Last week I dipped my toe back into the world of airline travel. I previously had to cancel a long-ago planned trip to the U.K. and had plenty of Delta credits just burning a whole in my pocket. With that, I decided to scratch my travel itch with a trip to Orlando to check on my mother’s Florida vacation house.
First, let me ease your mind in terms of safety precautions at the airport and during your flights: Things are cleaner than ever. Hand sanitizer is available everywhere you turn. People are practicing social distancing and everyone I encountered was wearing a mask.
I flew Delta and Delta is really doing it right. As you board, you are offered an individually wrapped sanitizing wipe to clean your space. Delta is also boarding from the back of the plane to the front, in order to facilitate social distancing. Those needing extra assistance, uniformed military personal and priority passengers are still allowed to board first.
The food and drink service on these flights was greatly reduced. Instead of pushing a drink cart down the aisle, flight attendants are now offering quart-size Ziploc bags prefilled with hand sanitizer, a small bottle of water, a bag of cheese flavored crackers, cookies and a napkin. According to Delta’s website, food and drink offerings are bigger and better on longer flights. Check your itinerary to see what you might expect on your flight. Frankly, I liked that simple, neat approach on the shorter flights. The whole flight experience was much cleaner and easier than ever before. Go Delta!
Airport crowds are considerably smaller there days. There were only two people ahead of me in the Indianapolis airport security line. The restrictions and process remain the same.
The most inconvenient thing about being in airports these days is the lack of food. Many of the restaurants and grab-and-go shops are shuttered. When I say pack a picnic, I mean it. It was early morn when I hit the Indianapolis airport on departure day, so I can’t attest to which restaurants might be open during normal lunch and dinner hours. However, the Starbucks was open.
In Atlanta, there were several grab-and-go shops open but not as many as usual. The few table service restaurants that were open were packed. I wound up grabbing a sandwich and a cold drink from one of the Boar’s Head kiosks in the hallway.
The Orlando airport offerings were really sparse. In my departure terminal, only a Burger King and a Starbucks were open, along with a sadly picked-over grab-and-go stand. And that Burger King? There were at least 30 people ahead of me in the ordering line, with another 30 ahead of them who had already ordered and were waiting for their food. I was glad that I had bags of carrots and celery with me.
Flying these days is a pleasant experience, except for the food. Honestly, just take a sandwich and some snacks with you. Drinks are available at the coffee shops and newsstands but food is a bit more of a challenge. Just remember to review the TSA guidelines as far as liquids, gels, etc., and be prepared to pull your food packages out at security, just as you do your liquids and electronics.
In short, don’t worry when traveling. Just follow all the Covid guidelines for protecting yourself and others, and don’t forget to pack a picnic.
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