After a strong urging from the California Governor, Disneyland has decided to close in response to the spread of Coronavirus / COVID-19 in the community. Both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure will close starting this Saturday morning March 14 and are expected to remain closed at least through the end of the month.
Disneyland’s announcement also states there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 at the resort. But they are taking this step after meeting with the Governor and in the best interest of the resort’s guests and cast members.
The Walt Disney Company will continue to pay Disneyland resort cast members during this time according to the statement posted online. This is a great gesture and hopefully the company will work with its third party vendors to make sure non-Disney employees who work at the resort are covered too.
The three Disneyland resort hotels will remain open until Monday to give guests time to adjust their travel plans. Downtown Disney is also planning to remain open.
Disneyland said they will closely monitor the situation surrounding the public health crisis related to Coronavirus and follow the advice of state and federal health officials and agencies.
Closings like this are very unusual for Disneyland. Previous unplanned closures include the morning after JFKs assassination, the afternoon of the Northridge earthquakes, and following the September 11 attacks. This will be the first extended unplanned closure.
We’re still waiting to hear what Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando will do. The Florida Governor has not been as insistant, but then the Coronavirus hasn’t spread as far in the state yet either.
This closure was only a matter of time after the California Governor limited gatherings to no more than 250 people and other major institutions like sports leagues and Broadway suspended games and performances.
Update 6:30pm: Disneyland is now joined by Universal Studios Hollywood in closing to help control the spread of Coronavirus
Here’s the full announcement on Disneyland’s website this afternoon:
While there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 at Disneyland Resort, after carefully reviewing the guidelines of the Governor of California’s executive order and in the best interest of our guests and employees, we are proceeding with the closure of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park, beginning the morning of March 14 through the end of the month.
The Hotels of Disneyland Resort will remain open until Monday, March 16 to give guests the ability to make necessary travel arrangements; Downtown Disney will remain open. We will monitor the ongoing situation and follow the advice and guidance of federal and state officials and health agencies. Disney will continue to pay cast members during this time.
Disneyland Resort will work with guests who wish to change or cancel their visits, and will provide refunds to those who have hotel bookings during this closure period. We anticipate heavy call volume over the next several days and appreciate guests’ patience as we work hard to respond to all inquiries.
This is a developing story and we will be updating this post as more details come in.
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Closing is the right thing to do given the circumstances and I applaud the decision. I hope the organization will also be vigilant to keep guests like myself who have made travel arrangements (Mid April visit) notified as to refunds or re scheduled reservations.
What happens to the AP holders that want to renew their passes. We were going to go on th 14th but they are closing this day. I know we can always renew online but we always do a larger down payment. Will they extend it until they reopen?
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Disneyland didn’t close for Northridge. The earthquake happened at 4:30 a.m. and the Park opened as scheduled at 9 a.m., per Disneyland spokesman John McClintock in newspapers at the time. This is only the third unscheduled closure unrelated to weather.
You would be correct. I was remembering that many attractions were closed that day until they could go through safety inspection. Which is not the same thing as the park being closed at all.
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