Flight Safety
So everyone still wants to travel, right? The world is vast with many travel destinations, yet it is ever-changing as well. Luckily, airline companies can keep up. To reduce the spread of COVID-19 among airplane passengers, many airlines require masks to be worn for the flight duration and leave the middle seat empty. The idea is to have more space between passengers to lead to a safer travel experience. Although it is safer to leave the middle seat open, it is not the best choice financially. Numerous empty seats equate to significant financial losses for the airline industry. Cruise ship operators do not have this luxury. The public can expect cruise ships to begin operating at 50% capacity at this time, like the Quantum of the Seas. Unfortunately, there are no non-Singaporean resident travelers allowed or port stops available for that cruise line. With that being said, the public can expect flight and cruise prices to rise to their regular price ranges soon steadily.
Countries Might Have Travel Bans
A US citizen might want to travel to Guadeloupe, but Guadeloupe currently has a travel ban against anyone from the United States. Before a US citizen can travel internationally, they should check the country of their interest for any travel restrictions. Some countries might require visitors to quarantine for some time and even take a COVID-19 test upon arrival. However, there is a new concept called “travel bubbles” or “corona corridors” that do not require travelers to quarantine upon arrival to jumpstart air tourism and travel again. It also comes with the risk of COVID-19 cases increasing in certain areas. Then quarantine would have to start again in different places of the world. Unfortunately, effective contact tracing seems to be in the discussion stage at the moment.
Looking Ahead
However, the public can expect cleanliness and sanitization to be the norm. It already is! Numerous hand-washing practices have been released since the outbreak first emerged. New practices will probably include more technological advances related to contact-free interactions. As the world advances towards a vaccine, the travel industry will have to maintain safety standards for a clean experience.