It’s been a wild ride the past few days when it comes to theme park news!

While Shanghai Disneyland announced its May 11th reopening date, there has been a lot of discussion about what it will take for Disney World and Disneyland to open their gates again too. And, although there is no certain timeline yet about when the U.S. theme parks will reopen, Florida discussed the next steps for tourism in today’s task force meetings.

Since Florida has started to reopen with Phase One of their current plan, the Orange County Task Force and Mayor Jerry Demings met to talk about what the future holds for theme parks.

Although there was a lot of discussion about the guidelines Governor Ron DeSantis has made about health and safety precautions, the meeting acknowledged how tourism is an essential part of the Florida economy. Mayor Demings stated there is no timeline for reopening theme parks, but that they are still extremely important to consider as the state moves forward in the upcoming months.

However, Demings is hopeful seeing Shanghai Disneyland open with new protocols! Once their parks start to re-open slowly, Florida officials will be keeping a “close watch” on what steps need to be taken for the U.S. theme parks. Even though the Orange County Task Force is prioritizing the safety of guests and workers, the Bringing Back Tourism group stated that there is “pent up demand” for attractions like theme parks at this time.

They claim there is a major possibility that tourists might drive long distances to attend events, activities, and more. The group noted that around 70% of Orlando’s visitors drive and there would be differences for airport travelers as tourism spots open back up.

Since Shanghai Disneyland announced a re-opening date, many U.S. park-goers are anxiously awaiting to see when the Orlando parks will open as well. The President and CEO of Visit Orlando, George Aguel, predicts many Americans will take shorter vacations due to the current health and financial situations, even if theme parks reopen.

Vacations are being canceled through the end of May currently, and Disney has commented that they do not have a re-opening date in mind yet. However, capacity limits, virtual queues, physical distancing, and more are being explored for whenever Disney World does re-open to the public.

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Have you planned a trip to any Florida theme parks during 2020? Let us know in the comments below!