Disney to Reopen Parks in California on April 30

The pandemic hastened Disney’s transition to the streaming age. Chief Executive Bob Chapek has focused on growing the Disney+ streaming service, which marked 100 million subscribers last week. He has also made the company leaner, closing dozens of Disney stores in the U.S., for instance.

Mr. Chapek said he could have never guessed Disneyland would be closed for more than a year when the gates closed last March. Yet as movie theaters in New York and Los Angeles reopen, the Disneyland news signals that some semblance of normalcy is returning to the world’s largest entertainment company. Getting the parks to reopen in time for the summer tourism season is of particular importance for Disney. In the company’s most recent earnings report, released in February, the division that includes theme-park business saw a $2.6 billion hit from Covid-19 during the quarter.

Mr. Chapek now presides over a company with a streaming service that keeps people at home and a parks division designed to get them out of the house. “We never envisioned a world where everyone will want to do something in the home,” he said.

“We have a physical world and a digital world,” he added.

Disney’s share price climbed 0.5% Wednesday.

The company also said the hotels of the Disneyland Resort will welcome guests as part of a phased reopening beginning April 29.

A new system, which requires guests to obtain a reservation before entry, will be in place.

Mr. Chapek said the company was still calculating what its capacity limits at Disneyland would be, saying it would be “well above” the minimum attendance required to turn a profit each day it is open. The company expects an onslaught of demand for the limited number of tickets, one indication of consumers’ urge to resume activities after 12 months of stay-at-home orders and business restrictions.

“As soon as the state tells us we can open up the spigot more, we will do that,” said Mr. Chapek.

“Theme park reservations will be limited and subject to availability and, until further notice, only California residents may visit the parks in line with current state guidelines,” the company said. This may mean Disneyland opens at 25% capacity or more, depending upon the direction of Covid-19 transmissions in the coming month, according to California’s recent guidelines.

The company also said, “Operational changes will be in place at the theme parks and hotels based on guidance from health authorities and learnings from our parks around the world to promote physical distancing, enhanced cleanliness and reduced contact.”

Write to Erich Schwartzel at [email protected]