Walt Disney World is open for previews, and some of the social distancing seems… practically non-existent, at least at The Emporium in the Magic Kingdom.
Twitter user @ThemeParkExpres was there yesterday, and some of the pics they posted looked like Disney pre-pandemic.
Zero crowd control inside the Emporium on Main Street. Many quests are shocked with how many people are in here. @WDWGuestService THIS PLACE NEEDS HELP! pic.twitter.com/eO3NgFyeWP
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Hardly ANY social distancing in the Emporium! Despite multiple CMs out front controlling guest flow in and out of the store. pic.twitter.com/tlmu0Sq4r7
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
This is just at the previews, and there doesn’t appear to be a lot of kids present. Magic Kingdom opens to the general public on Saturday, and we can only imagine what kind of chaos that will bring.
With Florida’s coronavirus cases skyrocketing daily, many pundits are questioning the wisdom of opening theme parks during the pandemic.
Disneyland in California has pushed its opening back due to cast member concerns.
To be fair, not all corners of Disney’s Parks were as crowded as the Emporium.
Pretty lengthy line for Splash Mountain however it looks like everyone is maintaining their social distance and standing where they need to pic.twitter.com/i5aBUKgPvw
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Socially distanced meet and greet for captain Jack Sparrow pic.twitter.com/vYYWJoXnTJ
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Guests walk straight through the Haunted Mansion stretching room. Pre show audio heavily modifued. They appear to be loading guests every two doom buggies. pic.twitter.com/IYpf0UOyjt
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Social distancing markers on Its A Small World pic.twitter.com/7t4kgIQ7tT
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Playing bumper boats in the final room…send help…koda requests a churro…mistakes were made pic.twitter.com/VrcJrQPFgn
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Social distancing markers and plexiglass in the queue for Space Mountain pic.twitter.com/esOyS6b2qc
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Plenty of social distancing markers in the queue for Buzz pic.twitter.com/AjRtAzqRZK
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Social distancing markers leading up to photopass cast members pic.twitter.com/RyogfxHg8N
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
According to an attraction manager, every attraction in Magic Kingdom is being sanitized every two hours pic.twitter.com/cAYFnBsh1Q
— Theme Park Express (@ThemeParkExpres) July 8, 2020
Disney fans are pretty much split down the middle on whether or not it’s smart for the parks to open now. But it does appear that Disney is trying to mitigate the potential spread as much as they can, where they can.
However, a lot of this comes down to park Guests actually listening to instructions. And we all know how well they tend to listen.
Thanks to Theme Park Express for the hat tip, and check them out on YouTube here.
Pirates & Princesses (PNP) is an independent, opinionated fan-powered news blog that covers Disney and Universal Theme Parks, Themed Entertainment and related Pop Culture from a consumer's point of view. Opinions expressed by our contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of PNP, its editors, affiliates, sponsors or advertisers. PNP is an unofficial news source and has no connection to The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal or any other company that we may cover.