Traveling during the Covid-19 pandemic is challenging. There are restrictive conditions made by governments and travelers are expected to be aware of the information of the country they are traveling to. In this article, Addis Zeybe catches up with four individuals to hear their travel experience.
This young man who travels frequently for work reasons talks about his experience saying "I mostly travel internationally and I have been tested for Covid more than 10 times. Most foreign countries like China and alike require a negative Covid test result before arrivals. So I check in the Company's medical unit. The process of testing is unpleasant but I always do my best to meet the requirements. The most challenging one is to stay in a hotel room in a foreign place until I get back to my country. On the normal days, after arriving at any destination, I would go out and do some shopping as well as some sight-seeing. Now since that is no longer the case, I never leave my hotel room until I catch my next flight. ”
A young woman who recently traveled with her two daughters and her son to Mekelle to visit her hometown shares her experience with Addis Zeybe "Covid-19 changed the way we had to travel. From wearing masks to not being able to access our luggage immediately. We had to wait for 7 days in a hotel after arriving in Mekelle. I was glad we had the choice of staying in a hotel instead of a government isolation center but we had to cover our expenses for those seven days and it was expensive. The hotel had doctors prepared and we were provided food services. The only time we got to see someone was when they came in to check our temperature or when we ordered food. We were longing to join the rest of our family in Mekelle but since I was not separated from my children it was endurable. After 24 hours on the last day, we received the result and we were allowed to get out of isolation. That was a relief."
Passengers are not the only ones that are affected by the pandemic a young pilot that is new to the industry says "I can hardly say I travel during covid because I drop passengers at another country and come back to my country unless it's a layover flight. And layover flights happen once in a month. Covid has affected my job experience in a negative way. When I get to stay in a foreign country like China I am expected to isolate myself in a hotel room and not mix with others. Such restrictions ruin my enjoyment of staying in other countries. On some flights, I don't even get to rest in hotels. Due to the lockdown of some countries, a lot of my flights are canceled. This does not allow me to work as much as I can and reduces my earnings. "
Covid-19 has affected many traveler's experiences with their freedom of movement, work plans, expenses, and in other ways. The possibility of traveling is still there but some restrictions definitely affect plans since different governments all over the world have put different policies and requirements. Travelers are expected to consider and keep up to date with all information provided by governments and to fulfill those requirements before their journey. This is what is considered the new normal.
