Category Archives for Commentary.
There’s so much pent up demand for travel thanks to the pandemic that 38% of Americans would be willing to give up sex for a year to travel freely.
At first blush it seems like ‘giving up sex for a year’ is a high price to pay for travel, but it may not be.
I’m so thankful for so much in the face of the last year. I’ve been able to grow closer with my family, even as I’ve given up so much international travel. Hopefully there are some things that we’ve learned in the last year that can continue to make travel and other parts of life even better.
One Mile at a Time asks “What Does New Vaccine Timeline Mean For Travel?” now that the current expectation is enough doses in the U.S. for every adult by the end of May. What he’s really asking, I think, is once you’ve been vaccinated (and waited two weeks for full protection) and once community spread is significantly reduced (from vaccinations, immunity from prior infection, and seasonality), will you feel comfortable traveling?
Christopher Elliott has naughty and nice list for travel companies during the pandemic. He sees some behaving as though “they think COVID-19 is a hoax.” That seems like an odd position to take considering their billions of dollars of losses. But what he’s saying is that airlines and hotel companies are making travel more comfortable or fun, that encourages travel, and that’s bad. And the self-styled consumer advocate glosses over a company that tried to steal customers’ money because they promise to make employees take vaccines.
The U.S. now requires a negative Covid-19 test in order to enter the country by air – even if you’re a citizen returning home. We’re hardly alone, many countries require a Covid-19 test to enter. Since testing can be an expensive hassle even people without the virus are faking negative tests. On one flight 95% of passengers presented fake negative results. But it’s not just negative Covid-19 test results that are being faked.
Hyatt cut its elite status earning requirements in half and is offering double elite nights for the first two months of 2021. Hilton cut its elite status earning requirements in half. But from Marriott we’ve heard nothing. Major airlines have announced their plans too… but not Delta or Southwest.
There’s an evergreen story at the end of each year, we hear over and over that Americans don’t use all their vacation days at work. We get fewer paid vacations than employees in other countries, too.
Now that we’re seeing these stories about 2020, can we at least say, sure, this year I get it?
Gem Tours & Travels, which is planning New York vaccine trips, claims to have coined the term ‘vaccine tourism’ and Zenith Holidays has promoted a London stay long enough for both vaccine doses at $8211 per person single occupancy ($6158 per person based on double occupancy) and expects that “by mid-January next year, the vaccine will be available for foreigners in the UK.”
We’re going to be excited to see people. With greater distancing and less time spent with others outside our household, other people will just seem more interesting. And we’ll see the people we’ve been stuck at home with for a year with fresh eyes when we’re on vacation.
An American citizen presenting themselves at the border is entitled to enter the country. They can be questioned, searched, and required to quarantine as a public health measure. But as a general matter citizens cannot be denied entry into the country.
Here the government places a requirement on airlines to prevent citizens from presenting themselves at the border. You can’t even get tested in much of the world. And there are few places where you’re allowed to go enroute in order to stop for a test.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
