Japan Has Declared a State of Emergency — What Does This Mean For Tokyo Disneyland?

UPDATE: As of April 8th, the Tokyo Disney closure has been extended through mid-May at the earliest. Learn more here.

We’ve been staying current with this situation for many months now and not just with how it pertains to Disney World and Disneyland but the rest of the Disney theme parks across the world as well.

Fantasmic! at Tokyo DisneySea ©Disney

Since it’s hard enough keeping up with the news that’s happening and changing every day here in the U.S., we wanted to give you a status update on Tokyo Disneyland Resort.

As you’ll recall, Tokyo Disneyland was the third overseas theme park to close. Disney announced the park would be shutting down from February 27th through March 15th. However, just like Disney World and Disneyland, it amended its temporary closure on March 11th and most recently on March 27th when they also announced they’d be closing all Tokyo Disney Hotels as well.

ONE DAY AT DISNEY – KAE NAMIKI, STAGE MANAGER, TOKYO DISNEYSEA.
(Disney/Natsumi Nukariya)

And today, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has just declared a state of emergency. Japan has been at war with the infection since before it became more widely spread here in the States. According to Fox News, the number of cases in Japan has recently surged, doubling to over 1,200 cases in just the last five days.

DisneySea Pixar Playtime Pals

Along with the state of emergency declaration, Japan’s government has issued a month-long stay at home order which will impact all six of the country’s prefectures including Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture where Tokyo Disneyland is located. Just like what many of us are experiencing right now in America, schools and all non-essential businesses will temporarily close in an attempt to flatten the curve and keep the strain off of their hospitals.

Attraction Concept Art for Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast ©Disney

Until now, Japan had been mitigating the spread by focusing on clusters of cases and concentrating its efforts on tracing the paths the infection has taken. Now that the country’s hospital beds are nearing capacity, Abe’s next call to action is for residents of Japan to self-isolate and reduce their contact with others.

The Tokyo Disney Resort website currently states that the “reopening of the parks is planned for April 20 or beyond,” and that a new announcement will be sent out regarding the reopening. Due to the government’s recent decision ordering people to stay at home, we’ll likely see Tokyo Disneyland postpone its reopening again for sometime after the May 6th expiration date.

We’ll continue to monitor this situation as it unfolds at the Tokyo Disneyland Resort as well as the rest of the Disney parks including any official statements made by Disney and re-opening timeframes.