Mask up. Stay apart. Wash up. Stay home.

The 2020 holiday season will look different than usual. There will be new stresses mixed with the usual ones. Traditions and traveling may be altered.

Please keep in mind, a large driver of current COVID-19 transmission is small household gatherings with family and friends. People might feel safe around people they trust and remove their mask or do not distance, but contract COVID-19 or spread the virus to their loved ones.

Pima County, we can continue to work together to have a happy and healthy holiday season, and protect our loved ones! From Halloween to New Year’s Eve, we have recommendations on what you and your family can do to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in the community while still celebrating!

Recommendations for Thanksgiving 2020

Thanksgiving is a time when many families gather from near and far to celebrate together. However, this year PCHD recommends adapting many traditions to increase safety.

Best plan:

• Celebrate only with people who live in your household, or host a virtual dinner for friends and family.
• Watch sports, parades, and movies from home.
• Shop online rather than in person on the day after Thanksgiving or the following Monday.

If people are coming over:

• Avoid sharing utensils, cups, plates, and food. 
• Select one person to serve the meal, or have pre-filled plates ready. 
• Limit tables to one for each household.
• Open windows or doors, weather permitting, to allow air to flow. 
• Keep a guest list. It could help with contact tracing. 

If you’re going out:

• Travel only with other members of your household.
• Bring extra sanitizer, alcohol wipes, and extra masks when visiting pumpkin patches or orchards where people touch pumpkins or pick apples.
• Prepare traditional family recipes for family and neighbors, especially those at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19, and deliver them in a no-contact manner.

For travelers:

Additionally:

• Avoid bars, house parties, and other crowded indoor places.
• Don’t drink and drive. Many cab and ride share companies offer free holiday rides to those who are unsafe to drive.
• Get your flu shot.