Walt Disney World has already started to raise theme park capacity according to Disney CEO Bob Chapek, and they will continue to do so given today’s new guidance from the CDC.
The last we had heard, the theme parks were at 35% capacity, but according to Chapek, this changed at some point to an undisclosed higher percentage.
In terms of the parks, and when we’re going to sort of be able to raise our capacity limits, we’ve actually already started that.Given the guidance that just came today, from the CDC, and earlier guidance that we got from the governor of Florida, we’ve already started to increase our capacities.
So I think you’re going to see an immediate increase in the number of folks that were able to admit into our parks through our reservation systems that we recently implemented. So we’re very, very excited about that.
Bob Chapek, CEO, The Walt Disney Company
Given yesterday’s announcements by the CDC regarding vaccinated people and their reduced need for masks both indoors and outdoors, Chapek stated that guests will “see an immediate increase” in park pass reservation availability at Walt Disney World, as the theme park capacity will be raised even more.
Exactly what “immediate increase” means remains to be seen, but at some point soon at least, we expect to see the parks to be filled with many more guests.
Big news just announced! Disney’s CEO, Bob Chapek, announced during Disney investor call on November 12, that Disney will increase capacity to 35%.
Previously, Disney has been running at a 25% capacity window. During an interview on October 13, Chapek said Disney would remain capped at 25% for all of their theme parks. A month later and it looks like there will be a bump in capacity. Chapek did say on the call that 6-feet social distancing guidelines from the CDC will still be followed.
BlogMickey shared the quote from Chapek as follows:
…our operators, which you know are the best in the world are becoming much more efficient and effective in operating under COVID guidelines. And we’ve been able to pretty materially increase our capacity and still stay within the guidelines that local governments are giving us, for example, 6 foot be social distancing, and this is happening across our parks across the world. In fact, Walt Disney world, which was at a 25% capacity constraint which was our industrial engineering estimates to keep 6 foot social distancing, now has been able to increase to 35% of capacity. So, almost a 50% increase in the number of guests that we can allow in, and still adhere to the local guidelines and the guidelines that are stipulated by the CDC with the 6 foot social distancing.
The announcement follows the news that Disney Parks report a net loss of $2.4 billion in fourth quarter earnings.
Shanghai Disneyland was the first Disney property to reopen after extended COVID-19 closures back in May. And with CEO Bob Chapek stating that Shanghai is the model for other parks reopening, new developments are always important to watch. Now that the pandemic has seemingly slowed down within China, the Chinese Government is allowing tourism spots to raise capacity from 30% to 50%. As a result Shanghai Disneyland will increase its capacity effective August 24th, and will transition from its current phase of advance reservations to the next phase, according to the official Resort website. This makes Shanghai Disneyland the first Disney-owned park to increase capacity after reopening.
According to Shanghai Disney Resort, this new system will allow Annual Passholders and day guests to visit on any eligible date based on the conditions of their pass or ticket. Guests will still be required to make a reservation in advance, but the process will become much more flexible for both day Guests and Annual Passholders. Let’s start with the new system for Passholders.
Annual Passholders
Beginning August 24, 2020, Shanghai Disneyland Annual Passholders will no longer be required to obtain a visitation spot or choose the arrival time of their visit in advance. Instead, procedures will work as follows:
Annual Passholders will be able to visit the park on any eligible day, depending on their pass level.
Annual Passholders will need to make a reservation by submitting their visit date and personal information through the resort’s official online platforms to obtain a Shanghai Disneyland Reservation QR Code prior to their arrival at the park entrance.
Guests may arrive and enter the park at any time on their selected visit date.
The current seven-day reservation calendar will be expanded to a 30-day window for Annual Passholders, including for same-day reservations. A 30-day window for Annual Passholders to reserve a visit starting from August 24th will open on August 18th at 1:00PM China Standard Time.
Annual Passholders will be provided with one reservation per visit per pass, and a new reservation can be made once the current one is redeemed, cancelled or expired.
Annual Pass expiration dates will also be extended for the 212-day period between January 25th and August 23rd, 2020. For passes purchased during that period, the validity period will start counting on August 24th.
Day Tickets
As with Annual Pass holders, General Admission ticketholders and tickets with specific dates will not be required to obtain a visitation spot beginning August 24th. Instead, they will only need to make a reservation by submitting their visit date and personal information to obtain a Shanghai Disneyland Reservation QR Code prior to their arrival at the park’s Main Entrance. Tickets will still not be sold on-site at ticket booths, but they may be purchased through the Shanghai Disneyland website or through travel agency partners.
Like with Annual Passes, General Admission ticket validity will be extended 212 from their original expiration dates. Ticket validity for General Admission tickets bought during the period between January 25th and August 23rd will start counting expiration from August 24th.
It’s interesting to see Shanghai Disneyland pave the way forward. They’ve already resumed parades and fireworks on a trial basis and are well on their way towards normality once again. We can only hope that these changes can safely make their way to Walt Disney World and the other Disney resorts soon enough! In the meantime, stay tuned to WDWNT for the latest news as the Disney Parks worldwide recover from the effects of COVID-19.
