The Ultimate Stomach Bug @ Disney Thread

[tinkrbells]

to be getting a flu shot, taking a daily vitamin, and washing your hands frequently. The stomach virus and sinus/head & chest congestion thing are both going around. We are in KY and my DD (2) and I have both had it. I work from home and she stays with me, so I am guessing my DH brought it home...he didn't even get it!

We check-in BWV on the 28th, I plan on getting our room key, going in and wiping down all surfaces and spraying lysol. Then DH will bring the luggage in. My DD got her flu shot today and we (DH & I) are getting ours tomorrow. We have hand sanitizer and will make sure to have a tasty glass of Florida OJ everyday.

This is just what happens when you get thousands of people in a location where they are touching the same things. Kids (and some adults) wiping or rubbing their nose, then touching everything in sight. Ewww, I know, but it happens.

 

[DisneyDreamerK]

Funny that I'm first seeing this post...

I just got back and I got a bad stomach virus yesterday...

 

[Racemom17]

We were there Nov 30th through Dec 4th and I was the only one of 5 to get sick. Came down with it the second of December.

 

[bayoumama2]

We were there 11/22 - 11/29. Family of four was fine. We had the DDP and ate all over. Guess we were lucky. Sorry for those that didn't fair as well.

 

[BlovesC]

I was there 11/27-12/7 and I did not get sick. Even after walking around soaking wet ALL of 11/30 after a sudden downpour while at Epcot.

My brother did develop bronchitis a few days BEFORE we made it to WDW, though.

 

[aaronlisar]

Seven of us were there from 11/28 to 12/5 and none of us got sick. Prior to us leaving, the nursing home I work in had this same stomach virus breaking out so it is not just at disney, it is everywhere.

 

[Starr W.]

We were there 11/21-11/28. DS7 had a stomach virus about 3 weeks before we left. It's been going around here since early Oct.

 

[fla4fun]

Got back on the 6th from an 8 day trip and none of us got sick. Stayed at YC and never left WDW property so ate all meals there

I returned on the 6th from a 5 day trip, also at YC, and did not get sick. There was someone down the hall though that was getting extra linens from housekeeping because someone in their room had been sick, so I know it was there as well. I carry the individually wrapped towelettes to wash before meals, and I don't typically go to buffets, and so far, I've escaped getting any stomach bugs at Disney (knocking on wood).

 

[TaraPA]

12/4-7 here & no one got sick. Stayed at The Dolphin & ate all around WDW. But it's going around the kids' classrooms back here in PA....I had one home on Thursday with upset stomach & diarrhea.

 

[MyPrincessisaPirate]

We stayed at POP form 12/5-12/12...all was fine until about 1am on 12/11 I woke up with severe stomach cramps. Went to the urgent care center that morning and was told it was probably a bug or possibly my gallbladder. For the record though I am 35 and never had problems with my gallbladder, but I guess there is a first for everything. Anyways that was our last whole day and I was stuck in bed. That evening I threw up once...but still had horrible cramps. DD woke up at about 1am 12/12 and threw up 3 times!!! It was not pretty, but luckily she was fine in the morning. We are home now and I am still feeling off....better me than her though!! I got sick after eating pizza from POP, but hubby ate it also and he was fine, so dont know what happened. I just couldnt wait to get home to my bed!!

 

[maciemouse]

We just got back from a great trip to Disney. I have to say I was a bit nervous about reading the threads before we went. I had read about the horrible crowds and of course, the stomach bug. We arrived on Thursday at AKL, which I have to say I LOVE! We had very managable crowds on Thursday night and Friday. We were able to get on Toy Story Mania in Hollywood studios Friday night with a 25 minute wait. Saturday, things went down hill. It was very busy in my opinion. We went to Epcot in the morning, went back to the pool to swim, and then went to MK on Saturday night. I thought Saturday night was pretty busy. We were on the way back to the resort and I had both kids sound asleep in my lap. I just took some time to thank God for such a great trip. We truly had a great time. No one was sick, it wasn't insanely busy, and we had a lot of fun. Anyway about 2 am it hit. The vomiting. It was horrible. It only hit two of us. We were both sick the whole way home in the car. We just had the stomach bug in November, so I thought we would be good to go. Anyway as we were leaving I saw and spoke to the family staying next door to us. They had the bug too. I stopped and told house keeping to please clean our room really good for the next family coming in. She told me that she had 4 reports of the virus just that morning alone. Don't worry yourself sick about it if you are on the way to Disney, just be prepared that it is going around.

 

[SamanthaH]

We just got back from a great trip to Disney. I have to say I was a bit nervous about reading the threads before we went. I had read about the horrible crowds and of course, the stomach bug. We arrived on Thursday at AKL, which I have to say I LOVE! We had very managable crowds on Thursday night and Friday. We were able to get on Toy Story Mania in Hollywood studios Friday night with a 25 minute wait. Saturday, things went down hill. It was very busy in my opinion. We went to Epcot in the morning, went back to the pool to swim, and then went to MK on Saturday night. I thought Saturday night was pretty busy. We were on the way back to the resort and I had both kids sound asleep in my lap. I just took some time to thank God for such a great trip. We truly had a great time. No one was sick, it wasn't insanely busy, and we had a lot of fun. Anyway about 2 am it hit. The vomiting. It was horrible. It only hit two of us. We were both sick the whole way home in the car. We just had the stomach bug in November, so I thought we would be good to go. Anyway as we were leaving I saw and spoke to the family staying next door to us. They had the bug too. I stopped and told house keeping to please clean our room really good for the next family coming in. She told me that she had 4 reports of the virus just that morning alone. Don't worry yourself sick about it if you are on the way to Disney, just be prepared that it is going around.

We just got back as well. We were there 12/16-12/21. Wednesday was relatively busy at MGM; crowds were low Thursday at AK and we had a great time at MVMCP that night; Friday crowds were moderate at MK; Saturday crowds were moderate at Epcot, but you could tell the masses were arriving; Sunday was totally packed at MK. Yes, there was a stomach bug going around. We heard lots of people throwing up in the bathrooms. My husband and youngest son felt ill Friday night, but made a quick recovery by Saturday morning. Then, I felt nauseated from Saturday morning until this morning. We were lucky that we just got a light touch of it. I kept telling everyone to wash their hands, but it's hard because you are constantly touching rails, tables, ride handles, bathroom sinks/ doors, etc... Wow! I can't believe you only had a 25 minute wait for TSM on Friday night. We loved the ride, but only went on once because the wait was 2 hours on Wed. Our fastpass that we acquired that morning at 10am ripened at 5pm!

 

[RMulieri]

Sorry you were sick.It has been down there for several weeks.Many of the other boards have huge threads devoted to the noro virus.It actually is pretty much all over the USA.I know here in PA we have had a lot of people in the ED with it.My advice to all is WASH WASH WASH your hands with soap and water, use friction , and wash for as long as it takes to sing the alphabet song.

 

[rentayenta]

I am sorry you got sick.

 

[ptrbryant]

We just got back late last night from a great 9 day trip to WDW! None of us got any kind of sickness. After reading the boards prior to the trip, I entered restrooms with great trepidation, but didn't hear/see vomiting anywhere...lucky, I guess! Later in the trip, I did notice some hacking coughs around me.

On cruise ships, when norovirus appears, one of the first thing that happens is all buffets are changed to table service. We didn't have one buffet on the trip. Of course, as others have said, the single most important thing is to wash your hands frequently. We always made sure to at the usual times--after using the bathroom and before eating--but we also used hand sanitizer after handling menus or counter service trays. It became habit and we didn't really think about it, but it may have helped us out.

Karla B.

 

[NOLA_Tink]

Just got back & we're still feeling yucky. DH & I both came down with a gastrointestinal "thing" after just 1 night in Disney...first him, then me. Upon arrival, I cleaned the room with Lysol & Clorox wipes, plus we had anti-microbial hand soap. I don't know for sure, but I think it may have been after our dinner at Biergarten (our fave buffet restaurant). But, we also rode many rides & rode the Disney buses, so anything ride/attraction could have held the culprit. We're very healthy people that NEVER get sick (we're also AP holders that have stayed & played at WDW many times this year w/o any problems), so it was a little disappointing to be so ill on our "romantic" vacation.

 

[toledo13]

YIKES! We were there the 10th through the 14th, and all we ended up with was a cold (well, only DH got a cold). Here are my tips for staying healthy down there (which is hard to do... call me obsessive...)

1- at least a week before, EVERY DAY, including while you're down there, make sure you're taking a good PROBIOTIC. I take probiotic pills every day (whether going to WDW or not) (look it up on google, I use the Flora brand). DH drinks the "Danactive" yogurt drink. These are good bacteria that live in your belly that kill the bad bacteria. Also take a good multi-vitamin.

1.5- after going through security, wash your hands or use hand sanitizer.

2- before getting on the plane, in the airport, use nasal spray. germs can get up your nose on the plane if your nasal passages are too dry. Looks and sounds totally gross, and tastes gross if you swallow it... but I do it anyway!

2.5- did I mention hand sanitizer??

3- drink LOTS of water on the plane. You'll dehydrate, again, making you susceptible to germs and bugs.

4- upon sitting on the plane, use a lysol wipe and wipe down the buckles, arm rests, and anything else you may touch during the flight. Put the wipe in a ziplock to throw away later. Then use hand sanitizer...again.

5- after getting off the plane and getting on the DME (or whatever), try to touch as LITTLE as possible. Use your elbow to hold open doors, etc.

6- after getting off DME, use hand sanitizer again.

7- once in the hotel, use a lysol wipe to wipe down things people touch- light switches, faucets, door knobs, toilet handles, telephone, etc. PUT THE REMOTE IN A BIG ZIPLOCK BAG. then WASH YOUR HANDS!!

8- at the parks- TRY TO AVOID TOUCHING YOUR FACE. if you have to touch your face, use hand sanitizer first, or wash your hands.

9- when getting on rides, try to avoid touching the hand rails, sides of the car, etc. ANYTIME you touch something that other people would have touched, use hand sanitizer.

CALL ME CRAZY... that's fine, I get it all the time... but I swear it will keep you healthy. Now if you have little ones, this could be hard, but if you're as anal as DH and I, you'll be just fine!!

 

[lovndisney12]

We got back last night. Gone 14th - 21st. Of the six of us (4 adults and 2 kids - 10 and 7). Only my DH got it. It hit on the 4th full day of our trip in the AM. It really hit him hard. He was vomitting for about 10 hours. He joined us in the afternoon the next day but wasn't doing that great. But by the next day - 2 days after coming down with it he was better. (The day he was in the resort room all day he thought the guy above us had it too because the toilet was being flushed a lot throughout the day too) The day we arrived there was a girl throwing up on the Magical Express and later in the week someone on one of the water taxis - it is going around.

The front desk told us it was going around - the clerk had it and was out the previous week for 5 days. She said her entire family ended up getting it and she ended up in the emergency room from dehydration.

Here would be my tips if you or someone in your group gets it.

1) Don't let it ruin your trip. Give the sick person their space and the rest of you go enjoy WDW.

2) If it is like what my DH had, a sip of water made him vomit. So, start with ice. (A healthy person can get ice from the ice machine in the resort or food court) Then move to powerade and from there saltines (all available in the hotel food courts). They were more than accomodating and let us take all the saltines we wanted. The second day he tried soup and that cramped up his stomach again. Take it slow. The resort had a bag of plain bagels for $4 that we bought and he ate in the room and then once he was well enough to join us in the parks, we took some with for him so he didn't have to risk the park food.

3) Ask for a roll away if the sick person is sharing a bed with someone. This made me feel much more comfortable and I think we all slept better.

4) Contact housekeeping. We asked that after the worse of it was over that all bedding be changed in our room. We also asked for them to come and disinfect the bathroom when we got back on the day he had been vomiting.

In the end it certainly wasn't what we would have wanted. My DH is freaked out more than me about public bathrooms so he is very carefull about washing hands, etc. I do encourage washing hands, wipes, gel, etc. - but it is still no guarantee.

 

[toledo13]

Oh yeah, and we don't ''DO'' buffets...

 

[NOLA_Tink]

CALL ME CRAZY... that's fine, I get it all the time... but I swear it will keep you healthy. Now if you have little ones, this could be hard, but if you're as anal as DH and I, you'll be just fine!!

You're not crazy! My husband makes fun of me for being such a germaphobe. I swear to you that I ALWAYS do all of these things...and I did them this time too, yet we still got sick! I think we're going to avoid buffets from now on...even though it breaks our heart b/c we love Biergarten.