Is it safe to travel during Covid?
For over a year now, travel during Covid has kept avid trekkers and occasional holiday trippers alike waiting on bated breath for news of when their dream destinations might open back up for tourism. At the time I am writing, travel during Covid is difficult, as most of the world is still a no go. Though, there are a few destinations open to travel, and I will cover one in specific.
Many of the articles I have read about the topic in the past year have been misleading or just plain useless. I want to attempt to share some real world experience that I hope will give someone wondering whether now is the time to travel or not some ideas. One should expect to have to jump through at least a few hoops in order to get there. So should I travel during Covid? Is it worth it? What does travel during Covid look like? It depends who you ask, but if you’re like me, it is, without a doubt.
The pandemic gave us a chance to do a little domestic travel that we often forgo to make time for more distant destinations, which was in itself a treat. But, we are itching to get out and learn something new from somewhere a little more foreign to us than the domestic trips we took to Wisconsin, Washington DC, Arizona, and Florida. The only realistic options on the table seem to be Latin America and the Caribbean as of now.
Mexico Travel During Covid
The easiest option, and the one we have chosen twice now, is Mexico. Mexico is one of our favorite countries anyway, but they have also maintained some of the most lax rules and regulations for tourism.
Some people are enticed by the promise of “deals” on hotels or flights. We haven’t found this to be overwhelmingly true. True, the demand has dropped, but on things like flights, so had the supply. Airplanes are as packed as ever and tickets are, if anything, more expensive. Hotels may be cheaper, but in general they are running at reduced capacity with more risk and more stringent requirements. We haven’t experienced a huge drop in that either. On the other hand, we have enjoyed lighter crowds in some places. Again though, only marginally.
What is it like? Is it safe to travel to Mexico during the Covid-19 pandemic?
We were kind of shocked the first time we arrived in Quintana Roo in November of 2020. In general, we found that masks were very selectively worn. There were often people on the collectivos (mass public transport vans that run in Mexico) with masks down on their chin or not present at all and no one was gawking. We took a ferry to Cozumel and found Playa Del Carmen to be jam packed with both tourists and locals. From what we noticed, it seemed that maybe 30% of the people had masks at all, and bars and restaurants were busy. Though the Cozumel ferry schedule was more limited than normal, it was no less packed. I joked that the main road looked like Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street in New Orleans.
This can be a bit of a shock, being from a fairly strict state in the US where I have been chastised for not wearing a mask while running on a trail. Some of the bars and restaurants had regulations on how many patrons could enter, and at what capacity they could run, but most places seem to come up with a work around.
What to expect when you travel
In November we stayed at a resort because we were unsure about what would be open and what wouldn’t; we wanted to play it safe. The resort was running at reduced capacity, but they were also running at reduced space. In other words, the 50% of normal guests were spending time in 50% of normal space which, if you do the math, is just 100% capacity to space. But, we had no complaints about it. In my opinion, most of the rules seemed to be more common sense than the ones in the US. But all that aside, it was honestly nice to be somewhere where it was easy enough to forget that there was a pandemic at all.
Be Respectful
The relaxed environment doesn’t mean that there is no pandemic though. Mexican people are carrying on with life because that is, in many cases, their only option. If you choose to go, you should, as usual, behave as a guest in their country. Don’t be the tourist who offends the locals, or worse, spreads a virus to them. Be 100% respectful of the rules as posted, be observant of the norms of what others are doing, and as simple as it sounds, treat others as you would want to be treated. It is a strange time in the world, and it has never been more important to be sensitive towards other people’s feelings and discomforts.
Is it okay to travel during the Covid-19 pandemic?
So, all that being said, should you visit Mexico or another destinations open to travel during Covid? That depends on a few things:
- First, your comfort level. If you’re predisposed to have a bad go with Covid 19, or you’re particularly worried about potentially contracting it for any reason, probably not. I’ve heard Americans talking about how well Mexico has handled the virus because their numbers are so much lower. Obviously I can only speak to what I have observed, but I would bet that this is much more a representation of less testing than less germs. The rules are in Cancun and throughout Quintana Roo are substantially more relaxed than Denver. So, the only way there are less cases is if the rules cause the virus to spread more. So to reiterate, if your top priority is to avoid getting sick, stay home.
- Second, if you can’t be respectful, don’t go. You will experience a more relaxed environment when it comes to Covid 19. But that doesn’t mean you should be anything but courteous and observe every rule and wish of the locals. Use your discretion for your own safety, but if you’re going to visit someone else's home, don’t step on toes. You’ll also have to get a Covid test upon reentering the US, and entering most other destinations. This can cost money, time, and inconvenience.
- Third, decide how important it is to you. Spending a year stuck at home, for me, is more than just an inconvenience. Experiencing the world is one of the main things I love to do. So the answer for me is a no brainer. You should expect some changes anywhere you go, and some of them are inconvenient, so you have to sort out where travel fits in your own priorities.
What should you take away from this?
I’ve tried to outline some of the pros and cons and the realities of travel during Covid since this pandemic started. If you’re unsure about whether to plan that trip, hopefully you have something to work off of. As a whole, the experience was well within my comfort zone, and completely worth it. However, everyone is working with a different set of data, so you have to make that decision for yourself. Good luck, and enjoy your trip whenever it happens!
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