Disney to roll out new reservation system when parks reopen

When Walt Disney World reopens its Florida theme parks next month after shutting down during the coronavirus pandemic, they’ll be introducing a new reservation system.

The company announced Friday that the new Disney Park Pass System will operate through disneyworld.com on either a desktop or mobile device, and registration through a My Disney Experience account will be required. Visitors must have a valid park ticket or an annual pass to get reservations.

The system is not yet available, but will be rolled out before the parks reopen starting July 11. Disney, and Orlando’s other theme parks, closed in mid-March to help curb the spread the coronavirus. Universal Orlando and SeaWorld reopened earlier this month.

At first, guests won’t be able to “park hop” among Disney’s four theme parks.

The Disney Park Pass System, which is not yet available, will operate through disneyworld.com (desktop or mobile), and registration via a My Disney Experience account will be required. Visitors must have a valid park ticket or an annual pass to secure reservations.

“Guests will be able to select one park per day; visiting more than one park per day will be temporarily unavailable upon the reopening of the theme parks due to attendance limitations,” according to an official Disney Parks Blog post.

Anyone who holds a multiday ticket must make reservations. Eventually, everything will be linked in the system, with a calendar of available dates for each Disney World park.

Officials said tickets between family members and friends will be able to be linked.

“We hope to bring back the ability to visit more than one park per day soon,” the post said

Visitors to the park will be able to view their reservations on the My Disney Experience app.

Anyone who has paid for park-hopping ability will receive reimbursement and cancellation options, Disney officials said.

Officials said sales of 2020 tickets will resume later this year, the post said.

Disney also announced it will be offering new technological offerings, which include tweaks to the MagicBands.

“In 2021, we plan to unveil an innovative new offering as part of the My Disney Experience app that will bring features of a MagicBand to your smart devices, building on the app’s existing digital key feature,” the blog post said.

On Thursday night, Disney announced that the 2020 Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party has been canceled and that the popular food and wine festival will begin when Epcot reopens on July 15.

The parks are preparing to reopen by mid-July, with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom opening on July 11. That will be followed by Epcot and Hollywood Studios on July 15.

The blog post said Disney will contact annual passholders and other ticket holders about making reservations on the new system.