Getting Back Out There in 2021

Note: This post is sponsored by Ecolab. 

Wow, it’s been a long 16 months! Last March we returned from Morocco and Spain right before the world shut down and our lives became a lot quieter. Things I remember from the beginning of COVID-19:

• Being nervous about my wife going to the grocery store.
• Getting together with friends last April for a walk and staying at least 10 feet away from them the entire time.
• Searching high and low for masks, and then purchasing a lot of different styles to figure out what fit us best. I’m guessing everyone has a large mask selection at this point!
• Purchasing industrial paper towels and hand sanitizer because it’s all we could find.
• Being paranoid about what was on our mail and packages.
• Wearing masks everywhere and having frequent dreams that I was somewhere in a room full of mask-wearers and I had forgotten mine.

In the course of selling a house last year I did five road trips between California and Colorado, both with my kids and solo, and it felt good to be out – not quite the same as flying somewhere far away, but it was still nice to travel a little and we loved having an excuse to see the American Southwest. Otherwise we’ve been home for 16 months.

Our Travel Plans

Last year we cancelled trips to Turkey, Italy, Greece and Germany. We rebooked several things for later in the year, and then rebooked again for June 2021, but it’s just a little too soon. Some our destinations aren’t accepting US citizens yet, there are still curfews in place, and it’s unknown right now how accepted vaccine certificates will be or whether COVID-19 testing will still be required. So we cancelled (again) and pushed forward our deposits (again).

But we really want to get back out there and take back our social life! Building on our successes from last year, we’re starting the summer with an epic road trip. My son and I will be driving to Colorado again, stopping at two of our favorite places, but otherwise seeing a lot of destinations that will be new for us. We’ll visit three national parks (Yosemite, Great Basin and Arches), we’ll finally make it to Lake Tahoe and Park City, and we’ll return to Vail. We’ll also be staying at some amazing hotels to make us feel alive again – places like The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. We’ve never been a room service family, but I seriously want room service! I want to splurge!

National Splurge Day

Coincidently, National Splurge Day is June 18. It’s not a day that I’ve paid attention to before, and last year definitely wasn’t a time to splurge. But I want to have fun this year! We’ll be staying in a hotel that day, and likely ordering room service for breakfast. Maybe a movie? Maybe a massage? Afternoon tea? Definitely lunch and drinks by the pool and dinner out. It’s the little things that used to feel so normal that now seem so luxurious!

Hold Your Horses

But…it’s not party time yet – splurge time definitely, but I don’t want to let up on being careful. I’m fully vaccinated and my 13-year-old son is fully vaccinated. We’ll still be in masks and super-careful everywhere. And as with last summer, we’ll be searching for hotels and restaurants that have earned the Ecolab Science Certified™ seal.

Ecolab Science Certified

If you’re not familiar with the Ecolab Science Certified program, the seal means that places aren’t committed to just any clean, they’re committed to a scientific clean. Specifically, when locations display the Ecolab Science Certified seal, it means they:

• Use the broadest product portfolio proven to kill the COVID-19 virus and other germs, including hospital disinfectants and food-contact sanitizers like Ecolab’s Sink & Surface Cleaner Sanitizer, the first product proven to kill the COVID-19 virus in just 15 seconds;
• Train their employees on current public health and food safety cleaning and disinfecting practices; 
• Implement protocols created to support a higher level of cleanliness informed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and developed by Ecolab’s team of food safety and public health experts, backed by decades of experience helping keep hospitals, restaurants and hotels clean;
• Are subject to independent audits by Ecolab specialists to verify practices are being followed and products are being used correctly and receive additional support and training to resolve any gaps.

Prior to the Ecolab Science Certified program, it was difficult to feel confident that an establishment adhered to a higher level of cleanliness before booking. Now even before we arrive, we know there will be science-based protocols behind the surfaces, and we can relax, enjoy ourselves and feel comfortable splurging!

Ecolab is the global leader in cleaning and disinfecting expertise for commercial environments. Follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to learn how they are using scientific expertise to deliver a higher level of cleanliness. To view a list of some of the businesses that have earned the Ecolab Science Certified seal, visit sciencecertified.com/partners/.

This post is sponsored by Ecolab and fits in absolutely perfectly with planning our summer travels. Hotel and restaurant cleanliness was important before the virus and is absolutely vital now! All text, photos and research are mine. The photos I included aren’t meant to imply that specific properties are cleaner than others or vice versa.