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Daily Record
Daily Record
World
Sophie Law

Disneyland theme parks 'may not open until 2021 due to pandemic'

Disney theme parks across the globe may stay closed until 2021 due to social distancing measures making them "unprofitable", according to experts.

Financial experts estimate the parks may not be able to open because less tourist will be jetting abroad thanks to travel restrictions.

UBS analyst John Hodulik explained that Disneyland - which can be found in locations such as Paris, Florida and Tokyo - may not be able to resume normal service until there is a Covid-19 vaccine, The Sun reports.

Temperature checks, masks and social distancing will likely be commonplace (REUTERS)

He warns there there may be a long recovery period for the parks and says that shares in Walt Disney shares have recently plummeted.

"The economic recession plus the need for social distancing, new health precautions, the lack of travel and crowd aversion are likely to make this business less profitable until there is a widely available vaccine," Mr Hodulik wrote in his financial report.

The Disneyland theme parks have been closed since mid-March, when several European countries were put into lockdown to slow the spread of the virus.

However, some experts believe the parks may be able to open in early June.

J.P. Morgan analyst Alexia Quadrani told financial news site Barrons: "I think you have to assume [international visitors] are not going to be the first ones who come back to Disney World."

She added that visitors may be low as people are likely to be "financially strapped".

If the theme parks do open, they are set to be a very different experience. World leaders have already told people to get accustomed to a "new normal" way of living.

Temperature checks, masks and social distancing will likely be commonplace in major tourist attractions.

Disney boss Bob Iger said in an interview to Barrons: "In order to return to some semblance of normal, people will have to feel comfortable that they’re safe.

"Just as we now do bag checks for everybody that goes into our parks, it could be that at some point we add a component of that that takes people’s temperatures, as a for-instance."

Virtual queues could also be in place in the future - something that is already available for rides such as Disneyland Hollywood's Rise of the Resistance ride at Star Wars: Galaxy Edge

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