Fans of Disney are eagerly awaiting visiting the Disney Parks in California and shove away the gloom of the pandemic. However, the regular visitors to Disneyland may now be hit as the theme parks is cancelling their annual pass program. In a recent announcement by Disneyland Resort President Ken Potrock, the plans to shut down the annual pass scheme was revealed. There will be new membership offerings instead but that will take a while. The uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rising cases, the necessary precautions and social distancing norms have made it difficult for the theme parks to function to normalcy. For those who already have the annual passes, they would be issued a refund soon. Meanwhile, the Orange County Disneyland resort became a COVID-19 vaccination site this week.

Disneyland President Ken Potrock said in a statement, "Due to the continued uncertainty of the pandemic and limitations around the reopening of our California theme parks, we will be issuing appropriate refunds for eligible Disneyland Resort Annual Passports and sunsetting the current program." The parks have remained shut most of last year, given the rising number of coronavirus cases in California again. All of Disney Parks had planned a phased reopening, with Shanghai one being the first one to open its doors since the pandemic, back in May. At the moment, there is no clear stance on when California's parks will open to the public.

Check Disney Parks' Statement on Annual Pass:

Earlier, a new reservation system had been planned for July reopening in California. The annual pass program is said to impact about a million of people, who are regular to the theme parks. New memberships will be rolled out soon in days to come, once when there is a clear picture of the Disney parks reopening. Daily Covid-19 cases in Orange County, where Disney's parks are located, have been rising sharply since end of 2020. Those with annual passes can log in to the site and check for their refund applications.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 16, 2021 03:25 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).