After three and a half months of closure following the initial outbreak of the Covid-19 coronavirus, Shanghai Disneyland has reopened its doors to visitors.
However, not everything at the theme park looks the same as it did before.
Normally, the park has a capacity of 80,000 people and 12,000 cast members — Disney parlance for employees.
But for reopening day on May 11, the cast members far outnumbered the guests, who were at less than the recommended 30% capacity.
“We have a very dedicated team of custodial cleaners that we’ve increased the number of those throughout the park that are constantly wiping down all the surfaces,” explains Andrew Bolstein, SVP of Operations for Shanghai Disney Resort.
“We’ll be able to strike that right balance between the safety and health and confident side, and then the magic that we’re able to deliver every day.
Visitors to Shanghai Disneyland are now required to wear masks, have their temperatures taken and socially distance.
However, that did little to dampen the excitement of the Disney superfans who gathered to enjoy the park on its reopening day.
Due to current travel restrictions, the visitors were primarily residents of Shanghai and the surrounding provinces — some Chinese locals and some foreigners who live in the country.
In order to visit, guests must book timed entry tickets online to space out the crowds.
They must also show a green QR Shanghai health code, which is the government’s color-coded way of contact tracing to determine potential exposures.
The official reopening ceremony struck a balance between celebrating the big day and yet acknowledging the pain being felt in other parts of the world.
