California’s two Disney theme parks will reopen on April 30, CEO Bob Chapek said on CNBC’s “Squawk Alley” on Wednesday.
“We saw the excitement, the desire for people to return to our parks around the world,” Chapek told Julia Boorstin on CNBC. “We’ve been working at Walt Disney World for about nine months and there’s certainly no shortage of demand.”
“I think as people get vaccinated, they become a little more confident that they can travel and, you know, stay without Covid,” he added. “Consumers trust Disney to do the right thing, and we’ve certainly proven that we can [open] responsible, regardless of temperature check, masks, social distance, [or] improved hygiene around parks. “
Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa will reopen April 29 with limited capacity in front of the parks. Vacation Club Villa in Grand Californian will reopen on May 2, and Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel and Disneyland Hotel will reopen at a later date.
All theme parks in California have been closed due to Covid restrictions over the past year. While guides in other states, such as Florida, allowed for the reopening of limited-capacity parks, California rules kept theme parks large and small closed.
However, the new state guidelines allow for the reopening of amusement parks from 1 April, with a capacity of 15% to 35%, depending on the prevalence of the virus in the community. Masks and other health precautions will be required. Chapek said the two parks will operate with a capacity of about 15% to begin with.
California reports just under 2,900 new cases of Covid-19 a day, based on an average week, a drop of nearly 32 percent from a week ago, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The rate of new Covid cases decreased as more people were vaccinated. With increases in supply and access, an average of about 2.4 million people are vaccinated daily in the United States
Orange County, home to Disneyland and California Adventure, has four new cases a day per 100,000 population. At the peak, in mid-January, the county registered 118 new cases per day per 100,000 people.
Last year’s shutdown led Disney to lay off tens of thousands of workers and cut a major source of revenue for the media company. The segment of parks, experiences and consumer products accounted for 37% of the company’s total revenue in 2019 of $ 69.6 billion or about $ 26.2 billion.
A year later, revenue fell to $ 16.5 billion, or about 25 percent of the company’s total revenue of $ 65.4 billion.
During the company’s first quarter earnings call, CFO Christine McCarthy said that for parks that were opened during the pandemic, the company managed to make a “net incremental positive contribution” from guests who visited despite the levels. reduced capacity. This means that revenues have exceeded the variable costs associated with opening, she explained.
As the parks expand their capacity and reopen, there will be a certain level of social distancing and masked clothing for the rest of the year.