I rented through an agency, so I can’t do that, but I did get a credit for half. So fingers crossed it works out for next time!
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Working on some alternate plans now. We like to VRBO but lots of places are booked up, revenge travel and all. But you know us Liners, we like a challenge!
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I’m sorry you had to cancel.
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I’m so sorry! I have to say I would have cried as much as the kids. Wishing you a wonderful trip next year with no angst at all.
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I’m so incredibly sorry. That’s such a bummer. Sending my best to you guys.
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Sorry for being AWOL. We’re in the midst of a move so things are a little bonkers. But I wanted to give a quick update since I didn’t think it would be fair for everyone to share and me not to. Unfortunately I’m on a bit of a time crunch, so I can’t respond to everyone, but know that I’ve been following along and sincerely appreciate everyone’s feedback.
Yesterday was decision day, and we ended up keeping the trip. I’m putting a big asterisk next to that, though, and a “for now”. Two things:
1.) I’ve been looking at the data, particularly out of the UK and India, and Delta there seemed to be a dramatic spike followed by a nearly symmetrical drop (or that’s what it looks like is happening in the UK, anyway). I’ve seen theories speculating that because Delta is so aggressively contagious, it sweeps through all its available hosts quickly. So I’m gambling a bit here that we might see the same in a place like FL, and think there’s a chance the current hotspots (and hopefully the US as a whole) could look very different a month from now.
2.) Most schools will be back in session by our trip, and those that won’t will predominantly be from well-vaccinated areas. Less kids means less of an unvaccinated population, so that’s in our favor.
Having said all that, there’s a good if not great chance I am completely wrong — maybe Florida hasn’t even begun to peak, for example. And if that turns out to be true, then we’ll eat the $50 package change fee to reschedule this and kick the trip down the road, and do so until we finally say, “Yeah, looks good” or we experience the heat death of the universe. Whichever comes first. Tough to say right now.
Was that the right call? I have no idea. I think Delta’s sudden onset made me wish for more time to see how things evolve, and now we’ve quite literally bought more of it. So we’ll see what happens.
A million thank-you’s to everyone for sharing their thoughts and for sending good vibes our way. To everyone in the same boat, know you’ve got a sympathetic virtual shoulder over here thinking good things for you and yours. One day, hopefully very soon, we’re all going to look back on this and… Well, I’m actually going to try and forget all of this either through self-inflicted blunt force trauma or booze (I’m kidding. I think). Hope you all stay safe and healthy.
(Also, @nieshafuentes, not sure if your comment was directed at me or not re: knack for writing, but thank you! Shameless self-promotion, I had a novel published several years ago. And yes, the first thing I did with my advance was book a trip to WDW).
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Seemes like a good plan, if you can wait and still cancel down the road with minimal costs, why not wait and see.
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We’re just back from a 4-day visit to Miami, and honestly, was a bit shocked at all the things we saw - I am not surprised the Delta numbers are so high in Florida. There was an 80,000 person music festival happening while we were there, no vaccine or testing requirements for attendees, no masks required. We didn’t go to the festival, but we did see a lot of the folks who did around in the airports, in restaurants, and in our hotel lobby.
I realize Miami and Orlando are not the same thing, but if I was in a situation where I had any unvaccinated folks in my travel party, it probably would have convinced me to cancel our upcoming September trip. (We’re both fully vaccinated healthy folks in our 30s with no kids or other at-risk folks in our household, so our risk tolerance is probably a bit higher than most.) :-/
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My head’s kind of spinning. So now the indoor mask rule is back? I’m gonna be making this decision at the very last minute, aren’t I?
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When’s your trip? It will be in place for more than a minute.
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I’m glad they are re instituting masks, but realize now a lot of you are having to rethink decisions again. For possibly the umpteenth time. And no assurance how long it will last. I’m truly sorry it’s all being so challenging. And I’m also sorry for those that having to wear masks is a trip killer. This is all just so hard.
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@vcka Mid-October. A lifetime in Covid terms. Indoor masks for everyone would be a big factor in us going, though - I’m perfectly fine with no masks outdoors, and we’re happy to eat outdoors, etc. I’d like to see the overall numbers settle down, too. But I started out in June thinking, yeah, we can go; then by last week I was: no, probably not, and was getting to accepting that. Now I’m . . . . maybe? I’m just glad we haven’t told the kids. It’s stressful enough for me.
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3 months seems like an eternity in covid years. We’ll have to watch how Orlando reacts and behaves b/c it’s a mayor butting heads w/ the governor again. But Disney did the right thing! Yay, Disney!
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I feel like mid October is far enough away for Delta to peak and decline.
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I’m starting to feel like our Thanksgiving trip is tipping towards a no-go.
Delta seriously concerns me, along with stalled out vaccination rates. My 9 year old can’t get vaccinated, and the idea of exposing him to Thanksgiving crowds makes me feel supremely uneasy.
The only way I can see this working for us now is for somehow delta declining, enough people canceling their trips due to increasing mask policies, or the longest shot; Pfizer turns in their data on vaccinated children 5-11 in September and the shot gets approved for kids before we head down (extremely unlikely and I’d be shocked if it gets approved before 2022). Of course that also depends on his mom signing off on actually giving him the vaccine.
I’m seriously kicking myself for telling him about the trip so far out, I really had more faith that people would take the appropriate measures to kick Covid’s butt so we could get back to normal.
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AAP is now pushing for it to be done sooner, so I think odds of it happening in 2021 are improving. Letter from AAP to FDA:
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I really hope that’s the case, right now I think it’ll be January-February at the earliest.
For those that don’t keep up with the Covid thread, crossposting this article that might be helpful. They specifically address travel concerns with unvaccinated kids at the bottom.
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We leave Saturday. I am nervous. The only things giving me peace of mind are we are all vaccinated, we are still working from home until mid sept, the kids have 1 1/2 weeks before school for the one that already had covid and 2 1/2 weeks for the other. We can stay put when we get home if need be. AND the only places we ar going requires masks. If it wasn’t for these things, we would have already cancelled.
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Good luck, be safe. My guess is you will be just fine and totally enjoy yourself.
FWIW, our pastor returned from a family vacation at WDW a week and a half ago. At this weekend’s services, some started asking about his condition … after seeing mild sniffles and an occasional cough during church Sunday. He is not vaccinated, having minimized the threat whenever the topic came up. Yesterday the news went like wildfire through the congregation that he tested positive for Covid. Obviously church services for the next few weeks are cancelled, and my wife and I are self quarantining having attended a church meeting Monday night. Where & how he actually got infected is anyone’s guess. I offered to cover his cost for separate lodging to help protect his family during his ordeal, but he politely turned me down. Having spent a fortune at WDW the last few years on myself, it was the least I could do for someone else during their hour of need. I only post this depressing note as a caution that it “could” happen. We can rationalize or ignore the virus all we want, but that little varmint doesn’t ignore any of us.
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