The Future of Travel Post Covid-19
WHAT TRAVEL REALLY LOOKS LIKE POST COVID-19
When news of the pandemic hit the travel industry was one of the first to suffer. Planes ground to a halt, thousands of people were faced with flight cancellations and monuments of national pride and heritage shut their doors to the public. The entire tourism industry scrambled to pay out refunds and find ways to get travellers home before the situation worsened.
Since the beginning of May, travel has started to timidly trickle back into our lives again. Armed with new policies and hygiene procedures, planes, hotels and museums are starting to welcome visitors once more. And while initially, the changes surrounding travel may seem daunting, arming yourself with the knowledge of what travel will look like post Covid-19 will instil a newfound calm within.
Yes there will be some adjusting, and yes things won’t be the same, but you’ll quickly come to realise that things are much better than they seem.
Air Travel
Touch-less Travel
To avoid human interaction online check-in will become the norm, although alongside uploading our identification documents we might also need to upload an immunity passport (similar to the Yellow Fever Card) to confirm that we have the necessary vaccines to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Machines that scan your face, passport and boarding ticket will also become more popular to avoid human interaction. No more awkward eye contact at passport control while solemn guards scrutinise your picture.
Focus on Hygiene
People arriving at airports might have to pass through disinfection tunnels (as currently tested in Hong Kong). According to a SimplyFlying report on the “Rise of Sanitised Travel”, bags will also “go through fogging or a UV disinfection process” and will be “sanitagged” to minimise the risk of infection. An in-flight janitor might also be present, whose only job will be to ensure that the plane is spotless and properly sanitised. Passengers could be given gloves and mask and instructed to wear them for the duration of the flight. I think we can all appreciate the fact that with these new hygiene proceeds, we won’t have to worry if we’re sitting in some strangers sweat ever again.
Longer Wait Times
Good news for those who love to arrive at the airport four hours early- your day has come. Due to extra safety procedures, people will have to be at the airport at least four hours prior to their flight. Airplanes will also need to be deep cleaned after every flight, which will slow down the boarding of passengers. While longer travel times might seem like an inconvenience, it helps remove the stressful rush of travel ensuring that we have more than enough time to reach our gate before scheduled departure.
More Flexibility
Prior to Covid-19 airlines made it very difficult and expensive to cancel flights, having customers pay hefty fees to reorganise their trips. Now in the wake of the pandemic airlines are moving towards more flexible policies, offering clients vouchers and re-bookings to adjust to the uncertainty. Even when the situation stabilises, it’s likely that airlines will keep their more flexible policies to encourage more people to fly with them. Flight insurance may also become a commodity that you might have skipped on your travels prior to Covid-19.
Popular Tourist Locations
Reduced numbers
From Walt Disney World in Florida to the Acropolis in Greece, many of the worlds biggest theme parks, museums and tourist attraction sites are starting to open as the Covid-19 situation stabilises. Although there’s one major difference- instead of being met with busy crowds of excited tourists, you might notice these once populous locations emptier than usual. Museums such as the Louvre now require visitors to pre-book a ticket online in order to control numbers. Other sites are restricting visitor numbers too - The Leaning Tower of Pisa now only allows 15 visitors at a time to minimise spread.
And while you may have to wait for a free visiting slot, there are benefits to this adjustment. You’ll no longer have to shuffle your way through jam-packed crowds to get a peak at the Mona Lisa or to explore the Colosseum in Rome. Be prepared to keep a distance from other visitors, however, with social distance stickers now marking the floors of many famous destinations. Keeping a two meter distance ensures your safety when exploring during your travels, allowing you to enjoy the view without worrying about your health. An added benefit? You can take some amazing pictures without anybody’s head getting in the way in the background.
New Safety Procedures
While visiting some of the most famous sites on the planet you can expect to find new safety procedures. Tourist attractions will now require visitors and staff to wear a mask at all times. Disney World has figured out how to combine magic and safety, rolling out a new team of Stormtroopers to ensure guests comply with these new rules. You might also notice more frequent cleaning routines, hand sanitisers and new signs explaining social distancing rules. Along with the usual bag check, you will also have to undergo a temperature one before being granted entry.
While these new rules might seem bothersome at first, it’s important to remember that they are there to keep you and others healthy. Working together we can help minimise the risk of infection, slowly regaining a sense of normality.
More Authenticity
While it may be hard to pass up a visit to some of the most popular locations while travelling, doing so might not only benefit our health but could also take us on an unexpected adventure. Ditch the overcrowded cities and tourist excursions for the undiscovered path. Don’t miss the opportunity to explore a charming “pueblo” in Spain or ask a local to tell you about their favourite temple in Bali.
Covid-19 might have brought us many frustrations but it may also give us some positives. Instead of overcrowding and damaging national heritage sites, we have the opportunity to shift to a more sustainable, mindful way of travel, interacting with locals and learning first hand about their culture.
Destinations
Destinations and Vacation Length
As international borders are cautiously reopening and welcoming visitors we can begin planning our next vacation. But instead of the usual hectic travel planning, we might find ourselves thinking more deliberately about the places we want to visit and what we want to gain from the journey.
The absence of travel in our lives might have brought new realisations. Instead of trying to find the perfect “getaway” to briefly escape our reality, we might find ourselves seeking to “arrive” at a new location instead. To arrive and fully immerse ourselves in all of the wonderful experiences the location has to offer. Covid-19 may have robbed us of physical comfort but it showed us the value of an emotional connection, one that transcended global borders - one that we didn’t know we had been craving. This realisation might encourage you to be more mindful when picking a destination, causing you to consider what you truly value and want to experience when travelling.
Vacations might also become longer. The pandemic has proved to us that working remotely is possible, so we might be given the opportunity to extend our holiday by a couple of days by putting in a few hours of work while travelling. What could be better than an office on a beach in Panama or one on a balcony overlooking Berlin? This could allow us more time to explore our new location, instead of cramming 10 days worth of activities into 6.
Staycations
For more cautious travellers or those who are still currently unable to venture out into more international waters, a staycation might be the perfect solution. With a possible 60% drop in international tourist numbers, more travel companies are offering regional travel packages.
Covid-19 could be the perfect excuse to finally visit that new museum in your area or spend a weekend in a city you have yet to visit. Or a staycation could offer you the opportunity to book yourself for that mindfulness retreat in the countryside that your friends have been raving about. The pandemic allows us to explore our own culture, reconnect with our roots and traditions and maybe learn something new about the history of our country.
Accommodation
Hotels
Hotels, like many other businesses in the tourist industry, are implementing new measures to adjust to the coronavirus outbreak. You can expect higher cleaning standards, a health check prior to checking in and limited use of communal services such as buffets, pools or game rooms. Hotels such as Marriott and Hilton are introducing electrostatic sprayers which mist disinfectant across large areas as well as using ultraviolet light technology to sanitise surfaces. Despite all this, economy hotels are set to recover faster than luxury ones as they are better adapted to host long stay guests. They can also stay open at lower occupancy rates compared to their more expensive counterparts and can better minimise spread by hosting fewer guests.
Passing up staying at a large resort for a boutique hotel run by locals might be the best way to ensure your safety. On top of that, you’ll get a taste of authentic culture that you’d otherwise miss out on while staying in an international hotel chain.
Private Accommodation
With people extending their stays to combine work with travel and the fear of contamination, we’ll see more people turning to home rentals. A three week stay in a two-bedroom Airbnb apartment is cheaper and more comfortable than staying in a hotel room. Home rental companies have also implemented stricter cleaning procedures to ensure customer safety. There has been a spike in preference for private accommodation, as travellers can better limit their interactions with others. Spending your next vacation in a home rental can come with some unexpected perks, you have the freedom of trying out a new restaurant without feeling guilty for not taking advantage of your hotel packages. You can avoid sharing spaces with complete strangers and have greater autonomy over how you spend your days. Plus renting an apartment gives you a more immersive experience, letting you move and explore the place like a local.
Or maybe you will spend your next vacation on wheels, as RV rentals have increased by 650% since the pandemic. Instead of their typical city getaways, people are choosing to venture out on road trips, choosing to spend time in nature away from people. Camping is a great way to reconnect with nature, shut off distractions and disconnect from the chaos of our daily lives. Fresh air is not the only health benefit that comes with this kind of travel- you’re unlikely to run into a large crowd of people when choosing to spend time in nature, minimising the risk of infection and deepening your mind, body soul connection with self and planet.