Tourism has been one of the sectors most affected by the coronavirus and recreational travel has taken a back seat. Now that travel in Latin America is normalizing, after a reduction in daily contagion cases, many people wonder: How can I travel in the middle of a pandemic?

In this blog we share with you some of the recommendations that we were able to collect from international Institutes and Control Centers that published various guides and suggestions for taking bus trips during the pandemic.

General recommendations

First we will talk a little about the general recommendations and measures that are maintained to avoid contagion in any situation. These are rigorous hygiene habits that have been shown to help prevent the spread of the virus.

One of the main recommendations is to use a mask at all times while you are away from home. There are different types of masks, the most effective is called N95, which filters 95% of airborne particles; It is also recommended to use surgical masks, which are quite effective and finally, if you wear a fabric mask, it is recommended that it be made of at least two layers of fabric.

Another important recommendation is frequent hand washing, this is effective since the virus is covered by a protective layer of fat; when we wash our hands we remove that protective layer of fat and the virus dies. It is also advisable to have a gel hand sanitizer, wet towels or a spray with a 70% alcohol solution with you for when you cannot access a sink.

You should also avoid touching your eyes, mouth or nose when you are in the street. If you need to cough or sneeze, it is important to do so by covering your mouth with the inside of your elbow, in this way you avoid the spread of particles in the air and these remain in an area with which you usually have little contact.

Finally, we recommend that you avoid the affective greeting with people, say hello from afar, avoiding contact with either cheeks or hands. An alternative that is frequently seen is the salute with the elbow or perhaps with the feet, but a simple gesture of the hand is enough. Likewise, you must maintain a distance of 2 meters with other people.

Recommendations for bus travel

Transportation companies are taking their own prevention measures governed by the authorities now that some of their services have been enabled. In general, they are making the trip with a reduced capacity; buses travel at 50 to 60% of their total capacity. They are cleaned and disinfected completely after each trip and the bus staff must wear a mask as a requirement.

Now we will give you recommendations to travel as safely as possible by bus and avoid contagion as much as possible. Something very important to take into account is that zero risk does not exist, however, with these tips the risk will be considerably reduced:

Evaluate the reasons for your trip

At this time it is important to take into account the reasons why you are making the trip. Is it a vacation trip to relax? Do you feel like traveling after being locked in your house all year? Or maybe is it an important business trip? The ideal is to avoid trips made for leisure or relaxation and only travel if necessary.

Another important aspect to take into account is your health, if you have a risky disease or are among people with high risk, it is best to avoid travel. Also take into account the people who travel with you.

We know that you are tired of seeing the same street every day and now that some trips have been enabled you are surely looking to take advantage of this and travel to get out of the ordinary. We recommend you to do tourism within your city, we are sure that there are several places that you still have to visit. If you really want to travel, find a place nearby.

Choose a safe destination

You must be adequately informed about the epidemiological situation of the destination, as well as the entry restrictions. The more cases of COVID-19 there are at the destination, the greater the likelihood of becoming infected while traveling and spreading the virus to others upon return. On the World Health Organization website you can see the Dashboard with the destination’s situation in relation to COVID-19. We recommend you check the countries that are going through a new wave of infections and avoid traveling there.

Avoid traveling to places where you have to make many stops or stops. It is preferable to travel to destinations close to your city and avoid moving to far away places. Once at your destination, we recommend doing activities that are outdoors and avoiding closed places with several people.

Make the purchase of your tickets safely

Once you have decided your destination, it is time to buy the tickets. To avoid crowds and physical contact for money exchange, we recommend buying your tickets online. In the Tickets Bolivia portal you can purchase tickets with a credit or debit card, through PayPal or by bank deposit. In this way you avoid direct contact with people.

It is also important to choose the time of travel. It is advisable to avoid traveling in peak hours such as early in the morning or late at night, where many people decide to make the trip. You can wait a couple of hours and make the trip to avoid contact with more people.

At the time of travel

The time to travel has come, you must take into account all the general recommendations that we gave you in the first instance such as the use of a mask and you can also use a face shield to take better care of yourself during the trip. Do not forget to wash your hands before and after entering the bus.

Try to travel in the window and open it a little during the trip. This allows constant air circulation within the bus. Finally, we advise you to make the trip with gloves; in this way you avoid contact with the surfaces inside the bus. Once you wash your hands before boarding the bus, you can put on your gloves and take them off at the destination to re-disinfect or wash your hands.

We hope that these tips have been of great help to you and that you take them into account when making your bus trips. Do not forget to take care of yourself at all times and be ready to travel in any situation.