What Will Travel Look Like After Coronavirus?

[Midpack]

We don't fly or stay in hotels much anyway, but preliminary food for thought. We were planning to fly for a trip to New England this Fall. If we still go, we'll be driving. The second item below is far and away my biggest concern, and I'll have to see proof to believe they've changed - I won't be satisfied with something like the meaningless "employees must wash hands" signs in restaurants, like that does any good. What's shown second quote below won't be enough for us.

* Cruises will be very cheap. But it might not matter for newcomers
* Cleanliness will be addressed -- a lot
* Hotel room rates will drop more before they come back up
* Travellers may feel safer in hotels than vacation rentals
* Look for lower airfares and emptier planes
* Business travel may spur recovery for airlines
* Air travellers will have more booking flexibility -- for a while
* Increased sustainability is a possible windfall

https://www.ctvnews.ca/lifestyle/what-will-travel-look-like-after-coronavirus-1.4873855

"Everyone, whether it's cruise, lodging or hotels, are going to have to change how they monitor and clean the environment that consumers interact with and communicate that back to guests in order to increase their comfort level," Anderson said.

Jan Freitag, senior vice president of Lodging Insights for hospitality analysis firm STR, underlined sanitation as well, referencing "new, visible measures" needed to show how clean properties are.
Whether that means hand sanitizers everywhere or regularly disinfecting hard surfaces, "there will be a clearly communicated regimen to let the customers know, 'here's what we're doing to keep you safe,'" Freitag said.

Automatic doors will probably become even more common...

 

[Nemo2]

Cruises will be very cheap

Out of curiosity I checked one of the two back-to-backs that we still have outstanding deposits on.

When we booked, mid October last year, the base price, (before all the taxes, etc), was $789 US p.p.

Currently, (if the website is up to date), they're asking $1,539 US p.p. base price.

 

[walkinwood]

I'm wondering how international travel will be affected.

Will a country that has the virus under control want to risk restarting the infections by allowing people from other countries in? Given the widespread infections in the US, will other countries want us there? A quarantine on arrival is a no-go for us.

Testing is obviously the solution, but do current tests prove that someone is infected if they've just inhaled an infectious dose?

 

[sengsational]

I'm wondering how international travel will be affected.

Will a country that has the virus under control want to risk restarting the infections by allowing people from other countries in?

I wonder if there will be some kind of Covid-19 IgG "stamp" that would "prove" you've already had the disease, so are safe. Nice payback, to be able to freely travel, for those who when through the disease gauntlet when "we" were learning how to manage it.

 

[bonvoyage]

I'm wondering how international travel will be affected.

Will a country that has the virus under control want to risk restarting the infections by allowing people from other countries in? Given the widespread infections in the US, will other countries want us there? A quarantine on arrival is a no-go for us.

Testing is obviously the solution, but do current tests prove that someone is infected if they've just inhaled an infectious dose?

Back in the 1960s, travelers had to show proof of immunization for diseases like yellow fever when traveling to some African countries. I would expect such criteria to spring up again

 

[Nemo2]

Back in the 1960s, travelers had to show proof of immunization for diseases like yellow fever when traveling to some African countries. I would expect such criteria to spring up again

https://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/what-is-your-pet-peeve-of-the-day-71670-134.html post #2680


Reminded me of a post I made here years ago:

Back in the early 1960s they'd give cholera/paratyphoid (and perhaps some other preventatives) in what they called a 'cocktail' shot - before we embarked on our overland trip England-Australia, a buddy & I drove halfway across London to get ours.....on the return trip we each had only one operative arm.

He'd steer, work the pedals, and call out "2nd" or "3rd", and I'd change the gears.

Those were the [-]days[/-] years.

 

[cbo111]

Just got an email from the CEO of Allegiant. In addition to the cleaning the aircraft extra well, he said "We are giving you space – social distancing space – and we're doing it at check-in, during boarding and in our cabins to promote healthy distancing."
Does that mean I get the entire row to myself?

 

[Dtail]

Just got an email from the CEO of Allegiant. In addition to the cleaning the aircraft extra well, he said "We are giving you space – social distancing space – and we're doing it at check-in, during boarding and in our cabins to promote healthy distancing."
Does that mean I get the entire row to myself?

Perhaps it means the pilots will be working from home.

 

[omni550]

Perhaps it means the pilots will be working from home.

LOL

 

[LRDave]

Just got an email from the CEO of Allegiant. In addition to the cleaning the aircraft extra well, he said "We are giving you space – social distancing space – and we're doing it at check-in, during boarding and in our cabins to promote healthy distancing."
Does that mean I get the entire row to myself?

No airline can afford to fly half-full flights. Unless, of course, we are funding support on the fixed-cost side with government funding.

 

[Christine]

If the lockdown is eased this summer I think I'll travel in my Motorhome to avoid dining in hotel restaurants etc. I'll prefer to isolate until I've been vaccinated.


I don't think going abroad will be an option in Europe this summer so I'll drive around in my own country, Norway.


After vaccines are available I'll want to go to both Italy and Spain where I've enjoyed myself earlier. And now I want to support those areas. Perhaps in the fall of 2021?

 

[athena53]

No airline can afford to fly half-full flights. Unless, of course, we are funding support on the fixed-cost side with government funding.

I agree- it's unrealistic to block off even 1/3 of the seats (which still isn't enough for 6' of social distancing) and expect airfares to stay at current levels. The airlines crammed in all those seats so they could keep the fares down and still make money.

One interesting speculation I read is that people will be very reluctant to use touch screens. Even if I check in on-line I have to use a kiosk or talk to a human if I'm checking a bag or traveling internationally. I'm seeing some procedures in the grocery store that reduce the number of "touches"- typically you hold up a loyalty card and they scan it. I wonder if they'll do more to encourage mobile boarding passes so the TSA and the gate agent don't have to handle your paper boarding pass.

 

[Teacher Terry]

When my son flew home from Vietnam the airline left the middle seats empty. I really miss restaurants. Takeout is not the same because food doesn’t stay hot on the 15-20 minute drive home.

 

[audreyh1]

I agree- it's unrealistic to block off even 1/3 of the seats (which still isn't enough for 6' of social distancing) and expect airfares to stay at current levels. The airlines crammed in all those seats so they could keep the fares down and still make money.

One interesting speculation I read is that people will be very reluctant to use touch screens. Even if I check in on-line I have to use a kiosk or talk to a human if I'm checking a bag or traveling internationally. I'm seeing some procedures in the grocery store that reduce the number of "touches"- typically you hold up a loyalty card and they scan it. I wonder if they'll do more to encourage mobile boarding passes so the TSA and the gate agent don't have to handle your paper boarding pass.

Disposable gloves work very well with touch screens.

I used them last time I checked my bags, and kept them on for going through security.

 

[Amethyst]

I imagine it will depend on how hungry that particular country is for tourist money. After all, we Americans are doing everything we can think of to avoid getting COVID-19. If we're successful, most of us won't have antibodies until a vaccine comes out.

On our most recent overseas trip, we were told to bring proof of measles immunity, because measles has begun to reappear worldwide. We had to pay full freight for the test. Only to have nobody ask for the proof.

Back in the 1960s, travelers had to show proof of immunization for diseases like yellow fever when traveling to some African countries. I would expect such criteria to spring up again

 

[Teacher Terry]

My kids want us all to go to Europe August 2021 since we cannot go this year. Undecided as of now.

 

[Red Badger]

I am ready to be let out of the barn. Probably not international travel, but ready to see more of America. Our travel got crimped in Q4 2019 due to a relo. We got fully settled in to new digs as Feb wound down. I am in need of a sojourn.

I'll be more diligent WRT "social hygiene," but I'm ready to hit the road. And, I might be solo - DW is much more cautious. Should I venture out solo, I may need to quarantine in the basement upon return.

 

[Morgan22]

Airlines testing passengers for the corona virus before the flight.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...id-testing-passengers-for-virus-before-flight

 

[ocean view]

Until a vaccine is widely available, how does a place like Disneyland reopen? Or any live sporting event? Casino? And then do you have to show proof of vaccine to enter?

 

[jollystomper]

Cruises will be very cheap. But it might not matter for newcomers

The describes us. Odds of us now taking our very first cruise are almost nil (though I have learned to rarely save "never").

I am comfortable with going to hotels. It is easy to social distance, and I am sure they will do their utmost to sanitize rooms to avoid liabilities. I will be less keen on vacation rentals. I was never an AirBnB fan, and am now even less so.

We will probably drive more instead of taking short flights. If a relatives wedding does occur in June, we are much more likely to make the 8 hour drive (even splitting it over 2 days with a hotel stay) than flying.

We have not ruled out flying internationally to visit relatives. I have had to travel to Asia since 1999 and through all of the pandemics they experienced and managed to say safe. If one has to have masks/gloves on we will deal with it. Some of the airport we used already have body temperature sensors you have to passed through, and people watching for folks who seemed sick. That may expand to additional airports. Health checks, maybe random in-depth screenings, might be added to security checks.

 

[6miths]

Until a vaccine is widely available, how does a place like Disneyland reopen? Or any live sporting event? Casino? And then do you have to show proof of vaccine to enter?

They could open and only admit people with evidence of immunity, a positive test for immunoglobulin against the virus. Just being vaccinated isn't enough. Not everyone becomes immune after vaccination. It's not clear yet whether people gain lifelong immunity from infection with the virus itself. They could also reopen if the population gets up to herd immunity levels - either via infection or immunization or both. It will likely be awhile before a vaccine becomes available.

 

[bonvoyage]

I will have to take my daughter to St Louis in August as she is starting grad school and will need help settling down. I am now trying to figure out whether to drive 14 hours or just fly there. I am hoping that there will be some clarity in a month so I can start making plans.

 

[athena53]

I will have to take my daughter to St Louis in August as she is starting grad school and will need help settling down.

Are you sure the school will even be open?

I'm trying to put on my rose-colored glasses and think of how countries can work together to get people home in the event of another pandemic. This issue affected me personally as I tried to get home from Bolivia after a tour was cut short. Countries wanting to protect their own started closing down to non-residents on incoming flights, even for connections. There are still cruise ships with crew at some ports, unable to allow them to disembark. People traveling on shoestring budgets (well, that would have been me in my 20s) were stuck someplace because they couldn't get a flight home, running out of funds and vacation days. Some German tourists we met in our hotel on Lake Titicaca had arrived only a few days before and were now looking for flights home.

I'd like to see lead times established for closing borders. I made one alternative arrangement through Bogota and the next day Columbia closed its borders to connecting passengers. The same had happened with my originally-scheduled flight home from Ecuador- I moved up my departure date but then Ecuador closed its borders. Only Bolivia (bless the interim President) closed down with 2 days' notice. Bolivia was a particularly difficult location because the airport at La Paz is at such high altitude that the big planes don't take off from there. I got out on the only flight straight from Bolivia to the US but had to connect in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

And we have to have a solution for cruise ships, especially the mega-ones.

 

[camfused]

Like @RedBadger, I am choppin at the bit to do some travel. When I did ER, travel was part of the equation for me. It was bad enough that I had to cancel my big Italy trip last month, and I cannot imagine also not being able to go anywhere for the rest of the year.

DW will probably be really mad a me, but I would at least like to do a week in the Badlands area, around the end of August or early September, seeing some of the parks and stuff I have not seen yet.

So, I think the airport and plane ride will be with a mask on. Hand sanitizer and hand washing will be prolific. Once I get there, the biggest exposure opportunities will be at restaurants, maybe some visitor centers / attractions, and at the nightly motels. I will have a mask on during these times. Mostly, it will be just me in a rental car, or hiking around, by myself.

With that in mind, would you do it, in August?

 

[RetMD21]

We've bee doing fly/drive vacations while I work. Retirement comes in a few months and I have no need to fly for the remainder of the year or 2021. We'll have plenty of time to drive around the US. Glad I hadn't booked any flights or accomodations.