Disney Speaks Out After Indefinite Theme Park Shut Down
What would you do if you planned a vacation to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or any of the Disney parks around the world, only to find out that the theme parks have all suddenly shut down entirely, with no date to reopen? Well, that is what happened to one Disney park, and now, Disney has provided more information after stating it would be closed down “until further notice”.
When guests go to visit a Disney park, finding out the main thing you want to ride, see, or do is shut down unexpectedly is always a tragedy.
At Walt Disney World Resort, rides shut down all of the time. If a ride closure is entirely unplanned, it will show up on the My Disney Experience app as a temporary closure, but then, will typically reopen at some point that same day. This is not a guarantee, but what happens most of the time. Then, there can be a ride under refurbishment. For example, the Haunted Mansion recently reopened after shutting down for a few days to spruce up the attraction and add back the mummy animatronic before the start of Mickey’s-Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.
Ride closures may not be the most magical part of the trip, but it surely is better than an entire theme park shutting down.
The most recent theme park shutdown prior to now happened at Universal Studios Japan.
When it comes to Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, the theme parks rarely need ever to shut down entirely. It has happened so few times in history due to weather, with the longest stint being the COVID-19 pandemic closures. In Orlando, hurricanes are the weather condition that can sometimes be so treacherous that it may sometimes cause the parks to shut down for safety. In Japan, which is home to Universal Studios Japan and Tokyo Disney Resort (Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo DisneySea), typhoons can be catastrophic.
Around a month ago, Typhoon Lan struck, shutting down Universal Studios Japan.
Luckily, Tokyo Disney Resort was far enough that the closure did not affect the Disney park.
In America, Disneyland has recently undergone a mini-closure after Hurricane Hilary presented herself. The theme park did not close for an entire day, but it did shut down early in preparation for the storm. Hurricane Idalia recently took a visit at Walt Disney World Resort. The category four hurricane did bring rain and wind, but Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and EPCOT all continued to remain open.
The Disney park that is currently in danger is Hong Kong Disneyland.
As we stated yesterday, the closure is due to “Typhoon Saola, the strongest typhoon to hit Hong Kong in five years. This severe storm has hit top wind speeds of 220 km per hour (135 mph) – making it the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane. The hurricane made landfall at the start of this month and has caused quite a lot of havoc for Hong Kong Disneyland. The resort has closed multiple times in the last week, with the resort announcing that it would be closing yet again.”
The Hong Kong Observatory issued its most severe storm warning at this time, the first time it has done so since Typhoon Mangkhut in 2018. Coastal areas are braced for heavy rain, dangerous winds, and strong storm surges. The typhoon was even deemed a “super typhoon”.
On top of that, a week after buildings swayed, and the seas swelled under the high winds of super typhoon Saola, Hong Kong faced a new disaster: 600 mm (23.6 inches) of rain in 24 hours, a deluge that flooded roads, triggered landslides and shut down the city for the second time in a week, according to Bloomberg.
Disney fans continued to wonder what would be the fate of Hong Kong Disney following the natural disaster forced closure. Today, Disney has put out some good news in a two-phased reopening of the theme park.
On their website, the previous indefinite closure message has been replaced by, “Hong Kong Disneyland Park reopens on Sep 9 (Sat), and Inspiration Lake Recreation Centre will reopen on Sep 10 (Sun).” So, by Monday, Septemer 11, the entire resort will be operational as usual.
That being said, Hong Kong Disneyland is still undergoing an “indefinite” closure of sorts. As we shared, Hong Kong Disneyland is now closed every Wednesday with the exception of national holidays, meaning it’s open just six days a week.
The park was previously open seven days a week, as is the case for every other Disney Park, over the summer. For now, there’s no update on when – or if – the park will return to full operation.
At the moment, Hong Kong Disneyland is suffering financially on a grand scale. COVID-19 and the pandemic closures caused massive shutdowns for the theme parks, bleeding. them dry. The theme park lost $300 million during the pandemic.
All of that being said, we expect to see a massive shift and uptick in guests as the park is set to welcome a huge expansion with the opening of Arendelle: World of Frozen – the world’s first theme park land based on Frozen (2013). This section will open on November 23.
The land will be found between “it’s a Small World and Toy Story Land, this will add a new family roller coaster to the park in the form of Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs, which will be an all new attraction that is also coming to Disneyland Paris. It will also include a duplicate of Frozen Ever After from EPCOT and an interactive play experience called Playhouse in the Woods, as well as multiple restaurants and shops inspired by the world of Anna and Elsa.
The Hong Kong Disney Resort is full of classic Disney theme park experiences. Guests will find familiar rides and attractions like “it’s a small world” and Dumbo the Flying Elephant as well as unique experiences that can only be found here like Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars and Mystic Manor, the resort’s version of the iconic Haunted Mansion.
Hong Kong Disneyland is one of the newer additions to The Walt Disney Company’s collection of theme parks, with the resort first opening in 2005. Guests will find Hong Kong Disneyland located in Lantau Island, Hong Kong, China. Hong Kong Disneyland consists of seven different lands, similar to what can be found inside Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida, or Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California.
Are you planning a visit to Hong Kong Disneyland in the near future?
