Has the recent lockdown made your urge to travel worse than usual? If so, you’re not alone. When Dennis announced that he had a business trip to the University of Cincinnati this past week, I was more than willing to go along. He needed to be there on both Friday and the following Monday, so it made sense to spend the weekend rather than drive the 300 plus miles back and forth a second time. Rather than stay in Ohio, I thought we could travel a little further south and visit a few places in Kentucky. Reflecting on our trip, I’ve come up with ten tips for safe travel during the current epidemic.
Eleven Tips for Safe Travel During the Current Pandemic
Tip #1: Don’t go if you’ve been feeling sick or if you’ve been exposed.
This should be common sense, but it does need to be said. If anyone in your party has a fever of 100.4 or higher or has been exhibiting any of the signs of coronavirus, stay home. In addition, if you’ve been exposed to the virus, self-quarantine for two weeks. Don’t take the chance of spreading this virus and making the outbreak worse.
Tip #2: Check travel restrictions.
Be sure to check current state restrictions for any states you will be traveling into or through, including your own. Find out if you will be expected to quarantine upon arrival at your destination or when you arrive home. These restrictions have been put in place to slow the spread of the virus and to assure safe travel for all of us.
Tip #3: Make activity reservations early.
I really wanted to visit a distillery along the Bourbon Trail. However, most of them were closed. The ones that weren’t closed had very few, if any, time slots available. Most attractions are limiting the number of visitors so that people will be able to social distance. We ended up not visiting any distilleries because the times didn’t work for us.
We also thought about visiting Mammoth Cave. However, this national park is also working on a reduced tour schedule. They are only scheduling 50 people each hour. Unfortunately, all the reservations were taken for Saturday, the only day we could have gone.
As you make your itinerary, be sure to check attractions websites to find out if they are open and if they suggest making a reservation. If reservations are suggested, make one.
Tip #4: For safe travel, stay within driving distance.
It’s much easier to practice social distancing if you can be in your own vehicle. We took the company truck on this trip, and it was just the two of us inside. Avoid public transportation, flying, or cruises if you can. If you must fly or take a train, be sure to wipe down surfaces, wear a mask, and wash your hands often. As much as I hate not being able to visit relatives in Canada, this is not the time to be traveling internationally unless it’s absolutely essential.
Tip #5: Stay in quality hotels or consider camping.
If you have your own RV or tent, you’re set for social distancing (here’s a list of my favorite camping essentials if you are just starting out or want to add to your gear). We chose to stay in hotels. It just made sense as Dennis had to be at the University two of the four days. We stayed in four different hotels, two Best Westerns and two Hampton Inns. If you can stay, choose one hotel as a base and make day trips from there to lessen your possibility of exposure. The hotels we stayed at seemed very clean and had special policies in place to ensure safe travel and prevent the spread of virus.
All of the hotels we stayed at had grab and go prepackaged breakfasts. Usually there was a bottle of water, an apple or a banana, and a pastry or muffin of some sort inside. None of them had the usual breakfast buffets. Only one of the four hotels (the last one, back in Cincinnati) had an open pool. Even the elevators had restrictions–two or fewer people unless traveling as a family group.
Tip #6: Choose open air attractions whenever possible.
We enjoy visiting state and national parks, so that is what we ended up doing this past weekend. Our safe travels included visiting the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, Cumberland Falls State Park, and the Kentucky Horse Park. There were hardly any people at the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace–we were the only two (the first two actually) in the visitor center and only saw three other groups as we were exploring the grounds.
Cumberland Falls State Park was much more crowded. However, many people were wearing masks (even outdoors), and people did seem to keep their distance from others. I didn’t think to bring a small hand sanitizer with me to use after I used the handrail along the stairs–if you do visit someplace with handrails, be sure to bring hand sanitizer or wash your hands often.
The crowds at Kentucky Horse Park were in between the Lincoln Birthplace and Cumberland Falls. However, the horse park is big enough that it was easy to keep your distance from others and stay safe. Their schedule was reduced too though, so the same people went from show to show with you. With larger barns and arenas, it wasn’t hard to stay six feet away from other groups.
Tip #7: Pack food so that you don’t have to eat out often.
We almost always take food with us on road trips–it’s one of the items on my road trip essentials list. For this trip, we took lunch meat, cheese, buns, fruit, drinks, and snacks. It was easy to have ham and cheese sandwiches in the truck as we were driving down the road. With kids, we always stop at a rest area picnic area, but with just the two of us, it was easy to “keep trucking,” as Dennis says. Having that food in our cooler allowed us to eat three less meals in restaurants, although Dennis did have pizza delivered to the hotel one night.
Tip #8: Pack supplies for safe travel and virus prevention.
Make sure you take your masks. Some places will require them; others will not. However, it’s always good to have them with you. Bring a larger size of hand sanitizer for inside your vehicle and smaller ones for in your purse or pocket. If you can find Chlorox wipes or disinfectant spray, bring those with you as well. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Tip #9: Avoid cities and crowds as much as possible.
Our first thoughts were to visit Louisville. I’d thought about visiting the Louisville Slugger Museum, the Kentucky Derby Museum, and Churchill Downs. I was sure we could spend the entire weekend exploring the city.
And then, I mentioned to our daughter, the lawyer, what our plans were. She put a stop to that right away, saying “Mom, they’re rioting in Louisville. That’s where Breonna Taylor’s from.” I knew Breonna Taylor’s tragic and terrifying story, but never connected it to Louisville, Kentucky. After Meghan’s words of wisdom, we decided to stay as far away from major cities as possible.
Tip #10: Be patient and willing to change plans as needed.
You may have to wait for others to clear out before entering a visitor center, shop, or other indoor area. Just be patient and wait your turn. It will come. Don’t argue with employees–it’s their job to follow the state, local, and business guidelines. Be kind and courteous to those that are working–many of them are in higher risk categories but still need to earn a paycheck. It’s not their fault that all the tours are booked or that there are less activities or conveniences than usual.
Because our trip was somewhat last minute, we didn’t go with a set itinerary in mind. We just knew we were going to Cincinnati, then somewhere in Kentucky, and then back to Cincinnati. As I did more research (mainly on my iPad in the truck or at night in the hotel), I set the plans for the next day. There are so many cool things to see and do in Kentucky that I know we’ll be back.
Tip #11: Have fun!
Our entire trip involved 1070 miles of traveling from Northeast Ohio to Kentucky and back on Thursday until Monday. Dennis would have driven 1216 miles anyway if he had come home Friday and gone back to Cincinnati on Sunday. It was a little different to be traveling during this epidemic–for the most part, hotels and attractions (except the falls) were eerily empty. We had a good time, as we always do when we travel together. We saw some interesting and beautiful places and learned some new things. What more could we ask for?
Final Thoughts on Safe Travel during the Pandemic
All in all, I’m glad we were able to get away for this weekend. It was hard canceling our Disney trip a week before we were supposed to visit with our Colorado grandsons. And, it’s been difficult knowing the U.S.-Canadian border has been closed for the first time in my life (extended until at least July 21 at this point). This time of year, we’re usually getting ready for our annual July trip to visit family in Apsley, Ontario, and it’s sad to know our trip to my favorite place won’t happen. It was sweet of Dennis to suggest this little weekend trip.
I do think that we stayed as safe as possible and limited our contact with other people, avoiding crowds and indoor areas as we could. Traveling is different these days, but it can be done relatively safely if you follow these tips for safe travels during the epidemic, as well as local and state guidelines.
These are great tips! We just changed the location and dates of an upcoming family trip so that we can drive rather than fly. I was interested to learn what to expect staying at hotels with social distancing. Thank you!
Great suggestions! We’re currently packing to head out on a 9 day camping trip starting this weekend, and we couldn’t be more excited. Sometimes, you just need to get out and go somewhere. After all, there isn’t much that you can do that embodies social distancing better than camping. Especially when we’re staying on a walk in site away from the road and the rest of the campers at the park. I think it’s important to get out and give ourselves a feeling of ‘normal’ by travelling/exploring our own area of the world at this point. We’ve all been locked inside for so long, we’re getting cabin fever!
I’ve been itching to escape as well. Arizona is calling my name right now. But they are now basically locked down for a second time after a huge spike in cases. So no trips for me right now. But I’m like you, I would take my truck and drive myself. Can’t get anyone else sick if I’m only breathing on myself. This is such a thorough and very important list for anyone wanting to travel right now.
Great tips for the new normal travel plan. Carrying food, mask, sanitizer are a must now a days
These tips are fantastic! I didn’t even think to schedule activities ahead of time.
Those are great tips, especialy the #3. We are going to Turkey in July so they will come in handy
I agree with all of these tips specially number 1, we shouldn’t go. There are plenty of time to travel. We should wait til we’re cleared.
There is so much to love in this article. Thanks for promoting responsible, safe travel that doesn’t put anyone at risk. I especially like how your daughter advised you not to visit Louisville, as I always love to hear family members watching out for each other.
I’m going to have to take a plane to Switzerland this summer if I want to see any of my family members at all this year. To stay safe, I will:
– Take a car to the airport instead of public transport, especially as my flight is in the middle of the day and I’d be taking the train at rush hour.
– Wear a mask from start to finish and also wear a face shield on the plane, just in case someone in my vicinity coughs or sneezes.
– Bring a little bottle of hand sanitizer I can use whenever I need to touch my face.
Traveling has been cut off dramatically this year. I am happy you came up with this post for people to do the best they can and be safe when they do travel.
I enjoyed reading this post. Anything about traveling at this time is on hold for me. I cancelled most of our plans for this year.
The new travel trend is visiting place with less crowd, definitely not touristic places. Also best to promote local travel first.
Well thought out post and great advice, though packing food should be a must even without the pandemic, gives you more spending money !
We can be so careful with everything than inadvertently touch something like a handrail, that thousands of people have touched. Great tip about carrying hand sanitizer with you for moments like these.
Those are some great tips – I sure hope people will take them in account 🙂
This pandemic came in just at the time I was thinking I’m good enough to travel to all the places I’ve always wanted to see. I hope it’s over soon. Thanks for all this tips. We need them especially now.
Great article. Much needed information at the moment. Its best if we could avoid travel for now but if we need to, we must follow these safety travel tips.
Checking restricted places is really very important and about packing food too so that u dont have tp eat out. These are really very important tips.
I’ve been planning to travel to new foreign countries but it was totally ruined by the pandemic. And this tips is very useful and still currently looking forward on them.
These are some helpful tips we need to consider before traveling. But I guess, its really scary and not safe for us to travel while pandemic crisis is spreading widely all over the places. Even you take precautionary measures seriously.
I’m glad you had a good trip! I’m hoping me and my hubby can get away soon too!
LOVE this post. so much sound and sensible advice for sure. Practical information that everyone will find useful x
This is a fabulous post, well thought-through and so needed right now with many new people being attracted to road trips rather than flying, sailing or going by train. Even those that are frequent road trippers would find the advice and tips here to be really helpful. When it comes to hand sanitisers for example, many of us have thought of having this in the vehicle, but the idea to also have small containers of these for our handbags is a great idea to use, especially with things such as handrails you referred to earlier. We all need to be more conscious of ways to stay safe and contain this awful virus.
I was just thinking about what to do when I travel in the near future. This is a very helpful guide with many practical steps, thank you!
Tip #3 is so essential! I’ve seen some places limiting tours to only groups who live in the same household!
Awesome safety guides and rules for travelling you have provided, this I find very useful not only during Pandemic but whenever we plan to travel, just to be on the safe side.
We will be going back on lockdown unfortunately, but saving these notes for future travels that are hopefully sooner than later!
I can’t wait to travel again…it’s just so sad that we don’t know what’s going to happen from one day to the next and if we cross borders, are we going to get back in. Thanks for sharing…;)
I think as much as possible, only travel if it’s truly essential. It’s better to be safe than get infected. Thanks for the tips!
Great tips! I am sure we all have to use these for many many more days (or months) to come. Totally relate and agree with flexibility to be able to change & adapt, as needed
Great and needed tips these days! Staying flexible is a must.
These are great tips! I have family spread out over the country and I’m considering a road trip instead of air travel. I will implement these tips on my next trip! Thank you for great information! ❤️
It’s times like these where I wish I have a cottage to go to. Great tips!
We have a cottage in the family. The problem is that the US-Canada border is closed and we can’t get there. I love the lake. 🙁
I love your Pinterest graphics fyi 🙂 We’ve resorted to mostly RV getaways the second the campgrounds started opening! These are great tips and with a little extra thought, you can always find someplace safe to enjoy!
Thank you so much for all these wonderful tips, we sure do need them, especially at this period.
These are great tips! We went on vacation in May and we were perfectly safe! Stayed at a VRBO and brought most of our own food and didn’t really go anywhere but the beach, around no one lol. It was still fun!