Disneyland Is Hoping To Open Its Parks Back Up In Late April

Kristin Salaky
·3 min read

From Delish

Update, March 11, 2021: Following updated guidance from California officials, Disneyland announced it is hoping to open back up in late April. This would mark the first time its California parks could reopen for riders since March 2020.

CEO Bob Chapek recently shared the update in a shareholders meeting, according to Insider, saying that Disney was hoping to welcome guests back by late April with limited capacity and other measures in place. He did not give an exact date, but one is expected to be announced soon.

"Here in California, we're encouraged by the positive trends we're seeing, and we're hopeful they'll continue to improve and we'll be able to reopen our parks to guests with limited capacity by late April," he said, according to the publication.

Disney Parks also issued a statement on Twitter, noting that it will take a bit of time to bring back 10,000 employees and get everyone up to speed on new safety protocols.

Disney's California Adventure Park will welcome guests back starting on March 18 for a limited-capacity ticketed event with food and merch called A Touch of Disney. Rides will not be operating at that time.

Original, March 8, 2021: Disneyland, Universal Studios, and other large theme parks in California will be able to open their doors as soon as the beginning of next month thanks to updated state guidelines surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new guidelines are part of the update to California Governor Gavin Newsom's Blueprint for a Safer Economy announced late last week, according to The Orange County Register. Previously, these parks would have to wait for their county to reach the yellow designation for COVID-19 cases, which is considered to be "minimal." Under the amended guidelines, they'll have to wait until their counties reach the red or "substantial risk" tier. Orange and Los Angeles counties are expected to reach that tier this week or next, which means parks like Disneyland, Universal Studios Hollywood, Knott’s Berry Farm, Six Flags Magic Mountain, and more could reopen on April 1 after more than a year of closures.

Of course, if and when they do open back up, things won't automatically go back to pre-COVID-19 normalcy. They'll have to reopen at a limited capacity, based on the risk level in their county. For example, while in the red tier, a park can open at 15 percent capacity. Attendance will also be limited to California residents, according to The O.C. Register. Other reopening guidelines are yet to be announced.

Theme park officials from Disneyland, Universal, and more told the publication that they are encouraged by the news, and many seemed to hint that reopening announcements will be coming soon: “We are encouraged that theme parks now have a path toward reopening this spring, getting thousands of people back to work and greatly helping neighboring businesses and our entire community,” Disneyland resort president Ken Potrock said. “With responsible Disney safety protocols already implemented around the world, we can’t wait to welcome our guests back and look forward to sharing an opening date soon.”

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