Is it possible to travel responsibly (during a pandemic)?

[waterone]

There's more to it than that, though. Getting back home, for example. I ate the cost of a trip to Socorro in early January because the chance of getting stuck there was simply not acceptable to me. Even a mild or asymptomatic case would have been enough to keep me off my flight home. When I went to Roatan in July the situation was different. Omicron had not yet appeared and vaccination was effective against the strains prevalent at the time.

I went to Cozumel two weeks ago. It was very nice...but Socorro would have been amazing. I would have gone, and I am in the middle of planning a trip there. From what I read on currently if asymptomatic you are only stuck for up to 5 days and to me that is not horrible.

I wore an n95 on the way down but while down there I gave up on the n95 and wore cloth the rest of the time when needed.

The 6-foot social distance is quite laughable as while eating in a packed airport the people in bars and most restaurants are 3 feet max from each other unmasked, often coughing away. Also going through customs or any other line for that matter, no one gives you space.

Testing on the way back was painless and free since we stayed more than a week. Traveling to Hawaii I find more stressful but even there I'm going back in a few months.

 

[O-ring]

There's more to it than that, though. Getting back home, for example. I ate the cost of a trip to Socorro in early January because the chance of getting stuck there was simply not acceptable to me. Even a mild or asymptomatic case would have been enough to keep me off my flight home. When I went to Roatan in July the situation was different. Omicron had not yet appeared and vaccination was effective against the strains prevalent at the time.

This risk is very real and should factor into everybody's "go/no go" calculus. I was in Socorro about the same time you were supposed to be (Dec 21 - Jan 22) and a dude who came all the way from Switzerland failed the antigen test administered by Nautilus to board the Belle Amie. He was completely asymptomatic and had been traveling with a group of 4-5 buddies for a couple of weeks (they took their time getting down to Mexico and spent time touring parts of California, etc.). They tested him again and he failed the second test as well so was denied boarding (note that the group was vaxxed as well). None of his fellow Swiss traveling buddies tested positive. While we were all out diving he was sitting in a hotel in Cabo eating room service on his dime. When we got back we heard he was still testing positive so we all went home and left him in MX. I assume he made it home eventually, but getting stuck somewhere and being forced to stay against your will is a very real possibility these days. If that would cause problems for you at home or at work I'd definitely weight that part of the equation a bit when deciding whether or not to go somewhere.

I also totally agree with @peeweediver that the stress of the outbound test, the fear of getting it on the plane down and ending up like my Swiss friend and then the nagging feeling all week on the boat of possibly testing positive from all that interaction and getting stuck all detracted from the overall trip.

 

[Robert H. Diver]

There's more to it than that, though. Getting back home, for example. I ate the cost of a trip to Socorro in early January because the chance of getting stuck there was simply not acceptable to me. Even a mild or asymptomatic case would have been enough to keep me off my flight home. When I went to Roatan in July the situation was different. Omicron had not yet appeared and vaccination was effective against the strains prevalent at the time.

Your reply is completely off topic from the original post.

 

[uncfnp]

Your reply is completely off topic from the original post.

OP here and that post is entirely on topic since threads, just like pandemics, evolve and I welcome all discussion on travel and covid concerns.

 

[Robert H. Diver]

OP here and that post is entirely on topic since threads, just like pandemics, evolve and I welcome all discussion on travel and covid concerns.

The question was, can you travel responsibly? Not how scared is everyone of missing flights?

 

[drrich2]

As the virus and vaccination have become so pervasive, these days I think the concept of responsibility has broadened to include responsibility to family and job back home if you get stuck several days in a foreign destination beyond the original plan. It’s no longer just about fear of spreading the virus.

I know it’s a different kind of responsibility than the original focus, but it impacts trip planning.

 

[waterone]

I also totally agree with @peeweediver that the stress of the outbound test, the fear of getting it on the plane down and ending up like my Swiss friend and then the nagging feeling all week on the boat of possibly testing positive from all that interaction and getting stuck all detracted from the overall trip.

I have always been horrible at predicting the possible futures, so I do my best not to. But of course minds can run often on such thoughts, and it still happens. Thats why I like scuba so much as it forces me to just breathe and be in the moment.

I'm sure there were many on the planes that had it, many in the restaurants, many that walked by, some that were talked to and maybe even some on the boats.

But I still get travel insurance that will cover those things, so I don't have to pay out of pocket..

 

[tursiops]

OP here and that post is entirely on topic since threads, just like pandemics, evolve and I welcome all discussion on travel and covid concerns.

This is the OP.

The question was, can you travel responsibly? Not how scared is everyone of missing flights?

This is arguing with the OP about what her OP was about.

As the virus and vaccination have become so pervasive, these days I think the concept of responsibility has broadened to include responsibility to family and job back home if you get stuck several days in a foreign destination beyond the original plan. It’s no longer just about fear of spreading the virus.

I know it’s a different kind of responsibility than the original focus, but it impacts trip planning.

Exactly.

 

[Joneill]

As the virus and vaccination have become so pervasive, these days I think the concept of responsibility has broadened to include responsibility to family and job back home if you get stuck several days in a foreign destination beyond the original plan. It’s no longer just about fear of spreading the virus.

I know it’s a different kind of responsibility than the original focus, but it impacts trip planning.

I'd call that risk tolerance and that really depends on your personal situation (work and family commitments and flexibility). For example, It would not be a big deal for me to get stuck for a bit in a destination as I could easily work remotely - however, my wife could not as her job does not allow much remote work at present. That is different than what I interpreted as the original question on responsibility - I took that to mean ability to travel without spreading the virus and possibly making the pandemic situation worse.

 

[Robert H. Diver]

I'd call that risk tolerance and that really depends on your personal situation (work and family commitments and flexibility). For example, It would not be a big deal for me to get stuck for a bit in a destination as I could easily work remotely - however, my wife could not as her job does not allow much remote work at present. That is different than what I interpreted as the original question on responsibility - I took that to mean ability to travel without spreading the virus and possibly making the pandemic situation worse.

Exactly.