Effects of Coronavirus (COVID-19) On Entertainment & Tourism Industry

[Scott W.]

Might mean something, might not but I've got a call from my travel agent saying that Disney are now following up on bookings in June and demanding final payment.

 

[Jamesh22]

Might mean something, might not but I've got a call from my travel agent saying that Disney are now following up on bookings in June and demanding final payment.

I'm pretty sure they can't do that can they?!?

 

[Scott W.]

I'm pretty sure they can't do that can they?!?

They're still offering the option of rebooking up until 31st December 2021 but I'm guessing they want an idea of who's coming.

 

[Jamesh22]

They're still offering the option of rebooking up until 31st December 2021 but I'm guessing they want an idea of who's coming.

Rebooking probably voids any chance of you not paying if you decide you don't want to go later?

 

[SeventyOne]

Re: CityWalk. Word last night from people who should know is that nothing Universal-owned has a scheduled re-open. I trust all sources I've seen say Margaritaville will open, but thinking it's just third party places.

What that means about parking and even guest flow in CItyWalk I can't say.

 

[JungleSkip]

Re: CityWalk. Word last night from people who should know is that nothing Universal-owned has a scheduled re-open. I trust all sources I've seen say Margaritaville will open, but thinking it's just third party places.

What that means about parking and even guest flow in CItyWalk I can't say.

Yea, seems odd that Universal would send its parking employees back before the parks opened.

Edit: I just don't see this situation happening. Universal bringing back the security, custodial, and parking employees back for Hard Rock and Margaritaville?

 

[Scott W.]

Coronavirus: Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,000 jobs and quit Gatwick

The airline will axe a third of its workforce in response to the "severe impact" of coronavirus.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Kevin38]

I got a message that a lot of Florida restaurants are to reopen @ 25% capacity starting May 11th (citywalk ?)

 

[JungleSkip]

Coronavirus: Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,000 jobs and quit Gatwick

The airline will axe a third of its workforce in response to the "severe impact" of coronavirus.

www.bbc.co.uk

Ugh. My favorite airline!

 

[Journey_On]

I got a message that a lot of Florida restaurants are to reopen @ 25% capacity starting May 11th (citywalk ?)

Yes. Actually as of yesterday, they could reopen. Florida’s restaurants can reopen on Monday, but they must operate at 25 percent capacity and also make sure that all people are a minimum of 6 feet apart.

I have heard that some CityWalk restaurants are opening at 25% capacity starting on the 11th, with hours from 4:00-10:00 PM.

 

[Mad Dog]

Disney earnings report after the close of business today. That should make for an interesting read.

 

[SeventyOne]

Yes. Actually as of yesterday, they could reopen. Florida’s restaurants can reopen on Monday, but they must operate at 25 percent capacity and also make sure that all people are a minimum of 6 feet apart.

Yeah, as of yesterday, every outlet owned by Darden and Bloomin' has opened (so probably 80% of your chain resturants), plus a substantial number of independent places in the greater tourist area, e.g. The Whiskey, Hagan O"Reileys, Beth's Burger Bar. As far as Orange County is concerned, they could open tomorrow. But unlike most everywhere else, CityWalk outlets depend on the parking garage being open, and would probably require an increase in security as well, to prevent guests from wandering too close to the closed parks/resorts. So ultimately Universal's call.

 

[Jerroddragon]

Until there's a vaccine or some form of treatment, this is pretty much what we're looking at.

Maybe I was just too hope at the start but if people just stayed in their houses and didn't come in contact with others for three weeks, in theory the virus is dead right? Like A country can self isolate and at a point no one has it any more and you could just go back to business as normal as long as you didn't allow people to travel into the country right?

 

[Mad Dog]

Sea World Parks announced that all current annual pass holders will receive, in addition to the previous extensions, a complimentary 'tier upgrade' for the rest of 2020. They will also receive additional 'bring a friend' days for 2020.

 

[lowbudget]

Maybe I was just too hope at the start but if people just stayed in their houses and didn't come in contact with others for three weeks, in theory the virus is dead right? Like A country can self isolate and at a point no one has it any more and you could just go back to business as normal as long as you didn't allow people to travel into the country right?

No, people still get out and work essential jobs, packages get delivered, neighbors come into contact with one another, its spreads through households and families over the course of a month to 6 weeks. the list goes on. In theory if you could truly isolate everyone for long enough, then yes, you could eradicate it. But in practice elimination by isolation is impossible.

 

[Jeepers Reaper]

Coronavirus: Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,000 jobs and quit Gatwick

The airline will axe a third of its workforce in response to the "severe impact" of coronavirus.

www.bbc.co.uk

Not unexpected but devastating nonetheless. Heard anything about the Glasgow operations?

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Maybe I was just too hope at the start but if people just stayed in their houses and didn't come in contact with others for three weeks, in theory the virus is dead right? Like A country can self isolate and at a point no one has it any more and you could just go back to business as normal as long as you didn't allow people to travel into the country right?

No. Also fun fact: the plague is still around!

 

[Mad Dog]

No. Also fun fact: the plague is still around!

Yes, even in the US it's been contracted in the past decade, usually in the mountain areas in the west. But quick action and isolation has stopped any catastrophic spread. The same could have happened with CV when it started, if it would have been handled correctly, and not ignored and covered up.

 

[Scott W.]

Not unexpected but devastating nonetheless. Heard anything about the Glasgow operations?

Not heard anything but my flight still seems to be going ahead.

I need to phone and change it but seeing as its 3 separate bookings, I just can’t be arsed.

 

[randompixel]

Coronavirus: Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,000 jobs and quit Gatwick

The airline will axe a third of its workforce in response to the "severe impact" of coronavirus.

www.bbc.co.uk

Seeing Gatwick was their "Leisure" hub (Orlando + Caribbean) and Heathrow was the "Business" hub, I wonder if that's an indicator of how they expect things to re-open going forward? Or will they just move everything to Heathrow?

What is missing from the BBC article is also...

In a series of moves that will help the airline to reduce costs and preserve costs, most notably, Virgin Atlantic has accelerated the retirement of its ageing Boeing 747 fleet. Effective immediately, Virgin Atlantic will no longer operate its seven 747s. The superjumbo aircraft in Virgin’s fleet were originally set to retire in 2021.

Travel news for our readers in the UK and Europe

Stories and guides that are written for The Points Guy readers in the UK and Europe.

thepointsguy.co.uk

The 747's were also the "Leisure" craft serving Orlando until the newer A350-1000's in a different configuration came in.

Edit: The latter article answers my question

In addition, the carrier is moving all of its London operations to fly exclusively out of London Heathrow. The move will see its London Gatwick base closed for the time being. However, the carrier is retaining its slot portfolio at Gatwick, allowing it to return when customer demand does.