Tickets for Monday's reopening went on sale last Friday and sold out within minutes.
After a three-month hiatus, the Walt Disney Company's largest Magic Kingdom in Asia is back in business.
The Shanghai Disney Resort threw open its gates Monday — albeit with strict social distancing and public safety measures in place.
The first group of 200 lucky visitors were allowed into the park at the usual opening time of 9:30am. Guests are being granted entry in staggered batches, based on predetermined times printed on their tickets.
Shortly before doors opened, Shanghai Disneyland hosted a special reopening ceremony against a backdrop of the iconic “Floral Minnie” in spring colors. Cast members from every themed land in Shanghai Disneyland — including Mickey Mouse and his friends, Duffy and friends, Marvel super heroes, Disney princesses, Toy Story friends, Star Wars characters and others — were on hand to invite fans back and commemorate the occasion.
Disney announced on an earnings call last week that the Shanghai Disney Resort would be its first theme park to come back online. Tickets for Monday's reopening went on sale last Friday and sold out within minutes.
But Disney has capped attendance at 30 percent of usual capacity, or approximately 24,000 people, to keep guests safe and to help staff adjust to new safety procedures. Working with Chinese public health officials, the company has implemented a range of new safety measures, including social distancing in lines, required mask wearing for staff and patrons, frequent cleaning and a temperature check upon entry.
The full reopening on Monday follows a partial relaunch in March of various Disney shops positioned around the theme park's perimeter.
“Since the reopening of Disneytown, Wishing Star Park and Shanghai Disneyland Hotel in early March, we have been deeply moved by the encouragement from our guests and Disney fans,” said Joe Schott, president and general manager of the Shanghai Disney Resort. “Today, we are extremely pleased to reopen Shanghai Disneyland thanks to the unwavering efforts of our cast members and our community."
He added: "Today’s celebrations will be remembered with joy, as we look forward to welcoming our guests back to this happy place."
The first guests to return to Shanghai Disneyland will enjoy a relatively crowd-free experience with limited alterations to the facility's usual offerings. Nearly all of the park’s rides, attractions, shops and restaurants, are reportedly open on Monday, with just several live shows and children's play zones still offline.
Due to social distancing requirements, posing for pictures with Disney characters in costume will be no-go for the foreseeable future. "But we still want our guests to have a chance to see our favorite Disney friends and get a chance to take photos of them," Andrew Bolstein, senior vp operations for the Shanghai park, told reporters over the weekend. "A small procession of a couple of floats will come out throughout the day and surprise our guests, hopefully."
Disney's theme parks in Hong Kong, Japan, Europe and the U.S. remain closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, with no date yet set for reopening.
