In a recent question and answer session, Christine McCarthy, senior executive vice president and chief financial officer of The Walt Disney Company, shared an update regarding the status of Disney Cruise Line’s next ship, the “Disney Wish”.
In response to the question of when to expect the three new cruise ships scheduled for 2021 – 2023, McCarthy replied, “The shipyard we utilize for our cruise ships, Meyer Werft, was impacted [by COVID] and we encountered a delay. We’re in negotiations and discussions with the shipyard to finalize dates, but as soon as we have those, we’ll make an announcement for when the fifth ship will be delivered. But it is delayed from what we originally anticipated.”
Disney Cruise Line’s “Disney Wish” was orignally scheduled for delivery in late 2021 and expected to set sail beginning in January 2022. No new date was released for delivery of the “Disney Wish” at this time. During the D23 Expo 2019, Disney Cruise Line shared the first details of the newest ship including that Rapunzel would be the character adorning the stern.
McCarthy then addressed new rides and attractions scheduled for the Disney Parks. Confirming that attractions currently under construction remained a priority for The Walt Disney Company. Specific priorities mentioned by McCarthy for completion included the “Star Wars Hotel” at Walt Disney World, Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure as well as Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway in Disneyland.
While McCarthy included three projects as priorities for the Disney Parks, there was no mention as to their timeline for opening. Disney previously announced that reservations Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, the “Star Wars Hotel”, would open later this year for a 2021 opening. The Marvel Avengers Campus was expected to open July 18, 2020, but the Disneyland Resort has yet to reopen since shutting down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Disneyland’s version of Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway has already been pushed back from 2022 to 2023. Finally, there was no mention of Tron Lightcycle / Run slated to open in 2021 at the Magic Kingdom, or the multiple ongoing projects at Epcot including Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Space 220 restaurant, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, nor others.
Similar to the questions about ongoing Disney Parks projects, there are many unknowns about Disney Cruise Line. In addition to the delay of the “Disney Wish”, it is currently not known when Disney Cruise Line will resume sailing. In accordance with Cruise Lines International Association, Disney Cruise Line has extended the cancellation of sailings through at least Oct. 31, 2020. In addition, Disney Cruise Line has removed a number of December sailings from online booking.
