Today, Disney Springs Vice President, Matt Simon, announced the phased reopening of Disney Springs in Walt Disney World following the COVID-19 closure.
Disney Springs closed March 17th due to COVID-19 and has remained closed since that time. On May 20th, Disney Springs will begin a phased reopening.
Following guidance from local, state authorities and health officials, Disney Springs will have only a limited number of shopping and dinning experiences open at the start. Disney has not released a list of which stores will be reopening, however, they did state that it will be only third-party stores and restaurants in this initial phase.
This phased reopening will only be for Disney Springs. The rest of Walt Disney World, including theme parks and hotels, will remain closed. No announcement was made at this time on when the theme parks and hotels will reopen.
The reopening will incorporate new safety measures. These measures will include increased cleaning prodcedures, the use of face coverings by both cast members and guests, limited-contact with guests and additional safety trainings for the cast members.
The biggest take away from this statement is the line about face coverings. It specifies that both cast members AND guests will be using face coverings. This leads us to believe that face covering at Disney Springs will be required.
There will also be limitations on Disney Springs capacity, parking and operating hours. No hours have been posted, however, Disney asks guest to check DisneySprings.com as May 20th gets closer for the latest hours and even additional safety measures that may be put in place.
are the disney stores opening as well or just the private stores and restaurants?
The Disney Stores will open on May 27th.