Will Your Kid Have To Wear A Mask At Disney? 9 Tips To Make Face Masks Work For Kids
UPDATED April 19, 2022: Given recent guidance and trends, Guests may now choose whether to wear a face covering on monorails and buses at Walt Disney World Resort, effective immediately. It is recommended Guests who are not fully vaccinated continue wearing a face covering in all indoor locations and enclosed transportation. So will kids still have to wear a mask at Disney? No, not at this time. Parents: here’s the 411 on kids wearing masks at Disney this year, along with some mask-wearing tips for kids! Commissioned affiliate links are included in this post.
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Walt Disney World Reopening
Exciting news for the Disney fans and Orlando residents: Walt Disney World is back!
And every day, more is opening at the Walt Disney World Resort. Which is a very good thing- and means exciting times are ahead for families.
Let’s face it: you can only enjoy a virtual vacation to the Magic Kingdom so many times!
But some of the restrictions and changes needed for safety are going to impact your usual Disney Vacation.
And there are a lot of questions about going to Disney that the announcement answered for us, including the big one: will my kid have to wear a mask at Walt Disney World?
Kids Wearing Masks At Disney: the 411
Walt Disney World recently updated the mask requirement for Guests.
Given recent guidance and trends, Guests may now choose whether to wear a face covering on monorails and buses at Walt Disney World Resort, effective immediately. It is recommended Guests who are not fully vaccinated continue wearing a face covering in all indoor locations and enclosed transportation.
So will your kids need to wear a face-covering to Disney?
The answer is no- not at this time.
Disney World Face Covering 411
From the Walt Disney World website:
Face Coverings
Face coverings are optional for Guests in both outdoor and indoor locations, as well as Disney transportation. It is recommended Guests who are not fully vaccinated continue wearing face coverings in all indoor locations, including indoor attractions and theaters and on enclosed transportation.
Please note, face coverings are not permitted while experiencing water slides or in the water.
9 Tips For Kids Wearing Face Masks At Disney
Let’s face it: this is a confusing time for kids.
And asking them to wear a face mask or face covering that’s hot and uncomfortable is a tough sell. It’s scary, it might make them think of doctors or sick people, and that’s something they just may not be comfortable with at a young age.
However, this is one thing they will need to work on before their Disney vacation if you plan to go this summer.
These tips are general guidelines and tricks that might help ease the anxiety before heading to the Most Magical Place on Earth.
Please note: if your child is not able to wear a mask for medical reasons, this is not medical advice or speaking to those special circumstances. I am not medically trained and cannot say if it is appropriate for your family. Your doctor can best advise you on the best way to work with face-covering requirements.
- Find a mask that fits your child well. If it’s too large, it’s going to slip and gap and that pretty much defeats the purpose! Try face masks that tie around the back of the head rather than ear loops to start. Gaiter style face coverings like these are also easier for kids to manage.
- Get ear savers if you use elastic ear loops. Ear savers are awesome and really help make a mask more comfortable. If you don’t have one at home, try a game piece from Barrel of Monkeys. They are the perfect shape and you probably have them on hand!
- Practice, Practice, Practice! Go ahead and get your kids a mask in advance. Wear them around the house to practice. Since kids might need to wear masks in school in the fall, there’s no time like the present to get them accustomed to the idea of wearing a face-covering indoors.
- Practice more: but do it outside. Even more important for a Disney vacation: practice wearing the face coverings outside. Wear them to the park or on a daily walk. Get your child used to moving and breathing through the covering as you prepare for your Walt Disney World trip. ps- this is a perfect tip for you too!
- Explain in kid-friendly terms why it can help others. If the focus is on them helping keep grandparents or older adults safer, it makes things less scary.
- Sew your kid their own special mask. You will never go wrong if you let them have a say in what their mask looks like!
- Bring a lot of masks. A lot. You are likely going to go through many more than you expect since Walt Disney World is hot as hades during the summer months. Sweaty, gross masks are no fun for anyone, and kids won’t want to put them back on after a break. Pack extras in your bag to make sure they get a clean one when needed.
- Buy paper masks. Word on the street is that the paper masks are the way to go if you or your child are sensitive to heat. Stock up on these to switch out if your cotton Disney face masks get a little too hot.
- Marvel superheroes wear masks: Be a Superhero! Look, I’m not above dropping the Marvel card when needed. Kids love superheroes and folks like Captain America, Black Panther, Spider-Man, Iron-Man are all masked up! I mean, you could even get them a cape to wear to complete the look.
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Patty Holliday has been running Disney since 2011. She knows just about every tip, trick, and hack there is to cover the runDisney Magical Miles at Disney World and Disneyland. She knows every mile isn’t *always* magical- but with training, tips, and a little bit of pixie dust, they can be a lot of fun! You can also find her at noguiltlife.com and noguiltfangirl.com
Great tips! You already know that I experienced wearing a cloth mask at Disney Springs last week and found it to be uncomfortably hot so switched to a paper mask and was much more comfortable. My grandson is 3 and wears a mask with no issue or argument. He has been wearing one regularly at home when going to stores. The problem I found was a 3 year old slobbers all over the inside of the cloth mask so you have to have several. When the slobber dries the cloth mask gets a hard spot so the mask has to be washed constantly. You need to have a good supply of masks for the little ones. I’m still trying to figure out how to adapt a paper mask for him that fits right but we will then have the problem of him slobbering all over the paper mask so I don’t know how well they will hold up.
I hadn’t thought about that aspect! Thanks for sharing- and yes, I think we need to take a lot more than you might think if you have a long trip planned!
What a dumb decison by disney make children wear masks outside in the FL heat.