Shanghai Disneyland Closes in Response to China Virus Outbreak
By Patrick Frater
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Shanghai Disneyland will close its doors Saturday as a reaction to the spread of a form of coronavirus that has now killed 26 people in mainland China.
The resort complex, which normally operates 365 days per year and welcomes more than 10 million visitors annually, announced Friday afternoon local time that it will shutter the theme park, the Disneytown retail and dining area, the Walt Grand Theatre, and Wishing Star Park. It did not give a date for their reopening.
“In response to the prevention and control of the disease outbreak and in order to ensure the health and safety of our guests and cast, Shanghai Disney Resort is temporarily closing Shanghai Disneyland, Disneytown including Walt Disney Grand Theatre and Wishing Star Park, starting January 25, 2020. We will continue to carefully monitor the situation and be in close contact with the local government, and we will announce the reopening date upon confirmation. Shanghai Disney Resort will assist in the refund for guests who have purchased tickets for admission to Shanghai Disneyland, have booked a resort hotel, or have booked tickets for ‘Beauty and the Beast Mandarin Production’ through the original ticket purchase channel, and we will introduce the detailed procedure and guidelines via the resort’s official platforms as soon as possible,” the resort said in a statement on its website and posted to social media.
Chinese New Year is the peak time of year for internal travel within , when typically half of the country’s 1.4 billion population travel to their home towns to be reunited with family. Seven cities have been placed under lock down measures to prevent the spread of the disease, and vast numbers of cinemas have also closed their doors.
The Walt Disney Company owns 43% of the resort, with the majority 57% held by Shanghai Shendi Group, a joint venture of three companies owned by the Shanghai municipal government. It opened for business in June 2016.
