On Travel

Banned from Europe? Try these American vacation substitutes

Want to visit Europe this summer? Forget it: You’re banned from Europe.

Although it opened its borders to international tourists last week, Europe has barred most Americans. It seems our physical distancing and other containment measures don’t meet the European Council’s high standards.

Or, to put it bluntly, the coronavirus is out of control in America.

So there goes your European vacation. Or does it?
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The Navigator

Are you required to wear a mask on a plane?

Kevin Garvey wants to know if he’s required to wear a mask on a plane. So does just about everyone else who has to fly this summer.

Here’s the situation that prompted his question: On a recent flight from Fort Myers, Fla., to Chicago, two women seated in front of him dropped their face coverings. In an age of social distancing, he assumed that a flight attendant would quickly remedy the situation.

It didn’t happen. A crew member didn’t even seem to notice that they were unmasked, he says.

“At no time did they wear their masks while talking to the flight attendant, nor did she remind them to put on their masks,” says Garvey, a retired lawyer from Chicago. “The flight attendants did nothing to enforce their own directives.”
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Smart Consumer

How to exit your timeshare in a pandemic

Think this is a bad summer for travel? Consider the plight of timeshare owners. Many have been laid off after the COVID-19 outbreak. Unable to pay their monthly maintenance fees or mortgage, they’re wondering: How do I exit my timeshare in a pandemic?

With the unemployment rate over 11% and large parts of the U.S. economy reeling from a shutdown — and now the prospect of another shutdown — that promises to be one of the summer’s most frequently asked questions.

So what are your options?
Read more “How to exit your timeshare in a pandemic”