DEAL 2020 SHOW POSTPONED UNTIL JUNE DUE TO CORONAVIRUS

BY GABRIELLE

The Dubai Entertainment Amusement & Leisure Exhibition (DEAL) team has announced that the DEAL 2020 show, which was due to take place in March, has been rescheduled to June 15 until 17, 2020.

DEAL made the decision to postpone the event in the wake of the current global outbreak of coronavirus, as many of the delegates due to go the show would have been unable to travel to the UAE from abroad.

In an announcement about the postponement of the show, DEAL organisers said the decision was in the “best interests and safety of the entire FEC and theme park industry, as we would want to host a highly productive DEAL 2020 show for everyone.”

Deal 2020 is being held at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

TOKYO DISNEY THEME PARKS TEMPORARILY CLOSE DUE TO CORONAVIRUS

BY GABRIELLE

Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea will close from Saturday February 29, 2020 until March 15, 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak

Tokyo Disney Resort’s operator, Oriental Land Co., announced the decision to close is in line with the government’s request to cancel or postpone large events for two weeks.

This is the first time Tokyo’s popular amusements parks have closed since qn earthquake and subsequent tsunami devasted north-eastern Japan in 2011.

The entertainment and shopping complex known as Ikspiari that’s adjacent to the theme parks will also be closed during the same period. However, Oriental Land have said that the monorail and hotels ran by its group companies will remain in service.

Those that have purchased tickets to the theme parks within the weeks of closure will be issued full refunds or extensions of the tickets’ expiry dates.

OCEAN PARK HONG KONG LAUNCHES REDD’S NATURE PLAY PARTY CHANNEL ON YOUTUBE

BY GABRIELLE

Ocean Park Hong Kong has launched an educational channel on YouTube called Redd’s Nature Play Party. The channel publishes fun animal-themed content designed to help children learn about animal welfare and conservation when at home.

The self-learning YouTube channel comes at a time when schools have been suspended in China due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The platform features regular video footage by Redd, a member of Whiskers & Friends. The videos are focused on informing youngsters about environmental conservation and the ecosystem.

Josephine Woo, executive director, education and special projects coordinator at Ocean Park, commented: “Ocean Park is always closely connected to the local school community.

“We understand that ever since class suspension is put in place, parents and schools have been making huge efforts to ensure the learning progress as well as physical and mental wellbeing of children will not be affected,” added Woo.

Redd’s Nature Play Party comprises of three different educational series – ‘Play with Nature’, ‘Move and Dance’ and ‘Art and Crafts Workshops.’

According to Woo, the series are designed so “children can play, exercise and learn without locations constraints.”

HONG KONG DISNEYLAND’S VACANT SITES TO BE USED AS CORONAVIRUS QUARANTINE FACILITIES

BY GABRIELLE

Hong Kong Disneyland is lending its vacant sites to the Chinese government so they can used as quarantine facilities to help eliminate the spread of coronavirus.

As officials consider how to bring people from Hong Kong that are stranded in Wuhan back “in batches”, it has been announced that the government will use a 60-hectare site reserved for the expansion of Hong Kong Disneyland.

Referring to the 60-hectare site reserved for the theme park’s expansion on Lantau Island, Commerce and Economic Development Bureau chief Edward Yau Tang-wah said: “We have secured the company’s consent to use part of the site if it is needed.

“We need all quarantine facilities for surveillance, basically we will leave no stone unturned [when identifying sites for building quarantine facilities],” Yau Tang-wah added.

There are also 2,200 Hong Kong residents stranded in the Hubei province, ten of which are confirmed to have been infected with the virus. The government has announced it needs to have sufficient quarantine facilities in place in order to bring the residents back to Hong Kong.

China’s mainland affairs minister Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, commented: “We have already started planning for their return.

“We first need to have these facilities as well as the understanding of residents [near the quarantine sites] before we implement the plan,” he added.

The four-hectare vacant land located near the carpark at Disneyland would be able to facilitate around 600 units to accommodate the Hong Kong residents.

Hong Kong Disneyland is currently closed as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak.