TRAVEL
Essential Tips for Your COVID-Free Travel
LGBTQ travelers should be mindful heading into a busy summer
BY JEFF GUARACINO
COVID-19 will make
travel a bit more complicated
this summer.
Going to Europe? Taking
a cruise? Visiting Hawaii, San
Juan, or St. Lucia? Or maybe you
are planning a road trip? The rules
for traveling responsibly during
COVID vary greatly. Be ready to
encounter a patchwork of confusing
rules and requirements this
summer.
Depending on what you choose
to do for your well-earned escape,
it is going to be necessary to educate
yourself on what to expect
and how to travel by the rules. Be
ready to prove you have a negative
COVID-19 test (and it may cost
you to prove it!). Prepping for your
trip in advance will pay off. Your
health, safety, peace of mind, and
fun is an important part of the
travel experience.
Here are fi ve essential tips for to
ensure you have a fabulous summer
getaway.
Research before booking
Before you book your trip, be
sure to understand how COVID-19
has changed the experience. Nearly
everything about travel has
changed due to COVID-19. Hotels,
airplanes, trains, theme parks,
destinations and resorts have all
have modifi ed safety precautions
in place. The good news is that you
will likely fi nd less crowds, more
space, and enhanced cleaning. You
may also fi nd limited services such
as curfews with bars and restaurants
closing early. A driving trip
within the US likely will fi nd less
restrictions compared to an island
trip.
Make reservations and buy
tickets in-advance
Before leaving for your trip, you
should book your restaurant reservations
and reserve your tickets
to a museum or attraction. While
you might not like having to plan
out your vacation in advance, you
will likely fi nd it hard to do all the
things you want to do by waiting.
COVID-19 means capacity restrictions,
so there is limited availability,
Be prepared when you travel during the COVID-19 era.
especially on weekends and during
peak periods. You can always make
changes when you are there.
When fl ying, give yourself extra
time at the airport
Many stores and food establishments
may still be closed
or have limited service, so it
will take longer to buy food and
drink. Most airlines have also
eliminated beverage and snack
service in coach, so be ready to
“Bring Your Own.”
Stay at a trusted hotel
Staying at a hotel is perhaps is
one of the most important travel
decisions you will make. Most
hotels have developed respected
cleaning protocols to keep you
and their employees safe. Among
the hotel industry’s leaders is The
Four Seasons. The Four Seasons
has developed “Lead With Care”
that includes both obvious hotel
guest protocols and enhanced procedures
behind the scenes, including
employee trainings. The Four
Seasons also developed an app
that provides guests with the highstandard
customer service the
luxury chain is known for while
providing guests with privacy and
limiting interactions with the team.
COVID-19 has increased the costs
for many hotels, so it is important
to stay with a trusted brand that
you can count on to deliver on the
safety measures promised.
Proof of a Negative COVID
test
The most complicated and expensive
part of COVID-free travel will be
meeting a requirement, if needed,
to prove you have a negative COVID
test. Hawaii, San Juan, cruise ships
and other travel experiences are requiring
that travelers prove they are
COVID negative upon arrival at the
destination or before starting your
trip. Some destinations even require
a mid-trip test to prove, again, that
you are still COVID negative.
Hawaii implemented a program
that requires travelers to the islands
REUTERSCHRIS HELGREN
to use a “trusted partner” (so
you can’t use any test and vaccinations
are not accepted). You must
create an account at travel.hawaii.
gov, download an app, and submit
results upon arrival from a COVID
test within 72 hours of arrival from
a trust partner.
Coming from Philadelphia
through Chicago, that meant I had to
order an expensive test from American
Airlines that was sent to me by
UPS. The test included a virtual call
to prove my identity and a virtual
assistant to show me how to properly
take the nasal smear. Within a
day of sending my test back via UPS,
I had my results. I printed out my
negative test, uploaded my results,
and also downloaded the QR code to
my phone. Aloha! Are you negative?
Mahalo.
Jeff Guaracino is the author of
two books on LGBT travel, a syndicated
travel columnist and an tourism
executive with more than two
decades in the industry.
MAY 6 - MAY 19, 2 6 021 | GayCityNews.com
/GayCityNews.com
