Family Guide to Disney World During Covid

We thought it was a great idea to take the kids to Disney during COVID. I mean, we can’t travel internationally anyway, so might as well tick Disney off the ol’ list.  Kids were pretty excited too... Dylan nearly fainted when we told him. What we didn’t know was how COVID regulations would alter our Disney experience. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still really glad we went! The kids LOVED it and had no prior experience to compare it with... and it was really cute to see their excitement (as much as we could see behind a mask). 

Now I’m not going to pretend that I’m a Disney expert after only going to Magic Kingdom for one day. In fact, I’m pretty sure that every other person reading this post right now is more experienced about Disney World than me. 😆 What I am going to share is our personal experience visiting Disney World during covid, and how new changes in their rules and regulations may alter your visit. Here are the biggest changes that stuck out to us (from what Matt & I can remember from going as kids) and what helped us have a more enjoyable experience despite the changes! 

Mask Rules: 

The biggest change that affects almost everyone attending Disney is that masks are required at all times for everyone 2 and older, no exceptions. 

When eating or drinking you must remain stationary, and then, of course, you can remove your mask.  However, you aren’t allowed to walk around sipping your coffee with your mask down.  That was tough, even for the kids, who would have loved to snack our way through lines but couldn’t. 

Masks must remain on, even for family pictures. I was a little bummed about this because it would have been nice to have a family photo in front of the Cinderella castle without our masks on. 

We were asked multiple times how old Charlie was, and at first Matt thought the worker was just being nice and making conversation, so he answered “two” since she turns two next month. We were immediately reprimanded for not having her wear a mask and it was tough to back peddle and explain that she really is one. I’m sooo glad that she really is still one because I can’t imagine keeping a mask on her all day. The mask was hot and uncomfortable and she’s so little, it would have been hard to enforce a mask on her for the whole day. Also, I’m glad because we got some adorable maskless pictures of her in front of Cinderella’s castle that I would totally frame!

Lines lines lines! 

As of now (February 2021) there are no “Fast Passes”, so expect to wait, just like everyone else, in all the lines. With the exception of the late evening, we always waited a good 40 minutes for every ride we went on at Magic Kingdom. 

For those of you who are concerned about safety, all lines are marked with stickers to keep everyone socially distanced and seating on rides is socially distanced as well, which may actually be why lines were so long- only half of the riders were permitted on each ride at a time. 

My Disney Experience App:

This helped us navigate which rides had shorter wait times. The app is updated constantly with everything you would need to know about which rides, shows, dining and bathrooms are open and how long the wait is. I would HIGHLY recommend downloading this app before you arrive at the park. You can download it here. 

Parades:

The good news, Disney still has the cutest parades, which our kids LOVED!!! I think I cried a little seeing a float with all the princesses drive by because I remember loving when I saw the Disney princesses as a little girl! It was definitely a highlight of the day! 

Drinking fountains: 

Yes, you can still fill up your water bottles at drinking fountains, which was great because we definitely needed to drink a lot of water in that hot sun! 

Shopping:

As far as I saw, ALL shops were open, so everyone can rest assure that you will have ample opportunity to buy all your Disney merch. 😆 Our kids REALLY wanted to buy a souvenir and Dylan even dipped into his savings, but it was worth it, I mean, it IS Disney World!! 😍🥰

Overall, despite the changes and inconvenience of wearing a mask all day and waiting in lines, Disney is Disney and our kids loved every minute of their day at the happiest place in the world!!