Whether you’re living in a country, state or city that is opening or closing, the travel bug is getting really real. Regardless where we are in being set free again, we can’t help but ask: “what will it like when we get to fly the coop?” 

We’ve been speaking to a variety of travel experts and travel aficionados to get their perspective on post-pandemic travel (and one thing they do agree on is: what will define post-pandemic?!) and how we should start thinking about it. Herewith, some of their thoughts! 

1- Post-Covid travel WILL come back 

It is inevitable. People’s wanderlust can never be erased so they will take to the skies, seas and resorts. And, more pragmatically, tourism is too fundamental to most every country’s GDP. 

How it will come back is in an even more regulated manner in which every sector of travel, will be subject to new and stricter health and safety protocols, combined with old and “laxer” booking procedures. Welcome the days of onboard Covid amenity kits and national (international?) sanitation certifications. Say goodbye to change and cancelation fees. So, go ahead and book a trip to look forward to and cancel as the new normal comes into focus! 

2- Post-Covid travel will be local 

While we wait for airlines, cruise ships, hotels and resorts to implement their new post-Covid standards and protocols, people are going to keep things local. 

Road trip travel to nearer destinations will see a resurgence. The car we own and maintain will be our mode of transport while services like One Fine Stay and Luxury Retreats will be our go-to hospitality chains. We might opt to bring our own sheets and kick-off our holiday with our own deep clean, but keeping it close and in our control, will be the wave of the near-future. Road trip never sounded more fun, nor relevant! 

3- Post-Covid travel will come back in (confusing) stages 

Primarily driven by how intrepid or rule-abiding we are, but also by how quickly standards are put in place (state-by-state, brand-by-brand), travel is going to be a bit of a chess game.

While one state might be open, your home state might maintain a 14-day self-quarantine. One hotel chain might uphold a standard that another airline does not yet. TSA might not meet your own standards of care. It isn’t hard to imagine a period in which we will have a visa-entry system across states, brands and even people. That vaccine can’t come fast enough. 

4- Post-Covid travel will benefit from an advisor 

Much as we liked gaming the travel sites for the best deals, the reality is we are going to want to have as much visibility and access into the brands, services and experiences we are opting to travel with and to. And, there is nothing like a travel advisor to provide that visibility. 

Travel professionals will be the real arbiters of which travel experiences are the ones that consistently meet the new standards and will be best poised to help when experiences fall short of the standard. Better travel experiences will be just one phone call away. 

We would love to hear from you as to your predictions for the future of travel and invite you to fill out our survey here. And, be on the look out for news of an exciting travel partnership that Men’s Vows has in the works. As much as we want to support men who marry, we also want to support men who travel!