Early 2021 travel - will you reconsider?

[Andrea J.]

did your teenager walk 20 steps behind you?

I totally get it. I too am a germaphobe.
maybe not as much as you.
you set the bar high!


no we are not on the fence we are still going and we are still on track with Lily and kitty care!!

Andrea - When we went last month in October, we felt very safe in Aruba, but I was very uncertain/nervous about the travel/flying part of the trip. I'm sure I embarrassed our teenager (lol!), but I took the following precautions: I wore a face shield and 2 masks. An N95 mask underneath, and a paper isolation on top. it was not difficult to breathe. My rationale was: I could discard and replace the paper isolation mask with a new one between flights and thru the different airports, while still being protected and protecting others. i had my stash of clorox wipes and gloves and wiped down our seats, seat belts, tray tables, everywhere I could reach! I even brought my own plastic bag to discard items and not have to "stash" used wipes and gloves in the seat-back.

Upon arrival to our timeshare, I took my shoes off before entering room (later wiping them down with clorox wipes), and changed my clothes immediately, placing in a bag, for laundry later (or take home dirty). Created my own solution for getting thru security with having to takes shoes off. I bought a 6-pack of cheap socks, and wore 2pr at a time. Remove shoes, walk through security and discard 2nd pair of socks before putting shoes back on.

Self-admittedly, I was a bit of a germ-a-phobe (can you tell!) pre-Covid, so now I am extra vigilant! I know it all sounds extreme (even to me, as this is the first time I actually thought it all through since the trip!) but it made me feel safe and comfortable and sitting on Eagle Beach made it all worth it! Going back in December too :-)

[LisaGrn]

Yeah! And love your new trip ticker!! Wow, only two weeks!!

did your teenager walk 20 steps behind you?

no we are not on the fence we are still going and we are still on track with Lily and kitty care!!

[WaltVB]

We're on track for this trip and one next April. Praying for no knee jerk reaction and complete shutdown. I'm flying this Sunday to Maine, return next Saturday and then fly to Aruba the following Saturday. Wear a mask, wash your hands, and stop touching your face and we'll all make it.

[Aruba4ever]

I will be honest when I read the 4-6 week idea being floated earlier today my heart sank. I may lose my mind if it happens. And yes, it certainly would make me reconsider booking if I were looking to travel anytime soon. The not knowing ways on me and it would effect my mood headed into a vacation which is one of the reasons we are not going anyplace anytime soon.

[EDMLS1358]

Back on topic, a shut down is not ideal. A mask mandate seems more feasible. Anyone who doesn’t want to wear one can stay home. Babies and little ones who can’t wear masks shouldn’t be traveling, but that’s just my opinion.

Well said. I agree 110%

[oneil1343]

Good point. I liked a previous suggestion to bring work computer on vacation with you. Although, it would make me nervous if it got lost or stolen. We are planning to travel to Aruba right after the new president takes office. As much as I would love to be stranded in Aruba, it probably will make working difficult. I hate to think that we might have to cancel.

[rern73]

Walt, I like your style. I am a recently retired RN, and the most important steps we can take are to wash our hands, mask, and not touch our face. That includes eyes too. I am scared that after inauguration there will be a lockdown. Our flight is on March 1, which we just booked yesterday when JB dropped its prices. A lockdown would certainly impact our flight. Yes, we can get our points redeposited. We would not get our deposit for our AirBnB stay refunded unless we are shut down before Jan 31. We have to pay our PLBR maintenance fee regardless every year, cannot recoup that. Trying to stay positive. By late winter we will need some Aruba sunshine!

[WaltVB]

rern73 we are going after Thanksgiving to try to save our maintenance fee paid at Surf Club. We are also scheduled for late April 2021. Thanks for your work in the medical field, nurses are the real front line heroes.

[Mohair]

We are going in early January for two months. We canceled our fall trip because of the spike in cases on Aruba. I hope that there won't be another shutdown in the US. Shutdowns may work for a while, as happened in Aruba, but covid spikes once they end. We all need to be smart about social distancing etc. and go on with our lives, especially the sweet life in Aruba!

[cpjones]

Hoping for a 2021 trip.... but not without a vaccine and Covid getting under control. I really don't see any shutdowns except for localized as needed.... mask mandate... if you aren't doing a mask.... you don't respect anyone around you!