Travel

After many years of being looked down on, motels are getting new respect in the era of social distancing.

Guests at open-corridor inns may come and go without passing through crowded lobbies, packed elevators, or enclosed hallways where viruses may linger.“In outdoor corridors, people feel safe,” said Mike Riverside of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association. “People can go directly to their rooms” and potentially reduce exposure to the coronavirus.

Outdoor-facing, low-rise motels and hotels also stand to benefit from being typically reached by car, unlike big resorts and urban hotels that rely on air travel to deliver most guests.

Read the entire article: Motels are having a moment. It’s a coronavirus thing | Living | timesnews.net

Had this been a normal year, we would all be donning our mustache wax, blue blazers and straw boater hats and driving the Duesenberg up to Monterey for the big annual car celebration. But this isn’t a normal year, nothing is normal; had this year been a brain it would be the one in the Abby-Normal jar.

Which is just fine with the people at the Concours d’Lemons. They held their annual celebration of wheeled poor taste online this year instead of among the goose poop and lawn clippings of Seaside, California.

Read the entire article: Concours Season Kicks Off With Virtual Concours d’Lemons 2020

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., July 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Despite COVID-19 travel restrictions and uncertainty, US residents are still taking vacations. Travel insurance comparison site, Squaremouth.com, reports more US travelers than ever this year.

Pent Up Demand for Travel Leads to Spike in Domestic TripsA 19% increase in the number of US travelers this year highlights a pent up demand for travel, while international trips have been limited by travel restrictions and border closures.”We are seeing travel rebound, despite international travel bans. This increase in domestic travel is encouraging,” says Megan Moncrief, CMO of Squaremouth.com. “We are happy to report that more travelers are exploring the US this year.”

Read the entire article: Despite Uncertain Economic Times, Domestic Travel Surges

In some countries where Covid-19 cases are receding, governments are attempting to entice travelers to help save battered tourism industries with offers of discounted flights, vouchers for local attractions and free entry to tourist sites. A few are even offering to pay travelers’ medical expenses if they are infected with the virus.

For now, Americans living in the United States are prohibited from entering almost all of these countries because of the high level of Covid-19 cases at home.

Read the entire article: Visa Waivers, Vouchers, Flight Discounts and Other Travel Lures – The New York Times

Summer 2020 is going to be different than those that have come before it. Instead of block parties, we’re opting for pared-down backyard barbecues. Instead of graduation parties, we’re cooking an intimate dinner with the family.

However, these swaps we’re making as we take social-distancing protocols into account do not mean that we can’t have a great time—we just have to get more creative.

An easy way to up the ante on a low-key activity is to experiment with food and beverages. We tapped winemakers from two wineries, Penfolds in Australia and the Joseph Phelps Vineyard in the Napa Valley, to share their expertise on wine and food pairings for every (socially distanced) summertime activity. Whether you’re snuggling up for a cozy movie night or finding new ways to celebrate milestones, they’ve shared ways to excite your palate at even the simplest event.

Read the entire article: The Best Summer Food and Wine Pairings for At-Home Activities – Coveteur

Striking the balance between wanting to get away while ensuring you can physically distance while doing so — Amtrak’s private rooms check off all the boxes for a safe vacation.

Hearkening back to an older and slower style of travel, a train journey can provide a relaxing way to take in the scenery and a private room provides a way to do that while limiting your exposure to other passengers.

“As a truly unique experience when traveling by train, private rooms [offer] our customers added privacy, comfort, and space to enjoy the journey without having to worry about maintaining social distance,”

Read the entire article: Amtrak’s Sleeper Cars Make for the Perfect Socially Distanced Trip | Travel + Leisure

The last thing anyone wants to do is spend more money than necessary when planning a vacation. But luckily, there are plenty of great apps to help you cut your travel costs.For every stage of a trip, from scheduling flights to booking a hotel, apps can help travelers see a wide variety of listings, according to Edward Pizzarello, travel blogger and editor of Pizza in Motion. TravelSkills blogger Chris McGinnis adds that some travel apps “are also helpful in alerting you to schedule changes, seat assignments . . . so it’s worth having them on your phone.”

Read the entire article: 6 Travel Apps That Will Help You Save Money on Your Next Vacation

Thanks to all our modern conveniences — GPS, Google Maps, self-driving cars, automatic pilot — traveling around the world has become easier than ever before. But what if all that went away? Would humanity still be able to figure out how to get from point A to point B?For one group of explorers, the answer is yes: Using absolutely no modern-day technology, they navigated a Polynesian canoe all the way around the globe.

As the Associated Press reported, the ship, which started its trip in 2014, had about a dozen crewmembers onboard for each leg of the global journey. The crew used their knowledge of currents, birds, wind, and the stars to sail nearly 40,000 nautical miles, making stops in 19 countries.

Read the entire article: Voyagers Complete 3-year Trip Around the World in a Polynesian Canoe With No Modern Technology | Travel + Leisure