10 Tips for Road-tripping during a Global Pandemic
Rules of the Road
After returning from an 8 day road-trip down the coast of Maine I’ve rounded up 10 tips for road-tripping during a global pandemic. With a little bit of extra effort you can have a great vacation and still protect yourself and others from possible transmission of Covid-19.
This is not the time to wing it.
Everyone romanticizes the idea of jumping in the car and stumbling upon the most epic find. Unless you plan on sleeping in your car, a global pandemic is not the time to wing it. Every type of business across every state has made changes to their offering based on state and local guidelines and recommendations. This might mean less hotel rooms or less tables to dine at or closed businesses all together. Map out ahead of time the basics (Where you’re going to stay, what the local guidelines are, and what activities are available to do). If there are must do’s on your list, make sure you call them ahead of time to make sure you can still visit.
Before you start planning, have an open conversation about what your travel companions are comfortable with.
Before you start planning anything understand what your travel companions are okay with. Are they only comfortable dining outside, not comfortable being around large groups of people at tourist attractions etc. This will make it easier to make decisions that work for everyone and avoid any awkward conversations.
Call hotels you plan on staying at beforehand to know their protocols.
Tourism is struggling right now. Yes, there are deals to be found on flights but it’s more difficult to find deals at hotels (especially independently owned ones). Check out their website or call ahead to understand what they’re doing to combat transmission of covid-19. Keep in mind, in addition to safety, to make up for the revenue loss they may be cutting services or amenities such as breakfast, evening wine hours, or even room cleanings. Don’t be afraid to ask them how they’re handling it. Know what you’re paying for.
Buy a National Parks pass.
Even if nature isn’t your thing, there’s more included than just parks in a National Parks pass. National Seashore beaches, national monuments, and national heritage sites may be included in your pass- saving you hundreds of dollars. Plus it supports the parks!
Use social media to stay on top of changing rules around traveling.
Rules vary by state and are changing on the regular. Follow states and their governor’s on social media to keep up with changes to travel restrictions if you’re going out of state.
Don’t wait until the last minute to find a bathroom.
Depending on the business, some gas stations or coffee shops may be limiting bathroom usage to mitigate possible transmission. Bottom line is don’t wait until the last minute to find one if you are far from a rest area!
Snacks on Snacks, on Snacks.
Typically, I’d recommend doing as much as you can to support the local economy by buying on the road but in an effort to limit your exposure to local communities keep plenty of snacks and drinks on hand in the car or keep a cooler in the trunk to keep drinks and food cold.
Keep extra masks and hand sanitizer handy in the car.
It’s easy to forget we’re in a pandemic, and sometimes that means forgetting your mask back at the hotel or misplacing it. Keep extra disposable or cloth masks in the car so you always have extra handy. Same goes for hand sanitizer when you can’t wash your hands.
Be Flexible!
Nothing is how it was before, therefore, expectations need to managed. wait times might be a little bit longer or things that you had planned on doing may not be available anymore. Take it in stride, be flexible, and have backup plans.
Now more than ever, be friendly
This is a rule of thumb even not in a pandemic: When you’re traveling you’re representing where you’re from. When you’re wearing a mask it is harder to tell if you’re smiling behind it so be extra friendly. Ask a person how they’re doing- a lot of them might be scared to have so many people visiting from all over. Vacation or not, we’re still all in this together!
