The nature of post-pandemic travel is undoubtedly different from its original counterpart, considering that airport activity was hit tremendously by COVID-19 after most countries had closed their borders to all foreign travel. In addition, local travel had been restricted to be able to prevent the spread of this virus nationally.
It is still unsure when the pandemic will end – but we should nonetheless still be careful and travel with utmost care in order to avoid further spreading the virus. Aside from this, below are 3 permanent changes that will undoubtedly characterize post-pandemic travels, which you should be aware of!
3 permanent changes to post-pandemic travel
1. Seeking quality over quantity
As many travellers saved more money during the pandemic due to working from home and spending less time outdoors, when travel opens again, they will likely dedicate a budget towards higher-quality experiences.
Pre-pandemic, travellers tended to tire themselves out in attempts to visit as many destinations as possible – but now, given the lack of travel over the last two years, post-pandemic travel is likely to comprise of high-quality experiences, rather than high-quantity ones. Travellers will likely invest more in a particular experience, to make up for the inability to visit anything outside their homes since 2020.
2. Visiting Less Crowded Areas
Visiting highly crowded, popular tourist spots is now considered high-risk when it comes to COVID-19. Thus, it is likely that less-crowded destinations will explode in popularity.
Back in 2019, travellers gravitated towards high-profile, famous and highly-crowded destinations. Post-pandemic travel, however, will be carried out with more care, as people will continue to unconsciously practice social distancing. Travellers will now visit places with minimal crowding in order to protect themselves from the virus. We further anticipate that this will continue far into the future, as the remnants of the pandemic’s psychological impacts on us will remain for a while after it is over.
Is this a bad thing?
This is by no means a negative aspect of post-pandemic travel! Smaller crowds mean more time to wander and take beautiful photos of a destination. Given that individuals spent over a year stuck at home with nowhere else to go, they would definitely want to visit a destination where they could truly appreciate and absorb it all, without a crowd to ruin the moment.
3. Everything that can be digital, will be digital
Exchanging objects between people is an effective virus transmission vector and should be avoided wherever possible. This means that the physical stuff we touch, carry or interact with will be substituted by touchless digital versions that you are likely currently using.
Bus, train and ferry tickets can all employ a digital format. Financial wallets and touchless payments additionally make it easy to transfer money and pay bills. Restaurant menus can easily be pulled up on one’s phone via a QR code scan, and ordering food can be completed without a waiter. Additionally, digital SIM cards mean you can avoid counter service and acquire a phone line via a completely contactless online transaction.
This pandemic has truly revolutionized how we carry out our daily lives. And when it comes to traveling, as more and more people are opting to conduct online transactions, travellers are now using eSIMs for international travel. These can be easily purchased and installed online, without the need to physically exchange a SIM card!
The term “eSIM” simply means an embedded SIM card. There are no physical cards involved and no physical swapping over required between you and a service provider.
To know the full list of eSIM supported carriers, click here. Note as well that not all devices are eSIM compatible. It’s best to check first if your device can support eSIM.
