Walt Disney World is currently experiencing an unfortunate, yet historic time as for the first time ever, all of its parks have now been closed for over a week. Yes, that includes all four parks: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Animal Kingdom. All resorts and transportation have also closed and/or come to a standstill due to concerns over the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

We did our best to cover what was accessible on the ground leading up to the full closure, but when it comes to aerial photos, no one does it like our friend @bioreconstruct, who’s taken to the skies to cover the closure from a birds-eye view. (For more amazing aerial photography of all Disney Parks and beyond, make sure you check out his page and give him a follow for some very unique content!) Let’s take you around and show you a rare look into some now-empty parks. We’ve already covered Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, plus a trek over to Animal Kingdom this morning, but now soaring over the glits and glamour of Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Parking and Entrance:

We start out, as always, with the eerily empty entrance. In this shot, you see the entirety of the parking lot, plus the bus loop and the Disney Skyliner station off to the right, and the tram loop running right down the middle. Note the empty Cast Member parking off to the upper left-hand corner by Galaxy’s Edge.

Here we can see a general scope of the park as a whole, with the entrance and security screening area in the lower center.

Hollywood Boulevard:

Heading up Hollywood Boulevard, you can see Echo Lake off to the left, where Gertie seems to have left the fountain on. The newly-debuted Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway neon marquee is turned off.

With the recent opening of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, it’s odd seeing this area in front of the Chinese Theatre just as desolate as it was before the new ride debuted.

Sunset Boulevard:

Here’s a look down Sunset Boulevard, where the Legends of Hollywood refurbishment (center right) was left mid-way due to the halting of all construction projects on property.

Here, we get an interesting look at backstage areas for Sunset Ranch Market (on the right lower-hand corner), plus the backstage Cast Member bypass walkway linking Sunset and Hollywood Boulevard (in the center.)

Here we see, of course, the stunning Hollywood Tower Hotel from above. The winding queue is hidden in the thicket of trees and bushes that comprises the hotel’s gardens directly in front. You also can see the empty Joffrey’s cart in the Tower of Terror courtyard. On the right, you have the courtyards for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy.

Echo Lake/Theater District:

Crossing back over through the center of the park, we have a view of Gertie happily wading in the teal-tinted waters. One of the few service vehicles we’ve spotted is seen over by the entrance to ’50s Prime Time Cafe.

Toy Story Land:

The plastic toy effect is somewhat enhanced when looking at Toy Story Land from an aerial view. You can see the colorful shade structure that was recently added to the queue of Slinky Dog Dash in the upper right-hand corner. The roof of Alien Swirling Saucers, much like the rest of the land, could use some pressure washing, however. Over on the lower right, we see the “immersive” transition into the land if you’re coming from Galaxy’s Edge.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge:

Speaking of Galaxy’s Edge, the rusty old outpost is as quiet as ever without any travelers in it. The Millennium Falcon is parked over in the left-hand corner.

Have you ever noticed the patterned tiles of Savi’s Workshop?

Finally, a look at some of the spire infrastucture as we get an overhead view of Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, Docking Bay 7, the marketplace, and beyond.

As a reminder, all Walt Disney World Resort parks and hotels are currently closed, as is all resort transportation. While the current re-opening date for Walt Disney World is still set at April 1, many analysts are expecting an extension of the closure, but nothing is official until confirmed or announced by Disney. We hope to be back traveling through Batuu in just a couple of rising moons.

Featured Image: @bioreconstruct on Twitter

Jessica Figueroa