![]() Within the travel industry, organizations have been quick to sound alarms, even if they haven’t gone so far as to make recommendations about spring break.įor instance, the Family Travel Association (FTA)-an organization that works with vendors serving families- issued a statement on Facebook March 1 that essentially encouraged families to stay abreast of updates from WHO and take precautions to minimize exposure. “With everything that’s going on we didn’t want to go we couldn’t get home by car if we had to.” The travel industry’s take “I’m still nervous about travel with three kids, but want to live our lives and not be freaks,” said Wise, a development executive at a nonprofit. As they saw big companies tweaking plans, the family pivoted, canceling their original lineup and booking Plan B at a small resort in Long Boat Key, Florida.ĭelta waived all change fees on the flights, but Wise said, ”I gladly would have paid the fees for increased peace of mind.” She, her husband, and their three boys (ages 13, 10, and 6) were planning to spend spring break in early April in Palm Springs, California, and at Disneyland. Take New York City resident Vanessa Wise. It’s all prompted some travelers to swap one itinerary for another. Large events are being scrapped, too: on March 6 organizers of the annual SXSW music, technology, and film festival in Austin, Texas, called the whole thing off for the first time in its 34-year history. The official website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the virus is most dangerous for the elderly and those who have chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, or lung disease.įor all of these reasons, many colleges have canceled study abroad programs for the spring. Photograph by Salvatore Laporta, KONTROLAB/LightRocket/Getty ImagesĪccording to experts, signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Workers disinfect the church of San Domenico Maggiore in Naples on March 6. March 12, Viking and Princess canceled all cruises until at least May. would ban all travel from Europe for 30 days beginning March 13 (though the U.K. ( Find out how to stay healthy on a cruise ship.) On March 9, Italy became the first Western democracy to put an entire country on lockdown since World War II.Īnd on March 11, U.S. citizens should not travel on cruise ships, where many cases have incubated. While most cases have been reported in Asia-the disease was first reported December 31, 2019, in Wuhan, China-WHO had identified cases in at least 111 countries. At press time, the World Health Organization (WHO) had recorded more than 120,000 cases of the virus and more than 4,000 deaths. And a few adventurers are pressing on, despite what they hear about the spread of the virus. Still others have sworn off travel all together-at least for the foreseeable future. Others are engaged in a game of wait-and-see, busily compiling components of a Plan B should the spread of the coronavirus get worse. Some, like Nagel, have canceled to minimize risk. Nagel and her family aren’t the only travelers scrambling to rethink or rebook spring break itineraries. “We got a very good deal-a total of $1,800 for three of us-but that’s still a lot to lose.” Families weigh their options “We canceled our hotel without issue, but now I have to find out about the flights,” she said on March 4. Ultimately, Nagel, the head of a communications agency, pulled the plug. And then Nagel started to fear being quarantined upon returning to the U.S., just because of where the family had traveled. Friends both at home and in Japan suggested that sites might be closed, and that streets could be eerily empty because locals would be staying indoors. She also worried about the overall experience. The more reports of cases coming out of Asia, the more concerned Nagel became that they might become infected if they traveled there. Then COVID-19 started to spread, and everything fell apart. The Los Angeles family had a multifaceted vacation booked: a boat ride past the cherry blossoms of Chidorigafuchi Park, a tour of Harajuku, a stroll along the Nakamise shopping street, and a concerted effort to eat ramen and okonomiyaki (savory crepes) across the neighborhoods. It was supposed to be the spring break trip of a lifetime-a family excursion to Tokyo for California’s Jessie Nagel, her husband, and their 14-year-old daughter, who is obsessed with Japanese culture.
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