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Old 19th May 2020, 23:55   #16
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

My take is slightly different:
- I would happily eat at dhabas - maybe sanitize plates spoons and the chairs myself. Nothing like freshly cooked food eaten in an open area. It is NO different from catered outside food. Of course, this would not be at random dhabas!
- I would simply not stay at centrally air-conditioned hotels - at max in a place where we can open the window wide.
- No crowds any more!
- I'm still a bit divided about night travel - some risk may definitely go up!
- Sanitizer mask etc is now part of the kit of stepping out of the home anyways.

I'm definitely worried about how I would be able to undertake wildlife safaris anymore.

Quote:
Originally Posted by dicor View Post
Post lockdown and in COVID-19 era, road trip manners are again going to change. Some of the things which probably I would start following
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Old 20th May 2020, 10:32   #17
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Once the lockdowns ease and inter-district travels open up, there will be a slight change for my trips.

Weekend Drives
  • The usual routine or starting early morning and returning after noon will remain. Can cover 300-500 kms overall as usual
  • Will check the area's news for Covid-19 cases and issues.
  • Will have tea or breakfast if its all clear. Else, will carry my snacks and juice along with the usual 3 bottles of water.
  • My weekend drives are usually to remote, non-touristy places. So no concern of crowds. No changes here. I guess, even the usual touristy places will be less crowded.
  • Will carry sanitizers, wet wipes and masks. That's the new normal.

Family Drives

There has to be changes here since the stay is usually in resorts with AC. The usual frequency of a trip every 2 months will reduce for sure.
  • Will check news about the destination and pit stop places for news of COVID.
  • Will only stop at reputed places and sanitize ourselves, before and after.
  • Will not stop at Air Conditioned and/or crowded places.
  • Only reputed resorts with individual cottages and separate AC units will be booked. No Centralized AC units will be booked.
  • No places with Buffet option will be booked. I hope buffet will be stopped for the foreseeable future.

The family trips will only start maybe late this year or early next year. Situation isn't too great for trips in the next few months since the curve is yet to flatten or go down.
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Old 20th May 2020, 10:40   #18
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Quote:
Originally Posted by gkveda View Post
-Avoid water destination and getting into water such as rivers, lakes.
Yes, swimming pools, water parks are better avoided. Flowing stream like rivers shouldn't pose any threat.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain View Post
Cashless and contactless payment everywhere(Paytm etc). I am no longer comfortable with swiping cards.

Fastag: recharged before start of trip to ensure no surprises at toll booths. 100% cashless and contactless affair.
I get goosebumps when the petrol pump guy passes on the swipe machine to enter pin number. GPay / Paytm / BHIM are really preferable choices.
Yes, Fasttag recharge and keeping enough change. Thanks for adding this.

Quote:
Originally Posted by AMG Power View Post
The most important factor I can think of:

There are lots of wild animals (leopards etc) roaming around even in cities. If you stop your car at any place during the journey, make sure you're not caught by surprise - even if you've stopped to have your own food.

And if you are in the habit of stopping on the road to take a leak, well that would be a wrong time to be caught unawares.

.
+1, this is a new fear. Even in a day time, I would avoid taking forest / lesser populated roads. It is also better to reply on offline maps rather than Google maps, as it generally takes you from the strange roads.

Quote:
Originally Posted by antz.bin View Post
I had bought the Diesel just so that I can go on long road trips to practically everywhere, picking up where I left off on the motorcycle a few years back.

I was waiting for my newborn to cross the 6 months mark (this happens 1 month from now) to be able to start going out to nearby places with her and my better half.

Ha ha. I have a similar story but my fortune is still sleeping for the last 3 years.
After completing 1.25 lakh KMs in 5 years in my Verito, I upgraded to XUV5OO with a lot of imaginations and fantasies.
The first few months I waited for 5K KMs to be completed.
Then all of sudden my wife underwent through surgery. So no travels for 6 months post-procedure.
Once those 6 months over, we did our first trip after a year of buying XUV.
A few weeks later we received the news of my wife being pregnant. This means no travelling for 9 months + 12 months.
When my son turned 1, Mr COVID has arrived.

Quote:
Originally Posted by OrangeCar View Post

- Only when Inter-district and Inter state travel is possible without any restrictions. Do not want authorities to stop for identity proof / pass / etc. In fact I fear increase in red tape-ism and thus possible increase in bribes too.

Other than that, the biggest fear right now is the inability of free movement of people or vehicles across districts and states.
Hmm!!! Right. Possibly interstate trips will be more planned where you need to apply for permits in advance.


Quote:
Originally Posted by balenoed_ View Post
Eating out on the highway restaurants, taking tea breaks etc..were the highlight of any trip for me more than the destination itself. Now if all those are restricted I cannot think of any long drives.
Couldn't agree more. The LIVE TO DRIVE breed relies on the motto of "Journey is more beautiful than the destination". One of the fascination of eating at truckers Dhaba, halting for tea at mid of nowhere ar huge fun. Sounds like things of the past. (At least for now)
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Old 20th May 2020, 12:09   #19
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Like most of us here in this forum, the "live to drive" mindset is hard-wired in me. However, for about two years or so prior to this whole COVID-19 situation, I was either very busy in other personal matters, or the better half was busy convincing me to do holidays in bus/train/flight. So the car got used very little for highway runs. I am itching for a good 500km drive.

Coming to road trips post COVID-19 pandemic, I am still in a wait-and-see mode. Currently, freedom of movement is restricted. The constitutional right has been suspended by the epidemic diseases act being in force. This has made India quite like the police State that the old communist East Europe used to be. Multiple checkpoints, and everywhere police asking for "papers".

I will wait for the Government to dismantle the current police State, restore the right to freedom of movement, before I even begin to think about road trips. Until then, road trip will also entail checking for travel to the destination being allowed, and then getting the correct paperwork in place.
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Old 20th May 2020, 13:19   #20
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Thinking a bit different on this aspect. I have already started watching huge amount of YouTube videos to plan the next road trip. Not that I will step out in a jiffy once the flights are resumed, but will keep a close eye on locations that are consistently cleared of the virus for a few months. A summer trip back to the US was in plan but that probably will have to go to next year at least.

And if we are stepping out on a road trip, definitely won’t skip on the café/restaurants. For me, food is an integral part of the travel experience
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Old 20th May 2020, 13:44   #21
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Quote:
Originally Posted by antz.bin View Post
Turns out there is no use for it for another few months to a year. Even though I have had a death in the extended family during lockdown 2.0, now that I realize it, this thread has officially made me the saddest I have been in the past 2 months.
It's a sad time way for everyone in some way, were all in this together. I'm sure you'll find something else interesting and fun to do in the meanwhile. Let's stay optimistic and hope we can get back to our road trips soon
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Old 20th May 2020, 14:04   #22
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Without highway drives, honestly I don’t know what to do with my cars. Due to the traffic, I prefer riding to work which is just 5 kms one side. Now sitting at home for over 2 months now, almost all of us must be itching for a nice long drive and a getaway destination for 2-3 days. But probably that is going to take a long time. Once things start getting opening up and travelling becomes a little safer, we are going to see a huge influx of tourists at all destinations which will keep people like me who prefer less crowded destinations another couple of months off from the getaways.

2 another aspects of travelling which are essential flavours are eating out and staying. Both unsafe now. Difficult to pinpoint when that happens in future.

In a nutshell, though we all are longing for it, we still don’t know when it will happen.
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Old 20th May 2020, 16:38   #23
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

As much as I wish to, I don't think I'm going anywhere for the next 3-6 months. The only trips that would happen would be to meet family. These are single day drives with known hygienic and less crowded places to halt at - that too if absolutely necessary.

At the same time, I'm thinking if air travel will reduce and people will take to personal cars for destinations within a couple or three days drive. Maybe we'll have more folks doing a road trip instead of taking a flight once the lockdown eases.
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Old 20th May 2020, 16:54   #24
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Quote:
Originally Posted by AMG Power View Post
The most important factor I can think of:

Watch your back!

There are lots of wild animals (leopards etc) roaming around even in cities.
Take care and Stay safe.
You really mean lots of? even if some do , do you expect them to roam around after lockdown? Dont worry brother it was a one of case and that hasn't stopped people in Hyderabad from going about their normal lives.

Road trip after lockdown, why not? i would visit relatives only and totally avoid hotels/ any tourist place. For that you need a relative who stays at some distance to be able to enjoy a good drive.

Last edited by silverado : 20th May 2020 at 16:57.
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Old 21st May 2020, 10:15   #25
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Road trips are out of the question until the situation stabilizes. We will all wistfully look back at the pre-COVID situation and reminisce about the trips we have taken.

I for one have become a devoted armchair traveler. Thanks to BHPians like avi_swift I visited the Valley of Flowers, Travelmania took me to Bhutan in his Innova, I am sure more BHPians are dusting off their old travel pics and will post them.

So I have a packed travel schedule in the days ahead. All from the safety of my armchair. When the wanderlust bug really gets me, there's always Youtube. I can pick a destination of my choice and spend a Happy Hour visiting those locales.

For some time to come, my wanderlust will be satiated in this manner.
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Old 21st May 2020, 10:49   #26
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Quote:
Originally Posted by GTO View Post

- The journey: No eating at restaurants along the way. All snacks will be home cooked & packed.
------
- The destination: All the precautions followed right now. Staying away from people, public places, restaurants etc.
They say Journey is the destination. COVID-19 is going force us exactly the same for the immediate future.
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Old 21st May 2020, 12:19   #27
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

AbhiBus.com ran a survey on road-trips via buses. Here are the interesting findings:

Quote:
#AbhiTravelKarenge - How Quickly and Who:

- 63% of the people would like to travel immediately after the lifting the lock down as they need to reach some places urgently. 16.8% people are opting to wait for 1 to 2 weeks to initial rush to be settled down. About 14% of them are not sure when they will travel but, they go for travel depending on requirement. Interestingly hardly a few people said they can wait until the pandemic is completely under control.

- The passengers seem to have a clear idea about when will the travel industry, especially bus industry, will get back to normal. 38% of the passengers believe that the industry will be normal in 2-3 months.

- 67.9% of the people who would like to travel are working professionals while 16.4% of them are students. Businessmen, government servants and home makers are put together less than 15% who are willing to travel during this time.

- Most of these respondents of this survey are frequent travelers, approximately 60% of them travel at least 6 or more times in a year.

- 57.5% people will be travelling for work purpose while 19.5% of the students would like to come back to hometown or school/college town. 16.8% people will be travelling to attend the family functions. Interestingly a very few people opt for leisure/holiday travel during this time.

#AbhiTravelKarenge Safely, despite anticipated fare hike and with insurance of a new kind

- 60% anticipate travel fare hike with approximately 21% anticipating 25-50% hikes.
Everybody is concerned about their safety. So, 43.8% of the passengers said that the social distancing will be the high priority when they travel next time than any other issue. And 36.2% people are expecting cleanliness and hygiene while only 11.2% people concerned for travel cost.

- 45.5% of the passengers are expecting to have a sanitized waiting area. While 24.6% of them are wanting to have a COVID-19 insurance cover, 11.3% of them are okay with the regular insurance. Only 18.7% ask for free cancellation and full refund.

#AbhiTravelKarenge carrying Homecooked Food, snuggling up in their own blankets and of course will not leave the ubiquitous hand sanitizer behind

- 64.9% of the passengers would like to bring their own blankets while travelling in A/C buses while 19.1% of them are also considering this option. Only 16% of them have no priorities.

- 87.7% passengers are preferring only home cooked food while only 9% would like to eat at the restaurants where bus halts.

- 95% of the passengers would like to take their own hand sanitizer during the travel, while less than 5% are not bothered.
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Old 21st May 2020, 12:40   #28
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

Its a bit off track as We are discussing about impact on road trips, but if We think about traveling overall, road trips would take precedence over other options for for traveling, e.g. if someone needs to travel alone to a place which is around 200-400 kms on good quality roads, and buses like Volvo, Scania are available, taking a bus was more convenient for many of us over car in pre COVID-19 era, but now using own car seems more safe option.
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Old 21st May 2020, 13:37   #29
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

I would definitely go back to the lush green nature & forests. We are all equipped with masks and hand sanitizers, so we can protect our-self to an extent. I don't have any issues in taking tickets, provided people maintain a queue. The germs/virus contacted from the ticket/glass, etc can be wiped off from my hand with a sanitizer. Anyways I am already very much used to applying sanitizer after touching anything. No issue with petrol pump also as I soak my card and hands in sanitizer after the transaction.

Restaurant is an issue - but again, will be careful and will have quick food and again sanitize my hands. Will go to high-end very hygiene restaurants only. Also will pack for the day 1 food from home.

Hotel stay - Can select only premium hotels for time being. And if I am still panicking at that time, I will carry a pair of bed sheets and pillow with me to be added as an extra layer.

For destinations to nature & forests, I don't think there are much to be scared of.

The main worry would be the high-way robbery menace which can increase as mentioned above.

Last edited by petrol_power : 21st May 2020 at 13:48.
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Old 21st May 2020, 15:00   #30
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Re: Future of road-trips, post lockdown

I took possession of a BS4 Hexa a few weeks before the lockdown. With the kids getting into critical years, our annual Mumbai - Goa drives have become rarer. I was hoping that we would make our customary stay at Club Mahindra Varca and take the long, scenic road home with our mini-bus (Hexa) laden with Alphonso Mangoes.

I know the places that have hose outlets in their parking lots and I would keep washing my car as I go along (Clean Car OCD). But now there is a bigger acronym to worry about FOGO . . . Fear Of Going Out.

Since my work takes me to some fairly out of the way places around the world, an electric kettle, a few packs of ready-to-eat meals, soups and plenty of Girnar Tea powder are anyways part of the kit regardless of where I go. But post Pandemic travel will need a lot of thought and gumption!

I am staying put for the foreseeable future and watching the sights on 4k TV with ginger tea at my elbow.

The Hexa a.k.a Laxmi Godbole (that's right Kamal Hasan in Chahchi 420, a very 'handsome' and capable Maharashtrian lady) in the meanwhile is driven in circles round my gated complex to recharge the batteries . . . sigh!
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