What to expect during your trip to Disney World right now: • FastPass+ is still paused • No hugs or selfies with characters • Nighttime shows are temporarily suspended
, and frankly, there’s never been a better time to plan. Disney World has always provided a grand escape from reality, with its cartoon character-shaped ice cream bars, towering fake mountains, and restaurants with ’50s kitchenettes where waiters berate you for putting elbows on the table.
But the Florida theme park resort provides something new after a year of nothingness . The Most Magical Place on Earth amended nearly all its operations to safely accommodate guests in its four theme parks — the Magic Kingdom Park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, collectively known as the Walt Disney World Resort — when it reopened in July 2020 after an unprecedented 117-day closure. Since then, it’s hit its stride, offering families a way to experience thosecharacters and Disney classics in real life after a year spent glassy-eyed, watching them on screens. New safety protocols are in place throughout the resort that streamline the typical lineup of CDC recommendations: contactless purchases, a vast canopy of hand-sanitizing stations, and minimal touchpoints. Expect to see plexiglass barriers on ride vehicles and within queues and an expansion of Disney’s already rigorous cleaning methods in the parks, at restaurants, and throughout the resort. What you won’t see, however, are selfies with princesses, masked-up hugs with Pixar characters, or sparklers coming out of Mickey Mouse’s mitts. Disney has temporarily suspended up-close character experiences and nighttime shows like Happily Ever After and Fantasmic! These will undoubtedly return, but it’s unclear when. Even FastPass+, the complimentary system that allows guests to “reserve” spots in line in order to breezily board rides like Splash Mountain, is still paused, with queues operating first-come, first-served for the first time since the late 1990s — allowing for a level of park spontaneity we haven’t seen in years. A visit to Walt Disney World used to require regimented planning — restaurant reservations booked half a year in advance, to-the-minute itineraries — but now everything is in flux, allowing a rare window for a slightly more spur-of-the-moment visit, as though you’re actually on vacation. This also means rules are constantly being updated, so be absolutely sure to give Disney’s website a once-over and download theSome hotels, restaurants, attractions, and experiences remain closed, but if it’s magic you’re after, Walt Disney World Resort continues to provide it. Cinderella still waves at young fans, Space Mountain blasts you off into the stars, and Mickey-shaped waffles are served warm and smiling. Employees, known as cast members — the undisputed backbone of this new operation — work tirelessly to continue spreading that quintessential fairy dust, even from behind face masks and shields. The heart of Disney’s theme park outfit is still there, even if it looks slightly different. Capacity is restricted on transportation, attractions, and within the parks themselves, but you will still encounter other guests, sometimes less than six feet away, while moving about the resort, particularly at Disney’s souped-up mall known as . Still, distance markers appear in every queue, and diligent staff enforcement makes mask compliance high.Kent Phillips
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