PHOTOS - A look at the reopening of Disney's Hollywood Studios

Jul 20, 2020 in "Disney's Hollywood Studios"

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Disney's Hollywood Studios reopening from COVID-19 shutdown

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Posted: Monday July 20, 2020 10:44am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney's Hollywood Studios has been open to guests for 5 days, part of the second group of the Walt Disney World theme park's phased reopening.

An empty Hollywood Blvd mid-day at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Recent additions including Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway make the Studios the most sought after destination at Walt Disney World, with Disney Park Pass passholder reservations full for almost the next 30 days.

Themed physical distancing safety signs in Galaxy's Edge

Social distancing is in effect throughout the park, which means that some attractions are using outdoor space for queues. Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway is using the courtyard to the right of the building for queue space, minimizing the use of the indoor space.

Queuing for Runaway Railway is nearly all outdoors with physical distancing

Crowds are far lower than you would typically find, although Disney's Hollywood Studios does feel the busiest of the four parks.

Sunset Blvd with minimal crowds

The Studios has the lowest revised reopening capacity, thought to be just below Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Toy Story Land still feels the most busy with physical distancing

Entertainment takes the form of cavalcades that take place multiple times throughout the day.

Fancy Nancy leads the Disney Junior cavalcade along Hollywood Blvd.

Disney Junior, Mickey and Friends, and Pixar Pals complete the line-up.

Minnie Mouse in the Mickey and Minnie cavalcade

In Star Wars Galaxy's Edge, Chewbacca and Rey appear on the balcony over the droid works, and Kylo Ren appears by his ship.

Chewbacca and Rey appear at a distance in Galaxy's Edge

The First Order remain at a distance

Check out the video below for a look at the cavalcades and Kylo Ren and the First Order.

Wait times are higher at the Studios than at the other parks, with Runway Railway frequently having 60 minute + queues, Slinky Dog around 30 minutes, and Smugglers Run around 25 minutes.

Low crowds at Star Wars Galaxy's Edge

Click the gallery for more pictures from the reopening of Disney's Hollywood Studios.

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MisterPenguinJul 10, 2021

gerararJan 23, 2021

Extra overflow tables and seating setup right outside of Theaters of the Stars (BatB show).

YodaManJan 05, 2021

Not sure if it’s indicative of anything or nothing more than an attempt to create space, but all the closed merch stands and Cairo truck that were at the exit to Indiana Jones nearest Backlot Express have all been removed.

TrojanUSCDec 14, 2020

This. The indoor dining (and similar cast break rooms) have caused infections and is the gaping hole in their COVID prevention strategy. At least the Disney owned & operated places have tables spaced pretty far apart, but anything not owned by Disney on property is just as packed as it was pre-pandemic. How Disney allows their operating participants to have tables 3' apart from each other is beyond me.

NunuDec 13, 2020

Dianoga is back, and much more active than before.

NunuNov 04, 2020

Following on my Oct 5th report, looks like the Dianoga water fountain feature at Galaxy's Edge, is back! :D It'd be greatly appreciated if someone there now, could confirm. Thanks.

PostScottOct 09, 2020

True, but would you say that an indoor eatery contributes to the energy of a land?

MisterPenguinOct 09, 2020

We'll always have Rex.

CommunicoraOct 09, 2020

Meals seem like more of an essential so it is somewhat understandable but it doesn't make sense to me that they haven't converted more outdoor space to dining.

TrainsOfDisneyOct 09, 2020

How long did Luxo last in Pixar place? Is this the shortest lived effect in dhs or was that luxo?

PostScottOct 09, 2020

Yeah I believe that that was the last kinetic object within the land. There is the same thing next to the bathrooms in the marketplace but I assume thats down too if this one is down. It's really sad that they promised so much yet they delivered so little. The attractions are really fun, but once you get off something it just feels missing in the land. I know they went over budget with the land and thats why they cancelled so much but, they should have went all out. It's star wars

DisneysonOct 09, 2020

Horrible. Absolutely horrible. I imagine they fired enough people that they couldn't keep this working? Forgive me if this isn't the case, but this is truly the only actively interactive element in the land, right, besides the lights that change colors when you aim your phone at them? Like, everything else in the app is "implied", nothing moves or changes, right? Honestly, what a horrible final nail in the coffin on the premise of the land. Reminds me of the "character card" they gave at that Galactic Nights upcharge event, where they promised more and more cards to come out detailing the different character interactions you would have throughout the land. What a massive spiritual loss for this land this is.

YodaManOct 09, 2020

They still allow indoor unmasked dining which is significantly worse than an indoor masked singalong. But if it were me I wouldn’t feel comfortable at either.

CommunicoraOct 09, 2020

A lot of Disney's protocols seem well thought out so this surprised me. I'm not sure how they think holding an indoor singalong is a good idea when we are dealing with a virus that is now confirmed to be spread through the air and not just via droplets.