I don't really like trips unless they're to see people. The minor globe trotting I did in my youth seems to suffice, and I live close enough to the beach to take it for granted.

Your plans seem sane! As does a beach vacation. I have a friend whose adventure travel this coming Summer was booked a couple of years ago, who is waiting for the company to cancel. I keep saying he can't go, period. He is not sane. Actually, his house is a little like a resort, and would make a good vacation venue...

Have a great time (in May) at the beach and the seafood binge!

Oh yeah, a seafood binge! On my second trip to Maine I rented a small cottage on the water next to a wildlife refuge. Mother and I ate seafood every single day, usually twice a day, it was all wonderful.

Have fun, stay safe and enjoy your family visit.

Annie

Annie, on a wonderful drive up Highway 1 one summer we ended up in Maine. One day my husband decided that he was going to have lobster at all three meals. He was lucky in that the B&B where we stayed just happened to have lobster crepes for breakfast. As I recall it was the Lobster Pound for lunch and a fancy restaurant for dinner.

That was when I was introduced to Lobster Rolls, which I still love.... if one can even find them here on the West Coast. (sigh)

DD and GSs have invited me to go on a road trip this summer around the northern mountain NW. She has it planned to visit 3 National Parks and numerous Monuments and State Parks. SOunds like fun IF we can actually do it. (Fingers crossed)

Kate

Yes, fingers crossed for those hoping to spend some time with family. We have no interest in international travel involving airports. Or restaurants.

Just a low key vaccinated family bubble. (just received my first yesterday). Beach walks, good easy meals. I believe it will be prime blue crab and oyster season.

It has been a year and a half since I filled my parents freezer. 😳

Judging by the lack of vacancies, take a look-see if a family road trip is being discussed.

Looking at real estate can be so fascinating. This one is sweet. HERE Not pup friendly or even DH friendly. 😂 White couch !?. 50 bucks a night cheaper than what I rented. It is in the small village of Lewis. Last pic. The building with the pointed red roof is where I worked one summer in my early 20's.

We never stopped taking trips to the lake cabin except over the coldest winter months after we winterized the cabin in December.

My niece is getting married on June 5 in northern Minnesota so that will be a real road trip. By then everyone should be vaccinated. Other than both fairly large families I'm not sure how many others will be attending. Family will be spread out in 4 or 5 different vacation rentals and my brother's house.

Throughout all of this weirdness, we've been to Virginia, Jamaica (twice), South Florida, and Georgia. Now that both of us have had our first vaccine, we're looking forward to the rest of the world. You reach an age where travel is all you have left. Bon voyage!

Now that's something to look forward to. A wedding. Especially the extra visiting time that a vacation rental gives. May is my comfort month seeing family and a few friends. Most everyone we know are fully vaccinated or close.

We should know by then how well this will work. Seems to be a lack of information right now. Or we just don't know yet. At the moment we are just following the CDC to keep alert for a while. Maybe July 4th is a good marker for an outdoor bbq.

At least we all have something to look forward to. Even if it is just a simple porch visit now that the weather is looking up.

We've been dividing our time between Los Angeles and Palm Springs/Cathedral City throughout the pandemic, generally staying in L.A. for five weeks at a time and CC for four weeks at a time. Our next trip to CC will be April 17, and we will stay for five weeks, as May is a very nice month there. Kevin's vaccination will be in full effect by April 16 - mine has already been in effect for over a week now, and I am just now making appointments that I have been postponing.

Kevin wanted to go to the Ostomy Convention in Houston this year, but it has been postponed until 2022, and so we have plans to go there then. However, I just looked up the dates, and they are Aug 11-13 - possibly the absolute worst time to visit Houston. Houston is the place I most want to visit in Texas (except for Big Bend), but I dread going in early August. We won't stay more than a week, even though we normally take two-week vacations. We do not consider going to Texas to be a vacation.

A question for those of you considering travel involving public transit, gatherings, etc. At the moment, CDC guidelines say no travel, vaccinated or not. If that does not change or things get worse by the time you have plans will you change/cancel your plans?

Lars, you must be thrilled to have CathedralCity during all this mess. We are also planning/making appointments we have been avoiding.

Visiting my childhood hometown has never been a vacation for us. We always kept the trip short and sweet. Two-three nights max. Was never fair to put DH through that drama event. (my sister is bi-polar). My parents are lovely. As are my other sister and brother. My best memories are at the beach towns nearby. We should be able to avoid her venom for the most part. (DH will just take the pups for a walk on the beach if she visits.) 😜 The best of both worlds. We get a vacation and see my folks.

We may actually book a larger home for thanksgiving that could hold all of us. My brothers family and my other sisters family.

Only one little store in town the locals call the 'Mall'. It has a bit of everything. Fishing tackle, tp, homemade donuts, excellent breakfast & lunch sandwiches.(yelp reviews) ...egg, scrapple, and cheese on a muffin, 😍

sushipup - to answer your question, every airport and airplane requires that you wear a mask. The same goes for Amtrak and Greyhound. We've both gotten one Pfizer vaccine and because we travel internationally, we get Covid tests before we leave. I can no longer listen to the conflicting information that's coming out of D.C. Covid has become a moving target and their guidelines from yesterday are no longer valid this afternoon.

I believe that we're doing everything we can to protect ourselves and others when we travel, but we're not staying home with our heads in the sand anymore.

I so agree. We all need to do what makes us individually the most comfortable. Also depends on your area and how serious the community is about respecting each other. The CDC and Fauci lost credibility early on. The leaked disagreements they had 'in-house' about what should be released to the public was infuriating.

Vaccination is one more risk reduction. A vaccine gives your body an army to identify and disarm pathogens. It takes time to get your 'front lines' into the nose and throat where it is most useful. Having developed the intended immune protection, after the second shot, we will have a really good shot at reduced risk.

And yes, information changes daily but that is to be expected. The elderly, the first vaccinated and the staff/caregivers, are showing a 99% reduction in infection. (? don't quote me). Those that were in the first vaccine trials....we are learning info every day as they follow their immunity. Still showing antibodies after 6 months.

The key word is successfully vaccinated. That is the percentage you hear about where someone still gets the virus (though a much more mild case). You may not have the needed 'full army' of immune protection. Not everyone develops the appropriate full immune response. The good news is an antibody test is easier now to get from your doctor or even over the counter that has just been approved.

Vaccination, masking properly, distancing, etc. Our best risk reduction. Zero risk is not possible.

Covid illiterate, the anti-makers and anti-vaccine people are hard to avoid.

I'm with Plllog about world travel. I've done that. No interest in that type of travel with so many countries in on-going lock-downs. 3rd and possibly 4th wave.

Finally able to visit family and friends? Priceless. Do it. Need a road trip to a remote beach resort, do it. Ricky's recent trip? do it. Restore your soul. Do what feels comfortable without anxiety.

Bumping because key words about this and that seem to be off topic....

I like vacations on quiet beaches, but in the past, I could not stay put for more than five days. We did stay two weeks on a quiet island in Fiji, but the snorkeling made it very enjoyable. I used to go to the Caribbean in my 20s, but I still could not stay at one beach more than five days - today I can, however, as I've slowed down.

Your island destination looks quite delightful. Do you do any fishing while you are there? The "Broadkill Store" had better hope that their "B" is on tightly - it would be scary to lose that. It looks a bit like a bait shop, which is why I asked about fishing.

We definitely were very happy to have the house in Cathedral City to go to. Kevin might have to start going back into the office at Sony after Labor Day, but he is going to ask if he can occasionally spend a week working at home, so that he can spend a week in Cathedral City. We're very happy when we are there. I checked the regulations, and we can rent a room at a time if we want, but I'm not sure how we would do that. Alternatively, if we rent the entire house, it has to be for more than a month at a time. We could do a house swap with someone, but that would probably not work in the summer, which is when we would probably want to go somewhere else. I'm fine with being in the desert in the summer, however.

In our late thirties, after a few dozen trips, we found a home on the beach, remote, in Mexico we loved. Rented every January for a few years. 2-3weeks. From snow to warm sand. Just a 15 minute trip into the town of Zihuatenahu, (sp). For the extensive food market. The home had an open covered roof deck second kitchen. Big love for those visits. Good memories. Good food. Great restaurants a short walk up the beach.

We now have our own beach home but in Canada. 20 yrs now. Canada will not allow us to cross the border...extended yet another month.

I need to visit my parents. (Mom is in early-mid dementia ) DH just this morning is looking up the area we both know so well near my hometown. In the recent past we visited winter holidays and the beaches for an afternoon. Cold but lovely for a walk and run the pups. (hats, scarves, coats). The Broadkill market is never open during the winter months. Yes, we have fishing tackle for all waters.

As predicted the CDC is carefully slow to update. As of this morning, all travel is considered safe fully vaccinated with the 'new normal' precautions. Two weeks after your last shot instead of the initial 3. This is expected, as the data is reviewed. All good news.

May 1st has been my personal and family/friend comfort. We are now vaccinating in NY 30 years and older but they are taking any age when appointments are open. Next week walk-ins without appointments will be accepted. For 60yrs+. So many elders do not have internet or cell phones to book appointments.

We have pushed our covid relief big bbq party to the end of the summer. Baby steps with family and a few friends for now. No rush. Good vibes for the future 2022.

I really miss international travel. My parents were British, and my Dad worked for the airlines during my childhood. We went all over as a family and I kept traveling as I grew up. My son and DH now have the same love for travel. During covid we have been going back and forth between our homes on the Central Coast, which are two hours apart. While I have greatly appreciated that, I still have the itch to travel internationally, and this is probably the longest I have gone without some adventure. DH has a milestone birthday coming up and I would really love to plan a big trip. I worry that we would get stuck overseas, so a road trip and some airbnbs seems a safer choice.

We might do a trip to my native land in MI's "Fruit Belt" this summer, but I rarely plan that far ahead . . . we go every year, even last year during the pandemic . . . to visit my Mother's grave. We traveled to an area of similar virus spread, and didn't see anyone while we were there, even at the hotel, which we sanitized the room before entering. I brought most of the food in a cooler. We basically moved our bubble north for two days . . .

Some year hubs and I want to revisit the VRBO that we stayed in for our honeymoon, but this year will be too hectic. When I first examined the kitchen, I said it was surprising to find several unopened bottles of wine just sitting out in a wine rack on the kitchen counter. I thought "Whoa, these people are sure trusting of their guests . . . " Shortly thereafter I found a note telling us to help ourselves to a bottle! Kindred peeps!! We had already brought along several bottles . . . the reason we rented the house was as a place to party after our wedding with out of town guests. Both the church and the park where we had the reception forbid alcohol. All the out of town guests were too tired to stay up drinking with us for the most part . . . sigh.

You get to be a certain age when you have nothing to prove and even though you COULD do certain things, you just don't want to anymore. Fun had vs time invested low ratio things . . . same with food. I have very little desire to cook high maintenance food anymore. Taste vs time invested . . . heck I'll buy those things if I really, really want to eat them. Puff pastry is an example . . . which I can't eat often anyway due to weight gain . . . I make a cake for a party and have 3/4 left over because no one can eat it, they're all fighting off weight or diabetes, etc. Some friends of mine visited me once for several hours from out of town. Wouldn't even drink so much as a glass of water . . .

VRBO is new to us. Have never used AIR B-n-B. 25 years ago we rented the same beach home in Mexico for a few years, January. After a few years of shared open kitchen trips with separate beach type deals. Nice to have remote and private. Open roof top kitchen...private. Not that interested now.

Chuckle about the puff pastry. The wholesaler only offered a case of 12. For months. 2020. I kept asking about breaking up the case for home offer delivery. They did. finally...but it sits in my freezer. 😂.

I just added three more days to our trip to now 10 days. VRBO is nice in the communication with the homeowner. Easy to ask questions about kitchen needs.

Found out we can gather blue crab off the small bridge a few steps from our door. 3 minutes walk. Homeowners have a crab pot. And hand nets. Stocked spices. Not great knives so I will take my favorites.

So many rentals are grim. Empty kitchens. Carp knives. VRBO has so many pics of the rentals I can visualize my cooking. Nothing 'fancy'. Seafood chowders, crab cakes, oyster stew, bouillabaisse, shrimp and crab boils....lots of newspaper in place of tablecloths....

Just booked two trips - 18 days in Hawaii, three islands, and 21 days in Jamaica. We're getting back to normal.

sleevendog, I used VRBO about 20 years ago, rented a small cottage in Maine, next to Petit Manan. I was super happy with it then, easy to communicate with the owners, nice little kitchen. The address was Milbridge, I think. Mother spent every morning sitting on the sunporch that faced the bay, watching the lobster boats go out. It was way better than a motel and there was a nice little winery about 15 minutes away. Close enough to take the kids to Bar Harbor, Mother could get wine at the winery, a kitchen to do our own cooking and they let me bring my dachshund, the Wonder Weiner. I've never tried Air B&B.

Annie

I had to cancel a very complicated trip to Europe last June due to COVID. I had three different vacation homes rented - an Airbnb, VRBO and one through Expedia in Germany, France and the UK. All three, refunded 100% of my deposit right away and with minimal hassle.

The only one that gave me problems was Hilton. Their hotel closed during the time I was supposed to stay there, so they cancelled on me, not the other way round. I started trying to get a refund in early May, when they informed me that they would be closed and finally got reimbursed in late August after multiple long phone calls and excessive paperwork.

I share this, as I had previously thought that Airbnb and VRBO would be difficult to get a refund from and big chains would be easy. It turned out to be the opposite.

Congrats to all on the great trips planned! They sound wonderful.

I had planned to take the fam to Japan for the 2020(1) Olympics. That isn’t possible - sounds like the Games will not have spectators and Japan isn’t inviting visitors. Currently I’m still hoping to go to France in the fall. But that is looking unlikelier. In fact, international trips generally seem tricky, with all the travel restrictions and quarantines.

So, this will be a year of exploring locally. A summer trip to Port Townsend WA or the San Juan Islands is being discussed, as are some fishing and camping trips. We’ll likely try to make it back to our friends’ beach house in Arch Cape OR again. When enough are vaccinated, we’re going to Southern Cal to see our “L.A. parents”.

We have owned a summer cabin near the Russian River in CA since I was born in 1956.

We have loved that place, but the BILs have spent a lot of time fixing it up!

There has been a bit of strife with 5 owners!

We put out the possibility of selling it, and my daughter and SIL decided they wanted to take it on!

The 5 of us have agreed (just have to come up with a price!)

We have all agreed to put aside 10-15,000 for an annual family reunion rental for a few years (We won't have to deal with that flippin hill!), before splitting up the $$.

So, we have a few years of a week long vaca paid for for 3-5 years!

Kevin got his second Pfizer vaccination yesterday (Friday), and so we have planned a trip to Borrego Springs for the end of April-beginning of May so that we can visit Anza Borrego State Park, which is close to Palm Springs. I think it is about an hour and twenty minutes away, which is why we need to stay on Borrego Springs. There is one restaurant there that we really like, and it has outdoor dining, but the last time we were there, there was quite a wait to get in. We can always get pizza to go, but I would rather not do that since we bake a lot of pizzas when we are in Cathedral City, which is where we have our Ooni oven.

We'll try to go back to Europe next year, but there's really no rush - I have quite a bit of patience, and I'm happy where I am now anyway. There are a lot of places within five hours of us that I have not even been to yet, including Yosemite. The Grand Canyon is a one day drive also, and I've not been there yet or to Bryce Canyon. We have friends in St George, Utah that we can stay with when we visit southern Utah/northern Arizona, and we have friends in Tuscon that we stay with when we visit southern Arizona.

Nice to see positive updates about travel. Unfortunately the vaccine hesitancy is frustrating. NYState is just about 50% at least the first dose shot. I had my second Pfizer last Monday. No issues, just a bit sore at the location.

Like Lars, we are content with our local vacation and seeing family at this time. It is just a 5-6 hour drive. No interest dining out even before covid....why we rented a house with a full kitchen and purchased crabbing gear to catch and cook our own.

Good seafood retail suppliers if our own fishing/crabbing/clamming turns out a noob dud.

Unfortunately and irresponsibly, my sister, the one that lives a few miles from my parents, refuses to get vaccinated. We will not be seeing her or inviting for any meal. My other sister might fly up from Florida. Her husband is a front line Dr and she is a nurse...both vaccinated months ago.

Happy travels those that will be making or have made plans. Stay alert, wear a mask when necessary...talk to friends any family hesitant to vaccinate.

My parents are fully vaccinated but my sister being around them is worrisome.

Looking forward to traveling.

SWMBO and I are road-tripping to Tahoe next week, joining a work party to help my friend frame and roof the cabin on the beach house where we go most summers. Going to be a quick trip, I’ll spend it as a thumb fingered carpenter, but we’ll bring down an inflatable kayak just in case we have some time.