10 May Future of Travel in Age of Corona
The coronavirus has brought much of life as we knew it to a grinding halt. Including the travel industry. What will the world of travel look like on the other side of now? Caroline Bologna turned to experts to find out. She posted her findings in the Huff Post in a piece aptly titled “Experts Predict How Coronavirus Will Change The Way We Travel.” The piece covers travel in general, including the impact of the pandemic on flying, hotels, rentals and road trips, including the fact local travel should boom.
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended our lives in countless ways. One of the clearest examples is its impact on travel.
As Americans practice social distancing, vacations have been canceled, attractions are closed, and the tourism industry is suffering. Although we don’t know exactly when this will happen, travel will eventually become part of normal life again.
“There won’t be a distinct moment when travel returns,” Konrad Waliszewski, co-founder and CEO of the travel app TripScout, told HuffPost. “It will trickle back to normal as certain travelers get more comfortable and specific destinations return back to normal.”
Still, when we do embark on new adventures, the travel experience will undoubtedly be different in many ways. HuffPost asked experts to break down their predictions for the future of travel.
Airports will implement new systems
“We need to declare war against congested lines, which we see at check-in, security, the gate, immigration,” said Brian Kelly, founder and CEO of The Points Guy. “For far too long, we’ve just accepted that, but we could use technology to speed through these processes.”
He believes biometric screenings, like using facial recognition systems to ID and check in passengers, will cut down on unnecessary human interactions, speed up the airport process and reduce crowding.
“Is it necessary to hand a piece of paper to another human to board an aircraft in 2020? Absolutely not,” Kelly noted. “Other countries and airlines have been at the forefront of this. You look a screen and it lets you into an area.”
Systems that involve fingerprint identification, like Global Entry, may pivot to retinal scans to reduce high-touch surfaces in airports. Although people have concerns about privacy, Kelly is of the opinion that protecting health should come first.
“Privacy is out the window. The government knows what it wants about you,” he said. “The question now is, ‘Do we want to risk dying due to a virus over privacy concerns, or do we want to actually have efficient and safe airports?’”
Face masks will be a common sight
American travelers who didn’t even own face masks prior to the pandemic will likely be sporting them in airports and other high-traffic areas along their journeys. Flight attendants may also have more protective attire, at least temporarily…
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