The Pandemic
A year ago, the first known cases of the Coronavirus pandemic were recorded in China. Has it really been that long? It just doesn’t seem that long to me. Wuhan is known all over the world as the original epicenter of the virus. Wuhan was the hardest hit place in China and accounted for more than half of the country’s cases, about 4,500 deaths at the very beginning.
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Every country, city, and town has been touched by this pandemic. There is still a great deal of uncertainty about it. Restrictions are easing in some areas of the world, while other areas watch for flare-ups. Many current vaccines provide protection from illnesses such as measles, polio, and whooping cough, but not without controversy. Will a Corona vaccine be the answer? Will you take it? There are no precedents for this one.
The Travel Industry
The pandemic trashed eight-trillion dollars in the global travel industry in one quick swoop and has been an economic catastrophe for the industry. I don’t think travel will revert to the way it was, and I think everything we do for travel will change forever. Travel these days looks different in many ways. Face masks (whether you agree with them or not) will be around and mandatory for a while, physical distancing, closed businesses that couldn’t survive the initial restrictions and closures, and two-week quarantines.
The projected loss in airline revenue is estimated to plunge by at least $314 billion in 2020, or a drop of 55% from 2019 levels according to the International Air Transport Association. Personally, I think this estimate is quite low.
The “nosedive” and collapse of the tourist economy has changed people all around the globe. Bankrupted hotels, restaurants, car rental companies, just to name a few. Will this industry recover? Perhaps travel will change with people taking fewer trips but possibly it might mean that people will stay longer in one location when they do travel.
People are going to be more concerned and be more responsible for following new travel policies. Some people might decide to travel closer to home. We need to remind ourselves that travel boosts mental health and personal growth. This is going to be a difficult balance to achieve.
A previous post you might have missed: Coronavirus: Bottom Line | Effect on Us & Friends
Domestic Travel
Domestic travel might boom in 2021. It was the reason we originally purchased a motorhome, to begin with. Being more self-contained when traveling is a safer way to still travel. National Parks and campgrounds have seen a massive increase in visitors this past year. A renewed appreciation of the great outdoors. Unfortunately, Gary and I recently made a decision to spend more time in Italy and Europe – which now brings us to selling the beautiful RV. We don’t want it sitting around.
Pandemic Conclusion
As the events of September 11th once changed how we travel – so will traveling following this pandemic outbreak. I have a feeling that travel insurance premiums will get more costly. Our premium credit card trip protections you get when booking a flight might not cover pandemic illnesses. In fact, I’m not a betting gal – but think I could put money on this one. So travel just might get more costly.
When the world gets somewhat back to normal, whatever that looks like, it will take years for the airline and tourist industry to recover. We will have to wait and see exactly what those changes will look like.
Our post Launching Italy 2021: It’s Finally Here
