Kurt Kucera

Scuba Diver, Car Enthusiast, Outdoorsman

Post-Covid Travel Trends

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The coronavirus pandemic has brought huge changes to what people expect from their flights and travel companies. With the new possibility of travel bans as well as a reluctance to travel too far from home for a host of safety reasons, people are changing when and how they travel. Check out these four major travel trends affecting travel companies and the payment industry as a whole.

Local travel or staycations

More tourists are choosing nearby or local vacations rather than traveling to other countries. Alternative modes of travel like car rentals and train trips are increasing while crossing country borders is becoming less common. This trend has been in part caused by the recent pandemic, keeping families at home or only traveling to other nearby, safe communities. Alternative modes of travel often offer more flexibility in their booking schedules and adherence to safety concerns.

Sanitary, safe facilities

Tourists and leisure travelers are becoming more selective in which company they want to travel with and where they want to go. Safety, comfort, and cleanliness have become huge factors in whether or not a traveler will book tickets. Travelers are more likely to book with facilities they find clean and safe. Cost and schedule availability have only recently made a comeback in terms of importance, but safety is expected to continue to be important.

Booking flexibility

Since the beginning of the pandemic and flight bans, travelers have been looking for more flexibility in their travel dates. More flights are being booked closer to the departure date rather than weeks or months in the future. Flexible bookings with refund options have become key to travelers who aren’t sure when another travel ban will restrict their vacations out of the country. An easy dispute process, card protections, and zero traveler liability have become essential features to many travelers across the globe.

Travel sustainability

Sustainability in the travel industry was coming into focus before the pandemic and now has reached an all-time high in public concern. Travelers are looking for smaller travel times and local options rather than traditional mass tourism trends. Sustainability is a key feature that many consumers are considering when booking tickets or planning trips.

Travel Tips You’ve Never Heard

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There’s a lot of advice out there on being the best traveler someone can be. But if they are anything like others, it seems like they hear new travel tips every day. It can seem overwhelming and difficult to know where to start. This article has compiled some of the more obscure (yet helpful) tidbits that will help make their next trip even more enjoyable than before.

Invest in a VPN

When traveling to other countries, using a VPN is a good way to ensure privacy and security. By routing their traffic through a VPN server, they can keep their personal information hidden from public view. This is especially important when using open Wi-Fi connections in airports and other places where hackers may be looking to steal sensitive data.

Carry a pen

This one may seem a bit silly, but it’s always good to have a pen on hand. Whether they need to fill out a customs form or make a quick note, it’s always handy to have something to write with.

Develop your travel instincts

Another travel tip you have never heard is to trust your instincts. When faced with a decision while abroad, it is necessary to rely on one’s gut feeling. For example, if they feel uncomfortable about the person they are talking to or their area, it is best to walk away and find another path. Doing so can prevent their belongings from being stolen or them getting lost in an unsafe location.

Less planning, more spontaneity

While it is important to have a plan while traveling, it is also beneficial to allow spontaneity. This means being okay with not following their original itinerary and going with the flow. Flexibility is key when it comes to exploring a new place.

Always carry cash

For whatever reason, people today feel as though they don’t need to carry cash anymore. While it’s true that many stores and restaurants can now be paid for through credit cards or mobile apps, there is always the chance that something could happen which will leave them without access to those forms of payment. It has been proven time and again that carrying a certain amount of cash on their person will make a traveler feel more secure when they are in a new land.

Go with the flow

Nothing gets in the way of a good adventure like trying to plan everything in advance. The best travel experiences come when they are ready to take things as they come and be open to whatever situations present themselves. They can even put plans in place where they must surrender control over their itinerary, relying strictly on fate to direct the course of their day.

Best Locations for EcoTravel and Diving

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There are many places in the world that can be called “eco-friendly” locations. What does this mean? A place with a high percentage of wildlife and natural habitat, as well as low pollution levels. This is an important list to know about for those who want to travel responsibly and see the beauty of nature first hand. The five best eco-friendly destinations for travelers include:

 

1) Belize – Known as one of the most beautiful countries in Central America, Belize offers not only great diving opportunities but also incredible eco-tourism opportunities too.

 

2) Jamaica – Jamaica has been ranked among some of the top five spots on Earth by National Geographic Traveler magazine due to its rich biodiversity, white sand beaches, and Jamaican culture.

 

3) Galapagos Islands – The Galapagos Islands are one of the most incredible islands in the world for diving enthusiasts due to their abundance of wildlife and unique features. Along with this, there is plenty of ecotourism opportunities on land as well.

 

4) Great Barrier Reef – The Great Barrier Reef is one of the largest and most beautiful coral reefs in the world. Starting from Australia, this reef will take divers to some of the most incredible corals and fish they have ever seen.

 

5) The Maldives – With over 1,000 islands filled with palm trees and white sand.

 

6) Madagascar – This Island is the fourth largest in the world and is home to some of the most unique wildlife. Currently, less than 5% of Madagascar’s native forests are intact, which makes ecotourism opportunities on land more important.

 

7) Indonesia – The Coral Triangle in Indonesia is known as one of the richest ecosystems on Earth for its biodiversity, coral reefs, and a wide variety of marine life.

In conclusion, the world is full of many different eco-friendly locations for travelers to visit. It is worth noting that there are different places that can be visited and happen to provide a critical and analytic framework that can be used to analyze the situation. The different locations are fundamental when trying to have an overview of the specific components which are associated with the situation. These are just a few of the top ones that are available.

Scuba Influencers to Follow on Instagram

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Scuba diving is a sport that many people admire. Millions of people every year are taking up the sport. For those who love exploring the underwater seas, scuba diving is a great way to do it. The SCUBA of scuba diving stands for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. With this apparatus, a person can breathe underwater. The proper way to learn how to scuba dive is to take a course and get certified. Beginners dive between 100 to 133 feet. More experienced divers go deeper. Following scuba divers on Instagram is a fun thing to do. Here are five of the top scuba influencers to follow on Instagram.

Nadia Aly

Nadia is a resident of Northern California and a skilled scuba diver, content creator, influencer, and expedition leader. Nadia, who won Ocean Photographer of The Year for 2020, has over 300,000 followers on Instagram. On her account, you will find up-close-and-personal pics of sharks, whales, penguins, and crabs. These are photos that would look great in your home and office, and Nadia sells her pictures on her website.

Sean Havas

The scuba diver, photographer, and videographer Sean Havas displays interesting photographic angles of the bridges over ocean waters and sharks that he shoots. Havas runs his site Pirates and Palm that features videos and other information about sea life.

Alicia

Alicia Ward, a Mexican American raised in Hawaii, is a scuba diver, photographer, and cinematographer with 125,000 followers on her Instagram, Alicia Underwater. The photos she posts are colorful, bright images of dolphins and stingrays. She has a website with her scuba-diving husband, Jim.

Enric Sala

Scientist Enric Sala is a National Geographic and Explorer-in-Residence. Scuba diver Dr. Sala’s Instagram feed displays lovely, bright underwater pics of various aquatic sea life, such as sharks, stingrays, fish, and turtles. Sala has a website, and he is the author of Pristine Seas: Journeys to the Ocean’s Last Wild Places (forward by actor Leonardo DiCaprio) and The Nature of Nature: Why We Need the Wild.

Brian Skerry

Award-winning wildlife photographer Brian Skerry is a scuba diver and wildlife photojournalist for National Geographic Magazine. His photographs have been exhibited in such countries as France and Spain. Skerry, who has a website, also has over 900,000 followers on Instagram. His pictures often focus on one subject, such as the face of a seal or a dolphin.

3 Animals to be Aware of When Diving

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Scuba diving is a wonderful way to evade the hustle and bustle of daily life. There is something about being underwater and surrounded by sea life that helps divers find their center and experience a sense of tranquility that helps their souls heal.

While there are many benefits connected to diving, experienced divers know that there is also an element of risk. Experienced divers know that while many of the animals that call the ocean home are beautiful, many are also deadly. A single bite or sting from one of these ocean creatures can put a diver’s life in danger.

Stonefish

Many people don’t realize that the stonefish is one of the most deadly animals a diver could encounter. The good news is that stonefish aren’t aggressive. They don’t even pursue the reef fish they consume.

The problem with stonefish is that they are camouflage masters. They blend in so perfectly with the seabed and are so still, both fish and human divers often mistake them for a simple rock. If the diver inadvertently steps on the stonefish, the fish’s needle-sharp spine instantly injects a highly toxic venom into the diver. The diver will immediately experience extreme pain. The venom presents two dangers. The first is that it’s strong enough to potentially kill the diver. The second is that the diver may be in so much pain, they’re unable to swim to the surface and get help. With treatment, it can take 24-48 hours to recover from an encounter with a stonefish.

While the stonefish is native to the Pacific and the Indian Ocean, it has been found in the Caribbean and popular Florida dive sites.

Moray Eels

Moray eels are dangerous, though not quite as deadly as some people assume. Moray eels aren’t aggressive and will usually ignore divers. Most moray eel attacks are the result of divers inserting their hands into holes and crevices that the eels are using as dens.

Lionfish

Lionfish are gorgeous, but divers should give them a wide berth. The very spines that inspired their names are potentially deadly to divers. The spines are full of venom which can cause extreme pain if it enters the diver’s bloodstream. While it’s unlikely that the venom will kill a diver, the pain they experience could make it difficult for them to reach the surface. The venom is a protein-based neuromuscular toxin that inhibits the body’s nerves, brain, and muscle’s ability to communicate.

These are just three of the animals divers should be cautious of while they explore reefs and shipwrecks.