Disney California Adventure Park opening in mid-March for ‘limited-time ticketed experience’

The Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, Calif., will reopen in March for a “limited-time ticketed experience,” the company said Monday.

A letter to employees obtained by “Good Morning America” indicated that as many as 1,000 employees would be called back to work for a “distinctly Disney experience” that features “world-famous food and beverage offerings from around the resort, the latest merchandise and unique, carefully crafted entertainment experiences.”

It wasn’t clear which parts of the park would be opened to guests, and a request for comment from Disney representatives was not immediately returned. The park closed last March in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and has yet to reopen.

“While that is clearly not all we want to accomplish, it’s a start,” Disneyland Resort President Ken Potrock wrote in the letter, according to “Good Morning America.” “Teams are working as we speak to start recalling identified Cast in the coming weeks.”

“This past year has presented extraordinary challenges, but that has not curtailed in any way our ability to move forward with a spirit of optimism,” he reportedly added.

California has seen its rates of new COVID-19 cases plummet from a peak reached in mid-January but not yet to levels seen before the autumn surge.

Disney’s efforts to reopen the park come as some state legislators have pushed for other amusement parks in the state — including Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm and Disneyland — to be allowed to reopen as long as the state remains in the third tier of coronavirus restrictions — currently, most parks are restricted to opening when their corresponding counties reach tier two.

“We should be in Tier Three, along with other industries that have proven they can reopen responsibly,” Karen Irwin, president and COO of Universal Studios Hollywood, said in October, according to Deadline. “Our employees are ready to go back to work and the fact that they won’t be able to do so until well into next year is shameful.”