Want to go to Disney World or Silver Dollar City? Here are COVID-19 rules you’ll face
Some Americans may bristle at the new COVID-19 rules at amusement parks that require them to wear masks.
At least they won’t be told not to scream on the roller coasters.
That’s one of the new safety measures from a group of theme park operators in Japan, who encourage guests to avoid shouting on rides to keep from shooting their germs into the air.
It’s one of the more unusual guidelines to pop up as amusement parks open — slowly at first with limited crowds — while reminding visitors that COVID-19 is still a health threat.
Worlds of Fun in Kansas City opens Monday only to season ticket holders to keep the park under 50% capacity. Everyone else can start going in early July.
Major theme parks in California planning to open in July, including Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood, are waiting for state officials to approve their COVID-19 safety measures.
This notice on the website of Jolly Roger Park in Ocean City, Maryland, is similar to what parks everywhere are telling their guests: “Any interaction with the general public poses an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19. … By visiting Jolly Roger Parks you voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19.”
Silverwood Theme Park in Utah suggests that guests who “are in one of the vulnerable categories due to age or health considerations … postpone your visit to the park this season and wait for more secure times.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to caution Americans to avoid crowded public places, to wear masks in public, to stay six feet away from people you don’t live with and to stay home if you are sick.
Safety measures adopted by the amusement park industry mirror those recommendations.
Many parks will take your temperature before you enter — a fever of 100.4 or higher could get you sent home.
“Those in their party will not be allowed entry either,” says the Walt Disney World Resort website. “Before you leave home, be sure to check the temperatures of everyone in your party — including yourself — as an extra layer of precaution.”
Social distancing protocols mean your favorite roller coaster might be only half full — and your wait time in line could be longer as a result.
Other changes brought about this season by COVID-19:
▪ Disney World Resort in Florida, where Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are set to open July 11, will temporarily halt fireworks shows, parades and “meet and greets” with performers dressed as Disney characters — which draw crowds — The Associated Press reported.
▪ Six Flags parks are using new touch-free bag checks with walk-through machines — like going through security at the airport — which means “no stopping, no emptying of pockets or removing bags.”
▪ Universal Orlando Resort, which lets people get in line for certain rides using the resort’s app, also allows guests to pre-order meals for pickup or have them delivered directly to the table at certain restaurants.
▪ Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, has switched buffet-style restaurants in the park to cafeteria set-ups.
Masks are required in many, but not all, parks this season on anyone over the age of 2. Even parks that don’t require guests to wear them have made them required for employees.
Missouri’s Silver Dollar City, which opened to the public this week, is requiring masks. Spokeswoman Lisa Rau told The Star that most visitors are following the rules.
Just because amusement parks are opening doesn’t mean they will remain open. An outbreak could scuttle the best of plans.
Arnolds Park Amusement Park in Iowa opened on June 3, and announced nine days later that it was temporarily shutting down because COVID-19 cases had spiked in the county.
“I do want to stress temporary,” the park’s CEO, Jeff Vierkant, said in a Facebook video. “We have seen a little bit of an increase in the virus cases locally, and we’ve chosen to just take a short pause with the opening of the park and the museums, in the interest of the health and safety of our team members and our guests.”
Rau wouldn’t say whether Silver Dollar City had plans to close if the number of cases were to spike in the area.
Worlds of Fun’s general manager, Tony Carovillano, seemed reluctant to entertain that possibility, too.
“We hate to consider that, but we always have to be prepared,” he said.
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