Hopefully, summer won’t end the way it began. Memorial Day celebrations helped set off a wave of coronavirus infections across much of the South and West. Gatherings around the Fourth of July seemed to keep those hot spots aflame.
And now Labor Day arrives as those regions are cooling off from COVID-19. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned Wednesday that Americans in infection rates. But travelers are also weary of staying home 鈥 and tourist destinations are starved for cash.
鈥淛ust getting away for an hour up the street and staying at a hotel is like a vacation, for real,” says Kimberly Michaels, who works for NASA in Huntsville, Alabama, and traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, with her boyfriend to celebrate his birthday last weekend.
Lifting Restrictions for Summer鈥檚 End
In time for the tail end of summer, many local governments are lifting restrictions to resuscitate tourism activity and rescue small businesses.
Nashville, for instance, gave the green light to pedal taverns this week, allowing the human-powered bars-on-wheels to take to the streets again. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not Nashville鈥檚 favorite group, frankly. But fairness requires this protocol change to take place,鈥 Mayor John Cooper , noting the city鈥檚 dramatic reduction in new cases. This week, the city also raised the attendance cap on weddings, funerals and other ceremonies.
Elsewhere, tried to get some leniency for its struggling restaurants over the holiday weekend. But Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam pleas from the mayor, at the encouragement of Fauci. The country鈥檚 top health official has encouraged governors to keep restrictions in place to avoid another holiday-related surge.
“Sometimes, as we start to lift restrictions, the impression that people get is 鈥極h, that must mean it’s safe,鈥欌 says epidemiologist Melissa McPheeters of Vanderbilt University. 鈥淲e want to make sure we don’t give that impression, because this disease has not gone anywhere.”
Some communities have gone the other direction and reimposed restrictions, especially for the three-day weekend. , California, has banned sunbathing to avoid another surge in cases.
Schooling Screws Up COVID Circles
On a Sunday afternoon, out-of-towners walk the tourist district in Nashville, where many attractions have reopened 鈥 with restrictions. All dance floors are closed and restaurants and bars must close by 10:30 p.m.(Blake Farmer/WLPN)
There鈥檚 also a new X-factor with summer鈥檚 last holiday weekend. In many states, schools have resumed in-person classes. So families and friends meeting up are now more likely to expose each other to the virus, even if they tried to keep a tight circle over the summer.
鈥淚f those bubbles now have kids that went back to school and are interacting with others or they鈥檝e gone back to sports and the bubble has since expanded, that ability to be safely together in a gathering is probably less likely,鈥 says epidemiologist Bertha Hidalgo of the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
And yet, getting together safely 鈥 preferably outdoors 鈥 is still worth a try, Hidalgo says. She says people鈥檚 mental health needs a boost to get through the next few months.
“If you can do the safe things now before winter hits and that cold weather hits, then you’ll be more resilient to get through any bad times that may come,鈥 she says.
In drivable destinations like Nashville that have welcomed visitors throughout the pandemic, tourism has not bounced back entirely. But on some weekend nights, the neon-soaked tourist district can draw a crowd.
This week, Vaj Vemulapalli and his girlfriend, of Dallas, turned back to their hotel after feeling uncomfortable with how tightly people were packed together.
鈥淲e crave the social interaction, the going out to bars and everything,鈥 he says. 鈥淏ut at the end of the day, our general stance is it鈥檚 not worth getting [COVID-19] just to get a drink.鈥
Kimberly Michaels and Marcus Robinson of Huntsville, Alabama, drove to Nashville, Tennessee, for a night to celebrate Robinson鈥檚 birthday. The streets were crowded when they arrived and then quickly cleared as establishments closed at 10:30 p.m. (Blake Farmer/WLPN)(Blake Farmer/WLPN)
Those crowds have limits, though, as Kimberly Michaels and birthday boy Marcus Robinson discovered. They arrived in Nashville fashionably late, masked up and ready to responsibly party. But after they checked into their hotel, they discovered that everything has to shut down by 10:30.
鈥淚t’s crazy. It was like the twilight zone,鈥 Robinson says. 鈥淲e went in [to the hotel], the streets were full. Got dressed, come downstairs. Like, where did everybody go? Like, did something happen? But we didn鈥檛 know, because we鈥檙e not from here.”
Still, as time goes by, some travelers are willing to take more risks to get back to activities that feel normal.
Suzette Ourso lives outside New Orleans and flew to Nashville for her first out-of-town trip since the pandemic hit. She says she鈥檚 cautious, wearing her mask whenever near anyone else.
“I keep hand sanitizer in my purse now. That’s something I’ve never really done before,鈥 she says. 鈥淏ut you can die tomorrow riding in your vehicle. So you can’t live your life in fear, either.”
Ourso has a trip to the beach planned for later in the month.
This story is part of a partnership that includes , and Kaiser Health News.
