whim of the person doing the changes to your reservation.

What we have been cautioning is that Disney has every right to cancel any room they want whenever they want to so best be prepared.

The current climate in America- omg lol. The "current climate in America" doesn't care about people with the dough to spend on any type of Disney vacation. People's eyes mostly glaze right over if you try to talk value/mod/deluxe. Those who have looked into going/have gone will remember this stuff is stupid expensive and they've got enough real issues to care about today instead of you losing your hotel room at WDW in the midst of a pandemic [insert eye roll, violin, rofl emojis here]

I have been playing catch-up and can't get there - pages are added faster than I can go! I only left for one day! What is the rumor about potential cancellations? Thanks for any insight!

 

[gottalovepluto]

I have been playing catch-up and can't get there - pages are added faster than I can go! I only left for one day! What is the rumor about potential cancellations? Thanks for any insight!

Someone on another thread claiming to have info says reservations are being manually reviewed and there is a chance some will be moved and some will be cancelled. Unknown what would trigger cancellation over modification. They said they were reluctant to share but wanted to heads up folks.

Someone else on that thread reported a friend was called by Disney for their mid-July trip and told they would be moved from CBR to DVC, they do not get to pick which DVC. (They had already bought tickets, unknown if that matters.)