Vikas Rattan
So, amid Covid, is my airport experience going to be less enthralling this time?
IR Hand sanitizers at a lot of points are the new normal and it doesn’t take any effort or time to get it on your hands. Expect non touch sanitizers where you just place your hands underneath the sanitizer and it automatically dispenses a fixed portion of the sanitizer; And they are going to be everywhere.
Boarding Passes- A lot of airlines have made E boarding mandatory and so while you or your travel consultant check you in online, simply ensure to print your boarding pass as well as luggage tags beforehand as per given instructions. Depending on where you are in the world, a standard operating procedure may be different so be sure as to what is going to be expected from you at your particular airport.
Immigration/Arrival/Departure forms, Filling those out, it may NOT be a good idea to ask someone for borrowing a pen this time. Make sure, you take yours and also keep it handy.
Sensor Doors- It is already a normal almost everywhere but sensor doors at airports or in most good hotels around the world have not just been there for convenience and just because they look good. They also are there for a hygiene reason so not everyone has to touch the same door handle, needless to say they are safer and lesser accident prone at the same time.
Airport Lounges
Missing the customary news papers, magazines..
Duty Free Shopping: There may be shops that are closed for reasons such as not being able to keep up or not qualifying in the eligible category or to go with the guidelines of local authorities or could be even lacking staff and business and hence ended up going into a temporary closure. Call the airport to find out beforehand if you have something planned from a particular shop at the airport to avoid disappointment later on.
Lounges: Don’t be surprised if the newspapers are not there. That’s just one of those common touch things. Rather, you may come across new apps that they have come up with and will encourage you to read an e paper of their own. The couches, tables, coffee machines (Expect to be served) and all other common touch surfaces could be seen regularly disinfected by the lounge staff.
Thermal Screening: We all are witnessing this getting done at multiple places already in our routine life after Covid came in. Expect the same more than once from the time you enter the airport to the time you board and then disembark the aircraft.
Baggage: Last but not the least, guess what, your baggage gets a taste of the sanitizer too. Baggage sanitization procedures are in place in almost all airports of the world now
Automated Facial Recognition
Disinfectant & Cleaner Robots
Robots are doing the cleaning work
The covid test is scary. What if I am negative in India when departing and then test positive upon arrival inDubai. This is scary. Already, I think few case where people tested negative in india and then tested positive in Dubai. INfact they banned the laboratory from thier list of recognized laboratories. What’s more, then they will quarantine you and not sure how the cost of that goes.
Hi Prabodh, Emirates is offering an insurance that covers hospitalization and stay expenses up to Euro 100 per day if you test positive on arrival and are made to undergo a quarantine. If you are travelling with a partner, he/she can be allowed to stay alongside you ( of course not in the same room I mean). Alternatively, you must take an insurance anyways and that can cover expenses up to higher limits. But yes, in rare cases, people have tested negative in India and tested positive in Dubai.
Thanks Vikas. We fly to Abu Dhabi actually. I did check the website and all details but there is still ample confusion. Also, the directive seems to be changing a lot every 3 days or so.
I am flying in another weeks time. Plan to be there well ahed of time.
It was for 12 years and older, I think. They would recheck a passenger if temperature was more than 38 degrees f.
I am always happy once I know my luggage has reached too with me !!!
Duty free shopping Closed at Mumbai airport?
My husband is a business lounge & luxury fanatic. Not sure what extra pleasure he gets out of them but he would like to see them fully operational and would turn a grim face to see them closed or not offering all services.
what is the inconvenience anyways. the measures are to curb the spread of the disease and for the public’s health. it encourages safe travel for the good of the public only
The author has made a good point here that the inconvenience if only there if one goes with that mindset.
yes, agreed. We took a domestic flight two weeks back and although there were some temperature checks and slow moving lanes, but it was still fun for the kids as usual.
Only need to be there earlier so there is no rushing
Like the article. We were just at the Brussels airport a month back and the article reminded me of the experience there. But I think they had some rule there where children of a particular age were exempt from wearing the face mask. Could not make out why.