Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

[J-Dog]

That doesn’t matter right now. Disney’s accountants need to realize and I’m sure they already do that they are in the midst of something that’s never happened before. You cannot just open all the parks as normal tomorrow if they were given the all clear.

Maybe I misunderstand your post. Are you saying that revenue doesn't matter to a major corporation?

 

[mshanson3121]

Okay, outside of the fact that this takes place in what looks like Florida, this isn't on topic. But darnit, it's Easter weekend, many here were probably supposed to be celebrating with family, maybe even at Disney and are lonely. This whole situation just sucks, and I figure we could all use a little light hearted humor. So.... I'm taking the chance and sharing it

https://www.facebook.com/1774962543/posts/10207311182375881

 

[rteetz]

Maybe I misunderstand your post. Are you saying that revenue doesn't matter to a major corporation?

Of course it does. It especially matters to Disney when one of their largest sources of revenue is closed. Like I said Disney can’t just open the parks tomorrow. They have to ease back into things. They have to retrain cast. They have to restart attractions. There will have to be new procedures in place. Disney’s lawyers aren’t going to allow them to just act as normal. If an outbreak were to be traced back to WDW that would be detrimental to their PR. There is strategy involved here. Much like reopening anything after this. We likely will get back to as close to normal as it was before this but it’s not going to be overnight.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

NEWS

43,000 WDW CMs to be furloughed starting April 19th

https://twitter.com/x/status/1248998443265200128

 

[rteetz]

NEWS

43,000 WDW CMs to be furloughed starting April 19th

https://twitter.com/x/status/1248998443265200128

Not unexpected at all. Florida unemployment website and phone lines are going to be tough to access on the 19th.

 

[anthony2k7]

except its not. Almost every model has the infection rate about half what this said. It's a one off review. It's like that random hurricane model that you when you look at spaghetti models and you go, what is that one doing?!

Definitely. But as continues to be said, this is a fluid situation and information is changing rapidly. The one thing that has been consistent, is an R value of 2.2-2.7. And now, evidence is starting to show it's even higher, not less. Will it be confirmed? Time will tell. But we know enough now to know that that person's claim that we're going to discover it wasn't as contagious as thought, is foolish.

Anyone who claims go know how infectious this is right now and what the R0 is will probably be guessing.

With social distancing in place and the lockdown it is surely impossible to guess how infectious it would be right now with it being this widespread had the distancing and lockdown not been in place.

 

[Spridell]

you know there is a lot of bickering going on back and forth on this thread. 90% of this thread is all opinionated. Everyone has the right to have their own opinion but don't bash other people if their opinion is different than yours.

Things will start to open up pretty soon. Some states will open sooner than others. Parts of some states will open sooner than others.

ALWAYS do what's best for you and your family. If you feel its not safe to go out THEN DO NOT GO OUT. If someone else feels it is safe to go, it's their right to go and you really have no say in that just as they shouldn't bash you for staying home.

If Disney does open sooner than people think (or want it to for that point) NO ONE is forcing you to go. If you don't want to go then don't go. If you want to go and you think its safe then have fun and enjoy your vacation.

 

[Jrb1979]

The problem with "phased opening" as I see it, (other than maybe locals and AP holders) is that no one is going to go during that time. PR aside, I doubt Disney's accountants are going to be happy about that for very long.

Let's say they open as normal and a bunch of cases pop up from people being there and being too close to others. That would be really bad PR for Disney. At this point I bet Disney accountants will be happy for any sort of income to be coming in.

 

[choirfarm]

you
If Disney does open sooner than people think (or want it to for that point) NO ONE is forcing you to go. If you don't want to go then don't go. If you want to go and you think its safe then have fun and enjoy your vacation.

Except that those that had fun will bring it back to my town, infect 4 or 5 people, who then infect me, and who then kills her mother. Or one of those 4 or 5 works in a nursing home and ....

Yeah sometimes people having fun can kill other people.

 

[Jrb1979]

you know there is a lot of bickering going on back and forth on this thread. 90% of this thread is all opinionated. Everyone has the right to have their own opinion but don't bash other people if their opinion is different than yours.

Things will start to open up pretty soon. Some states will open sooner than others. Parts of some states will open sooner than others.

ALWAYS do what's best for you and your family. If you feel its not safe to go out THEN DO NOT GO OUT. If someone else feels it is safe to go, it's their right to go and you really have no say in that just as they shouldn't bash you for staying home.

If Disney does open sooner than people think (or want it to for that point) NO ONE is forcing you to go. If you don't want to go then don't go. If you want to go and you think its safe then have fun and enjoy your vacation.

I agree but I think why this thread is like this is not all cause of it being safe. A lot of that people keep believing that come June 1st Disney will open the doors like normal and nothing will be changed. Nobody likes change but this is the new normal. Social distancing is here to stay for awhile.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

Masks not only stop what's in the air though, they help stop you touching your own face after you have touched all those other surfaces you mentioned.

Just for a bit of info most don’t have about mask wearing. I wasn’t sure about sharing but after some thought, felt it couldn’t hurt. @rteetz please feel free to delete if you feel to - no offense will be taken
I just had to do a training at work on the use of masks and the safe proper handling & wear of both surgical and homemade masks. It was facilitated by our public health unit with written guidance from our federal government public health unit.

Mask wearing is not as simple as covering your mouth and nose & hoping for the best.
Only 95N masks will keep out droplet and secretion infections - all 95N masks are now restricted to use by first responders.

Any gaps or a mask not worn snuggly poses a risk for contamination. Both for those wearing a mask to save an exposure and those who may have been exposed but don’t feel sick or sick enough to stay home. Airborne/droplets are drawn by breathing in and if the mask has no seal or is not well fitted it doesn’t do what it is supposed to.

Touching your mask to adjust or re- adjust (in the heat of the day in the parks..) puts any contaminant directly on to your mask from your hands, most of the masks that will be in use are porus enough for an exposure - the length of time the virus lives on a soft surface is longer then on hard surfaces.
Big one here for theme parks.. you need to change masks once the one you are wearing becomes wet, soiled or can’t be snuggly worn. In the heat you perspire, and just breathing into your mask in & out of air conditioning can also create moisture..

Handling your mask is another concern in a theme park setting.. to put it on and adjust & after you take it off - you need to have clean sanitized hands. Not hands that have been on railings, counter service counters, grab bars on rides etc.. again - cross contamination. How many hand washing stations or sanitizer stations will that require. Cross contamination from surface to mask is a real and is a high risk situation.

These are just a few things that disney needs to look into & plan for. There are quite a few more take aways from my recent eye opener training... but in a theme park setting these are the ones that seem most relevant.

fwiw.. You’d probably be better off if you are just aware of your surroundings and social distancing & hand washing or using hand sanitizer frequently.

 

[choirfarm]

Then you are in the group that needs to stay home because you dont feel safe to be out.

You simply can not force other people to do things. It just does not work like that in this country. I am sorry.

No, not true. Places like Disney and football games infect TONS more people then gently opening a little at a time. We need to have gatherings of 10, then 50, then 100 with no big spikes. If there is a spike, back off a little. So Disney would be irresponsible and liable for suits if they spread it.

 

[KBoopaloo]

Of course it does. It especially matters to Disney when one of their largest sources of revenue is closed. Like I said Disney can’t just open the parks tomorrow. They have to ease back into things. They have to retrain cast. They have to restart attractions. There will have to be new procedures in place. Disney’s lawyers aren’t going to allow them to just act as normal. If an outbreak were to be traced back to WDW that would be detrimental to their PR. There is strategy involved here. Much like reopening anything after this. We likely will get back to as close to normal as it was before this but it’s not going to be overnight.

Exactly this. I think that what most of us are trying to say is that the idea that they will swing the gates open on the date they finally decide is right and simply say “We installed some new hand washing stations and put some tape on the ground to recommend how people space themselves, now step right up for FOP rope drop the way you always have!” is naive.
I get almost daily email updates from my local grocery store about their operational changes and I expect that will continue as they start modifying their operations back towards their pre-COVID model to provide reassurances about what they are doing to keep customers safe. Every closed organization right now that caters to large crowds of customers in their space is having extensive conversations about what reopening would look like - considering multiple dates and all different levels of operation. To think that WDW is sitting around just waiting for the FL Governor to say it is okay to open so they can fire up the Mickey tapstiles and go back to business as usual is madness. They likely have 5-10 working scenarios they are plotting out right now for what the future will hold with various levels of restrictions and operational changes and we should all be prepared for the idea that when the parks reopen our WDW trips will be a little different for at least a few months.

 

[Spridell]

I agree but I think why this thread is like this is not all cause of it being safe. A lot of that people keep believing that come June 1st Disney will open the doors like normal and nothing will be changed. Nobody likes change but this is the new normal. Social distancing is here to stay for awhile.

I agree. Things will be much different. Social distancing will be here for a while and people will have to adapt with things being open and still maintaining social distancing

 

[mshanson3121]

I agree but I think why this thread is like this is not all cause of it being safe. A lot of that people keep believing that come June 1st Disney will open the doors like normal and nothing will be changed. Nobody likes change but this is the new normal. Social distancing is here to stay for awhile.

This. There's positive thinking, then there's just plain old head in the sand naivete. What's hard to tell is if it's from ignorance or just a personal coping mechanism.

 

[dynastyyanks]

Obviously whether Disney opens its gates is relevant to the superfans like us waiting to get in, but I think that the discussion of whether they or local governments decide to "open things up" misses the fact that the economy won't open until the coronavirus is no longer in wide circulation (or, if there is sufficient testing to track and isolate cases). I personally wouldn't go to Disney World for free tomorrow if they opened up, and I believe many people feel the same way. And, until people feel comfortable going to crowded spaces, workers in many sectors will continue to be furloughed or unemployed, further reducing their odds of spending money at a place like Disney. Is there a certain break-even point at which attendance is low enough that it wouldn't justify the operational costs of opening the parks?

 

[anthony2k7]

Exactly this. I think that what most of us are trying to say is that the idea that they will swing the gates open on the date they finally decide is right and simply say “We installed some new hand washing stations and put some tape on the ground to recommend how people space themselves, now step right up for FOP rope drop the way you always have!” is naive.
I get almost daily email updates from my local grocery store about their operational changes and I expect that will continue as they start modifying their operations back towards their pre-COVID model to provide reassurances about what they are doing to keep customers safe. Every closed organization right now that caters to large crowds of customers in their space is having extensive conversations about what reopening would look like - considering multiple dates and all different levels of operation. To think that WDW is sitting around just waiting for the FL Governor to say it is okay to open so they can fire up the Mickey tapstiles and go back to business as usual is madness. They likely have 5-10 working scenarios they are plotting out right now for what the future will hold with various levels of restrictions and operational changes and we should all be prepared for the idea that when the parks reopen our WDW trips will be a little different for at least a few months.

Speaking to retailer's right now, they are taking the steps they are taking firstly so customers feel safe and secondly because they believe if they dont they will be told to close.

When it comes to opening elsewhere up I would expect the same from them including disney parks. If they arent implementing social distancing then they should be forced to close again.

This is the new normal, and if companies cant comply they shouldn't be open really.

 

[Jrb1979]

I really hope all the people who are uncomfortable really do stay home when the parks open this summer! Less crowds will mean less restrictions. The we shouldn’t leave our houses until we have a vaccine crowd are really interesting to me. I don’t know if they don’t understand basic economics or understand that the death toll of a closed economy will be far worse. There was direct increase in cancer deaths after the 2008 economic crisis . It’s documented, goggle it, read it!

Yes there is some saying that. Things will reopen but social distancing is here til there is a vaccine. I can't see Disney going against that.

 

[KBoopaloo]

you know there is a lot of bickering going on back and forth on this thread. 90% of this thread is all opinionated. Everyone has the right to have their own opinion but don't bash other people if their opinion is different than yours.

Things will start to open up pretty soon. Some states will open sooner than others. Parts of some states will open sooner than others.

ALWAYS do what's best for you and your family. If you feel its not safe to go out THEN DO NOT GO OUT. If someone else feels it is safe to go, it's their right to go and you really have no say in that just as they shouldn't bash you for staying home.

If Disney does open sooner than people think (or want it to for that point) NO ONE is forcing you to go. If you don't want to go then don't go. If you want to go and you think its safe then have fun and enjoy your vacation.

By the same token I have seen some people argue that Disney can’t require temp checks because their kids temp always runs hot or that they can’t require masks because it will be too hot for people to wear them in the summer. Or that offering limited experiences will cause a riot of upset guests. Or limiting park hopping would not work for the way they plan their trips. I’ve seen a lot of claims of things that Disney “can’t” do because people will not like it or accept it. All of those people arguing against any kinds of new restrictions or changes will also have to realize that Disney can do what it feels is necessary and then decide if they can live with those changes on their vacation or stay home.

 

[anthony2k7]

Just for a bit of info most don’t have about mask wearing. I wasn’t sure about sharing but after some thought, felt it couldn’t hurt. @rteetz please feel free to delete if you feel to - no offense will be taken
I just had to do a training at work on the use of masks and the safe proper handling & wear of both surgical and homemade masks. It was facilitated by our public health unit with written guidance from our federal government public health unit.

Mask wearing is not as simple as covering your mouth and nose & hoping for the best.
Only 95N masks will keep out droplet and secretion infections - all 95N masks are now restricted to use by first responders.

Any gaps or a mask not worn snuggly poses a risk for contamination. Both for those wearing a mask to save an exposure and those who may have been exposed but don’t feel sick or sick enough to stay home. Airborne/droplets are drawn by breathing in and if the mask has no seal or is not well fitted it doesn’t do what it is supposed to.

Touching your mask to adjust or re- adjust (in the heat of the day in the parks..) puts any contaminant directly on to your mask from your hands, most of the masks that will be in use are porus enough for an exposure - the length of time the virus lives on a soft surface is longer then on hard surfaces.
Big one here for theme parks.. you need to change masks once the one you are wearing becomes wet, soiled or can’t be snuggly worn. In the heat you perspire, and just breathing into your mask in & out of air conditioning can also create moisture..

Handling your mask is another concern in a theme park setting.. to put it on and adjust & after you take it off - you need to have clean sanitized hands. Not hands that have been on railings, counter service counters, grab bars on rides etc.. again - cross contamination. How many hand washing stations or sanitizer stations will that require. Cross contamination from surface to mask is a real and is a high risk situation.

These are just a few things that disney needs to look into & plan for. There are quite a few more take aways from my recent eye opener training... but in a theme park setting these are the ones that seem most relevant.

fwiw.. You’d probably be better off if you are just aware of your surroundings and social distancing & hand washing or using hand sanitizer frequently.

Good info but it paints it as being black or white.

I do not believe that there isnt a middle ground of other masks helping to some extent.