Cancel trip because of rising COVID rates?

[Asc341]

Hi everyone--hope you're all staying positive (and testing negative!)

My husband and I have a WDW trip planned for the first week of December, but with COVID rates rising so quickly, we're thinking of canceling. Is anyone else considering the same? I'd love to know where your thoughts are!

I think I'm a little more nervous than when I booked our trip, not only because rates are booming, but because we've been especially battered around the last month (us and the rest of the world!). We actually just recovered from having COVID ourselves (my husband caught it from work--funny that it only happened now, after being an essential worker all year in NYC!) We're really grateful that we both had mild cases and knew about the exposure immediately, so could fully quarantine without inadvertently spreading it to others. I just don't know if going to Disney right now is a "dumb idea," but also my God, we could really use a dose of hope and magic in our lives.

 

[JFox]

Same concerns for our January trip.

 

[Wendysofftoneverland]

Not really about cancelling, but trying to decide the details of a trip. Booked for Ft. Wilderness tent site but wanting to stay 1 night in a hotel and just not sure how safe indoors will be. Going on the trip but trying to keep outdoors as much as possible.

 

[4My3KGirls]

On Saturday we finally postponed our Thanksgiving trip. Held out as long as possible.

 

[kristenabelle]

Same here. I cancelled all my indoor dining plans (didn't have many, but I feel like the risk is too high). I'm still going to head down (live alone, able to quarantine pre- and post-trip) but sticking to outdoor everything.

 

[Flynnismine]

My DD (11) and I are going Christmas week and I'm probably in the minority here but I have no travel/Covid concerns for myself or my DD. We've already taken multiple trips over the past 8 months, which involved flying commercial to large cities, and I've not felt that myself or my family were at any higher risk of contracting Covid during our travels than we would be shopping at the local grocery store or going out to eat at a dine-in restaurant in our city, which we've been doing for months now. We are near Louisville KY and our numbers are spiraling upwards everyday and, because of the skyrocketing positive cases, we just went from 5 back to 4, in our "stages or re-opening" effective at midnight last night. I think it's personal preference on how comfortable you are. If it just doesn't feel like the right time to go for your family then wait and reevaluate the situation after the first of the year. Thankfully Disney isn't going anywhere

 

[_19disnA]

Covid remains just as highly contagious of a disease as it was in March/April. You can have covid with no symptoms and still spread the disease to others. Wishful thinking, being in denial or acting like it can't impact you or your family doesn't make you immune AND you can unknowingly spread the disease to others which puts them at risk. ANYONE can contract covid, regardless of age. Reputable medical experts indicate that the longer you interact with others as well as the number of people you come in close contact with will increase your chance of getting covid. We have ZERO plans to do discretionary things like go on vacation until more of covid is behind us.

 

[yulilin3]

This sort of threads have popped up frequently and i have the same answer each and every time
It's obviously a personal decision, feeling stressed about a trip before it happens will impact negatively your experience once you're here.
Since all the central Florida parks reopened back in early June there has been no outbreaks or super spreader situation, i think something to look for is any high incidents of CM or TM getting sick, it hasn't happened and they deal with guests all day, everyday, in outdoor and indoor situations
If you read the just back thread you can see most people think that the safety guidelines put forth by the theme parks are better than your local establishments
Again, a personal decision but as someone who has been visiting the parks 3 times a week since reopening and also works at a theme park i can tell you that as long as you wear your mask properly, don't touch your face and wash you hands you'll have as safe an experience as possible

 

[eleven24]

My husband and I have a WDW trip planned for the first week of December, but with COVID rates rising so quickly, we're thinking of canceling. Is anyone else considering the same? I'd love to know where your thoughts are!

I just posted on this elsewhere, and it seems we're at a time to make the same decision. Booked an annual father/son trip for July to celebrate his HS graduation. Canceled that one at 30 days out & rescheduled for January 3rd. A few months ago I was feeling confident in the trip still happening. Even felt confident a few weeks ago, especially after seeing the many YouTube videos walking through the parks and seeing how they've implemented COVID restrictions so well.

But this past week? We're 150k+ cases a day and the peak wasn't supposed to be until a month or two from now. It's also concerning to me that Florida has absolutely no restrictions in place, although being in the Disney "bubble" should mitigate some of those risks.

We live just outside of Philly. Have been under some sort of restriction since March. I'm working from home, my son has had college shift to remote, my daughter has had her grade school 100% virtual and my wife, who works in healthcare has incredible restrictions to manage. How do you rationalize an optional trip when your everyday life is operating under restrictions? How can I expect the rest of my family to have to further rearrange so we can quarantine when we get home until the time when we can get tested & results back?

Looking at it from purely a logical standpoint, there's no way we should be going. Yet there's a reason I have yet to click on that cancel button. The emotional pull is hard to get past. The hope that things get better is hard not to believe in.

Realty though?

I'm probably giving it another week or two and then rescheduling again.

 

[eleven24]

This sort of threads have popped up frequently and i have the same answer each and every time
It's obviously a personal decision, feeling stressed about a trip before it happens will impact negatively your experience once you're here.
Since all the central Florida parks reopened back in early June there has been no outbreaks or super spreader situation, i think something to look for is any high incidents of CM or TM getting sick, it hasn't happened and they deal with guests all day, everyday, in outdoor and indoor situations
If you read the just back thread you can see most people think that the safety guidelines put forth by the theme parks are better than your local establishments
Again, a personal decision but as someone who has been visiting the parks 3 times a week since reopening and also works at a theme park i can tell you that as long as you wear your mask properly, don't touch your face and wash you hands you'll have as safe an experience as possible

Appreciate the feedback, it certainly helps. My fear isn't with being in the parks though as the many (obsessively too many!) YouTube live streams of what the parks are like right now really helps one to see the precautions put into place. My concern is the airport for me in Philly, the flight, the airport in Orlando, etc.

If I could be in Florida right now, I'd be at the park today.

EDIT: haha... just saw you have a livestream link in your sig. Thanks for killing more productive work time for me!

 

[yulilin3]

Appreciate the feedback, it certainly helps. My fear isn't with being in the parks though as the many (obsessively too many!) YouTube live streams of what the parks are like right now really helps one to see the precautions put into place. My concern is the airport for me in Philly, the flight, the airport in Orlando, etc.

If I could be in Florida right now, I'd be at the park today.

EDIT: haha... just saw you have a livestream link in your sig. Thanks for killing more productive work time for me!

Sorry not sorry
Live from DS today on the Facebook group
I understand everyone's position when coming from far away, obviously take all your precautions but if you decide to come just have realistic expectations and a realistic plan and you'll have a good time

 

[Tormania]

I recommend that everyone consider your own safety and stay home, especially between 11/25 and 12/5, I want smaller crowds and shorter lines! LOL!!

In all fairness you must do what you feel is most comfortable for you, no one can make that decision for you.

 

[Asc341]

In all fairness you must do what you feel is most comfortable for you, no one can make that decision for you.

Very fair! Though I think more than looking for the answer from someone else, it's really helpful/comforting to hear how other people are approaching similar problems. It's nice to be able to float these questions to other Disney fans!

 

[Aela]

I was really looking forward to it, but knowing they upped capacity to 35% really bugs me. I am watching some videos of current crowds, they don’t look too bad.. but I also don’t know if those are current capacity, or a slower day during the week

 

[arob414]

Actually just decided, last Tuesday, to go. My sister and I leave on the 28th for a long planned sisters' trip. Our heads are spinning because neither of us have ever done this so last minute. However, between the 2 of us, we have made reservations 4 times, this year, so we have had plenty of practice.

Since then, I have had moments when I worried. I am 65, a single mom with my adult children still at home. One in college. My mom is 84. So, I wear a mask all the time when I am out. I work OB, we test all moms, but not their significant other. Positive moms go into isolation with their babies. We dress out, completely, to give their care. Negative moms go into regular rooms, we wear masks and eye shields. Their significant other may or may not remember to wear their mask. I have talked to other nurses, doctors, RTs, etc. Several have been or are going in the next month. We all feel safer at Disney than we do at work. And, because our hospital has done a great job in preparing for COVID, we feel a lot safer there than out in the public. My only concern is the airport, the rest of the time we will be in the Disney bubble. So, we will wear our masks, wash our hands and social distance.

 

[Tormania]

Very fair! Though I think more than looking for the answer from someone else, it's really helpful/comforting to hear how other people are approaching similar problems. It's nice to be able to float these questions to other Disney fans!

True, but it also depends on where you are travelling from and what the "rules" are where you live. I know some states want to quarantine folks when they return if they travel out of state. Personally I think that is ludicrous cause there are potentially places within every state that could be considered a hot spot yet it would be fine to travel there and go home, but it still impacts families not just for their trip but when they return home. So that is an added wrinkle some families face that others don't.

I was really looking forward to it, but knowing they upped capacity to 35% really bugs me. I am watching some videos of current crowds, they don’t look too bad.. but I also don’t know if those are current capacity, or a slower day during the week

I've seen some videos that do show some healthy crowds, but I've also seen some that show pretty quiet parks too, but as you say, what day/time those videos are from can say a lot for crowd levels. I plan to treat this trip like every other WDW trip, crowds will ALWAYS been lowest at rode drop and park close so I plan to take advantage of those times every day, especially for headliner attractions. During those peak times in the middle of the day, dial back the expectations, grab a bite to eat, enjoy a snack, and realize that ride waits will be higher then, so maybe during those times pick the "less popular" rides to manage your wait times. It's all about setting realistic expectations and then having the flexibility to adapt on the fly. But if one wants to ride MMRR at 1pm get settled in for a LONG wait, those types of things shouldn't be a surprise if you've done your homework. It's why for our trips we always go long enough to hit every park at least twice (except we always short-change EPCOT to just one day), that way over the course of two full days in a park we should be able to do everything at least once, and then do others multiple times depending on crowds, favorites, etc....

 

[Befferk]

We're going the week after Christmas and won't cancel unless (a) one of us are sick (b) Disney closes or (c) travel restrictions are put in place. You have to decide your comfort level. If you go, are you going to be concerned every time someone gets too close to you, or when you see someone wearing their mask improperly? Is being concerned about those things going to take away from your enjoyment? Are seeing those things going to make you feel like lashing out at others? Are you going to be thinking more about possible exposure than taking in everything around you? If any of those, then it's probably best to wait.

 

[White_Rabbit18]

If the OP just got over Covid then I would go because imagine it would be extremely difficult to get it again in the next few weeks.

If someone didn’t test positive then there is no way in hell I would go to the parks now. Safer does not mean safe and you would feel bad if you got yourself really sick or a loved on for a Disney trip.

An effective treatment will probably be rolled out in the upcoming months. Don’t go now when the cases are spiking, wait for when things get better...
Be in spring, summer or autumn 2021

 

[Avery&Todd]

DH and I just last night confirmed that we're keeping our trip next month! He was getting a little squirrely because of the #s rising but we went to WDW last month and he was super impressed with Disney and their cleaning, spacing, etc so he knew that part would be fine. BUT this trip we have direct flights so that eased his concerns and I told him I wont eat/drink on the flight - I mean, I can hold out for an hour and a half, right?

 

[MrsBooch]

No one can tell you what you should do -
Just like no one should tell other people to stay home.


I can speak to the Philly airport question though - my husband has had to fly several times for work between July and October out of Philly. He's got TSA precheck, he said he barley had to touch anything, there were sanitization stations almost everywhere and mask compliance and enforcement was high. He flew American Airlines and said that they were EXTREMELY strict about the procedures and masking. They announced that they will remove you and put you on a Do Not Fly list for non compliance. The whole plane smelled like antibacterial spray - he still wiped everything down - but he was comfortable flying.
As far as airplanes - the air is filtered more on an airplane than in most buildings.