Disney CEO Says Guests Are More Satisfied Now Than Pre-Pandemic

in Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World

disney ceo chapek

Credit: Screenshot Bloomberg/ITM

When Walt Disney World reopened to Guests, they implemented a number of new protocols including face masks, social distancing, and a new Park Pass reservation system. And, when Disneyland Resort opens its theme parks in late April, they, too, will have a number of new safety protocols put in place for Guests.

Related: Disney World Fans Concerned About Spring Break Crowds

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Credit: Disney

In case you aren’t familiar, the Disney Park Pass system at Disney World requires those who wish to visit a Walt Disney World theme park — including Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, or Disney’s Animal Kingdom — to have both a valid ticket as well as a reservation for the park you wish to visit on any given day.

A new reservation system will also be used when Disneyland opens its two theme parks — Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure — on April 30.

Now, in a recent Bloomberg interview, the Walt Disney Company CEO, Bob Chapek, discussed Disneyland’s reopening, the future of new technologies such as the Park Pass system, and how Guests have been even more satisfied with the Disney Parks than they were prior to the pandemic.

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Credit: Disney (Screenshot ITM)

Related: Best Time to Visit Walt Disney World in 2021

During the interview, Chapek was asked about the new technologies that Disney has used over the past year that we could see used in the future as well, in which he responded with:

“Well, in addition to all the health guidelines that we’ve been following across the world, you know masks, temperature checks, increased hygiene, six-foot social distancing, we’re also going to be introducing a new reservation system that’s going to enable our Guests to have a great time no matter when they choose to come to Disney. Of course, nobody ever wants to go through a pandemic, but our teams here have been hard at work making sure that when we reemerge that we’re going to do so in a way that’s actually going to improve the Guest experience even versus a pre-pandemic situation.”

disney ceo chapek
Credit: Screenshot Bloomberg/ITM

The fact that the Disney CEO mentioned the new reservation system that will help enable Guests to have a great time “no matter when they choose to come to Disney” indicates that this Park Pass system could be around for quite some time. This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise as Chairman of Parks, Experiences and Products Josh D’Amaro indicated in 2020 that the newly implemented Park Pass system is a “new normal” and it won’t be going away anytime soon, if ever.

Additionally, the Walt Disney World Resort Park Pass system recently extended its availability through 2023, also indicating that this new reservation system is likely to stick around well into the future.

disney ceo chapek
Credit: Screenshot Bloomberg/ITM

Related: When Disneyland Reopens, Who Should ‘Open Up the Gates’?

Chapek continued to talk with Bloomberg about how Guests are satisfied with the new technologies and protocols that have been put into place at Disney Parks around the world. In fact, he shared that Guests are even more satisfied than they were pre-pandemic.

“And our Guest satisfaction score since we’ve reopened across the world have shown that indeed our Guests are even more satisfied than they were prior to the pandemic. We’ve learned some things, we’ve learned to operate under constraints all the time by delivering this great same Disney magic that you expect, but you know we’ve been in a fortunate situation where we’ve had a lot of demand in the past in any case that has exceeded what we can actually supply in terms of how many people we can put in a park and there’s been no situation that’s been more like that than we’ve had upon reopening and really having to operate under some really tight constraints, but we’ve gotten even better and better at it and I think it’s going to create a reemergence scenario where magic is going to be even greater for our Guests when they do come back to our parks.”

disney ceo bob chapek with mickey mouse
Credit: Disney

If you want to plan a vacation to Disney World, but aren’t sure where to begin planning, don’t hesitate to reach out to our friends at Academy Travel. Get started with your free quote today!

Will you be visiting Walt Disney World or Disneyland in the near future? Are you satisfied with the new protocols put in place? Let us know in the comments below.

in Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World

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