The Wall Street Journal’s latest dive into the crumbling of Bob Chapek’s career revealed a telling turn point that ultimately led to the falling out between Chapek and Iger. At the start of the pandemic in early 2020, Chapek had just taken the reins from Iger and was faced with handling the worldwide closures of … Read more
Last month it was disclosed that President Joe Biden’s administration would ease travel restrictions into the United States from international destinations beginning in November. Today, the President signed those eased restrictions into law officially, which will go into effect starting November 8th. According to Reuters, the new restrictions will lift the individual country bans imposed … Read more
Walt Disney World is seemingly aiming for a return to normal after a series of moves that relax procedures developed for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As Orange County Mayor Jerry Demmings works on a plan to relax mask mandates, Disney has moved in parallel. Earlier this month, guests were allowed to start removing masks while … Read more
A Disneyland Resort Cast Member has tragically passed away from COVID-19, but he is far from forgotten. Michael worked in the resort’s entertainment division, which includes parades and stage shows. A coworker, Amber Campos, has organized a GoFundMe campaign to help assist the family at this difficult time, writing: Michael was loved by so many. … Read more
The previous “safer-at-home” order issued for Los Angeles County has just been upgraded to a stricter stay-at-home order, due to an emergency order issued this evening. According to KTLA, all residents within the city of Los Angeles have been ordered to remain home effective immediately. They may lawfully leave only to engage in essential activities. … Read more
Just days after a 10 PM curfew was enacted following Orange County, California reentering the state’s purple “widespread” tier of COVID-19, nearby Los Angeles County has issued a stay-at-home order beginning Monday, November 30th and lasting through Sunday, December 20th, according to KTLA. The county, which is home to Universal Studios Hollywood and CityWalk Hollywood, … Read more
Disneyland Paris closed on October 30th due to a lockdown order within France. While the park initially had plans to briefly reopen for the Christmas season, due to prolonged lockdown regulations, the French president has ruled out reopening theme parks during the holidays. With no hope for a late December reopening, Disneyland Paris will now … Read more
Grad Nite 2021 has been cancelled at Disneyland Resort, according to a recent update on the Grad Nite landing page. Earlier this year, Grad Nite 2020 was also cancelled, bringing this latest round of cancellations full circle as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on in secondary waves. With Disneyland Resort theme parks still closed (with the … Read more
Universal Orlando announced they will be laying off additional, salaried employees due to the current pandemic. According to Universal, 1,123 salaried employees, from creative division, theme parks, and resorts, are being let go from the company. The layoffs include 373 employees from the Universal Creative Office as well as 678 from 1000 Universal Studios Plaza. … Read more
As Disney California Adventure prepares to reopen select shopping and dining offerings for the holiday season, safety signage has been installed at the park gates reminding them of the new rules in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We spotted this diligent Cast Member installing a sign on the fence outside the entrance turnstiles. The … Read more
Yesterday we broke the news that Disneyland Paris will be closing once again on October 30th due to a lockdown order within France. Now, the park has announced its operating plans for the foreseeable future. Disneyland Paris posted the following statement on their website this morning: In line with latest direction from the French authorities, … Read more
Every week is a busy week when it comes to Disney news. To help you keep up with all the updates coming out of Walt Disney World and other Disney resorts, here’s WDWNT’s weekly recap of the Disney news from September 28 to October 4, 2020. Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Take a tour around the park … Read more
Who’s ready for Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan? We sure are! But it seems Universal Studios Japan isn’t. In an internal email to NBCUniversal employees, CEO Jeff Shell has revealed that Super Nintendo World is now delayed until “early next year.” Here’s an excerpt of the email: We’ve now reopened our theme parks … Read more
A new research report from VISIT FLORIDA outlines how COVID-19 has heavily impacted travel to Florida during the second quarter of 2020. According to VISIT FLORIDA, Florida saw 12.8 million total visitors during 2020’s second quarter, which is a -60.5% decrease compared to last year. Domestic travelers accounted for 98.1%, or 12.6 million, of Florida’s … Read more
Shanghai Disneyland was the first Disney property to reopen after extended COVID-19 closures back in May. And with CEO Bob Chapek stating that Shanghai is the model for other parks reopening, new developments are always important to watch. Now that the pandemic has seemingly slowed down within China, the Chinese Government is allowing tourism spots … Read more
Every week is a busy week when it comes to Disney news. To help you keep up with all the updates coming out of Walt Disney World and other Disney resorts, here’s WDWNT’s weekly recap of the Disney news from August 3-9, 2020. Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Check out this week’s photo report for … Read more