Story at a glance
- States are beginning to reopen as more Americans are vaccinated, although thousands of new cases and deaths are still being reported each day.
- In Florida, Disney World has reopened at partial capacity and is selling out tickets for the coming weeks.
- Disneyland in California has announced that it will reopen in late April.
While reports of long lines and crowds are raising concerns over the spread of a new strain of COVID-19, Walt Disney World is sold out for spring break. The theme park website shows no tickets available for any of its four parks in Orlando, Fla., for the next week as schools begin to reopen across the country.
BREAKING NEWS ON THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
CALIFORNIA ALLOCATES 40 PERCENT OF ITS COVID-19 VACCINES FOR VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES
ACCORDING TO CDC, 96 PERCENT OF SCHOOLCHILDREN STILL UNSAFE FOR FULL-TIME, IN-PERSON LEARNING
FAUCI VS. SD GOV KRISTI NOEM: ‘THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE’
The park is currently operating at 35 percent capacity amid the ongoing pandemic. New COVID-19 cases in the state are on the decline, with an average of more than 5,000 new cases reported each day in the last week, according to data from The New York Times, but less than 20 percent of the population has received even one dose of a vaccine.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still doesn’t recommend domestic or international travel even for those who are fully vaccinated and advise them to avoid medium or large-sized gatherings. But in Florida, where a new variant of COVID-19 reportedly has the White House considering domestic travel restrictions, theme parks were allowed to return to normal operations with limited social distancing protocols in September, although some local governments have enacted additional restrictions.
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Vaccinations aren’t required for entrance at all four of the Walt Disney World theme parks and Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park that are currently open for guests with reservations. The park is running under reduced capacity and conducting temperature screenings along with security upon entrance, as well as encouraging physical distancing and mandating face coverings for guests older than 2 (although not permitted on water slides or in the water and not required while eating or drinking).
In California, where a stay-at-home order is still in effect, amusement parks and theme parks can open with restrictions in some areas starting April 1, but even as Disney CEO Bob Chapek announces a late April reopening of Disneyland, many of the details remain unknown.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CORONAVIRUS RIGHT NOW
CALIFORNIA CORONAVIRUS VARIANT IS MORE CONTAGIOUS, NEW RESEARCH SHOWS
A NEW COVID-19 VARIANT IS EMERGING IN NEW YORK CITY, RESEARCHERS SAY
SURPRISING NEW COVID-19 STUDY FINDS VIRUS SURVIVES ON CLOTHING FABRIC FOR DAYS
NEW STUDY SUGGESTS FEW COVID-19 DEATHS OUTSIDE OF WUHAN IN EARLY 2020
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