California will allow sports stadiums and theme parks, including Disneyland, to reopen as early as April 1.
Theme parks can open at 15% capacity once their respective counties enter the state’s red-tier designation, which allows some nonessential businesses to open, health officials announced Friday.
PANDEMIC HANDS RURAL NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AN UNEXPECTED TOURISM BOOST
“With the increased distribution of the vaccine, with the behavior of Californians who have taken this pandemic seriously, who have adapted their behavior accordingly … we feel like this is a good time to begin to provide additional visibility into how we can move forward opening parts of the economy,” Dee Dee Myers, senior adviser to Gov. Gavin Newsom, told reporters.
Once counties progress to the orange tier, which is the second-lowest level of caution for COVID-19 spread, parks can enter into the 25% capacity range, reported the Los Angeles Times. In the lowest tier of yellow, they will be allowed at 35% capacity.
Attendance will still be limited to in-state visitors only, and there will be restrictions on indoor dining and limits on indoor rides, according to state officials.
Disney previously considered moving some operations from California to Florida over prolonged closures in the state due to the pandemic.
A travel advisory also remains in California, which urges residents to avoid venturing over 120 miles from home or to other states or countries, except for essential travel reasons.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The state’s tourism spending dropped $66 billion in 2020 over closures related to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a 2020 report from Visit California, the state’s tourism bureau, with overall travel-related spending in California not expected to reach pre-pandemic levels until 2024.
