Ireland’s Omniplex cinemas implement new seating plan to tackle Covid-19 spread

As the number of Covid-19 cases continues to rise, Omniplex cinemas have introduced a new ‘seat separation’ plan

Irish-owned cinema chain Omniplex has just announced new measures to ensure guests can enjoy the cinema safely, with minimal risk of Covid-19 spread.

Omniplex, which has more than 245 screens in 32 locations, said it will implement ‘in-cinema seat separation’, to encourage effective ‘social distancing’, as recommended by the World Health Organisation. The way it will work is that every second cinema seat will be unoccupied (creating a checkerboard pattern).

Mark Anderson, who is the Director of Omniplex Cinemas said, “In-cinema seat separation will give one-metre separation between each guest (as recommended by the WHO for social distancing. By reducing our capacity by 50% we hope to give cinema-goers peace of mind when attending the movies.”

The chain will also implement other safety measures, including self-scanning of tickets, increased cleaning regimes by staff, and the introduction of hand sanitising stations in every cinema foyer.

It is also recommended that movie-goers book their cinema tickets online, or use contactless payments rather than cash, to reduce the need for person-to-person contact.

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