Will we really be able to travel across the pond?
Posted on July 30, 2021

Patti and I traveled this week to Denver (Patti’s sister and family) and to St. Louis (my brother and his wife and family of Patti’s brother who died last spring). So, this post is far lighter than normal. The good news this week for Patti and me is that it finally looks as if we can take on our almost-annual trip to England. We’ve had that trip planned for late August-early September. The UK will now let in vaccinated travelers from the US without having to quarantine. The purpose of this post is to remind ourselves: the sands of time are running for us retirees, and we should spend to make sure we enjoy the time we have left.

Patti and I are ticking off a number of ways to be happier that I described in this post: 1) we’re spending our money on an experience that we know we will enjoy;  2) it’s a special treat since we haven’t been able to travel abroad for the last year and a half; 3) we’ve prepaid at least half the total that we will spend: the airfare and our lodging for at least one of our stays; I’ll soon buy advance-fare train tickets at half price; that will feel good, and in total it will feel like we will be spending very little when we are there.

I’ll go through my checklist of final actions. I’ve found in the past that we need dinner reservations at several of the spots we’ve liked. I’ll be thinking of past meals we’ve had there and anticipating eating there again. Anticipation is a bit of happiness.

We need to be sure of the final requirements for entry to the UK: I don’t think that gets updated until Monday. I’m not clear on the procedures to get back into the US: we may have to test for COVID a couple of days before we return. And I don’t know what that might mean if we have an asymptomatic case before our return flight. As the chart shows, new cases in the UK shot straight up and but have fallen dramatically.

Conclusion. We retirees should spend money to Enjoy. Now. Most all the discretionary money Patti and I spend is on travel, and it looks like we might be getting back to our regular pattern of one or two trips abroad each year. As of this coming Monday, the requirements to get to the UK are not constraining. Patti and I are hoping we can take the trip we have planned for the end of August-early September.