Travel habits stuck around after a global pandemic

In early 2020, the world change thanks to the declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. Lock down were put in place. Employees were forced to work from home, use there paid time off, or face being laid off. Only a few "essential" workers were allowed to keep working to maintain the economy via ecommerce, provided essential goods like food and water, upkeep utilities for all of the people now at home, and of course the healthcare workers that would care for those that became down with the virus or had other ailments that needed immediate attention. All of this was done for the sake of stopping of reducing the spread or wiping out the virus.

The result of these actions destroyed the travel industry. International travel became non-existent overnight. Domestic travel was limited because rest stops, gas stations, hotels, and attractions were barely open. Even something that could be a day trip was eliminated depending on the area you lived and how the rules were enforced.

While we all faced difficulties during the three years of the global pandemic, we now made it to the other side. I don't know about you, but that time was a great time of reflection and re-evaluation of what to do with life and what is most important.

In the years of the pandemic, I still traveled when I could. I took a two week road trip through the Pacific Northwest. I went on my first trip to Europe including six countries over three weeks. I visited family on both US coasts and places in between. I attended five weddings of close friends, three of which required travel out of state. During these trips I researched and followed current guidelines pertaining to the pandemic and some of them were actually good tips that I wonder why I did not do them before and continue to do them now.

Wearing a mask on a plane: I am not a big fan of flying, but it is something I do because my desire to travel is greater than my fear and dislike of flying. One of the things I dislike most about flying is the germs and the thought of being in a small capsule of a plane with a bunch of people for a designated period of time to reach our destination. And in that time I am exposed to all of the germs the other people on the flight carry. I cringe just thinking about hearing someone coughing relentlessly or sneezing on the plane. So whether it really works or it is just psychosomatic, I will now wear a mask on a plane.

Carrying and using disinfectant wipe and hand sanitizer: There are so many surfaces we come in contact with on a daily basis every day. Even in our every day lives. Surfaces serve as a spot for germs to hang out and spread between all of the people that come near or in contact with it. It is basic science that those germs can then make you sick, especially if you touch you eyes, nose, mouth, or anywhere on your face.

When traveling these many surfaces are still there, and sometimes may contain something you are not used to. By carrying disinfectant wipes I can wipe down some of the worst surfaces I come in contact with while traveling: the seat back tray on the plane, door handles, the TV remote at the hotel, table tops at a fast food restaurant, railings on the train. I acknowledge that there are employees in most of these situations that clean these surfaces, but it is unfortunately not at the best frequency or efficacy.

Similarly to the wipes, hand sanitizer is a great way to clean up before touching your face or eat. Especially when I travel, a bathroom may not always be available before eating or when I just feel like there is a layer of grime in my hands. Hand sanitizer is quick and easy and fits in my purse or backpack. I know, as you should to, that hand sanitizer does not kill everything that may be my hands, but it gets rid of a lot.

A plastic bag for the hotel TV remote: I am still working on this one because on every time I take I am not at a hotel. Numerous studies have reported that the dirtiest place in a hotel room is the TV remote. If I forget an extra plastic bag to put the remote in, I still wipe it down with a disinfectant wipe. When I do bring the extra bag, one of the first thing I do when I go into a hotel room is put the remote in a bag. I don't even have to touch the remote to put it into the bag and then it is set for the rest of my stay.

Checking over the hotel immediately: This habit is not directly pandemic travel related, but it is something I started doing after a bad experience at a hotel during my Pacific Northwest road trip. I turn on all of the lights to make sure they work. I look all around the bathroom to make sure it is clean, no residual hair or dirt from the last guest. I pull down the sheets of the bed and flip over the pillows, looking for bedbugs, hair, undesirable stains, or tears. I also check the closet if there is one and around the curtains, especially if they go all the way to the floor. There are more and more videos now circulating social media for how and why you should thoroughly check over your hotel room or rental space before settling in.

Asking for an extra glass of water at a restaurant (US travel): During the height of the pandemic, drinking fountains and water refill stations were turned off. This made staying hydrated while traveling difficult. However I found that at restaurants I could ask for an extra glass of water or ask for a refill of water towards the end of the meal that I could then dump into my water bottle. Unfortunately, during my travels, I did not always eat out at restaurants or I would not get enough water to be sufficient for a day and did not want to be a nuisance at the restaurant asking for multiple glasses of water to fill all of my water bottles, so I sometime had to buy water from the store.

Being a local tourist: With so many travel restrictions in place, the only way to "travel" was to find something that was close, and most likely outdoors. This was a great opportunity to be a tourist in my our neighborhood. I have lived in the same 30 mile radius nearly my entire life, but there are still a lot of places I have not been and things I have not done in that space or within 100 miles of it. In the years of 2020 to 2023 I explored a lot of this space, knowing there is still more. These local explorations I came to admire and love the place I call home even more.

Many of these habits I picked up are related to staying healthy while traveling. When traveling your immune system is not as efficient as it is exposed to new environments and sleeping and eating habits are disrupted despite best efforts. Little habits to stay healthy while traveling will make the trip that much more enjoyable and fear or hesitation of getting sick during or after traveling should not isolate you to a bubble and deprive you of the whole great world out there.