The first Six Flags in the nation to reopen after months will be the one in Oklahoma City, a company official announced Tuesday.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Trevor Leonard, general manager of Frontier City Six Flags, said during an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show. “Things are going to look a little different in the park when you get here.”
Every person who wants to enter the park will have to make a reservation. Customers will be screened en masse by a new system after presenting themselves at the front gate. And marks in lines for rides will force family units to remain 6 feet from each other.
Roller coasters and other rides will only seat every other row.
Everyone will have to wear a mask, whether a customer or an employee.
A new team established just for cleaning will be “continuously” sanitizing areas around the park, including bathrooms, tables, and rides.
“Every time a guest leaves a table on a food service patio, one of our team members will be cleaning and disinfecting those tables,” Leonard said.
In addition, Six Flags added numerous handwashing stations around the park.
The plan for further reopenings hasn’t been publicly announced. Leonard credited the relaxations from Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt and cooperation from local officials in planning the first reopening in the nation.
“We’re fortunate to be the first park that will be up in operation next Friday,” he said.
Six Flags didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to Six Flags America’s website, the company’s theme parks are temporarily closed.
“Following local and regional COVID-19 health directives, we will open as soon as it is safe to do so,” it states.
“While there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 at the properties, the safety of our guests, team members, and animals is always our highest priority. We will continue to closely monitor this evolving situation, and follow the most current guidance from federal, state, and local officials.”
Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, which operates Six Flags across the world, said earlier in May that it introduced a new reservation system that will allow parks to cut off reservations once they reach a certain level.
“We are excited about reopening our parks and getting back to the business of fun; however, we want to do so in the safest possible manner,” Mike Spanos, the company’s president and CEO, said in a statement.
Reservations will take 5 to 7 minutes to complete, with customers entering their order number, ticket number, or season pass number. They'll then select the date they want to visit and the approximate time they want to enter the park.
After watching a video that outlines new policies, customers have to indicate they understand them before ordering pre-paid parking.
At that point, people will learn if any reservations are left for the day they chose. If none are, they can join a waitlist, change to a different date, or cancel the reservation.
