Tag Archives: Superbowl

The Super Bowl, Vaccines, Covid and Travel

February’s under way with lots of snow in the northeast and Tom Brady wins his 7th Super Bowl. He used to be our guy. But he left us and opted for warmer weather. So now we’re all Buccaneer fans!

Valentine’s day coming up, and the vaccine is slowly and painfully being distributed. Some states moving faster than others but the wheels are turning.

Some questions arising this week. International questions. Is there any place open right now? In brief, from a traveler’s point of view…. not really. Europe is still closed, but they are vaccinating at a decent clip.  Airlines are insisting on a Covid test requirement for all International flights. Domestic, while threatening to do the same, has not instituted a Covid test requirement yet. That may change and masks are still mandatory on all flights.

Until we reach levels of herd immunity (75-80%) it’s unlikely we will see any relaxation.  In addition, Vaccine Passports are now being used and phased in on some cruises.  Expect that to gain popularity as the vaccine program rolls out more extensively.  For 2022, it will almost certainly be a standard factor in travel.  It may mean adult only passengers will need to have a vaccine passport.  Not sure quite how this will pan out, but more clarity will develop over the next month or so.

Some resort hotels are now offering Covid testing as a way to offset the fall in demand for warm climate vacations.  Airlines have seen a massive drop off because of the new ruling that prevents travelers returning to the USA without a prior test.

The world is moving at different speeds when it comes to vaccines.  As would be expected. Follow the money.  Two countries do not publish Covid data.  Tanzania and North Korea. Tanzania is full speed ahead on opening, but it hasn’t reported a Covid case since last April. Only 509 cases total have been reported and that number has not budged, while its neighbors are off the charts. According to the President of Tanzania, it’s all down to divine intervention. Good luck with that during safari vacation season!

Some great news on the transatlantic front.  JetBlue has announced it will open up a Boston and New York London corridor in May.  Blue sky is coming!!  Great Business class (Mint) at a fraction of the price of the regular carriers and twice as nice!  In addition, the economy fares are great with more amenities than their competitors.  JetBlue is in the transatlantic business….hooray.

Peter