Will it be safe to go on a cruise or international trip in September 2022? Or November 2022? Will we need to cancel our regular February trip to Cabo (again) due to Omicron?
Last year around this time I made some predictions about when the pandemic would be over and when travel would get back to sort-of normal. I was wrong – didn’t see Delta and Omicron coming. The big impact of that was cancelling the S America / Antarctica trip. That was a bummer, and a complicated one – lots of moving parts to that trip. But with the way Omicron seems to be burning through countries right now, I think it was a good move. Trip could have been a shitshow, or worse.
I’ve had good luck canceling travel without penalty, but the accrued air travel credits are starting to pile up. Credits with SWA, United and American all need to be used in 2022.
Regional travel by car (and camping) may be the best plan for Q1 2022, while Omicron burns through. Or just staying home and exercising, which is sorely needed (pun intended) but doesn’t sound like much fun.
I held off most travel in 2020 and 2021 except some road trips: the Texas beach with my mom and Becky (sister), a Texas family visit with James, a New England trip with Becky, and our annual Thanksmas trip- this year to Hot Springs, Arkansas. I have a few planned trips for 2022 that I hope can come safely to fruition: a road trip to Savannah with my mom and Becky, Scandinavia with Becky, Lake Tahoe with Sheree (to see Jackson Browne), and Thanksmas (with James) will be in Texas. There will likely be more road trips to see various family but James no longer drives (due to his MS) and I don’t have the stamina I once did.
Anyway, here’s a toast (Angel’s Envy neat) to a healthy and happy New Year.