Gabrielle Russon
Hurricane Milton is upending tourists’ Orlando vacations and the theme parks’ Halloween festivities as both Disney World and Universal will close early Wednesday afternoon.
The theme parks employ tens of thousands of workers in Orange County where officials warned of potentially 110 mph winds and heavy rain coming late Wednesday and into early Thursday. Officials are preparing for widespread outages, flooding and fallen trees.
The theme park capital of the world also isn’t accepting any more guests anyway. The Orlando International Airport ceased commercial flights as of 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Universal’s and Disney World’s hotels, which are becoming a refuge for evacuees or people fearing power outages, will remain open.
In a phased-in shutdown, Disney World’s Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios are closing at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, followed by Epcot and the Magic Kingdom, the world’s No. 1 park, at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
Disney Springs is also closing at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
“It is likely the theme parks will remain closed on Thursday, October 10. We will consider opening Disney Springs on Thursday in the late afternoon, with limited offerings,” Disney said on its website.
Thursday’s Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is canceled. Disney promised automatic refunds to guests who bought prebooked experiences, including the Halloween party, within seven to 10 days.
Meanwhile, Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure are closing at 2 p.m. Wednesday and will be shut down all day Thursday.
Halloween Horror Nights — the park’s popular special ticketed haunted house spectacle — is canceled Wednesday and Thursday, as is the water park Universal Volcano Bay.
Even with the theme parks still open until Wednesday afternoon, it won’t be a normal day at the parks.
“Hours of operation are subject to change based on forecast alterations and some attraction and experience availability may be limited on Wednesday as we prepare for an early closure,” Universal said online.
The good news?
“We anticipate a full reopening of our destination, including Halloween Horror Nights, on Friday, Oct. 11 at our normal operating hours pending the outcome of storm impacts,” Universal said.
SeaWorld Orlando was the first major theme park in Orlando to confirm it was closing from the powerful Milton. Universal and then Disney World followed suit within four hours.
Other parks in Florida are shutting down. Winter Haven’s Legoland Florida is shut down Wednesday and Thursday. Tampa Bay Busch Gardens closed Tuesday through Thursday.
Universal’s Halloween plans have been affected by hurricanes before, an Orange County historian said Friday when she retold a story about the infamous 2004 storm season that destroyed the corn in Universal’s scare zone maze.
