INCLUDES DISNEY PARK CHANGES FOR COVID-19

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A look at Disney’s new rides: Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, and Tron Lightcycle/Run How to get access to Disney’s best new ride in years: Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance

How to make the most of Disney’s new Early Theme Park Entry program

Exclusive patented, field-tested touring plans that save hours in line in a single day, plus free online customization to match your family’s needs

The best hotel rooms—with room numbers—and how to ask for them at every Disney World resort

Expert reviews of Walt Disney World’s restaurants, bars, and lounges, backed by more than 200,000 reader surveys over the past two years

Bob Sehlinger & Len Testa

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that you write or call ahead for confirmation when making your travel plans. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information throughout this book, and the contents of this publication are believed to be correct at the time of printing. Nevertheless, the publishers cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions, for changes in details given in this guide, or for the consequences of any reliance on the information provided by the same.

Assessments of attractions and so forth are based upon the authors’ own experiences; therefore, descriptions given in this guide necessarily contain an element of subjective opinion, which may not reflect the publisher’s opinion or dictate a reader’s own experience on another occasion. Readers are invited to write the publisher with ideas, comments, and sug- gestions for future editions. There is a risk of contracting COVID-19 in any public space.

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LIST of MAPS

and DIAGRAMS

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FOR LOVE DISNEY

D E A R R E A D E R , we’ve been writing The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World for 35 years. You’ve really got to love a place to cover it for that long—and we do. Millions of you do too. Comments like these arrive at our office every day:

“Disney World was definitely the most magical and the best family vacation we ever had.”

“Holiday of a lifetime. Meticulous planning required, but amazing.”

“We’ve already booked another trip.”

Disney’s theme parks are among the world’s greatest man-made vacation destinations. At their best, they combine unparalleled imagi- nation and storytelling with new technologies, all presented with opti- mism and an unwavering faith in humanity. Walt Disney World in particular is essentially a purpose-built city: a place designed to enter- tain, amaze, and inspire.

WHY DISNEY WORLD NEEDS a 750-PAGE GUIDEBOOK

W E K N O W W H A T Y O U ’ R E T H I N K I N G . The child-rearing classic What to Expect When You’re Expecting clocks in at 645 pages, and a typical version of the King James Bible is around 1,200. Does the advice needed for Walt Disney World really fall somewhere between childbirth and God’s manual for living?

If it’s your first time, yes.

The thing that surprises most new visitors to Walt Disney World is that a Disney vacation requires much more planning and effort than most other vacations they’ve had.

Why? The main reason is capacity. Around 60,000 people visited Disney World’s Magic Kingdom theme park in a normal, pre-pandemic

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FOR the _LOVE of _DISNEY

D E A R R E A D E R , we’ve been writing The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World for 35 years. You’ve really got to love a place to cover it for that long—and we do. Millions of you do too. Comments like these arrive at our office every day:

“Disney World was definitely the most magical and the best family vacation we ever had.”

“Holiday of a lifetime. Meticulous planning required, but amazing.”

“We’ve already booked another trip.”

Disney’s theme parks are among the world’s greatest man-made vacation destinations. At their best, they combine unparalleled imagi- nation and storytelling with new technologies, all presented with opti- mism and an unwavering faith in humanity. Walt Disney World in particular is essentially a purpose-built city: a place designed to enter- tain, amaze, and inspire.

WHY DISNEY WORLD NEEDS a 750-PAGE GUIDEBOOK

W E K N O W W H A T Y O U ’ R E T H I N K I N G . The child-rearing classic What to Expect When You’re Expecting clocks in at 645 pages, and a typical version of the King James Bible is around 1,200. Does the advice needed for Walt Disney World really fall somewhere between childbirth and God’s manual for living?

If it’s your first time, yes.

The thing that surprises most new visitors to Walt Disney World is that a Disney vacation requires much more planning and effort than most other vacations they’ve had.

Why? The main reason is capacity. Around 60,000 people visited Disney World’s Magic Kingdom theme park in a normal, pre-pandemic

INTRODUCTION

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day (it’s around 32,000 a day as we went to press). Most of them would eat at its most popular restaurant—Be Our Guest—if they could get in. But the restaurant can serve only a tiny fraction of those who want to dine there. Visitors who can’t get into Be Our Guest often end up at restaurants with worse food, higher prices, or both.

Capacity also affects Disney World’s popular rides: For some rides, there are far more people who want to ride than the ride can handle.

As a result, some visitors will wait just 10 minutes to experience a ride, and others will wait 80 minutes or more for the same attraction on the same day.

Don’t panic. If you love theme parks, Disney World is as good as it gets—the best in the small-w world. If you arrive without knowing a thing about the place and make every possible mistake, chances are about 90% that you’ll have a wonderful vacation anyway.

The job of a guidebook is to give you a heads-up regarding oppor- tunities and potential problems. We’re certain we can help you turn a great vacation into an absolutely fabulous one.

A mom from Streator, Illinois, who was amazed at the size of the Unofficial Guide, came back saying this:

It had been 10 years since we’d been to WDW, and I was shocked by how much your book grew. After going, I’m surprised that it’s so small.

WHAT MAKES THIS BOOK DIFFERENT?

T H E A D V I C E I N T H I S B O O K is different from what you’ll find on the internet or in other books, in three important ways.

First, the team that produces this book is totally independent of the Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney World, and all other members of the Disney corporate family. We don’t accept free trips, gifts, special favors, or other compensation from Disney in exchange for our coverage; we pay for everything we review. Disney doesn’t request, influence, edit, or approve anything you’ll read here.

In this guide, we represent and serve you, the reader. If a restaurant serves bad food or a gift item is overpriced or a ride isn’t worth the wait, we say so. In the process, we hope to make your visit more fun and rewarding.

Second, we use data, science, and technology to help solve problems that you’ll encounter in Walt Disney World. In many ways, the Disney theme parks are the quintessential system: the ultimate in mass- produced entertainment, the most planned and programmed environment anywhere. Lines for rides and restaurants form in predictable ways at predictable times, for example. That makes it possible for us to study them.

You may be surprised that Disney-related questions like “How can I wait less in line?” or “What rides should my kids try?” are active areas of research in schools around the world; similar problems pop up in businesses every day. The authors and researchers who write this book have years—some have decades—of academic and professional experience in these areas and use them to benefit you.

The third way this book is different is the amount of time and money that goes into making it. Disney research is the full-time job of

most of our core team. Over the years, we’ve spent millions of dollars reviewing and analyzing Disney World’s hotels, rides, lines, and restaurants. No other book or website commits the people, skills, or budget to do anything like the research you’ll find in these pages. The only other organization that does comparable analysis of Disney World is Disney itself. And we’ll tell you what it won’t.

HOW to USE THIS BOOK

T H E B E S T WAY T O U S E T H I S B O O K is to read in order the first few pages of each chapter, to get a feel for the kinds of questions the chapter answers. Then read in depth the chapters most important to you.

We’ve organized the chapters so that they appear in the same sequence and timeline that you’ll use to plan and take your trip. For example, Part Two contains advice on what you need to know to start your trip planning. The next few chapters guide you through choos- ing a hotel, finding good places to eat, and picking the best rides and entertainment in the parks.

Each chapter starts with Key Questions, a list of the most common and important queries that visitors have about Walt Disney World (and Universal Orlando). For each question, we’ve listed where in the chapter to find the answers—here’s an example:

KEY QUESTIONS ANSWERED IN THIS CHAPTER

• Where can I find a planning checklist and timeline? (pages 30–35)

• What are the six most important tips for avoiding lines at Disney World?

(page 53)

• What is the FastPass+ ride-reservation system, and how do I use it?

(page 63)

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most of our core team. Over the years, we’ve spent millions of dollars reviewing and analyzing Disney World’s hotels, rides, lines, and restaurants. No other book or website commits the people, skills, or budget to do anything like the research you’ll find in these pages. The only other organization that does comparable analysis of Disney World is Disney itself. And we’ll tell you what it won’t.

HOW to USE THIS BOOK

T H E B E S T WAY T O U S E T H I S B O O K is to read in order the first few pages of each chapter, to get a feel for the kinds of questions the chapter answers. Then read in depth the chapters most important to you.

We’ve organized the chapters so that they appear in the same sequence and timeline that you’ll use to plan and take your trip. For example, Part Two contains advice on what you need to know to start your trip planning. The next few chapters guide you through choos- ing a hotel, finding good places to eat, and picking the best rides and entertainment in the parks.

Each chapter starts with Key Questions, a list of the most common and important queries that visitors have about Walt Disney World (and Universal Orlando). For each question, we’ve listed where in the chapter to find the answers—here’s an example:

• Where can I find a planning checklist and timeline? (pages 30–35)

• What are the six most important tips for avoiding lines at Disney World?

(page 53)

• What is the FastPass+ ride-reservation system, and how do I use it?

(page 63)

If you don’t recognize a term such as FastPass+, you should read that section of the chapter—it’s probably important.

Of course, each chapter answers many more questions than the ones shown on the first page. We suggest skimming each chapter’s boldfaced section headings to see if a particular topic is relevant to your family.

Some subjects, such as how Disney accommodates guests in wheel- chairs, are relevant across multiple parts of your vacation. These subjects are usually covered in depth in one chapter (in this case, Part Eight, “Special Tips for Special People”), with cross-references in other chapters when they’re needed.

Many topics are discussed in depth. For example, Disney World has hundreds of rides, from simple spinning things you find at your local town carnival to massive super-headliners, the likes of which you’ve never seen. Understanding the scale of these rides, and how they’re run, will help you decide what’s worth your time. And if you visit another theme park later, you’ll know what to look for when planning that trip too.

If you use the guide like an encyclopedia or dictionary—say, you look something up in one of the indexes then go to the cited page—you

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may overlook information presented in previous sections that is vital to understanding the subject. Likewise, if you skip or skim over explana- tory material in the introductory chapters, that might lead to a misun- derstanding later on.

YOUR UNOFFICIAL WALT DISNEY WORLD TOOLBOX

W H E N I T C O M E S T O WA LT D I S N E Y W O R L D , a couple with two toddlers in diapers needs different advice than a party of seniors going to the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival. Likewise, adults touring without children, families with kids of varying ages, and hon- eymooners all require their own special guidance.

To meet the needs of our diverse readers, we’ve created the compre- hensive guide before you. We call The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, at 756 pages, the “Big Book.” It provides the detailed informa- tion that anyone traveling to Walt Disney World needs to have a super vacation. It’s our cornerstone.

As thorough as we try to make the main guide, though, there just isn’t sufficient space for all the tips and resources that may be useful to certain readers. Therefore, we’ve developed three additional guides that provide information tailored to specific visitors.

Here’s what’s in the toolbox:

The Unofficial Guide to Disney Cruise Line, by Erin Foster with Len Testa and Ritchey Halphen, presents advice for first-time cruisers;

money-saving tips for booking your cruise; and detailed profiles for restaurants, shows, and nightclubs, along with deck plans and thorough coverage of the ports visited by Disney Cruise Line.

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World with Kids, by Bob Sehlinger and Liliane J. Opsomer with Len Testa, presents detailed planning and touring tips for a family vacation, along with more than 20 family touring plans not included in the Big Book.

The Unofficial Guide to Universal Orlando, by Seth Kubersky, is the most comprehensive guide to Universal Orlando Resort in print.

At more than 400 pages, it’s the perfect tool for understanding and enjoying Universal’s ever-expanding complex consisting of theme parks, a water park, resort hotels, nightclubs, and restaurants. The guide includes field-tested touring plans that will save you hours of standing in line.

CORRECTIONS, UPDATES, AND BREAKING NEWS

L O O K F O R T H E S E at TouringPlans.com; see page 27 for a complete description of the site.

LETTERS AND COMMENTS FROM READERS

M A N Y O F Y O U W H O U S E The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World write us to comment or share your own strategies for visiting Disney World. Your comments and observations are frequently incor- porated into future editions of the Unofficial Guide and have contrib- uted immeasurably to its ongoing improvement. If you write us or complete our reader survey, rest assured that we won’t release your name or address to any mailing-list companies, direct-marketing adver- tisers, or other third parties.

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Speaking of comments, from the thousands of letters, emails, and surveys we receive, only about 1 in 8 contains comments. Of these, only a small percentage are substantive and well stated. In other words, quotable comments are like gold to us. If a comment on a particular subject hits the nail on the head, it’s unlikely (though it happens) that we’ll receive a more well-written and more incisive comment. If a better comment isn’t forthcoming, the older comment remains in the next edition because it best serves our readers.

Online Reader Survey

Our website hosts a questionnaire you can use to express opinions about your Walt Disney World visit. Access it here: touringplans.com /walt-disney-world/survey. The questionnaire lets every member of your party, regardless of age, tell us what he or she thinks about attractions, hotels, restaurants, and more.

You can also print out the reader survey and mail it to us at the following address:

Reader Survey

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2204 First Ave. S., Ste. 102

Birmingham, AL 35233

Finally, if you’d like to review this book on Amazon, go to tinyurl .com/wdw2021reviews.

How to Contact the Authors Bob Sehlinger and Len Testa

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2204 First Ave. S., Ste. 102

Birmingham, AL 35233 [email protected]

Facebook: TheUnofficialGuides | Twitter: @TheUGSeries

When you write, please put your mailing address on both your letter and your envelope—the two sometimes get separated. It’s also a good idea to include your phone number. If you email us,

please tell us where you’re from.

Also, understand that, as travel writers, we’re often out of the office for extended periods of time, so please bear with us if we’re slow to respond.

Unofficial Guide email isn’t forwarded to us when we’re traveling, but we’ll get back to you as soon as possible after we return.

THE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TEAM

A L L O W U S T O I N T R O D U C E T H E P E O P L E who work on this book, except for our dining critic, who shall remain anonymous:

Steve Bloom is the voice of reason in the wilderness that is statistical analysis. Gerelyn Reaves answers email better than we could and gen- erally keeps everyone in line. Seth Kubersky is our Universal Orlando guru, assisted by food consigliere Derek Burgan. David Davies, Brad Huber, and Julia Mascardo keep the website running. Tom Bricker does fabulous theme park photography. Todd Perlmutter, Bryan Klinck, and

unofficial

T I P

If you’re up for having your comments quoted in the Guide, be sure to tell us where you’re from.

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•BOB SEHLINGER Author and publisher •LEN TESTA Coauthor

•FRED HAZELTON Statistician •SARAH KELLETH TouringPlans.com webmaster, Lines developer

•JIM HILL Disney Dish contributor •TRAVIS BRYANT TheUnofficialGuides.com webmaster

•KAREN TURNBOW, PhD Child psychologist Darcie Vance Mary Waring Deb Wills

HOTEL INSPECTORS Ritchey Halphen Kristen Helmstetter Seth Kubersky Lillian Macko Richard Macko Darcie Vance EDITORIAL, ART, AND PRODUCTION

• AMBER K. HENDERSON, KATE JOHNSON Managing editors DATA COLLECTORS

Chantale Brazeau Shane Grizzard Cliff Myers Ivonne Ramos Darcie Vance Rich Vosburgh Kelly Whitman

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Rich Bernato

Christina Harrison Brian McNichols Liliane J. Opsomer Sue Pisaturo Laurel Stewart

• ANNIE LONG Text design

• SCOTT MCGREW Cover design

• STEVE JONES, CASSANDRA POERTNER Cartography

• TAMI KNIGHT,

CHRIS ELIOPOULOS Cartoonists

• ASHLEY M. ARTHUR, DAN DOWNING, CARMINE LOPER, DARCIE VANCE, JAN VANCE Research editors

• POTOMAC INDEXING Indexers (Joanne Sprott, team leader)

EJJ skillfully debugged our touring plan software. Lines’s chat is mod- erated by the fabulous Weasus, Heather, and Camsdad.

We’d like to say thanks to these folks for their assistance with fact- checking and research: Robert Bloom, Shannon Bohn, Dani Denni- son, Anne Densk, Alyssa Drake, Erin Foster, Becky Gandillon, Scott Gustin, Erin Jenkins, Richard and Lillian Macko, Lauren Macvane, David McDonough, and Carlye Wisel. Thanks also to Jamie Hold- ing and his GitHub repository (github.com/cubehouse/themeparks).

Thanks to John Tierney, who, as far as we know, did not acquire his

“data collection” skills during stints in Eastern Europe working for three-letter US government agencies.

Finally, to everyone at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts who follows our research from a distance in this special, weird relationship, even if they can’t say it: We love you too.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING SERIOUS

S O M E A R E A S T O N I S H E D that seemingly intelligent adults would spend so much time on critical analyses of theme park rides. If you’ve ever heard “You’re going to Disney again?” from a relative, try explain- ing to complete strangers your theory that Mrs. Potts is an unreliable narrator. But most of us wouldn’t think twice about reading Consumer Reports before buying a car or a major appliance. And Disney World costs more than a dishwasher.

Beyond that, the Disney corporation is immensely powerful—it has enough money, talent, and time to do almost anything its executives desire. When Disney’s marketing says its theme parks and restaurants are “world-class” and its artists are “legends,” it’s important to hold it accountable for those words, if they are to mean anything at all.

The best way to do that is to point out whether the things Disney wants to sell you meet the standards it has set for itself. When we say that Rise of the Resistance at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is the best theme park ride Disney has made in at least 30 years, it’s because we believe it meets the highest of Disney’s ideals dating back to Walt him- self. Likewise, if you read us kvetching about a cartoon-based roller

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coaster in EPCOT, or that the adjective regal means “fit for a king” and absolutely shouldn’t be used in the name of a post- Colonial American restaurant next to an attraction literally dedicated to the republic, it’s because those things don’t make sense in the stories that Disney has already established. And as Disney says, it all begins with a story.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING GOOFY

D I S N E Y E X E C M I L D R E D M U G G S is escorting intern Bill Reynolds to an important meeting on yield management.

“I’m not sure I know what yield management is,” Bill confides. “Is it something to do with the #MeToo movement?”

Mildred gives Bill a disbelieving look. “It’s a variable product- pricing strategy that seeks to maximize revenue given existing market conditions,” she explains.

“Oh,” Bill says. “I’m not sure I get it, but . . .”

Mildred interrupts, “It’s about how to squeeze the last penny out of every Disney guest.”

“Ah . . .”

They enter the conference room, where they join a Who’s Who of Disney’s top management.

Everett Miserpenny, chief financial officer, opens the meeting.

“We’ve raised room and food prices way beyond the point of price sensitivity, so we really need to be creative here. What’s something else that all of our guests need no matter what?”

“Water?” an accountant ventures. “We sell expensive bottled water.

If we remove all the drinking fountains, it would goose sales.”

“Yeah, but then we’d have to outlaw guests bringing their own water, which would tie up security at the entrance and cause lots of arguments. We want to get guests into the park quickly, so they can buy stuff.”

“How ’bout pay toilets?” the vice president of sanitation ventures.

“I think you’re onto something,” says Miserpenny. “But that’s way too simple. We’d never get it past the Complications Department.”

“Wahoo!! I think I’ve got it!” the sanitation VP cuts in. “Prepaid Advance Reservations for nicer restrooms in the parks.”

“But how do you know when you will need to poop three months in advance?”

“Well, some people are very regular. I’m amazingly regular. In fact, just last week . . .”

“OK, point taken, George.”

“People are very picky about restrooms. My wife won’t go at a gas station, but McDonald’s is OK,” a middle manager relates.

“That’s the point! That’s why a lot of guests will go for the upscale restrooms even if they have to pay extra. The Advance Reservation is for a fancy toilet on a certain day, so we can call it A-Commode-Date.

Get it? It’s a natural!”

“Guests without a toilet reservation will use restaurant restrooms.

That would lessen the incentive to buy A-Commode-Date.”

“No problem. No getting into full-service restaurants without an Advance Reservation. If they have a dining res, it will be on their MagicBand. That will also unlock the restroom door.”

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“What about people who really have to go but don’t have a reservation? Not everybody is as regular as George.”

“We’ll have three Mayday restrooms in each park. No stalls, just a long row of toilets. Easy, cheap, and efficient. Plus, we can save money by servicing them less often. It’s a win all around.”

“Do we sell toilet paper?”

“Each person will get half a roll for free, to be monitored on the MagicBand. After that, 25¢ per two squares will be charged to the customer’s account.”

“That’s all really complicated,” Miserpenny comments enthusiasti- cally. “The board will love it.”

And so it goes . . .

What makes writing about Walt Disney World so much fun is that the Disney people take everything so seriously. Day to day, they debate momentous decisions with far-ranging consequences: Will Pluto look silly in a silver cape? Have we gone too far with The Little Mermaid’s cleavage? With the nation’s drug problem a constant concern, should we have a dwarf named Dopey?

Unofficially, we think having a sense of humor is important. This guidebook has one, and it’s probably necessary that you do too—not to use this book but to have the most fun possible at Walt Disney World. Think of the Unofficial Guide as a private trainer to help get your sense of humor in shape. It will help you understand the importance of being goofy.

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DISNEY WORLD in the TIME

of COVID

WA LT D I S N E Y W O R L D C L O S E D on March 15, 2020, for 118 days as the novel coronavirus swept through the country. When they reopened on July 11, Disney’s theme parks and resorts implemented a series of new safety procedures designed to keep employees and guests as safe as possible. These new procedures are described below.

Disney also reduced park hours; capped how many people can enter its theme parks each day (and implemented mandatory park reservations); suspended popular benefits such as the FastPass+ ride- reservation system; canceled fireworks shows, parades, and character greetings; and temporarily closed attractions, restaurants, and hotels.

Assuming you’re willing to comply with all the new safety processes, let’s answer the obvious question first.

IS DISNEY WORLD WORTH IT?

E X C E P T F O R F L O R I D A R E S I D E N T S , Disney has charged more or less full price for its theme parks and hotels since reopening. Part of that is just pragmatism: It would be bad customer service to sell discounted hotel rooms to people who can’t get into the theme parks because of capacity limits. But even if you want to go, you can afford it, and you can get hotel and park reservations, is what’s being offered worth paying nearly full price?

UNOFFICIAL GUIDE UPDATES

The first set of updates for the 2021 edition were done in early February 2021. We’ve incorporated Disney’s current operating procedures into this edition for those of you planning trips in the next few months. An up-to-date summary of book changes is available at tinyurl.com/wdwupdates.

We expect this edition to be available through fall 2021. We know many of you are using this edition to plan trips that will take place after a COVID- 19 vaccine is widely administered, and when Disney may bring back popular programs such as FastPass+. This edition still covers those topics, so you’ll be prepared when they’re reinstated.

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FastPass+ ride-reservation system (see page 63) and hard-ticket events such as Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. Except for VIP tours, Disney’s guided tours are suspended.

We think FastPass+ may return as Disney increases park capacity.

Standby lines at the rides now require 6 feet of space between guests.

Even when the parks were at 10% of their pre-pandemic capacity, that increased some lines’ length enough that they spilled out into the walkways. FastPass+ would reduce the need for that many people to be in the standby line.

Some counter-service and sit-down restaurants remain closed, especially at EPCOT. See Part Six, “Dining,” for more details.

HOTELS AND RESORTS Disney has reopened at least two resorts in each of Disney’s Value, Moderate, and Deluxe categories, and all of Walt Disney World’s Disney Vacation Club resorts are open. Each open resort has at least one dining option available; some sit-down restaurants might be closed. Each resort has at least one open pool.

Other resort activities and recreation are limited or suspended. See Part Five, “Accommodations,” for more details.

TRANSPORTATION Disney’s buses, monorails, boats, and Skyliner are running between the theme parks, resorts, and Disney Springs and have implemented social distancing. A few monorail, bus, and boat stops have been temporarily closed. See Part Nine, “Arriving and Get- ting Around,” for more details.

WATER PARKS Blizzard Beach will reopen March 7, 2021. Typhoon Lagoon doesn’t have an opening date at press time.

DINING, SHOPPING, AND NIGHTLIFE Almost all of Disney Springs’ restaurants and stores are open at reduced capacity. Dining reservations are still recommended. Restaurants will encourage you to read menus using your smartphone. Contactless payments (that is, not cash) are encouraged throughout Walt Disney World. See Part Six, “Dining,”

and Part Eighteen, “Shopping and Nightlife,” for more details.

RECREATION, SPAS, AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES TOURS Disney’s golf courses are open. Most other outdoor activities at resorts, such as boating, are not currently available. Likewise, public VIP tours such as Keys to the Kingdom are temporarily suspended; the one exception is private VIP tours, which continue to be available.

We think it’s unlikely that hands-on experiences such as spa treat- ments, or large-group park tours, will return to the parks before a COVID vaccine is widely administered. Because it’s also likely that those offerings will be substantially different than they were, we’ve decided to discontinue coverage of these topics in this edition.

SAFETY PROCEDURES

A R E A D E R F R O M D A N V I L L E , P E N N S Y LVA N I A , reported back on experiencing Disney World during the pandemic:

We enjoyed the smaller crowds during the pandemic. We felt safe there. Staff was direct but polite in reminding people to wear their masks appropriately. Distancing in the parks was well controlled.

Hand sanitizer was readily available.

We’ll answer that question by asking another: Think of your favorite pre-pandemic sit-down restaurant, the one that you’re ordering takeout from now. Is the to-go experience that you’re paying full price for today the same as the in-restaurant experience you had before? Probably not.

But you’re willing to pay full price because you know that in normal times, the restaurant offers good value for the money, and you want it to make it through this thing. That’s how we feel about theme parks.

If you were in the middle of planning your first or once-in-a- lifetime trip to Walt Disney World, wait to go until a vaccine is widely administered and Disney brings back its parades, fireworks, and character greetings. Those are some of the best and most highly rated activities in the parks, and you can’t experience them right now.

If, however, you’re a fan of Walt Disney World and you’ve been before, then we think it’s worth going. You’ll be trading off parades you’ve already seen and characters you’ve already met for smaller lines and crowds than perhaps you’ve ever seen, and meals that have never been prepared with so much individual attention. You’ll also be helping to employ thousands of cast members. And the first time you’re on a ride where the lights dim, the music starts, and the special effects kick in, you’ll forget everything going on in the outside world and simply be entertained. It’s blissful.

There’s danger, of course, in recommending that people pay full price for drastically limited parks and resorts. It’s possible that as the pandemic subsides, Disney makes these cuts permanent, figuring that people have been willing to pay the same while getting objec- tively less, so why not boost the bottom line?

We’re not minimizing this risk; there are plenty of Disney executives who display the same passion and interest in the parks as they would a guano farm in Bolivia—as long as money’s coming in, they don’t think about who pays it or why. But now feels like the time to assume positive intent—that someone high up in the Disney company recognizes its theme park guests are willing to take chances and make sacrifices today so that the parks will be here tomorrow—and not worry about being taken advantage of.

WHAT’S OPEN AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

THEME PARKS All four of Disney’s theme parks are open daily. The parks open and close at staggered times to reduce the number of people standing together on buses and at transportation stops. Operating hours have been reduced substantially: Expect the parks to be open around 10–14 hours daily during summer and holidays, and 8 or 9 hours at other times.

A theme park reservation is now required to enter a park each day. See page 32 in Part Two, “Planning Before You Leave Home,”

for details.

Almost all theme park attractions are open. Up-close character greetings, parades, and fireworks have been suspended, as have the

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