Animal Kingdom Reopening Report
Following visits to Magic Kingdom for Walt Disney World’s reopening day and AP preview, we head to Animal Kingdom to see modified operations there. In this report, we’ll share photos, crowds & wait time info, health & safety measures, mask compliance, concluding with commentary about the rising case numbers in Florida.
Once again, we opted to arrive after rope drop to wait out whatever first wave of crowds there might be (everything we’ve heard from friends suggests there has been no such first wave). By the time we arrived, there was no wait at the parking toll booths, health screening, bag check, or the turnstiles.
Animal Kingdom was even quieter than Magic Kingdom, which was not a total surprise. Disney Park Pass reservations only filled up entirely for Annual Passholders, and excess inventory was never reallocated from theme park ticketholders and resort guests. It’s unclear if this will happen in the future–we suspect it eventually, with Walt Disney World proceeding cautiously as it scales up operations…
While Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom have been veritable ghost towns opening weekend, it’s worth reiterating that capacity is still be kept low right now. More Annual Passholders would absolutely be in the parks if allowed to enter. Reports out of Universal showed larger crowds over the weekend, which alone is indicative of Walt Disney World limiting attendance.
In other words, we’d strongly caution against booking a trip on the basis of what you’re seeing out of the first weekend. Although there’s some degree of pent-up demand that will be exhausted, there’s also the reality that Walt Disney World is artificially constraining capacity even below the 20-30% threshold. That’s probably the smart and safe move for the foreseeable future, with rising case numbers and the national eye focused on Disney.
There’s also the reality that the heat and humidity are absolutely brutal right now.
I don’t think it was any hotter than the previous day, but Animal Kingdom always feels hotter than any other park to us.
That plus this being our second consecutive day of being outdoors during the daytime after not really doing that for months made this especially exhausting.
(Some might want to attribute this to masks–that’s not it. This would be unbearable weather regardless.)
Expedition Everest had a posted 5 minute wait most of our time at Animal Kingdom, but both times we made it to Asia, the posted wait inexplicably had shot to 20 minutes.
Fortunately, the posted wait times throughout the parks are almost universally inflated. Even when lines were spilling out the entrances, we found they were short thanks to a lack of FastPass+ and the spacing built into the queues.
Kali River Rapids was a 5 minute wait (and presumably a walk-on in actuality) but we didn’t do that because we didn’t want to get soaked.
I don’t know anyone who has done this attraction since reopening, but I’d love to hear a report from someone who has–particularly how it works with masks and whether you get as wet as normal.
We also didn’t get to do Up! A Great Bird Adventure, which was seemingly running at random (or at least inaccurate) showtimes.
I didn’t even realize this was going to reopen. Either I forgot or it was a last-minute addition to the schedule.
Animal Kingdom also has a trio of Relaxation Stations where guests can go to remove their masks.
This one was the busiest and smallest–totally full when we checked it out.
However, this dining area is located immediately to the right of the Relaxation Station, and was totally empty. There are tables in the shade in addition to these two.
It’s worth reiterating that you need to be seated when eating. You are allowed to quickly pull your mask down while walking and drinking, but only while taking a sip. (We confirmed this again with the “Incredi-Crew” physical distancing Cast Members because it’s been a common question.)
Mask compliance was about 95%. We saw a few guests with the masks down while simply holding food or drinks (one couple proactively put their masks up when they saw a Cast Member, so presumably they had been admonished about this and knew what they were doing.)
Still, very good all things considered. Much better than the ~50-70% mask compliance we’ve seen at Publix or Target.
In our view, the dining options at Animal Kingdom are markedly better than those at Magic Kingdom.
There are strong options for snacks and counter service restaurants, which cannot be said for Magic Kingdom.
The weak link remains table service dining, as none of the options have outdoor seating. (See our Best Outdoor Dining Options at Walt Disney World for recommendations on that front.)
We’re going to keep beating this drum because it’s important, especially as our collective knowledge about transmission evolves. If you’re compulsively cleaning surfaces and sanitizing your hands but are still dining indoors, you’re prioritizing the wrong thing. (Of course, it’s best to err on the side of caution, eating outside and sanitizing.)
We ended up doing Satu’li Canteen (for Sarah) and Flame Tree Barbecue (for me).
Satu’li Canteen was easily the busier of the two, to the point where the outdoor seating area was close to full when we dined there. By contrast, Flame Tree has many outdoor pavilions, and only the one with the Expedition Everest view had other guests in it. The rest were totally empty.
That prime seating area would make a good spot not just for Expedition Everest, but for watching the Discovery River Character Cruises.
Above we have Pocahontas and Meeko.
Here’s Launchpad, Daisy, and Donald Duck. Other characters in their Dino Bash costumes made appearances.
The best entertainment, however, was the Discovery Island Drummers. These performers gave an energy to the park that was otherwise a bit flat.
We waited until it was a walk-on before doing Avatar Flight of Passage.
Unfortunately, our timing was poor and we ended up being in the load area with another group. There’s a ton of plexiglass installed in the queue and the interminable pre-show isn’t running (just the safety spiel video), so that’s all good. However, the spacing is only one empty banshee between parties, and I didn’t feel comfortable with that on an indoor attraction. Totally a personal thing, but we wouldn’t do Flight of Passage again in the near future.
Pandora – World of Avatar was likewise largely devoid of people after lunch.
It’s been a while since we’ve spent time in Pandora during the day, as this area is usually miserable between the crowds and heat. It was still unpleasantly hot, but there was a serene quality to the unpleasantness!
No amount of low crowds can make some places feel pleasant or serene…
We didn’t stick around long enough to find out for ourselves, but reports from friends have indicated that the crowds at Animal Kingdom are really light the last 2-3 hours of the day. This would square with what we’ve experienced at Magic Kingdom.
By the time we made our way over there, Kilimanjaro Safaris was a walk-on. Save for Expedition Everest, which was probably a fluke, most attraction wait times at Animal Kingdom can be measured by how long it takes to walk through the queue.
Lots of ride vehicles going empty, or with only one party aboard.
Barriers have been installed between each row; between that and the fact that it’s an outdoor attraction, Kilimanjaro Safaris was quite a pleasant experience.
We had a giraffe try to “say hello” in our safari truck and got to see adorable baby flamingos, so great ride overall.
While waiting for unload, I received a news alert that Florida reported a record 15,300 new cases, by far the most any state has reported in a single day since this began. I had an immediate sinking feeling, and the rest of the afternoon was basically walking around in a fog, with the emotion of this news weighing down on us.
Reading more helped contextualize the bleak number, but there’s no explaining it away. That’s more in a day than numerous countries have recorded in total since this began. I’ve been hopeful that with mask mandates and bars closed, we’d start to see a decrease in numbers. With each passing day, it’s harder to retain that sense of optimism.
I’m not totally sure how to feel or what to say here. I still believe that this is complicated, and Central Florida has a difficult road ahead regardless of the decision made with reopening. Another closure would be devastating to the area, but we’re nearing the point where so will staying open. I don’t know that Americans have the tolerance for further shutdowns, especially after the time that was bought by the first one was essentially squandered. (If the choices are controlled and safe settings for going out or “shutting down” but people engaging in risky behavior like house parties and ‘unregulated’ gatherings, is the latter really the better option?)
We’ve seldom ventured out in the last several months, but Walt Disney World is the safest place we’ve been in that time by leaps and bounds. And it’s not just an illusory feeling of safety or health theater (although there is some of that); Disney is doing a considerably better job than elsewhere in this area. Within the microcosm of Walt Disney World, the measures being taken are above and beyond even those that have been demonstrably effective for other countries in obliterating the curve.
For us, going to the parks and further mitigating our risk by dining outdoors and making a concerted effort to avoid prolonged time spent indoors seems like a responsible and healthy way to attempt resuming some semblance of normalcy. However, our circumstances are also unique–we have the luxury of going for brief periods and then staying at home for a couple of weeks thereafter. We’re very cognizant that this is not reality for many people reading this.
With all of that said, I personally would not be traveling to Florida right now. If I had a trip planned for the next several months, I’d be in wait and see mode, only proceeding if the numbers start to improve. This is a point we’ve made repeatedly, but want to hammer it home again. It’d be irresponsible to let the empty park photos and reports on low crowds tell their own story because that’s simply not the full one.
Even though Walt Disney World is doing a fantastic job with safety, there is risk in getting here, getting around–and being in the parks. It’s worth underscoring that even the safest setting is not risk-free. You’re all adults who are ultimately going to assess the information and make your own decisions; if it were us and we didn’t live here, we wouldn’t be here. Regardless of the conclusion you reach about what’s right for you, we appreciate you reading this!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Did you attend the reopening weekend at Animal Kingdom? What was your experience? Thoughts on any topic discussed here? Are you eagerly awaiting your next vacation ‘escape’ to Walt Disney World, or still apprehensive about everything going on right now? Do you have any questions about the current modified Animal Kingdom experience? Will you be attempting to visit Walt Disney World this summer or fall, or are you waiting until 2021 or beyond? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
“For us, going to the parks and further mitigating our risk by dining outdoors and making a concerted effort to avoid prolonged time spent indoors seems like a responsible and healthy way to attempt resuming some semblance of normalcy.”
Trying to resume some semblance of normalcy when you’re an avid traveler is really tough right now, but I really appreciate your approach to all this, Tom. We are taking the same calculated approach to things as you are by trying to minimize our time indoors around others. I hope Disney will expand the outdoor dining options across all the parks, as the indoor dining still seems really risky based on the studies we’ve seen so far about COVID-19.
I just have to tell you, I LOVE how you are truly trying to be responsible in covering this. Being serious about the virus and honoring/emphasizing the science (masks, dining outside), while still trying to balance the economic and behavioral impact warms my heart. If everyone were making choices so responsibly, we’d have a bit more chance to have more things stay open!
(For my own two cents, I’m in line with you, we’ve not done much the past few months other than takeout to support our local restaurants and visit outside with friends, but if we were locals to WDW, we would consider an early trip before things get busy. Too much risk to travel from further away to a high risk area though.)
We had a much different experience on Flight of Passage. We are a family of three and had the entire pre-show and seating to ourselves. There were groups behind us, so we felt for certain that they would be put in the same room but spaced out, but they were not.
We actually felt more uncomfortable doing Navi’i River Journey. Even though we had our own boat, the amount of congestion of boats back-to-back in a cool, damp place did not feel very safe.
I also agree about the people who carry a drink in their hands as an excuse to keep their masks off when walking around the parks, or worse, in line for a ride or transportation. I have been very vocal about this in the Disney surveys, and I have not been shy about asking people to put their masks on. I have gotten some eye rolls, but no one has refused.
I honestly don’t know what to do. I’m from Chile and was planning on going to Disney in February. However, with how things are going, I’m scared it will close again and my once in a lifetime holiday will be ruined. The problem is plane tickets are usually very expensive since it’s very far from us so I’d have to buy them soonish to keep good rates.
most airlines are allowing cancellations with no penalty. I personally have cancelled 2 such flights and have had no problem getting my refund or credit for future flight within next 2 years.
Hey Just want to say we came down here and stopped many places along the way. Very few people wearing masks in various states including Florida when we have not been on Disney grounds. They should be commended for keeping up on the safety aspects and all they have done. Also this does not come from a particular big fan of Disney but they are doing this right.
Tom – did you see this report on Fox 35 Orlando?:
https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/fox-35-investigates-hospitals-confirm-mistakes-in-floridas-covid-19-report
The Fl Dept of Health report apparently screwed up the actual numbers reported by the various testing center, vastly over-reporting the number of new Covid cases in Florida. Fox 35 found, for instance, that the Orlando Veterans Medical Center actually reported a 6% positive testing rate to the state, not the 76% that the FL Dept of Health report claimed. Likewise, Orlando Health reported a 9.4% positive rate for the week to the FL Dept of Health. For some reason, the state reported Orlando Health’s positive rate as 98%, more than ten times higher the actual number.
That mistakes by the state in reporting the true numbers are possibly responsible for the huge reported increase makes sense when you compare the high reported cases with the very low total Covid deaths reported in Florida over the past week- 45, for all counties ( out of a total FL population of 20 million). Despite the rise reported in cases, weekly Covid deaths in Florida continue to decline sharply, and are lower than they have been since March.
David you are so right and when you take into account the extrememly high number of tests being done each day in Florida there are going to see higher positive cases reported. The point I don’t like is no one is reporting how many tests are done each day that were negative. It would put the situation in a bit more context. no one reports that Florida has a lower death count now with more cases being reported than it did back in March and April. Which says it is the younger crowd that is getting the positives and they are recovering without hospitalization.
Great article as always, Tom! Appreciate your honesty. We had a trip planned for November and just made the difficult decision to push it to the end of April 2021. Thinking about transportation logistics etc & the fact that if things don’t improve, my own state will likely encourage us to quarantine upon our return just doesn’t make it feasible this year. Also, wholeheartedly agree about AK being the hottest park!!! Though I used to lump Hollywood Studios in this category as well back when it felt empty there aside from TOT & Rockin Roller Coaster – I can’t be the only one with memories of 2 rides & sweltering heat!
I am curious as to how many visitors are currently from out of state versus Florida residents. I would assume mostly state residents at the moment. When the other 2 parks open up, this may change… Thank you for reporting what’s happening as WDW continues to open up. I would love to hear about how the crowds start to increase, and would love to see your reports going forward, but I do not want you to risk your health! Keep up the great work and stay safe!
Occupancy has definitely picked up at the DVC resorts in the last week, but it’s still overwhelmingly locals. I agree with you–that’ll change as the weeks/months go on.
That’s what I would expect–and I’d imagine Disney projected the same. However, I do wonder how the rising case numbers are changing those projections–certainly some people are now getting cold feet about traveling to Florida. The question is what percentage of guests?
My daughter (24) and I are still planning to fly in from North Carolina and visit all four parks in mid-August. We’ve had a mask mandate here and have gotten used to wearing them when we go out. The only thing we are still waiting on is what Disney will do about our hotel (All Star Sports) and whether they will raise our rate in transferring us to the Pop Century. Not a word on that yet!
I also assumed it would be primarily FL residents and I’m sure that it is but I was really surprised by the number of out of state license plates that I’ve seen.
Tom, I admire your ability to walk the fine line between the never maskers and the maskateers. You are becoming quite accomplished in this respect.., a trait not easy to come by these days. Thanks for your efforts in keeping us informed.
I think/hope my opinion is quite clear on the issue, but I also don’t believe in shaming people or being condescending towards those who disagree with me. I also don’t think being disingenuous is the right approach. (Wearing a mask sucks but I do it anyway despite that; I don’t see what’s wrong with conceding that.)
If the end goal is persuasion (and it should be!), then insulting/demeaning others who don’t share my perspective is never going to achieve the intended result. I am probably never going to change anyone’s mind about any of this stuff via a Disney blog, but I’m also going to be responsible while not sowing more division. We already have way too much of that.
Wearing a facial covering not only curbs the spread of the coronavirus but reduces a mask wearer’s risk of catching the virus by 65%, said Dean Blumberg, MD, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at UC Davis Children’s Hospital.
Stay safe and please wear a simple mask – if not for another person, then for yourself!
“I don’t think it was any hotter than the previous day, but Animal Kingdom always feels hotter than any other park to us.”
That’s what everyone in our family thinks as well, lol!
Which is why the ride we most look forward to is Kali River Rapids! Most fun way to cool-off in WDW! So, I was surprised you passed on it…and then I read that they drastically toned it down…and Splash Mountain, too! SIgh.
It’s hot all across the South right now, with record-breaking or near record-breaking heat. So, yeah, the heat is bad. But the facemasks make it worse.
As to the numbers, keep in mind that there’s a lead time on this. Also keep in mind that, as we were originally told, the purpose for closures, and mask-wearing, was (and is) to SLOW the spread of the virus so that the health system wouldn’t be overrun. However, the false impression has been given that “slow the spread” = “stop the virus”. But the virus was still waiting when things opened up. For example, Hong Kong Disneyland is closing again because of flareups, showing that even in places with the most stringent ability to enforce masking and quarantining, it can still spread again.
Keep in mind the keys are hospitalization, ICU useage, ventilators and death…and who is dying.
No splash on any water rides. No one even got wet on Kali raft and we got put with large family, in size and number. Seven large passengers on raft, wasn’t a weight side effect, they have lowered the water levels in addition to turning off any waterfalls, squirting effects, etc presumably to avoid splash/water run off passengers. No splash on big drop, no splash in tunnel, no splash on initial drop in– one wet elbow from biggest drop, t-shirt didn’t even get damp. Ride felt quick and we all were like, huhn, okay, guess we’re done.
Kali is now a class one river. And Splash Mountain needs to be renamed. (Because there is no splash anymore.) So many little touches missing on most of the rides, one might not catch unless they came all the time.
Kind of depressing, at times even boring, and just…weird.
Wow no kidding, that’s a shame!
Thanks for the report on Kali.
Maybe it has changed since, but I still got wet on Splash. It was more of a light misting (and the water cannons were off), but that’s what I prefer, anyway.
Our Kali ride on Sunday was more tame than usual but both sides of our raft got wet. It was the perfect cool down for a HOT afternoon. The first big splash (and the smell of chlorine) made us all long for the reopening of the water parks (when that can be done safely).
15,300 cases is of course very bad. But perhaps a little context is in order.
Positivity rate 11.6%, lowest in two weeks. Compared to NY’s positivity rate of over 50% at peak.
Deaths under 100 compared to NY’s over 1000 at peak.
Evidence indicates there is a good chance FL is peaking right now as R appears to be declining.
Even if FL had 15300 cases a day every day for the next year there would still be a 75% chance you wouldn’t get it.
As an RN I clearly see the shutdown time was not squandered. PPE supply is much better, testing is greatly expanded, many people are now wearing masks (remember when the CDC advised against masks?), and we have new treatment protocols. Shutting down again because of case numbers would be stupid. If hospitals can handle capacity and deaths remain relatively low having large case numbers is ok.
All of this is said by someone who was taking this very seriously in February. I was advocating for shutting things down much earlier. I even emailed my daughter’s school’s superintendent and advised they have remote learning procedures in place. I was ignored at the time, though obviously eventually vindicated. We simply are not at the same point we were in March and April.
I’m also getting very irritated at the way this is being reported. You have to really dig to get relevant information (deaths, hospitalizations, positivity rate). The media only focuses on the number of cases because it gets clicks. If everyone in Florida was tested tomorrow there likely would be at least 50k-100k cases found. And that’s all the media would report. FLORIDA SMASHES ALL CORONAVIRUS REOCRDS. But, that would be a great thing. If everyone that had it knew they had it we could greatly reduce new infections.
One last point FL is not the worldwide epicenter. AZ is worse right now, and probably much of Latin and central America is even worse than AZ. We just don’t know because they aren’t testing, reporting, or have the infrastructure to do so.
I know rising case numbers are hard to see, but it isn’t all bad news. You need context for every metric you see. This thing is way more complicated than a single data point.
Some great points here–I’ll just respond to a few.
“As an RN I clearly see the shutdown time was not squandered. PPE supply is much better, testing is greatly expanded, many people are now wearing masks (remember when the CDC advised against masks?), and we have new treatment protocols. Shutting down again because of case numbers would be stupid.”
Squandered was an exaggeration on my part, and you point out why. I was hoping for better contact tracing infrastructure, cohesive public messaging, and some of what we’ve seen in other countries that really have quashed this. However, America is a different beast, which sort of speaks to the mask issue (and the CDC/WHO messaging has not helped on a number of things).
Also agree about shutting down again. If it’s not to buy more time for a specific purpose, it’s just forestalling the inevitable. In my view as a non-medical expert, a big part of what needs to change now is behavior on an individual level. Japan and Hong Kong are pointed to as success stories (including by this blog), but it’s important to remember they largely got where they are in spite of their governments, not because of them.
“I’m also getting very irritated at the way this is being reported.”
Same. I’m a regular reader of several newspapers (I don’t bother with cable news as all three major networks are their own brands of pandering), and a lot of the coverage has left a lot to be desired. Even the local Orlando paper has been disappointing–lots of headlines and ledes that are predicated on what’s happening in Miami, with the details about Central Florida being dramatically different–and buried deeper in the article.
Some real important information in this post…couldn’t agree more with the importance of watching the right metrics and context. Personally I do follow hospitalizations and deaths closely, less so percentage positive tests only because testing is so much more prevalent now than two months ago…the problem is that the most valuable metrics are lagging, to understand what is really happening requires patience. I am waiting to see if some media might latch onto reporting influenza (flu) cases in the next season to try to prey on the fears in the community – clickbait has proven to have very questionable moral compasses.
Tom, after reading your post today it made me think really hard about whether to keep our trip for the first week of August. I ended up cancelling, it just didn’t make sense to travel from a state with low covid numbers (RI) into a state with surging numbers. This will be the first time in 21 years that we won’t be @ Disney world during the summer. Now I’ll just have to be jealous of you & Sarah enjoying the parks! Stay safe.
Glad we could help you make that decision, even if it may not be the “fun” one. If it’s any consolation, it has been HOT here with no reprieve from that in the forecast. (In fairness, we had a good run of mild weather well into May/June–longer than normal.)
Since I take issue with some of Gina’s decisions and fuzzy math on testing , I’ve done my own research in preparation of my upcoming flight out of Green.
Here’s a link to Orange County Government showing cumulative cases at 18,937 and deaths at 83.
Orange County’s population is approximately 40% greater than entire state of RI which has 17,487 cumulative cases and 984 deaths.
https://newsroom.ocfl.net/media-advisories/press-releases/2020/06/coronavirus-updates-2/
Johns Hopkins also has excellent resources. This link shows testing data by state.
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/testing/tracker/overview
I hope this info is useful to those trying to make an informed decision. Stay well all!
I am glad to see Disney is setting such a high standard for safety protocols. We are local-ish to Dollywood in TN and went today. It was a total dumpster fire. Over 60% of the people there either weren’t wearing masks or were wearing them incorrectly. And very few people were paying attention to the physical distancing markers. It was hard to keep encouraging my child to correctly wear her mask when she kept pointing out all of the people not even wearing one. Needless to say we won’t be going back until they are actually enforcing their own rules.
Sorry to hear that about Dollywood! I’ve been following reports from other theme and amusement parks around the country, and it really seems like a mixed bag in terms of mask compliance.
From what I’ve gleaned, the compliance rate largely seems to reflect the standards and messaging by the parks themselves and not any regional biases/beliefs. It’s interesting.
I keep hearing different things about Dollywood. It’s good to hear your perspective. We almost went Saturday but opted against it. I think we’ll go ahead and try for our refund.
I had a friend tell me today that when they go to Dollywood most people don’t have the mask over their noses and don’t pay attention to physical distancing measures. So basically what we saw yesterday. I wish we had gotten the refund instead. It would be better if they were enforcing their rules.
Millions of Americans hold bizarre beliefs and refuse to wear masks and practice distancing. That’s the bottom line. A friend of mine has twice recently gone to check her rental property in Myrtle Beach; she reports large dense crowds everywhere and saw ONE other person, an elderly woman, wearing a mask. For wearing one and waiting at a safe distance while a large unmasked group filled the ground-floor lobby waiting for the one elevator, my friend received hostile glares.
That’s red-state America. It’s great that so far WDW isn’t like that, but outside that bubble of corporate control most of your state is as recklessly irresponsible and irredeemably ineducable as minion-rich South Carolina (and Arizina, and Texas…).
Disney is doing an excellent job! My family hasn’t really left the house since mid-March except to pick up curbside orders, occasionally go into Publix and the garden section of home depot and we will quarantine when we get home (2hrs southeast of Orlando). I think that if all businesses required masks and social distancing like Disney is, we would have a much better chance of getting the pandemic under control while keeping the economy going. I spoke with two cast members who were incredibly thankful to be back to work. Both also said that they were thankful that Disney paid for their healthcare during the shutdown.
To add to my comment: while I think Disney is doing an incredible job, I wouldn’t recommend traveling from far away. I told my family to use the bathroom before we left because we would not be stopping at rest stops on the turnpike or anywhere else until we got to our resort. Lol
Tom you are awesome! I love your straightforward approach to info and your humor! I certainly wish we didn’t have to insert covid into our Disney plans, but for now it’s there and I thank you for all the info! We have a December trip planned and I’m trying to be optimistic yet realistic, so for now the plan is we’ll see…. Take care and I can’t wait to see your reports for Epcot and Hollywood Studios:)
Three weeks ago, I commented on a previous post saying that my wife and I would ignore the 14-day arrival quarantine as a NYers traveling to Disney in mid-August. Perhaps in defiance, perhaps feeling a bit invincible with the way the numbers had been trending downwards.
It seems like so long ago, but a lot has changed since then. As many know, NY/NJ/CT has enacted their own 14-day quarantine on travelers arriving from a number of states, including Florida. And new Covid cases have spiked significantly.
We canceled our August trip last Friday. It was sad to delete all of our park, hotel, and dining reservations, but it’s for the best. Hopefully things are more under control in time for our December holiday trip.
Thanks for the great reporting once again, Tom.
Yes, I agree about Animal Kingdom being the hottest park! Thank you so much for getting back to the parks but doing it in a safe way! I agree with you on all points!
Thank you so much for posting. I live in Ontario, Canada where we have about 15 million people and fewer than 150 new cases per day. We are in the Greater Toronto area so population density is quite high and we are in Phase2 of reopening so we are doing fairly well. I am so hoping that things improve for our American friends – we are DVC owners and had our April trip canceled. We miss Disney which means we miss the people and want to visit soon. Take care everyone so that we can see ya real soon. â¤ï¸
My mom and I have been saying for years that AK is the hottest of the parks and it gave me a chuckle to see that someone else agrees.
We have a trip planned in mid-August for my 30th birthday and reading your reviews and keeping an eye on the daily numbers are a big deciding factor in whether or not we will be rescheduling it. Thank you for all you do, especially with giving an honest opinion on how you feel about the safety of being in the parks, it’s much appreciated.