Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

[Alicefan]

I think it is SHAMEFUL that Disney has not yet extended their closure dates. It is a glaring reminder to all of us that they care much more about money than they do human lives!

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks. Disney isn't going to keep on extending and bleeding profits because of stupid teenagers on spring break and the like not all coming together to do their part. There would be no end in sight if they had to do that. The fact is, 2 weeks is not going to stomp out the virus all together, this hiatus is just supposed to keep numbers down so that our medical facilities don't get overloaded AS badly. We can't close the world forever. If you want them to stay closed until this is gone, I'm afraid there would be no Disney left to come back to. I personally feel that Disney is going to be the leader in showing the rest of the world when it's safe to go back to normal. When they do open the gates, everyone else will follow. Disney is kind of the pilot light here since it was so jarring that they were one of the firsts to shut down. None of us saw that coming but think about how "real" that made this when you first heard.

 

[dwbrewster]

@Alicefan when Disney announced the temporary closure of WDW and Disneyland CDC was already saying that to get through this we would need to keep groups under 10 for at least 8 weeks.

I understand that concern that they are bleeding cash right now, but if they reopen and guests gets COVID-19 and die, they'll be bleeding even more cash through lawsuits and extremely bad PR.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

I'm also a bit surprised Disney has not yet extended their closures in the US - it seems inevitable it's coming. But since they are dealing with local governments, 3 state governments, and the federal government, all making late, quick and different decisions on things, it's not going to be easy.

In the end, does it really matter what Disney decides over the upcoming days and weeks? With everything else going on, it would be foolish to think about any trips, especially a place like WDW or DL, at least through the next 4 weeks (probably longer). There are way more important things to focus on right now than when the Magic Kingdom will open again. I truly look forward to that happening, but not today.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks. Disney isn't going to keep on extending and bleeding profits because of stupid teenagers on spring break and the like not all coming together to do their part. There would be no end in sight if they had to do that. The fact is, 2 weeks is not going to stomp out the virus all together, this hiatus is just supposed to keep numbers down so that our medical facilities don't get overloaded AS badly. We can't close the world forever. If you want them to stay closed until this is gone, I'm afraid there would be no Disney left to come back to. I personally feel that Disney is going to be the leader in showing the rest of the world when it's safe to go back to normal. When they do open the gates, everyone else will follow. Disney is kind of the pilot light here since it was so jarring that they were one of the firsts to shut down. None of us saw that coming but think about how "real" that made this when you first heard.

2 weeks just isn't enough to have the impact needed. If we look at other countries it has been more like 2 months before the impact needed was seen and things could start opening up

I don't know what the right timeframe is to get to the best intersection of really slowing down the spread (and flattening the curve - and minimizing risk of it respreading/spiking) of the virus while not damaging the economy more than is necessary. But I think it is more than 2 weeks but less than 18 months.

Obviously some companies will struggle even with 2 months of closure but Disney should be able to handle it - they just got $6bn in debt to have cash on hand/repay other loans

 

[Krandor]

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks. Disney isn't going to keep on extending and bleeding profits because of stupid teenagers on spring break and the like not all coming together to do their part. There would be no end in sight if they had to do that. The fact is, 2 weeks is not going to stomp out the virus all together, this hiatus is just supposed to keep numbers down so that our medical facilities don't get overloaded AS badly. We can't close the world forever. If you want them to stay closed until this is gone, I'm afraid there would be no Disney left to come back to. I personally feel that Disney is going to be the leader in showing the rest of the world when it's safe to go back to normal. When they do open the gates, everyone else will follow. Disney is kind of the pilot light here since it was so jarring that they were one of the firsts to shut down. None of us saw that coming but think about how "real" that made this when you first heard.

If Disney opens too soon and becomes a spreading pot for this virus they may never recover. They will he seen as putting profits over health.

 

[mshanson3121]

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks.

No one has EVER said it will only be for 2 weeks (to flatten the curve). Every single expert out there has said that it will take weeks, if not months, to flatten the curve and start seeing numbers drop. CDC made it very clear that May is very likely the earliest we'll see that happen. Which in turn means, yes, most businesses are probably going to be closed until at least May, Disney included.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

NEWS

WDW Cast Members schedules were updated overnight - and next week is blank (e.g., no assigned work hours), signally a formal extension of closure could be soon

https://blogmickey.com/2020/03/cast-members-not-scheduled-to-work-april-1st-and-beyond

 

[icc2515]

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks. Disney isn't going to keep on extending and bleeding profits because of stupid teenagers on spring break and the like not all coming together to do their part. There would be no end in sight if they had to do that.

Disney is going to have no choice, but to keep on extending. I have no idea where the only supposed to be for 2 weeks thing is coming from but the facts are very scary. New Orleans is reporting a skyrocketing in cases and most importantly deaths and are attributing it to Marti Gras. Huge amounts of people in a relatively small space. Sounds like a theme park to me. On March 23rd Louisiana reported 34 deaths and yesterday they reported 65 deaths. That's almost double the deaths in 2 days. Not good.

Source:
http://ldh.la.gov/index.cfm/newsroom/detail/5514http://ldh.la.gov/index.cfm/newsroom/detail/5507
Marti Gras was on the 25th of Feb and 1 month later we are starting to see the surge in deaths. Disney does not want the bad PR of being the last place a family went on vacation before losing a loved one.

We are 6 days away from Disney World proposed opening date and we have heard nothing from the company. It will be very telling as to when they release the dates. I for one am betting on Friday after the markets close.

 

[jknezek]

NEWS

WDW Cast Members schedules were updated overnight - and next week is blank (e.g., no assigned work hours), signally a formal extension of closure could be soon

https://blogmickey.com/2020/03/cast-members-not-scheduled-to-work-april-1st-and-beyond

Hard to report to work when the county has a shelter in place order in effect for your non-essential industry. That's what makes this so idiotic. It has to be extended through the shelter in place. All Disney had to do was say we are following county guidelines and working on a long term plan and they would have rolled another week and spread out some cancellations.

Yes, maybe they want to announce all at once. And yes, everyone with half a brain and reservations during the shelter in place period knows they aren't going, but you just don't leave your customers and travel agents hanging. I really wonder what the rationale is and I hope, when they finally do announce, it's not simply they wanted to do it on Friday afternoon when they tend to drop the news they want minimized.

I would think a lot less of them for that, especially if they only announce through the end of the shelter in place and leave it rolling after.

 

[jlwhitney]

Yeah but this flatten the curve thing was supposed to be for 2 weeks. Disney isn't going to keep on extending and bleeding profits because of stupid teenagers on spring break and the like not all coming together to do their part. There would be no end in sight if they had to do that. The fact is, 2 weeks is not going to stomp out the virus all together, this hiatus is just supposed to keep numbers down so that our medical facilities don't get overloaded AS badly. We can't close the world forever. If you want them to stay closed until this is gone, I'm afraid there would be no Disney left to come back to. I personally feel that Disney is going to be the leader in showing the rest of the world when it's safe to go back to normal. When they do open the gates, everyone else will follow. Disney is kind of the pilot light here since it was so jarring that they were one of the firsts to shut down. None of us saw that coming but think about how "real" that made this when you first heard.

I think we will get 2 more weeks after this whole 15 day thing, maybe 3 and then alot of things will probably start reopening. Maybe not theme parks, concerts and things that pack a ton of people in till the end of the 8 week CDC 50 or less.

 

[Krandor]

I think we will get 2 more weeks after this whole 15 day thing, maybe 3 and then alot of things will probably start reopening. Maybe not theme parks, concerts and things that pack a ton of people in till the end of the 8 week CDC 50 or less.

Any non-essential business like a restaurant or bar that opens while cases are still increasing I will never go back to again and yes that would include disney. I'm expecting disney to match universal and say April 19th but I really hope they would just shut it down for all of April.

 

[CvilleDiane]

Any non-essential business like a restaurant or bar that opens while cases are still increasing I will never go back to again and yes that would include disney. I'm expecting disney to match universal and say April 19th but I really hope they would just shut it down for all of April.

I suspect they are waiting on announcing so that the April 30 extension makes sense to even more people. Still, I'll be JOYFUL if they can safely open by Memorial Day.

 

[mattpeto]

Here's my prediction: Disney will reopen for Memorial Day and will be reopened for good.

Bill Gates said China's timeline was 8 weeks. He also said that we should start seeing progress in about 20 days. I think that might be a tad premature, but here in NJ that progress should start the 1st or 2nd week of April.

What he didn't say in the article is the curve remains flat! I know China is still slow to get back to normal, but this is a very positive sign.

 

[Krandor]

Here's my prediction: Disney will reopen for Memorial Day and will be reopened for good.

Bill Gates said China's timeline was 8 weeks. He also said that we should start seeing progress in about 20 days. I think that might be a tad premature, but here in NJ that progress should start the 1st or 2nd week of April.

What he didn't say in the article is the curve remains flat! I know China is still slow to get back to normal, but this is a very positive sign.

NY is starting to see improvement. While numbers are still going up, the rate they are increasing is going down which is a good thing. A long way to go but progress is progress.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Hard to report to work when the county has a shelter in place order in effect for your non-essential industry. That's what makes this so idiotic. It has to be extended through the shelter in place. All Disney had to do was say we are following county guidelines and working on a long term plan and they would have rolled another week and spread out some cancellations.

Yes, maybe they want to announce all at once. And yes, everyone with half a brain and reservations during the shelter in place period knows they aren't going, but you just don't leave your customers and travel agents hanging. I really wonder what the rationale is and I hope, when they finally do announce, it's not simply they wanted to do it on Friday afternoon when they tend to drop the news they want minimized.

I would think a lot less of them for that, especially if they only announce through the end of the shelter in place and leave it rolling after.

Only thing I can think is that Disney doesn't want to do it bit by bit and rather is working through a much more concrete plan. But I agree with you, at least for now say we are extending the current clossure to the April 19th date (or whatever the shelter in place order was for) and that they are continuing to monitor and will do what is necessary to ensure the safety of their guests.

 

[JaxDad]

Only thing I can think is that Disney doesn't want to do it bit by bit and rather is working through a much more concrete plan. But I agree with you, at least for now say we are extending the current clossure to the April 19th date (or whatever the shelter in place order was for) and that they are continuing to monitor and will do what is necessary to ensure the safety of their guests.

If this is true, then they are idiots. This COVID-19 experience has been so dynamic, nobody really KNOWS exactly what to expect. Their "concrete plan" would essentially be dead on arrival. They are not epidemiology experts; they are an entertainment corporation. If their plan, when finally announced, is to be conservative and close through some date in May (perhaps coincidental with the CDC recommendation), then fine. Or if they go less conservative to coincide with the Orange County 9 April restrictions, then fine. Waiting until this close to their current closure date seems just plain stupid and inconsiderate to me. And I don't have any pending reservations or plans, so no real skin in the game.

 

[Krandor]

Only thing I can think is that Disney doesn't want to do it bit by bit and rather is working through a much more concrete plan. But I agree with you, at least for now say we are extending the current clossure to the April 19th date (or whatever the shelter in place order was for) and that they are continuing to monitor and will do what is necessary to ensure the safety of their guests.

As much work as it will take to reopen I think phased almost has to happen. I think you'll see Springs open first since it requires no ticket so even if only half the stores are open people will likely still come and nobody can complain "not worth the money I paid". Resorts and especially resort hotels likely next and then finally parks.

 

[DavidHobart]

Only thing I can think is that Disney doesn't want to do it bit by bit and rather is working through a much more concrete plan.

The other possibility is that they are waiting to see what is in the stimulus bill after it goes through the House and what implications it might have for them.

E.g. the Senate bill* makes hotels with less than 500 employees eligible for loans which convert to grants if they are used for payroll, and explicitly notes that this is hotel-specific, not company specific, so that e.g. for an owner with 50 hotels each with less than 500 employees, all these hotels are eligible. However, there will be limitations on layoffs tied to accepting this money.

If they are waiting for the final bill, then the issue is do they announce before it's out a close through April 19th and continue to keep paying all through then, and then change the closure date (and pay policy, perhaps) after they have digested the bill.

*I have not read it--I am going by WSJ reporting

 

[Spridell]

@Alicefan when Disney announced the temporary closure of WDW and Disneyland CDC was already saying that to get through this we would need to keep groups under 10 for at least 8 weeks.

I understand that concern that they are bleeding cash right now, but if they reopen and guests gets COVID-19 and die, they'll be bleeding even more cash through lawsuits and extremely bad PR.

Bad PR 100%, Lawsuits probably not. No one is forcing a person to go to Disney. Come at your own risk.

 

[chicagoshannon]

Bad PR 100%, Lawsuits probably not. No one is forcing a person to go to Disney. Come at your own risk.

exactly. If you don't feel comfortable going don't go. No one is forcing you to! Same with restaurants and whatever else.