What to Expect When You’re Expecting to Travel in 2021

Finally! The world is opening up, and we are all eager to travel again. It is a wonderful and exciting feeling to say the least. Patience, however, is still necessary while going through the planning and travel process. Naturally, a trusted travel advisor can help you navigate the choppy seas, and having the proper expectations before traveling will save you a lot of frustration. Here are some things to keep in mind.

Flights will change.

Airlines are in the process of restoring their flight schedule back to pre-covid levels. This is a complicated process that involves a lot of moving parts. The benefits of this change include more choices and thus possibly better pricing. But if you booked the perfect flights for your upcoming vacation, don’t be shocked if one of the flight legs changes significantly. A 7pm return might become a 9pm return, or vice versa. This is not always ideal but it’s something you should expect might happen. If a flight change is so drastic that you can no longer reasonably take the flight, the airline will usually cooperate to help you find an alternative with not additional fees.

Did you say, “fees?”

Yes! Fees are back. The days of covid-waivers are coming (or in most cases have come) to an end. Be prepared to pay the change fees again when you need to change a flight. Cancelation policies are back and in some cases, tougher than they used to be. For example, many hotels and resorts are requiring some payment beforehand and/or strict cancelation windows. What used to be a 24-hour cancelation has grown to 5, 7, and in some cases (think holidays) up to 30 days beforehand. Travel insurance can help with this in many, but not all, cases.

Pent-up demand has greatly decreased availability.

You know the age-old economics theory of supply and demand? Well that is in full effect right now. Hopefully you didn’t get used to thinking you can wait until November to book a week away over New Year’s Eve, or start planning a July 4th vacation in June. Many resorts are already booked for December holidays, February holidays, and spring break. Do not delay if you want to get away at a reasonable price!

Speaking of reasonable prices – do not expect “deals.” After taking a tremendous hit in 2020, the travel industry is barely keeping afloat with minimal staff, capacity limits, staffing shortages, and more. It is very difficult for all aspects of travel to perform at the levels of service to which you’ve been accustomed. They cannot afford to discount.

Good staff is hard to find.

Covid-19 knocked out the hospitality industry, as it did many others, and forced almost every hotel and restaurant to furlough or lay-off the staff. Some of these trusted staff members were hired by other companies, or went a different direction, among other reasons for not being able to return. The fact of the matter is, the industry operated for the past year with a very skeletal staff, and now as the demand as dramatically increased, they do not have the staff to support it. This might mean people are doing multiple jobs and/or doing the job of three people – even at the most upscale resorts. It might cause longer delays for service at meals. It might cause longer lines at check-in. It might cause shortages of food and drink. It most certainly will cause frustration to travelers. But, if you expect this going into your trip, it will not come as a surprise.

Keep that mask handy.

Until the world figures out a global way to prove vaccination, keep your mask handy. You will still need it (might even prefer to have it) on the airplane. Depending on where you’re traveling, different destinations still require masks in public or tight spaces. Don’t try to argue about it. If you are unwilling to go along with the many Covid protocols still in place, stay at home. Check the requirements for each destination because they are not created equal. Even if you are vaccinated, you will likely still need to show proof of a negative Covid test.

Check your passport!

When is the last time you checked the expiration date on your passport? Not only do passports expire, but we travel advisors always recommend at LEAST 6 months of validity from your trip return date, because many destinations require this. This means, if you are traveling from December 1st – 5th, your passport needs to be valid through June 5th of the following year. We cannot emphasize this enough. While we all spent a year cooped up, our passports did not freeze in time. Neither did TSA or Global Entry verifications. Please, please check the dates, even if you think you know, or you checked yesterday. Travel advisors everywhere have witnessed many trips get canceled over this detail. Also be prepared for the renewal process to take longer than normal.

In closing…

This is the current state of things, and you need to be willing to accept them if you want to travel. It goes without saying that it’s been a difficult year for all. I can tell you from the companies and contacts I deal with daily, that every hotel, airline and tour operator is doing their best to please us and come back better than ever. It’s in all of their collective best interest to have our best interests in mind. How much are you willing to sacrifice for a vacation? I don’t know about you, but I would rather travel with patience, compassion and understanding, than not travel at all.

Travel During Covid-19: Deal or No Deal?

For those who are eager to get back to traveling, the common mindset is, “Just think of the DEALS!” We have been getting a lot of inquiries from people wanting to get ahead of the herd, and book some travel while demand might be low, and inventory might be high. Makes sense. However, it’s not currently true.

Covid-19 and the quarantines that come with it have hit the world hard. From unemployment to travel restrictions and closed restaurants and resorts, there has been a significant amount of loss throughout most global industries. Travel and tourism have been hit particularly hard. Millions upon millions of dollars have been lost. Think of it like a financial hurricane that has blown through every climate of the industry. There is heartache. There is deep loss. There is destruction and rebuilding to be done.

Carry this compassion with you as you plan your next trip. Airlines are selling fewer seats per flight to allow for social distancing. The number of routes have been significantly decreased. They are investing in new cleaning technologies and different processes to keep us all safer. Hotels are dealing with record losses from vacant prime seasons such as spring break and summer travel. Many employees have lost their jobs or accepted pay cuts. This all trickles down to the local restaurants and shops that depend on tourism to thrive. Taking all of these factors into account, it is very difficult for airlines and resorts to offer deep discounts and still stay in business.

Think of any Covid-19 travel as a win-win. You get a change of scenery and a chance to forget about the world’s woes; the tourism industry gets a little something to help keep them going. It is not a time for super discounts. It’s a time to hold one another up.

The deals might come in time. Certainly resorts are going to want to incent us to visit. There will be good values and your travel agent can notify you of these as they come. But first, we need to give the industry time to heal, and as travel lovers, we need to do our part to help the healing by traveling whenever and however you are comfortable doing so. Be generous where you can. Tip well. Buy the handmade craft from a local. Do your part to help get the world back on its feet again, and we all will be rewarded for it!

Virus? What Virus?

Corona what? Covid who?

I wish we could ignore it, but with new updates daily amidst rising death tolls, it’s difficult — and admittedly foolish — to do so. The Coronavirus is on top of my clients’ minds. Your minds. Travel advisors do a lot of traveling themselves, and this is something we are all watching. We know it is frustrating, when you plan that trip you’ve been dreaming of, only to worry about your health and safety if you choose to go (and in some cases, if you’re allowed to go).

I am not a doctor. I am not a lawyer, either. But aside from being a travel advisor, I am a mom and a wife with a family whose health and safety is of paramount importance. We finally booked our dream trip for June. Just about every detail has been taken care of. We are so excited. But…we’re going to Italy – one of the places where there has been an increase in diagnosed cases and extensive media coverage. What to do?

I will share with you how my family is handling our travel plans. First, we have insurance. Insurance is a part of my business I am always uncomfortable offering. Personally, I hate the extended warranties and insurance policies that are always peddled whenever I make a large purchase. However, since I’ve been working in the travel business, I can whole-heartedly tell you I would never travel without it. You truly never know what could arise before or during a trip. So for the insurance, I am thankful. However, insurance does not cover a cancelation just because you’re nervous about contracting a potentially deadly virus. The government would have to prohibit travel to your destination in order for you to file a claim to have all or most of your money refunded.

Regardless of insurance, there are still reasons to be apprehensive to travel. While I am not blind to that, I also know that my trip is too far off for me to take action. Currently, the travel industry is doing the right thing for people traveling during the month of March (and some are making accommodations through April). I will wait and see. As my travel gets closer, I trust that the airlines and travel operators will have my best interest in mind, because my best interest is THEIR best interest.

No one is going to win here. Airlines and travel operators are going to try to be as compassionate as they can be, because when this is over (which we hope will be soon), they want to be remembered as upstanding organizations who tried to help people manage a bad situation. You might lose some money. They definitely will lose money. It’s an unfortunate situation, a world-wide issue, beyond our control. We need to be compassionate travelers as well.

I want to repeat that I am not of any authority to tell you what you should or should not do. Sharing my choices is not necessarily my advice. Many people are anxious about what lies ahead. We all are to some degree, and we will all handle that in our own way. I am here for anyone who wants to weigh the pros and cons, whether I organized your travel or not. Do not hesitate to reach out!