SeaWorld notes: San Antonio reopening / Orlando closed Tuesdays, Thursdays / San Diego lawsuit

SeaWorld San Antonio will become the second theme park in the SeaWorld chain to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic when it welcomes back guests on June 19.

Like the Orlando parks and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, SeaWorld San Antonio will require guests to wear face masks, undergo temperature screenings and secure a reservation to enter the park, which will be operating at reduced capacity.

“Over the past two months, we have worked with state and local health officials, third party medical and epidemiology experts, and attraction industry leaders to enhance our strict health, safety, and cleanliness standards,” interim SeaWorld Entertainment CEO Marc Swanson said in a statement.

The June 19 reopening date matches that of local rival Six Flags Fiesta Texas. The Aquatica San Antonio water park reopened on June 6.

Texas reported an all-time high in COVID-19 hospitalizations for the third straight day Wednesday, with 2,153 people currently hospitalized with the disease across the state, according to the Dallas Morning News.

SeaWorld Orlando to stay closed two days a week

The new normal for SeaWorld Orlando includes staying closed on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel, interim CEO Marc Swanson said the reduced calendar will give employees more time to clean. He also said the park will operate about one-third capacity when it reopens Thursday.

“It’s going to ebb and flow a little bit here and there. A lot of this, we want to see how the park feels, how we can manage everything,” Swanson said.

For now, the company is seeing high demand on its reservation system, according to Swanson.

SeaWorld sued over San Diego coaster construction

A construction company is suing SeaWorld Entertainment, alleging that SeaWorld has refused to pay nearly $3.3 million for work on the Emperor dive roller coaster that was supposed to open at its San Diego park this year.

Level 10 Construction is accusing SeaWorld of knowingly breaching their contract, quoting SeaWorld as saying it “would not process any outstanding payments until the parks open.” SeaWorld San Diego has been closed since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic and does not currently have a reopening date scheduled.

According to Level 10’s lawsuit, the contract it signed with SeaWorld in July 2019 did not mention that payment was conditioned on the theme park being open to the public.

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