Disneyland Resort in California will reopen April 30 to state residents, Disney announced Wednesday, bringing the iconic theme park’s year-long closure to an end as Covid-19 transmission slows in the area and vaccinations ramp up. The resort’s two theme parks, Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure will reopen at 15% capacity, due to the state’s “red tier” guidelines.
The state’s theme park reopening guidelines specify parks can only reopen to California residents for the time being.
Disneyland’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa will reopen on April 29, with its other two hotels, the Disneyland Hotel and Paradise Pier Hotel, reopening at a later date.
The resort will open in a more limited fashion Thursday with the start of its ticketed Touch of Disney event at California Adventure, a dining event without rides designed to comply with state restrictions.
Disneyland’s Downtown Disney shopping district has remained open throughout the closure, and a limited portion of California Adventure has been open for shopping and dining only since November.
BIG NUMBER
More than 10,000. That’s the number of Disneyland employees who will return to work now the shutdown has ended, according to the company. Disney’s extended theme park closures have taken a significant toll on the company’s workforce, and the company has laid off 32,000 employees in its U.S. parks division.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Disneyland Paris will now be the only Disney park closed worldwide once Disneyland reopens, after the French theme park delayed its planned April 2 reopening date.
KEY BACKGROUND
Disneyland’s reopening ends months of controversy over its continued closure since March 2020, as California officials had refused to let theme parks in the state reopen despite significant lobbying from the industry and local officials who protested the closures’ economic toll. The government eventually relented and released looser guidelines in early March, which allowed theme parks to reopen as soon as April 5 assuming their areas met certain Covid-19 metrics. Disney CEO Bob Chapek said Disneyland would reopen in late April, however, in order to give employees the necessary time to reopen properly with social distancing requirements in place.
