We’re just back from an incredible vacation to Morocco that was unfortunately cut short by COVID. We have tips for summer travel during COVID to help you in your vacation planning.
For family vacation ideas, check out all the podcast episodes. Adventure Awaits!
My friend Jen and I just returned from our big 50th birthday trip to Morocco. Unfortunately, we caught COVID mid-adventure.
While restrictions across the world continue to lift, COVID continues to spread. So, it’s best to be prepared just in case. We wish we had done more.
Here are our Tips for your Summer Travel during COVID after living through a COVID-positive trip abroad.
Wear Your Mask.
While we’re all tired of it, our advice is still to wear a mask when you’re traveling on the plane and in crowded less ventilated spaces.
We wore ours on the plane but stopped once in Morocco. Morocco had just dropped their testing to enter requirement, so we had a false sense of security. We’re not sure how or where we got COVID, but we do wish we had continued wearing our masks in museums and car travel with groups.
Test, Test, Test.
Ensure you bring a few at-home tests for each person in your family or group. If you need more you’ll be able to find them at your destination.
Test along the trip especially if you aren’t feeling well. And test when you get home so you don’t unknowingly give it to your loved ones and colleagues.
Know the Guidelines of Your Destination.
As much as you can, know the guidelines of where you are going, i.e. what happens if you test positive while on your trip.
I tested positive with an at-home test and then went to get an official PCR test. What we didn’t realize was that official PCR would officially flag me in the Moroccan system. Therefore, we had to quarantine 5 more nights in the hotel where I tested positive (or until I tested negative which didn’t happen until the day before we were officially allowed to leave).
In hindsight, as we were in a rural location, we probably would have safely gotten ourselves back to Marrakech where we could PCR test and quarantine.
Buy Travel Insurance.
In this travel environment, it’s pretty much a no-brainer. We are SO thankful we had it. It’s worth the investment. We used SquareMouth to compare insurance policies and got a policy from Tin Leg based on ratings and reviews.
It should cover the costs of what we didn’t get to do on the trip (we lost 5 days of adventure) and the additional costs we incurred on new lodging, food, and travel costs incurred due to the quarantine and the additional days we had to stay before we could get home.
If traveling with friends, you can get a policy together.
And note, you’ll need an official positive PCR for your insurance claim.
Bring Extra Medications
Bring at least 7-10 days of extra medicine and key things you need in case you get stuck.
I brought a couple of days of extra pills and vitamins but not everything. I was rationing them for the final 5 days.
Ask Your Travel Agent or Tour Company for Advice.
If working with a travel agent or travel company, ask them in advance what advice they have AND how they can help you in the event you get sick and are quarantined. How have they helped others?
Unfortunately, the company we booked our second week with was not helpful.
Thankfully Meryem with Qarrya Retreats (our yoga retreat company from our first week) was beyond helpful as were Moha and the team at Chez Pierre (in the Dades Gorges) where we had to quarantine and our driver Ahmed. A very sincere Shukran, thank you to them!
We hope these tips help you prepare for your summer vacation and you stay safe and healthy!
🌎 ✈️ 🌍
For more family vacation inspiration, tune in to all the podcast episodes. Adventure Awaits!