ANAHEIM, Calif. — Before the coronavirus pandemic, one of the biggest gripes people had when they visited Disneyland was the sheer number of other people visiting the theme park.
Pre-pandemic, Disneyland — not including Disney California Adventure — attracted more than 18 million people a year. On average, that's roughly 49,000 visitors a day. On some high visitor days around the Christmas holiday and special events, Disney would temporarily stop admitting new visitors for a few hours. Lines to hop on a ride could take 30 minutes to an hour. For popular attractions, some people wait up to two hours.
And these numbers gathered in 2019 by the Themed Entertainment Association do not include the number of visitors that would have flocked to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, which unveiled what's likely its most popular ride, Rise of the Resistance, a few months before the pandemic hit in March 2020.
If park-goers want to feel like they have Disneyland all to themselves, there is no better time to go than now — during the pandemic.
After being closed for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure reopened last week.
California caps the number of people attending a theme park based on a county's coronavirus metrics, which in Orange County is currently at 25% capacity. The restrictions in place make parts of the 100-acre Disneyland almost look like a nearly deserted town.
On a recent visit, walking along Main Street, U.S.A., one doesn't have to worry about running into a stroller or rubbing shoulders against someone passing by. A visit to the other themed lands, and you may only see a few dozen people walking by — a far cry from walking shoulder to shoulder sometimes with other visitors.
There is so much open space that it feels like you have Disneyland to yourself.
Seeing fewer people at Disneyland is probably the most significant change Disney fans will experience if they plan to visit the Anaheim theme park anytime soon.
Disney has had to make several adjustments and precautions to follow state health protocols, including limiting attendance and modifying or closing certain rides and attractions.
So if you're planning on visiting Disneyland in the near future, here's what more you should expect:
There is a new ticket reservation system in place. There are no walk-up tickets available. Per state orders, a visitor's party size cannot contain more than three households, and all of them have to be California residents.
Upon entering the theme park, every visitor will have their temperatures checked. Face coverings or face masks are required.
Inside Disneyland, there are themed hand sanitizers, social distancing markers on the floor and other reminders to stand six feet apart throughout the theme park.
Disney workers are also emphasizing cleaning, especially in high-traffic places and dining areas.
Disney officials are asking visitors to download and familiarize themselves with the Disneyland mobile app.
The days of giving Mickey Mouse a high four (Mickey Mouse only has four fingers) or Chewbacca a hug are gone – for now. Social distancing guidelines mean that meet and greets with characters — a staple at Disneyland — have to be spaced apart.
For example, Chewbacca can be seen on a high platform in the Black Spire Outpost in Galaxy's Edge.
Tigger, Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore were stationed behind a fenced area in Fantasyland. Mickey, Minnie Mouse and Goofy posed and danced along a roped-off area along a stairwell in Main Street Station.
Several rides and attractions had to be prohibited or modified to meet the state's guidelines.
The nightly Fantasmic and Disneyland firework show that usually caps the day at Disneyland are no more. The daily parades have also been canceled for now.
The Indiana Jones Adventure ride and Space Mountain feature plexiglass partitions on the ride vehicles to separate groups.
Because the state is not allowing indoor rides to last more than 15 minutes, Disney has had to cut the Rise of the Resistance ride by several minutes to comply with the new rules.
While the outdoor lines of people waiting to go to a particular attraction or inside a store appear long, the wait to get in is much shorter.
According to the state, people must wait outdoors and stand six feet apart due to capacity limits inside stores, restaurants and on rides and attractions.
So Disney arranged all of their queues outdoors to limit the number of people inside an attraction or store.
Only Rise of the Resistance has a virtual queue, meaning people with tickets, on the day of their arrival, will have to go on the Disneyland app and check in their parties for a chance to get a boarding time for the ride.
These days, most of the other rides wait times are about 10 to 20 minutes. Some of the popular rides, such as the new Snow White's Scary Adventures and Indiana Jones, can take maybe 30 minutes.
Due to state guidelines, there is limited indoor dining.
Table service restaurants inside Disneyland reflect this adjustment. Several tables and chairs have been taken out of indoor restaurants such as the Plaza Inn and River Belle Terrace. There are other restaurants in the theme park that are still temporarily closed.
Because there's limited indoor dining availability and a heavy emphasis on contactless payment, Disney has emphasized that visitors use the Disneyland app for ordering their food.
Disney has set up tables and chairs in certain outdoor locations so there are plenty of seats available throughout the theme park.