Credit: Ed Aguila, Inside the MagicIf you visited Walt Disney World Resort during the pandemic, you likely noticed that there were a lot of operational changes in comparison to what used to exist at the parks; while most of these protocols have disappeared long ago, there are a few that remain.
When the parks shut down and finally reopened, guests visiting Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios had to wear masks anywhere on the property. At the very beginning, only when drinking a beverage were guests allowed to remove their masks for a moment while outdoors. Social distancing was in order, making lines look a lot longer than they appeared. We also saw the start of capacity limits.
Capacity limits were organized via the My Disney Experience app, where guests had to reserve a park pass reservation for the theme park of their choice. There were times that getting into Hollywood Studios felt like a mission that had to be completed weeks in advance! While capacity limits have certainly relaxed, there is still a park pass reservation system that Annual Passholder have to use when visiting the park before 2:00 p.m. on a non-good-to-go day.
While operating hours are still stuck in the pandemic era at times, and we have lost a lot of complimentary services since then (FastPass turned Disney Genie+, Disney’s Magical Express turned Mears), there is still one form of meet and greets that have not returned to normal.
When guests entered the parks during the pandemic, they were able to see characters from a distance. For example, back then, when you walk into Magic Kingdom, you would typically see Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters on top of the Walt Disney World Railroad Station on Main Street, U.S.A. While you could not go up to the train station to see the characters, they would wave and interact with you from afar.
This would happen at all the parks, in different locations that were heightened, roped off, or not accessible to guests.
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, characters like Pocahontas, Meeko, Scrooge McDuck, Launchpad McQuck, Mickey, Minnie, Timon, Rafiki, and more (and during the holidays — Santa Claus!) would come greet guests in a boat called a flotilla. Guests could wave hello to the characters as they would pass through the waterways in the park, a pathway that was visible throughout multiple spots in the park.
Today, those flotillas still exist! If you are ever crossing over a bridge on your way to Expedition Everest, or looking along the water in the parks, keep your eyes out because characters continue to pop out on their boats throughout the day.
Prior to COVID-19, Scrooge & Launchpad met in DinoLand USA, Goofy & Pluto met in DinoLand USA, Pocahontas met in the Character Landing now occupied by Moana, and Rafiki met at Rafiki’s Planet Watch. Considering that Animal Kingdom did attempt to move some of these meet and greet characters back to their “dry” spots but returned them to the floats, as well as other characters like Moana taking over, in combination with the duration of time that Disney has carried out this COVID-19 protocol, it seems that this may be something that Disney adapted to with the pandemic, and then left to stay as a more permanent measure.
While this is certainly not for the safety of guests, it may assist in creating more spots for other characters to join the park, such as Moana, as well as causing less crowding in some areas that hosted outdoor meet and greets. Additionally, it gives guests a reason to pay attention to the rivers and water around them, adding another touch of moving magic that is often unexpected.
Disney actually still advertises the flotillas online:
- Dino-Bash Flotilla
Join the festivities when fun-loving Goofy and Pluto greet you from the deck of a party boat that sails along the Discovery River. - Discovery River Character Cruise
Catch a glimpse of Characters from Disney’s Pocahontas or Disney’s The Lion King as they float along the Discovery River. - Adventure Flotilla
See feathered friends Scrooge McDuck and Launchpad McQuack on their adventurous voyage along the Discovery River. - Adventure Flotilla – Up
Wave to Russell and Dug as they sail along the Discovery River—in true Wilderness Explorer style.
Also, with DinoLand USA confirmed to be demolished, moving these characters away from those meet-and-greet areas will only assist in organizing the new operational changes that will undoubtedly come with construction. For those who do not know, the area is being rethemed with two IP’s in mind: Indiana Jones and Encanto, however a set plan has yet to be announced.
Do you like seeing these flotillas at Animal Kingdom?