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Disney Parks

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

This is a big week for Disney fans as Walt Disney World is preparing for its phased reopening of the Resort’s four theme parks which begins this Saturday, July 11th with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, followed by EPCOT and Hollywood Studios on July 15th.

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

Monorail

One big topic we’ve been exploring is what getting around the property will look like. We’ve taken a look at buses with the recent reopening of select Resort hotels, but what will it be like to ride the Disney Skyliner, the boats, and (of course) the Monorail? Well, we took our first cruise on a reopened Monorail today (with thanks to a friend who invited us to a Cast Member preview which is currently taking place) and we’re here to tell you what it was like!

We took the Monorail from the Transportation and Ticket Center to Magic Kingdom. The Transportation and Ticket Center (or TTC, for short) serves to offer parking for Magic Kingdom guests in addition to transportation options to the park itself. (The picture below, just for reference, was taken during a previous visit.)

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

Monorail Station at Walt Disney World Ticket and Transportation Center

It’s worth noting that the Tram vehicles — which guests can ride from the parking lots to the TTC in order to shorten the walk — were not in operation this morning. However, we’d like to remind that today is a cast member preview, so things may work differently when the parks officially reopen. (P.S. Ferry Boat transportation was also available.)

Approaching the Monorail station, numbers are placed on the ground, giving guests the ability to easily spot where they may stand in order to keep a safe distance from other groups. (We’d like to thank @aleyafromdisney on Instagram for sharing the picture below with us!)

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

Physical Distancing Stickers

Number signage is also put in use as guests await the arrival of the next Monorail to carry them along the “Highway in the Sky” that leads to the Magic Kingdom.

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

Monorail stickers

A cast member gave us a number to stand on prior to boarding, which helped not only with traffic flow but also with the ultimate purpose of dispersing guests — keeping appropriate distancing in mind — throughout the cars themselves.

Cars are now split with physical distancing barriers, and our car was limited to us and one other party of four.

Here’s What It’s Like to Ride the Monorail in a Reopened Disney World!

Monorail partition

Overall, it was nice to ride along the “Highway in the Sky” once more. We’d like to state again that, because today was a Cast Member preview, things may change when Magic Kingdom reopens to guests this weekend. So be sure to stay tuned to DFB this week for all of the HUGE new Disney World updates!

Have any specific questions about riding the Monorail in a reopened Disney World? Ask them in the comments and we’ll do our best to get you answers.

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, disney parks, Featured, magic kingdom, Walt Disney World, disney transportation, Disney World reopening, health measures, monorail, monorail health measures, monorail reopening, transportation and ticket center

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Disney News Disney Parks

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

While limited Disney Transportation has already started to run at the Disney Resorts and Disney Springs, Disney World will be re-opening its parks next week with more transportation options.

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

The Grand Floridian is One Quick Stop From Magic Kingdom!

Although we’ve had a few hints of which transportation options would be opening and when, Disney has officially confirmed the dates of when most of the methods of Disney World transportation will be welcoming us back again!

Although Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom will be opening on July 11th, transportation re-openings will be starting earlier in the week on July 7th. We’ve were able to spot Disney transportation out in the open today when we visited Disney World!

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

©Disney

We’ve already been able to hop back on the Disney Buses since they re-opened along with the Disney Resorts on July 22nd

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

Disney World Bus at Contemporary Resort

…July 7th will bring some of the Ticket and Transportation Center’s options back to guests! Guests will be able to ride the Monorail with new distancing barriers and other health and safety precautions

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

Green Monorail

…along with the Ferries to take guests to the parks and Disney Springs.

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

Ferry Boats

While the Skyliners were on the lines but not running today, they’ll be back in use starting July 15th! Disney hasn’t shared information yet concerning what health and safety precautions will be in effect when they start running again, but there will most likely be a limit of one party per gondola.

BREAKING NEWS! More Disney Transportation Will Start to Re-Open at the Beginning of Next Week!

Skyliners

The Minnie Van service and other watercraft options won’t be coming back yet. However, Disney has stated that they will be providing updates on when its other Disney Transportation will be available soon! We’ll keep you updated with the transportation modifications that we see when we make our way back into Disney World next week.

What are you looking forward to seeing the most when Disney World re-opens? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, disney parks, disney resorts, Featured, Walt Disney World, Disney, disney boats, disney buses, disney ferries, disney news, disney transportation, Disney World, Disney World reopening, Minnie Vans, monorail, skyliner gondola system

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Disney News Disney Parks

BREAKING NEWS: Disney World Transportation UPDATES That Are Coming SOON.

Disney World will be re-opening in July for guests of all ages to return back to the “Most Magical Place on Earth.”

Walt Disney World

While the parks have been keeping us up to date on their re-opening plans regarding the hotels, FastPasses, Advance Dining Reservations, and more, Disney World has also started to make some changes to how the transportation will operate before and after the parks re-open.

Thanks to @ScottGustin, who sent out the alert about Disney’s updates via twitter, Disney will be modifying a number of transportation options when the resort reopens to guests. While we already knew that the Monorail and ferry boats will be running on a limited basis for resort guests and that buses would be running, there are new updates to what transportation will be accessible.

©Disney

Before the parks re-open starting July 11th, guests will be able to take buses to and from Disney Springs to the resort areas. Once the parks have opened back up again, guests will still be able to use the buses to travel from the theme parks to the Disney Resort and Disney Springs locations. There will be distancing and reduced capacity of Disney transportation during this time. So expect delays.

Minnie Bus

However, the Minnie Van service and Valet Parking services will not be available. If a guest has a disability, though, they are still able to enquire about the Valet services that will be provided to them. Self-parking will be available to all other guests who are traveling to Disney World.

Orange Garage

Noticably absent from the updates was whether the Skyliner Gondolas will be open again. We will continue to keep you updated on Disney World’s re-opening procedures.

Will you be returning to Disney World when the parks re-open? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, disney parks, disney resorts, Disney Springs, Featured, Walt Disney World, Disney, disney buses, disney news, disney springs, disney transportation, Disney World, Disney World reopening, ferry boats, Minnie Vans, monorail, self-parking, valet

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Disney Merch Disney Parks

Fun New Disney Monorail PEZ Dispenser Display Now at Disney Springs

Disney character PEZ dispensers are always so much fun to get! The fun has gotten even better though, because now we have the most perfect way to display them with the Disney Monorail PEZ Dispenser Display! That’s right Disney has launched an adorable Monorail inspired display for our favorite Disney character PEZ Dispensers.

Disney Monorail PEZ Dispenser

The monorail display looks like the replica of a monorail car, but with square insets that are the perfect size for sliding in your favorite PEZ dispensers. Once nestled in the monorail, it looks like the characters are passengers going for a ride around the Disney Parks!

Hmmm which character dispensers will be our first passengers?

The display comes in red or blue, and retails for $14.99!

A post shared by Chip and Co (@chipandco) on Jun 3, 2020 at 4:40am PDT

You can find the very cool new Disney Monorail PEZ Dispenser display now at World of Disney in Disney Springs! These were going very fast too, even with the reduced amount of people visiting Springs.

What do you think of this whimsical new way to display your Disney Character PEZ dispensers?

Special thanks to our friend Susan for the great photos!

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: Shop, Souvenirs & Collectibles, Disney Monorail, Disney Monorail PEZ Dispenser, Disney PEZ, monorail, monorails, PEZ, PEZ Monorail

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Disney Parks Other

Potential Solutions For Disney World’s New Guest Transportation Problems

We have a major question about the reopening of Disney World — and some ideas about how it might play out!

Walt Disney World’s Epcot

While the Disney World parks remain closed, the resort has taken its first step towards resuming operations with the phased reopening of Disney Springs on May 20th.

We can look at the reopening of Disney Springs, as well as Shanghai Disneyland, for an idea of what to expect when the Disney World parks welcome back guests. But we have one HUGE question for which Disney hasn’t yet set a precedent.

Here’s What We’ve Learned So Far

We have several models to reference for a picture of what it may look like inside the reopened parks. There are some standard procedures that we’ve seen in the reopenings of Shanghai Disneyland, Disney Springs, and Universal CityWalk. Each of these locations has implemented safety measures including temperature checks, required face coverings, limited hours and offerings, and social distancing. So, we expect to see these precautions when the Disney World parks reopen as well.

©ShanghaiDisneylandResort on Instagram

But even though we have somewhat of an idea of what the INSIDE of the parks might look like, we still have one major question about the reopening of Disney World.

What About Transportation??

With many vacationers flying in from out of state, transportation is a huge part of the guest experience at Disney World. In fact, sometimes Disney transportation is unavoidable.

Monorail

With so many guests reliant on Disney transportation, that often leads to enclosed spaces packed tight with people. As a part of their proposed reopening plan, Disney noted that we may see modifications to the way that transportation is run. According to WDWMagic.com, Disney World will be offering limited transportation services such as the monorail and Friendship ferryboats.

So, how will Disney address these limitations? Let’s take a look at the different forms of available transportation, along with potential solutions.

Buses

Disney buses are one of the primary modes of transportation around property, especially for hotel guests. And if you’ve ever been on one of these buses around park open or close, you’ve probably experienced just how many people they can pack in. So, with the importance of distance, how would the buses operate?

Minnie Bus

Well, let’s take a look at how other bus systems have adapted.

According to the BBC, the buses in London have reduced capacity to 13-15% of their normal number of passengers. The largest, double-length Disney buses can typically carry over 100 passengers, so, in theory, this would need to be reduced to about 15 passengers per bus if Disney were to follow the same reduced capacity measures.

Aladdin Bus Wrap

The CDC has also recommended that bus drivers take precautions in order to ensure their safety. In addition to requiring both the passengers and driver to wear a mask, it’s also suggested that passengers enter and exit through a rear door, and that hand sanitizer be made readily available.

Travel-Size Hand Sanitizer

So, based on the precedent set by other bus operations and recommendations from the CDC, if Disney bus service is made available, they would need to greatly reduce capacity, change the loading and unloading procedure, and sanitize regularly.

Monorail

While buses might be more widely used, the Monorail is certainly an iconic form of Disney transportation. But similar to the issues with buses, the Monorail is often incredibly crowded, with little ventilation. So, what changes might we see to Monorail transportation?

Monorail at Disney World

We can look at the adjustments made to train and subway systems for some potential clues. In New York City, the subway service is suspended from 1 AM to 5 AM to allow for deep cleaning, and even daytime service is reduced to 25%. In 2016, Orlando Sentinal reported that the Disney World Monorail carries roughly 150,000 guests per day. If capacity were limited to 25%, that would be only 37,500 guests per day.

Walt Disney World Monorail

Luckily, sanitation could be done at night when the monorail isn’t already running, so that should not cut into the amount of guests who can be transported. Also, given the importance of distance (and the size of each Monorail compartment), Disney could place each party in their own compartment.

Skyliner

In theory, it would be easier to implement health and safety measures on the Disney Skyliner than other forms of transportation. Since each gondola can only hold up to ten guests, Cast Members could seat one party per gondola. Also, the windows on the gondola allow for airflow and ventilation.

Disney Skyliner

But, if the Skyliner gondolas must be sanitized after each party, we could see the line running much slower to give Cast Members the time to wipe down the surfaces. Depending on how much slower they would need to run, this could become uncomfortable for guests suspended in the air for an extended period of time.

There’s still a major question as to how/if Disney will sanitize transportation compartments between riders on the Skyliner and Monorail.

Boats

There are also several boats that transport guests around Disney property, including the ferryboats that travel between the Transportation and Ticket Center and the Magic Kingdom, and the Friendship boats which connect Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot, Magic Kingdom, and Disney Springs to surrounding resorts.

Friendship Boat Transportation Cards

Most of the boats have better ventilation than the buses and Monorail — some of them are even open-air. So, while guest distancing would still need to be practiced with staggered seating (or standing, in the case of the ferryboat), in theory, the boats should provide a safer travel environment than enclosed forms of transportation.

Friendship Boat

As with the other forms of transportation, services would need to be reduced to allow for regular sanitization and cleaning, and capacity would likely be limited, resulting in possibly longer wait times.

Minnie Vans

While this isn’t a free form of Disney transportation, Minnie Vans allow guests to request a rideshare service within Disney World property or between Disney World property and the Orlando International Airport or Port Canaveral. The service is run through the Lyft app, but all Minnie Vans are driven by Disney Cast Members.

Minnie Vans don’t come cheap, but we could see more guests opt to utilize them if other transportation changes cause extended delays. This form of transportation has built-in social distancing since guests pay for a private ride.

New Minnie Vans Driver Costume

As reported by CNBC, Uber has recently started requiring that all drivers and passengers wear masks, and it’s likely that Minnie Van drivers and passengers would need to wear masks as well. In addition, the vehicles would need to be regularly sanitized between parties.

Click here to learn more about Disney’s Minnie Van service

Walking

While many of the Disney World hotels require some form of transportation to get to the parks, there are a few that guests are able to walk directly to the parks!

There’s a path from Disney’s Contemporary Resort to the Magic Kingdom and resort guests can walk to the park in five or ten minutes. And guests at Disney’s BoardWalk Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Resort, and Disney’s Yacht Club Resort all have access to walking paths directly to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

What appears to be a walkway connecting Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa to the Magic Kingdom was under construction pre-closure. If completed, it would allow guests at the Grand Floridian and Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort to be able to walk to the Magic Kingdom as well.

Disney’s Boardwalk

All of the resorts that do have access to a walking path directly to one of the parks are on the pricy side. But guests who are able to stay in one of these resorts can bypass Disney transportation all together — for certain parks at least!

Click here to see Bob Chapek’s comments about Disney World’s reopening here

Now that the first steps are being taken towards reopening theme parks, we are starting to get a picture of what operations in the park might look like. But given Disney World’s unique transportation needs, we’re waiting to see how buses, boats, the Monorail, and the Skyliner might change! And based on the precedent set by other transportation systems around the world, some of these are set up for success more than others.

Which form of Disney transportation would you feel most comfortable using? Let us know in the comments!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Animal Kingdom, Beach Club Resort, Boardwalk Inn and Villas, Contemporary Resort, disney parks, disney resorts, disney’s hollywood studios, Epcot, Featured, magic kingdom, Walt Disney World, Yacht Club Resort, Beach Club, Boardwalk, Contemporary, disney bus, Disney Bus service, Disney Bus System, disney transportation, Disney World Monorail, Disney World reopening, Disney World transportation, Disney’s yacht club resort, face masks, ferryboat, hand sanitizer, health and safety measures, Minnie Vans, monorail, sanitation