During today’s second quarter earnings call for the Walt Disney Company, CEO Bob Chapek mentioned a projected opening date for Shanghai Disneyland which has been closed since late January 2020.
What’s happening:
- Disney is hoping to reopen Shanghai Disneyland Park on May 11, 2020.
- Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced the plans to welcome back guests during Disney’s quarterly earnings call.
- Chapek says Disney has been in communication with their Chinese partners and are planning a phased approach to reopening which will include:
- The use of masks
- Temperature screenings
- Other safety measures
- Following the announcement, Shanghai Disney Resort also shared a press release outlining their plans for opening.
Reopening Shanghai Disney Resort:
- The initial park reopening will demonstrate a deliberate approach, drawing on the experience from the successful reopening of Disneytown, Wishing Star Park and Shanghai Disneyland Hotel in early March, and implement enhanced health and safety measures.
- During this initial reopening phase, the park will institute new measures and procedures including:
- Opening with limited attendance
- Required advanced ticketing and reservations
- Accommodating social distancing in:
- Queues
- Restaurants
- Ride vehicles
- Other facilities throughout the park
- Implementing increased frequency of sanitization and disinfection
Tickets:
- Ticket sales will be available via the resort’s official online channels and official travel partners’ channels beginning on May 8 at 8:00 am, with a limited number of tickets available each day during the initial reopening.
- At this time General Admission tickets and on-site sales will not be available.
- Annual Pass holders are welcome to visit but they must make a reservation for their visit date and time through Shanghai Disney Resort’s official online channels before their visit to the park.
Park Operations:
- On May 11, the majority of Shanghai Disneyland’s attractions, rides, some shows and shopping and dining locations will resume operations, with controlled attendance.
- Some interactive attractions and experiences, such as children play areas, and theater shows will remain closed. Guests can check the availability of attractions and entertainment through the resort’s official website and app.
- Bob Chapek mentioned that the capacity of Shanghai Disneyland is 80,000 per day. The government put a limit of 24,000 per day, but Disney will open substantially lower than that and then ramp up.
Social Distancing Practices:
- To accommodate social distancing, parades and nighttime spectaculars will be suspended at this time and are expected to return at a later date.
- During the initial reopening phase, a special Disney character procession, Mickey and Friends Express, will take place several times daily, and the Enchanted Storybook Castle will come to life with light and music at dusk each day with Evening Magical Moments.
- Disney characters will appear in each of the themed lands, greeting and welcoming everyone back to Shanghai Disneyland. However, close interaction and close-up photos with characters will be suspended during the initial phase of reopening.
- The frequency of sanitization measures will be increased in addition to cleanliness practices already in place throughout the park.
- Hand sanitizers will be available at attractions, restaurants and stores.
Other Important Information:
- Guests will need to provide basic personal information for each guest visiting the park:
- Name
- Phone number
- ID type and ID number via Shanghai Disney Resort’s (SDR) official online channels after purchasing a ticket and prior to arriving at the resort.
- A SDR QR Code will be provided after the successful submission of the required identification information
- Guests will be required to present the code before entering the theme park
- Green Health QR Code is required to be allowed to enter the resort
- A China government ID card, or valid travel document, for each guest at the park turnstiles (photos or printed copies will not be accepted) are required
- Guests will undergo temperature screening procedures upon arrival
- Guests will need to wear an approved mask during the entire visit to the resort except when dining.
- These measures will continue to be reviewed as the situation warrants, and may be further adjusted.
- The resort looks forward to recognizing and celebrating medical professionals who helped make our reopening possible at an appropriate time in the near future.
Other Disney Parks:
- Chapek says it is too early to tell when Disney will be able to resume all of their operations. He notes that their approach may include capacity and density measures as well as health procedures.
- The results of the Shanghai Disneyland reopening will likely influence how Disney rolls out future reopenings.