Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom Makes Surprising Close on Christmas Day

Families celebrate the holidays in a variety of ways, with some opting to head to warmer climates [...]

Families celebrate the holidays in a variety of ways, with some opting to head to warmer climates to visit tourist attractions. So many families were in attendance today at Walt Disney World Resort's Magic Kingdom that it had to close its doors to a majority of guests shortly before 12:00 PM ET. The attraction re-opened around 1:20 PM ET.

With the massive popularity of the theme park around the holidays, Walt Disney World Resorts has a variety of different closure phases to accommodate different types of guests. The guests that were most impacted by the closure were those with one-day passes, while guests who had multiple-day passes or were staying in a Walt Disney World Resort hotel were admitted.

The official Walt Disney World Resort Twitter made the announcement, while also confirming that it wouldn't be closed any later than 5:30 PM ET.

While the numbers aren't officially confirmed, many estimate that the park can hold over 100,000 guests, yet as to avoid overcrowding, have implemented a tiered closure system. The highest restriction is Phase 4, which prohibits anyone from entering the park. The last Phase 4 closure of the park took place on April 7, 2009.

The various areas in the park allow guests to explore different attractions, despite one area potentially closing. Magic Kingdom often closes, as its the most popular attraction in the park. Epcot closes the least often, as its the largest attraction in the park. Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom rarely close, yet they do run a risk of closing due to their small size.

Some of the most popular days of the year for the Magic Kingdom are New Year's Eve and July 4, which will often result in a Phase 3 park closure. The week of spring break and Christmas vacation have often led to various closures throughout the park.

Last week, the Hall of Presidents attraction re-opened after a year-long renovation, debuting its audio-animatronic made in likeness of the 45th President of the United States.

"Above all, to be American is to be an optimist — to believe that we can always do better — and that the best days of our great nation are still ahead of us," the Trump animatronic recites during the 25-minute show.

[H/T Orlando Sentinal]

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