Travelling in the Age of Covid-19

It had to happen.  Sooner or later, my itchy feet were going to combine with Canada's relative success in containing the coronavirus outbreak.  Yep, that's right, folks -- he's hitting the road again.

I'll get up to where I'm going and what I'm doing in the next post.  For this one, I just want to share some first-person experiences of the business of getting around during this pandemic.

First and foremost.  Masks.  I'll say it again.  Masks.  MASKS.  

Everywhere you travel, the message is the same -- masks must be worn in airports, in hotel public spaces, on planes, on trains.  Also, bring your own hankies, sanitizer, wipes, magic amulets of chocolate dipped in a protective layer of carnauba wax* -- whatever makes you feel better.

And for further assurance, be aware that your hotel room, your aircraft, your restaurant table and chair, and everything else in sight have been thoroughly -- obsessively -- cleaned and sanitized.  Hotels usually put a room through this entire process and then leave it to rest for a day or two, or even longer, before renting it out again.  Airlines make use (among other techniques) of electrostatic sprayers, which add a slight electrical charge to the mist droplets of sanitizing fluid so they will migrate to and cling to all surfaces, even in hard to reach areas. 

Second key point: be ready to adjust and change your plans, and just roll with whatever happens.  Make sure that whatever travel arrangements you make are refundable, just in case.  Since I started booking this trip a few short weeks ago, I've had changes in flight schedules, in aircraft types, switched hotels several times -- you name it.

One of the biggest frustrations was the whole business of trying to find out which services were still being offered by which hotels.  Some have the restaurants open, but only at dinner time.  Some offer a grab-and-go counter food service, but only at certain hours.  Health clubs and pools may or may not be available.  Spas are even less likely to be open.  Room service?  Maybe yes, maybe no.  The complimentary breakfast buffet you used to get?  Not a chance.  The best you can hope for in the free-breakfast hotels is likely to be a limited selection of individually packaged food items like cold cereals, yogurt, and muffins.

Finding out what's what will be especially aggravating for the online generation because only some hotels in some chains post any information like this on their websites.  Just trying to find where that information is hidden among the numerous indexed pages would try the patience of Job pretty high.  At the end of a five-minute search you may conclude that yours is one of the many hotels that give you nothing to go on at all.  Result: if you really want to know, you may need to pick up the phone and call.

To give you an idea, here's a sample from the Marriott chain of a hotel page (not the hotel I'm heading to) which does let you in on the secrets before your arrival, and online.  I've highlighted the link for that kind of advance information.

If your hotel is one of the chains that offer a digital key through their app, use it.  You can simply go straight to your room without any need at all to stop at the front desk on arrival.

One of the big differences of the Covid-19 hotel stay is: no daily housekeeping.  If you're only in for a night or two, don't expect to see the housekeeper at all.  Any hotel room supplies that need replenishing can be ordered by phone from the front desk and will be dropped off outside your door.  I dare say most people would prefer this contactless model at this time.

A notable exception to this kind of stripped-down hotel experience is found in the major resort which is going to be the centrepiece of my trip.  The concierge office emailed me 2 weeks before my arrival date, giving detailed information about which facilities and restaurants on the property would be open, and on what terms and conditions.  The message also provided email addresses to confirm reservations for the health club, indoor pool, and all eating venues.  And, pointedly, the email reminded me that these reservations were essential due to the need to restrict capacity in all facilities and restaurants.  They even sent the email a second time at one week before my arrival, just to make sure.

This property doesn't have digital keys.  Instead, they offered an online advance check-in by email, which allowed them to pre-authorize my credit card before I arrived.  At that point, I just had to pick up a key card on arrival.

Now, the flying part.  Yes, it's too far to drive -- and that's all the hint you're getting!  

Unlike the hotels, Air Canada and other airlines have plenty of information available on their websites about changes in their normal services during the pandemic.  My own personal precaution was to take a flight in business class, using my Air Canada Aeroplan reward points (no, I still can't afford to pay cash for business class travel!).  The point here, of course, is that a larger seat with more elbow room is guaranteed and every little bit helps.  As it turned out, I had the twin seat to myself on the outbound flight.

One of the great perks of business class travel is getting access to the airline's deluxe lounge before your flight.  Air Canada's Maple Leaf Lounge in the domestic departure area at Toronto had just reopened a few weeks before my trip.  The biggest change here was the need to order food from your seat in the lounge, and have it delivered to you by lounge staff.  Ordering was simple: just point your phone's camera at the QR code on the table, and you get access to the food menu and the ordering website.  For drinks, you can walk up to the bar, where a bartender will serve you.  No more self-serve over-pouring with the wine.  Sigh.  The other huge change was the all-but-empty lounge, even with over half the seats taken out.

Going through the check-in and security processes at the airport included some interesting new and different wrinkles.  To make it all simpler, it is more critical than ever before to check in online from your phone, via the website or the airline's app, up to 24 hours before flight time.  Then you can get your boarding pass, and scan the QR code at the check-in kiosk which will then automatically print out your baggage tags.  The baggage drop-off belts have automatic scanners which read your baggage tag's bar code before the sending the bag on.

I could certainly have done that entire self-serve check-in with no human contact.  But on the other hand, having gotten a Business Class ticket, it would be a shame not to take advantage of the special premium check in area at Toronto.  And that was just as un-busy as all the rest of the terminal.  Actually, the whole airport was so empty that it made me feel like I was travelling on the day after the apocalyptic climax of a Hollywood disaster blockbuster.

Before entering security, I had to have my temperature scanned by an infrared camera, and inside the security area I had to scan my own boarding pass before preparing my bag to go through the x-ray.

Nothing sums up the whole difference of pandemic travel as much as the fact that my flight, originally scheduled with a 300-seat widebody jet, was operated with a 140-seater instead -- and went out barely half full, if that.  At least that meant that boarding happened very quickly.  At the gate, I handed my boarding pass and photo i.d. to the agent sitting behind a plexiglass barrier, and then had to pull my mask off my face for a moment so she could verify my identity.

Immediately after boarding, each passenger got a Clean Care + amenity kit with a half-size water bottle, a mask, a small bottle of sanitizer, a couple of sanitary wipes, gloves, an audio headset, and a packet of pretzels -- the go-to snack on Air Canada for years beyond count. 

During the first months of the pandemic, when the need to flatten the curve was paramount, there was no cabin service except for that water and snack.  If you wanted any other food or drink, you'd have needed to bring them aboard with you.  Now, there is a simplified cabin service in business class on domestic flights over 2 hours time, with a boxed cold meal curated by Antonio Park, one of the distinguished chefs on the airline's roster.  Here's the business class menu from my flight.  The meal wasn't outstanding but it was pretty decent -- considering the handicaps of trying to present a decent meal experience inside a box and in a series of disposable containers, while maintaining safety and health.  The best part was the appetizer -- the smoked salmon salad.

Economy passengers will have a similar but simpler meal box waiting for them -- but only if they pre-purchase it when buying their ticket, or if their fare includes it.

The business of renting a car went much the same as always, except that when I got to the vehicle it had a sanitary plastic wrapper around the steering wheel, and a sticky attached to the rearview mirror affirming that the vehicle had been thoroughly cleaned and sanitized.

That pretty much covers the details of changes in the travel experience.  The next few posts will detail where I've been and what I've seen.  Stick around for the good stuff!

 

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* Footnote: "magic amulets of chocolate wrapped in carnauba wax" look like this:

Carnauba wax, by the by, is an extremely hard natural substance coating the leaves of a species of palm tree that is native to the northeastern part of Brazil.  It's used to give the M&Ms (or Smarties, or any other candy with a hard shell) the glossy finish on the coating.  It's also used in prescription and over-the-counter medications to make the surface of tablets/capsules smoother and therefore easier to swallow.