Disneyland Is Delaying Its Reopening Amid Coronavirus Spike

Those hoping to visit Disneyland this summer will have to wait a while longer—and for very good reason. As announced on June 24th, Disneyland’s reopening has been delayed as the theme park waits for the go-ahead from the State of California. With this announcement coming as California sees a large increase in the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, that approval could take a while.

Disneyland was planning to begin a phased reopening on July 17th, as long as it was given government approval. Now, the state will not be approving theme park reopening plans until after July 4th, which Disneyland says is not enough time to get things in order with its employees. 

“Given the time required for us to bring thousands of cast members back to work and restart our business, we have no choice but to delay the reopening of our theme parks and resort hotels until we receive approval from government officials, reads a press release from Disneyland.

According to the statement, a Disneyland reopening date will be announced once they “have a clearer understanding of when guidelines will be released.” 

The statement also notes that reopening involves agreement from the unions that represent the thousands of Disneyland employees. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Disneyland and the unions have not always been on the same page as the reopening plans have unfolded. 

The news of the delay comes as COVID-19 diagnoses are surging in California. On Tuesday, June 23rd, over 7,000 new cases were reported, and there was a 69% increase over two days, as reported by CNBC.

But while plans have stalled for Disneyland, they haven’t stalled for Disney parks overall. Disney World in Florida is still planning to begin a phased reopening on July 11th—though this is now being petitioned, according to CNN—and Shanghai Disneyland began opening in May. Even in California, the Downtown Disney District, which consists of shops and restaurants, is still set to reopen on July 9th.

Clearly, Disney is ready to get its parks going, but as this pandemic has made more clear than ever, there are a lot of factors in every decision.

As information about the coronavirus pandemic rapidly changes, HelloGiggles is committed to providing accurate and helpful coverage to our readers. As such, some of the information in this story may have changed after publication. For the latest on COVID-19, we encourage you to use online resources from CDC, WHO, and local public health departments, and visit our coronavirus hub.