By Li Qing

When the Shanghai Disney Resort welcomed visitors again from May 11 after its closure on January 25， fans applauded the decision with cheers. “The princess who had to fl ee can return home now，” one of them wrote on social media， expressing the feelings of many followers who likened the novel coronavirus disease （COVID-19） to the evil forces in Disney tales which prevail fi rst but are ultimately defeated.

Unforgettable experience

“When I visited the park after it reopened， I felt so happy to hear the cast members in costumes greeting us， ‘Welcome home！” Alice Li， a 23-year-old Shanghai resident told Beijing Review. A diehard Disney fan， Li said it was her third trip to the theme park since it was inaugurated in 2016.

It was tough to get tickets. Those for May 11 were snapped up within minutes. The Shanghai Municipal Government said the number of visitors should be limited to under 30 percent of arrivals during normal times. Visitors are required to buy tickets in advance to ensure there is no crowding. Since the number of visitors at present is only around 20 percent of the resorts capacity， Disney CEO Bob Chapek said on May 12 that in future， the Shanghai Disney Resort will add 5，000 visitors every week depending on evaluation of the situation.

Li has seen the bright side for visitors amid the restrictions. She said the capped number means shorter waiting time for each ride， enhancing the overall experience.

On this visit， she was able to see Stitch Encounter， an interactive show featuring realtime animation and digital puppetry where guests have an unscripted conversation with Stitch， an animated character from Disneys Lilo& Stitch franchise. During her earlier visits， the show had been packed and she couldnt get a seat. “I had a video call with Stitch. He asked me some questions and wished me and my boyfriend， who was with me， ‘sweet love，” she said. As safety measures， Li carried a sanitizer with her and wore a mask all the time she was inside， one of the measures required at the park. However， on seeing the stringent prevention and control measures her fear evaporated and she was able to enjoy herself.

Besides regular measures such as checking visitors temperature and putting up signs to tell them where to stand to maintain social distancing， there are more frequent disinfections. All machines are disinfected after every ride. Indoor performances and the fireworks show have been canceled to encourage social distancing.

Han Yuanjun， an associate researcher with the China Tourism Academy， told Beijing Review that the resort was reopened gradually. It first opened some sections in March， such as Disneytown and the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel. “We made the plan for the reopening of the park based on these operating experiences of Disneytown， from which our cast members also drew valuable experiences，” Joe Schott， President and General Manager of Shanghai Disney Resort， told Wenhui Daily.

“A major factor in our long-term resilience is the strength of our brands and the strong emotional connection people have to them. As Shanghai Disney Resort reopens with signifi -cantly enhanced health and safety measures， our guests will fi nd the park as magical and as memorable as ever，” he said.

Overcoming disruption

By mid-March， the Disney theme parks in North America， Asia and Paris were closed. The reopening of the Shanghai resort was the fi rst piece of good news for Disney after reported staff furloughs， a plunge in its share prices and delayed fi lm releases.

The stocks jumped 1.73 percent as trading closed on the New York Stock Exchange on May 8， the day tickets went on sale again.

Before the outbreak， almost all the parks were performing exceptionally better than the previous year， Christine McCarthy， Disneys Chief Financial Offi cer， said during the fi scal secondquarter earnings call on May 5. But due to COVID-19， in the second quarter the operating income of the parks and products was significantly lower compared to the same period last year.

“We estimated the disruption to our parksexperiences and product businesses adversely impacted our second-quarter income by approximately $1 billion，” McCarthy said. Closing the two parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong could cost the company $175 million， including$135 million in Shanghai.

Now the company has announced a phased reopening of Disney Springs， the shopping， dining and entertainment area of the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando， Florida， the U.S.， Chapek said. They are also in touch with the management teams of various Disney parks worldwide to share experiences to overcome the current difficulties.

Tourism booster

The closure during the epidemic however did not hamper the construction of the Shanghai resorts eighth themed-land Zootopia. Zootopia， the story of a utopia peopled only by animals， is a 2016 animated comedy that was the fourth top grosser that year. Although COVID-19 has punctured utopian fantasies， Schott is still confident about the Chinese market.