I’ve been seeing a lot of marketing around “the plane is clean” so you should fly now.  It doesn’t matter that the transmission rate is low on a plane.  It doesn’t matter that the plane is cleaner than ever before (seriously this should have been a standard a long time ago).  It doesn’t matter how many studies, advertising or other you do to tell me the plane is clean, it’s the rest of the travel ecosystem that is suspect, closed or requires a quarantine that I can’t afford.

Look, I want to travel again.  If anything I need to travel again on a plane to escape the daily hell that is a job search (I lost my job like many other when the covid shutdowns started).  I want to leave my house more than once a week to go to the market and do errands.  I want to order room service, sleep in a bed I can’t afford with high thread count sheets and ask the concierge for recommendations for the local bakery. I want that luxury than evaporates the stress. I want the balcony views of the ocean, sea or the mountains, anything that isn’t my neighbor’s house or the street. I want to be back in the airport lounge. I want my familiar routine of travel.  I want hugs from my friends in London.  I want to wander the city for hours to discover and photograph all the things that catch my eye, fill my soul and bring me joy.  I want all of that. But I can’t have that now, I can only look forward to sometime next summer/fall.

Travel has always been my way to reset my mind, body and soul.  While others have their outlets, travel is my outlet and that was taken away in the pandemic.  I’m now home alone with my memories of travel.  All the memories that make me realize my privilege in being able to travel the world on points, on savings and on dreams. All the memories of conversations with new people about their lives, work and culture.  About their politics, religion and even immigration concerns.  Travel for me is a learning experience.  I love to learn more about the world, its people and about myself. I also love to celebrate my November birthday with a trip (past birthdays include Iceland, Sydney, London and Las Vegas) and often combine with Thanksgiving in London on my points award.  I’ll need to wait until next year to blow out the candles in a different time zone.

Since I lost my job, in the US, I’ve also had to find health insurance (not cheap) which makes me scared to get sick with covid.  My deductible is over $8,000 before co-insurance and other fees kick in.  For those outside the U.S., I know it’s crazy to think about our healthcare system. I pay a monthly healthcare premium too.  So if I were to get sick, I have to pay out of pocket for doctor visits and subsequent expenses related.  I can’t take that risk right now. I don’t have $10,000+ extra money sitting around earmarked for medical bills.  I also need to be cautious as I have a family member who is immunocompromised.  I’ve been staying in my bubble for them.  I leave the house once a week and have limited contact with people and places to lessen my risk for our bubble. I need to place that above travel – above the “plane is clean” – above my need to escape.  So while the plane is clean.  The downstream risk for me is not.  Your risk tolerance may differ.

Business travel hasn’t resumed because companies recognize the layers of risk to the company, its employee, co-workers and family members.  No one want to be responsible for sending Sam on a business trip only to get exposed and bring it home. So many deals can be done over zoom which saves travel expenses and the environment too. So if business travel isn’t restarting, that mean the planes and airports will be empty, the restaurants devoid of their  business lunch guests, and their group/convention meeting and events. Bars are empty.  It means that the taxis sit idle at the airport for hours waiting for one fare.  It means the hotel is partially staffed but doing more to ensure the hotel room and common areas are clean.  It means that while the plane is clean, you might need to quarantine if visiting to/from x state/city.  The city/state might not mandate masks so you navigate that issue too.  It means that every day is uncertain.  It means the international borders are closed (there is talk of a NYC-London bubble which would be great) and dreams deferred of that first trip to London or Paris, the honeymoon in Italy and the family cruise in the Med. Or it could be a road trip to Canada or Mexico that you can’t do. We need to get business travel started again if we want to bring back and open the hospitality industry.  Sadly we will see many closures to come of favorite hotels, restaurants and airlines.

So while the “plane is clean”, it doesn’t mean I’ll be back anytime soon.  Even if I were to bubble wrap myself, add layers of protective equipment and have the middle seat empty, there are still too many unknowns and risks outside the plane for me.  That said, I don’t believe in travel shaming anyone who wants or needs to travel right now.  There are ways to be safe and only you know your risk tolerance.  Here is the CDC Travel During Covid-19 update.

If you are in need of mental health services, beyond the walk in the park and hike in nature, please check your local government websites for resources.  Now is the time to focus on your wellness and work out stresses that travel may have solved in the past.

What does this all mean for my travel blog that is a labor of love (and no income)?  I’ll likely share favorite posts from the past to help you indulge in wanderlust and planning for the future.  I’ll finally catch up on all the posts from trips in my “drafts” folder as well as local Philadelphia things.  I will look to boost my Instagram stories and other social media channels and I will continue to share opinion pieces about the state of the industry (i.e. London quarantine, Cruise ship updates and hotel room changes).

I hope you’ll understand that I want to continue to share travel stories, photos and opinions.  It may inspire you, it may make you sad for destinations you miss and it may make you smile knowing all the calamities I’ve faced while traveling to fifty countries. We will travel again, it will look different.  I started traveling when you could walk to the gate without security, I learned to adapt to security.  I started traveling before the internet and mobile phones, I learned to adapt to smartphones and online resources (I do miss the fun of the payphone collect call on AT&T when my dad was too cheap to accept).  We learn, we adapt, we move forward.

Thanks for reading and supporting my travel journey.  Please stay safe in whatever way works for you & your family and make sure you are stocked with all the good snacks (tip:  Trader Joe’s is a good source for international treats).