Disney on Thursday announced it will be closing Disneyland and California Adventure Park from Saturday through the end of the month as cases of the novel coronavirus continue to rise in Southern California and nationwide.
It’s just the theme park’s fourth unscheduled closing in Disneyland’s 65-year history.
The move was made shortly after Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order calling for the cancelation of large, non-essential public gatherings in California, though he exempted theme parks and casinos from the directive.
“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,” a statement from the theme park read. The company emphasized there have been no cases of COVID-19 linked to the resort.
The announcement was lauded by Newsom, who said Disney made the “right call in the interest of public health.”
Both Anaheim theme parks will be closed starting Saturday morning and will remain shut down through the end of the month, according to the statement.
Disneyland Resort hotels will stay open until Monday to accommodate guests who need to make other arrangements.
Downtown Disney will not be closed.
The resort assured guests it will work with them to change or cancel their visits, and it will also provide refunds to anyone who had a hotel booking while the theme parks are shut down.
Employees will be paid during the closure.
Disney had previously announced that a series of measures were in place to mitigate the threat of coronavirus at both theme parks, noting that it generally maintains high standards of cleanliness to prevent the spread of illness.
At the same time, however, Disney officials said they would monitor the situation and “adjust our operations” to accommodate recommendations from health agencies and state and federal authorities.
Other Disney parks, including in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo, were also temporarily closed in response to coronavirus.
Walt Disney World in Florida was also shut down Thursday.
