By Alana DeRose 

Sounds, lots and lots of sounds. You walk around Universal Studios hearing the shouts of the people taking on the roller coasters, the music of the many bands playing on the walkways and the chatter of people passing by you heading to their next roller coaster. But that was all in your head, as we’ve been stuck in the house for a year now. 

Spring break is coming up and no one wants to be stuck in the house — again. Well look no further because today I’ve conducted a list of four ways you can vacation during covid — safely. 

Going on a Road Trip

Not only has road trips been seen as the safest way to travel during the covid – 19 pandemic, but they’re fun too, and according to multiple sources such as National Geographic, The Denver Channel and Institutional Investor, road trips are booming during the pandemic as people are choosing this travel option over air travel. 

When taking a road trip, your only limit is the amount of money you have for gas and food and things you would think are important such as hotels, really aren’t, and are pretty much just an add-on. 

You don’t exactly have to stay in a hotel room in order to get some rest or someplace to shower. On Amazon they sell portable car showers, and privacy tents so you can just stop anywhere to shower and they also sell car curtains so you can have that desired privacy while you sleep in your car

However it’s still not 100 percent safe. The CDC still warns about travelling this way as you’ll have  to stop at gas stations and restaurants when getting food, which will put you in close contact with others, making yourself at risk of spreading or getting the virus.

There are, however, ways for you to reduce the risk of spread. When in these situations, by doing things such as washing your hands and sanitizing frequently after touching public tools (gas station pumps, doors, etc.). Using disinfecting wipes on handles and buttons before touching them at the gas station and bringing your own food. If you can’t, the CDC just recommends using the drive-through, delivery or curbside pick-up option in order to get your food safely. 

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) also offers some safety tips when it comes time for you to shut your eyes or take a shower and you decide to book a hotel. These tips are pretty much the same thing as when on the road such as washing your hands and sanitizing frequently and keeping your mask on when in public places such as lobbies and hallways. They also recommend seeing what the hotel’s housekeeping schedule is to ensure the cleanliness of your room. 

Visiting state and national parks

Visiting state/national parks is a great way to get out and explore nature while protecting yourself and others. 

On the national park service website, they require face masks at all of their administered parks in areas where you can’t practice social distancing and when indoors. Then when it comes to state parks you’ll have to specifically look on the state park’s website because each state has different requirements for when visiting the park. 

State and national parks also have campgrounds, so you can stay the night making it a pit stop on your road trip or just a way for you to enjoy the beautiful nature a little bit longer. On the National Park Service website they provide a map of all the national parks that have their campgrounds open during covid. 

The CDC also provides guidance on how to stay safe if deciding to camp at the park, by doing things such as, camping and hiking only with people in your group, keeping at least six feet away from others while on the trails, or campground, packing hand sanitizer and hand soap in order to ensure your safety after touching public items. I myself would also recommend packing your own food, so you don’t have to stop at a restaurant, eliminating that face to face contact you would usually have when ordering food. 

Going on a camping trip 

When it comes down to camping, a lot of the Covid requirements have always been met, they just weren’t really requirements then. 

When camping you’ll be socially distanced as you’ll be sleeping in a cabin, RV/trailer or tent and unlike a hotel, you won’t have to walk down lobbies or narrow hallways in order to reach your room. It’s also a must to bring your own food when going camping and 9/10 there’s a grill to use on the campsite so you’ll pretty much be making your own food and not having to stop at restaurants in order to get food. However not all campsites have individual grills especially in areas where you tent, so if you’re able to I would suggest you bring your own grill. 

Also you’ll just be surrounded by your camping group unlike normal vacations such as cruises and resorts where you’re surrounded by others also on vacation. 

However there will be some instances where you’ll come in contact or nearby another camping group so the CDC recommends always staying six feet away from other camping groups and wearing masks indoors and where social distance is unattainable. They also don’t recommend sharing things with other groups such as condiments and lending them utensils. 

There’s also more precautions you have to take if you decide to use a trailer or renting out a cabin. When it comes to RV’s and trailers, even though you won’t have to stop at public places to get food or use the bathroom, there are still instances where you can put yourself at risk such as when you have to get gas and get supplies at other public places. When in these situations wear your mask and sanitize both before and after touching the supplies. Also, if you decide to rent an RV/trailer from RVshare.com, you’ll be borrowing someone else’s vehicle, so I would suggest you wipe everything down when getting and returning the vehicle. 

If you decide to rent a cabin, you should disinfect everything when entering and leaving your cabin to ensure the safety of yourself and the people staying there after you. 

Going up to the vacation home

Staying or renting out a vacation home comes with most of the safety benefits I’ve mentioned above such as staying socially distanced as you’ll mainly be with your group and not having to worry about food, shower, or sleep. However, you’ll still have to take safety precautions similar to that as if you were staying at a cabin, or hotel if renting out someone else’s vacation home. 

You can find a vacation home to rent on websites such as Vrbo.com and AirBnB.com. You can set filters in place to find the perfect temporary home for you, so everyone in your group can enjoy spring break. I would also recommend checking their policies and cleanliness of the vacation home before booking so you can ensure the safety of you and your group.