Things have been shaken up in Disney World and we are here to help you sift through it all.
Epcot Monorail
Quick recap: Disney World closed in March, kept accepting reservations, announced reopening dates, then wiped out existing dining and FastPass+ reservations. Now what? Disney is still sorting our their plan of action for the reopening, but let’s take a look at each part of your vacation to see what they are currently refunding!
Disney World plans to open Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Animal Kingdom on July 11th followed by Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios on July 15th. To help limit the parks’ capacities, Disney is rolling out a new reservation system. But what does that mean for guests who already booked resort reservations?
Disney World Resort Hotels
As the closure has been extended, Disney has been cancelling and refunding hotel reservations that were scheduled during the closure automatically.
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Disney retracted their previous announcement that Resort Hotels (Other than Disney Vacation Club and Disney’s Fort Wilderness) would be reopening and have not released a reopening date for these other hotels. However, in order to accommodate guests with existing reservations, Disney World placed a hold on new hotel and ticket reservations. Guests with existing Resort reservations will have priority access to the new park reservation system.
Disney World Tickets
As we mentioned, you can’t purchase a new ticket right now, because Disney is focusing on guests with existing tickets for the time being. But with all the different types of Disney tickets available, Disney World is handling each one a little differently.
Park Tickets
Unexpired multi-day park tickets or date specific park tickets that would have been valid on March 12th are still being extended through December 15, 2020. Or, you can apply the value from an unused ticket towards a ticket at a later date.
Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom
At this time, park-hopper add-ons will NOT be automatically refunded. According to a Cast Member we spoke with, “It will not happen automatically do to the fact that we currently do not have information on if our Guests will be able to park hop.”
You can read more about Disney World’s Ticket extension policy here!
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway sign
Disney’s new reservation system will require guests to book a ticket for a specific date, similar to how Shanghai Disneyland reopened. Guests with resort reservations will have priority access to this new system. Guests will also be required to have a valid park reservation and admission before they can book dining or other experiences. We will keep you updated when we hear more details about this new system!
You can read more about the reservation system here!
Florida Resident Discovery Disney Tickets
Florida Resident Discovery Disney Tickets are currently valid through September 30, 2020.
Disney World Annual Passes
Disney stated that Annual Passholders might have access to special experiences and priority booking once the parks reopen. However, the website is still reflecting the same cancellation policy from the closures.
You can read more about Disney World’s Annual Pass refund process here!
Special Ticketed Events
During the closure, Disney has been refunding event tickets for cancelled events including Disney’s After Hours, Villains After Hours, Early Morning Magic, and H20 Glow Nights.
Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party in Magic Kingdom
Disney has discontinued ticket sales for upcoming events such as Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, but a Cast Member confirmed that — as of now — the tickets are still valid. We will keep you updated as we learn more about these parties.
You can read more about Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party tickets here!
Disney World Dining
In anticipation of the reopening, Disney has canceled all existing dining plans and dining reservations “including Disney dining plans included in packages.”
©Disney
So if you grabbed an advance dining reservation, you booked a Disney Dining Plan with your trip, OR you received a free Dining Plan with your vacation package — these will be automatically canceled and refunded. This cancellation applies to plans from May 28, 2020 through September 26, 2021.
All pre-paid dining or dining experience reservations will be automatically refunded and you will not be charged a cancellation or no-show fee.
Be Our Guest
Note: This does not mean Disney will not have dining plans or reservations by 2021, they are just clearing their current bookings to make way for a new system.
Once the new reservation system is live, the traditional 180 day booking window will change to a 60 day booking window prior to the reservation date. Additionally, if you are a Tables in Wonderland member, your membership will be extended by the number of days the parks are closed.
Cinderella’s Royal Table
Similar to the park reservation system, once the new dining reservation system goes live, guests with existing reservations will receive priority access to rebook dining reservations.
You can read more about the dining cancellations here!
Now What??
A LOT has changed in the past several hours, so things are very much up in the air. Take a deep breath and know that you aren’t alone in this. We’re tracking down as much info as we can and will keep you posted here at DFB with the most up-to-date news we have!
If you have questions about your booking, you can call (407) 934-7639 for Disney Customer Support or use the chat feature to message with someone on the Disney World website. To cancel or change your reservation, you can do so online using My Disney Experience.
As you can imagine, Disney World is receiving a high volume of calls and messages, so there might be a bit of a wait. If you booked your trip with a travel agent, you can contact them for more details and for next steps. We’re in this together and please let us know your questions so we can help you out as much as possible!
If Disney World adds or changes any refund policies, we will keep updating this post with the newest information!
Click here to learn more about Disney World’s CONFIRMED reopening dates!
Disney Park Reopening Details and Info
Click HERE for the All Latest Updates
Click HERE To See FULL LISTS of the Rides, Attractions, Shopping, Entertainment, and Restaurants Opening in Disney World!
TUTORIAL: How To Use Disney World's NEW Park Pass Reservation System
ALL Disney World Reopening Procedures
Disney World Hotel and Ticket Booking Information
We’re Visiting ALL the Reopened Disney World Hotels and Have All the Need-to-Know Details
We’re LIVE in Disney World's Magic Kingdom For the FIRST Time Since the Closures
We’re LIVE in Disney’s Animal Kingdom For the FIRST Time Since the Closures
We Got a FIRST LOOK at Disney World’s New Character Cavalcades and Entertainment!
Everything You NEED To Know About Wearing Masks in Disney World
Join the DFB Newsletter To get all the latest Disney Park Closure News Delivered Right to Your Inbox Click here to Subscribe
What questions do you have for us about the reopening? Let us know in the comments and we’ll do our best to get the answer to you!
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I have tried calling Disney as well as using the My Disney Experience to modify my existing resort reservation. It is not possible at this time by either the My Disney Experience app or talking to a Disney rep. For the last 3 days I just get told they are updating the system.
So will you have to make a reservation for a specific park or just make one for Disney World as a whole?
Ally, we haven’t seen the new system yet, but we expect it will be specific a Park.
Serena, that sounds about right, unfortunately. When we hear that it’s up and running, we’ll let everyone know.
I would also like to add. With the NBA season finishing in Disney. A lot of accommodations are being reserved for them and support teams maybe into September.
I had hoped they would extend annual passes a bit more, given that the opening conditions are quite different and many of us are still hesitant to return until we see how things play our safety-wise. However, I do understand that at a time they’re operating with limited capacity, additional extensions for APs would further reduce park income.
They have offered the pro-rated refund, so no complaints here. Just sad that the value of that pass for the two week trip we didn’t do this spring is much more than the two-month case refund. Grateful they at least offered that. I still need to check on some hotels and flights for cash rather than credits.
Do you know whether the cancellation of the Disney Dining Plan also applies to international visitors? We are due to visit from the UK on July 21st and had the free Dining Plan included in our package. Thank you.
I’m curious about magical express . I haven’t seen anything about it yet.
Does the dining plan cancellation include the quick service dining package? If so, I’m cancelling and I’ll just spend that time in Missouri instead
Misty, we confirmed with Disney yesterday that the DDP cancellation does include the QS DDP as well.
Normie, our team awaits info about DME as well. We will update when we know anything.
Claire, it sounds like a blanket cancellation, but you may want to contact Disney to confirm.
We have a trip planned in Oct’20, which included DDP as part of the deal. Currently the trip is still going ahead. Will the DDP be reinstated for this trip?
Tracey, Disney has indicated that DDP will return, but they have not specified a timeframe. So right now, I don’t think anyone knows if it’ll be back by the fall. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait for more info on this.
We are annual pass holders and feel that it is too soon to be enjoying ourselves at the parks. Is Disney going to allow us to for-go our monthly contract since we will not be returning before our passes expire? It wouldn’t seem fair for them to deduct money from our account when we won’t be returning this year….. after all …. this wasn’t our doing and don’t feel safe yet.
Karen, this page has been created by Disney for APs with questions about the reopening. There are some options for refunds, I believe, but you’ll want to look into it to see what applies to your situation. Good luck!
Regarding the reservation system. I have a trip planned for September, does that mean it’s possible that I may not get into a certain park for my entire trip if all other guests happen to book before I get the chance?
Cindie, I think that is the fear a lot of folks have. We await official word from Disney and the new reservation system to see how it actually rolls out.
We were scheduled for a family trip last spring, but Disney World closed before we got there. We rescheduled for the fall, but now my daughter who has MS also developed a heart condition which prevents her from going on any of the rides. I would like to know if there is any way of getting a refund on the tickets. We also purchased the “Park Hopper” option is that part of the ticket being refunded, since you can only attend one park per day now?
Evelyn, you should be able to get full refunds (Disney allows this under typical circumstances anyway, but they’ve relaxed the refund policy, too, I believe). You’ll want to call or chat with Disney directly.