Is there anywhere in the U.S. with basically no mask wearing?

[truenorth418]

I am interested in spending some time in a large or medium sized city where masks are not required - and where people generally are not wearing them indoors or outdoors.

Currently I’m staying in Miami, and while the state government here does not require mask-wearing, the mask decision is left up to the local governments or businesses. Many people here do not wear masks outdoors, but everyone is masked up inside stores, businesses, and restaurants (at least for the 15 seconds it takes to walk to your table).

The CDC recently said it is ok for fully vaccinated people to travel again, assuming the various precautions. I am not overly concerned about catching covid myself, as I have been fully vaccinated (Pfizer). Everything I have read indicates that while in very rare cases a fully vaccinate person could contract the virus, symptoms are likely to be very mild and there is even lower chance of hospitalization or death. I also understand that there is still a question of how transmissable is the virus after vaccination.

So to be clear, I am not looking for a debate about whether masks work or not, whether it’s safe to travel after vaccination, whether the virus is transmissible after the vaccination, etc.

It is just that I miss the humanity of encountering people normally, seeing the expressions on their faces, seeing their smiles, hearing their voices clearly, and basically feeling like a normal human being again, if only for a few days or a week.

Any suggestions on where I can experience that?

 

[ProspectiveBum]

No personal experience, but from watching baseball games on TV it seems that fewer than a quarter of the folks in the Dallas area were masked up at Rangers games. They also allowed full capacity, and the games were nearly sold out.

 

[Dtail]

Perhaps a nice beach trip to the Panhandle region of northern FLA could work.

 

[braumeister]

Look at the map HERE and you see a great many states without mask restrictions. Click on individual states for more detail.

 

[audreyh1]

I am interested in spending some time in a large or medium sized city where masks are not required - and where people generally are not wearing them indoors or outdoors.

Currently I’m staying in Miami, and while the state government here does not require mask-wearing, the mask decision is left up to the local governments or businesses. Many people here do not wear masks outdoors, but everyone is masked up inside stores, businesses, and restaurants (at least for the 15 seconds it takes to walk to your table).

The CDC recently said it is ok for fully vaccinated people to travel again, assuming the various precautions. I am not overly concerned about catching covid myself, as I have been fully vaccinated (Pfizer). Everything I have read indicates that while in very rare cases a fully vaccinate person could contract the virus, symptoms are likely to be very mild and there is even lower chance of hospitalization or death. I also understand that there is still a question of how transmissable is the virus after vaccination.

So to be clear, I am not looking for a debate about whether masks work or not, whether it’s safe to travel after vaccination, whether the virus is transmissible after the vaccination, etc.

It is just that I miss the humanity of encountering people normally, seeing the expressions on their faces, seeing their smiles, hearing their voices clearly, and basically feeling like a normal human being again, if only for a few days or a week.

Any suggestions on where I can experience that?

Gosh, until the number of cases drops significantly in much of the US, how can you expect this?

There are lots of states without mask requirements, but people still mask up in public indoors. Why? Because cases are still high, and because not nearly enough people have been vaccinated yet. And there are scary new variants spreading around that are more transmissible. Businesses don’t want to expose their employees either until most are vaccinated which will be indicated by a huge drop in area infections.

I’ve been in some rural areas (GA) that have little mask wearing, but businesses such as Walmart still require mask wearing indoors and the vast majority of customers comply.

Here on SPI most people don’t wear masks outdoors, but they do as requested inside the hotel.

It’s sort of like asking, are there any pockets in the US where COVID cases are super low? And I think the answer is not yet.

 

[gattara]

Other than the Atlanta metro area, Athens, Savannah and perhaps Macon, the rest of Georgia will be to your liking. As for the size of a city you're looking for, I don't have advice simply because I'm not familiar with cities outside the ATL metro area.

 

[NoiseBoy]

Have you tried going to some places that are outside of the city limits? I've only been in Miami's airport, so I don't have any idea what it takes to get to where things are not so crowded, but my general take is that the social distancing policies may not be followed as closely in smaller communities.

I am also interested in seeing what others have to say on this topic.

 

[truenorth418]

Look at the map HERE and you see a great many states without mask restrictions. Click on individual states for more detail.

Thank you. This NYT link is very helpful.

 

[audreyh1]

Thank you. This NYT link is very helpful.

Even though TX no longer has a mask mandate, most people in urban areas wear masks indoors in public, particularly in counties that were hard hit. Cases are still fairly high, and not nearly enough people have been fully vaccinated.

 

[qwerty3656]

We recently drove from Detroit to Colorado and back. Most of Nebraska and Iowa seemed to not require masks.

 

[iloveyoga]

I can answer for visiting Iowa....we have not had a mask mandate since early February, but pretty much everyone masks up indoors at restaurants and stores. There are a few exceptions, but they are limited. Outdoors pretty much no masks.

 

[Midpack]

I can answer for visiting Iowa....we have not had a mask mandate since early February, but pretty much everyone masks up indoors at restaurants and stores. There are a few exceptions, but they are limited. Outdoors pretty much no masks.

As others have said, there are lots of places where masks aren’t required, but you’ll still find people electing to wear masks anyway. And it varies from business to business even in a given small area.

 

[Dawg52]

Went to a Publix in Orange Beach AL yesterday and there was no mask mandate or suggestion posted outside. I had my mask in hand and asked an employee by the door about it and he said I'm good w/o it. I shopped maskless and I must say it felt liberating. First time in over a year w/o one on. Maybe 25% of shoppers wore them.

I'll continue to carry one and will wear as required or I feel is appropriate. But I'm cutting back when I can.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Went to a Publix in Orange Beach AL yesterday and there was no mask mandate or suggestion posted outside. I had my mask in hand and asked an employee by the door about it and he said I'm good w/o it. I shopped maskless and I must say it felt liberating. First time in over a year w/o one on. Maybe 25% of shoppers wore them.

I'll continue to carry one and will wear as required or I feel is appropriate. But I'm cutting back when I can.

I have seen similar here in Oklahoma. OKC proper has a mandate, but doesn't seem to be enforced and the businesses that "require" it seem to be about 50/50. Out in the sticks, masks have fallen by the wayside and are rarely seen indoors or out.

 

[bbqcoder]

My 81 year old Mom is vaccinated but she just recently caught Covid and is suffering through the symptoms. The vaccine is very effective but not 100% effective.

 

[MichaelB]

Look at the map HERE and you see a great many states without mask restrictions. Click on individual states for more detail.

Thank you. This NYT link is very helpful.

Thanks for an interesting discussion.