The happiest place on earth announced this week that they're canceling their annual pass holder program amid rising cases of COVID-19 in the U.S.
Disneyland closed due to the pandemic on Friday, March 13 and has yet to reopen. Although the Downtown Disney District has slowly opened some dining and retail locations, the resort's two theme parks, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure have remained closed.
Now, those who hold a Disneyland annual pass are being offered a pro rata refund as the resort "sunsets" the pass holder program.
A statement from Ken Potrock, president of Disneyland, promises better things in the future for those who enjoy holding annual passes.
"In the next several days, we will begin the process of issuing appropriate refunds for eligible Disneyland Resort Annual Passports and sunsetting the current Annual Passport program due to the continued uncertainty of the pandemic and limitations and expected restrictions around the reopening of our theme parks," the statement reads. "We will use this time while we remain closed to develop new membership offerings ... we are incredibly optimistic about our bright future."
Until the new membership offerings are announced, pass holders will continue to receive the applicable discounts for their pass type from retailers and restaurants within the Downtown Disney District and Buena Vista Street — a section of Disney California Adventure open solely for dining and shopping.
Earlier this week, Orange County announced Disneyland would become their first Super Point-of-Dispensing (POD) site for vaccination distribution, providing thousands of COVID-19 vaccinations per day to the public.
The separate news stories have made Disneyland a popular topic on social media, with many sending words of support.
"So long, my friend, you've been good to me," wrote one Twitter user.
Actor Donny Osmond shared a sweet throwback photo of himself and his brothers filming at Disneyland, saying, "Hopefully, it will be safe for entertainment venues to open soon."
Others have used humor to handle continued stressful news regarding COVID-19.
"This week, Disneyland began serving as a vaccination super site," one tweet reads, "because if there is one thing Disneyland is good at, it's making people stand in long lines."
