ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Orlando’s tourism machine began to grind to a halt Tuesday, with at least three major theme parks and a major airport announcing closures ahead of 2019. hurricane milton expected to be a hit as florida storm.
Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, and SeaWorld closed their theme parks and their respective entertainment venues on Wednesday, with the latter two also closing Thursday, and Disney likely to remain closed.
universal Halloween Horror Nights scheduled for both days have also been cancelled.
The theme parks join Orlando International Airport, which announced Wednesday morning that it would cease operations. The airport is the seventh busiest in the United States and the busiest in Florida.
Disney World announced earlier in the day that it was open ahead of the storm and only campgrounds and rental cabins would be closed.
The only sign that a hurricane was approaching at Disney Springs was that hot air balloon flights were canceled. The electronic bulletin board read, “Closed due to hurricane.” “Please stay safe.”
All other stores and restaurants in the resort’s outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex were open and operating briskly.
The Milton, which is expected to make landfall Wednesday, threatens to ruin vacations for tens of thousands of tourists at Disney World.
Nicole and Zeb Downs planned a 12-day vacation to Florida with their three young sons, arriving on Monday after a 21-hour drive from Arkansas. By Tuesday afternoon, they were planning to pack up their car and head home.
“It’s unfortunate, but there’s nothing we can do about it at this point,” Zeb Downs said as he walked with his family through the still-bustling Disney Springs shopping and restaurant district in the park resort.
Neither of us had ever been through a hurricane, so we weren’t looking to try it.
The Orlando area is the most visited tourist destination in the United States due to Disney World, Universal Orlando Resort, and other theme parks, attracting 74 million tourists last year alone.
October is also the busiest month for theme parks due to Halloween-related events that have generated significant revenue for the past few decades. Universal Orlando hosts “Halloween Horror Nights,” featuring terrifying haunted houses based on slasher movies and other pop culture horror, while Disney hosts a tame “Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.” Masu.
Aside from recent dangerous hurricanes, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Disney rarely closes its doors, but Disney hotels are sheltering from impending storms. They often serve as a refuge for coastal residents. When I checked Disney World’s online reservation system on Tuesday morning, there were no openings.
Those lucky enough to book a hotel have received windfall benefits during past storms. During Hurricane Irma in 2017, guests at hotels on Disney property actor Kristen Bell, She is the voice of the character Anna in the popular Disney movie “Frozen.” While in Orlando, the actor found time to sing for evacuees at a nearby hurricane shelter.
Once a hurricane passes, theme parks try to return to normal operations as quickly as possible. After Hurricane Charlie devastated Orlando in 2004, utility vehicles at Disney World picked up fallen tree limbs and cleared snow from roads within the pitch black night.
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Follow Mike Schneider on social platform X: @MikeSchneider.
