Walt Disney Co. will open a limited numbers of shops and restaurants in the Disney Springs mall outside its resorts in Orlando, Florida, on May 20, part of a phased reopening in the theme-park capital of the world.

The properties reopening will be those managed by third parties, the company said in a blog post Thursday. Disney’s theme parks, which closed in mid-March, will remain shuttered.

The shops and restaurants will open with enhanced cleaning and limits on capacity. Guests and staff will be required to wear masks. Under orders from Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida began a first-phase reopening of stores and other businesses this week. Theme parks aren’t expected to reopen until phase two, on a date yet to be established.

The coronavirus reduced profit at Disney, the world’s largest theme-park operator, by US$1.4 billion last quarter, largely by forcing the company to shutter its resorts around the world. The first to close, Shanghai Disneyland, is scheduled to reopen on May 11 with fewer than 30 per cent of its 80,000 person a day capacity allowed in by reservation only.