SeaWorld San Diego and Other Area Attractions Meet With County to Discuss Plans to Reopen July 1

A group of leaders from several San Diego area attractions met with county officials yesterday to discuss their reopening plans with a tentative date set for July 1st, according to NBC San Diego.

What’s Happening:

  • Representatives and leaders from SeaWorld San Diego, USS Midway Museum, and Legoland California Resort make up the San Diego Attraction coalition. This coalition met Wednesday with county officials to present a tentative reopening plan with a target date of July 1st.
  • According to both the county and the coalition, the meeting was very productive.
  • Though the presentation was productive for the coalition and the county, the authority in which to reopen the attractions lies with the State government.
  • The California Department of Public Health has previously stated theme parks like Legoland and SeaWorld, as well as Disneyland in Anaheim, fall under their phase 3 reopening plans as they have a higher risk. The state currently sits in Phase 2, but no official date has been set for the state entering Phase 3.
  • The coalition did not share specifics as to what new protocols were discussed at Wednesday’s meeting, but it can be expected to see more of what we’ve seen at other attractions around the world that have been allowed to reopen, including temperature screenings for employees, masks for both employees and guests, seating policy changes to keep people spread apart, and extra sanitation and disinfecting procedures.
  • The three attractions that make up the coalition have been closed since Mid-March, under the guidance that gatherings of over 250 people not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Interestingly, the San Diego Zoo (which also closed at the same time) is not part of this coalition and has not made any comments regarding their reopening as of press time.
  • On the opposite coast, SeaWorld Orlando presented their reopening plan with the anticipated reopening date of June 11th on Wednesday as well, and Legoland Florida has been approved by the state to reopen on June 1st.