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BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

The state of Florida has slowly but surely been reopening for a few weeks now.

BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

Rainbow Mickey Face Mask

With Disney World set to reopen select hotels in just a few days, we’re keeping a close eye on government mandates for the area.

In response to an increase of coronavirus cases across the state, Florida Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings announced that face masks will be mandatory in public spaces starting this weekend. He has issued and signed an executive order that mandates the wearing of face masks in any public space. The order is effective beginning Saturday, June 20th, at 12:01AM.

BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

Palm Trees

The mask mandate applies to everyone in a public space who is “working, living, visiting, or doing business in Orange County.” Masks must be consistent with CDC guidelines.

BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

Disney Springs

When asked about enforcement of the rule for those eating or drinking in public spaces, Demings confirmed that masks will be expected most of the time. He did note that people cannot wear masks while actively eating and drinking but at all other times, they should be wearing them. There is also an exception for those exercising outdoors, per Demings.

BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

Red Face Mask

CDC guidelines state that those 2 years old and under and those with preexisting health conditions should not wear masks. Mayor Demings is asking for voluntary compliance with the mandate. As of now, the Executive Order will be in place indefinitely.

BREAKING NEWS: Face Masks Will Be Mandatory in Orange County, Florida, Starting This Weekend!

Florida

As we know, Disney World will require masks in public areas in the parks and resorts with few exceptions. We will report if this has any effect on the reopening protocols for Disney World. Stay tuned to DFB for the latest updates.

Headed to Orange County soon? Share your thoughts in the comments.

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, Featured, Walt Disney World, coronavirus, Disney World, executive order, face coverings, face mask, face masks, Florida Orange County, mandatory masks, Mask, mask mandate, mayor jerry demings, orange county

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Here’s What It’s Like To Wear a Mask in a Theme Park All Day!

Disney Springs and Universal Orlando’s CityWalk reopened last month and brought about several big changes — some of which are taking a little more getting used to than others! ?

Universal Orlando

Both shopping and dining districts mandated the use of masks for both guests and employees. Making the change to wearing masks in daily life has been a bit of a transition — but add a little Florida heat and walking around all day to the mix and things start to get a little swampy pretty FAST. 

Our Disney Springs days while wearing face masks were good practice (and gave us some idea of what to expect!) but now that Universal Orlando theme parks have reopened, we can finally give you the official scoop on what it’s like to wear a face mask at a theme park ALL. DAY. LONG!

Masks vs. the Heat

We’d be kidding ourselves if we said wearing a face mask wasn’t really, REALLY hot at times. It definitely the hardest part of the whole face mask-wearing lifestyle we’ve recently procured for ourselves (along with everyone else)! Mid-day when the sun is beating down (not to mention Florida is VERY humid) we’ve been noticeably sweating uncontrollably!

Universal Lines

But here’s the thing — if you’re like us, you’re already used to shvitzing half of your body mass in sweat and having your clothes cling to your body! Being outside this time of year can be hot, sticky, and uncomfortable even without a mask.

Universal

Luckily, we did a little pre-theme park conditioning before we hit Universal Orlando — and we highly recommend taking some long walks outdoors with your face masks and see how well you handle the heat. Chances are you’ll find it tolerable — but you’ll probably have to work up to it!

Click Here For Suggestions To Find The Most Comfortable Masks

Masks vs. Thrill Rides

We weren’t exactly sure what would happen to our face masks once we went on a rollercoaster for the first time since we know what usually happens to loose articles! Bye-bye favorite sunglasses!

The Incredible Hulk Coaster

Check out 6 things that really surprised us about Universal’s reopening here!

But with face coverings that fit snugly against your nose and mouth, this isn’t an issue! The only time we felt our mask start to slide was on Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit — one of Universal’s more-intense rides. And even then, our face mask stayed in place. We recommend giving your mask a quick tug to make sure it’s secure before take-off!

Mask vs. Excitement

Does wearing a face mask take away from rides? This was something we were the MOST curious to find out!

Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit

So what did we think? We still had a great time on the rides, despite wearing face coverings. In fact, on Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure and The Incredible Hulk Coaster, there were moments we totally forgot we were wearing them!

Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure

Check out 6 things we learned at Universal this week that you’ll need to know for Disney World’s reopening!

But here’s the thing — if this is your first time visiting Universal Studios or experiencing these rides, you might not get the full experience! We’ve been on the rides before, so for us, it’s just exciting to get to enjoy them again. If you’re only planning on visiting Universal (or Disney World) once, you might want to wait until face masks aren’t mandatory.

Masks vs. Eating

We weren’t about to let a face mask stop us from consuming as much Butterbeer (and Butterbeer Ice Cream!) as Muggle-ly possible! And like our experience at CityWalk and Disney Springs, eating and drinking with a face mask isn’t much of an issue.

Universal

Guests are allowed to lower their masks while eating or drinking and since tables at restaurants have been spaced apart, you’re free to remove your face covering while you enjoy your meal. Universal employees were keeping a watchful eye on everybody and any time a guest had their mask lowered but wasn’t holding a snack or drink, they were asked to re-cover.

Masks vs. Breathing

Getting in some practice with wearing a mask definitely helped us get more acclimated to breathing through a mask while outside. We also noticed the material of your face mask will make it easier or harder to breathe. Click here for some suggestions as to the most comfortable face masks you can choose.

U-Rest Area

Universal has set up several U-Rest Areas (two inside each theme park and one at CityWalk) where guests can remove their masks temporarily while social distancing. You can stay in these areas for however long you need to get a break.

Click here to learn more about Universal’s U-Rest Areas!

Masks vs. Children

We didn’t have any children with us on our trips to the theme parks this week, but we understand many of our readers are concerned about being able to get their young children to wear face masks for the duration of their visit. The kids we’ve seen so far have been doing a really good job keeping their face masks on, and waiting until they got to a restaurant or U-Rest Area before taking them off!

Line for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure

While we think this will be a matter each parent will need to address with their children individually, we think having the flexibility to remove face coverings when sitting down for a meal or in a designated U-Rest Area will provide some extra relief for families with younger kids. It’s also possible you might need to plan shorter park days than you’re used to — at least for the time being!

Honeydukes

Overall, face masks do take some getting used to. But that being said, wearing a mask in a theme park didn’t feel TOO much different from a mask all day at Disney Springs. We found out some lessons the hard way, so we have some top tips for wearing a face covering here!

Our most important tip is probably to have back-up. Bring at least two masks (and maybe three) for each person in your party, just in case one does fly off on a ride, or you’re stuck in a rainstorm and the mask you’re wearing is no longer effective.

Thunder Falls

And remember — YOU get to decide when you’re ready to go back out in public and if you’re ready to go to a theme park right now. But we were pleasantly surprised that face coverings didn’t actually put too much of a damper on our day!

Check out all of our live coverage from Universal’s reopening here!

Do you have any questions about wearing a mask in a theme park? Please let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, Disney Springs, Featured, News, Disney, Disney reopening, disney springs, face covering, hulk, Islands of Adventure, Mask, reopen, reopening, theme park, Universal, Universal Orlando, Universal Orlando Resort