When Will Disney World Reopen?
“When will Walt Disney World really reopen?” and “will the parks stay closed until [insert date/season]?” have become frequently asked questions. This is due to Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and the resort hotels all currently closed. (Updated June 1, 2020.)
With so much uncertainty in the air and people wanting to plan vacations or cancel trips, these questions are unsurprising. Accordingly, we’ve been doing an ongoing series that attempts to offer balance, nuance, and our best guesses with all things considered. To recap, here are questions what we’ve addressed:
- Will Walt Disney World Offer Huge Discounts Once It Opens?
- How Bad Will Crowds Be at Walt Disney World After Reopening?
- What Operational & Health Safety Changes Will Disney Make?
Likewise, you can find regular updates in our Disney Closure & Reopening News & Rumors. In this post, we’ll share official reopening dates for Walt Disney World’s four theme parks, plus the future of the resort hotels, and what operations will look like when they resume. If you want further updates when Disney makes official announcements, sign up for our free email newsletter and we’ll send you notifications ASAP when important new info is released…
The good news is that we have a few pieces of official news in terms of when Florida’s theme parks will begin reopening. First, Universal Orlando that Islands of Adventure, Volcano Bay, and Universal Studios Florida will reopen in early June 2020.
Next, SeaWorld Orlando will reopen on June 11, 2020, as will Busch Gardens Tampa. Legoland Florida has already reopened, as have the majority of smaller regional amusement parks and roadside attractions in the Orlando area and throughout Central Florida. That leaves Walt Disney World as the final park operator to reopen…
For its part, Walt Disney World has already begun to reopen its Disney Springs shopping and dining district.
We shared thoughts and photos from a recent visit there in “Our ‘Ghost Town’ Experience at Disney Springs.” As the title suggests, Disney Springs has not been particularly busy since reopening. To the contrary, it’s been dead most of the time.
When it comes to WDW’s theme parks, fans will have to wait a little longer. Walt Disney World will begin a slow, multi-phase reopening beginning on July 11, 2020.
On this date, Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Animal Kingdom will officially reopen to the general public.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot will officially open on July 15, 2020.
Prior to these dates, Walt Disney World will host a series of Cast Member previews and soft opening days for affinity groups (such as Annual Passholders, Disney Vacation Club Members, Florida Residents, Club 33, Golden Oak, etc). The details of these preview days will be announced at a later time.
It’s unclear when these soft openings will begin, but we believe it could happen as early as late June 2020. Walt Disney World could attempt to scale up park operations with the lower stakes, less-demanding local audience.
Disney has also announced that once the parks reopen, advance reservations will be required. It’s likely this will also hold true for the soft opening preview days–we’d expect email invitations with a registration link to go out to affinity group members within the next week or two.
Walt Disney World’s two-dozen resorts will likely open in phases.
It has already been announced that all Disney Vacation Club properties at Walt Disney World will reopen on June 22, 2020. When the other hotels will reopen has not yet been announced. Disney initially released a statement suggesting some would reopen on July 11, 2020, but that has since been retracted.
Our expectation is that the first hotels to reopen will be those with DVC add-ons. The hotel side and Disney Vacation Club villas side share infrastructure, staffing, and other resources with one another. It doesn’t make a ton of sense to reopen only the Disney Vacation Club side of the property.
Following the hotels with Disney Vacation Club wings, we’d expect the next phase of resort openings to include those connected to the parks by non-bus transportation (Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation, Pop Century, and Yacht Club), followed by the remaining resorts.
There might even be some Walt Disney World hotels that don’t reopen this year at all if there’s a lack of demand or if they’re being utilized for events or other purposes, such as the NBA or MLS finishing their seasons (think Coronado Springs, the All Stars, both of the Port Orleans Resorts).
If that does happen, guests with existing bookings at those properties would be relocated elsewhere. This already happens now when resorts are overbooked, and frequently entails an upgrade.
It’s also worth noting that there is still an executive order requiring residents of Louisiana and the New York Tri-State Area (Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York) arriving in Florida to isolate or quarantine for a period of 14 days after arrival.
This does not expire until July 7, 2020–it’s unclear whether it will be extended (we doubt it). Plus, most international tourists still cannot enter the United States. This brings up the issue of demand, which will be an obstacle to Walt Disney World getting back to normal.
The complexity of Walt Disney World is another huge variable, and it’ll undoubtedly take the sprawling Florida resort much more time to ramp up operations than it did to wind them down. There are literally dozens of hotels, hundreds of restaurants, and myriad other components–in addition to the four theme parks. This machine will require a slow restart that’ll take more than a week to initiate.
It’s also problematic that Disney terminated its College Program, clearing out the housing, and sending those students home. The argument could be made that these are moves made to limit liability or cut surplus labor that won’t be necessary when the parks reopen. However, the reality is that they’ve cut or furloughed a lot of labor, and it’ll take some time to get that back.
Demand is another hurdle. Over 30 million Americans have now filed for unemployment in the last two months, and millions of employers have closed their businesses and slashed their workforces. It’s by far the worst string of layoffs on record, adding up to more than one in six American workers. Economists have forecast that the unemployment rate could go as high as 20% in the near-term, and possibly surpass the 25% rate reached during the Great Depression. Consumer confidence is likewise plummeting.
While some of this will bounce back when the economy reopens, some of the damage will be lasting. Americans have already expressed an overwhelming reticence to travel on airplanes and be in large venues right now. Between that and economic anxiety, a majority of Americans may be unable or unwilling to take a Walt Disney World trip right now. That too will likely impact Disney’s reopening plans.
All of this is a very long-winded way of saying (and explaining) that a lot still remains up in the air when it comes to Walt Disney World’s reopening. Even now that we have official reopening dates for Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom plus Epcot and Hollywood Studios, there are still many unknowns.
In the last week, we’ve seen Walt Disney World Cancel All Reservations–Free Dining, Restaurants, FastPass+ & Dining Plan. We’ve also seen Park Hours Cut Significantly for Reopening. Additionally, Character Dining Has Been Cancelled. These are just a handful of changes–with many more likely to come. This might leave you wondering what you should do if you have a Walt Disney World vacation planned for July 2020 and beyond.
Ultimately, that’s a personal decision. If the lack of parades, fireworks, character meet & greets, playgrounds, nighttime spectaculars, and other entertainment are important to you, waiting is recommended. If the health safety protocol and requirements are too burdensome or sound like they’ll ruin the magic for you, waiting is also recommended. However, if you want to experience the parks with significantly limited attendance and other advantages, now might be a good time to visit. We cover all of the upsides in our new post, “The Dawn of a Temporary Disney Era.”
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
Do you plan on visiting Walt Disney World in July 2020 when the parks reopen? Hoping to visit earlier for soft openings? Or will you wait until modified operations and restrictions end, and the experience is closer to “normal” again? Do you agree or disagree with our advice and assessment? 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!
How do you think this will affect crowds for the foreseeable future? Do you think there will be a significant increase in crowds as many try to reschedule their trips for the rest of the year?
the moment they announce they will be open, you will inevitably have the people throwing caution to the wind to jam the place up. there are still far too many people who think the measures being taken are a big joke and they will be the first in line anywhere that opens back up they want to go to. i would look at it like the rise of the resistance opening, the first week or two might be manageable, then all hell will break loose because people will descend in droves.
Hi Tom – do you have any advice for ticket holders attempting to get a refund? Seems to be an outright no and Disney only offering to push tickets to a later date. This is no good for international travellers. Trying to get Disney to refuse a refund in an email seems impossible too (needed for travel insurance). Do you think their position might soften in the near future?
I had a package, hotel, tickets, etc at Walt Disney World scheduled for the coming week. I called on Monday and chose to cancel. My full refund was in my account on Wednesday. Thank you Disney!
Decided not to reschedule at this time due to so many unknowns especially with my grandchildren’s schedules. Hoping to go at Christmas but it is all “”wait and see” right now.
I called yesterday and my two tickets were reimbursed within 2 minutes!
We’re keeping our April trip booked until Disney announces further closures. At that time we’ll move our trip. I’m just concerned with how crowded the parks will be due to all of the rebookings on top of everyone who was already scheduled. My family is thinking of late Oct or early Nov for our new dates, which seems to be the most popular time that I’ve heard from everyone else looking to rebook their March/April/May vacations. I guess we’ll just wait and see what happens with everyone else!
By the way – I don’t think the park will be open any time in April. I just know there’s no harm in waiting to rebook just in case a miracle happens.
We just got our notice yesterday that the April 19 Star Wars Rival Run at Disneyworld was canceled. I don’t think Disney would’ve canceled that event if they thought there was any chance of reopening by that date. We were very disappointed but Disney refunded everything but our travel insurance.
A note to anyone who has to cancel: the cast member told me she could only take care of hotel refunds. I had to separately cancel each dining reservation to avoid the no-show charge. (‘Same with our Minnie Van reservation.) Stay safe, everyone!
Lots of unknowns. I do look forward to getting back to Disney, and the glory days.
At this point I peg July 4 as the over/under…although Florida’s Governor is doing the state no favors, especially with 20% of the population being “seniors.” It takes a lot of manpower (employees and CPs) to reopen, and keep open, the parks and all those hotels. Glass half full…our annual pass expiration keeps getting extended!
I certainly would not count on WDW opening on April 1st. We live in Florida and Wed. the governor will announce if Florida will be on lock down. Everyday more and more of Florida is being shut down. If it reopens by the end of April, I would say that will be an amazing thing because the coronavirus will be “under control”.
I work with people in China everyday. I have been following this virus since before it had a name in Wuhan and I can tell you that unless some serious measure are taken soon….we will have to shut the whole country down. Unfortunately there are too many people not taking this seriously which make sir only drag out longer.
Guess we better order more beer brewing supplies just in case!
Tom – you are forgetting one important reason to hope they open April 1st. That would mean people booking hotels and such hoping to get in. Disney gets you money at the moment you book, so even if you do eventually cancel, they have had your money for free for a while. I have always wondered why they can charge your credit card the moment you book, but it takes up to 10 days for a refund.
The refund process on Disney’s end is just like the charging process. The refund is processed and sent via wire to the bank and they deem how long the refund will be deposited to your account. Look at any company and it is the same thing 10-15 business days for refunds.
Florida is headed for a major disaster due to the lack of response by state government. I won’t be surprised if WDW is closed for the rest of 2020. Disney resorts may end up being used to house sick and dying COVID-19 patients.
Using the resorts as make shift hospitals is an interesting thought. Although if this were to happen, I’d lean more towards them being used as hospitals for those NOT infected with COVID-19 in order to free up beds in the regular hospitals for those patients.
It’s not a crazy idea. Carnival Cruise Lines has offered some of their ships as temporary hospitals in order to ease the burden. And NYC is already retrofitting spaces such as convention centers for this purpose.
Looking forward to more posts Tom!! Your our lifeline for entertainment!! Loved the cats post! How great!! Wishing you and your loved ones are staying healthy!
I’m in a wait-and-see mode regarding our June 10 reservations. However, when our airline lowered prices, I called to get a credit (amounting to $60 for each four of us) toward future travel.
Spirit airlines only will give back 20$ for a booked reservation March 30th departure this is so unfair they say Florida is still open but not my reservation so 20 dollars? Spirit is the worst
Wait until they cancel the flight then. If they cancel it, they have to give you a full refund or rebook for free on another date.
So we have reservations for July 6-11, very interested to see what the park will be like if it is open in time for us.
It looks like the best case scenario is approximately 3 months. This estimate is based on how the Coronavirus ran its course in China from the end of December to mid March.
I have been wondering that myself. It sounds like a reasonable timeline. Unfortunately, the economic ramifications of all this will outpace the virus itself . It really worries me.
Interesting read ! Appreciate your honest speculation, and as always think your site is #1. Love all that you do!
I thought the same a week ago. Everything I have read indicates ours will be much longer. We did not and still don’t test enough and people won’t quarantine. Too many still going out. We will be much harder hit for much longer unless something changes. Medicine/treatment/vaccine is best option at this point.
I would say a July 1 reopening is probably the soonest, in 2-4 weeks the infection rate will peak in NYC , meaning it will peak in other parts of the country shortly thereafter. This is just my 2 cents. Hospitals could be at maximum capacity with no empty beds or available doctors so I don’t even want to be in a position where me or anyone in my family has to go to the ER for stitches let alone for Coronavirus.
Can’t say I disagree with anything you wrote–although I hope we get this under control sooner.
The stories already coming out of NYC are scary. Hopefully people read/hear what’s happening there, as I think there are still a lot of people who could use the sobering news.
I have trip booked April 26-may 3rd, David’s Vacation club is telling us it’s up to the point owners to refund us. Getaway today is telling us, Disney will only extend our 5 hopper passes till Dec 31, no refunds. Airline are also only offering travelbank for year.. My Grandson is out of school now till end of April, my daughter inlaw lost her job, mine is in question and everyone of this company’s are treating it as business as usual policies, I’m a big fan of Disney, if there approach to this dosnt change, We will never be going back, we need the cash at this point.
I live in NYC and thinks have swiftly changed in one week. The news from doctors and nurses on my local groups online is truly frightening as to the need and lack of PPE (masks, etc). I’m sure folks here are taking this seriously but the speed with which things have changed is incredible so be prepared for that.
We alternate having Los Angeles and NYC streaming news on in the background throughout the day, so we’ve seen how those responses have differed from the local (Florida) one.
I’ve been particularly impressed by Governor Cuomo. His leadership seems like it has been a healthy mix of calm, stern, and reassuring.
So impressed with Cuomo and all the incredible’everyday heroes’ as he says. Doctors, nurses, grocery store workers, bus drivers, thankful for them all, they are keeping this city going.
Untill a vaccine is developed, mass produced and distributed to the world population, it is unlikely any large gatherings of people will be advocated as Safe……..About a Year Away!
I think that’s equally as unlikely as the parks reopening in April.
For one thing, we can already see parts of Asia starting to recover and get things back on track. While the circumstances there are definitely different–and a number of reasons the recover there could be faster, the fact is that it has started to occur.
For another thing, a year-plus without public gatherings would have catastrophic consequences on the global economy. That would cause more irreversible damage than the outbreak itself.
No way will DisneyWorld reopen April 1st as the rest of the country is shutting down.
To entertain such an expectation is pure fantasy
I am sorry to hear that. We are hoarding our pennies right now as well. Unfortunately. although my love of Disney is bordering on addiction, I am much more fond of a roof over my head and electricity at this point in time. I pray we will all be back in front of the castle as soon a safe and possible! Prayers to you and your family.
Can’t agree more! As a fellow Disney addict, I hope to see you in front of the castle soon!!
Very soon!!
Tom, I appreciate your advice about planning a vacation, but knowing that it might be cancelled. I have a trip planned for early June. I am trying to enjoy the planning, but not knowing whether or not we can go is overshadowing everything. I booked a non-refundable DVC room by renting points through DVC Rental Store (I turned down the “cancel for any reason” trip protection, because what could happen, right?). Still waiting to hear what is going on with all of that.
Just got laid off due to Corona. We were planning on rescheduling our April trip to late September. Now, we have to decide if we want to opt for a refund to help with expenses or forge ahead with the September plans. A big part of that decision will be what the federal govt does with the potential stimulus package for every American. We also have a tax refund coming to help cover some expenses over the next few months. This whole thing just sucks.
Really sorry to hear that. I know there’s nothing I can say to make this easier–a lot of people are hurting right now, and hopefully we all bounce back quickly. Our thoughts go out to you, regardless.
In this case, I’d probably just cancel and take the refund to help with other, more important expenses. There are going to be many people in the same boat as you, and right now Disney is priced for a booming economy and sky-high consumer confidence rather than a recession. Walt Disney World will have to offer some really aggressive discounts to overcome their pricing problem, and if you’re looking at September travel dates, you’re looking at a time of year when discounts will at their peak. Just rebook later if circumstances allow.
Excellent, sensible advice. Wait and see is all anyone can do. I hate to quote High School Musical. but we’re all in this together.
The proposed stimulus, our tax refund, and unemployment should get us through until being called back to work if this virus dies out by mid summer. Still undecided on if we will take a refund or reschedule. Leaning towards a reschedule to make our dining reservations where we want them and hoping for some discounts being announced for fall. Thanks for the advice!
I am surprised anyone would actually truly think this would happen. It’s such a fluid situation. Day by day living is the new norm, really.
I too am surprised, but it’s a question we’ve been getting a lot.
People put a lot of faith (way too much, IMO) in what Disney tells them. It’s one thing when that’s a denial of a popular ride closing or motivations for a price increase–it’s another thing entirely when Disney’s official public line can easily be contradicted by watching the news for like 5 minutes.