Politics Theme Park Reopening Guidelines to be released 10/20/20

This thread contains political discussion related to the original thread topic
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MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
On topic concerning reopening guidelines for Disneyland...

Who remembers when Newsom sent a strike team to WDW to observe their protocols for being open with covid? I remember it... hearing about it... but then, nothing... was there ever a report? A summary of what they saw? Most importantly, what did they see/not see that made them determine to NOT allow Disneyland to open?

My Uber driver departing WDW this Monday was a lovely gentleman who works for Disney DVC (part time now) with some involvement with Waldorf Astoria and took up Uber while he is furloughed. Aside from thanking us for coming to visit, he had some interesting things to say about the California 'strike team' and their visit.

He said he had never seen treatment like what the strike team got upon their arrival. They had a police escort and roads were closed to transport the strike team from the airport directly to their hotel... The Waldorf Astoria. He said they wined and dined at the Waldorf's signature restaurant (Bull and Bear) as well as at Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian (Disney's finest restaurant by a long shot). He stated his and his friend/co-worker's opinions on the visit and they all thought it was complete utter rubbish. Everyone thinks of the trip as Californian tax payers simply paying for a high end Disney trip for some politician buddies from Sacramento.

Upon hearing this... I was surprised to hear nothing of the team being observed in the parks watching crowds and interactions... inspecting queues and other protocols... and I simply ask, did anything ever come out of the strike team's visit? Was there a report saying what they did or did not like at WDW? I'm actually curious as I was actually impressed with what Disney is doing (see here- https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/my-comments-on-disneys-covid-precautions-as-of-12-21-20.971335/ )
 
BuzzedPotatoHead89

BuzzedPotatoHead89

Well-Known Member
MoonRakerSCM said:
On topic concerning reopening guidelines for Disneyland...

Who remembers when Newsom sent a strike team to WDW to observe their protocols for being open with covid? I remember it... hearing about it... but then, nothing... was there ever a report? A summary of what they saw? Most importantly, what did they see/not see that made them determine to NOT allow Disneyland to open?

My Uber driver departing WDW this Monday was a lovely gentleman who works for Disney DVC (part time now) with some involvement with Waldorf Astoria and took up Uber while he is furloughed. Aside from thanking us for coming to visit, he had some interesting things to say about the California 'strike team' and their visit.

He said he had never seen treatment like what the strike team got upon their arrival. They had a police escort and roads were closed to transport the strike team from the airport directly to their hotel... The Waldorf Astoria. He said they wined and dined at the Waldorf's signature restaurant (Bull and Bear) as well as at Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian (Disney's finest restaurant by a long shot). He stated his and his friend/co-worker's opinions on the visit and they all thought it was complete utter rubbish. Everyone thinks of the trip as Californian tax payers simply paying for a high end Disney trip for some politician buddies from Sacramento.

Upon hearing this... I was surprised to hear nothing of the team being observed in the parks watching crowds and interactions... inspecting queues and other protocols... and I simply ask, did anything ever come out of the strike team's visit? Was there a report saying what they did or did not like at WDW? I'm actually curious as I was actually impressed with what Disney is doing (see here- https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/my-comments-on-disneys-covid-precautions-as-of-12-21-20.971335/ )
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It would be nice for us simpleton California taxpayers (the ones that can only afford In-N-Out to the French Laundry) to get to read the findings of that report we paid for with state tax dollars.

Assuming extensive notations were documented, I’d have to wonder if there’d be any benefit in SOAR or CAPA to make a FOIA request under the CA Public Records Act to request to get the records contained in those reports. Last time we had heard from CAPA they appeared to feel like they were left in the dark.

They could probably FOIA the financial costs of this business trip as well, for purposes. Would be interesting to see what recommendations were recorded/made from Dr. Ghaly’s staff regarding findings and best practices recorded for the actual visits.
 
TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
MoonRakerSCM said:
On topic concerning reopening guidelines for Disneyland...

Who remembers when Newsom sent a strike team to WDW to observe their protocols for being open with covid? I remember it... hearing about it... but then, nothing... was there ever a report? A summary of what they saw? Most importantly, what did they see/not see that made them determine to NOT allow Disneyland to open?

My Uber driver departing WDW this Monday was a lovely gentleman who works for Disney DVC (part time now) with some involvement with Waldorf Astoria and took up Uber while he is furloughed. Aside from thanking us for coming to visit, he had some interesting things to say about the California 'strike team' and their visit.

He said he had never seen treatment like what the strike team got upon their arrival. They had a police escort and roads were closed to transport the strike team from the airport directly to their hotel... The Waldorf Astoria. He said they wined and dined at the Waldorf's signature restaurant (Bull and Bear) as well as at Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian (Disney's finest restaurant by a long shot). He stated his and his friend/co-worker's opinions on the visit and they all thought it was complete utter rubbish. Everyone thinks of the trip as Californian tax payers simply paying for a high end Disney trip for some politician buddies from Sacramento.

Upon hearing this... I was surprised to hear nothing of the team being observed in the parks watching crowds and interactions... inspecting queues and other protocols... and I simply ask, did anything ever come out of the strike team's visit? Was there a report saying what they did or did not like at WDW? I'm actually curious as I was actually impressed with what Disney is doing (see here- https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/my-comments-on-disneys-covid-precautions-as-of-12-21-20.971335/ )
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What a great point!

Whatever happened with that? Governor Newsom sent an entire team to an Untouchable State like Florida to see how the other half lives and then.... nothing.

Not a peep. No report. No statement. No findings. Nothing. Hmm.....
BuzzedPotatoHead89 said:
It would be nice for us simpleton California taxpayers (the ones that can only afford In-N-Out to the French Laundry) to get to read the findings of that report we paid for with state tax dollars.
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Let's not hold our breath. Our betters in Sacramento don't actually have to report in on what they found on their secret trip to benchmark how other states regulate the same privately owned facilities that operate in California.

This is not for simpletons like you and me. This involves Science & Data and only superiors in Sacramento can understand it. It also involved expense accounts and Eggs Benedict sent up to each inspector's room every morning at 8am before they ventured out to inspect the property. This is not something you would understand. It's not for you. Please just keep paying your taxes, little person in Fresno or Redding or Oceanside or whatever miserable place you live in. Gavin Newsom and First Partner thank you in advance!

SouthernFriedFreedom said:
When is Disneyland going to reopen?
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My amateur bet? October, 2021. A full 18 months after it closed for two weeks to Flatten The Curve.
 
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MarvelCharacterNerd

MarvelCharacterNerd

Well-Known Member
TP2000 said:
My amateur bet? October, 2021. A full 18 months after it closed for two weeks to Flatten The Curve.
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I mentioned in another thread, I think they're going to do their darnedest to reopen by the July 17 anniversary date. Not expecting any time sooner though because The Science and The Data and The Gav'nr.
 
Professortango1

Professortango1

Well-Known Member
SouthernFriedFreedom said:
When is Disneyland going to reopen?
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Considering how WDW is packing crowds in, filling every seat on rides, and not enforcing any rules; I would wager awhile. The company has shown that they aren't prepared to handle COVID restrictions and will quickly seek to maximize profits. While that may fly in Florida, it won't in California. Which is why we remain closed.
 
Emmanuel

Emmanuel

Well-Known Member
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MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
Feel free to head over to the WDW planning forum to see my thread on my trip to WDW 2 weeks ago. It was fantastic and Disney is doing a bunch of things to limit exposure to other guests and are certainly enforcing many rules. My hands are still dried out from all the hand sanitizer I used on property. Most free stuff I've ever gotten from Disney.
 
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M

MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
As a Disney fan who actually went to WDW Dec 17-21, it was most certainly worth it.
1) Long Wait times- wait times are probably 1/3 to 1/4 what they would be during a normal Christmas season. Lines are physically long (due to social distancing markers) but times are much lower than a normal season. Of note as well, we did not go on a single ride that the posted wait time was correct... Mine Train said 75 minutes, we waited 30. Slash said 60 we waited 30. We eventually realized that the sign markers at the end of the lines with wait times were on average twice the actual time we were waiting.
2) Reduced Hours- When we booked the trip back in September, the posted park hours were quite limited (to where we were wondering what we would be doing in the evenings), but by the time we actually went, they had increased park hours back to normal (I think we lost an hour or two overall across the 4 parks compared to a normal year).
3) No park hopping- that is correct, no park hopping was allowed (though it didn't diminish our trip). Though, I have not experienced it at all, I think park hopping is coming back online soon (if not already as of the 1st?).

To relate this BACK to CA reopening guidelines and what was learned from CA's strike team- I think that people spreading blatant misinformation is potentially hurting what Disney is doing... they're flooding social media (as seen above) with lies and false reports. California's leaders are none too smart and I wouldn't be surprised if they would take rumors from social media as gospel and use that in their considerations?

Back to the strike team trip... is the government documentation request something easily coordinated? As in could Disney fans gather together and process this request out of sheer curiosity? It's obvious that the media, who is supposed to be keeping an eye on these things, has completely ignored the trip and it's results.
 
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mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
MoonRakerSCM said:
Feel free to head over to the WDW planning forum to see my thread on my trip to WDW 2 weeks ago. It was fantastic and Disney is doing a bunch of things to limit exposure to other guests and are certainly enforcing many rules. My hands are still dried out from all the hand sanitizer I used on property. Most free stuff I've ever gotten from Disney.
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This is good to hear. I booked a trip for late February but I’m starting to get cold feet hearing some of these things. I was already mentally prepared to have my patience tested with 2 young children (5 year old and 5 month old) and masks but when you start hearing things like having to mobile order counter service an hour in advance, lines to get into stores (guess I should have expected this one) and just one way traffic in and out of places it just makes you feel like it may not be the escape I’m looking for living in California. Nothing about it seems easy, spontaneous or relaxing which I understand Is the case in non Covid times but during Covid with two young ones it just gets amplified.
 
M

MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
The two young ones would certainly make it a bit more difficult. Stores mostly had one entrance point with a line set up (though we never waited more than a minute or so with the exception of World of Disney at Disney Springs where it was 30 minutes) and all other doors being exit only.

All counter service orders we did were never more than 15 minutes but did require that additional bit of planning. If anything it's more awkward waiting for your food as the restaurants only let you into the immediate areas once your food is ready (concept being you show your order is ready to the CM at the front, proceed to get your food, and then immediately to a table (thus no loitering)). It was ok, but certainly awkward. Most of our meals were sit down restaurants so we only encountered the mobile ordering a couple of times. We did note in particular that the amount of kids at AK and Epcot seemed even less than usual. MK still had a ton of kids and the wrangling seemed moreso than usual (with notably a lot of parents having to corral kids due to them wandering around etc.)

That is true though, the entire experience was certainly close to awkward, but, in the time of covid, it was something to do and we enjoyed it immensely. I have a friend who visited with her husband and young daughter the week before us (she only did one day at MK). Long story short, the end result statement was "I would rather have gone with you guys" (aka go with her friends). After just spending 5 days in Montana with those of my immediate household from the past 10 months... I will agree that vacationing with the people you've been spending every living moment with for the past 10 months in such close proximity... can wear on you.
 
mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
MoonRakerSCM said:
The two young ones would certainly make it a bit more difficult. Stores mostly had one entrance point with a line set up (though we never waited more than a minute or so with the exception of World of Disney at Disney Springs where it was 30 minutes) and all other doors being exit only.

All counter service orders we did were never more than 15 minutes but did require that additional bit of planning. If anything it's more awkward waiting for your food as the restaurants only let you into the immediate areas once your food is ready (concept being you show your order is ready to the CM at the front, proceed to get your food, and then immediately to a table (thus no loitering)). It was ok, but certainly awkward. Most of our meals were sit down restaurants so we only encountered the mobile ordering a couple of times. We did note in particular that the amount of kids at AK and Epcot seemed even less than usual. MK still had a ton of kids and the wrangling seemed moreso than usual (with notably a lot of parents having to corral kids due to them wandering around etc.)

That is true though, the entire experience was certainly close to awkward, but, in the time of covid, it was something to do and we enjoyed it immensely. I have a friend who visited with her husband and young daughter the week before us (she only did one day at MK). Long story short, the end result statement was "I would rather have gone with you guys" (aka go with her friends). After just spending 5 days in Montana with those of my immediate household from the past 10 months... I will agree that vacationing with the people you've been spending every living moment with for the past 10 months in such close proximity... can wear on you.
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Thanks this helps paint a clearer picture. Also failed to mention this is our first WDW trip. Leaving the kids is not really an option right now. Plus I would feel so guilty considering my son hasn’t had the best year either. Many boring days at home.
 
M

MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
Tough call. I am coming from a point of view of only being to WDW as a group of adult friends. We love it but noticably enjoy the 'adult' parks more than MK. For instance I fully intend next visit to spend 2 days in Epcot and 2 days in AK... to some people those are only half day parks.
 

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