New Jersey's American Dream Mall Reopens Indoor Ski Slope After Coronavirus Closure

Nicholas Rice
·2 min read

Seth Wenig/AP/Shutterstock

Winter has come early to the American Dream Mall.

The mega-sized shopping venue in East Rutherford, New Jersey, announced that its indoor ski and snowboard slope attraction has officially reopened after it was closed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Known collectively as Big SNOW American Dream, the indoor attraction — which bills itself as America’s first indoor ski area — is now open with new safety rules set in place.

Online-only ticket purchases and constant sanitizing of rental gear are just some of the ways the unique venue is helping to keep guests and employees safe amid the current health crisis. There will also be limited capacity. They are allowed to reopen at 25% capacity under state guidelines.

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Seth Wenig/AP/Shutterstock Big SNOW American Dream

Meanwhile, other parts of the mall, including DreamWorks Water Park, Nickelodeon Universe, Out of This World Blacklight Mini Golf and The Rink will reopen next month.

According to a press release, everything else will reopen on Thursday, Oct. 1 with a number of retailers opening for the first time at the mall, including H&M, Primark and ZARA.

American Dream

Co-CEO of American Dream, Mark Ghermezian, thanked "our guests and team members for their patience and loyalty while we were closed. We know that our community has been waiting to return, but it was important to us that we took the proper time and precautions needed to welcome guests back in the safest manner possible.

He added, "The last several months have been difficult for everyone, and even though we are still adjusting to the new normal, we are confident that we can provide guests a safe environment to make dreams come true for everyone, everywhere, as well as create much-needed job opportunities in New Jersey."

Gary Hershorn/Getty

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The mall announced new safety protocols that guests can expect, including required face coverings, reduced capacities throughout the mall and within each of their open attractions, physical distancing guidance, ground markings, plexiglass barriers and touchless programming.