After one month of reopening, Walt Disney Company is modifying its Walt Disney World operations taking effect in September. The already limited hours will reduce by an additional two hours. The change is being implemented after the Walt Disney Company discovered its parks have has an unexpectedly low park attendance and unfavorable earnings due to park restrictions in place because of the coronavirus.
An updated schedule was posted on the Disney World website over the weekend which shows both Magic Kingdom park and Epcot park being cut by its opening times or closing times. Epcot and the Animal Kingdom park being up back by two hours and the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios parks both losing one hour per day of operation.
Since reopening in July, the parks have restrictions in place to ensure the safety of park goers. The parks require guests and those who work within the park to wear a face mask at all times covering mouth and nose. Those planning a park visit are required to reserve their spot in advance to ensure a limited population within the park and allow for social distancing. Temperatures are checked before entering the park and enhanced cleaning periodically occurs throughout the parks and hand sanitizer stations are installed for use.
They also introduced no contact-apps and a no-hugging policy for cast members and characters. The Disney World theme parks in Florida remain open even with the new operating hours, while Disney Land in California remain closed.
The Walt Disney Company reported Tuesday that they have a fiscal third quarter loss of $4.7 billion within the last year. According to CBS News, the $4.7 billion lost is due to Coronavirus closed attractions.
The company posted revenue of $11.8 billion in the period, $870 million short of Wall Street’s expectations.
The Burbank, California-based company has been losing millions of dollars every day since its theme parks were closed due to the coronavirus in March. Its Florida theme parks reopened in July with health and safety guidelines in place, including limits on the number of visitors allowed inside. Meanwhile, most of California’s Disneyland remains closed as coronavirus cases mount in the state.
“As you know, the majority of businesses worldwide have experienced unprecedented disruption as a result of the pandemic,” Disney CEO Robert Chapek said in a call with analysts to discuss its latest financial results. “Most of our businesses were shut down, and this had a huge impact on our third-quarter results.”