This is a big week for Disney fans as Walt Disney World is preparing for its phased reopening of the Resort’s four theme parks which begins this Saturday, July 11th with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, followed by EPCOT and Hollywood Studios on July 15th.
Monorail
One big topic we’ve been exploring is what getting around the property will look like. We’ve taken a look at buses with the recent reopening of select Resort hotels, but what will it be like to ride the Disney Skyliner, the boats, and (of course) the Monorail? Well, we took our first cruise on a reopened Monorail today (with thanks to a friend who invited us to a Cast Member preview which is currently taking place) and we’re here to tell you what it was like!
We took the Monorail from the Transportation and Ticket Center to Magic Kingdom. The Transportation and Ticket Center (or TTC, for short) serves to offer parking for Magic Kingdom guests in addition to transportation options to the park itself. (The picture below, just for reference, was taken during a previous visit.)
Monorail Station at Walt Disney World Ticket and Transportation Center
It’s worth noting that the Tram vehicles — which guests can ride from the parking lots to the TTC in order to shorten the walk — were not in operation this morning. However, we’d like to remind that today is a cast member preview, so things may work differently when the parks officially reopen. (P.S. Ferry Boat transportation was also available.)
Approaching the Monorail station, numbers are placed on the ground, giving guests the ability to easily spot where they may stand in order to keep a safe distance from other groups. (We’d like to thank @aleyafromdisney on Instagram for sharing the picture below with us!)
Physical Distancing Stickers
Number signage is also put in use as guests await the arrival of the next Monorail to carry them along the “Highway in the Sky” that leads to the Magic Kingdom.
Monorail stickers
A cast member gave us a number to stand on prior to boarding, which helped not only with traffic flow but also with the ultimate purpose of dispersing guests — keeping appropriate distancing in mind — throughout the cars themselves.
Cars are now split with physical distancing barriers, and our car was limited to us and one other party of four.
Monorail partition
Overall, it was nice to ride along the “Highway in the Sky” once more. We’d like to state again that, because today was a Cast Member preview, things may change when Magic Kingdom reopens to guests this weekend. So be sure to stay tuned to DFB this week for all of the HUGE new Disney World updates!
Click here to learn more about riding the bus in a reopened Disney World!
Have any specific questions about riding the Monorail in a reopened Disney World? Ask them in the comments and we’ll do our best to get you answers.