Disneyland in Shanghai, McDonald's in Wuhan to Shut Temporarily Amid Virus Outbreak -- 2nd Update

By Dave Sebastian, Heather Haddon and Alison Sider 

U.S. businesses with operations in China are taking precautions amid China's coronavirus outbreak, closing restaurants in affected areas and offering free changes or refunds at resort destinations.

Walt Disney Co. said it would temporarily close its Disneyland and Disneytown parks in Shanghai starting Saturday, as the death toll from China's spreading coronavirus rose.

"We will continue to carefully monitor the situation and be in close contact with the local government," Shanghai Disney Resort, which operates the parks, said in a statement Friday.

McDonald's Corp. said it has closed stores in Wuhan, the central China city where the virus originated, and other surrounding cities that have suspended local public transportation due to the outbreak. McDonald's restaurants in Hubei province operated normally where transportation was available, a company spokesman said. He didn't say how many restaurants were shut.

"We will maintain close communication with local health and other relevant authorities," the spokesman said.

The outbreak comes amid the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday, which is typically a busy travel period. The official death count related to the coronavirus is 26, with the number of infections rising to at least 881 confirmed cases.

The McDonald's spokesman said the company was providing hand sanitizer in restaurants, increasing disinfection of areas with frequent customer contact, requiring delivery drivers to wear masks and measuring temperatures of store crews upon arriving to work to monitor for fevers.

McDonald's had 2,902 stores in China during its last quarter, making it one of the company's largest foreign markets.

Disney said it would work to refund tickets bought to Disneyland, resort hotel rooms reserved, and tickets for Beauty and the Beast Mandarin production booked through Disney's official ticket-purchasing platform.

Delta Air Lines Inc. is allowing passengers to and from Beijing and Shanghai to change fights with no fee due to concerns about the coronavirus in China.

Passengers traveling between Jan. 24 and Jan. 31 will be allowed to change their flights without penalty or cancel their trips and apply the value to a new ticket within a year.

American Airlines Group Inc. and United Airlines Holdings Inc. are offering refunds for canceled trips only for people traveling to, from or through the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the outbreak began.

No U.S. carriers offer direct service to Wuhan but they offer connecting flights on partner airlines. Flights from the city have been halted.

Carnival Corp. isn't allowing any individual from Wuhan to board its cruises, a Carnival spokesman said Friday.

Carnival's medical team is in touch with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization about recommended screenings for passengers, monitoring and ship protocols, the spokesman said. Those measures could include temperature and questionnaire screening for travelers entering cruises from China and other areas, as well as an illness and disease reporting protocol, he said.

Marriott International Inc. said it is waiving cancellation fees through Feb. 8 for reservations at its hotels in China, and for guests from China traveling to other countries.

"Our hotels are following the guidelines of local authorities and reinforcing recommended measures on appropriate hygiene standards," Marriott said in a statement.

Marriott, which has more than 350 properties across mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, said it is tracking statements from the CDC, WHO and local health departments.

The coronavirus has spread to several other countries, including South Korea, Japan and the U.S.

Write to Dave Sebastian at [e-mail], Heather Haddon at [e-mail] and Alison Sider at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 24, 2020 12:59 ET (17:59 GMT)

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