Disney World Mask Update: Avatar Designs, On-Ride Photo Test & New Picks
There are updates on the face mask front at Walt Disney World, with new designs, on-ride photo testing, and more. This update takes a look at all of that, plus a suggested rule change and an update on guest compliance at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios.
If you’re looking for info about Disney’s face covering polices, begin with our FAQ & Guide to Face Masks at Walt Disney World. For a seemingly simple topic, there have been a lot of questions, policy tweaks, and more. That’s a fairly comprehensive look at everything you need to know, presented in question and answer format.
Let’s start with our “new picks” for face masks at Walt Disney World. In the comments to Magic Kingdom: Our Favorite Week of the Year, some of you noticed that Sarah was sporting a different style, and you inquired as to the brand and why she made the change. It’s not because we no longer like from Suay LA. To the contrary, we’ve tried many masks and still find that to be the most breathable and comfortable masks that meets Walt Disney World’s rules…
However, the Suay LA masks are admittedly ugly. I know the meme is that all masks look like face diapers…but these really do! That was no problem in the summer when comfort is king and we’re dressed with a function over form approach. Christmas-time is the opposite. As previously noted, the vast majority of my nice clothes are geared for the 3-week window when Florida weather is cool; we try to “stock up” on photos of us this time of year when I don’t look like a sweaty barbarian.
Sarah always looks nice, but she bought the Wenfeng Washable Face Mask to have a mask to match. She finds this mask to be very comfortable and sleeker looking in photos. The downsides are that it’s warmer and, unlike the Suay LA one, does not purport to offer even minimal protection to the wearer. She finds it to be a perfect option for lower risk settings and colder weather, but would not recommend it beyond these few months of the year when it’s cool out in Florida.
In the above photo, I’m wearing a K95 face mask, which is at the other end of our “new style” spectrum. We bought these for a few reasons, the first being that my lips were getting really chapped after spending numerous days in the parks the weeks before and after Thanksgiving. This doesn’t touch my mouth, making it a nice change.
Several secondary rationales revolve around comfort. After numerous full days in the parks the last few weeks, the Suay straps were hurting my ears. We have plenty of other styles and surgical masks, but those don’t offer a dramatically different fit. I also wanted to see how something warmer worked out as it has been getting into the 40s. I’d give the KN95 masks high marks on all of those fronts, but with Sarah’s same caveat about not recommending the KN95 masks in hot weather.
The biggest reason for the K95s is that we’ll be doing a couple of unavoidable higher-risk activities and wanted better protection. For those unfamiliar with them, KN95 masks must filter 95% or more of particles to meet the KN95 standard. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has provided guidance on their use and testing results for over 120 KN95 masks.
Likewise, the Food and Drug Administration has issued Emergency Use Authorizations for some KN95 masks. However, with the improved protection these masks offer to the wearer come more rigorous standards for use and fit. If you’re considering buying or wearing KN95 masks, we’d strongly encourage you to first do your research on authoritative and credible sites.
Since a Walt Disney World blog is neither of those things on this topic–nor is its comments section–we’re going to refrain from further commentary about efficacy. You can browse KN95 masks on Amazon and cross-reference the brand/model with the testing results above.
On the topic of new masks, Walt Disney World has released some designs in Pandora – World of Avatar. There are three designs: a Na’vi face with stripes, patches from Pandora, and concept art from Na’vi River Journey. All three glow under black light. We guess these are cool if you’re an Avatar super-fan.
While perusing the Windtraders gift shop, we noticed a ton of other new merchandise. We continue to be perplexed by Walt Disney World’s approach to merchandising in Pandora. It’s as if they exponentially overestimate the number of said super-fans…or maybe James Cameron personally demanded a non-stop souvenir stream?
Don’t get us wrong, it’s nice to see a commitment to unique items for Pandora–we wish more rides and lands got this treatment–but it continues to be way disproportionate to the market for such products. Anyway, we’ll do a photo update on all of these new items in a couple of months when they’re at the outlet.
Next up, it’s been a little over a month since we posted our previous Walt Disney World Face Mask Update, which discussed face mask compliance. This always seems to be a popular topic, so we’ll do another quick run-through.
Over the last 3 weeks, we’ve noticed some interesting changes. First, crowds have gotten heavier–in some cases, quite significantly. In the past, there has been a correlation between higher crowd levels and lower mask compliance. (Likely because Cast Members were spread too thin, making enforcement more difficult.) Second, the weather has been cooler, with high temperatures seldom exceeding 80 degrees.
The result of these conflicting factors has actually been slightly increased face mask compliance. Obviously, this is entirely anecdotal and just based on what we observe, but what we’ve seen the last few weeks has been great.
Compliance was great before, so there wasn’t a ton of room for improvement, but it’s exceptional. (The more notable issue now is honestly physical distancing, and that’s often unavoidable and through no fault of guests as there’s literally nowhere to go in some walkways.)
The park that has improved the most is unquestionably EPCOT. The end of Food & Wine is always like “flipping a switch” to a degree, which is curious since every single festival and even an ordinary day at EPCOT have the same potential problem points. Nevertheless, it seems that Food & Wine draws a different crowd, especially on weekends. We’ve had zero issues with EPCOT recently. It’s no different than Hollywood Studios or Animal Kingdom.
Magic Kingdom remains the best park in all of the lands and throughout all times of day, with one significant exception. It’s the worst place in all of Walt Disney World in evenings or around Cinderella Castle. To some extent, we can understand Disney’s stringent and inflexible rules–any perceived loopholes would be exploited, so giving guests discretion is probably best avoided.
However, this isn’t working when it comes to Magic Kingdom’s Central Plaza. Walt Disney World has adapted on the fly to improve compliance, but guests wanting mask-less photos with Cinderella Castle persists–and there’s no reason to believe that’ll change. Instead of fighting a losing battle, why not give guests a safer option for those photos?
It would be nice if there were a couple of dedicated spots for mask-less family photos. The Plaza Gardens (Hub Grass) would be perfect for this. One or both could be closed off for this express purpose–like a Relaxation Station, but for photos. Being outdoors and physically distanced and in a controlled setting is significantly lower risk than indoor dining, so there’s no logical justification for not doing this, at least from a health safety perspective. It would be a guest-friendly change that would also ease the burden on Incredi-Crew Cast Members working in the Hub.
Finally, for the last couple of weeks, Walt Disney World was testing a new practice of digitally adding face masks to guests not wearing them in on-ride photos at Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Prior to this, the unstated policy was simply to make such photos unavailable, similar to what would happen if guests flashed explicit hand gestures or…other things.
In a statement to USA Today, Disney spokesperson Jacquee Wahler said: “In response to guest requests, we tested modifying some ride photos. We are no longer doing this and continue to expect guests to wear face coverings except when actively eating or drinking while stationary.”
We never received one of the digitally modified on-ride photos, but we have had a lot of photos unavailable because other guests in the ride vehicle were improperly or not wearing their masks. Personally, we welcomed the digital additions and thought it was a great move. Not only so rule-abiding guests received their photos, but also so “innocent” rule-breakers got theirs. For one, Disney is not crystal-clear that masks must be worn on rides, and there are plenty of times when you might get a ride vehicle to yourself, without other parties. For another thing, some rides are jerky (like DINOSAUR!) and it’s easy for a mask to slip down. It seemed like this was a perfect solution to all of those problems…so it’s unclear why Disney stopped the test. Too much work, maybe? We’ll provide another update if/when we have one…
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What are your thoughts on the topics covered in this face mask update? Will you be buying the Avatar designs? Thoughts on having a mask-less photo area in front of Cinderella Castle? If you’ve visited the parks since Thanksgiving, what was your experience wearing masks? Observations on compliance? Do you agree or disagree with any of our assessment? Please keep the comments civil. This is not the place for arguing about efficacy, politics, and so forth—all such comments will be deleted, irrespective of perspective. You are not going to change anyone’s mind via the comments section on this blog, nor are you going to change Disney’s policy.
It’s faze, not phase, for crying out loud.
I was at Disney last week, and I received a ride photo on Splash Mountain where one passenger didn’t have a head, just an empty coat….while at first I wondered if I had been in the presence of a vampire, I realized that they must have digitally removed the passenger’s head for not wearing a face mask.
On Spaceship Earth, we both wore blue disposable masks. When it came for the end of the ride when they show you your future, we had two cartoon figures since our blue masks just erased the lower part of our faces and only our eyes would show up i the video.
We were in WDW from 29NOV until 05DEC. There is definitely a lot of mask fatigue. We saw an entire family with masks off taking pictures in the Plaza courtyard. They were approached by a security guard, and argued with him for over half an hour. It was embarrassing, seriously. I mean everyone wants those maskless pics, but it’s not like the mask policy is a surprise. On our last day, we saw a family that took their masks off ON EVERY RIDE. Security finally caught up with them about noon and escorted them out of the park. It was loud and embarrassing again, with the phrase ‘several warnings’ overhead. I get it, I do, but WDW is private property, and the rules are the rules. Wear. The. Mask. Or stay home, it’s pretty simple.
100
We have not gotten a single ride photo. We also have a baby. I was assuming Disney wasn’t giving them to us because she didn’t have a mask? She isn’t required but I don’t know how carefully they are skimming those photos. I wonder if they accidentally applied some digital masks to kids under 2.
We were at Disney the week of Dec 6 – 11. Flew down from Minneapolis. Never once did we feel unsafe (except at Disney Springs!) but we did a lot of research, planning and risk mitigation. Did one day at each park; attempted Disney Springs but left as it was too crowded. Mask compliance was >99%. We had one instance of a couple behind us in the queue for Rise of the Resistance, clearly too many cocktails and were not wearing masks properly or social distancing. At the mid-line check point, they were escorted out of the queue. I agree that social distancing was hard in some instances- especially for the cavalcades and in shops. Surprisingly a lot of long lines to get into the gift shops, especially close/after park close, so recommend you do your shopping right away. After close at MK, lines for The Emporium Shop were all the way back to The Plaza Restaurant entrance. HS had some long queues- without any shows to pull away crowds, everyone just ends up in a line for something!
I have not read the other posts, but I think people are suffering mask fatigue. A few safe places to take photos are a must. I’m honestly shocked that so many people pay for masked pictures. Not flattering and not a good memory.
My other gripe is the inconsistency. I have been chastised to stand on the right spot by cast members, EVEN when doing so made me uncomfortably close to nearby shoppers, people not in the rude line, etc.. Is it better for me to stand 3 feet away from everyone? Or 6 feet away from the person in front of me but 6 inches away from others? I understand the cast members are just trying to do their jobs, but it is frustrating and feels like it’s more of a “safety perception” effort.
I agree, the perception is the cast member are definitely more interested in mask police than creating magic. Weather by choice or from order from above.. Sad since Disney World is in a state that doesn’t mandate any mask..
Yep. It is a lot of money for memory makers only to see half of the family’s face-I wouldn’t pay for it now
Found great mask options on ETSY, Nose wires, and filters available. Getting tons of compliments on the one I got of Figment. Keep in mind, masks will still be necessary for some time after you are vaccinated.
When do you expect Disney world to ease up on the mask requirement, considering vaccines and everything else moving in the right direction? I assume they will have the mask rule for indoors and other close contact areas for a while, but it would be great if they stopped requiring them everywhere. Having them on while outside just walking around is overkill and probably prevents a lot of people from going
Matt, we’re going to need to stay masked and distant until enough of the population is vaccinated or otherwise immune. A person can be considered immune via vaccine two weeks after their SECOND dose of current vaccines. Enough people will be immune when enough of the general population has been vaccinated — twice.
We’re looking at about a year until it will be safe to relax rules around masks in crowded places like Disney World.
Good. People can stay home. More space to social distance for the rest of us.
Hi Matt.
I appreciate your comments.
I am an annual attender (normally February).
But, I will not go in 2021 unless they relax the mask rule, especially for those not at risk. Another factor will be the reduced park hours, higher ticket prices (since last Feb.), etc.
Since I don’t have an annual pass, it costs me $350 for a 3-day, one park per day pass.
That’s in addition to the cost of staying in the park (Dolphin hotel).
Pretty sad…
Matt, I don’t think Disney in any hurry to relax their self imposed mask mandate. They have spend to much money on advertising, signage, training, etc.. So sad a lot of money for a family to have a 1/2 experience Disney vacation..
Please bring the magic back and stop playing political games
Corey, plus Disney has a ton of masks to sell.
Hi Tom and Sarah, interesting blog on mask. Until people realize the only way to get this virus under control is to follow CDC guidelines for mask , social distancing and hygiene. When it comes to mask wearing for the people who want to wear it with there nose not covered as a puppet from a very famous ventriloquist said “Wearing your mask just over your mouth is the same as wearing a Jock Strap on your knees, it’s there but doing nothing “
Hi Tom, I wonder if Disney doesn’t do ‘mask -less photo areas’ because they don’t want photos that show people not wearing masks anywhere in Disney. Of course people are still doing it and posting them, but they’re not taken by their cast members and therefore not supported by Disney. But I totally agree with you, it’s much safer than indoor mask-less socially distanced dining. Love your blog by the way!
Probably very true. I felt so bad watching a couple getting engaged there though have to have every picture with masks on-no kissing or anything
Has anyone tried wearing the masks you often see college football coaches wear? They are extremely comfortable and are supposed to be excellent protection but they have mesh on the outer layer so not sure if DIsney would allow these.
Tom, I would love to see a post from you regarding your overall thoughts on how much COVID is actually coming out of Disney/Universal. There isn’t much being reported, and I can only guess as to whether that is because the parks are keeping it hush-hush, or whether there is actually very little COVID spread in the parks. I’m also curious as to how often you hear people coughing/sneezing/etc. Since you are a Disney expert, I would love to hear your thoughts, theories, etc!
Orange County’s health officials have repeatedly said there have been no outbreaks tied to any of the theme parks. However, there’s also insufficient contact tracing in Florida. With both of those things said, we would know if theme parks were significant causes of spread, because they employ so many people in Central Florida. If there were an issue, case numbers would’ve risen post-reopening. Instead, they plummeted.
Personally, I’m a strong believer in risk mitigation and harm reduction. Humans are social creatures and trying to “ban” all activity is a fool’s errand. It just drives people to less safe behavior that cannot be regulated. States and countries with better contact tracing are reporting that the vast majority of spread has occurred at household gatherings of family and friends. Those are settings where people “feel safe” so they let their guard down and don’t follow health safety protocol–even though the risk profile is inherently higher due to exposure time, etc.
To that point, this summer when most things were still shutdown, we (anecdotally) observed a lot of house parties and other indoor gatherings in our neighborhood. When the parks reopened, people had an outlet that was safer and more controlled for socialization. Obviously, I cannot prove this, but I do not think it was any coincidence that Central Florida’s cases fell following that. That’s just my take–I’m far from an expert. Visiting a theme park, especially from out of state, is definitely more dangerous than sitting at home…but most people cannot/will not stay at home indefinitely.
I think it is also likely that Florida is making little to no effort to determine/publicize any outbreaks/transmission linked to the parks.
Michelle, I’d bet it is more like Disney keeping numbers quiet. Just like they do with all their guest numbers, including thefts, injuries at the parks, etc. The State of Florida wants visitors to the theme parks, but Disney doesn’t want bad publicity to require them to shut down.
Don’t buy masks on Amazon. Most of the time, they are cheap ones from china. Better off buying from Etsy.
I’ve bought many, many reusable fabric masks and my favorites are:
—Stark’s Face Covering. soft material but it’s 3 layers and thick. with nose guard. mask touches mouth but not a lot.
—a 3D mask from Etsy. shop name is Pixiemasks. easy to breathe, mask does not touch mouth, sewn beautifully, many patterns. 3 layers if you add filter (has filter pocket). but it is very puffy and not good for photos.
–a mask from “thebrideshoppe” shop at Etsy. it looks the best in photos (especially from the side profile) if you use the dark colors, like black or navy. mask only touches mouth a little. thin but it’s 3 layers if you use filter pocket. has a nose wire.
I don’t wear glasses so dunno which is best for not fogging glasses. but the first 2, I know ppl who wear them and their glasses don’t fog up. Hopefully some people find my list helpful. 🙂
Tom, I actually really think that areas where there are outdoor and relatively safe things to do (like Disneyworld!) are preferable to areas where everything is shut down and so people are getting together more in homes. Everything I’ve seen says that this is spreading in small group gatherings of friends and families. If we give people *nothing* else to do, they’ll keep gathering in their homes. I’m all for safer options to give people an alternative.
Personally think it’s crazy that states are shutting down outdoor dining — OK, so groups can take their takeout home and eat it indoors? Doesn’t make sense to me.
Did you know that people cough & sneeze for reasons not related to COVID? Often because of lack of fresh air, what with wearing the mask in the heat. what an asinine question.
During our November trip, Magic Kingdom was actually the worst for mask compliance (but we didn’t visit Epcot). A lot of people in the very long Space Mountain ride took their masks off every time they weren’t in the line of sight of a cast member (and on the ride). Super frustrating. And a lot of people plopping down in random spots to eat or talk on the phone, but that’s more understandable.
For people who aren’t as concerned about the self-protection components of a mask, I’ve found that the Athleta masks are far and away the most comfortable. I also think the Disney masks are actually pretty good (and I am really picky).
I took your advice I wore the suay mask, in my case the mask doesn’t touch my mouth which I liked. I wore it on the plane coming and going first week of December and thought it afforded great protection.
In our recent experience (week in the parks) we thought face mask compliance was outstanding. I’d venture it was above 99% across all the parks. The biggest rule bending we observed was sneaking sips and snacks, but this doesn’t bother me at all as long as you are distanced. Mark me guilty as charged at times.
We felt uncomfortable re: crowds twice.
One was in the MK by the Liberty Square area. We just happened to be there while a cavalcade was coming through and the Haunted Mansion queue was all the way down the boardwalk/doing it’s serpentine thing. There was just no where to go and it was quite uncomfortably packed. The other was coming off Living with the Land in the Land pavilion. It was packed, and obviously indoors. We bounced as quickly as possible.
“The biggest rule bending we observed was sneaking sips and snacks, but this doesn’t bother me at all as long as you are distanced. Mark me guilty as charged at times.”
That doesn’t bother me in the least, either. Pretty much any “rule-bending” with masks that happens outdoors doesn’t phase me.
One possibility I can think of for Disney over-stocking Pandora merchandise- they may think that the popularity of the new Land justifies it. I suspect that many of the people who spend time there are not necessarily big Avatar fans. The land, and especially FOP are remarkable even if you’re not that into the movie, or even dislike it.
It’s still “new” in the overall scheme of Walt Disney World’s 49 year history, but Pandora is 3 years old at this point. It has WAY more merchandise than Toy Story Land or almost any popular legacy attraction.
Most significantly, a disproportionate amount of Pandora merchandise ends up at the outlet. (Not a recent development–that’s been happening for 2+ years!)
One other thing to consider is that Avatar(s) 2-5 are still on track to be released into theaters this decade. That’s a lot of non-Disney/Pixar/Star Wars/Marvel content that needs to be successful; pre-pandemic they were planning on annual December releases starting next year. My guess is that some of the overstock is is either advertising or an attempt to see if any of these characters take off.
What “unavoidable high risk activities” do you have planned? Travel? Be safe and take care and thanks for all your fun posts!
End of year doctors appointments we’ve been putting off and an in-person food drive for Second Harvest.
Excellent!! We have caught up with all our doctors’ appointments this year and have generally felt quite safe. Be well and happy holidays!
Due to having a baby we have had to go to the doctor several times this year. My clinic does an excellent job of screening, masking and distancing that I have felt safe. I have decided to come back for prescriptions rather than wait a couple of times to reduce the amount of time in a waiting area, but going to the doctor has made me less nervous than the times I have gone grocery shopping.
Thank you for all the work you are doing for Cast Members.
What do you think Epcot will look/feel like on New Year’s Eve, especially World Showcase? How can we be prepared if this is our only choice to go here this day/night?
It’s really hard to say, but I’d imagine even without fireworks and the earlier closing time, there will be something of a party atmosphere in World Showcase later in the day.
Our advice would be to start in World Showcase and finish in Future World. Basically, what’s in our itinerary: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/1-day-epcot-plan/
If you are wearing an N95 or KN95 respirator, make sure you do a fit check when you put it on. You should also do a fit test at least the first time you wear it to make sure it is protecting you. If you have any facial hair, your respirator will leak. So no better than a procedure mask like most of the masks being sold at WDW and on the internet. An N95 or KN95 will also make it harder for you to breathe since if it doesn’t leak along the sides of the mask.
If you want to make sure your N95 or KN95 isn’t leaking, cover the mask with your hands (don’t press against your face since you are checking the seal) and blow out slightly. It should puff up a bit. If you get air leaking out at the sides, it is leaking.
When I worked for the US government, I did fit testing for medical staff and found several who could not wear the N95 that was provided either because of claustrophobia (the actual test takes about 20 minutes to complete) or because it did not fit their face. People with smaller faces or flatter faces might have trouble passing a fit test. The N95 we used came in two sized, small and regular. Neither of these would work for a child.
Great point. I work at a hospital and have to enter Covid units. We had to be fit tested using a hood and sucralose aerosol. Otherwise as you said, they do nothing.
Very important advice, DebC. If the mask doesn’t fit properly, the false sense of security can lead to disastrous consequences. Fit testing is critical to the use of N or K 95 masks. We luv ya Tom, and don’t want anything bad for you, or any of your readers.
I like the area-specific merchandise. We don’t really need 50+ stored in the parks (I can buy most anything I really wanted from my phone or maybe MouseGears), so they should be extensions of the themeing of the lands they are in.
Of all the masks I own (and like many, I’m a connoisseur at this point!), the Suay masks are by far the most comfortable on my ears. But there are times when it’s nice to have a more rigid mask that doesn’t suck in towards your mouth.