Wanderlust? Me too! My monthly Fearless Wanderlust posts will keep you informed about travel news and give you inspiration for your next trip.
The strange times of a travel-less world continue. We would have been getting ready to go on a Caribbean cruise with our family and now, it’s week-by-week monitoring on when it’ll be safe to book a trip. It a big privilege to be able to say that. I think the biggest reason why not traveling is hard is I find so much connection to humankind through travel. Seeing how other people live, tasting what they eat, and learning more about their culture is pretty fun too. Until we can travel again, here’s some travel inspiration for you to keep in mind and enjoy in the meantime.
Illustrated Maps and Souvenirs
As I’ve gotten older, my desire for kitschy souvenirs has faded. One thing I like now is art. I love these illustrated maps from places all over the world. I also love these illustrations from places around the world that a friend shared with me. She printed out a few of the places she’s been to and made a gallery wall.
Summer Travel
One question I know I’ve asked and discussed with people is whether or not we will be able to travel this summer. As with most things right now, the answer is up in the air and dependent on how safe you feel. Many experts, like the ones in this article, are saying similar things. The timeline keeps getting pushed back and I’m now hearing July or August as the month where people will start traveling again.
Future Travel
There were 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals in 2018, but since travel stopped worldwide, some experts think it will take five years to get back to that level. Currently, in the U.S., 80% of hotel rooms are empty and 3.9 million jobs have been affected. The World Travel and Tourism Council predicts 50 million travel jobs worldwide will be gone.
When we start traveling again, procedures could look very different. Here are some of the things that are already happening and/or could happen in the future:
- Rise in local road trips as travelers want to travel but also want to be cautious
- Fewer flight options
- Cheaper travel options
- “Out of order” or restricted seats in airports and on planes to maintain space between travelers
- Electronic travel documents
- Plastic or glass shields between you and a desk agent
- Plastic shields between airplane seats
- Flight attendants with protective gear like face shields
- Temperature checks and health screenings at multiple points of check-in
- Signs to not touch railings
- Longer lines at the airport
- Frequent flyer and travel reward programs scaled back
- No or limited drink and food service on airplanes
- Travelers will opt for hotels instead of rentals
- Travel bookings will have more flexibility with changes and cancellations
- More cleaning and disinfecting
Eat and Tour
You know I love food tours. I know I talk about it a lot, but it’s something I always enjoy doing on trips. I liked this cookbook author and chef’s account of his food tour experiences. It also shares the tours he went on.
Short-Term Rentals
Do you book through short-term rental sites like Airbnb? They’ve gotten a negative reputation from the property owners that use their space solely for these rentals and have driven out local residents. This article discusses why what’s happening has in store for these companies.
Arizona
It’s funny timing that we went on our big Indonesia trip last year and had already decided to travel within the U.S. this year. We needed a break from long flights and wanted “easier” vacations. It’s no loss though; the U.S. has plenty of incredible places to visit. The national parks of Arizona, Utah, and California are at the top of my list. Here’s a post with some recommendations of where to visit in Arizona.
When are you planning to travel next?
P.S. The above picture is from our trip to Marfa three years ago. We took a long weekend trip to West Texas. See more about Marfa in this post.
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