Shanghai Disney Resort announced Monday that it would close indefinitely due to an escalating COVID-19 outbreak in China, which has forced the closure of two major theme parks within a week. All visitors were directed to stay in the park until they test negative for the virus.
To comply with COVID-19 virus regulations, the resort announced at 11:39 a.m. local time that it would immediately close the main park in Shanghai, as well as surrounding areas, including its shopping street, until further notice.
“We are required to follow the standard procedures set forth by Shanghai, which was the same process for a previous closure like this one that occurred one year ago,” a Disney spokesperson told Gizmodo.
Previously, Shanghai Disney Resort was forced to shut down for over three months during Shanghai’s lockdown.
More than 30,000 visitors were stuck in the park last year after it was closed for two days in November after authorities ordered all of them to be tested.
The Disney spokesperson said that as of Monday afternoon, the park had expedited the testing process for visitors, adding that all guests who had received negative test results had left.
Visitors were seen running to park gates only to find them closed in videos posted to the Chinese social app Weibo.
Police escorted guests behind metal fences and informed them that they would have to wait for test results before they could leave.
According to a statement from the resort, the closure was effective immediately at Shanghai Disney Resort, Shanghai Disneyland, Disneytown, and Wishing Star Park. “We will notify guests as soon as we have a confirmed date to resume operations.”
“We apologize for the inconvenience and will provide refund (sic) or exchanges for all guests impacted during this period,” the company said on its website. “Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!”
Due to rising cases in China’s capital, Universal Beijing Resort closed its doors last week. Universal Studios Beijing, Universal CityWalk Beijing, The Universal Studios Grand Hotel, and NUO Resort Hotel were closed “to comply with pandemic prevention and control,” according to Reuters.
This was not the first time this year that Universal Beijing was forced to suspend operations. On May 1, the resort closed for six weeks and was only able to partially resume operations at 75% capacity.
The Universal Beijing Resort reopened on Monday after a five-day closure.