Like most of us, you’re probably so ready for this pandemic to be over. After being stuck at home for what feels like forever, you’ve likely been dreaming of a relaxing vacation far far away from your makeshift home office (i.e. your dining table). If that vacation fantasy of yours includes a visit to a theme park of any sort, here’s a glimpse at what that might look like.
The Happiest Place on Earth—well, the one in Shanghai, at least—reopened to the public on May 11, after closing in January. People have been sharing pictures from the reopening all over the internet, and from the looks of it, the physical distancing measures put in place are likely to be the model for many theme parks going forward.
Take a look:
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VIDEO: Shanghai Disneyland Releases Guest Tutorial on Advanced Reservations, Temperature Checks, Social Distancing, Dining, Ride Vehicle Loading, Character Meets, and Morehttps://t.co/snYS0hcsXw pic.twitter.com/iXOBgnDauk
— WDW News Today (@WDWNT) May 8, 2020
Shanghai Disneyland has released an instructional video for the phased reopening on May 11. Here’s what a theme park is going to look like in 2020 (thread):
Temperature screening tent: pic.twitter.com/TX2al0s0LO
— Scott Gustin (@ScottGustin) May 8, 2020
In addition to the usual bag checks, guests now must go through a temperature check before entering the park. As well, the park only operated at one-third its normal capacity, so while it may seem a bit crowded in some pictures (although this pandemic may have skewed what “crowded” now looks like—three people in this aisle at the grocery store? Too crowded!), it’s nowhere near how packed the park used to be.
Because of this, you’d think that would mean shorter lines for rides, but technically with the physical distancing markers, the lines may actually be longer than ever (but the wait should still be shorter).
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Shanghai Disneyland Holds "Grand Reopening" As Guest Capacity Slashed, Social Distancing Enforced https://t.co/D76LumsIGo pic.twitter.com/ScL36Wncqz
— 🌻 Noah, King Of The Troll Hunters 🌻 INFJ-T (@NoahJamesBangs) May 11, 2020
And for rides with lots of seats-per-car, there may be a limit to how many people can ride at a time. Check out this picture from Pirates of the Caribbean that shows what it looks like with one or two riders per row.
This family’s post shows how character interactions work (fourth image in the gallery). While characters themselves don’t seem to be wearing masks, guests must keep their distance.
Looks like there won’t be hugs for Mickey anytime soon.
But, despite these changes, guests still seemed to enjoy their day at the park. People still dressed up, rode the rides, watched the shows and parades and experienced the magic of Disney.
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Maybe there is a light at the end of this tunnel after all.
