Travel hopes 2021

Yeah, I guess the car shortage issue is going to make the rental car issue a problem for a while.
 
I haven't done too badly shopping around for car rentals, but my advice would be to join the loyalty club of whatever company you end up booking. Due to staffing issues, the lines at the airport are ridiculous. Bypass the lines by joining the free loyalty programs!
 
roadtripper said:
I haven't done too badly shopping around for car rentals, but my advice would be to join the loyalty club of whatever company you end up booking. Due to staffing issues, the lines at the airport are ridiculous. Bypass the lines by joining the free loyalty programs!
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I'm well placed in both Avis and Hertz programs, so that's not the issue. It might make a difference at larger airports, but our trip is to a rather small airport and so cars are simply not available at any of the four companies that have offices there. I even tried Costco and they came up blank as well.
 
braumeister said:
The biggest problem I see now is the rental car issue. Since it seems most of them were sold off last year just to keep the companies in business, they are nearly impossible to get in some places.

We had planned a July trip, spending a week at our rather isolated destination. The plane tickets were bought some time ago. Now I find that the only possible rental car I can get is from Hertz, at over $4,800 for seven days, plus taxes and fees. Obviously, that's not going to happen so we'll most likely have to cancel the flight and make it a long road trip instead.
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That's insane. $700 a day for a car!
 
finnski1 said:
That's insane. $700 a day for a car!
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Years ago a buddy at w*rk bought a beater at his destination - not doing much actual travel, but always on the go in the area. After a month, he abandoned the car and came out ahead. I know it's a bit risky, but at $700/day, you could "fail" at this strategy once and maybe still come out ahead. With proper planning - who knows? You might actually make money.

Buy a beat up '01 Toyota Corolla (Mom hit side of garage a few times before giving up her license) with 125K on the OD. Maybe a couple grand 'cause of all the damage. Abandon it at the airport or sell it to a dealer or "kid" for a grand or even 2 on your way out. Yeah, could cause a hiccup but I'd consider it - especially for 2 weeks or longer when the rentals are $700 PLUS all the tack-on fees de Jour. YMMV as always.
 
I really really want to go to British Columbia in late August for a bicycle race series. Unfortunately the U.S./Canadian border is still closed to non-essential travel. Doesn’t look good for August.

The race promoter will make the call in mid-June if he needs to cancel.
 
We flew from LAX to FLL today on American. First/Business class is still not what it was before the pandemic. The meal service is still a boxed breakfast/lunch instead of the hot meal. You are permitted to remove your mask when eating or drinking. This was a real nuisance. They no longer allow people to wear bandanas for masks and expect everyone to cover their mouth and nose with their mask. We only had one "Karen" on this flight that wasn't complying but they told here to comply or leave the plane. So she complained and complied. LAX was much busier than it was last October when I flew the same route. Fort Lauderdale was busier also but nothing like it use to be before the pandemic when the cruise ships were operating. The rental car plaza at Fort Lauderdale was loaded with cars but void of people renting them. This isn't surprising given how much these rental car companies are charging per day. Most people appear to be opting for rideshare. I used my Hertz Gold Membership and old corporate ID and managed to get a car for $29 per day plus taxes versus the going rate of $110 per day plus taxes.
 
1242Vintage said:
I really really want to go to British Columbia in late August for a bicycle race series. Unfortunately the U.S./Canadian border is still closed to non-essential travel. Doesn’t look good for August.

The race promoter will make the call in mid-June if he needs to cancel.
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FWIW, and it may not be much, Canada is improving its vaccination rate by leaps and bounds. They were behind the USA and the UK months ago, but they finally have got their act together and now seem to be getting up to speed. Who knows? Time will tell.
 
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Chuckanut said:
FWIW, and it may not be much, Canada is improving its vaccination rate by leaps and bounds. They were behind the USA and the UK months ago, but they finally have got their act together and now seem to be getting up to speed. Who knows? Time will tell.
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First shot vaccine rates for adults in Canada are now over 50% and rising as they get to younger age groups. In Ontario, I saw that this morning, we are over 62 % of adults. Because the national strategy was to get first shots to as many people as quickly as possible, the time between doses was stretched to 16 weeks, so only 4 % have their second shots. That should start rising later in June.

I expect that border re-openings will be done very cautiously. Right now most provinces are limiting entry by roads from other provinces, so we even residents aren't free to move around much in Canada.
 
roadtripper said:
I haven't done too badly shopping around for car rentals, but my advice would be to join the loyalty club of whatever company you end up booking. Due to staffing issues, the lines at the airport are ridiculous. Bypass the lines by joining the free loyalty programs!
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Great for large airports, not so much for smaller one. Anchorage is a good example, Alamo doesn't have "skip the line" available and when I rented a couple of weeks ago, they had to fill out the contract BY HAND because of technology issues.

audreyh1 said:
Yeah, I guess the car shortage issue is going to make the rental car issue a problem for a while.
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Seems like an opportune time for a car "borrowing" app to be released...and maybe even be successful this time around.
 
audreyh1 said:
Canada is not allowing cruise ships and that is until March 2022 when they extended it earlier this year.

As a consequence Congress is thinking of temporarily suspending the rule that would require docking for Alaska bound cruises from the US.
https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-news/alaska-tourism-recovery-act-canada-cruise-ship-ban
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This bill has passed Congress (as of 5/21) and is on Biden's desk waiting on his signature. When it was introduced in the Senate, Biden indicated his support so I can only guess it will be signed pretty quick. I have family up in AK and there has been a HUGE push to get people hired in the cruise industry with the expected demand.

https://www.alaskajournal.com/2021-05-21/bill-authorizing-alaska-cruise-season-heads-president

Holland America will sail to Alaska July 25 to Oct. 2; Princess Cruises will sail July 25 to Sept. 26; and Carnival Cruise Line ships will sail July 27 to Sept. 14. Industry officials have long said they would need at least two months after getting the clearance to sail to prepare the ships and hire crews before making the first passenger runs.
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audreyh1 said:
As a consequence Congress is thinking of temporarily suspending the rule that would require docking for Alaska bound cruises from the US.
https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-news/alaska-tourism-recovery-act-canada-cruise-ship-ban
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Those rules apply to foreign-flagged vessels only. The major cruise lines chose to register their ships in other countries with more "flexible" regulation so they wouldn't be subject to US Maritime law. It's why they an get away with hiring people from developing countries and paying the crap wages.

They chose where to be flagged. Why should they get a break?
 
athena53 said:
They chose where to be flagged. Why should they get a break?
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It's just how the game is played. It's been like that for ages and isn't going to change anytime soon. What has changed is a LOT of people who depend on tourism in Alaska are in dire straits and is one of the states that has decided to stop accepting the "extra" unemployment benefits from the feds. Plus, there are a lot of stipulations to flagging a ship in the US...such as the vessel has to be built IN AMERICA. Could you imagine if there was a similar restriction on cars or electronics?

Besides, tell me of ANYONE that doesn't "get a break" in some form or fashion. ;)
 
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That many people want to get back on cruise ships?
 
explanade said:
That many people want to get back on cruise ships?
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Have you been out and about lately? It is really pretty crazy right now. We tried to order a pizza from a fairly popular place on Saturday afternoon (around 4:30p) and they quoted a 3 hour and 30 minute wait...to PICK IT UP! Our local Top Golf showed a 4 hour wait on Saturday afternoon.

So yes, I would guess that the demand is there. I have never been a cruise fan so I will NOT be looking for one anytime, soon. :LOL:
 
athena53 said:
Those rules apply to foreign-flagged vessels only. The major cruise lines chose to register their ships in other countries with more "flexible" regulation so they wouldn't be subject to US Maritime law. It's why they an get away with hiring people from developing countries and paying the crap wages.

They chose where to be flagged. Why should they get a break?
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It’s a temporary break for Alaska.
 
We want to travel however we have zero interest in getting on a cruise ship this year...or probably next. Lots of other todo's on our bucket list.
 
Chuckanut said:
FWIW, and it may not be much, Canada is improving its vaccination rate by leaps and bounds. They were behind the USA and the UK months ago, but they finally have got their act together and now seem to be getting up to speed. Who knows? Time will tell.
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Thanks for the optimism.

I committed to this race back in September 2020, thinking certainly in a year the border will be back open. Lovely wife is coming along as the chef, master mechanic, chase car driver and masseuse. Will be very disappointed if we cannot cross the border in August for some fun in the B.C. Rockies.
 
explanade said:
That many people want to get back on cruise ships?
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I think there are a lot of people who want to get back on a cruise ship, myself included. But I don't want to have to wear a mask or deal with other restrictions, like social distancing in common areas or the theater, or not being allowed to leave the ship on my own, so I will wait until those restrictions are lifted before I resume cruising.
 
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ExFlyBoy5 said:
Seems like an opportune time for a car "borrowing" app to be released...and maybe even be successful this time around.
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Here's one:

https://turo.com/

Rent a car from a private individual or a small business person. I have no idea how good this is, or what 'issues' it might involve compared to the normal rental car companies.

Code: 
#1
Find the perfect car
Enter a location and date and browse thousands of cars shared by local hosts.  
[IMG]https://resources.turo.com/f/81934/26x26/73331fe1dc/how_turo_works_2.png[/IMG]Book your trip
Book  on the Turo app or online, choose a protection plan, and say hi to your  host! Cancel for free up to 24 hours before your trip.

[IMG]https://resources.turo.com/f/81934/26x26/937baca541/how_turo_works_3.png[/IMG]Hit the road
Have the car delivered or pick it up from your host. Check in with the app, grab the keys, and hit the road.
 
ExFlyBoy5 said:
Have you been out and about lately? It is really pretty crazy right now. We tried to order a pizza from a fairly popular place on Saturday afternoon (around 4:30p) and they quoted a 3 hour and 30 minute wait...to PICK IT UP! Our local Top Golf showed a 4 hour wait on Saturday afternoon.

So yes, I would guess that the demand is there. I have never been a cruise fan so I will NOT be looking for one anytime, soon. :LOL:
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Oh I want to travel too.

But then again I've never been on cruises. I know they have avid fans but I remember when cruise ships weren't allowed to dock or they were allowed to dock but nobody could leave.

Even before the pandemic they were called floating petri dishes.
 
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