Perhaps because I live in the USA where we live in COVID soup and most nobody bothers with a mask I have developed my own travel habits.

1. Wear a mask only when required.
2. Test only when required.
3. Ignore the pandemic otherwise.

Everyone is going to be exposed to omicron in the next month. A tiny number will be sick enough to notice.

It is difficult to know what to do and how to balance things. I too live in Berlin so for 2020 and 2021, I kept to mainly Germany – the seaside, lakes, mountains and forests, a week with my family in England that I hadn’t been able to visit since 2019 (I’m British), and a day-out to Austria!

However, we’re hopeful that if things get better, we plan to drive to France for the Spring!

Alex, we understand the hesitancy about sharing your travels in terms of the backlash. I think that if one explains the research and decisions that when into making the trip, with the focus on the safety of local people, that shows that all of these health and safety factors were taking into consideration when making the trip. What we thought was that people are going to travel, no matter what (and whether they should or now giving rates in certain countries), so if we could help present some decisions and factors that would make the travels more considerate and respectful of local people, including trying to spend money locally, then that would help the traveler and the places they visit.

And yes, the Dolomites are just incredible!! I miss the mountains 🙂

Pawan, we’d recommend choosing hikes/treks that are less known so that you don’t encounter as many people on the trails. Same goes with going hiking in the shoulder/off season to avoid crowds. If there are rest points or stops along a trek where other people are gathering, it’s good to still keep your distance and not crowd together. But, in general, outdoor activities are much safer from a Covid-19 perspective than anything indoors.

Laurel, we feel SO fortunate that we were able to take this trip for our anniversary. It really was start-stop-start-stop for the weeks before, both because we were trying to stay on top of Covid-19 related news and the weather wasn’t cooperating. Staying flexible is always a good tip, but especially now as things are changing so quickly from place to place.

Linda, it is more difficult to apply some of these tips during winter when everything is pushed indoors. However, they work for travel, as well as in regular life when trying to find safe ways to engage with other people and enjoy meals and activities outdoors.