Travel Reboot 2020
What does traveling mean to you?
Is it a thrilling, necessary part of life? Do you look forward to the mundane process of packing, spending time at airports, and actually being 30,000 feet in the air? Or are you on the opposite spectrum, where the mere thought of getting on a plane gives you a panic attack and everything that goes with it seems like a chore? Most people probably fall somewhere in the middle, whereas I am firmly in the former camp. Yes, I love airport bars. Getting out my suitcase excites me. The lines, the processes - it’s all part of TRAVEL, and that in itself brings me immense joy and comfort. Not being able to travel freely over the last six months has been...strange, to say the least. I know this sounds like ‘first world problems’ - and it is - but when travel is so engrained into your life, suddenly not having that can be like losing a part of yourself.
My husband Dave and I have had a few getaways over the last several months, but all within driving (or train/boat) distance. That Kenya trip we had planned in early July for my birthday and to bring my mom to Africa for the first time? Welp, that was changed to a road trip to Newport, Rhode Island and Maine, sans mom, who stayed in Chicago 😭 (Crying for no mom and no Kenya, not for RI or ME!) We also did a weekend in the Finger Lakes, a week on Fire Island, and a couple weekends on Long Island with friends. They were all wonderful and we’ve had a great summer all things considered, but for two people who fly almost monthly (Dave more often than me), we were itching to get on a plane and get out of the country - especially given the current state of the USA 😳.
Enter Barbados!
I have to give Barbados Tourism credit for this, because the announcement of their new Welcome Stamp Visa, encouraging people to come to Barbados and work remotely for a year, definitely got our attention. Why not? One of the best parts of working in the travel industry is you can truly work from anywhere, given the right circumstances. Well my “circumstances” changed a few months ago when I was laid off due to the ongoing pandemic and its absolute decimation of the travel industry, among others. Wanting to stay in travel means a long road ahead for me and millions of others around the world. Dave isn’t traveling for work these days, so as long as he has a strong WiFi connection, he can run his company smoothly, but Barbados being on Eastern Time like he’s used to was a huge plus.
We don’t have kids, pets, or plants (we tried the latter but failed). We have the time, the flexibility, and certainly the adventurous spirit! Some other great deciding factors included...
JetBlue has nonstop flights from JFK to Barbados (BGI) - under five hours!
Barbados lies outside the typical hurricane belt, reducing a normally huge threat for the Caribbean, especially in Sept-Oct.
Exchange rate is 2:1 BBD:USD.
English-speaking (I’m working on my Spanish now but it is FAR from good).
Barbados is one of the safest countries in the Caribbean.
Since October is the end of the normal hurricane season, Barbados does typically get more rain than in other months. But for those of you who have been to the Caribbean before, you know what those quick, hard downpours are like. I like to call those times “happy hour” 🍹☂. Traveling in low or shoulder season anywhere can mean great deals and fewer crowds, both of which we’ve found. Furthermore, longer stays can also translate into better rates, so by us booking an Airbnb for the whole month of October, we saw prices 40-50% lower than normal.
What does all this mean? Well, I’m writing this in my bikini, from my patio, looking at palm trees, with the ocean in the distance. So life is good 😎. We just got our negative results from our second Covid test, taken yesterday and required in Barbados for those coming from a high-risk country like the USA. That means we are officially out of quarantine and ready to explore the island! For more details on the actual nuts and bolts of our travel experience and all the extra steps necessary in this new Covid world we’re all living in, check out my next blog, coming soon...
Cheers!
#martoftravel #travel #luxurytravel #wanderlust #worldtraveler #neverstopexploring #getinspired #tourismstrong #allinthistogether #travelblogger #traveldreams #travelprofessional #traveladvisor #luxurytraveladvisor #luxurytravelagent #caribbean #barbados
