After a closure of almost a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, California health officials on Friday gave Walt Disney Co’s Disneyland and other theme parks the green light to reopen at limited capacity from April 1,
Theme parks, including Disneyland, will be allowed to open at 15% capacity if their county is in the red tier, the second-highest risk level, but only people who live in California can buy tickets.
The limited reopening would not include indoor rides, said Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, and theme parks initially would only be open to California residents.
Under the new guidelines, there will be both a building capacity limitation and a time limitation. A ride that takes place indoors or goes into a building for a brief period of time may open if it meets both of these requirements. Indoor dining will continue to be banned for the time being.
“California can begin gradually and safely bringing back more activities, especially those that occur outdoors and where consistent masking is possible,” Ghaly said. “Even with these changes, California retains some of the most robust public health protocols in the country.”
Ken Potrock, president of the Disneyland Resort, said in a statement that Disneyland can’t wait to welcome its guests back and is looking forward to sharing a reopening date 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,” Potrock said.
Orange County, where Disneyland is still in the purple tier for “widespread” risk – only one tier away from reopening-capable red.