Lost attendance restrictions, increased capacity limits and the return of parades and fireworks at Shanghai Disneyland offer a glimpse into what the future holds for Disneyland in the months following the eventual resumption of the Anaheim theme park.
The second phase of the Shanghai Disneyland Phase reopening is expected to serve as a blueprint for Disney’s California parks as Disneyland and Disney California Adventure return after an extensive closure of the coronavirus.
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The Shanghai Disneyland theme park in China reopened on May 11 with additional health and safety measures including face masks, temperature controls, reduced attendance, social distance and increased sanitation.
Shanghai Disneyland is expected to reopen in the second phase of the opening on Monday, August 24 – just over three months after opening after a nearly four-month shutdown of coronavirus.
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The Chinese Communist government is allowing tourist destinations to increase capacity from 30% to 50% – making Shanghai Disneyland the first Disney park to increase capacity after the new opening.
Disney parks in Florida, France and Japan remain in the first stages of opening. Hong Kong Disneyland closes mid-July amid a spike in COVID-19 cases in the city after reopening for less than a month. Disneyland, DCA and other California theme parks will definitely stay closed due to the pandemic.
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Daily ticket holders and annual passengers will still need to make an advance reservation to visit Shanghai Disneyland, but visitors will no longer be required to select an arrival time. The booking window for advance reservations will also be expanded. Tickets have yet to be purchased online and will not be available in advance.
Shanghai Disneyland may stop ticket sales and block annual passengers in case of a ‘big day for passenger flow’ which causes the park to reach 50% attendance capacity.
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The fireworks show ‘Ignite the Dream’ and the parade of Mickey’s Storybook Express during the day came to Shanghai Disneyland in late July – about 11 weeks after the park reopened. Captain Jack Sparrow’s stunt show and Frozen sing-along show also returned to temporary darkness when Shanghai Disneyland first opened.
Opportunities for close-up photos with characters from Disney, Pixar and Marvel are still prohibited with phenomena of social distance by Disney princesses, Avengers and Toy Story characters found throughout Shanghai Disneyland.
