Cruise and Theme Park Operational Updates due to Coronavirus

[maxaroni]

Taking temperature is not a 100% solution no one has said it is (anyone postulate scenerios where it would not work to catch every case), like others have said, it is one part of mitigation that will allow the stay at home orders to be lifted, parks open, sports played etc. Other options is to not have Disney open until we have a vaccine , which is next year at the earliest. Yeah some will think it is the worst thing and will not go, but the majority of people will go and glad to have to parks open in a relatively safer environment.

yes, that is why I said it needs to be in conjunction with other things. Still see it pointless but it wouldn’t stop Me from going. I do think that we will be in a new normal.

 

[rpb718]

Disney is not that important to me or my family if the only way we can go is if we wear a mask. We were supposed to be there right now but you know what? It really doesn't bother me and I thought it would. If a mask is optional I will go. No one in my family has underlying health issues.

See - this is the issue. I'm happy you and your family have no underlying health issues and the chances are good that even if you contracted COVID-19 you and your family may be asymptomatic. But you are exactly the people that need to wear masks so you don't spread it to others who may be compromised and get seriously ill. That's what the masks are for.

 

[Jimmy Mouse]

Ths is the part that causes the spread or transmission, you could be spreading it to multiple peopel and not know. The masks are to protect others, not protecting you from getting it.

All the "Experts" have been wrong so many times, there is no way we really know that for sure.

 

[jlwhitney]

Disney is not that important to me or my family if the only way we can go is if we wear a mask. We were supposed to be there right now but you know what? It really doesn't bother me and I thought it would. If a mask is optional I will go. No one in my family has underlying health issues.

same. Will be easy to skip if they are required. But I also don’t see them being required for disney , they would spend all day trying to police them. They already have a hard enough time enforcing rules.

 

[elle21]

This isn’t hard. Disney has 2 months to make their own masks. They can give them out with the magic bands.
I’m seeing lots of ads pop up for customized masks, ready to go.
lots of instructions on making your own mask from your clothing or a scarf.

The countries that have successfully contained the virus are mandating masks.

hmmm... South Korea mandates masks... the virus is under control. Italy refused to use masks, the virus spiraled out of control.

so it’s stupid to emulate South Korea... much rather be like Italy?

Masks work. No, they don’t 100%eliminate transmission.
But if an asymptomatic carrier is wearing a mask — including just a scarf over their face — it dramatically reduces their ability to spread in infection. It thereby reduces the retransmission (R0) rate.
If 10 asymptomatic carriers enter the park... would you rather they infect 25 additional people (no stupid masks!) or they re-infect only 3 people (those stupid masks capturing the moisture leaving their mouths).

Check out the approach that Sweden is taking. And the science to back up herd immunity.

 

[Animal]

All the "Experts" have been wrong so many times, there is no way we really know that for sure.

I defer to Doctors on this one. They have much training and experience in such matters.

 

[jerry557]

A recent study suggested that the coronavirus can survive on the outside of face coverings for up to 7 days.

https://www.wtxl.com/news/coronavir...ive-on-outside-of-face-masks-for-up-to-7-days
So you want me to wear a face covering, that I will be breathing in and out, which may harbor the virus for 7 days? No thank you.

 

[ilanakan]

I was pretty optimistic that the parks would be open 1st June, on the basis of how the virus is peaking in both Europe, and also the USA as a whole. I am a safety, risk and statistic expert, and I've been doing quite a lot of number crunching on the figures coming out of various regions, and initially, Florida looked like it was following the trends from other regions. But my latest analysis of data seems to indicate that Florida is being pretty successful in flattening the curve, which will push out the peak date somewhat. So I have now changed my opinion, and think that there is a reducing chance of the parks being open 1st June - I would say that a 1st July date is more likely. We arrive 6th July, so I would place the chances of our trip going ahead no better than 50/50 at the moment.

Even if it does open by the time of our holiday, I'm worried what the experience will be like. The cancellation of the CP does worry me - does this mean that one of the parks might need to close? If so, that could be enough for us to postpone our trip. This is likely to be the last trip we make to WDW as a family, and with the amount we are paying for the trip, we don't really want to it to be compromised on quality. A closure of any of MK, AK, or DHS would be enough for us to cancel, as we want to experience the newer rides that are there since our last visit. EPCOT we could possibly cope without - not much new there at the moment, and the construction going on makes it less appealing. I could see some benefit for Disney in keeping EPCOT closed a bit longer - it would allow them to get on with the construction work much more easily. However the lost revenue from the restaurants might be an issue. But closing a main park would potentially make crowds in the other parks worse. So my gut feeling is that if the parks open, all will open at once, to spread out crowds.

However, I can easily see Disney closing one of the water parks - and closing one of those isn't a deal breaker for us. Likewise other stuff like miniature golf. Individual restaurants or food kiosks might well be closed as well - numbers are likely to be lower than usual (I can't see a flood of people coming in the first few weeks the parks open back up).

But for foreign visitors, it won't just be what is going on at Disney - I'm from the UK, and whether Universal, SeaWorld and Discovery Cove are open as well will factor into our decision - if they aren't, then even if Disney is fully open, we will postpone the trip until next year. However, I suspect all the parks will try to co-ordinate opening, because if they don't, the first park to open is just going to get flooded with guests. One way around this is to limit attendance to resort guests only at WDW - that would be nice for us, as we are staying on-site. But that could end up with more crowds going to the other Orlando parks - so I think it would be better not to do that, for the greater good of Orlando tourism.

I hope your prediction is right. Only thing is, will there be international flights? We are due for a Sep trip from Australia, and I'm really worried that even if the parks do open fully, our flights from and back to Australia will be cancelled.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Ultimately, if Disney opens up...masks will be as pointless as the temp checks.

Since masks are not required in dining...and dining halls are indoors and temp-controlled, any benefit you might get for disease control with the masks gets ruined in all the eating establishments in the parks. It won't even matter if folks are putting them on and off correctly, keeping them clean, etc...the fact that that people will be eating, touching, breathing in a cool 68 degrees on hard surfaces will just make every dining hall and bathroom the virus traps...and it will be hard for folks not to eat and pee during their trips.

But, that does also avoid the fact that people will drip ice cream on their mask, get it soaked on Splash Mountain or in the rain, chew through it (if disposable), and then just drop it...and you'll have medical waste all through the park.

In the Chinese videos, there are no kids...b/c the folks in China that wear masks are the workers and the adults...and even then, before this broke out, adults never wore them (my brother and his Chinese wife didn't even have masks til they returned after my mom's funeral)...

Masks are worn b/c you have to do something...no one wears them b/c they want to do something...

Disney falls in the want...not the have...so no one will want to wear them...

So, if Disney can't open without masks, Disney can't open.

 

[Mainsail Minnie]

Not even close to true, lol. They may increase your perception of temperature, but do not have an effect on actual body temperature. And again, looking at Asia - they wear them in the summer, and looking at Being for example (where masks are common) their temperatures and humidity levels run very similar to Orlando's in the summer.

Beijing temperatures are nowhere near the upper 90's & 100's, which we get in the American South. And yes, wearing a mask over your nose and mouth can increase your risk of heat stroke. This is obviously a topic you know little about. You don't seem to be from an area that has to deal with extreme summers.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

Then don't go to Disney World, if it's going to be that big of an issue for you.

I'm just saying, society as a whole is going to have to compromise and accept that we have to change our natural behaviors. It's going to be hard and uncomfortable and difficult. Maybe masks aren't the end all be all, but change is coming and we need to prepare for it.

There will 100% be families who don’t go to Disney parks if they open and virus is still spreading, masks or not. Going to WDW is optional & a luxury, even though we love it beyond measure. Disney is very important to me, but we absolutely will not go to WDW at all if it is “hard, uncomfortable or difficult.” We will not put our family or potentially high risk son at risk. I would be very sad if we were unable to travel there, but I would never compromise my family’s health to do so.

As long as coronavirus is an issue, we will not go. Little kids touch surfaces then rub their eyes when they’re tired. Little kids set their food on the table without thinking. Things masks do practically nothing to mitigate.

We will change our natural behaviors at home where we have to, but we won’t go to a place like WDW so long as coronavirus is an issue.

 

[Mainsail Minnie]

I defer to Doctors on this one. They have much training and experience in such matters.

I listen to doctors and take their advice seriously, but I don't defer my thinking to them. I now do question them when I don't see something their way, and I will no longer follow their advice if they can't justify it to my satisfaction. As someone who has been harmed by doctors (for example, prescribed a medication that caused a permanent side effect after the doctor assured me it was harmless), I have learned from experience that the human body is very complicated, that there is still a great deal doctors in general don't know about the human body, and that individual doctors vary greatly in their quality of training, expertise and insight.

 

[havoc315]

Check out the approach that Sweden is taking. And the science to back up herd immunity.

herd immunity requires either:
1. A long time.
2. lots and lots of death first.

per capita... Sweden is doing worse than the US.

 

[ILovePixieDust]

Beijing temperatures are nowhere near the upper 90's & 100's, which we get in the American South. And yes, wearing a mask over your nose and mouth can increase your risk of heat stroke. This is obviously a topic you know little about. You don't seem to be from an area that has to deal with extreme summers.

Beijing most definitely has highs in the upper 90’s. July and August can be oppressive.

 

[ilanakan]

Doing temperature checks on guests would make people feel better about going to Disney. Not going to be perfect , but it’s better than nothing, as the virus isn’t going to go away.

We totally are.... but to be fair I don’t see Asian people at Disneyland wearing masks in the summer when it’s 96 Anaheim. Because that’s miserable.

Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand and many more Asian countries suffer from very humid and hot weather all year long, and still wear masks - if you have to you get used to it.

 

[MichelinMan]

Check out the approach that Sweden is taking. And the science to back up herd immunity.

Too early to say whether Sweden's approach is working. From my data it suggests that maybe the virus is strarting to increase exponentially there too. But no different to other European countries. So all the extra measures being introduced in many countries may not actually have much effect.

The epidemiologists in the UK stated that the single most effective measure that lowers the curve is for people to self isolate for 7 days when they get symptoms. All other measures have a much smaller effect. There are even studies that have been showing shutting schools have a minimal effect.

So it wil be interesting to see how Sweden pans out - that will be a good guide on whether extra measures are really necessary.

 

[MichelinMan]

herd immunity requires either:
1. A long time.
2. lots and lots of death first.

per capita... Sweden is doing worse than the US.

Not sure that Sweden is much worse for their position along the 'curve'. From my data, Sweden and USA are following similar curves, but Sweden is about 5 days ahead, so their per capita rate is higher than USA at the moment. There is a problem with Sweden's data, in that it is pretty erratic - for example, hardly any reports on a weekend and then a big spike every Monday. You need to look at trends, rather than single days.

 

[MichelinMan]

I've been tracking data from regions all around the world - and have noticed that Brazil's figures are now starting to ramp up. So that got me thinking - what impact will all this have on tour groups, such as the ones from Brazil, that plague WDW sometimes? I suspect that most of those organised groups may get cancelled or postponed in the short term - it is all very well individual families making a decision about relative levels of risk, but organised groups are bound to be more cautious in their approach.

 

[Thecouch]

Sweden rates are 10x worse then neighbouring countries Finland and Norway who do have restrictions. There countries are very spread out so will have lower rates.

Australia has been pretty successful with some of the earliest cases and deaths outside of China and we are down to 2% growth. 50 deaths in the country, 6000 positive cases and a higher test rate % then usa. Our government is telling people only sick people need mask if they do have to go out. But we have pretty strict rules besides mask.

 

[mshanson3121]

Beijing temperatures are nowhere near the upper 90's & 100's, which we get in the American South. And yes, wearing a mask over your nose and mouth can increase your risk of heat stroke. This is obviously a topic you know little about. You don't seem to be from an area that has to deal with extreme summers.

Beijing 2019 in July.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/cn/beijing/101924/july-weather/101924?year=2019
Average: 32.7

Orlando 2019 in July.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/orlando/32801/july-weather/328169?year=2019
Average: 32.9

Another fun fact, masks are becoming common in New Delhi due to pollution. Their average temperature for APRIL of last year? 37.6 - almost 5 degrees higher than Orlando's summer high.


As for your claim of heat stroke, let's examine the facts shall we?

Now for starters, common sense alone tells us that if your claim was real, then people wearing masks in the summer (which people do all over the world for a variety of reasons, including medical, yes, even in the US, but we'll continue to focus on Asia since it is more common there) would be dropping like flies of heat stroke, and the usage of masks in summer would cease to be recommended. And yet - they don't.

But moving on...

Fact 1: Heatstroke is a condition caused by your body overheating, usually as a result of prolonged exposure to or physical exertion in high temperatures. This most serious form of heat injury, heatstroke, can occur if your body temperature rises to 104 F (40 C) or higher.

It is caused by an actual change in core body temperature, NOT perceived temperature.

Fact: surgical face masks (the type expected to be worn in public, due to the costs associated with N95s) do not significantly impact core temperature.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...FjACegQIARAB&usg=AOvVaw0emXmjTunSCbhmiacuHRzQ[/URL]

Give it a read. A study done in Hong Kong during the SARS outbreak, determining the effect wearing a mask had on body temperature. For the record, Hong Kings average temperature in July was 32.

As for the results, N95s affected oral temperature, but the surgical masks had little to no affect. The increase in aural temperature for the N95s was of "no clinical significance". At the end you'll notice that they said even for the N95 masks, the oral temperatures never rose above 38 (100.4), which is the medical threshold for fever. And only 5% of people even rose above 37.5 (99.5).

Aural rose even less which implies a clinically insignificant effect on core temperature. But even if the core temperature did rise to 37.5, that temperature is not even close to being high enough to cause heat stroke.

So let's try to move away from unfounded hysterical claims shall we?

Oh, and just for the record to address your claims that I "lack knowledge" because of where I live... yes I live in Canada. However, in my area of Canada while not sustained all summer, we always get temperatures at some point in the high 80s and 90s with humidity levels equal to or HIGHER than Florida's, which create dangerous heat indexes pretty much on par with what Disney sees. My husband, a former contractor, spent many a summer working during those days wearing N95s and respirator masks doing reno's - and guess what? No heat stroke.

Have a good day.