Cancel trip because of rising COVID rates?

[McKelly]

We canceled our Xmas trip. I had Covid and because of that my entire family ended up quarantining for 24 days. While 10 days were covered the other days had to be covered by vacation. My DH and one of my adult kids do not have sick days at work, only vacation days that they can use as sick days. While we could have still gone and had enough time off, our fear is that one of us would catch it again (Public Health says we are only "safe" for 90 days), we will have to be off another 24 days!

Plus to be honest, I am afraid of the travel-shaming. I have many, many fearful co-workers. I would feel TERRIBLE if I brought something back. I rescheduled for next Christmas.

 

[hrhdhd]

I would love to know if the people saying “go!” are telling their families, neighbors, friends, work, etc. they’re going to WDW. And what feedback they’ve received.

I don't tell all of those people my travel plans in "normal" times because, frankly, their opinions don't matter to me. If someone wants to pay for my trips, he or she can have an opinion.

I haven't been to Disney parks this year, but I have been to Disney Springs several times, and I'd go back tomorrow. I eat inside, walk around, and shop. Not changing my plans due to "feedback."

 

[MEC004]

Right but WDW isn’t just people from Florida, it’s people heading there from hotspots like (what sounds like) your location.

I’ve encountered people jealous we’re going to WDW and people who think we’re nuts so

This is true, but is it any less safe than school right now? I mean that is how I think of it. My DS is with 21 other 8 year olds in close quarters for 8 hours a day. We are going to be as safe as possible and have fun.

 

[McKelly]

This is true, but is it any less safe than school right now? I mean that is how I think of it. My DS is with 21 other 8 year olds in close quarters for 8 hours a day. We are going to be as safe as possible and have fun.

Well, one could say school is safer because the kids are together with only 21 of the same people each day, instead of thousands of different people. And schools can contact trace, if need be. Impossible in a theme park.

 

[MrsBooch]

I would love to know if the people saying “go!” are telling their families, neighbors, friends, work, etc. they’re going to WDW. And what feedback they’ve received. Feeling safe doesn’t mean it’s safe. We encounter thousands of people a day at WDW. We’re all using the same resources. With 1 in 378 testing positive, this means people with the virus will absolutely be at WDW. Part of the reason we have uncontrolled spread is because of lack of tracing; people aren’t being honest about where they’ve been/who they’ve been around.

We have nonrefundable Christmas plans and feel guilt and doubt over going. But we’re also young and healthy and plan to quarantine upon return and get tested just like we did on a previous trip. If we didn’t have the ability to do that we wouldn’t be going. But if be lying if I said I know for certain it’s completely safe.

I'm not publicizing our trip. I dont want to be made to feel that I owe an explanation and I don't want to be responsible for providing everyone my rundown on reasoning. Our family knows and are extremely happy for us. A few close friends know and same reaction - they are very happy for us and jealous, and I had to tell the other family who has been in our "quarantine pod" during this whole process because we would be isolating on return and we can't hang out with them until we are in the clear. The mom gave me severe side eye and instantly judged us for it. And I started to feel my validations come up out of my mouth like a belch "but they've been doing a great job and they haven't had issues and it's safer than Target"....and then I realized that I don't outsource my conscience and moved on from that topic.

We will probably now not hang out with them again for a few months. Quarantine or not - she has said that she doesn't feel comfortable with it so that's fine. Everyone has an opinion and nothing I have to say changes anyone's mind if it's already made up that I'm insane and risking my family's health. I will NEVER ever say that anyone is "living in fear" - i abhor that phrase and I think it's dangerous and counterproductive to taking safe measures.
But I've found unfortunately that it doesn't work the other way around. As much as I would never say my mom friend was "living in fear" for doing what she's doing and reacting the way she is reacting to our trip - and even though she knows exactly how WE have been living for the past 8 months - she instantly looked down on us for our choice and instantly thought it was a bad idea and told me as much.

I'm not putting this on social media - not because I'm afraid of the judgement but because it is EXHAUSTING.

 

[sullivan.kscott]

I would love to know if the people saying “go!” are telling their families, neighbors, friends, work, etc. they’re going to WDW. And what feedback they’ve received. Feeling safe doesn’t mean it’s safe. We encounter thousands of people a day at WDW. We’re all using the same resources. With 1 in 378 testing positive, this means people with the virus will absolutely be at WDW. Part of the reason we have uncontrolled spread is because of lack of tracing; people aren’t being honest about where they’ve been/who they’ve been around.

We have nonrefundable Christmas plans and feel guilt and doubt over going. But we’re also young and healthy and plan to quarantine upon return and get tested just like we did on a previous trip. If we didn’t have the ability to do that we wouldn’t be going. But if be lying if I said I know for certain it’s completely safe.

Fair question. On my end, yes. My parents and FIL know of our previous trip and upcoming plans. As do our employers. Again, because of the nature of my work and DW who works at home, our risk in WDW is the same if not better than my county currently.
I fully understand the other side of the argument, and it’s valid. We just aren’t willing to pause our vacation plans when our county isn’t pausing much else, for better or worse.

 

[MEC004]

Well, one could say school is safer because the kids are together with only 21 of the same people each day, instead of thousands of different people. And schools can contact trace, if need be. Impossible in a theme park.

Well our district doesn’t really follow the protocol of a mandatory 14 day quarantine. A student exposed can go get a rapid test and are able to return the same day with a negative result. I don’t think I’ll be in an inclosed place with thousands of people for 8 hours in less than 2 ft between myself and the next person. If I am then WDW is not at a lower capacity and we have other problems to contend with. If everyone wears their masks and we use proper hygiene we will be fine.

Outdoors is safer and the time spent indoors with masks is much shorter. If we go with your devils advocate way of thinking then I shouldn’t leave my house at all.

 

[VandVsmama]

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.

If I knew that we'd just had COVID, I absolutely would go and I wouldn't feel guilty over it. I wouldn't think twice about it. Go and have a wonderful time.

 

[WillAustin]

We were at WDW for a week in July. It was great. We are going back next week for Thanksgiving. I expect it will also be great.

 

[Tross86]

If your alternative to not going is sitting inside and literally not going anywhere at all, then yes you should consider cancelling. But in my experience and opinion, Disney is safer than going to your local grocery store, the hardware store, the beach, or almost any restaurant. At Disney they are properly capping the capacity and strictly enforcing masks. It’s a controlled environment. When I go to my local grocery or hardware store 1/4 of the people are not properly wearing their masks. Very frustrating. If you are still nervous, only eat outdoors. There are many outdoor restaurants at Disney Springs and offsite. Exercising caution may be better than not going at all.

 

[nkereina]

I would love to know if the people saying “go!” are telling their families, neighbors, friends, work, etc. they’re going to WDW. And what feedback they’ve received. Feeling safe doesn’t mean it’s safe. We encounter thousands of people a day at WDW. We’re all using the same resources. With 1 in 378 testing positive, this means people with the virus will absolutely be at WDW. Part of the reason we have uncontrolled spread is because of lack of tracing; people aren’t being honest about where they’ve been/who they’ve been around.

We have nonrefundable Christmas plans and feel guilt and doubt over going. But we’re also young and healthy and plan to quarantine upon return and get tested just like we did on a previous trip. If we didn’t have the ability to do that we wouldn’t be going. But if be lying if I said I know for certain it’s completely safe.

We are from NY and were at WDW two weeks ago for a week long trip. DH and I are also young and healthy, and were required to quarantine upon returning home by state mandate. DH and I have a higher risk tolerance than others when it comes to Covid. DH is an essential employee who has been working since day one of the virus. We go out to eat. We go shopping. We abide by all state mandates and recommendations. We wear our masks. We social distance. We wash our hands a ton. We respect the feelings of our friends and family who are taking a more conservative approach, and expect the same respect in return. Everyone has to do what they need to feel comfortable but also live their lives in the current environment. We have friends who disagreed with us traveling, but wished us well and knew we were responsible enough to take the right precautions.

As far as our experience at WDW, we were in close proximity to strangers less often than we would be if we went grocery shopping at Walmart for an hour. Buses, rides, queues, dining - all are either appropriately spaced or have physical barriers. Naturally, not every surface will be cleaned after every person touches it, so its incumbent upon visitors to be cognizant about what you're touching and using hand sanitizer/washing hands diligently. Our resort room (CBR) wreaked of cleaning products (in a good way) when we entered. Our flights (Southwest) were only a 1/4 full, and we used Lysol wipes to clean everything around us on the plane as soon as we sat down. DH and I have been home for a little over two weeks now, so our quarantine period is over. No Covid fortunately, and we didn't even get a cold - something it seems like we always get when we return home. We're considering returning in January because the trip was overall enjoyable for us.

 

[princesslover]

I would love to know if the people saying “go!” are telling their families, neighbors, friends, work, etc. they’re going to WDW. And what feedback they’ve received. Feeling safe doesn’t mean it’s safe. We encounter thousands of people a day at WDW. We’re all using the same resources. With 1 in 378 testing positive, this means people with the virus will absolutely be at WDW. Part of the reason we have uncontrolled spread is because of lack of tracing; people aren’t being honest about where they’ve been/who they’ve been around.

We have nonrefundable Christmas plans and feel guilt and doubt over going. But we’re also young and healthy and plan to quarantine upon return and get tested just like we did on a previous trip. If we didn’t have the ability to do that we wouldn’t be going. But if be lying if I said I know for certain it’s completely safe.

DH and I have told our employer and I have told one close co-worker. I have told my Mom and my brother. All have been supportive, and I have explained my thought process to all (although none really asked for any justification.)

In terms of everyone else, I don't plan to post on social media or anything just because most people will not understand and it's exhausting to try to justify. My daughter is a senior in high school and this was planned 2 years ago as her senior celebration. This has been a pretty craptastic year for her (as well as all of her friends and high school seniors everywhere, no doubt), she hasn't been able to visit colleges, proms cancelled, taking a heavy courseload remotely, etc. I refuse to take this away as well unless I have no other choice, or I see the risk as far too great. Next year, she will be in college and everything will be different. We really need this vacation as a family and I believe I have weighed all the risks, reviewed Disney protocols, read trip reports, and looking at crowd levels and closures, but mostly I have weighed the risks to our community when we return and they are low. I don't feel a need to try to get people to understand our decision process....it is complicated but yet I feel thorough. I don't expect or need anyone else to understand. My challenge is that both of my kids plan to share on instagram, and I am not stopping them from doing so. I am friends with the parents of many of their friends, so it won't take long for people to know. I am going to have to accept that reality. Whatever.

Not to get on a tangent, but I feel this is related: Someone mentioned the comparison to schools. It is interesting because just yesterday, our CDC director stated that while our schools have had documented cases, IN GENERAL, transmission is NOT happening in schools. Meaning, students get COVID from community transmission and that is how it enters the school but it is not SPREAD in the school (in general). This is good news. This means that all the things schools are doing, just like all the things that Disney is doing, is working. Nothing is 100% foolproof, but these things are working to reduce the spread, and no one is doing it better than schools and Disney, IMO. If we as a nation had been doing these things all along, just think where we might be right now.

 

[hsmamato2]

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.

Same. We had a trip planned for early December...cancelled a month or two ago. This started bad, and is just getting worse over time. I firmly 100% believe that unnecessary travel is creating a much larger problem. Back in spring, we had "hotspots" of Covid where things were awful (I live in one) Now...the entire country is basically in the red zone....and I choose to wait until the smoke clears a bit- Not only for my own health, but for the safety of others. Hoping for something better by spring/summer to travel.

 

[4Spen]

My family is still planning to take our Christmas trip. I work from home so I'm not in contact with people regularly. My college-aged son has already had Covid but even so won't be returning to campus for three weeks after we get home. My husband and daughter will also have time to quarantine before returning to school and work. We have told some family but that's it. We already decided we aren't posting on social media. This isn't exactly a time to post about vacations but we don't post much anyway.

Ultimately, we're going because this has been a bad year with very little to look forward to. I feel like Disney is as safe (or more so) than anywhere else we've gone. We plan to drive, wear masks, limit contact, etc. etc.

 

[hsmamato2]

Nothing is completely safe. Going to Costco and the grocery store to shop for Thanksgiving groceries runs the same risk. People have to decide for themselves what feels best.

Agreed. There are 2 factors we consider.
Factor 1- is this necessary? We need groceries. So there is that.DH must work,DS must continue his education. now HOW we choose to do those things is next.......
Factor 2- once we decide if an activity is necessary, next question- high risk or low risk?
How to allow those activities to continue in a low risk way? If it's high risk,and unnecessary,then in our household we just don't do it right now.
This has nothing to do with our 'feeling' on a matter, just a decision on those 2 factors.
I might add a 3rd factor in our decison making..... health of others. All others- that is an overriding thought here too.

 

[hsmamato2]

If your alternative to not going is sitting inside and literally not going anywhere at all, then yes you should consider cancelling. But in my experience and opinion, Disney is safer than going to your local grocery store, the hardware store, the beach, or almost any restaurant. Exercising caution may be better than not going at all.

The beach? I've been to my local state beach frequently this summer.... outdoors, no contact with anyone I didn't come there with, stayed separate from other groups.... vs. congregating in a theme park with quite literally *thousands* of other people from all 50 states with varying methods of transport to get there and no way of knowing where *anyone* else has been for the past 3 weeks before arrival.....standing in lines together,going on rides together,riding buses together,shopping in stores all together,wandering hotel lobbies and elevators together,touching the same rails/bathrooms/backs of restaurant chairs as those same daily thousands of people...taking off masks indoors and eating meals together with large unknown groups...... not the same AT ALL. There is no comparison. At the very worst,if I go to grocery store (taking full precautions) I know that almost 100% of those people shopping there are also local. That alone changes everything for me. Again, I know this is a discussion board where we all have our own viewpoints- and none of us are likely to change our own-

 

[princesslover]

The beach? I've been to my local state beach frequently this summer.... outdoors, no contact with anyone I didn't come there with, stayed separate from other groups.... vs. congregating in a theme park with quite literally *thousands* of other people from all 50 states with varying methods of transport to get there and no way of knowing where *anyone* else has been for the past 3 weeks before arrival.....standing in lines together,going on rides together,riding buses together,shopping in stores all together,wandering hotel lobbies and elevators together,touching the same rails/bathrooms/backs of restaurant chairs as those same daily thousands of people...taking off masks indoors and eating meals together with large unknown groups...... not the same AT ALL. There is no comparison. At the very worst,if I go to grocery store (taking full precautions) I know that almost 100% of those people shopping there are also local. That alone changes everything for me. Again, I know this is a discussion board where we all have our own viewpoints- and none of us are likely to change our own-

I think this is situation specific. I live in an area that gets a ton of tourists for our beaches. This summer, we avoided the beach because people were packed in and VERY close with each other, and sitting there for hours on end with ZERO masks. Versus being in a line at Disney for 30 minutes, spaced out at least somewhat, wearing a mask. I think it's hard to compare situations unless you look at context.

 

[yulilin3]

please share your opinion on what you, personally would do or not do and don't argument with other poster's opinions. It's a slippery slope that leads to sarcasm, argumentative statements and going off topic from the original posters question

 

[MrsBooch]

one might suggest that quantifiably, as evidenced by earnings reports and flight patterns, cancelations and combinations, travel has SIGNIFICANTLY declined all over this country as well as world wide. However, cases have increased, which suggests that the case increase and problem with spread, is not from people taking discretionary vacations and isolating upon return.
If we look at what is actually happening, we see a lack of mitigating safety measures consistently being adopted county to county/state to state as well as large/medium gatherings which have continuously happened between August and now, particularly in areas with low mask compliance or mask resistance - weddings, baby showers, halloween parties, people insisting that the phrase "life goes on" means inviting their grandparents and extended family members to a gender reveal party.
Not from people going to a grocery store. Not from people getting on an airplane and traveling responsibly.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

We went in mid October.. if I could do it again I would have skipped the parks and just chilled on the beach or at the resort. We love Disney so much I really wanted to go. So many people at MK...