Author Topic: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?  (Read 20194 times)

Villanelle

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #50 on: February 18, 2020, 01:03:05 PM »
I ended up in urgent care last week with a nasty cough.  I was concerned it might be pneumonia, and when I was still getting worse after a week, I went in.  It's hard to overstate how terrible I sounded, and at one point during my wait, I coughed so hard I threw up.  I also live in the DC area, with lots of international visitors.

I was curious to see if CV affected the experience at all. 

The initial check in was a touch screen, and the first two questions, even before "name" were, "Have you traveled to China in the last two weeks"  And "Have you spent time in the last two weeks with anyone who has traveled to China".  (That may not be verbatim.)  Other than that, it wasn't mentioned.  The intake nurse and doctor both didn't ask me about it (though presumably they had access to that info.) And no one seemed bothered by a person with an atrocious cough sitting around for two hours.  I did put on a mask, though I wasn't asked to. 

(By they way, it was, surprisingly to me since it was all cough and barely a tickle in my throat, strep.)

Freedomin5

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #51 on: February 18, 2020, 06:47:59 PM »
I ended up in urgent care last week with a nasty cough.  I was concerned it might be pneumonia, and when I was still getting worse after a week, I went in.  It's hard to overstate how terrible I sounded, and at one point during my wait, I coughed so hard I threw up.  I also live in the DC area, with lots of international visitors.

I was curious to see if CV affected the experience at all. 

The initial check in was a touch screen, and the first two questions, even before "name" were, "Have you traveled to China in the last two weeks"  And "Have you spent time in the last two weeks with anyone who has traveled to China".  (That may not be verbatim.)  Other than that, it wasn't mentioned.  The intake nurse and doctor both didn't ask me about it (though presumably they had access to that info.) And no one seemed bothered by a person with an atrocious cough sitting around for two hours.  I did put on a mask, though I wasn't asked to. 

(By they way, it was, surprisingly to me since it was all cough and barely a tickle in my throat, strep.)

I think if you had answered "Yes" to either of those questions, your experience may have been different. When we flew back to Toronto from Shanghai three weeks ago, we naturally had to answer "Yes" to the first question, which prompted the question as to whether we had traveled to Wuhan within the past two weeks. We then waited until they checked our passports and confirmed we had not used them to travel to Wuhan before letting us leave.

MayDay

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #52 on: February 19, 2020, 05:42:32 AM »
H was in the ER last weekend in Mpls, and they didn't ask him about contact with China until he was back in a bed in the ER.  I was surprised- I thought that they would ask the minute we stepped in the door.  ( he wasn't having an active emergency when we arrived). 

use2betrix

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #53 on: February 20, 2020, 11:40:23 AM »
I was supposed to go to a valve manufacturer to perform an audit in India in March, but it has been cancelled due to the corona virus. I’m not too heartbroken in actuality..

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #54 on: February 25, 2020, 05:04:45 PM »
I'm scheduled on a river cruise in Germany in early May.  I'm not so concerned for myself, but my mother is going, and will be celebrating  her 85th birthday on our extension to Krakow.

At this point, I'm leaving it up to Viking to decide.  We do have insurance!

Kris

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #55 on: February 25, 2020, 05:08:34 PM »
I ended up in urgent care last week with a nasty cough.  I was concerned it might be pneumonia, and when I was still getting worse after a week, I went in.  It's hard to overstate how terrible I sounded, and at one point during my wait, I coughed so hard I threw up.  I also live in the DC area, with lots of international visitors.

I was curious to see if CV affected the experience at all. 

The initial check in was a touch screen, and the first two questions, even before "name" were, "Have you traveled to China in the last two weeks"  And "Have you spent time in the last two weeks with anyone who has traveled to China".  (That may not be verbatim.)  Other than that, it wasn't mentioned.  The intake nurse and doctor both didn't ask me about it (though presumably they had access to that info.) And no one seemed bothered by a person with an atrocious cough sitting around for two hours.  I did put on a mask, though I wasn't asked to. 

(By they way, it was, surprisingly to me since it was all cough and barely a tickle in my throat, strep.)

My understanding is that there is a severe shortage of coronavirus test kits in the US. So, not sure how aggressively they can even try to test/diagnose at this point.

Kris

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #56 on: February 25, 2020, 05:10:04 PM »
We’re going to London in a week, for two weeks. Essentially, we’ll be washing our hands, bringing hand sanitizer, avoiding physical contact with people (no handshakes or hugs) and hoping for the best.

Hadilly

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #57 on: February 25, 2020, 05:37:03 PM »
We are contemplating ditching some work trips and a summer Europe trip. Of course, if quarantining stops, we will go. A two week quarantine away from home would be disastrous both work wise and if with the kids.

Cassie

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #58 on: February 25, 2020, 09:09:01 PM »
We won’t take our August Europe trip if they are still quarantining.

itchyfeet

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #59 on: February 25, 2020, 09:36:52 PM »
I wasn’t planning on cancelling anything, but now the talk is they might cancel the Olympics. So travel plan changes might be forced upon me.

Michael in ABQ

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #60 on: February 25, 2020, 10:16:20 PM »
I have a business trip to Italy that will probably get cancelled. I'm still fine with going. Yes, there are 300+ cases..... out of 60 million people. And there's an 80% chance that if I do get it, it will be no worse than the common cold (many of which are caused by other forms of coronavirus).

My only concern would be getting stuck there for a few weeks if they started shutting down flights on the way back or restricting travel out of the area I would be going.


edit: Yep, trip got cancelled.
« Last Edit: February 27, 2020, 08:16:09 AM by Michael in ABQ »

elaine amj

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #61 on: February 25, 2020, 10:24:46 PM »
We are monitoring the situation carefully. I had wanted to fly to Asia around now. But am recovering from pneumonia and DH says there is no way I should expose my weaker body to any possibility of the coronavirus. So we wait. Hoping to travel to Asia in late spring/early summer if the situation stabilizes but DH says, "we will see".

In the meantime, we have booked flights to Florida in March and April and plan to go although DH is concerned about it spreading in the US so we continue to read reports daily.

We have been adjusting our travel plans a bit. When we went to Toronto a couple of weeks ago, we avoided the big Chinese mall (mostly because I am still in recovery and my immune system is likely weak). And when we went to Florida a few weeks back, we washed our hands obsessively and were super careful about touching our faces and our food.

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SotI

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #62 on: February 26, 2020, 01:33:41 AM »
I live in Europe but my company has cancelled all business trips to areas affected by corona virus. In addition, we are actively discouraged from (international) business travel. I just had to cancel business trips planned in 2 weeks to currently unaffected areas.

itchyfeet

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #63 on: February 26, 2020, 02:23:16 AM »
I have booked a flight transiting through Singapore to Sydney in May for personal travel and my employer is asking me to reconsider my travel plans and the risk it might imply to my colleagues.

They can’t tell me what to do on my own time, but I may have to work from home for 2 weeks after transiting through Singapore... if they really don’t want me to go via Singapore they have the option of paying for an alternate flight for me that bypasses Asia.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. I remember traveling through Singapore airport during the SARS outbreak and thought at that time that the airport were taking necessary precautions. You couldn’t get off the plane if they detected a fever for instance.

Cranky

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #64 on: February 26, 2020, 06:34:36 AM »
We've got a big family trip to Italy and Greece scheduled for May/June. We've been planning it and paying for things for a year. I'm glad we bought trip insurance. Sigh.

Reader

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #65 on: February 26, 2020, 07:38:53 AM »
What's weird to me is that, based on some of the responses, it seems the cruise and tour companies are cancelling trips that are many month away and paying big buck to do that. Do they really feel that things will be worse 7 months or longer from now or are they just erring on the side of caution?

SARS took a few months to settle down - Nov 2002 to July 2003 (9 months). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_SARS_outbreak

So they are likely predicting it would be similar to SARS.

PoutineLover

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #66 on: February 26, 2020, 07:49:07 AM »
I was hoping to go to Italy in May with family, but now they are putting off any concrete plans for the moment, so I'm not sure if I'll still go. Even if I do book, I'd probably get travel insurance just in case. For now my plan is just to wait and see for the next little while.

Spitfire

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #67 on: February 26, 2020, 08:19:59 AM »
I was hoping to go to Italy in May with family, but now they are putting off any concrete plans for the moment, so I'm not sure if I'll still go. Even if I do book, I'd probably get travel insurance just in case. For now my plan is just to wait and see for the next little while.

Ha, exact same for me (Italy, May, holding off). None of us booked yet, we might revisit for later in the year and possibly another destination.

PoutineLover

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #68 on: February 26, 2020, 08:41:25 AM »
I was hoping to go to Italy in May with family, but now they are putting off any concrete plans for the moment, so I'm not sure if I'll still go. Even if I do book, I'd probably get travel insurance just in case. For now my plan is just to wait and see for the next little while.

Ha, exact same for me (Italy, May, holding off). None of us booked yet, we might revisit for later in the year and possibly another destination.
My dates are pretty strict because it's for a wedding, so if it doesn't work out for May I won't go this year at all, but I'd still be pretty disappointed if I had to miss it. My alternative plan is just to do a road trip, which would still be fun but not the same.

OtherJen

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #69 on: February 26, 2020, 09:17:59 AM »
My parents' upcoming trip with mom's siblings will probably be scrapped for the second year in a row (last year, it was the government shutdown and issues with TSA staffing at airports). They're all elderly, dad has a pacemaker and low-stage cancer, and mom's brother is immunocompromised. I can't imagine that either of them will want to sit on a plane for hours and risk getting stuck several states away from home.

frugaldrummer

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #70 on: February 26, 2020, 10:01:41 AM »
The Wall Street Journal had a good article on this today. They made the good point that if you travel, make sure you have an extra supply of any medications you take with you in case you get stuck.  Also discussed the ins and outs of different types if travel insurance.

ixtap

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #71 on: February 26, 2020, 10:43:33 AM »
I am not holding my breathe on our Europe trip, but I am not cancelling anything until closer to the time.

I last attempted to travel to Europe 10 years ago, but a volcano cancelled my trip.

I wasn't exactly a rabble rouser when I travelled in my youth, so I am not sure what it is that Europe has against me.

MaybeBabyMustache

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #72 on: February 26, 2020, 08:55:10 PM »
I live in Europe but my company has cancelled all business trips to areas affected by corona virus. In addition, we are actively discouraged from (international) business travel. I just had to cancel business trips planned in 2 weeks to currently unaffected areas.

This, but I live in the US

rockstache

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #73 on: February 27, 2020, 06:22:51 AM »
We have a November Italy trip scheduled. It's far enough out that I feel like wait and see is my best approach. We're bringing our 1.5 year old though, and there's no way I'm going to risk getting stuck in a quarantine with a baby, so if we have to cancel, we will. I'm sure there will be a lot more information by then though.

SaucyAussie

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #74 on: February 27, 2020, 10:00:40 AM »
I think we are going to cancel our cruise this summer - my mom is 73, diabetic, recently recovered from cancer - too many risk factors.

runningthroughFIRE

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #75 on: February 28, 2020, 09:44:24 AM »
Travelling to Thailand in 2 weeks - no plans to cancel myself, but I'm aware the flights might be cancelled for me.  Everyone in my group is young (mid 20s) and healthy, getting travel insurance, and taking precautions.  The worst of it is a short layover in Korea, and I've already worked it out with my employer that I'll be self-quarantining and working from home for minimum two weeks once I get back.

I'm not taking any extra precautions over what I would normally do for the flu season for domestic travel at this point, but naturally I'm keeping an eye on things as they develop.

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #76 on: February 28, 2020, 10:26:20 AM »
Logged into my Canadian employer's heath insurance site last night to submit a routine dental claim. I was greeted with a pop up "reminding" me that the travel health insurance part of the policy doesn't apply if I go to a country that the Government of Canada has issued a level 3 or 4 health advisory against. So far, only China is at level 3, but the list bears watching.

Kris

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #77 on: February 28, 2020, 10:39:09 AM »
Logged into my Canadian employer's heath insurance site last night to submit a routine dental claim. I was greeted with a pop up "reminding" me that the travel health insurance part of the policy doesn't apply if I go to a country that the Government of Canada has issued a level 3 or 4 health advisory against. So far, only China is at level 3, but the list bears watching.

Oh, that's interesting. Hadn't thought of that -- thanks for posting.

We're going to London next week for two weeks. No plans to alter anything.

Valvore

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #78 on: February 28, 2020, 12:22:31 PM »
I leave for Italy in 5 days! It's a two week trip. We are doing southern Italy though.

I don't think the flight there will be cancelled but I am worried a little bit about the return trip or being quarantined.  Being quarantined at home wouldn't be that bad, but staying in another country for however long would definitely screw up my budget. Plus DH is an hourly contractor so that would all be unpaid time off and I don't have much vacation time myself after this 2 week trip.

sui generis

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #79 on: February 29, 2020, 01:05:49 PM »
I have a trip to the Caucasus in May.  There's a decent amount of travel between there and Iran, so I'm wondering how this may play out for them. 

I have no intention of cancelling unless it is cancelled on me, but part of my trip is a food tour for which I owe the balance of the tour cost in a few weeks.  Annnnddd, if it ultimately gets cancelled, I think the tour company might sneak out of refunding/holding the funds for another trip based on their legal language.  So now I'm a little concerned about paying the balance and then immediately losing it.  I'll definitely not do it till the day it's due, and maybe will call the company before I do to discuss.

PoutineLover

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #80 on: March 11, 2020, 08:13:11 AM »
Due to the lockdown in Italy, it's now possible that the wedding I was going to will be postponed. So it seems pretty certain that I won't be going in May, especially since many flights there are cancelled until May 1 anyway, and travel insurance wouldn't cover it if I did end up cancelling. But on the bright side, I probably will get to attend the wedding, just at a different time. Luckily none of my family lives in an affected zone, but the whole country is taking precautions just in case.

obstinate

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #81 on: March 11, 2020, 10:39:07 AM »
I leave for Italy in 5 days! It's a two week trip. We are doing southern Italy though.

I don't think the flight there will be cancelled but I am worried a little bit about the return trip or being quarantined.  Being quarantined at home wouldn't be that bad, but staying in another country for however long would definitely screw up my budget. Plus DH is an hourly contractor so that would all be unpaid time off and I don't have much vacation time myself after this 2 week trip.
Assuming they went ahead with their plans and did not return early, Italy is in national lockdown and this person is still there. I'm not sure what the US is doing with Italy returnees right now, but if we were smart we'd be requiring a 14 mandatory quarantine (i.e. not trusting people to go home and obey it, but requiring them to stay at the airport or wherever) for anyone coming from there.

So, this decision really didn't age well, even if it happened to work out for Valvore. People, please don't fuck around with this virus. It is not a game.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2020, 10:42:04 AM by obstinate »

Dr Kidstache

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #82 on: March 11, 2020, 10:47:02 AM »
I have a flight to Netherlands first week of April. I need to cancel or change it because of a medical issue unrelated to coronavirus. I'm not too concerned about traveling to NL because it is like a second home for me & somewhere that being forced into quarantine/prolonged stay wouldn't be an undue hardship. I would be more concerned about being a disease vector if the virus is more prevalent where I live than where I am going. At the moment, that's not the case.
I'm hoping that coronavirus will give me more flexibility in moving my trip back a few weeks. I'm not sure how flexible Virgin Atlantic will be (wasn't able to get through to them because they're swamped from Flybe folding). Worst case, I just have to lose the miles that I booked the ticket with and miss the trip. Not too bad.

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #83 on: March 11, 2020, 11:38:28 AM »
My airline is offering free rebooking to any significantly affected areas. If Ireland gets added to the list, then I'll rebook. If not, I'll decide closer to the date depending on what's up.

elaine amj

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #84 on: March 11, 2020, 11:39:58 AM »
I want to fly to Asia anytime in the next few months but am putting that on hold. My DH is not comfortable with it and my mother is extremely worried about the idea of my flying there.

We fly next week to Orlando for a few days at Disney. DH was pretty comfortable with things but today's news is making him pretty nervous. At this point, we are still going ahead but DH has asked that we nix our plans to go back to Orlando at the end of April. We are not on any type of schedule right now so quarantine time wouldn't bother us much but DH is getting nervous from a health perspective, especially since he has some immune issues.

We continue to watch the news. Very interesting seeing the drastic measures being taken by businesses everywhere compared to the "stop panicking - the flu is worse" attitude by many folks. I am not naturally inclined to being too nervous but am more suspicious when big businesses voluntarily choose to lose so much money.

Cassie

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #85 on: March 11, 2020, 12:02:45 PM »
I wouldn’t fly anywhere right now. The entire country of Italy is on a month quarantine. If you are over 65 they aren’t wasting a ventilator on you or reviving you if you code. Their hospitals are at 200% capacity. 

obstinate

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #86 on: March 11, 2020, 12:22:00 PM »
We fly next week to Orlando for a few days at Disney. DH was pretty comfortable with things but today's news is making him pretty nervous. At this point, we are still going ahead but DH has asked that we nix our plans to go back to Orlando at the end of April. We are not on any type of schedule right now so quarantine time wouldn't bother us much but DH is getting nervous from a health perspective, especially since he has some immune issues.
This kind of attitude is why this virus is now a pandemic. What you're talking about is incredibly foolish. By that time the US may have thousands of infections, if not tens of thousands. You could easily get stuck in Orlando for weeks, and that's not the worst case scenario. The worst case scenario is you get infected from someone else at Disney (which is exactly the worst sort of place to go to right now), bring it back to your home town, and be the cause of someone's death when you transmit the disease to them. Or god forbid you could be one of the unlucky few young people who die from this virus.

Anyway it is very likely Disney will close in the next few days. I hope, if only to take the decision out of the hands of so many Americans who are clearly unequipped to make good decisions on this subject.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2020, 12:24:38 PM by obstinate »

Cranky

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #87 on: March 11, 2020, 12:53:13 PM »
We have absolutely no idea what’s happening with our Italy/Greece trip in May, but iam not optimistic and we are going to be out a lot of money, I suspect.

geekette

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #88 on: March 11, 2020, 02:51:47 PM »
I wouldn’t fly anywhere right now. The entire country of Italy is on a month quarantine. If you are over 65 they aren’t wasting a ventilator on you or reviving you if you code. Their hospitals are at 200% capacity.
Source?

Helvegen

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #89 on: March 11, 2020, 03:14:14 PM »
I had no immediate travel planned, but I did reschedule an outpatient surgery I was going to have in a few days. I've lived with the condition for several years now and what's a few more months, tbh?

RetiredAt63

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #90 on: March 11, 2020, 03:18:32 PM »
I cancelled my side trip (on my way home to Canada) to visit my sister, money lost.  She winters in the Coachella Valley, they have cancelled the Indian Wells Tennis Tournament and now the Coachella Valley music festival.  New Zealand to Ontario (not GTA) should be relatively safe.  I'm in a moderate risk group, not risking it.

sui generis

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #91 on: March 11, 2020, 03:24:17 PM »
I had no immediate travel planned, but I did reschedule an outpatient surgery I was going to have in a few days. I've lived with the condition for several years now and what's a few more months, tbh?

This seems like an excellent idea for everyone.  I was touring a hospital yesterday for a completely unrelated reason (abortion provider appreciation day) and we talked for a long time about their coronavirus management. They have two cases there right now.  They and another major hospital network in the city are working now on opening additional space to accommodate more patients and, to your point, pulling resources from non-urgent or non-time-sensitive medical care.  One hospital is opening a facility that was in process of being renovated (and stopping the renovations) and another is prepping to set up giant tents, apparently.  All staff are being prepped for the possibility of being reassigned from those non-urgent units.  We practiced the toe-tap greeting to get out of the habit of shaking hands and learned about their screening procedure (and how it updates in real time) for all patients.  They seem well-prepared...

OtherJen

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #92 on: March 11, 2020, 03:25:06 PM »
I wouldn’t fly anywhere right now. The entire country of Italy is on a month quarantine. If you are over 65 they aren’t wasting a ventilator on you or reviving you if you code. Their hospitals are at 200% capacity.
Source?

The whole country of Italy was put on lockdown, no nonessential movement, earlier this week.

As for the rest of it: https://www.thelocal.it/20200311/hospitals-are-overwhelmed-italian-doctors-describe-the-struggle-of-fighting-the-coronavirus-outbreak

Fru-Gal

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #93 on: March 11, 2020, 03:28:10 PM »
Quote
I am not naturally inclined to being too nervous but am more suspicious when big businesses voluntarily choose to lose so much money.

They are doing this because big businesses are staffed with educated professionals who understand the math of the situation. Businesses would mitigate risks that were far smaller than this immediately. Frankly, if it weren't for businesses reacting, we'd be much worse off. Some have implied that specifically the reactions of tech businesses to the pandemic have led the way.

Also entire countries are not shutting borders, losing tourism and enforcing quarantine to "own the libs".

Hadilly

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #94 on: March 11, 2020, 03:32:35 PM »
elaine amj, i don’t mean to pile on, but I might seriously reconsider your Disney trip given your and your husband´s health issues.

My family is young and healthy. We are cancelling a driving trip from NorCal to SoCal next month. Had briefly entertained going to Disney, but no. For me, I’m less worried about getting sick and more worried about quarantine, getting stuck, or being an inadvertent vector.

Our local academic hospital is on the verge of canceling all elective procedures. Private schools are closing. I wouldn’t be surprised if public schools follow suit soon. I think social distancing is about to be in full force.

jim555

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #95 on: March 11, 2020, 04:08:02 PM »
I see rumblings of restricting "non-essential" travel from Europe.  Does that mean you could get stranded if you are there and want to come home?

mrteacher

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #96 on: March 11, 2020, 04:10:42 PM »
I see rumblings of restricting "non-essential" travel from Europe.  Does that mean you could get stranded if you are there and want to come home?

I am seeing the same thing. It seems possible, then, that one could get stranded in Europe.

Villanelle

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #97 on: March 11, 2020, 04:12:13 PM »
I have nothing good to say about choosing to go to Disney right now, so I won't say it, I suppose.  (But that's sort of saying it, isn't it?)

Also, today is 3/11 the Anniversary of the Great Tohoku Quake.  Why do I bring that up?  Well, I was living in Japan at that time and it's always a sort of somber day for me.  But I will always marvel at the way the Japanese people behaved in the face fo this crisis.  Even when bottled water need wasn't entirely irrational, they did not horde.  People purchased a few bottles--only what they needed--and left some for neighbors.

My husband flew supplies into absolutely devastated areas and when he landed, they offered *him* support and water. 

And people did what they were told.  If they were asked to stay home, they did.  If they were asked to turn off their air condition and avoid using lights, they did, even months later. 

We could learn a great deal from the selflessness and gracious, calm dignity I saw in that time, and much of that applies directly to where we are today.

Does missing a soccer match or a theme park or a St. Patrick's day parade really mean much in the grand scheme of life?  Even (relatively) young and (fairly) healthy, I'm avoiding stuff like that, not for my sake, but for my community.  I don't want to be partly responsible for someone else's death, and I don't want to be in a situation where I actually need medical care (for Corona or something else) and can't get it because there system is full and broken. 

If it all comes to nothing, as some people still think it will?  Well, you've missed a parade and a chance to hug Mickey Mouse.  Social distancing is like car insurance.  You probably won't need it.  It's probably a waste.  But when it isn't, it makes all the difference. 

Freedomin5

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #98 on: March 11, 2020, 04:21:48 PM »
I see rumblings of restricting "non-essential" travel from Europe.  Does that mean you could get stranded if you are there and want to come home?

I was in China when it was placed on the “no non-essential travel” list. Your country will probably still let you back in, and you’ll probably be routed all over the place and take multiple flights before you arrive back in your home country, at which point of time you may be placed under voluntary or mandatory quarantine.

My take is that there is no need to put yourself at risk for such an ordeal just to go on vacation. Having said that, we just booked flights to China for next week. Flights are actually not that cheap. We would not be flying except our companies are requiring us to go back to work.

TrMama

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Re: Anyone putting off overseas travel due to Corona virus?
« Reply #99 on: March 11, 2020, 04:49:06 PM »
No. We're also going to Europe next month. The plan is London and a couple spots in France over 2 weeks. Even with Brexit, the Paris strikes and now Corona I'm still planning on going. Hopefully things will just be less crowded.

Well, what a difference a few weeks has made. We cancelled our trip last week. I'm looking at $8K lost to non-refundable tickets/reservations/etc. This has been a painful lesson in the risks of non-refundable tickets. Trip insurance likely won't payout because we haven't technically hit any of the trigger points outlined in their terms, despite the fact the WHO has now declared a pandemic. Frankly, I don't care about the lost money that much anymore.

There's no way I want to risk catching this virus. Even people who get "mild" symptoms are reporting that they feel terrible. Add in the fact I have asthma and MIL (who is over 70 and has, or had, all the comorbid conditions) lives in our MIL suite and this is not something I want to mess with. I absolutely don't want to bring it home to her.

The number of cases in France is skyrocketing and they're only testing people who feel ill at this point. I suspect there's a lot more people walking around with it who don't feel that sick.