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Disney World reopens today and @skubersky is there reporting for @USATODAY, @usatodaytravel. Follow this thread to get an inside look.
9 a.m.: Touch-free temperature checks are being administered by AdventHealth. One family was asked to return to their car or purchase a mask from a vending machine at a check point because their child’s face mask was a neck gaiter without ear loops, which are prohibited.
9:10 a.m.: Guests stand in a socially distanced line waiting to ride the monorail from the Transportation & Ticket Center to the Magic Kingdom entrance. The train’s cabins have been divided using vinyl barriers, and only one or two families are allowed in each cabin.
9:20 a.m.: Cast members line curbs of Main Street U.S.A., welcoming guests back to the Magic Kingdom. Reminders of COVID-19 are ubiquitous, from safety signage on every trash can, to hand washing stations and hand sanitizer dispensers at nearly every entrance and exit.
9:30 a.m.: Vintage ragtime music, which normally plays on Main Street USA, is now periodically interrupted by safety announcements.
"Please wear a face covering, clean your hands often and thoroughly, cover your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing and maintain physical distancing, thank you." Video by @skubersky.
9:50 a.m.: A 15 minute wait for the “world famous” Jungle Cruise. The boats now sport plexiglass barriers to break up bench seating. The skippers deliver their pun-filled spiels about “the backside of water” from behind face masks and transparent vinyl curtains.
Guests scream through face masks while taking the final plunge on the Splash Mountain flume ride. Photo by @skubersky.
The longest wait right now is for the ride’s gift shop. Collectors and resellers snap up stuffed animals and merchandise themed to the controversial attraction, which is slated for a “Princess and the Frog” makeover. A virtual queue is being used to handle the hour-plus wait.
To learn more read @USATODAY's coverage: Disney's Splash Mountain to get new theme amid calls to ditch racist history via
@tatecurtis https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/06/25/disney-world-disneyland-splash-mountain-feature-princess-and-frog/3257021001/
@tatecurtis https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/06/25/disney-world-disneyland-splash-mountain-feature-princess-and-frog/3257021001/
Jay Lao and Nico Saporito waited for 40 minutes to ride Splash Mountain. They noticed some discrepancies between Disney's reopening and Universal Orlando's reopening: "Here they’re not even enforcing it before or after," Lao said, "It’s there if you want to take it."
To learn more about Universal Orlando's reopening in June, read: https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/experience/america/theme-parks/2020/06/05/universal-orlando-reopens-what-its-like-coronavirus-precautions/3153631001/
10:38 a.m.: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad’s rustic queue has been carved up into a rabbits’ warren of plexiglass corridors, preventing guests from making contact. Interactive elements that once entertained guests in line have been blocked off, or disabled. 
: @skubersky
: @skubersky
. @usatodaytravel has also been hearing from Jess Bullock, a passholder from Sarasota, who is inside the park. She said that while the park doesn't feel crowded, estimated wait times are far from exact.
For example just after 10:30 a.m., Bullock said, Pirates of the Caribbean “said 25 minutes but we waited 52 minutes. Splash Mountain has said 45 minutes all morning … from what we’ve heard from others, they’ve been waiting much longer as well.”
Bullock added that the precautions might be the factor that have made wait times extensive. “It looks like they’re sanitizing each vehicle between riders and letting them run empty,” she said. “So it’s slowing things down significantly.”
11:47 a.m.: The heat index at Magic Kingdom is currently 103 F. Some guests are taking refuge inside the air conditioned Hall of Presidents where seats and rows are blocked off to promote social distancing. : @skubersky
: @skubersky
In the Hall of Presidents, masks are required inside for the guests- but not for the audio-animatronic chief executives. : @skubersky
: @skubersky
12:09 p.m.: Cinderella Castle glistens after a brief downpour, its blue and pink spires reflecting in puddles on the cement. The Magic Kingdom central hub is hosting light crowds of picture-taking guests as of noon. : @skubersky
: @skubersky
Disney is even selling COVID-19 inspired merchandise. : Mary Griffin.
: Mary Griffin.
12:36 p.m.: Walking under Cinderella Castle into Fantasyland reveals light crowds in what is usually the park’s most congested area.
While some rides may have had longer than expected wait times, others had shorter than expected. The posted wait time for Peter Pan’s Flight was 25 min, but the actual wait was 10 minutes even with social distancing stretching the line outside the attraction’s facade.
1:00 p.m.: Lunchtime diners loiter outside Pinocchio Village Haus awaiting their Mobile food orders. Disney is relying on smartphone app purchases in order to avoid lines.
But not all mobile orders are take out. Guests can sit at a table inside and eat once their food is ready. But no one can enter the building until they have ordered and have been alerted that their meal is ready.
2:09 p.m.: Merida from “Brave” rides through Liberty Square on horseback, leading a procession of Disney princesses. Socially distanced mini-parades like this have replaced the traditional character meet & greet opportunities across Walt Disney World.
2:15 p.m.: @skubersky is enjoying a socially distant lunch at Adventureland’s Jungle Skipper Canteen restaurant. Diners are allowed to remove their masks while seated, but must put them on when moving around the venue.
