Disneyland has closed, despite being exempt from California's ban on public gatherings
Aux Features Disneyland
As reported by Variety, Disney has decided to shut down its Disneyland park in California due to the state’s recommended ban on large public gatherings due to the COVID-19 virus. The California parks will remain closed until (at least) the end of March. In a statement, Disney noted that there have been no reported cases of the coronavirus at the park, but it decided that it was in “the best interest of our guests and employees” to close the park. This will go into effect on March 14, and Disneyland’s hotels will remain open until March 16 so anyone staying there can make alternate stay or travel arrangements. The company also adds that it “will continue to pay cast members during this time,” which is worth pointing out because it’s not necessarily a given.
This is just the fourth time Disneyland has enacted an all-day unscheduled closure since the park opened in 1955. The first was on Nov. 25, 1963, for the national day of mourning for President John F. Kennedy. The second on Jan. 17, 1994, after the Northridge earthquake. The third on Sept. 11, 2001.
Thursday’s announcement came shortly after California Governor Gavin Newsom admitted that certain businesses, specifically “casinos, card rooms, theaters,” and large theme parks were exempt from its ban on large public gatherings of over 250 people. That included large tourist destinations like Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm, with Newsom saying that the “unique circumstances” of places like that required “additional conversations” about what to do, so keeping them open seemed like a craven desire just to make money even in the face of a global pandemic. Newsom also pointed out that the ban was more of a “strong recommendation” that couldn’t really be enforced, so he mostly seemed to be hoping that Californians would understand and adopt the recommendations anyway.
With Disneyland closed, though, we don’t have to trust that people will do the right thing, because—in a surprising move—Disney actually did the right thing. The company already closed its parks in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Japan, with Disney predicting that Shanghai and Hong Kong alone would account for losing $280 million in revenue. Closing Disneyland will most likely be similarly impactful.
Update: Universal Studios has also announced that it will be closing, beginning on March 14 and going until March 28. At least going off of the statement that Deadline has shared, there was no mention of employees still getting paid. There’s also no word on if Universal’s park in Florida will also be closed, as the statement only pertained to the California branch.
41 Comments
it’s the happiest place…… on Earth………Minnie, I feel sick.
Only the forth time in history that Disneyland has closed. I wonder if Disney World will follow next.
I expect so. Both are global destinations, even if a lot of foreign visitors haven’t been able to get there for a little while now. There could easily be a bunch of park employees infected who don’t even know it yet, or didn’t have serious enough symptoms to realize it. But CA is obviously a straight shot from Asia, so I’m not surprised it’s moving first.
Narrator “It did”
Good. What were they going to do – put hand sanitizer dispensers by every ride and food vendor? Lysol spray the rides down between turns? There’s just no way it wouldn’t be a massive way to spread Covid-19 if they kept Disneyland open.
“This is only the fourth time this has ever happened at the park”I’m seeing this a lot, but Wikipedia says that there were five unscheduled closures before today (making this the sixth time), plus various planned closures that have happened over the years.
Looks like that came from the Times article, which didn’t count the protest or winter closure.
keeping them open seemed like a craven desire just to make money even in the face of a global pandemicA lot of people in a lot of places with a lot of jobs are horrifically impacted by this. My kid is one of them. It would be nicer of you to remember then next time – your criticism is not misplaced, but your tone overlooks how much, and how badly, the vast majority of those impacted by closure will be – and those are people down on the lower rungs of class and society like most of us reading this.
Correct. When you consider all of the subcontractors who work at Disney (that Disney will NOT be paying, of which my wife is one), the hundreds of hotels and restaurants nearby who count on people going to Disney, this is going to be huge.
That’s why we should have more workers’ rights in all professions. It’s not this site’s fault that our employment and healthcare system is dysfunctional and dystopian.
I in no way wish to diminish the financial impact this shutdown will have on your family, but surely you recognize the incalculable risk of spreading infection in an environment where thousands of workers will interact with thousands of tourists from all over America and the world. We have no idea of how many people in the L. A. area may already be infected (I live there) because of the limited testing and, according to CDC head Fauci, this virus is 10x more deadly than influenza, which itself kills about 50,000 Americans every year. Obviously the economic hardships we are all experiencing is a disaster of devastating proportions, but we must prioritize health above all else.
Ok, so let’s turn that observation around and say, “we need better, cheaper, more accessible healthcare in the US. And we need nationalized paid sick leave” It seems very weird to throw that frustration at an online entertainment site and not the failure of our current and continual systemic government. That’s VERY ‘American’ of you though. I bet the Tokyo Disney workers are receiving better healthcare, and better sick leave payments and options.
….I’m not American.It’s very american of you to both assume I am, and to pivot so hard into making what I said about something you wanted to talk about.
Oh, you’re not American? Good for you! You probably have cheap accessible healthcare and paid sick leave,which is so important during a global pandemic. If you’re online, and you want to say, “I’m not American!” it’s kinda a humblebrag. I don’t want to make healthcare political, but it fucking is. And if you’re in a country that has socialized medicine, mandated sick leave, and better labor regulations — then fuck right off. And stop complaining on The AV Club. Sit in your privilege.
I was accused of being an American. I only mentioned it to correct that.
You clearly have some issues. I trust that you’ve earned them. No objection. Kindly stop taking them out on me. I don’t think I earned that.
There is nothing glib in this article. There is nothing wrong with this article. You are the one that started with the criticism.
I get that I’ve made you cross. I’m not even complaining about that.But seriously – I suggested a modified tone as its not *just* a craven desire to make money, and that there are so many little people that are going to hurt so much in these decisions. That isn’t even a real criticism! It’s more of reminder/recommendation! And I was *barely* grumpy about it!And then I corrected your fundamental inaccurate assumption, which I still see as almost entirely disconnected from my original point! I do keep making assumptions about you because your posts seem to focus on a minimal viable product to say something snarky to me. I apologize if any of them have offended. I REALLY DO! But come on. We don’t have to be friends. But can’t we just bump elbows and move on now?
Okay, truce. My anger has been misplaced and I’m sorry.
We’ve been doing that plenty as far as pointing that out and Trump’s incompetent handling of this.Doesn’t change the point though that this article is in bad taste and tone deaf and telling just how dumb this site is increasingly getting. We can walk and chew gum at the same time.
First of all, no we as the US have not been ‘doing that plenty’. Also, what exactly is distasteful about an article that is just reporting the facts? That’s just a completely misguided observation.
No more “misguided” than your misguided, whiny, pedantic, ranting about this you’ve been doing up and down this site. Gamedev is right, you clearly have issues.
Hey, as long as Barsanti gets to jerk himself off every day after writing something shitty about Disney, he’s happy. Fairly certain he couldn’t give a fuck about tone or anything else when it comes to that. Maybe he’ll tell us all about it in his next teary-eyed love note to Bernie Sanders.
…Disney predicting that Shanghai and Hong Kong alone would account for losing $280 million in revenue.
Interns at Disney Corporate offices have been tasked with checking under all the executive office couch cushions and sources at Disney (who have spoken on condition of anonymity) feel what the interns find will easily cover most of that shortfall.
Time to skim It’s a Small World for loose change!
This makes sense. Disneyland and Disneyworld are some of the worst possible places to go to during a pandemic.
It’s interesting to see them take the lead on this. As of the time I’m writing this, it doesn’t appear that Universal, Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm, or any of the other smaller area attractions are announcing closures yet. Expecting them soon, though.
It will be like the NCAA conference championships, NBA, MLB, PGA…once the first domino goes, the others will look reckless (and open themselves to even greater legal liability) if they don’t follow suit.
So…Disney corp is smarter than our current federal administration AND California’s government? These are truly end times.
With Disneyland closed, though, we don’t have to trust that people will do the right thing, because—in a surprising move—Disney actually did the right thing.Sam, fuck off. I doubt you know this, but there is a time to not be a smug, sarcastic asshole. Even I know this, and I’m the biggest smug, sarcastic asshole I know.
For your sake, I hope Disney buys this festering shithole.
The Disney Defender has logged on
Geez clam the pluck down
I will pluck as many clams as I wish, good sir and/or madam.
The Disney Defender has logged on
Despite your projections of Disney’s “craven desire to make money…” they are closing. You also work for an entity with a craven desire for profit that somehow doesn’t seem to conflict with smug Marxist hippie politics. There are plenty of people who will do the right thing and some of them work for big corporations.
Boy, I hate to think what’s happening at Euro Disneyland.
But my kids need wine though!
Who are you to resist, eh?
I can report that Disney World Resort—just a little jaunt from my downtown abode in Orlando—will close all it’s parks on March 15 as well.
By coincidence, I’ve been at Disneyland all week for a conference that got cancelled. The park was packed all week, probably because a ton of people who were told to stay home from work decided to come here instead. It was starting to feel like Disney would be the last bastion of normalcy in a world gone crazy. Only a cold heavy rain seemed to finally thin out the crowd today, and compared to last night, the park is much less busy.
LOL the Universal closing is funny that it only goes to March 28th. Right before their big Peacock Live event. I only know about it because I tried to win a Comcast contest to get a free trip to it. I didn’t care about the new streaming service or seminar, but it was 4 nights in California with tickets to Universal Studios, including access to a late night limited access event. So Universal is all about safety as long as it doesn’t mess with their big streaming service launch party