It’s countdown day 10! A mere week and a half separates us from takeoff on our long-awaited flight to Bangkok and Southeast Asia. We drained a couple of frequent flyer accounts for some cushy Business Class seats, and we cashed in a bunch of hotel and credit card points for a string of comfortable hotel stays throughout Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
We made plans to meet several blogging friends; we have tours set up and hikes charted out. I’ve practiced my Vietnamese greetings and refreshed my internal map of Bangkok’s streets and the way to a fun rooftop bar. I’ve even started a little pile of clothes and toiletries, shoes and sunscreen, plane entertainment and sundry supplies.
But with each passing day this week, our trip becomes a little more untenable. The Wuhan, China-based coronavirus is putting a growing crimp on things, and it’s not because we have any real fear of getting the disease. Our concerns now are that we could get stranded in a country that has decided to close its airports (we route home through Hong Kong, for example), or that once in Southeast Asia, we will find things shuttered or devoid of life.
A few days ago, we were still gung-ho on going. Fewer crowds – yay! We are not going to China itself – no problems for us! The news media always overblow everything, we rationalize. Today, we are beginning to worry for real. Bangkok department stores are scanning temperatures, Hong Kong’s streets are emptying out, a few more cases are cropping up in the countries to which we are heading. What if …? we keep asking ourselves on a burgeoning list of topics. Wahhhhhhhh!
Unwinding the trip may take as long as planning it out. Can I shift everything to fall; will we be safely out of the woods with the virus by then? Will my airlines and hotels let me make changes or cancel without massive fees? Where else might we escape in these two and a half weeks we have carved out of our busy schedules?
I’m curious to hear some of your thoughts. Do we stay or do we go?
You might want to get in touch with Andrew Hardacre, who blogs from Hong Kong, for his take on things. He and his family are (were?) scheduled to fly out of HK on Friday of this week, and Cambodia and Thailand are on their itinerary, so he’ll certainly have some up-to-date information and a local perspective.
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Wonderful connection – thank you! I have messages out to everyone I know who is living in SE Asia, thinking that an on-the-ground voice might be the most convincing. The more I hear, though, the more I think that even if we are OK health-wise, the trip will be a stress pile, just because of all the unknowns. I’d also hate to look at everyone I meet as a potential disease-carrier!
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Go. You will be far from the main zone. Even HK, for a connection is minimal risk. You trip plan is wonderful. (been there partly recently) and, well, if the flights out are cancelled? You get to stay more time… 🙂
A note: Asians are very wary of contagion. They wear masks at the slightest doubt. You will be fine.
Now if you were going to spend the entire trip inside China, I might say no.
Have a nice trip.
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Thanks for your feedback! I don’t disagree with much of your reasoning except that Thailand is becoming the next-biggest site for the illness, and we have our first week there. The HK routing home is also – at this point – not changeable. The airlines will do so with no fees, but there’s no availability right now. Of course that might change soon!
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A tough call… can you move all the dates? Or cancel everything and get a refund based on the circumstances? The situation seems to be evolving daily. The daughter of friends of ours has been living and working in China for 4 years now. She will probably be evacuated soon. She sent us a video of Wuhan where people are out on their balconies and shouting encouragements to each other from one building to the other. Quite impressive… Best of luck.
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We can get some refunds but not all.The money is a small part since we booked with lots of miles and points. I am looking to move the whole trip but am still holding out hope!
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Hopefully you can get your miles back? I don’t know how that works. We never seem to be able to use our miles… 🙂
Again best of luck.
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I’m with equinox. I think you’ll be fine to go. We are on countdown day 11. We leave Feb 8 for India for 4 weeks then from Mar 10 Malaysia for 3 weeks. We too are watching the situation. At the moment I’m feeling optimistic about it all. We’ll be pretty far from the centre, you too, and the world is pretty aware of this disease and are on the lookout for it. I don’t think airports will be closed, more likely there’ll be more temp scanning. It’s a risk I know, but that why we love to travel isn’t it? Fingers crossed!
Alison
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I do feel we are a tad closer to the center, with multiple new cases in Thailand and a smaller number in the other SE Asian countries. Our main worry is that we cannot afford to get stuck at the end because of our lives and careers here. Ugh. I’m still leaning yes; J leaning no!
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In our house it would be the same lol 🙂
Don is more cautious than me, I’m more trusting.
A.
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Wow, Lexi. Impossible for me to say. The media does tend to blow things way out of proportion. Depends on your comfort level. I’d tend to go with the recommendations of the old Asia hands. You may find the travel industry delighted to see you! To see any tourists. –Curt
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I had the same thought – that we would be greeted very warmly! Some of my “old Asia hands” are saying no worries; others are not so sure. We will sit on it a bit longer!
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Oh no what a total humdinger thrown your way. So sorry. The stress either way is the worst part. Has your airline said anything about the HK connection? Maybe they have a handle on whether flights are being canceled that far out. I think the HK part is the only thing that would make me hesitate. Can you get on another return flight that doesn’t go through HK? Maybe your airline will make that change given the “act of God”, unforeseen, out of your control nature of this thing, I would get a handle on options to opt out of the HK connection and if that’s possible I would totally go for it. If it’s not possible I would reach out to the US Embassy in HK (or nearest embassy) or the CDC and the airline and have some conversations. I think it’s going to work out for you to go … all fingers and toes crossed. Other Lexi :-). If you do wind up going safe travels!!
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We have thoroughly pursued all those avenues of research and feedback! Airlines are waiving fees, but a call to AA yesterday indicates that there is no way to avoid Hong Kong to get home. They are happy to re-route and waive fees, but there are no available seats right now. The CDC has not spoken on countries outside of China to date. The WHO is being mysteriously silent on overall risk levels. My daughter is an ex-CDC employee and is still in public health, so I have lots of sources for info. Unfortunately, it’s all not very definitive at this point!
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Well dang it … none of that seems very helpful. Great that you have all of those information sources at your disposal! Sometimes I just go with the “I surrender” and pick one and roll with it. 99% of the time things seem to work out for the best. Sending you positive travel vibes so that you can be at peace with your decision. XO
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Well dang it … none of that seems very helpful. Great that you have all of those information sources at your disposal. I find that sometimes I usually arrive at the “I surrender” moment and just pull the trigger one way or the other. Either way you will make the best of the decision. Sending you positive travel vibes in hopes that your decision making will be easier. There’s always drinking too – which is what I resort to from time to time … LOL. All the best to you whichever way you choose.
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Oh jeez. After the disappointment you had with your Bhutan trip, you don’t need this headache. I’d say go. You’ve done so much planning and you’re not in the main area. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.
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Totally agree with you on being away from the worst spots, but that flight home via Hong Kong is really hanging me up! The airlines are already talking about cancellations and they’ve quickly waived change fees, which makes me think they will be quick to drop a flight. If we had a short way home, it would be a no-brainer, but getting hung up there for a lot of extra days will not work in our current life, unfortunately. I’m going to sit tight and watch for at least the next few days!
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I so feel for you on this one sister! I like the advice to hook up with the Shoreacres contact and your friends you are meeting over there. Things get so blown out of proportion – he/they should be able to give you a good perspective that we wouldn’t have over here. I would worry most about getting stranded – I am sure J would love that – lol. If you don’t go, you can always go to Tulum with us (:-)) OR explore Utah for a couple of weeks.
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I really am researching alternatives while simultaneously trying to do everything to be sure we can go! I have written to so many people I know in that region, but I mainly want to hear about Thailand, which seems to be running scared, and Hong Kong. Those are at the two ends of the trip, so they are pretty critical for making things start and end well! All the stuff in the middle should be fine, even thought we have numerous flights in there!
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Hi. I’d say it depends on how long your trip is. If less than three weeks, go. If more, stay put. But what do I know?
Neil S.
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We’re to be there a tad under 3 weeks, so I guess you’ve voted Go!
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Easy for us all to shout Go! Go! Go! Lexie. The risks aren’t ours, but we do know the press go overboard on stuff like this. You seem to have great contacts and good advice so you’re in a good place to make the call. If you were delayed getting back would your boss sack you? And what else can I offer? Come to Portugal- bit tame by comparison 😦 Good luck, hon- whatever you decide. Sending hugs 🙂 🙂
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You got it, Jo. I can think of all sorts of rational reasons to say yes and go, and of course, pure reason is what others are relying on to advise us. But we simply cannot take more than the 2.5 weeks we are already taking (a very long trip for my husband, given his job). We have kids and elderly parents and a grandbaby on the way and a wedding to be planned, and … well, there is sometimes more to life, and the levels of uncertainty involved here might make this trip dispensable to us. But it’s still killing me to give up; it’s taken months of time and effort to plan, and we were so excited to go. Stay tuned, I guess …!
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I feel for you, hon! But I guess there could be another year. I waited a lot of years for the Azores and I loved every second when we finally made it. Wish you well, whatever you decide. 🙂 🙂
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Thank you!
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Ooh, I’m always a bit terrified of these viruses so I wouldn’t be tempted to go. But if you do go, I’ll be following with interest to see what it really is like. Do you have official recommendations from your foreign ministry regarding travel? Ours has a site that lists the situation in each country and gives you, while the decision is always your own. I just looked up China the other day, they said travel was ok if you just avoid certain areas, markets with live animals etc. 🤨
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Our official travel advice comes from various sources, and all right now are saying that ALL China trips should be restricted to essential travel only. Things are much vaguer in the other countries although the caution levels are up a little. Hong Kong, though, has already taken drastic measures on some flights and trains (which could be a good thing and right now only involves going in and out of China itself). Thailand, a big part of our trip, has a number of cases of illness, and 20% or so of their tourists come from China. So who knows where their numbers may be by the time we get there? Ahhh, I’m going to chill for a few days and watch …
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Your post reminds me of the time we went to Ethiopia when the US state department said it wasn’t safe and our kids thought we were crazy. But it’s a big difference between a government crackdown and a deadly flu outbreak. We’re leaving March 1 for 4 months (including Tibet, Chengdu, Shanghai and Hong Kong) and I said the other day to Annie that we might have to rethink the trip. Her response was short…”We’re going”.
I imagine when the time arrives for us to fly from Lhasa to Chengdu we’ll make a last minute decision. Things would have to be pretty bad for me to give up Tibet. Like others, I’m not too worried about Sri Lanka and southern India too much at this point but I am thinking of wearing a mask on all flights from now on. But that’s a whole different topic.
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So much debate on the masks … you’re right; a whole different topic!
Lhasa and Tibet overall have no cases, I read yesterday. So that’s good – hope that holds for you! We will hold our horses and watch for the next week or so. I just need a couple of days to be sure I get at least the early flights rebooked or canceled. 😦
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Be careful, be cautious,
And listen to those you trust who are in the know! You’ve always made good decisions! Good luck and love, your parents.
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We are certainly doing as much due diligence as possible! Lots of messages to friends new and old in Asia about what’s happening right there, and at least a daily check with the CDC, WHO, and other US travel advisories. You will be one of the first to know our decision!
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I love all the great feedback you’ve received here so quickly. The best of the blogosphere.
My first thought was ‘go, it will be an adventure’ but my second thought was ‘trust your gut’. If that little voice in your head is saying ‘wait until Fall’, I’d wait until Fall. If you have many voices in your head, you might want to hold a ‘parts party’.
1) Identify each of the voices, giving each of them a name and a personality (e.g. The Adventurer – risk-taker , wants to always try the next thing, thinks she is missing out if too comfortable. The world is her playground. Fears not changing)
2) hold a meeting with each of your parts in attendance
3) do a roll call one-by-one, giving each of them the floor to speak without judgment
4) at the end of their pitch, thank them for their input and ask them to cast a vote (Go Now, Wait Until Fall or Neutral)
5) tally all the votes at the end and you have your decision.
I used this process (got it from a book called the Pathfinder by Nicholas Lore) to decide whether to sail onward from French Polynesia.
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Wow – fascinating! I just got the email and wondered if you had sent something to the wrong person! Now it makes sense. For some reason, I am oddly calm about the decision. My parents are saying Go (or at least in one case, Really Consider Going), which surprised me. My public health daughter does not want to choose, but she is not saying No. (Im starting to feel Trumpian with all this capitalization, which I was using to signify others’ thoughts – haha.)
I am going to just chill for at least a few days and see where things go with the outbreak. I always feel an answer will arrive, and I hope it does in this case. Thanks for the support and the info – look forward to reading it carefully!
(And yeah, I still owe you a real email message! I am so swamped with work, the trip, a wedding, yadda yadda. Coming soon …)
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Ha! I remember when my father encouraged me to set out on my circumnaviagion and I thought ‘why isn’t he trying to stop me’. I am glad that you are calm about the decision, waiting to see how the outbreak unfolds, and knowing that the answer will ‘arrive’. I am embarresingly behind on responding to blog comments as we are crazed with this overland odyessey to Puerta Vallarta, so I completely appreciate your being ‘too swamped to write’ I look forward to hearing about your everything when you have the time (no rush).
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🙂 You’re the best!
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From Ben at greenglobaltrek.com:
What a dilemma, Lex. For what it’s worth, here is my 2 cents: We live in an area where masks are de rigueur, always. So having a population grab for the masks is not in itself a meaningful measure of how serious things are. I just flew this week from our home in Hoi An to do some work in the Philippines, flying through Hong Kong. The airport was unusually thin, as the throngs of mainland Chinese were absent. There was a bit of a Sci Fi feel due to EVERYONE wearing masks (even though most of these masks are useless and do not protect the recipient. Based on the length of the virus, only one type of mask the “N95 Particle Respirator 8200 Mask” by 3M is thought to be able to filter out (if you decide to go, I’d say take the precaution of finding these masks before you go as you won’t find any here on the ground).
I’d also add that the fact that some stores are using the heat detector is not a particularly meaningful data point, in my mind, as there is the dimension of organizations wanting to be seen as doing “something” as opposed to being perceived as being complacent. I say this because it is already established that this virus has spread from people who were pre-symptomatic. So heat screening is not a pertinent predictor of any kind of heightened safety.
One more consideration, the population of known cases in Hong Kong and Thailand is pretty much on par with France, Germany and the U.S. Of course Hong Kong is much smaller than the US, so that comparison is not very helpful, but it does help perhaps to ask oneself: would you travel to France and Germany or LA? Or would you travel anywhere in the Middle East, which has had a MERS (Middle Eastern equivalent of SARS in Asia) epidemic for several years now.
So taking all this into account, I’d say that it is easier to answer what would I do, versus what should YOU do. I would go, and I have gone, this week, via Hong Kong, to the Philippines. Was I hyper-conscious while transiting in Hong Kong? yes. But, now in the Philippines, and then next week in Vietnam, it will be back to being a topic to follow in the news, but not one that alters my plans. THAT SAID – I think the most pertinent consideration is the reality of how YOU are going to FEEL. If you are going to be anxious during each of your outings outside of your hotel room, and yes there will be reminders all around that there is a risk out there, then it’s probably not going to make for a very nice trip. If you can isolate the concern to when you are specifically travelling through Hong Kong, then it becomes a risk pretty much like thermo nuclear warfare – it is highly unlikely, but if it does happen, then the consequences are grave. Of course, we have all been living in a world that is replete with nuclear weapons for about 50 years – low probability, but high consequences. And yet it doesn’t prevent us from living our daily lives.
Tough call.
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Love your nuanced response, Ben. It IS a tough call. Pure reason and dispassionate analysis says “sure, let’s go.” Add to that our reluctance to chuck months of planning and anticipation down the drain. And yet … as you say, if we are going to be looking at everyone as a disease host, and we are always wondering if we’ll get out at the end, is that a vacation? As I wrote to another commenter, I feel calm about the days leading to the decision; we have a week or so, and we can evaluate until then. I feel as if the answer will show itself to us, as touchy feely as that sounds.
Really hoping to see YOU TWO in that last week!!
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SO so hoping to meet you guys and share a bit of Hoi An life with you! Fingers crossed
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Lex, this is great advice…it’s all in how you and J feel and if the trip would be enjoyable. 💕
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OK – so what if we feel differently? Haha.
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Ben is an expert and I’m so glad he sent you his reaction and opinion. Again, I agree with him as well, especially with the fact that it’s all about how YOU will feel once there (as mentioned in my own comment). I only saw his comment after I posted mine. I was wondering whether you’d visit them in Viet Nam. I sure hope it all works out, Lexie. But the planning and anticipation won’t all be in vain if you postpone the trip. But I’m still rooting for a “go” in February. 🙂
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All I can say, I’d love to be a fly on the wall during the discussion. 😂😂
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Oh Lexie… The travel Gods are messing with you! My adventurous self immediately said “go”. But then I read all the comments – so nice you have all these friends and input – and I agree with most of them, contradictory as that may sound.
Jo was so spot on by mentioning how it is easy for us to encourage you in going, while we’re “safely” in our own country. Except for Steven, who is actually going to Asia with Annie soon.
Then, my answer was ready. I was going to write “follow your gut”, right before I saw that’s what Lisa wrote. Hey, we are often on the same page. 🙂
Bottom line is that you seem to have way too many doubts and worries in order to happily depart. Follow your gut. My worry is not necessarily that you will get sick or won’t be able to enjoy the sights as much as other times, without impending viruses (I think most places are safe and having less tourists will be wonderful), but that you won’t be able to enjoy the trip, because of all your worries. If you can’t relax and take it as it comes and enjoy being out and about, sightseeing, eating, traveling, then that will take away from your experiences and it would be better to go another time.
Yes, sit on it a few more days and collect more information, but – as with every decision – your guts are either going to agree with you going (and with all the advice you receive), or they will protest. Also, I do think there must and will be a route back that will avoid Hong Kong, especially with the help of your airline.
Tough cookie!!
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I think one of the hardest parts right now is that I am more gung ho than my husband about going. We will keep following developments and then sit down and talk through it this weekend, I suppose. I have listed some worries and doubts in order to elicit some feedback, but I don’t really think they are strong enough (at least in my case) to hinder any kind of enjoyment.
The issue with the route back is that we booked with miles so the alternatives are nil unless other mileage award travelers cancel (entirely possible). Of course, we could probably pay up for another way home, but that’s not very appealing either; it will be quite expensive at the last minute.
Thanks for your thoughtful feedback!
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Lex, as a Hong Konger now living in Southeast Asia, I can say confidently that you should still go to Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. On paper, Thailand might have the second-highest number of coronavirus infections of any country so far, but there’s a mighty big difference between 14 imported cases that were quickly detected and isolated on arrival (as in Thailand) and large-scale local transmission as we’ve been seeing in Wuhan and other places around China.
I don’t know if this is any consolation, but Chinese authorities have also been stemming the flow of tourists with a blanket ban on outgoing tour groups so you’ll likely see far less Chinese visitors in Bangkok and Siem Reap compared to a normal day in February. I think what Ben mentioned about isolating your concern to that particular layover in Hong Kong is a great piece of advice. And even then, assuming the situation there doesn’t drastically change, you might discover how certain things are blown out of proportion. It’s like my experience of the city mid-protest in December – somehow it all felt surprisingly normal.
I think the media is justified to report on the outbreak, but with the nonstop 24-hour news cycle and the constant barrage of information that entails, it has already caused an unnecessary global panic. Friends and relatives around the world tell me face masks are already sold out in Toronto and cities in Australia.
I’ll be traveling to Singapore this time next week for a work event, and the city-state has recorded 10 cases so far (about the same as Hong Kong). Do I feel nervous? Actually, I don’t. Because I lived through the SARS epidemic as a high school student while in Hong Kong and I’m quite certain that Asian countries outside China are better prepared this time around.
That said, I respect your decision whatever choice you make. If the trip is still on, you can always email me for the latest updates on Hong Kong toward the end of your stay in Southeast Asia.
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James, this is so helpful and comforting. It all makes perfect sense, and it’s the reason I am still largely OK with going. We will let some more time pass and keep eyes and ears open, but if things stay much as they are now, I will feel just fine taking off for the trip!
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Leapt one hurdle: we got our return flights re-routed through Tokyo instead of Hong Kong! I’m very sad to miss your hometown, but this might make us feel better about one uncertainty at least. On the bright side, we will want to see HK another time, and we’ll plan to spend more than a day! Thanks again for ALL of your input throughout our planning.
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That’s fantastic news! At one point Tokyo came to my mind as an alternative place for a layover, so I’m very glad that worked out. Crossing my fingers for Southeast Asia now. You’re more than welcome – Hong Kong deserves at least a week (especially with all the hikes you can do there) and I’ll be happy to share more tips when that time comes.
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I agree with James that you should stick to your plan. I cannot tell you about the situation in Thailand or Cambodia. But here in Vietnam, business is running as usual. You might notice that people start wearing masks indoor and flights get an enhanced screening. But that’s all. Perhaps I’m optimistic, but I don’t think there will be an outbreak in Vietnam. So far, there has only been 2 confirmed cases (the son get cured, while the condition of the father has been improved). We lived through SARS after all 🙂 Wish you all the best!
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Thanks so much for jumping in here, Len! My hope with the post was to get some feedback from people on the ground in the areas we have on our itinerary, so your comment is very valuable. I’ll keep fingers crossed that things do not deteriorate from today’s conditions, in which case I will feel OK about the trip.
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I have a similar dilemma but with Iran. Managed to convince my husband it was safe to go, paid my deposit, then a week later Trump goes silly and then the plane gets shot down. Don’t think I’m going now. It’s so disappointing but in my heart I know it’s right. Hopefully your heart tells you what is best too. X
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Oh, wow – I am so bummed for you, Anna! It’s funny – I thought about people who had trips to Iran lined up when all this craziness erupted. I have been perusing some unique trips with a British group, and one of them is an amazing itinerary in Iran. Being American, I knew this would be much less doable than it is for other nationalities, but when the plane got shot down and tensions arose, I immediately thought of those unlucky clients and what it would do to their trips. I do think you are right in your decision, and I think a few more days’ time and some good discussion here at home will bring us to the right move also.
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Hi,
I have just this morning returned to Vietnam from Chiang Mai… Everyone is pretty much alive and well in Thailand, … Although a few people recommended (or urged me) to use a face mask because there were a lot of Chinese tourists about, I only did so on the airplane because of the close proximity to other people. Most people are aware of what is happening and a lot of people use face masks in public as a precaution, but there is certainly no panic in Thailand. And as a previous blogger ‘James’ said, China is behaving very responsibly and trying to do what they can to contain the virus.
Life is a risk, wherever we go. However, if you decide to come, I would bring a supply of good quality face masks, supplies were running low in Chiang Mai…
Lieve
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Thanks for this very helpful response direct from the region. This is the kind of feedback I hoped for with the post! I think most face masks are sold out even here (crazy, in my opinion), but I may make a foray for those today. Thanks again for taking the time to weigh in – super helpful!
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Oh Lexi. I hated pressing the LIKE button on this post. Because I do not like this dilemma you’re in. I remember a trip (last year?) that also got messed up for you. Here’s what I think, fwiw: Listen to your gut instinct. There’s always going to be a risk involving travel. This is just a scarier-than-usual risk to me. You are wise and I know that you’ll make the best decision for you. I’m no help here, I know. But I can cheer you along on whatever decision you make.
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Thanks, Cheryl! I think it’s difficult/impossible for anyone here in the US or anywhere relatively “safe” to be totally helpful, but the support for any decision is nice to have! I really don’t think I’m much more likely to actually catch the disease there versus here, but the idea of flying for many hours into the general part of the world where it is growing gives me pause. Not a full stop, but a considered pause. Hoping the news points me one way or the other by the end of next week!
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What a trip! I think you should go for it! 🙂
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We will see. Our plan is to continue to watch the progression of the outbreak and decide closer to the trip date next week.
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Wow, Lex! What a dilemma. And so interesting reading everyone’s very thoughtful responses. I love your “Keep Calm and Carry On” approach to see how things develop over the coming days. J and I were just discussing your situation and his inclination was to not go (which really surprised me). He thinks we’d be constantly thinking about it and not enjoying ourselves. I, on the other hand, think you might find your destinations rather quiet (low-risk) and enjoyable so my inclination would be to go, and take extra precaution when transiting through airports, etc. In any case, I and everyone here support you either way — and look forward to the posts if you do decide to GO! K.
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Thanks, Kelly! I feel as you do that maybe we will have the incredible luck to see places like Angkor Wat in somewhat less crowded conditions. As long as these tourist attractions remain open and we take all the sanitary precautions we can, I think we’ll be fine. I have never been a germaphobe, and I’m not now, but the lack of vision 2-3 weeks into the future and what might happen to travel logistics is my main concern. For now, we did manage to snag a connection through Tokyo instead of Hong Kong, which may or may not be better! It’s a much quicker routing, and I’m feeling good about it. Fingers crossed we see the virus’s progress slow this week.
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I wish I had anything to share with you regarding to your dilemma, but so far there hasn’t been any confirmed cases yet in Indonesia, so we’re also following the news very closely from here. However, I’m glad that your readers who live in the places in your itinerary or are from those places have shared their firsthand account about the current situation there. If you do decide to go, it won’t hurt to be more cautious, although at the same time you shouldn’t allow this situation to make your trip less enjoyable — it’s easier said than done, I know.
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Thanks for your honest feedback, Bama! The truth is no one can really know what we might face or what might happen. We can all guess and then cross a bunch of fingers! I am still happy with my idea to collect thoughts from people actually living in the regions affected because they can say what is happening at the moment without the hype of news-selling. And my WordPress friends in general are always good cheerleaders, so even if their advice is simply encouraging or supportive – albeit highly theoretical! – it’s still great to “talk” it out here. We have changed our minds about 50 times already, but right now we are feeling positive. We shall see …
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What a conundrum, Lex! You have received such an amazing response and excellent advice. Good luck with making that final decision. I can only imagine how difficult it must be for you.
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Thanks, Jolandi! Right now we are just waiting and watching. We are preparing to go and will adjust only if things get significantly worse. The comments here have been so helpful!
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Put this in perspective – there have been 19 million cases of the flu in the US this year and 10,000 people have died. This is one of the worst outbreaks in a decade and yet no one here is wearing a mask! As long as the flights are not thru China or Hong Kong, I would go and enjoy the lack of crowds and the appreciation of the locals that you didn’t cancel your trip.
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That’s the plan right now! The perspective is different depending on one’s worries. Again, I have few fears about actually catching the virus; I could not agree more about the comparison with the US flu outbreak. My concern is, rather, that a country or airline will panic at some point in the next 2-3 weeks while we are there and mess up our ability to get home in a timely fashion. This is a long vacation for us, and we can’t afford to get stranded somewhere for much time after that. All of my friends and other contacts in these countries say things are fine right now, so we plan to go. Only a massive shift in the next week will change that.
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Flip a coin: heads or tails – that’s my hubby solution when having a huge dilemma🙂
Whatever comes, you need to follow your stars. All the best Lexie!!
Christie
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It may come to that – haha! We are leaning more heavily toward going at this point – will wait until next week to decide for sure. Thanks for the support!
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Thought this might be helpful:
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Did you forget a link?! I don’t see anything. Thank you in advance!
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Oh! Oops. I’ll try again.
https://nypost.com/2020/01/23/dont-buy-the-media-hype-over-the-new-china-virus/
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Yep. A lot of hysteria … face masks and antiseptic wipes are totally sold out in much of the US! Crazy. My worry is more that one of the countries or airlines in our itinerary panics and stops business. We just don’t need a delay getting back from what is already a long trip for us at this time in our lives. But we are pretty gung ho on going at the moment!
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Oh right! I forgot that you’d said it was more about logistics for you. I think as you’re not going to (or back from) China it should be fine. I’m thinking countries are only closing their borders to China.
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What a drag! I can totally understand what a tough decision this is for you guys. I remember agonizing about whether or not to cancel our Spring 2011 trip to Egypt, which we had planned well before the Arab Spring uprising. We got tons of feedback from friends and family and took it all under advisement (most saying don’t go). We went! Bottom line is that you can look at all our feedback, get all the reliable info possible, but then you need to go with your gut. You need to feel comfortable with your decision.
If it were me, I’d lean toward going as the thought of Angkor Wat, Luang Prabang, etc. with less crowds is very appealing…though I don’t have the same restrictions as you guys. All the best with your decision!
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The idea that some iconic places may be less crowded makes us very happy! 🙂 Truly a silver lining. We’ve gone to some “problem” places in the past, too, and everything has been fine. We are feeling comfortable about going at the moment. Just hoping things don’t change significantly in the next 3+ weeks while we are there.
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Arghh! Must be such a kill joy! I knew you wanted to visit this side of Asia. It’s such a tough call to make. A friend of mine left for Thailand today. It’s a calculated risk. Hopefully, you would get a better understanding of the situation by the end of the week. Things don’t seem to be getting better though. 😦 Wishing you luck!
P.S. Anonymous was the sweetest comment I read so far. There was so much concern there. Take care!
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It has definitely added some stress to what was a lot of anticipation. As the days have gone on and things in our destinations have stayed relatively steady, we are feeling good about going. The Anonymous comment was from my mom (which you may have guessed); surprisingly, both of my parents have been very supportive and think we should go unless things get much worse in the days leading up to the trip!
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All the best! Safe travels. You must have left already. Can’t wait to read about your trip.
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I am flying home from Hong Kong tomorrow after a cruise that went exactly to those spots! The cities were running in atypical fashions given the Lunar New Year holiday, and it’s hard to say whether or not they will remain closed given the new global state of emergency. An important thing to remember is that the countries in Asia are being overly cautious to prevent the spread of the virus to places with poor health services and limited hospitals, such as Cambodia. It is certainly a bit of a gamble and there is a huge possibility major sights in big cities will be closed, but I would guess that things you may have lined up in smaller areas will be less affected. Best of luck in making the decision, and hopefully it will all work out!
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Thanks for your first-hand input! I have written to a few friends and even our guides in some of our destinations, and so far, things are still functioning largely as usual. We will likely take the chance if things stay as they are right now. Thanks for reading and commenting!
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Looking forward to hearing about your journey!
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Definitely I can see the biggest threat is losing flight connections rather than actually catching the virus. Wash hands and don’t touch the face should be the mantra. It is definitely a personal decision.
Dave (Hubby)
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Totally agree, Dave. Practiced not touching my face all last week! 🙂 It’s amazing how often one scratches a nose, bites off a hangnail, etc!
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i say just go! you only live once and youre so so so unlikely to be exposed. and at the end of the day the corona virus is not anymore deadly apparently than the average cold. the world is panicking because that’s what happens. and you’re going to such a beautiful amazing part of the world. you’ll love it! And business class? Beautiful!
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Thanks, Andy! At the moment, I am in full agreement. We are preparing to go, and only a big change in the next few days might stop us. Looking forward to seeing all these places!
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Hi Lexi, I checked both my company’s travel policy and the airline where my better half works. Neither say anything about SE Asia; from what I can remember these guys got hit pretty hard from SARS and bird flu back in the day – especially Vietnam – and are taking no chances. Better Half is now in Kuala Lumpur and she’s reporting nothing out of the ordinary.
My advice would be to go. Stock up on Purell and positive mindsets.
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All signals indicate we are OK to go at present, so that’s the plan! Purell – check. Change in routing home – check. Positive mindsets – check! Hope my next post is all about the trip!
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It’s one week later and I suppose you have gone by now. I wish you a splendid trip!
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Aha, fooled ya! I wish I could say we were there and having a fabulous time. We were due to land there earlier today, but here we are in Guatemala instead! I won’t repeat the explanation (in my latest post), but we are at peace with our last-minute decision to ditch, rebook, and find a quickie trip to compensate for this loss.
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Well I am late to the discussion and reading through the comments was fascinating. Lots of agreement that it is easy for us at home to give you suggestions. I wouldn’t be scared of getting the virus but rather of not being able to get home. Fabulous that you could re-route out of Tokyo. Have a good trip Lexie. I’m sorry this is happening right now and hopefully won’t dampen your travel enjoyment too much.
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Well, Sue, we feared it ultimately WOULD dampen our enjoyment too much for such a long and expensive trip, so we ditched last minute and found very cheap flights to Guatemala for a few days as a consolation! We were devastated to have to postpone, but we are feeling OK about it now. It was so stressful to contemplate all the what ifs, and the funny thing was that we were never even worried about the actual virus. We defended our decision to go with dozens of people, but then we just said You know, this is not going to be the fun trip we imagined! So here we are in Guatemala …! 🙂
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Good for you! No point in going and being stressed. To be honest I believe I would have made the same decision. I’m in quite a few travel blogger discussion groups on Facebook and the consensus there has been to cancel for now.
Enjoy Guatemala and your SE Asia trip will happen another time.
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That’s interesting! I was hearing strong opinions on both sides online, but none from good friends or family, who I think were staying neutral to be polite!
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