If Covid-19 hits the theme parks...

[LaurenT]

Will they close the parks? Will you still go if they don’t?
I have a trip planned for the end of April ... I have a feeling we’ll see the virus across most of the country by then ...

 

[MikeOhio]

Yes.

 

[Ben E N]

The flu, as of current statistics, is about twice as deadly. HK Disney and Shanghai Disney were closed in order to control the spread of the disease. If it makes it to the US, the cat's out of the bag anyway. Short of a major pandemic, the parks will remain open, and the China ones will most likely reopen.

 

[LaurenT]

The flu, as of current statistics, is about twice as deadly. HK Disney and Shanghai Disney were closed in order to control the spread of the disease. If it makes it to the US, the cat's out of the bag anyway. Short of a major pandemic, the parks will remain open, and the China ones will most likely reopen.

I do think it’s going to be a major pandemic

 

[bryanb]

I'm not too scared... we'll see if it gets worse and hopefully there will be a vaccine for it before it has a chance to spiral out of control. Who knows? In the meantime, it's a good reminder to take precautions such as washing your hands frequently and not touching your face when you're out in public. Those are good practices anyway for common colds and flus.

 

[Thecouch]

i think figures that are out are being reported lower then they are . iran and china are a lot worse then they are saying . just look at italy and the cruise ships . its spreading very quickly in those areas

 

[Ben E N]

I do think it’s going to be a major pandemic

You would really have to go back to before the time of Theme Parks to see how the country would react then. They aren't closing for the flu, so I really doubt they would close for this, unless the precedent gets set amongst the country.

 

[Thecouch]

one thing that could shut down the parks if there was a outbreak with staff members

 

[kbelle8995]

It really depends. . It tough to keep clear of crowds of Disney. Which is probably why it closed in Asia. But yes if there was an outbreak with cast members. or in Florida.

Prepare for the Worst and hope for the best.

 

[bryanb]

Looks like the CDC is now advising US that there's a high likelihood that Covid-19 could spread here in the US, knowing that Italy has reported 320 cases and Iran has reported 139 cases. Still no need to panic, in my opinion. Of course, this is hurting Disney as Shanghai and Hong Kong parks are still closed indefinitely.

There are also still concerns about a global travel slowdown, and what that might do to the economy. With hope that the virus is contained quickly, I wonder what fear itself might to do attendance, and how Disney might react to that.

 

[rebbyparker]

Disney is also monitoring workers who recently traveled to Italy. So they're aware and with other parks closed for now, I'm sure they're on top of what they need to do.

 

[LaurenT]

I would go regardless - as long as I’m allowed to. It’s a first world problem, I know ... but having this trip to look forward to has kept me sane through everything that’s been going on in my life. Fingers crossed!

 

[kbelle8995]

I would go regardless - as long as I’m allowed to. It’s a first world problem, I know ... but having this trip to look forward to has kept me sane through everything that’s been going on in my life. Fingers crossed!

Mine is next week. I'm afraid of coronavirus. But I need a vacation. And I will go and enjoy it.

 

[sky13]

About a month ago, I had somewhat vague plans to go to WDW for Flower and Garden, and had gotten as far as checking out flight prices and almost booking a Disney hotel (since they are refundable up until 5 days before anyway). Was especially tempting since I still have a valid AP for WDW.

But I think there's just a bit too much uncertainty with travel for me right now (especially since I would have a long way to travel to get to WDW), so I've put all my holiday plans on hold for the moment. Will plan again when the situation stabilises a bit, though not sure when this will be...

The flu, as of current statistics, is about twice as deadly. HK Disney and Shanghai Disney were closed in order to control the spread of the disease. If it makes it to the US, the cat's out of the bag anyway. Short of a major pandemic, the parks will remain open, and the China ones will most likely reopen.

Could I just ask where you are getting the current statistics that flu is about twice as deadly please?

Everything I've read so far puts the flu case fatality rate at around 0.1-0.2% (which fits with the CDC's figures here https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/index.html - 2018-2019 flu season had about 34,000 deaths from 35 million symptomatic illnesses), whereas I'm seeing estimates of around 2% case fatality rate for COVID-19 (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/). Though admittedly the COVID-19 case fatality rate could be much higher or much lower, we simply won't know until there is more data.

Just want to check that I'm not missing something or way off with my figures. As everything I'm reading is suggesting that COVID-19 has a higher mortality/case fatality rate than influenza.

The number of COVID-19 patients who require intensive care is worrying as well, the concern is that they might overwhelm the health care system which appears to be what happened in Wuhan contributing to worse outcomes there.

 

[Ben E N]

Could I just ask where you are getting the current statistics that flu is about twice as deadly please?

I'm sorry I don't have the exact source. They weren't made up numbers, though, and the death tolls were similar to what the CDC is reporting. My best guess is the flu numbers I saw were confirmed cases, and the CDC is listed suspected cases. I most likely had the flu earlier this year, but never went to a doctor to get a test confirming it's so it never went into that data pool. Lots of people get rhinovirus and call it a case of the flu. I'm not sure how the CDC accounts for this.

 

[bananaschmitt]

I have to believe that Disney is taking precautions in its parks to prevent the transmission of any virus just as they do on their cruise ships. We have an upcoming trip scheduled in April and at this point I'm continuing to cross my fingers that we go and have a great time.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

We got a 2 day trip now scheduled for the end of April and a 2 day trip for the end of June. Unless it's a pandemic by the time I have to cancel either of those trips, I'm going.

Both are combined with International Plastic Model Society shows and I will be in the area (with 2 hours) of Disney. I doubt those shows would be cancelled and knowing my husband he'd still want to be at the shows anyway.

 

[LaurenT]

About a month ago, I had somewhat vague plans to go to WDW for Flower and Garden, and had gotten as far as checking out flight prices and almost booking a Disney hotel (since they are refundable up until 5 days before anyway). Was especially tempting since I still have a valid AP for WDW.

But I think there's just a bit too much uncertainty with travel for me right now (especially since I would have a long way to travel to get to WDW), so I've put all my holiday plans on hold for the moment. Will plan again when the situation stabilises a bit, though not sure when this will be...



Could I just ask where you are getting the current statistics that flu is about twice as deadly please?

Everything I've read so far puts the flu case fatality rate at around 0.1-0.2% (which fits with the CDC's figures here https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/index.html - 2018-2019 flu season had about 34,000 deaths from 35 million symptomatic illnesses), whereas I'm seeing estimates of around 2% case fatality rate for COVID-19 (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/). Though admittedly the COVID-19 case fatality rate could be much higher or much lower, we simply won't know until there is more data.

Just want to check that I'm not missing something or way off with my figures. As everything I'm reading is suggesting that COVID-19 has a higher mortality/case fatality rate than influenza.

The number of COVID-19 patients who require intensive care is worrying as well, the concern is that they might overwhelm the health care system which appears to be what happened in Wuhan contributing to worse outcomes there.

I don’t think you’re missing anything. I’ve heard a lot of people say that flu kills more people ... which is true (so far). Flu is much more widespread- so it kills more people ... but that has nothing to do with the mortality rate. It seems - at least from confirmed cases - that if you contract Covid19, you are far more likely to die from it than the flu ... unless you’re under 9 years old ... there hasn’t Been a single death in the under 9 population as of yet.

 

[DurangoJim]

I don’t think you’re missing anything. I’ve heard a lot of people say that flu kills more people ... which is true (so far). Flu is much more widespread- so it kills more people ... but that has nothing to do with the mortality rate. It seems - at least from confirmed cases - that if you contract Covid19, you are far more likely to die from it than the flu ... unless you’re under 9 years old ... there hasn’t Been a single death in the under 9 population as of yet.

I think it’s important to put this in context. “Far more likely to die” is 98% likely to live. Coronaviruses have been around forever. This is a new one and much less deadly than SARS, it’s just more widespread. It’s very likely that within 2 years we will all have been exposed to it and we will all live to talk about the bad cold we had back in 2020. By next year there will be a vaccine. The sky seems to be falling but it isn’t.

 

[Pooh2]

We have a trip in a month.
We are going unless the parks close!