Disneyland To Fully Reopen Theme Park On July 17
The state of California is taking even more steps to reopen its economy even as the global coronavirus pandemic continues to rage in the United States and around the world. Looking to boost the state is one of its signature attractions, Disneyland, which is set to open next month.
The Hollywood Reporter quotes Disney’s announcement of the theme parks opening after being closed since March, noting that the reopening will happen in phases starting on July 9. Downtown Disney will be the first to reopen on July 9, with the rest of the park opening to the public on July 17. July 23 is the date set for the reopening of the theme park’s hotels.
Just like the California movie theaters that are set to reopen on June 12, Disneyworld will have to adhere to a number of safety measures to ensure that there is no uptick in the confirmed coronavirus cases in the state.
One of the safety measures in place is a reservation system, which is subject to availability and will ensure that there is a significant decrease in the number of people in the theme park. Also required from staff and visitors to the theme parks are face masks as well as temperature checks. Social distancing will be strictly enforced, and as such parades and meet and greets will no longer be held.
As CNN, reopening these theme parks are important to Disney’s bottom line as they bring in a significant amount of revenue. The closures dealt a huge blow to the company, resulting in 43,000 staffers being furloughed at Disney World and resulting in a $1 billion hit on their revenue.
CNN also quotes ThemeParkInsider.com with regards to the possible challenges the Disneyland theme park may face once it reopens. The website noted the smaller size of the theme park, making it harder to effectively maintain social distancing. Disneyland is also expected to recover its audience much more quickly than Disney World in Orlando, which further complicates the social distancing situation.
Another obvious roadblock that the upcoming reopening will face is that the global coronavirus pandemic has not shown any signs of slowing down in the United States or around the world.
For instance, the June 10 update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pegs the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States at 1,973,797 people, with 17,376 new cases making up that total. Deaths caused by COVID-19 are now at 112,133, with 950 of those being new deaths.
Around the world, the World Health Organizations June 10 situation report puts the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at 7,145,539 people. Fatalities are at 408,025 people.