Everything We Just Learned about Walt Disney World’s Reopening
Today is a glorious day. Disney has presented its reopening plan to the Orange County council, which immediately approved.
As soon as the governor signs off on the plan, Walt Disney World can begin to reopen, starting on July 11th.
Why did Disney choose this date, and what changes will we see when the parks return? Here’s everything we just learned about Disney’s Reopening.
Why Did Disney Pick This Date?
I’m going to perform a bit of prophecy here. In the comments section, some people will say that Disney should open tomorrow and without mask requirements.
Disney disagrees with those assessments, and science is on their side. Currently, 1 out of every 200 Americans has contracted COVID-19. More than 100,000 people have died from the disease.
While we have (finally) flattened the curve in many areas, Disney officials have spoken regularly with the CDC. The executive team understands that much of Coronavirus remains a mystery.
This enlightening interview demonstrates how much we know and don’t know about the pandemic.
Disney hasn’t rushed to open yet because the company legitimately cares about the safety of its guests. If you don’t believe this, consider the competition.
During the same joint meeting, SeaWorld Orlando asked to reopen on June 11th. Disney will wait a full month until July 11th.
Meanwhile, Universal Orlando Resort will rush back next week. Who owns Universal? Yes, it’s Comcast, the multi-time winner of Worst Company in America.
Comcast infamously doesn’t care about its customers and just proved that. Universal Orlando Resort features several bottlenecked areas where guests can’t socially distance. Still, the parks will reopen on a whim in a few days.
Few companies have been impacted as much by Coronavirus as Disney. The easiest thing for Bob Iger and Bob Chapek to do would have been to use Universal as cover and reopen.
Instead, Disney will wait a month to give medical professionals more time to learn. You may think there’s no need, but COVID-19 cases have risen in 17 states in recent days.
Disney’s being smart and safe. I thank the company for its consideration.
Were There Other Reasons?
Oh, yes. Disney has several reasons why it should wait a bit longer than other parks. Let’s focus on three: employees, training, and optics.
As you know, Disney furloughed many of its cast members as a cost-cutting measure. Those workers haven’t done their jobs for more than two months now.
The world has changed dramatically since then. So, Disney must bring back its employees, which isn’t a simple step on its own.
The company is contacting tens of thousands of cast members. And it’s dealing with the applicable unions, too.
Disney has agreed to worker guidelines with these unions, and management must ensure that all phases of the contract are honored.
So, there’s a bureaucratic aspect. However, there are also two more impact issues, both of which involve safety.
Cast members need training on the new safety protocols. The parks will work differently when they reopen.
Since Disney wants to keep its guests safe, the cast members must take the lead in protecting others.
However, there’s a second component to this matter. Disney cares just as much about its employees. So, it needs to verify that the new measures protect cast members, too.
We’re talking about a lot of modifications to human behavior, which isn’t easy right now. I keep grabbing handrails and then cursing myself while I use hand sanitizer.
About the Optics…
Finally, optics matter, also. Disney’s fighting a perception from some that it’s still reopening too soon.
The dates that I’d heard most frequently about Disney’s return were all in July. Specifically, I was told July 6th on multiple occasions, and the explanation was interesting.
Disney officials worried that if the parks were open on July 4th, guests would ignore social distancing requests. This would lead to negative headlines.
Even worse, social media would light up with pictures and videos about how the parks are mobbed.
After all, the same thing happened on the closing days of Disneyland and Magic Kingdom.
Disney can’t win here. As the industry leader in theme park entertainment, the company faces more expectations and more criticism.
So, a holiday opening is fraught with peril for them. If the parks do too well, cynics attack Disney for the lack of social distancing.
Conversely, if the parks are empty on a holiday, people will claim that Disney opened too soon.
In Star Trek terms, it’s a Kobayashi Maru. However, Disney can’t stay on the sidelines forever. There’s no money in that, AND it alienates fans.
As such, the future is now. Well, it’s mid-July.
Comments from the Boss
Disney’s new CEO, Bob Chapek, appeared on CNBC moments after the reopening proposal. He provided updates on Disney’s rationale here.
For starters, Chapek and his staff didn’t want to open the parks until they could provide the “quintessential Disney experience.”
I know that some of you had expressed concern about the lack of parades or fireworks at the parks.
Obviously, those aren’t feasible right now, but it’s heartening that Disney officials are worrying so much about customer satisfaction.
When people come back to the parks, they deserve the true Disney experience. The concept of the Disney Bubble exists for a reason.
Disney is delaying its return by several weeks to assure guests of getting their money’s worth. And again, cast member training will play an integral part in that goal.
Chapek shied away from providing capacity estimates. Disney has previously hinted at 20-30 percent capacity limits, as is the case at Shanghai Disneyland.
However, the number of daily park visitors will remain a mystery for now. Chapek did reveal that Disney has a “tremendous number of reservations that are on our books for the future.”
Disney’s goal all along was to avoid running the parks at a loss. The CEO indicates that each park will allow enough capacity to cover expenses.
So, Disney expects to turn a profit from day one of its reopening. That’s a frugal, smart approach.
Chapek expressed pride that Disney has demonstrated so much concern for its customers. He notes that his parks were the first to close and the last major Florida parks to reopen.
This statement alone demonstrates just how much the health of park guests matters to Disney.
Still, for park fanatics, the most important fact is…
WE’RE BACK, BABY!!!