Disney's evolving new normal What will stay and what will go once health protocols become less urgent? Disney has rolled out some pandemic-inspired practices that analysts and advisors believe are here to stay. Senior editor Jamie Biesiada, on her first visit to Walt Disney World since the pandemic began, reports back. May 10, 2021 Since various components of Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando began to come to life over the past seven months, visits there have, in some ways, reflected a microcosm of life during the pandemic. In March 2020, Disney World and its California counterpart, the Disneyland Resort, closed their doors to visitors indefinitely. Disneyland would not reopen its parks until April 2021 due to state restrictions, but officials in Florida began planning a phased reopening as the spring of 2020 progressed.