Tips for Visiting Disney Springs During the Reopening

Walt Disney World as a whole is slowly easing into reopening and the first on-property area to open was Disney Springs. We’ve visited twice now since COVID19 and I thought I would share some tips and information to help you prepare for your Disney Springs visit.

Disney Springs Phased Reopening

Safety Procedures

First, make sure you’re aware of the current safety procedures before visiting Disney Springs (from the Walt Disney World website):

Limited parking and reduced entrances
Temperature screenings prior to entry
Face coverings required for Guests ages 2 and up
Physical distancing practices including physically-distanced queues and physical barriers
Temporary operation modifications, including reduced hours at select locations and no scheduled entertainment offerings or high-touch interactive areas
An increased focus on disinfecting and sanitation, including the addition of hand-washing stations and hand sanitizers in key areas

Accessing Disney Springs

There are currently only 3 ways to access Disney Springs. Via self-parking in the Orange Garage (this one opens first in the morning), the Lime Garage (this one opens once needed based on Orange Garage capacity), and the rideshare drop-off / pedestrian walkway.

Temperature Screenings

Each of the 3 Disney Springs entrances have temperature screenings. These screenings are no-contact and both times we’ve visited have been very quickly executed. Temperatures below 100.4 are acceptable for entry into Disney Springs.

Required Face Coverings

You must have an appropriate face covering to pass through the temperature screening, I recommend you put that on at your car. All guests ages TWO and up are required to wear a mask. This recently changed, when we visited a few days ago the requirement was children ages 3 and up. Make sure you have a mask for everyone in your party, except infants.

You can find links to our face masks in this post (and lots of other Disney face masks too!).

All face coverings should:

Fully cover an individual’s nose and mouth and allow the Guest to remain hands-free
Fit snugly but comfortably against the side of the face
Be secured with ties or ear loops
Be made of breathable material, either disposable or reusable

Costume masks are not considered appropriate and are prohibited from being worn.

Inside Disney Springs

Once inside Disney Springs you’ll notice that not every shop and restaurant is currently open. There are very clear signs on the buildings of the closed businesses. You’ll also see the COVID19 signage throughout Disney Springs reminding you to social distance & keep space, wear your mask, wash your hands frequently, etc.

Masks can be removed when eating/ drinking. We always found a nice quiet area or bench and sat to have our snack or drink with our masks off. You can also remove your mask when dining in a restaurant.

Most restaurants offer either inside or outside seating. And tables are either spaced apart the 6-foot minimum or every other table is marked as not-available for use.

Stores will have capacity limits and may require physically spaced queues outside. Some stores, like World of Disney, are also offering a virtual queue sign-up when required. This allows you to hold your spot in line while enjoying the rest of Disney Springs.

If you’d like to make a dining reservation, most Disney Springs restaurants utilize Open Table. You can check on their website or opentable.com to see if a dining reservation is possible.

As you explore Disney Springs, you’ll notice lots of hand sanitizer dispensers throughout and outdoor hand-washing stations as well. I always carried my own in my pocket but we used the provided stations whenever we passed them.

Every bathroom we used during our visit was extremely clean. We also noticed a lot of custodial cast members working very hard cleaning high-touch areas throughout Disney Springs.

Disney Springs Tips

These are my personal tips for visiting Disney Springs during the reopening.

Bring multiple masks — it is very hot and humid in Florida during the summer. Your mask may get soaked with sweat (or a typical Florida thunderstorm) so having a backup available is a wise choice.
Arrive early in the morning OR between lunch and dinner hours. Disney Springs opens at 10am but you can still walk around inside prior to the opening (and Starbucks is typically open earlier than 10am!).
- We always arrived just before opening and experienced very low crowds. We did not have to wait in a queue to shop inside of World of Disney.

If you have any plans to visit the Disney-owned stores, head there first to add your name to the virtual queue if they’re currently utilizing it. If they’re not, head on in and shop while there isn’t any wait.
Plan to eat so you can have a mask break. You could choose to sit-down at a restaurant, mobile order from D-Luxe, snack from the food carts, or bring your own snacks from home. Dining breaks are nice mask breaks too.
Walk through air-conditioned shops. It can be extremely hot outside, take advantage of the air conditioning and cool off when needed.

If you’re hoping for some *extra* Disney magic during your Disney Springs visit, I recommend browsing the World of Disney store, posing for a photo with Cinderella or Buzz, grabbing a Dole Whip from Marketplace Snacks, splurging on a Mickey balloon, and keeping an eye out for characters. 🙂