Cruising on Celebrity or relaxing in Rehoboth Beach; book your vacation now

I am beginning to spend more time at my place in Rehoboth Beach, DE for the first time in nearly a year. It’s a short trip from DC; two hours and twenty minutes without traffic if you leave DC before 6:00am. Rental houses, guest houses and hotels are being booked quickly for the summer and the town is getting ready for the onslaught. Rte. one Saturday already looks like it’s the fourth of July. Every shop and restaurant in town has a sign ‘help-wanted’.

Rehoboth won’t satisfy all my desire for travel. I am looking forward to what I consider a real trip, my transatlantic cruise on the Celebrity EDGE which hopefully happens in October from Barcelona to Ft. Lauderdale.

It seems everyone I know is planning a trip. Every travel destination or partner like Celebrity cruises, a Celebrity ship could itself be a destination, is banking on the tremendous pent-up desire to travel. For many it is confirmation life is returning to normal. Celebrity recently announced it is taking bookings for their newest ship anticipated to come online in April, 2022. Celebrity BEYOND will be the newest addition to their EDGE series of ships.

I think both Celebrity and Rehoboth Beach are spot-on to anticipate huge travel seasons as everyone who has been vaccinated, that includes me, is talking about trips they have planned or are planning. It’s the desire to go somewhere, anywhere, away from home or wherever they were quarantined during what many have called their lost year. While we continue to mourn all those Americans and those around the world who have lost their lives to COVID many feel travel will help them with some of the mental health issues they face which COVID and being quarantined caused.

Some friends have already traveled across the United States visiting national parks, Palm Springs, Key West and anywhere else they can to celebrate the freedom they are feeling having gotten the vaccine. Some have already gone farther afield to the Maldives, others to Antigua. Mexican resorts are a favored destination for some.

Now that the European Union has announced their member states are planning to be open this summer to Americans who have been vaccinated the discussion centers around what proof of vaccination will be acceptable? Will we need a specific vaccine passport? Will our vaccine card be enough? In order to meet demand airlines are adding flights and planning for a busy season. After Celebrity announced the Celebrity EDGE will be cruising from Athens to the Greek Islands and Israel this summer United Airlines announced they will begin non-stop flights for the first time from Washington, Dulles to Athens. I predict they will be booked very quickly.

While my choice for travel is cruising and as I said it’s on the Celebrity EDGE this year; whatever your choice of travel, whatever your desired destination, book it now before you get locked out.