Hey all,
As my thoughts and temporary plans for a visit to Scotland in the spring of 2021 slowly dim I am wondering how tourism, and specifically tourism to Scotland, will fare as we adjust to things knowing more about this virus and how "to live with it". I've now done three trips away in my own country since the start of the pandemic and have enacted safety measures everywhere.
We've picked accomodations with Covid in mind, places with extra cleaning or away from clustered groups of people, not allowing people to come into our rooms, masks on in public areas, and most important social distancing. We've rarely eaten inside, choosing take out, curbside pickup, and eaten in our accommodations or vehicle or outside if the weather permitted.
We've avoided a few things where we would be required to be in large areas with concentrations of people, and even if we were near this we of course do the social distancing, good hand washing, and hand sanitizer as well.
I'm following the quarantine requirements of various countries, including my own, and hoping to see measures taken to reduce or eliminate this with better and faster testing at airports or reputable tests accepted before flights.
Given these tactics I am hoping tourism can happen again with smaller numbers excercising smart travel. In Scotland I see better opportunity for this with wide open spaces and plenty of things to do in the outdoors, perhaps with the exception of Edinburgh, Glasgow, and a few "space restrictive" castles here or there.
Am I being naïve? Overly optimistic? I'd love to hear your thoughts.