A “Disney Bubble” strategy being considered for the indefinitely docked Disney Cruise Line could offer a similar solution for Disney’s Anaheim theme parks that remain shuttered for the foreseeable future by the coronavirus pandemic.
“We now do see some light at the end of the tunnel,” Disney CEO Bob Chapek said during a recent earnings call. “We have an opportunity to create a Disney Bubble on our cruise ships. Demand is very, very strong.”
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Conditional sailing orders recently released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention call for the cruise industry to conduct COVID-19 testing before, during and after sailing.
The CDC guidelines require cruise lines to test passengers and crew on the day they embark and get lab results before passengers board. Passengers and crew who report COVID-19 illness or symptoms during the voyage must be rapid-tested along with their close contacts and isolated if they test positive. Another round of tests would be required before passengers and crew depart for their final destination after disembarking.
Any voyage would end immediately if a threshold of COVID-19 cases was detected onboard. Passengers could be required to quarantine before returning home.
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Despite the “really high hurdles,” Chapek said demand is “extremely strong” for Disney Cruise Lines in late 2021 and all of 2022.
Which raises the obvious question: Could a Disney Bubble work for the Disneyland resort?
Disneyland, Disney California Adventure and other California theme parks are unlikely to return to full operation until early 2021 or next summer under COVID-19 health and safety reopening guidelines issued by the state. Many of the state’s theme parks have partially reopened without rides for shopping, dining and special events.
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A Disneyland Bubble could work similar to the Disney Bubble under consideration for the Disney Cruise Lines.
Visitors could be required to take a COVID-19 before entering the Disneyland resort, again before they leave and anytime they become ill or show symptoms. Disney’s Anaheim theme parks could close if a threshold of COVID-19 cases was detected and visitors could be required to quarantine before returning home.
That seems like an insanely high bar for entering a theme park, but a hurdle hard-core Disneyland fans might be willing to tackle.
A Disneyland Bubble might seem improbable, but anything is possible in a year unlike any other. The bubble concept is a familiar one for Disney.
Disney invented the COVID-19 isolation zone concept with the NBA Bubble at Walt Disney World in Florida. NBA players and staff were required to sleep, eat and play games within the bubble and those who left had to quarantine before reentering. The two-month NBA Bubble at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex ended with no reported COVID-19 cases.
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How could a Disneyland Bubble work?
Disney World fenced off the hotels and facilities used by the NBA players and staff. A similar perimeter could be set up around the Disneyland resort — including the theme parks, Downtown Disney, three Disney hotels and the parking structures. Access could be limited to only Disneyland visitors with advance reservations who tested negative for COVID-19. Disney could decide to admit daily visitors or limit bubble access solely to hotel guests.
Disney has already given considerable thought to the theme park bubble concept with the new Star Wars hotel under construction at Disney World. The Galactic Starcruiser will operate more like a cruise ship than a hotel — with visitors staying inside the immersive Star Wars bubble for two days and two nights.
A similar theme park bubble concept could work at the Disneyland resort — with visitors required to book a two-park, two-night stay in order to gain access to the Disneyland Bubble.
Would die-hard Disney fans go for such an idea? Would a Disneyland Bubble make financial sense for the theme park giant? Almost certainly — in both cases. Disney is acutely aware of pent-up visitor demand for Disneyland and the cost thresholds necessary for opening.
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The bigger question is whether California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration would be open to a Disneyland Bubble proposal.
The Disneyland Bubble idea might not fly right now while much of the state is in the middle of a COVID-19 lockdown. But any proposal for a Disneyland Bubble would likely take weeks of negotiations with state officials and months more to implement.
Such a plan might be palatable to the Newsom administration once the third wave of coronavirus cases wane in early 2021 and COVID-19 vaccines become widely available. By then, after nearly a year of coronavirus closures, Disney might be willing to leap some “really high hurdles” in order to reopen Disneyland.
