Social Media Response to Walt Disney World Reopening

in Walt Disney World

Posted on by Nathanial Eker 16 Comments
Walt Disney World Reopening Reaction

It’s something that we Disney fans have wanted to see for months, but now that it’s here, a vocal collection of social media users have admonished the Walt Disney Company for reopening the Florida parks. The Walt Disney World reopening reaction has been divisive and intense, and here are just some comments we’ve seen across social media.

As a reminder, the coronavirus pandemic has hit Florida particularly hard as the sunshine state is currently averaging 10,000 new cases per day and broke the national record by reporting 15,300 cases in one day, according to the BBC.

Walt Disney World began its phased reopening last week with Annual Passholder preview days as the Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Animal Kingdom before opening the parks proper on Saturday. Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT parks will follow suit on July 15.

Yesterday, Florida’s Orange County mayor said that Disney’s safety measures are ‘proper’ and that he is proud of Walt Disney World for reopening.

A large portion of the internet did not share that sentiment.

Related: Hong Kong Disney is Re-Closing: Will Disney World?

Negative Walt Disney World reopening reaction permeates across social media.

(Quotes are taken from the Inside the Magic Facebook posts).

Cast Member Cleaning Tables
(Kent Phillips, photographer)

‘And Disney World should’ve remained closed.’

‘You would have to be crazy to go there right now.’

‘REOPENING WALT DISNEY WORLD RIGHT NOW IS IRRESPONSIBLE AND DANGEROUS. FLORIDA IS IN NO PLACE TO BE OPENING ANYTHING.’

Related: Honest Review: Wearing a Face Mask at Magic Kingdom

The other side feels WDW is right to stay open

Temperature Check with a Girl
Credit: Disney

However, some saw the reopening as a positive step;

‘They absolutely are [safe], especially compared to the grocery stores and mega stores that are open. Disney is taking extreme measures to clean everything. If you’re afraid then stay the hell home’

‘Safest place to be with all of their protocols. If you want to stay home, then stay home. I’ll be at Magic Kingdom next week.’

‘Disney is doing their part. But it’s up to the general public to follow through on their end and obey basic protocols. The moment the public fails to abide by what’s being asked is when everything is ruined for everyone else who follow directions.’

‘You all can stay home, as for me and my family we’ll be there soon, just got all of our Park reservations done! Took 8 hours of hold time and dropped calls and call back but we got them.’

Related: New Shopping Procedures at Walt Disney World

Social distancing and other measures are in place at Walt Disney World

Each Disney Park enforces strict health and safety guidelines consistent with what we’ve seen in gardens worldwide. Temperature screenings, social distancing, and mandatory masks have all been employed to keep The Magic Kingdom and the rest of the Walt Disney World Resort as safe as can be.

However, if Hong Kong Disneyland is anything to go by, this may not be enough as the Park re-closed yesterday due to a massive surge in cases of the pandemic.

For now, Disney’s Orlando parks remain open. However, if the exploding coronavirus numbers continue to soar in Central Florida, Orange County Mayor Dennings said he wouldn’t hesitate to ask Disney to re-assess theme Park operations.

Regardless of how the theme parks operations go, this Twitter user summarised it best. Be kind to the Cast Members; the Disney employees are just trying to do their jobs at this extraordinary time.

What do you think? Should Walt Disney World still be open in this time of extreme pandemic? Let us know in the comments below.

Tagged:Twitter

Nathanial Eker

Movie buff, Hufflepuff, Comic stuff. Nathanial is a film and game critic based in England with a love for all things Marvel. He's a writer for several publications, including the UK Film Review.

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