Magic Kingdom Photo Report: PeopleMover Problems, Dining Dilemmas, Short Waits, Etc.
Magic Kingdom has now been open for over two full weeks, so it’s time to head back to Walt Disney World’s flagship park to see how things are going after the pent-up demand has been exhausted during what would otherwise be summer vacation season.
This was our first visit to Magic Kingdom following the reopening of Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Our main goals were to see how the park had ‘settled’ into operations during this time of temporary abnormal and if more parks being open meant attendance was further diluted or if more tourists and other guests would be present after hearing glowing health safety reports.
In this photo update, we’ll cover that. We’ll also address a range of random topics from around the Magic Kingdom, including the current status of the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover, Magic Kingdom’s dining dearth, cool new merchandise, walk-on rides, and more. It’s fairly rambling and basically just covers interesting tidbits, illustrative photos (plus ones I like), and other observations.
To that end, we’re not really sure what readers want out of these updates. Is it for vicarious visits to Walt Disney World while you can’t or won’t make the trip yourself? Is it to assess safety, crowd levels, and how the parks ‘feel’ to determine whether you’d feel comfortable going to Walt Disney World? A little of both? Something else?
Normally, we can ascertain this from past comments, but it’s tough to tell. Our reopening reports have been popular, but the why of that is unclear. As such, we’d love feedback so we can tailor these Walt Disney World photo reports to what’s relevant to prevailing interests!
It should go without saying, but we’re not going to do anything that makes us uncomfortable. Sadly and ironically, the things we want to do most at Magic Kingdom are either beyond our risk tolerances–Carousel of Progress & Country Bear Jamboree, dining at Be Our Guest Restaurant & Skipper Canteen–or not currently operational, in the case of the PeopleMover.
Anyway, on with the Magic Kingdom photo report…
Lately, we’ve been arriving late to each park. Usually, we’ll look at the weather forecast to time our visit after or before the summer storms, to the extent that’s possible.
Aside from some brief rain, this day was mostly just overcast. On the plus side, that made the weather cooler and more comfortable.
We did get lucky with a late afternoon break in the clouds, and most of the photos here are from that brief window.
As you can see from the two photos above, Magic Kingdom is still pretty uncrowded.
The ‘paint by numbers’ on the bricks of Cinderella Castle have largely been completed, which means this project is almost done.
A lot of Walt Disney World fans seem to love the new-look Cinderella Castle. I am not one of them, but my opinion isn’t going to change anything here, so I’ll just let those who enjoy it have their fun without my cynicism.
I will say that if you think the new-look Cinderella Castle looks different in virtually every photo, that’s pretty true to life.
They might as well call this Chameleon Castle, because it looks dramatically different in every type of lighting. If you’re seeking the “ideal” look, check it out an hour after sunrise as close as possible to the winter solstice.
Sleepy Hollow is currently the best option for counter service dining in Magic Kingdom due to Columbia Harbour House being closed, Be Our Guest Restaurant not doing its normal lunch, and the toppings bars being dramatically scaled back at Pecos Bill and Cosmic Ray’s.
Don’t get me wrong, I love these waffles and this is a great excuse to switch to an all-waffle diet…but these being the best option for quick service meals in the entire Magic Kingdom is not ideal.
On the plus side, nearly every table service restaurant has a sign out front indicating that seating is available. We dined at Tony’s recently and shared the experience in Tony’s Town Square Restaurant Redemption.
Given the abundant same-day availability, I cannot fathom making an Advance Dining Reservation right now. That flexibility is really nice. We cannot overstate how nice it is to have this much spontaneity when visiting Walt Disney World.
Sticking with the restaurant motif, in response to our 5 Post-Reopening Improvements for Walt Disney World, some commenters reported success in getting water from counter service restaurants. We’ve had recent success at smaller spots in this regard.
However Cosmic Ray’s is the only spot in Magic Kingdom (to our knowledge) with a water bottle refill station. Here, there’s a Cast Member stationed just inside the door lying in wait, ready to shout “WIZARD YOU SHALL NOT PASS!” to anyone who doesn’t have a Mobile Order.
Liki Tikis and other water features are turned off (no spitting Aladdin camel), which is easier for photos.
I hope water play areas can return at some point in the near future, but if not, maybe they could receive some other type of interactivity? (Dancing lights corresponding with their drumbeat would be cool once Magic Kingdom open after sunset.)
Moving on to attractions…we didn’t do any because we instead spent 5.75 hours waving at the Country Bears.
Some might argue that this was a waste of time, but we’ll get the last laugh when the bear insurrection finally happens. We’ve made our alliances known–how will you handle our new oso overlords?!
Joking aside, we were only able to wave at bears for about 30 minutes before their set ended. After that, it was off to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
This was about a ~10 minute wait–the longest line of the day.
Pirates of the Caribbean was a walk-on.
While other aspects of the current Walt Disney World experience might be surreal or eerie, I absolutely love walking through empty standby queues. There’s so much you miss when these are full of people, and the empty queues have a ‘heightened senses’ kind of vibe.
Haunted Mansion was also a walk-on.
The lack of a pause between the front door and the load area is the oddest part of this. (I’m also probably used to the Disneyland version, where there is more physical distance–plus an elevator.)
Space Mountain was yet another walk-on.
This was the eeriest attraction experience of the day, and it gave new meaning to “in space, no one can hear you scream.” The ride was totally silent for some reason (well, aside from the creaking of the track), which I guess fits if you’re looking for a dead atmosphere that reinforces the vastness and vacuum of space. Still fun.
Sticking in Tomorrowland, we’ll take a look at some new-to-us merchandise.
I absolutely love the color choices of this new line, especially the t-shirt. I would love a light blue dad hat with the old Walt Disney World logo in lime green text.
I’m not entirely sure this stuff is new, but it’s also cool.
There have been a lot of cool PeopleMover shirts of late, but the slogans on them are always too cheesy for even my cheesy tastes.
Until this one!
I love everything about it–the design, material, and colors. Will probably pick it up before that 30% off merchandise discount expires.
Speaking of the Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover, it’s still down. As you might recall, it has been down since about a week before Magic Kingdom closed back in March.
Sarah asks about this every time we visit, and she’s received a range of different explanations. Distilling those into something consistent, it seems like Disney is awaiting new motors or parts of some sort, and the reason for the delay is a supply chain issue or factory closure. The timeline for this ranges from a few days until several months.
We are perhaps overly apprehensive about all things PeopleMover, especially after what happened at Disneyland. Losing this attraction would be a huge blow for Magic Kingdom.
However, we believe Walt Disney World management knows this. At no point in recent memory have we heard any credible rumors about the PeopleMover being replaced or retired. To the contrary, we’ve been “reminded” that more Magic Kingdom guests do the PeopleMover than any other attraction, and as such, improvements are more likely than anything.
I haven’t the slightest inkling as to what, if anything, that means in the current environment. From a ‘wishful thinking’ perspective, now (or whenever the parts arrive) seems like the perfect time to take the PeopleMover down for long-overdue maintenance, plussing, and a new on-ride spiel. Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary may not offer as much as previously planned, but that’d be a pleasant surprise.
Elsewhere in Tomorrowland, the place-making project has stalled (see above). We still expect this to resume and finish in time for the debut of TRON Lightcycle Run, whenever that might happen.
“THE NEW CASTLE COLORS DO NOT LOOK BETTER, THEY ARE A CARTOONISH OVERCORRECTION THAT DIDN’T EVEN ACCOUNT FOR FLORIDA WEATHER. PLUS THEY DRAINED MY FAVORITE FLOATIN’ SPOT FOR THIS FOOLISHNESS. LEMME BREAK IT DOWN FOR YOU IN 2,000 QUACKS.”
“SIR, THIS IS A WENDY’S.”
Our original plan was to stick around as the Hub and Main Street cleared out, but there was a “huge” crowd–the biggest of the day, by far–still there at 7:30 pm. That makes sense given the early closing time, but with an ugly sunset coupled with more rain in the forecast, we decided to bounce to beat the storm.
Ultimately, it was another good visit to Magic Kingdom. Mask compliance and guest observance of rules remained high–around 98%, which leaves Epcot as the outlier for obvious reasons. Wait times and crowds were short or non-existent. Magic Kingdom has the strongest and most well-rounded attraction lineup of any park at Walt Disney World, but even it doesn’t require a full day right now.
It currently reminds us of a daytime version of Disney After Hours, which is great for guests who want to max out their ride count. We’d personally like to see a bit more balance–even some new snacks would really help improve the overall experience–but it’s really hard to complain about the current experience. Walt Disney World continues to do an exceptional job from a safety perspective, and we’re really savoring these visits, as we’re unlikely to ever experience anything like this ever again (hopefully!). It’s the one silver lining for us amidst…literally everything else…happening in the real world.
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
Have you visited Magic Kingdom since the park reopened? What was your experience? What would you like to see covered in these park photo reports? 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 Magic Kingdom experience? Will you be attempting to visit Walt Disney World this summer or fall, or are you waiting until 2021 or beyond? Do you agree or disagree with our advice? 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!
Thanks for the feedback (and all of the kind words!) everyone. Some of this is what I expected, some surprises, and some reassuring notes.
Specifically, in an era when pretty much everyone else uses quick phone photos, I’ve started to feel like putting effort into the photography was a waste of time or merely self-indulgent. Also had worried that some of the humor falls flat or ‘gets in the way’ of the core content. Good to know that’s not the case for some/many of you.
Also fairly glad to see that no one said, “more merchandise photos.” For some reason, it seems like this is a hot topic on other blogs. Honestly, I couldn’t care less about merchandise in most cases. I’ll keep posting stuff that catches my eye, but glad I can mostly skip the stores.
Anyway, thank you all for your feedback! If there are more specific requests or recommendations, please keep them coming.
(Bumping this back up to the top since I don’t have the time to respond to every comment, but want you all to know that I’ve read them!)
Your photography is excellent! I really started reading your blog after our last trip, and the angles and perspectives you get blow my mind – it makes me want to go back ASAP to appreciate things I took for granted while we were there.
You also have a measured and thoughtful response to not just all things Disney, but the world in general (especially your view on Disney in the greater scheme of things during Covid). You’ve never come across to me as a full-speed Disney cheerleader – you give a very balanced perspective while still obviously harboring a huge love of Disney. I honestly think I most enjoy reading your blog because it’s one of the few calm and nuanced voices in my world right now.
Keep up the good work!
I love your humor! Keep the witticisms coming! Any reference to LOTR is always the right choice 😉 “Here, there’s a Cast Member stationed just inside the door lying in wait, ready to shout “WIZARD YOU SHALL NOT PASS!” to anyone who doesn’t have a Mobile Order.”
And I am living vicariously through your photography since a visit isn’t in my near future. Thanks Tom!
I love the humor! Your blog is the only one that actually makes me laugh out loud. Also, your park photos are gorgeous, and I regularly pause my reading to really drink in the pictures – so keep on snappin’ away, we need those park photos!
a) Thanks for continuing to put the time into the photos. It’s what drew me here in the first place many moons ago. (and keep Travelvaffeine alive as well! Though I’m sure it get’s <1% of the traffic of this site).
b) I skim/skip the merchandise stuff. No interest.
I read these posts just to get a little magic in my day — I had worked two jobs for almost a year for our planned dream trip that wasn’t in May, and while we’ve rescheduled for next February, it’s hard for me to not feel apprehensive and… well… less-than-magical about the situation in general, just because life is terribly uncertain and depressing this year. Seeing your beautiful photos, thoughtful commentary, and duck captions makes me think of happier times and reminds me that the magic will be back eventually!
The nice photos are so great! & Love the humor. I actually laughed out loud about Florida water being 3% alligator urine in a recent post. I’m still laughing – that was a good one!
Thanks for your visits and reports, really enjoy your photos and your humor . We’re local and have been to Disney Springs a few times, learning early on to avoid weekends and afternoons for our personal comfort levels. Since you’ve been to all the parks, have you seen many senior citizens? Despite the fact that we feel and act young and love Disney, we do fall in the over 65 bracket causing us to hesitate visiting one of our favorite places. Thanks for any insight!
Your photographs are definitely not a waste of time! I really love seeing them and they brighten my day considerably. In terms of humor I am CONSTANTLY having to get up and go tell my fiancee something funny you said because I just need to share the laughs. Keep up the good work!
I enjoy all of your posts so much but there are really some nasty people out there. I feel bad for you . I wouldn’t put up with them.
Thanks for the nice words! Given that the ‘rude comment rate’ on this post is currently under 1% (and even that one isn’t so bad and probably just misread my tone or word choice?), I’d say it’s going pretty well.
All things considered, I’m pretty appreciative of the response here. I was simply hoping for some honest feedback, not fishing for praise–the kindness has been very heartening! 🙂
I currently hope to visit in fall of 2021. So my main interest at present is building, developments, additions, etc. For example, when the Tron coaster will be finished or when Spaceship Earth will
Be overhauled or EPCOT’s renovation will be completed. I’ll be looking in early to spring 2021 for more lasting health-related policies that will impact my decision to visit and/or guide how my visit will be affected by health-related guidelines and suggestions.
Tom, thank you for your posts. My wife and I have never been to DW and would love to come. We’ve tentatively booked a trip in December this year and, like you mentioned above, are waiting until the last possible moment to cancel. We’ll be coming from Oregon, so it’s the getting there and make that’s making us drag our feet. In the meantime, I read your Blog to get some vicarious pleasure, to be up to date regarding the Parks’ health and safety procedures, and to get a glimpse of what our visit might look like. Keep up the great work.
I’ve actually never been to Disney as an adult but found your blog during the stay-at-home order and have read a ton just to learn. We live in SC so could drive to Disney and I would love to go once it’s open to all, COVID numbers drop some, and the weather cools down.
I realize that might be awhile, but it’s all good, I have plenty of time to plan and read your posts!
I’m reading to live vicariously through you. My last trip to WDW was late January of this year. I don’t foresee returning before January 2022 and i will definitely be going through Disney withdrawals. I love your pics and reviews. Makes me feel like I’m there with you. Thanks and stay safe.
Hey Tom. I’m an avid planner and felt pretty confident in past trips about my touring plans, fast passes, and what to expect in general. In the current abnormal, I’m reading your posts to have some idea what to expect for my September trip and to help me figure out a reasonably possible plan. That said, there is also a bit of living vicariously; real life sucks for most people right now, and it’s nice to at least read about a place where we can more or less forget that for a while.
I read to live vicariously through you. Enjoy seeing crowd level, safety precautions. Have a late in year trip planned that I still plan on taking. Love all your posts and so appreciate all your wife and you do. Off topic, any cast member friends that have any idea when Halloween decorations may go up now that there are no Halloween parties. Have a friend trying to book a trip but wants to see Halloween decorations. Thanks so much. You are much appreciated.
“Vicarious visits from people who can’t or won’t make the trip” or “to assess safety”
followed by an unending tongue in cheek review of disney from your bored unimaginative perspective. Wow..how fortunate you are to be able to drive to disney every day and be so exasperated because you don’t know what people are looking to read about. Seriously? We were under a 3 month stay at home order, trying to look forward to something but I wouldn’t want to be accused of reliving your experience vicariously. Seems pretty arrogant to me.
we moved to Orlando about 4 years ago because we loved the weather and the idea of having so many places to choose to go too. (disney world has been the favorite) . There has to be things close to wherever you are also that you could be taking advantage of until you can make it to orlando. I wish more people could come, part of my experience in these places is people watching although not much of a wait at all for rides is great too. We all make ourselves happy or unhappy, and this is my happy place, not where I lived and worked all of my adult life before. I watch a lot of alaskan shows where people are so happy, personally I wouldnt be happy there, but here I am
So then what is your point of reading AND responding?
I think you may be suffering from a Vitamin D deficiency from not leaving your house.
@Smitty please bless us with your cool imaginative Disney blog. I believe you do understand that all of this is about escapism from the daily troubles of real life. And all in all, Tom seemed flabbergasted and humbled why so many people were interested in his park trip reports. Including you, apparently. Have a magical evening.
I’ve read your blog pretty much daily since I found it whether I have an upcoming trip or not, but I’m mostly here for the ducks and Country Bear Jamboree commentary 😉 We have a trip in December, so I love the park updates and insights on how “worth it” things feel, and I absolutely love your photos!! I keep a mental list of cool places/angles you’ve taken park photos for our upcoming trips and my family is always blown away at the fun spots I take them to for a photo. They aren’t as good as yours because mine are shot on an iPhone, but at least I try, right? 😛 I’m definitely living vicariously (and jealously) through your trips and think this will give us a good feel for whether our upcoming trip will stay on or not. I definitely don’t need merchandise photos unless there is something that just blows your mind. Keep the duck and Country Bear updates coming right along with any and all changes in each park! Hoping we all see a lot of changes in the coming months for the better 😀
The castle has been worse. We should be thankful there’s no repeats of the ugly 25th anniversary cake being planned any time soon.
That was awful!!! I was there that year. Worst painting ever. Can’t wait to see what it looks like in person next week!
Thanks for the updates! We’re still moving forward with our early September trip so hearing how things are going is super helpful!
I’m here out of curiosity since we were scheduled to be there this month and had to cancel. We rebooked for next May.
I do like seeing the photos with no people obstructing the view 🙂 I hope things are more “normal” soon.
Thanks Tom!! We were planning our family ‘s first trip to Disney in April and had all the princess dining reservations, fast passes, etc all planned (years of dreaming). Since rebooking to September I have been completely undecided whether to go for the light crowds or wait until next year. Your posts have been extremely helpful. Our original family suite at an All star hotel was changed to AOA, and then thanks to your early post yesterday I called right away and was able to rebook at Kidani Village 1 bedroom suite with a savanna view! So at this point for my family (driving from NC) the opportunity to stay in a luxury resort with no price change (the recovery2020 deal on a budget hotel price) will likely make up for the lack of character dining and shows. Although it won’t be the vacation we’ve been dreaming of, we feel it may be too good to pass up. If we do go, then we’ll just have to go again in a few years!! I read your posts to get a “feel” for how it feels to be in Disney. Thanks!
Yes. Everything is done through the mobile ordering app (even a bottle of water here at the contempo cafe). The gift shops take any forms of payment I would imagine. The biggest part for us is there is so much not available. Not Disney’s fault, they are doing all they can. It’s amazing watching the staff do so much at this time! They are truly incredible xoxoxo
Have been reading your blog for many, many years now, it has been a tremendous asset for planning our trips. Given that we live in Australia, definitely reading these posts to live vicariously. It feels as though it will be some time before we are back and feel so grateful that we visited WDW last December as it would be torture to not have those recent memories as we all go through this. Your photos remind me of happy times, although perhaps one or two of a crowded Main Street would be nice to see, empty everything can make a person unexpectedly sad. Look after yourselves.
Oh, I should add, can never be enough duck conversations!!!
Hi Tom
I too am living vicariously through you and Sarah. And although I may be living that way I still had to look it up to get the spelling right. But I digress….
We’ve been to WDW about 15 times over the years, with the last trip being Halloween last year for my granddaughter’s 5th birthday. And if truth be told (you won’t tell anyone I said this will you?) I was not too impressed with the whole Halloween thing.
We started going to WDW in 1972 when my parents moved from Minnesota to Orlando and my Dad worked for Martin Marietta. He worked on monorail purple and he was so proud of it. I try to collect what few items are left that depict monorail purple; slim pickins to be sure.
My son and his family now live near Tampa and we drive down from Michigan to see them a couple times a year. And even though we probably won’t be going back to WDW in the near future, I greatly enjoy your articles, photos, your sense of humor, and finding out how things are progressing as far as returning to normal. When we do return again, I like knowing how things played out to get back to “normal”.
Keep up the good work and “Hi” to Sarah.
The new castle colors look like ca ca. There I’ve said it. Mic drop
I come for the photos (even Tokyo and other other parks outside the U.S.), but I usually only post when I see something like PEOPLEMOVER PROBLEMS.
*whew*
I’m reading because it’s a great blog but also to get an idea of what the parks are like right now and whether the trip we have planned for mid-September will be a good use of time and money. Looking for what the safety and compliance is like, whether it is still fun and magical, how to spend 7 days as a family of 4 with young kids in the parks. I love the parks and detest crowds so it seems great, but the tickets are still very expensive with shorter hours and less entertainment. No MNSSHP. No parades. No fireworks. Some closed attractions. What shows and characters are out there? What makes it magical to be at WDW right now?
Tom. Ha!! Finally saw you admit that fewer people means more spontaneity!! Yes it dies. I would have to go back decades to recall the more enjoyable and relaxed period when Disney did not have every square foot with a person on it and every meal and moment scheduled a year in advance. Sorry to hear so much is still closed. Its a lot of money to pay and not get what you really want. I am a huge fan and wish the situation made sense to go from my distance (NY). I assume you live very close to be able to go so often.m?? How is Orlando itself from a safety point of view. Was considering a condo purchase.
We rescheduled our spring break trip for fall break. I read to see if it is going to be OK to visit!! I hope it stays this way through October!!