Half of Walt Disney World Vacationers Cancelling Trips Due To Zika

WDWNT on September 17, 2016

According to a recent survey, “about half” of the people surveyed who are planning trips to the Orlando area said they have canceled or decided not to visit Walt Disney World due to the threat of the Zika virus.

Bloomberg reports:

Zika cases in Florida may be causing vacationers to reconsider plans to visit resorts including Walt Disney Co. parks in Orlando, according to BTIG LLC analyst Rich Greenfield, who cited a survey of travelers.

About half of roughly 800 people planning trips to the area said they have canceled or decided not to visit Walt Disney World due to the threat of the virus, based on a 5,000-person survey earlier this month by CivicScience, a Pittsburgh-based consumer polling and research firm cited by Greenfield in a research note Thursday.

With growth at Disney’s ESPN network slowing and the company’s film studio and consumer unit facing tough comparisons, the company is relying on the parks to drive growth in fiscal 2017, wrote Greenfield, who has recommended selling the stock since December 2015.

As of last month, Disney had “not seen an impact from Zika,” Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger said on an Aug. 9 earnings conference call.

Disney, based in Burbank, California, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

While the survey suggests travelers have Zika fears, it’s not clear that will show up in Disney’s attendance numbers, Greenfield wrote.

“Given how meaningfully the cancellation/deferral rate appears to be, this is clearly a key question Disney should be pushing management to talk about,” he wrote.

Disney shares were little changed at $92.25 in New York. The stock is down 12 percent this year as of Wednesday.

PHOTO REPORT: Epcot 8/31/16 (Haunted Mansion, Mosquito Prevention, New Stairs, ETC.)

WDWNT on September 2, 2016

Today, we take a short trip to a rainy Epcot to see what’s new and exciting in our latest photo report (and no, Haunted Mansion in the title is not a mistake):

Steps Toward Security

Emergency monorail stairs at Epcot

Emergency monorail stairs at Epcot

Work was finally completed on the new emergency stairs at the Epcot Monorail station. New safety protocols have required these additions at many of the monorail stations around Walt Disney World property.

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My attempt at being artsy. This is as far as I can go.

New Merchandise

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Some new Haunted Mansion art found in the Art of Disney, including these tiny stretching room portraits.

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All four of the stretching room statues are now available.

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Select items from the PIXAR Party are still lingering, available at Epcot’s Pin Central.

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In France, a selection of Disney Princess shirts exclusive to the parks are available.

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Tower of Terror as a park icon isn’t going anywhere anytime soon apparently…

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Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

This light up Little Green Men lanyard is fairly new, available in quite a few places.

Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

More new Toy Story-themed park apparel has been released recently.

Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

Disney Parks Toy Story Merchandise

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Some new children’s clothing featuring the Fab 5 is available at MouseGear.

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ZIKA/Mosquito Prevention

Mosquito prevention kiosk with complimentary repellent

Mosquito prevention kiosk with complimentary repellent

I found two of the complimentary bug repellent locations during my rainy night visit to Epcot. This first one is on the bridge from China to the Refreshment Outpost.

Mosquito prevention kiosk with complimentary repellent

Mosquito prevention kiosk with complimentary repellent

Another was spotted near the Agent P sign-up kiosk between Future World and World Showcase.

Zika Threat Possibly Forcing Disney to Fill Abandoned River Country Pool

WDWNT on September 2, 2016

According to the Orlando Sentinel:

Walt Disney World is draining and filling in the pool at its long-closed River Country water park.

The 330,000-gallon Upstream Plunge was a major attraction at the now abandoned water park. It is surrounded by manmade boulders for jumping and diving platforms.

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River Country is surprisingly close to Mickey’s Backyard BBQ and Pioneer Hall at Fort Wilderness.

The green and white kidney-shaped area in the Google Earth image is the pool, which is especially close to the still functional Mickey’s Backyard BBQ and Pioneer Hall.  Although fences separate the closed water park from the rest of Fort Wilderness, intrepid explorers have managed to get inside and snap some eerie pictures of the abandoned area, much to the consternation of WDW management.

It is not known what will become of the rest of the abandoned water park, although rumors as far back as 2010 indicated the area was being explored as a possible site for a new DVC property.

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River Country as seen from the air in its heyday.

River Country held its Grand Opening on June 19, 1976 as part of the “Bicentennial Summer” of 1976 at the Walt Disney World Resort.  In the 1980s, River Country was very popular but after Typhoon Lagoon opened in 1989, attendance waned, and ultimately River Country was closed permanently in 2001 in the wake of declining tourism after 9/11.

The standing water in the pool could be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, the known carrier of the Zika virus. There have recently been documented cases of the virus just miles from Orlando in Tampa, FL, making the threat of the virus very real in the Orlando area.

Disney has not given any official word on why the pool is being filled in, but many have speculated the Zika threat as the reason.

PHOTOS: Disney World Rolls Out Free Mosquito Repellent to Combat Zika Virus

WDWNT on September 2, 2016

On Saturday, we told you about the introduction of complimentary bug repellent at the Disney World theme parks and Disney Springs to help combat the Zika Virus presence in central Florida. On Sunday, Disney rolled out the program resort wide. Here’s how it works…

Mosquito Prevention Kiosk in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom

Mosquito Prevention Kiosk in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom

These kiosks are located all around the parks and Disney Springs. Cast members are handing pamphlets out to guests about mosquito prevention and then invite them to apply repellent to themselves. On Sunday, cast were tallying the number of guests using the program. By mid-afternoon, one kiosk at Disney Springs informed us that they already had over 50 guests who had taken advantage of the program.

Repellent Basket at a kiosk in Disney Springs

Repellent Basket at a kiosk in Disney Springs

Guests do not actually receive anything to keep with them, but they can stop at these kiosks and apply the repellent to themselves. All resort rooms at Walt Disney World have similar bottles of repellent placed in them by housekeeping. Guests do in fact get to keep these bottles distributed to their guest room.

It is unknown for how long Walt Disney World will offer the repellent, but it will likely be until the threat of Zika is gone from the Central Florida area.