Hi All- Following as we are set to go at the end of Aug (rescheduled). DD9 and DS7 are my main concern. I sway by the hour with what I think we will end up doing. Not a first trip and will not be the last…we just miss Dis!
Welcome to the club. Maybe WDW could designate a special week for us at the end of Aug?
@lxlindsay : really appreciate you sharing this as it sounds like your trip was one of the cases I was looking to hear about (also, I’m really sorry WDW pulled the rug out on you guys like that. DW and I were talking about how upset we’d be if they did that to us). Your plan is basically what our plan has always been in terms of avoiding things. To your points, #1 is definitely my biggest concern. The “good news” I’ve seen so far on Delta is that it seems to be no more severe than the previous strains, only way more contagious. The data out of the UK seems to back that up. So as a broad point outside of just WDW, that’s good. The bad news is obviously that it’s way more contagious.
As for #2 and #3, we’re definitely in the same mindset there — one of the season we chose our dates (8/28 - 9/5) is because TP is predicting lower crowds, and we also tried to pick parks based on that. But #3 is a really important point and the sort of the question me and DW have been trying to answer, because I think it sort of answers whether or not we’re going to feel safe going on this trip. How would we feel if Frozen broke down for a long time with us inside the queue? Will a filter mask like a KN95 for us or Enro for the kids significantly reduce viral exposure in that sort of situation (my recent Google search history is full of variations of that question)? How well-ventilated are the indoor queues? It’s really tough to quantify. But thanks so much for sharing this. I’m glad your trip ended up working out!
@RDryan : yeah, it definitely seems like June was that sweet spot. I was feeling really optimistic about the trip around mid-June, with numbers dropping like they were. Delta had other plans, apparently. As to my wife, she is more Covid cautious than I am, so I’m cueing off her. I mentioned this earlier, but we wouldn’t even be considering this if her OB hadn’t said she could go — which isn’t to say that we will, but if OB said “no” then the answer was no.
@davej : that’s awesome! Super cool to hear stories like that, and maybe my wife and I need to be more open to something like that.
Have you seen this? The author is a reputable epidemiologist who is an assistant professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center.
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We should make it a theme week…“Can everyone please mask up inside to protect the kids? Thanks!”
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DH and I actually discussed that as a solution. Every day, have one park (or more if there’s enough demand) where masks are mandatory. Rotate it between the 4 parks.
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DH and I are not planning to go to WDW until either the littles can be vaccinated, the numbers are much, much better, or I am convinced that the long-term risks of kids contracting covid are minimal. I have concerns about covid in children - we seem to know so little, especially about long covid - and want to avoid my kids getting it at this point. At WDW and in FL, I find the lack of distancing, the lack of masks, and the growth of Delta to be especially concerning.
We aren’t skipping vacations altogether, though. Last year we went to my MIL’s cabin in Maine and to the beach; this year we’ll be doing the cabin again, as well as heading up to the mountains of NH. We plan on hitting up local amusement park(s) during the week when the crowds will be lower and just sticking to outdoor rides and dining al fresco. If I was in WDW, I’d hate to miss some of the great indoor rides and shows; I don’t mind sticking to the outdoors at the local places, where the attractions are less spectacular anyways. We’ve managed to make holidays and vacations fun and special for the past year, and I don’t think that my kids’ mental health is suffering from a lack of “normal” holidays and vacations. (My mother? Maybe. My kids? Nope.)
All that being said, everyone is going to make their own choices and lots of people are choosing to go.
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OMG this would actually be a fascinating experiment to see how popular the mask park is, and how behavior differed at that park in general. People would be forced to choose to wear a mask or not get another chance at a BG. So interesting!
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What percentage of the guests there now-ish wear masks 100% of the time?
That would be a good stand-in for the % of people that would be interested in that.
Of course, if it isn’t 25% …
Except there are people that aren’t going at all since they don’t find the current safety measures sufficient. Note the people above who have cancelled.
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Oh, yeah, there is that.
Nevermind …
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Thanks for this post, I have been pondering a similar decision. Trying to get a grasp on the real risks of COVID to my daughter is a bit crazy making.
I appreciate the ability to have conversations here. This conversation never ends well on chat!
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This is a good discussion. I am going in a month and I’m leaning towards 100% masking in line and indoors for our family. Me and DH are vaxxed but DD7 obviously isn’t. Florida numbers are concerning, but even more concerning is that Disney isn’t going to roll back their protocols (at least for now they aren’t)
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So I’m going to be the wet blanket. Don’t go. For so many reasons. I just got back on Sunday from 5 days at the parks and it’s like the pandemic never existed. You will be in roughly 20-30+ minute lines all day long. Masks wearing is virtually nonexistent. There is 0 physical distancing. It’s hot af. It’s expensive af. Your kids are so little they won’t remember anyway. Mask compliance on the plane should be fine, but in the airport? Nope.
I 100% understand wanting to do something special for your girls before you become a family of 5, but I would choose something other than WDW.
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We went in April- I was not very worried about covid in comparison with our daily activities - school, daycare, and me being a practicing dentist. BUT covid certainly made me realize how intolerant I am of waits in line and crowds. Our touring strategy was to hit the parks early and get our favs done and then hit the resort/pool. We had a great time and felt comfortable with the amount we got done. We didn’t wait in any line over 20-30 min. I think the crowds and heat has gotten a bit worse though! Good luck with whatever you decide!! 
Hi, I’m also from NYC and had the exact same thoughts about canceling my trip today. We are supposed to go Sept 1. It’s just me and my 13yo, both fully vaccinated. We still wear our masks indoors here in most places in nyc. I personally wear mine in all indoor places, obviously not my home. Like the original poster, I’d hate to end up getting sick just because I wanted a vacation. In any case, my daughter and I have no problem making up in FL if we feel uncomfortable. We’ve been to the parks a few times, so maybe we’ll dip out early each day if it feels too much
This + Delta is terrifying … and I don’t mean only with respect to whether or not to go on a WDW vacation.
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Life isn’t safe and is inherently risky. Your children have a much, much greater chance of drowning in the hotel swimming pool, choking on a grape or hot dog, or being killed or injured in a car accident on the way to the grocery store than they do of dying from Covid, or even of suffering long-term Covid.
If you are ok with the heat factor then I say go. Mitigate what you feel are risk factors (eat outside, wear your mask inside, etc.) and enjoy your last trip as a family of four. If the heat is a serious factor then plan another vacation somewhere further north: Dollywood, the NC beach, etc., and save your Disney money for a time when it’s not so hot and Covid is more in the past than it is now. You are not guaranteed tomorrow, and you weren’t guaranteed it before Covid was around.
We went in October and it was a great distraction from the insanity of 2020. It really helped revive our family, gave us great time together, gave us something to look forward to in the months leading up to it and something to look back on with fondness in the months afterward. It was 100% a win in our books. I’d go now in a heartbeat if we had the money to go.
(Congrats, by the way. My husband is getting a shirt for his birthday that says “Dad of girls. #Outnumbered.” We have three girls as well. 
)
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We were there they same time as @LTinNC82 and her description is accurate. Our family wore our masks the whole time even though we are fully vaccinated. The local mayor has recommended residents mask up, indoors and crowded areas (WDW), regardless of vaccination status due to the rising case numbers.
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I appreciate this forum. It has been respectful and informative. Kudos to all of you!
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True, there is a much, much greater chance of dying from another cause…
Total child/adolescent deaths in the US from all causes per year: 20k
Total child/adolescent deaths in the US to date from Covid: 335
…but I think the jury is still out on how long Covid compares to those other risks? It’s a little hard to find solid direct comparison numbers, but consider…
About 200k kids ages 0-14 are injured in traffic accidents each year
Total child/adolescent Covid cases in the US to date: 4M
The studies on long Covid prevalence in kids generally range anywhere from 5%-20% (and are largely based on the earlier variants, so it’s unknown if that will be consistent with Delta)
5% would be 200k cases of long Covid
20% would be 1M cases of long Covid
(British NHS is coming up with 7-8%)
So I’m not sure it’s clear that those other risks mentioned have a “much, much greater chance” of happening than long Covid?
And that’s assuming an “average” historical risk of contracting Covid compared to an “average” risk of being in a traffic accident. Delta is believed to be twice as transmissible as the original variant. Daily new cases in Orange County Florida are now 38/100k and trending up.
These numbers are really sobering to me…
5 day vacation x 38 cases per day /100k people = 0.2%, or a 1 in 526 chance of catching Covid for anyone spending 5 days in Orange County
At one point, I felt like Disney’s safety precautions made it much safer than the surrounding county. Pretty sure that’s no longer true?
How many people are vacationing at Disney? With a 1 in 526 chance of catching Covid? (And since the cases are more prevalent among the unvaccinated, kids are at higher risk, offset by those vaccinated being at a lower risk.)
Again, the risks that your kid will wind up with long Covid if infected are still only ~7% or whatever, but looking at the math, that’s still a number of Disney kids (1 in 8k of those visiting?) winding up with long Covid.
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