Hi ,

The travel industry is slowly but steadily working itself out of the past almost two years, which is so good to see! In order to be able to function at all most travel suppliers (tour companies, excursion companies, and cruise companies) have instituted vaccine, testing, and masking policies. So my best advice to you is that if you aren't vaxxed or don't want to provide proof of being vaxxed your options will be severely limited for the coming 6 months to a year.

If you are vaxxed and are willing to be tested before your trip and as you come back into the US you can now start to stretch your wings a little bit. You must also comply with whatever the masking policy is for flights, ships, tour groups, and countries. I anticipate that these requirements will remain in place until at least the middle of 2022. Several travel suppliers have already announced that their vaccine requirement will extend to everything they offer all the way through 2022.

It's clear that these policies have allowed travel to open up as the vast majority of travelers clearly want to travel with other travelers who have been vaxxed. In survey after survey more than 90% of potential travelers will only consider a trip that puts them with other vaxxed travelers.

Anyway - enough about all that - it's everywhere in the news so you've probably heard all this a zillion times.

Here are my observations and recommendations for you right now.

• Many resorts in Mexico are having a hard time providing the upscale food and services they are known for. I'm hearing lots of talk about lack of staffing, so-so food, lack of maintenance in the rooms and grounds. This is not true of ALL properties in Mexico, but if you want to go to an all-inclusive (or a resort that isn't all inclusive) please contact me and let me research that for you through my contacts. It's never a guarantee, but I can usually get a read pretty quickly.
• The Caribbean is somewhat open and somewhat not, depending on the country's rules. Many of the smaller islands don't have a lot of medical staff or vaccine and consequently they are quite strict about entry into their small island, which makes total sense. This literally changes almost every day. Bill and I are headed to the Caribbean in January as of right now and will be on a vaxxed only ship with pre-testing and masks required. I still would not be surprised if our itinerary changes at the last minute because of openings or closings of countries, based on how they are doing covid-wise. TAKEAWAY Don't be surprised at port changes at the last minute, and keep in mind that cruise lines have the right to do that even during your cruise. It has always been true, with last minute changes usually due to bad weather.
• Europe is opening up but there are still cancellations announced weekly for tour companies and cruise companies. River cruise sales are very strong, expect prices to rise dramatically. TAKEAWAY If you want to do a river cruise in 2022 or 2023 it is smart to book and deposit it now and lock in your pricing. For river cruising I like to use Amawaterways and Avalon. I do not recommend Viking.
• If you are willing to travel between now and the end of 2021 I can get you some pretty decent pricing, but be prepared to meet requirements for the country(s) you will be traveling through and don't get out of sorts if there are last minute changes. Look at it as an adventure!

Specific trips I like for good value and great experiences

• Oceania has some really beneficial pricing right now for their 2022 and 2023 sailings, I've recently booked one for us that is half the normal cost. Oceania is an upscale small ship brand and you will be treated very well and fed extremely good food. Must book by the end of September for these prices!
• Azamara has some good pricing for Europe and South America for 2022 and 2023. I love their unique itineraries. Aza is another upscale small ship. Their current offers end in early October.
• Globus has very well organized land tours and I particularly like their pricing for Switzerland this coming summer. Again, their current pricing will soon be over. Globus also does a great job in Italy, England, Spain, and France.

By the end of this coming December it will have been two full years that Bill and I have not traveled outside of the United States. By contrast, in 2019 we were out of the US for 3 months of the year overall and traveled to 18 countries. So you might say we have a strong case of wanderlust! We have plans to travel pretty extensively in 2022 and 2023 and we are locking in our pricing before it goes sky high, which it will. Demand is strong and many travel suppliers are struggling to get their staff, guides, and local contacts in place again. Sadly, quite a few local guides will never be back in business.

The travel world demands a sharp eye and the willingness to roll with the punches. If you are a traveler who gets upset at sudden changes or expects perfection my best advice is to not contemplate traveling for another year. If you want some nice pricing and are willing to be flexible let me help you jump in!

I'm happy to provide a quote to you for any of the trips I mentioned above, or anything else you might be interested in. If you want to stay domestic in the coming year I suggest rail trips, guided tour groups by Globus or Tauck, US based river cruises, and trips to Alaska for 2022 (either land or cruise).

As always you can email me with any questions you may have.

Here's to more travel for all of us in the coming 12 months!

Sue Painter

Travel Changes Life

941-720-1842