Coronavirus - Travel impact

[braumeister]

Leaving in two days for a month in Ho Chi Minh City (and side trip to Hanoi)

Nobody can live in a bubble. Take good care of yourselves and enjoy the trip.

 

[Nemo2]

Hey, we might be on that ship.... now you have me thinking ... can you imagine if the ports would not allow the plague ship to dock. It would turn into a floating graveyard.

A remake of Nosferatu?

 

[LRDave]

We are going to Nash Vegas to see DS this coming weekend and will probably roam around Music Row a bit. What do you think the over/under is for masks we will see in the crowd for such a small, crowded, heavily touristed area? 0? 2? 5? It would have been very unlikely to see a mask before.

Are masks being observed in other crowded tourist destinations in the US?

 

[Bryan Barnfellow]

Nobody can live in a bubble. Take good care of yourselves and enjoy the trip.

Thanks, braumeister!

-BB

 

[Ian S]

In four weeks, I'm heading to Toronto to see family. Airfare is paid and if I can't go, trip will just be postponed with the inevitable change fee.

We're also going to Europe at the end of April and have made the flight reservations and opted for the insurance offered at the time of booking. We will look for accommodation and tours that offer a decent cancellation policy as much as possible even though it costs more. The most problematic thing with our Europe trip would be that DH's time off is pretty much fixed and we'd likely be unable to rearrange it to get the required time off until next year.

 

[Sunset]

...
Are masks being observed in other crowded tourist destinations in the US?

Couple of weeks ago I went into the bank with my baseball cap and sunglasses on, they seemed a big nervous looking at me, as I sat while DW went up to the tellers....

Imagine if I also was wearing a face mask

 

[Sunset]

My kids got back from Vietnam and Thailand today and I will see them tomorrow. I wouldn’t be going to China but at this point I am not canceling our Europe trip in August.

Considering China has stopped trains between cities, and closed sites, it would be pretty difficult for any tourists, unless it all clears up.

 

[Ian S]

Couple of weeks ago I went into the bank with my baseball cap and sunglasses on, they seemed a big nervous looking at me, as I sat while DW went up to the tellers....

Imagine if I also was wearing a face mask

Worse yet, a ski mask!

 

[W2R]

Couple of weeks ago I went into the bank with my baseball cap and sunglasses on, they seemed a big nervous looking at me, as I sat while DW went up to the tellers....

Imagine if I also was wearing a face mask

A bit nervous? Here you might have been either shot or taken into custody by the security guards for doing something like that. The banks here don't allow hats or sunglasses inside on anybody entering the bank, anybody at all, period, no exceptions. They haven't for years. Big signs on the doors. I thought it was that way everywhere.

As for coronavirus affecting my travel plans, well, as you all know, we don't have any desire to travel. So, no. If we had plans to travel, which we don't, then we'd probably love having the excuse to cancel those plans. Also I must admit that I am glad that we don't come in contact with a lot of recent travelers in our usual quiet retire life.

Have not seen any masks in our suburb (yet).

 

[AnonEMouse]

If you're flying, wash your hands after the security checkpoint. The trays used for the xrays are the most bacteria and virus laden part of the airport.

https://qz.com/1395922/the-dirtiest-parts-of-the-airport-are-the-security-line-trays/

Also, probably a good idea to wipe down the luggage handles and anything that touched the trays after you get through. Antibacterial wipes are convenient for that.

 

[Lsbcal]

Here is a simple CDC table that includes surgical masks and N95 masks:
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/pdfs/UnderstandDifferenceInfographic-508.pdf

Regarding filtration it says:
1) Surgical masks

Does NOT provide the wearer with a reliable level of protection from inhaling smaller airborne particles and is not considered respiratory protection

2) N95 mask:

Filters out at least 95% of airborne particles including large and small particles

We have a plane flight in late March. I guess I'll buy N95 masks.

 

[6miths]

I'm going to chance it! I'm only headed to Tampa and LV though. DW just got back from Costa Rica and is leaving for Dominican in a couple of weeks and then Tampa with me. Case fatality rate looks like only about 4% so unless it mutates significantly or there is some exceptionally susceptible population that it hasn't found yet it doesn't look like it is going to be too bad as a epidemics go. SARS had a case fatality rate of about 11%. I'm going to risk driving my car today too.

 

[Marc]

I just got a great deal on a cruise from Miami to Barcelona in April; maybe if people get scared I will be able to find even more great deals.

Marc

 

[SteveNU]

"In total, the CDC estimates that up to 42.9 million people got sick during the 2018-2019*flu*season, 647,000 people were hospitalized and 61,200 died"

"So far, 8,200 people have died and 140,000 people have been hospitalized during the 2019-2020 flu*season, according to preliminary estimates from the CDC"

This happens year after year and nobody puts their life on hold for it. If they renamed the flu and gave it an exotic new name it would put the country in a panic every year! Perhaps a little perspective is in order?

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Got off a cruise ship in Florida 2 weeks ago, traveled around the state a while and flew home. No problems. CDC says the risk in the US is very low at present and they are watching closely.

Yeah, "Nothing to see here...keep moving along..."

Currently planning on seeing family in Alaska in early May. I am hesitant to book the trip until I see how this pans out. For now, I am happy to be retired and a recluse.

 

[6miths]

"In total, the CDC estimates that up to 42.9 million people got sick during the 2018-2019*flu*season, 647,000 people were hospitalized and 61,200 died"

"So far, 8,200 people have died and 140,000 people have been hospitalized during the 2019-2020 flu*season, according to preliminary estimates from the CDC"

This happens year after year and nobody puts their life on hold for it. If they renamed the flu and gave it an exotic new name it would put the country in a panic every year! Perhaps a little perspective is in order?

What he said! That's not to say that there isn't going to be another Spanish flu or something more stealthy like HIV but not much I can do about it. We talk about ignoring financial porn and much of today's news runs along the same lines so hopefully we are able to do the same.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

"In total, the CDC estimates that up to 42.9 million people got sick during the 2018-2019*flu*season, 647,000 people were hospitalized and 61,200 died"

"So far, 8,200 people have died and 140,000 people have been hospitalized during the 2019-2020 flu*season, according to preliminary estimates from the CDC"

This happens year after year and nobody puts their life on hold for it. If they renamed the flu and gave it an exotic new name it would put the country in a panic every year! Perhaps a little perspective is in order?

That's because that's a 0.14% mortality rate for the flu. It's too early to be certain (especially since the numbers out of China are not necessarily verifiable), but even now nCoV is estimated to have a fatality rate of at least 3%; other related coronaviruses have fatality rates of 10% (SARS) and 37% (MERS). And the reproductive number could be twice as high as the flu (1.46 for the 2009 influenza strain), researchers are estimating the RV for nCoV between 1.5 and 3.5, and the higher the number, the more easily communicable the pathogen is.

 

[Gumby]

MOD NOTICE TO ALL

There is one general coronavirus thread to deal with everything but travel plan changes. We hope that it will provide a single place for people to provide or find information and discuss issues such as the R-naught value and mortality rate. Let's keep this one limited to travel plans.

Thanks.

 

[Another Reader]

I'm evaluating my flights next week using empirical market evidence. I was out shopping for groceries and supplies today.

1. Masks seen: 0 N/P-95, 1 full face surgical mask, Asian male, late 50's.
2. Availability of hand sanitizer: Low at one Target, spotty at the other, forgot to check Safeway. Was able to get TSA approved sizes at the second Target, but stock was low. None at the first Target.
3. Bulk bottled water purchases: About 10 to 15 percent of baskets in the Costco checkout lines contained multiple six packs of Crystal Geyser gallon bottles. Not sure what normal is for those purchases.
4. Availability of N-95 masks. Lowes and Hope Depot both out of stock per Nextdoor posts. Available in small numbers elsewhere. Not as bad as October when the wildfires were raging.
4. Number of customers out shopping on a Tuesday morning: Low at both Targets and Costco, average at Safeway.

Conclusion: Possibly some impact, but not substantial yet. Recheck near the end of the week.

 

[Lsbcal]

"In total, the CDC estimates that up to 42.9 million people got sick during the 2018-2019*flu*season, 647,000 people were hospitalized and 61,200 died"

"So far, 8,200 people have died and 140,000 people have been hospitalized during the 2019-2020 flu*season, according to preliminary estimates from the CDC"

This happens year after year and nobody puts their life on hold for it. If they renamed the flu and gave it an exotic new name it would put the country in a panic every year! Perhaps a little perspective is in order?

Yes, I was wondering about those stats. I imagine the concern right now is that this flu is worse then the standard variety. So even if you don't die it will be exceedingly unpleasant and could mean a hospital stay.

Then I see articles that say the deaths are mainly in the older citizens, maybe 60 and above. Oh, that makes me feel better.

 

[Lsbcal]

Regarding the N95 face masks, I picked up a box of 10 at the local hardware store for $20 which was very well stocked. The ones I got are the 3M 8511 model which have good reviews on Amazon. We could even use them should we get more California fires next fire season.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Anyway, back on topic, I'm making sure I have an N95 mask and plenty of hand sanitized, as I'm supposed to travel domestically (2 hr. flight) in about 3 weeks and attend a meeting. Whether I use the mask will depend on the facts at the time of travel, though. A bigger concern is whether this will be under control in July, when my family and I are supposed to travel to the UK. We'll have to wait and see about that, too, but all of us are fairly healthy and able to take the proper hygiene precautions.

 

[YVRRocketSurgery]

A few years back we ended up keeping our travel plans to South Korea which was in the midst of the MERS outbreak. We obviously monitored the situation. For us, we were comfortable with still going because new infections seemed under control with patients being family members in the same household and patients/visitors at hospitals treating cases before protocols were implemented.

During our trip we obviously saw many people wearing masks in the subway systems but other than that it seemed pretty normal. However, sites/attractions were way less busy than during a previous trip to Seoul which was a bonus.

We're still looking for some trip plans this year and I'd still consider going to places that have had Coronavisus cases identified but it obviously depends on how things play out (though Wuhan isn't at the top of my bucket list ). But I can appreciate why people would consider changing plans.

 

[erkevin]

A decade or so ago, when Swine Flu was that year's boogeyman, we went ahead and traveled to Mexico (the epicenter of the outbreak). We had a great time and were about the only Gringos in town! Everything was on sale as everyone competed for our business.

 

[irishgal]

I’m flying from St Louis to DFW Friday to judge the dachshund national earth dog trials and I’m not really worried. Might put a bag over my head. Just kidding.