Shanghai Disneyland reopens after COVID-caused closure

SHANGHAI -- Shanghai Disneyland reopened on Thursday, after more than three months of closure along with the metropolis' fight against a COVID-19 outbreak.

Tickets were available for purchase starting Wednesday, as the COVID-19 epidemic has waned in the city.

Visitors are required to present negative results of nucleic acid testing taken within 72 hours, wear masks and undergo temperature screening before entering the park.

Joe Schott, president and general manager of Shanghai Disney Resort, expressed his gratitude to all the crew members for their hard work during the temporary closure of the park. He said that it is due to everyone's unremitting efforts the park can continue to welcome tourists back and offer visitors a safe and magical experience.

"During the epidemic, I had wished to tour Disneyland with my family. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to secure a first-day booking to visit the park," said Ma Anna, a tourist who came for a trip with her five-year-old son.

Zhang Ming, a tourist from Shanghai's Baoshan District, said every visitor adhered to the epidemic prevention protocols, such as health code scanning and body temperature checks, and there was barely any crowd congestion during entry.

He Jianmin, a professor at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, said the reopening of Shanghai Disneyland is of symbolic significance indicating that tourist attractions in China's COVID-19 low-risk areas are resuming business.

Normalcy is returning to China as the virus transmission has been brought under control after recent infection flare-ups affected cities including Beijing and Shanghai over the past months.

Shanghai, China's financial hub with a population of 25 million, announced on May 17 that it had cut off the community transmission of COVID-19 in all its 16 districts. The city has been gradually resuming dine-in services at restaurants starting from Wednesday.