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Overtourism Is Out of Control. Here Are the New Rules of Travel.

Post-pandemic travel is surging, and overtourism is pushing popular places to their limits. How can you be a good traveler when some locals just want you to go home?

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I was in Hawaii with a group of friends, and a local screamed at us to go home. The island was overcrowded, and while I know tourists can be obnoxious and disrespectful, we were being conscientious. I don’t want to give up visiting the world’s most beautiful places, but I also don’t want to add to overtourism. Can I continue to wander where I want to? —Afraid of Anti-Tourists

I grew up in a tourist town on the Jersey Shore, so I understand the frustration of residents who live in vacation destinations. Each summer I’d grouse as throngs of visitors took over beaches, snarled traffic, and made parking impossible. But their tourism dollars were a boon to the local economy, and the tips I made waitressing during high season helped pay my way through college.

Now I split my time between Colorado and Maui and see how an influx of visitors impacts the environment and longtime residents. Peak season in either place—when it feels like tourists outnumber residents—is maddening, and it turns my typical routine upside down.

The local coffee shops where I sometimes work remotely from are mobbed, so I usually stay home. If I don’t do my grocery shopping as soon as stores open, I have to drive in circles indefinitely, searching for parking. Popular restaurants have hour-plus wait times, so my friends and I abandon hopes of dining out.

The Hawaiian Islands’ most recent Resident Sentiment Survey , conducted by Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, revealed that 67 percent believe their islands are being run for tourists at the expense of locals, and that many feel tourists show a lack of respect for them, culture, and the land. I often bike to Hana, a sleepy east-Maui town with a population of around 700, and I’ve seen residents native to Hawaii set up roadblocks and signs asking tourists to go home. I understand. This was their land.

Locals in other tourist towns have figured out ways of coping. “I avoid the downtown plaza all summer while tourists are here,” says Outside travel director Mary Turner, who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. “I’m happy that businesses are being supported by tourism, especially after the devastating affects of the pandemic on them. But I do get frustrated when I see visitors being disrespectful, like smoking on hiking trails during fire season.”

Kevin Rieke, a longtime local business owner in Leavenworth, Washington, who grew up hiking in the Cascade Mountains, blames Instagram for crowding his favorite trails. But he also sees the positive: thanks to a boost in tourist numbers, he says, the town now has a dozen really good restaurants that residents can enjoy in the slow seasons, and it’s easier for local kids to find jobs.

Global travel has made a comeback, and people are more eager than ever to get out in the world. According to UN Tourism , by the end of 2024, numbers will have returned to pre-pandemic levels. The International Air Transportation Association predicts that air travel this year will reach a historic high, with 4.7 billion people expected to take flight worldwide.

One of the biggest problems is that visitors continue to flock to the same places, like Venice and Paris, as well as the more popular national parks in the U.S. I include myself in that flock: I still feel compelled to visit places that are now overtouristed, like Rome and Bali. They’re bucket-list destinations for good reason.

So should you stop traveling to the world’s most beautiful places? As a travel journalist, I’m always going to encourage you to get out there and explore. But with heightened pressures on popular destinations around the globe, we could all stand to take a moment to learn how to be a more conscious tourist. Here are my suggestions.

Pay Tourist Fees to Support Local Economies

Travel meccas such as Amsterdam, Iceland, and Bali have started implementing a tourist tax for peak months to help temper visitation. Venice, which has a mere 50,000 residents, incredibly hosts 30 million visitors annually, many of them day-trippers who put little money back into the economy. Which is why, in April, the city introduced a trial fee of 5 euros ($5.45) per day on certain dates through July. The tariff has drawn criticism from residents who feel it makes visitors view their home like a park.

The town of Bend, Oregon, recently created a sustainability fund that puts revenue generated from a short-term-lodging tax—paid by visitors—into community-focused projects, such as a bike-park and trail improvements. “The idea is to use the money to address environmental degradation and invest in projects that locals and visitors can enjoy, so you have a social equilibrium that keeps a destination in balance,” says Todd Montgomery, the board chair for Visit Bend.

Paying a nominal fee to protect the places we love is the least we can do.

Expect to Plan Ahead and Make Reservations

The pandemic created a passion for outdoor recreation, and as a result, our national parks became overcrowded. An increasing number of popular parks in America, such as Yosemite, have implemented reservation systems for peak times. At first the planning seemed annoying, but the result is often a better quality experience for visitors and a lighter footprint on the land.

Learn Local Outdoor Etiquette

Many city dwellers were introduced to the joy of the outdoors during the pandemic, which is wonderful. But some hit the trails without basic knowledge about how to recreate responsibly.

“I’ve never seen more dog feces unpicked up, people going off route and trampling sensitive areas, Bluetooth-enabled speakers blaring out of backpacks, and Disney-like lines on sections of trails,” says Jim Deters, founder of the Gravity Haus hotels, which are located in more than a half dozen mountain towns across the West.

One of Deter’s goals with his properties is to provide visitors a truly local experience by creating an environment where they can mingle with residents—not just be served by them at a bar or restaurant. “We are the local’s gym, coworking space, and coffee shop,” says Deters. Sharing advice tends to happen organically in these settings.

Kayla Applebay, a resident and business owner in Leavenworth, Washington, says she won’t go to the rivers on summer weekends because tourists turn them into tube-clogged waterways. “You see people walking on salmon habitat, leaving trash everywhere,” she says. “Last summer a car caught on fire, and emergency services couldn’t access it because people had parked illegally.”

The town acted. In 2022, it launched a cheeky campaign called Give a Schnitzel (Leavenworth is known for its Bavarian heritage and Oktoberfest) to educate visitors on how to recreate responsibly. It also hired volunteer recreation ambassadors who post up at trailheads or river put-ins and take-outs, fielding questions and explaining rules. “They’ve probably saved quite a few lives by telling people to unleash from their paddleboards on the rapids,” says Troy Campbell, executive director of the Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce.

The upshot is: educate yourself on the area you’re going to. What’s happening there right now? What are locals concerned about? Keep up to date with issues by reading local news sites and magazines, visiting a local outdoor store and asking questions, or joining a local group-cycling ride or trail run.

If you screw up, always give a heartfelt apology. In Hawaiian culture, kids are taught Pa’a ka waha, ho’olohe ka pepeaio, nana ka maka , or “Shut your mouth, listen, watch,” says Kainoa Horcajo, a Maui-based cultural consultant. “This is how you can learn how to get along, how to fit in—and how to be a good tourist, citizen, human.”

Book Your Trip in the Offseason or a Shoulder Season

When you travel during these slower times, not only do you help reduce overcrowding but you’re also likely to have a more enjoyable experience and find better prices and more patient locals, says Amanda Ho, co-founder of Regenerative Travel, a booking platform with a collective of independently owned eco-hotels.

Spring, fall, and winter are good seasons to consider traveling to national parks and other popular places.

Stay and Play with Locally Owned Businesses

When you can be selective with the accommodations, tour guides, and experiences you’re booking, says Ho, it ensures your dollars are supporting residents as often as possible. Many locals’ livelihoods depend on tourism, so avoid big-box stores and chain restaurants in favor of eating and shopping at resident-owned places.

Some Other Rules to Travel By

• Don’t hold up traffic. This holds true from Manhattan to Maui. When you want to take photos, find an appropriate place for it that doesn’t slow down pedestrian or street traffic.
• Don’t create your own parking spaces. The lines are there for public safety and environmental protection. In Lake Tahoe, which straddles the California-Nevada border, illegal parking can create erosion and that runoff often ends up in the lake.
• Don’t use other people’s property as a bathroom. Would you want your kids to see a grown man’s behind poking out of the trees of your yard?
• Don’t go off-trail. It can disturb flora and fauna and pose safety risks to yourself.
• Don’t approach wildlife. Not the bison in our national parks or whales or dolphins while boating or snorkeling.
• Don’t geotag popular natural attractions on social media. It may be tempting to social-boast about your epic vacation, but a viral post can ruin a destination with Instagram-obsessed crowds.
• Don’t be rude to service workers. They’re employed to make your time safe and more enjoyable. Insulting them is about as inconsiderate as it gets.

Remember That Tourism Destinations Are Fragile

Yes, many economies depend on tourism, but too much of it is bad for everyone. Overcrowding adversely affects both locals and tourists, and in the long run it can ruin the natural beauty that made a destination desirable in the first place.

Todd Montgomery, who in addition to working for Visit Bend is the director of Oregon State University’s Sustainable Tourism Lab (which describes itself as “protecting tourist destinations for future generations of visitors and tourists”), got his start working for the mega-resort conglomerate Starwood Capital Group, where he was tasked with finding the next “it” destination in Southeast Asia between 1999 and 2006.

He and his colleagues would go into rural areas, promising the positive economic benefits of tourism to locals, only to have those areas “burn out” on visitation years later.

Initially, he says, travelers “paid for the culture and nature, but when that became diluted as the result of too many visitors, they weren’t inclined to pay as much,” he says. The visitor experience was negatively affected, but the destination also suffered from some combination of environmental damages, infrastructure wear and tear, and cultural damages, resulting in economic, social and environmental costs.

“Back then we assumed there was always another next destination,” Montgomery says. “If Phuket [in Thailand] got overrun, we’d go farther south. The reality was that there are only so many next destinations. You can’t have a turn-and-burn mentality. You have to protect places.” How do we do that, I ask him?

“It feels cliché,” he tells me, “but it starts with education.” 

Travel-advice columnist Jen Murphy wishes she could charge people a fee every time they try to take a selfie with a turtle on the beaches in Maui or a mountain goat while hiking in Colorado. 

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Compensatory Time Off for Travel - Questions & Answers to Fact Sheet

• Q1. What is compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Compensatory time off for travel is a separate form of compensatory time off that may be earned by an employee for time spent in a travel status away from the employee's official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable.
• Q2. Are all employees covered by this provision? View more A. The compensatory time off provision applies to an "employee" as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5541(2) who is employed in an "Executive agency" as defined in 5 U.S.C. 105, without regard to whether the employee is exempt from or covered by the overtime pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended. For example, this includes employees in senior-level (SL) and scientific or professional (ST) positions, but not members of the Senior Executive Service or Senior Foreign Service or Foreign Service officers. Effective April 27, 2008, prevailing rate (wage) employees are covered under the compensatory time off for travel provision. (See CPM 2008-04 .)
• Q3. Are intermittent employees eligible to earn compensatory time off for travel? View more A. No. Compensatory time off for travel may be used by an employee when the employee is granted time off from his or her scheduled tour of duty established for leave purposes. (See 5 CFR 550.1406(b).) Also see the definition of "scheduled tour of duty for leave purposes" in 5 CFR 550.1403. Employees who are on intermittent work schedules are not eligible to earn and use compensatory time off for travel because they do not have a scheduled tour of duty for leave purposes.
• Q4. What qualifies as travel for the purpose of this provision? View more A. To qualify for this purpose, travel must be officially authorized. In other words, travel must be for work purposes and must be approved by an authorized agency official or otherwise authorized under established agency policies. (Also see Q5.)
• Q5. May an employee earn compensatory time off when he or she travels in conjunction with the performance of union representational duties? View more A. No. The term "travel" is defined at 5 CFR 550.1403 to mean officially authorized travel—i.e., travel for work purposes approved by an authorized agency official or otherwise authorized under established agency policies. The definition specifically excludes time spent traveling in connection with union activities. The term "travel for work purposes" is intended to mean travel for agency-related work purposes. Thus, employees who travel in connection with union activities are not entitled to earn compensatory time off for travel because they are traveling for the benefit of the union, and not for agency-related work purposes.
• Q6. An employee receives compensatory time off for travel only for those hours spent in a travel status. What qualifies as time in a travel status? View more A. Travel status includes only the time actually spent traveling between the official duty station and a temporary duty station, or between two temporary duty stations, and the usual waiting time that precedes or interrupts such travel.
• Q7. Is travel in connection with a permanent change of station (PCS) creditable for compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Although PCS travel is officially authorized travel, it is not travel between an official duty station and a temporary duty station or between two temporary duty stations. Therefore, it is not considered time in a travel status for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel.
• Q8. What is meant by "usual waiting time"? View more A. Airline travelers generally are required to arrive at the airport at a designated pre-departure time (e.g., 1 or 2 hours before the scheduled departure, depending on whether the flight is domestic or international). Such waiting time at the airport is considered usual waiting time and is creditable time in a travel status. In addition, time spent at an intervening airport waiting for a connecting flight (e.g., 1 or 2 hours) also is creditable time in a travel status. In all cases, determinations regarding what is creditable as "usual waiting time" are within the sole and exclusive discretion of the employing agency.
• Q9. What if an employee experiences an "extended" waiting period? View more A. If an employee experiences an unusually long wait prior to his or her initial departure or between actual periods of travel during which the employee is free to rest, sleep, or otherwise use the time for his or her own purposes, the extended waiting time outside the employee's regular working hours is not creditable time in a travel status. An extended waiting period that occurs during an employee's regular working hours is compensable as part of the employee's regularly scheduled administrative workweek.
• Q10. Do meal periods count as time in a travel status? View more A. Meal periods during actual travel time or waiting time are not specifically excluded from creditable time in a travel status for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel. However, determinations regarding what is creditable as "usual waiting time" are within the sole and exclusive discretion of the employing agency.
• Q11. What happens once an employee reaches a temporary duty station? View more A. Time spent at a temporary duty station between arrival and departure is not creditable travel time for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel. Time in a travel status ends when the employee arrives at the temporary duty worksite or his or her lodging in the temporary duty station, wherever the employee arrives first. Time in a travel status resumes when an employee departs from the temporary duty worksite or his or her lodging in the temporary duty station, wherever the employee departs last.
• Q12. When is it appropriate for an agency to offset creditable time in a travel status by the amount of time the employee spends in normal commuting between home and work? View more A. If an employee travels directly between his or her home and a temporary duty station outside the limits of the employee's official duty station (e.g., driving to and from a 3-day conference), the agency must deduct the employee's normal home-to-work/work-to-home commuting time from the creditable travel time. The agency must also deduct an employee's normal commuting time from the creditable travel time if the employee is required—outside of regular working hours—to travel between home and a transportation terminal (e.g., an airport or train station) outside the limits of the employee's official duty station.
• Q13. What if an employee travels to a transportation terminal within the limits of his or her official duty station? View more A. An employee's time spent traveling outside of regular working hours to or from a transportation terminal within the limits of his or her official duty station is considered equivalent to commuting time and is not creditable time in a travel status for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel.
• Q14. What if an employee travels from a worksite to a transportation terminal? View more A. If an employee travels between a worksite and a transportation terminal, the travel time outside regular working hours is creditable as time in a travel status, and no commuting time offset applies. For example, after completing his or her workday, an employee may travel directly from the regular worksite to an airport to attend an out-of-town meeting the following morning. The travel time between the regular worksite and the airport is creditable as time in a travel status.
• Q15. What if an employee elects to travel at a time other than the time selected by the agency? View more A. When an employee travels at a time other than the time selected by the agency, the agency must determine the estimated amount of time in a travel status the employee would have had if the employee had traveled at the time selected by the agency. The agency must credit the employee with the lesser of (1) the estimated time in a travel status the employee would have had if the employee had traveled at the time selected by the agency, or (2) the employee's actual time in a travel status at a time other than that selected by the agency.
• Q16. How is an employee's travel time calculated for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel when the travel involves two or more time zones? View more A. When an employee's travel involves two or more time zones, the time zone from point of first departure must be used to determine how many hours the employee actually spent in a travel status for the purpose of accruing compensatory time off for travel. For example, if an employee travels from his official duty station in Washington, DC, to a temporary duty station in San Francisco, CA, the Washington, DC, time zone must be used to determine how many hours the employee spent in a travel status. However, on the return trip to Washington, DC, the time zone from San Francisco, CA, must be used to calculate how many hours the employee spent in a travel status.
• Q17. How is compensatory time off for travel earned and credited? View more A. Compensatory time off for travel is earned for qualifying time in a travel status. Agencies may authorize credit in increments of one-tenth of an hour (6 minutes) or one-quarter of an hour (15 minutes). Agencies must track and manage compensatory time off for travel separately from other forms of compensatory time off.
• Q18. Is there a limitation on the amount of compensatory time off for travel an employee may earn? View more A. No.
• Q19. How does an employee request credit for compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Agencies may establish procedures for requesting credit for compensatory time off for travel. An employee must comply with his or her agency's procedures for requesting credit of compensatory time off, and the employee must file a request for such credit within the time period established by the agency. An employee's request for credit of compensatory time off for travel may be denied if the request is not filed within the time period required by the agency.
• Q20. Is there a form employees must fill out for requests to earn or use compensatory time off for travel? View more A. There is not a Governmentwide form used for requests to earn or use compensatory time off for travel. However, an agency may choose to develop a form as part of its internal policies and procedures.
• Q21. How does an employee use accrued compensatory time off for travel? View more A. An employee must request permission from his or her supervisor to schedule the use of his or her accrued compensatory time off for travel in accordance with agency policies and procedures. Compensatory time off for travel may be used when the employee is granted time off from his or her scheduled tour of duty established for leave purposes. Employees must use accrued compensatory time off for travel in increments of one-tenth of an hour (6 minutes) or one-quarter of an hour (15 minutes).
• Q22. In what order should agencies charge compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Agencies must charge compensatory time off for travel in the chronological order in which it was earned, with compensatory time off for travel earned first being charged first.
• Q23. How long does an employee have to use accrued compensatory time off for travel? View more A. An employee must use his or her accrued compensatory time off for travel by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned or the employee must forfeit such compensatory time off, except in certain circumstances. (See Q24 and Q25 for exceptions.)
• Q24. What if an employee is unable to use his or her accrued compensatory time off for travel because of uniformed service or an on-the-job injury with entitlement to injury compensation? View more A. Unused compensatory time off for travel will be held in abeyance for an employee who separates, or is placed in a leave without pay status, and later returns following (1) separation or leave without pay to perform service in the uniformed services (as defined in 38 U.S.C. 4303 and 5 CFR 353.102) and a return to service through the exercise of a reemployment right or (2) separation or leave without pay due to an on-the-job injury with entitlement to injury compensation under 5 U.S.C. chapter 81. The employee must use all of the compensatory time off for travel held in abeyance by the end of the 26th pay period following the pay period in which the employee returns to duty, or such compensatory time off for travel will be forfeited.
• Q25. What if an employee is unable to use his or her accrued compensatory time off for travel because of an exigency of the service beyond the employee's control? View more A. If an employee fails to use his or her accrued compensatory time off for travel before the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned due to an exigency of the service beyond the employee's control, the head of an agency, at his or her sole and exclusive discretion, may extend the time limit for up to an additional 26 pay periods.
• Q26. May unused compensatory time off for travel be restored if an employee does not use it by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned? View more A. Except in certain circumstances (see Q24 and Q25), any compensatory time off for travel not used by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned must be forfeited.
• Q27. What happens to an employee's unused compensatory time off for travel upon separation from Federal service? View more A. Except in certain circumstances (see Q24), an employee must forfeit all unused compensatory time off for travel upon separation from Federal service.
• Q28. May an employee receive a lump-sum payment for accrued compensatory time off for travel upon separation from an agency? View more A. No. The law prohibits payment for unused compensatory time off for travel under any circumstances.
• Q29. What happens to an employee's accrued compensatory time off for travel upon transfer to another agency? View more A. When an employee voluntarily transfers to another agency (including a promotion or change to lower grade action), the employee must forfeit all of his or her unused compensatory time off for travel.
• Q30. What happens to an employee's accrued compensatory time off for travel when the employee moves to a position that is not covered by the regulations in 5 CFR part 550, subpart N? View more A. When an employee moves to a position in an agency not covered by the compensatory time off for travel provisions (e.g., the United States Postal Service), the employee must forfeit all of his or her unused compensatory time off for travel. However, the gaining agency may use its own legal authority to give the employee credit for such compensatory time off.
• Q31. Is compensatory time off for travel considered in applying the premium pay and aggregate pay caps? View more A. No. Compensatory time off for travel may not be considered in applying the biweekly or annual premium pay limitations established under 5 U.S.C. 5547 or the aggregate limitation on pay established under 5 U.S.C. 5307.
• Q32. When are criminal investigators who receive availability pay precluded from earning compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Compensatory time off for travel is earned only for hours not otherwise compensable. The term "compensable" is defined at 5 CFR 550.1403 to include any hours of a type creditable under other compensation provisions, even if there are compensation caps limiting the payment of premium pay for those hours (e.g., the 25 percent cap on availability pay and the biweekly premium pay cap). For availability pay recipients, this means hours of travel are not creditable as time in a travel status for compensatory time off purposes if the hours are (1) compensated by basic pay, (2) regularly scheduled overtime hours creditable under 5 U.S.C. 5542, or (3) "unscheduled duty hours" as described in 5 CFR 550.182(a), (c), and (d).
• Q33. What constitutes "unscheduled duty hours" as described in 5 CFR 550.182(a), (c), and (d)? View more A. Under the availability pay regulations, unscheduled duty hours include (1) all irregular overtime hours—i.e., overtime work not scheduled in advance of the employee's administrative workweek, (2) the first 2 overtime hours on any day containing part of the employee's basic 40-hour workweek, without regard to whether the hours are unscheduled or regularly scheduled, and (3) any approved nonwork availability hours. However, special agents in the Diplomatic Security Service of the Department of State may count only hours actually worked as unscheduled duty hours.
• Q34. Why are criminal investigators who receive availability pay precluded from earning compensatory time off when they travel during unscheduled duty hours? View more A. The purpose of availability pay is to ensure the availability of criminal investigators (and certain similar law enforcement employees) for unscheduled duty in excess of a 40-hour workweek based on the needs of the employing agency. Availability pay compensates an employee for all unscheduled duty hours. Compensatory time off for travel is earned only for hours not otherwise compensable. Thus, availability pay recipients may not earn compensatory time off for travel during unscheduled duty hours because the employees are entitled to availability pay for those hours.

A. When an employee who receives availability pay is required to travel on a non-workday or on a regular workday (during hours that exceed the employee's basic 8-hour workday), and the travel does not meet one of the four criteria in 5 U.S.C. 5542(b)(2)(B) and 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2), the travel time is not compensable as overtime hours of work under regular overtime or availability pay. Thus, the employee may earn compensatory time off for such travel, subject to the exclusion specified in 5 CFR 550.1404(b)(2) and the requirements in 5 CFR 550.1404(c),(d), and (e).

Under the provisions in 5 U.S.C. 5542(b)(2)(B) and 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2), travel time is compensable as overtime hours of work if the travel is away from the employee's official duty station and—

(i) involves the performance of work while traveling, (ii) is incident to travel that involves the performance of work while traveling, (iii) is carried out under arduous conditions, or (iv) results from an event which could not be scheduled or controlled administratively.

The phrase "an event which could not be scheduled or controlled administratively" refers to the ability of an agency in the Executive Branch of the United States Government to control the scheduling of an event which necessitates an employee's travel. If the employing agency or another Executive Branch agency has any control over the scheduling of the event, including by means of approval of a contract for it, then the event is administratively controllable, and the travel to and from the event cannot be credited as overtime hours of work.

For example, an interagency conference sponsored by the Department of Justice would be considered a joint endeavor of the participating Executive Branch agencies and within their administrative control. Under these circumstances, the travel time outside an employee's regular working hours is not compensable as overtime hours of work under regular overtime or availability pay. Therefore, the employee may earn compensatory time off for such travel, subject to the exclusion specified in 5 CFR 550.1404(b)(2) and the requirements in 5 CFR 550.1404(c), (d), and (e).

• Q36. If an employee is required to travel on a Federal holiday (or an "in lieu of" holiday), is the employee entitled to receive compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Although most employees do not receive holiday premium pay for time spent traveling on a holiday (or an "in lieu of" holiday), an employee continues to be entitled to pay for the holiday in the same manner as if the travel were not required. Thus, an employee may not earn compensatory time off for travel during basic (non-overtime) holiday hours because the employee is entitled to his or her rate of basic pay for those hours. Compensatory time off for travel may be earned by an employee only for time spent in a travel status away from the employee's official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable.
• Q37. If an employee's regularly scheduled tour of duty is Sunday through Thursday and the employee is required to travel on a Sunday during regular working hours, is the employee entitled to earn compensatory time off for travel? View more A. No. Compensatory time off for travel may be earned by an employee only for time spent in a travel status away from the employee's official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable. Thus, an employee may not earn compensatory time off for travel for traveling on a workday during regular working hours because the employee is receiving his or her rate of basic pay for those hours.
• Q38. May an agency change an employee's work schedule for travel purposes? View more A. An agency may not adjust the regularly scheduled administrative workweek that normally applies to an employee (part-time or full-time) solely for the purpose of including planned travel time not otherwise considered compensable hours of work. However, an employee is entitled to earn compensatory time off for travel for time spent in a travel status when such time is not otherwise compensable.
• Q39. Is time spent traveling creditable as credit hours for an employee who is authorized to earn credit hours under an alternative work schedule? View more A. Credit hours are hours an employee elects to work, with supervisory approval, in excess of the employee's basic work requirement under a flexible work schedule. Under certain conditions, an agency may permit an employee to earn credit hours by performing productive and essential work while in a travel status. See OPM's fact sheet on credit hours  for the conditions that must be met. If those conditions are met and the employee does earn credit hours for travel, the time spent traveling would be compensable and the employee would not be eligible to earn compensatory time off for travel. If the conditions are not met, the employee would be eligible to earn compensatory time off for travel.
• Q40. May an agency restore an employee's forfeited "use-or-lose" annual leave because the employee elected to use earned compensatory time off for travel instead of using his or her excess annual leave? View more A. Section 6304(d) of title 5, United States Code, prescribes the conditions under which an employee's forfeited annual leave may be restored to an employee. (See fact sheet on restoration of annual leave .) There is no legal authority to restore an employee's forfeited annual leave because the employee elected to use earned compensatory time off for travel instead of using his or her excess annual leave.

A. No. Compensatory time off for travel may be earned by an employee only for time spent in a travel status away from the employee's official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable. The term "compensable" is defined at 5 CFR 550.1403 to make clear what periods of time are "not otherwise compensable" and thus potentially creditable for the purpose of earning compensatory time off for travel. Time is considered compensable if the time is creditable as hours of work for the purpose of determining a specific pay entitlement (e.g., overtime pay for travel meeting one of the four criteria in 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2)) even when the time may not actually generate additional compensation because of applicable pay limitations (e.g., biweekly premium pay cap). The capped premium pay is considered complete compensation for all hours of work creditable under the premium pay provisions.

In other words, even though an employee may not receive overtime pay for all of his or her travel hours because of the biweekly premium pay cap, all of the travel time is still considered to be compensable under 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2). Under these circumstances, the employee has been compensated fully under the law for all of the travel hours and the employee may not earn compensatory time off for any portion of such travel not generating additional compensation because of the biweekly cap on premium pay.

• Q42. May an employee who receives administratively uncontrollable overtime (AUO) pay under 5 U.S.C. 5545(c)(2) earn compensatory time off for travel? View more A. If such employee's travel time is not compensable under 5 CFR 550.112(g) or 5 CFR 551.422, as applicable, and meets the requirements in 5 CFR part 550, subpart N, the employee is eligible to earn compensatory time off for travel for time spent in a travel status.
• Q43. If a part-time employee's regularly scheduled tour of duty is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and the employee is required to travel on a Friday from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., is the employee entitled to earn compensatory time off for travel for those 2 hours? View more A. It depends. If the travel qualifies as compensable hours of work under 5 U.S.C. 5542(b)(2)(B) and 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2)—i.e., the travel involves or is incident to the performance of actual work, is carried out under arduous and unusual conditions, or results from an event which could not be scheduled or controlled administratively—the employee may not be credited with compensatory time off for travel hours. (Such travel time outside a part-time employee's scheduled tour of duty, but not in excess of 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week, would be non-overtime hours of work compensated at the employee's rate of basic pay.) If the travel time does not qualify as compensable hours of work and meets the other requirements in 5 CFR part 550, subpart N, the part-time employee would be entitled to earn compensatory time off for those 2 hours. We note travel time is always compensable hours of work if it falls within an employee's regularly scheduled administrative workweek. (See 5 U.S.C. 5542(b)(2)(A) and 5 CFR 550.112(g)(1).) For a part-time employee, the regularly scheduled administrative workweek is defined in 5 CFR 550.103 as the officially prescribed days and hours within an administrative workweek during which the employee was scheduled to work in advance of the workweek. An agency may not adjust the regularly scheduled administrative workweek normally applied to an employee (part-time or full-time) solely for the purpose of including planned travel time otherwise not considered compensable hours of work.
• Q44. Does an upgrade in travel accommodations impact an employee's entitlement to compensatory time off for travel? View more A. Allowing an employee to upgrade his or her travel accommodations (e.g., to business class) does not eliminate his or her eligibility to earn compensatory time off for travel.

Students seeking services can see our current  student services page , which includes virtual and in-person options. For J scholar and Employment-based services, please see our Contact Us page .

Travel and Re-entry to the U.S. While on OPT

Can i travel while on opt.

Entering the U.S. infographic

Useful Employment and Career Links

• Social Security Numbers
• Berkeley Career Engagement's Int'l Student Website
• Networking & Mingling
• U.S. Tax Reporting Requirements
• UC Berkeley Departments: Hiring Employees on F-1 OPT/STEM OPT
• U.S. Employer Guide for Hiring Int'l Students
• Student Discovery Hub
• Safe Practices for Researching Employers

Please note :  The information provided in this post was accurate and up-to-date at the time of posting. Due to the dynamic nature of immigration policy, it is possible that the information or links provided may have changed over time. Users are advised to verify the accuracy and relevance of the content.

Traveling while on OPT or OPT STEM Extension

In general, an F-1 student on post-completion OPT or STEM OPT may travel outside the United States temporarily and be readmitted to resume F-1 status and employment for the remainder of the period authorized on his or her EAD card. The student must not have exceeded the maximum OPT unemployment or OPT STEM Extension unemployment time and must not have been absent from the US for more than 5 months.

Please also review all general travel and re-entry information on the main Travel and Re-Entry page. 

WARNING: Re-entering the United States in a status other than F-1 (such as a tourist) will invalidate F-1 status and OPT authorization.

*Travel While OPT or OPT STEM Extension is Pending 

Travel during the OPT application process is allowed, but not recommended as it poses certain risks. Keep in mind the following:

• You will need to have someone monitor your mail and let you know if you receive any communications from USCIS.
• If you receive a Request for Evidence, you will need to respond by a specific deadline, which could be difficult from outside the U.S.
• For post-completion OPT:  If you are denied for OPT while outside the United States after your Program Completion Date, you will not be able to re-enter or reapply. Your F-1 status will end.
• For OPT STEM Extension: If you are denied for OPT STEM Extension while outside the United States after your OPT EAD end date, you will not be able to re-enter or reapply. Your F-1 status will end.
• If you are approved for OPT/STEM while outside the United States, you will need to arrange for your EAD card to be sent to you in order to re-enter the United States.
• If your F-1 visa is expired, you will need to reapply for an F-1 visa with your EAD card and proof of employment.
•  If you choose to travel while your application is pending, be sure that you are monitoring your mail. Sign up for an account with  USCIS Case Status online . C ommunicate with BIO about your travel plans. 

OPT/STEM I-20 Updates & Travel Endorsements

During OPT/STEM, the I-20 should be up-to-date with your current information, and the travel endorsement is only valid for 6 months .

• Employer Updates: If your OPT or STEM OPT is Approved, your I-20 should reflect the approval and your current employer on page 2. Follow instructions on the OPT Reporting page to log into the SSU Hub to upload your approved EAD card and to add any new employment. You'll receive a new I-20 via email in 5 business days with the new  employer.
• Travel Endorsement: To receive an updated travel signature, follow the instructions on our Travel Endorsement page .
• Replacement I-20: If you need a new OPT or STEM I-20, you can submit a  Replacement Document request (#13)  to receive a new I-20 with a new travel endorsement via email. (Note: BIO has a 5 business day processing time!

Getting an F-1 Visa Stamp During OPT/STEM

If a student's F-1 visa has expired and the student wishes to travel outside the United States, a new F-1 visa must be obtained before re-entering the United States. Students who need to apply for a new visa should consult BIO prior to travel to discuss the visa application process and possible risks. General Visa information can be found on the  Applying for a Visa  webpage. If your F-1 visa has expired, and OPT or OPT STEM Extension application is pending, you will NOT be able to apply for a new F-1 visa until the application is approved and you have the EAD. 

If You Are on OPT & Have a Pending or Approved H-1B or OPT Cap-Gap I-20

Please first check with your employer and the legal counsel processing your H-1B about your travel plans. Berkeley International Office can only advise you on travel as an F-1, but we cannot advise on how your travel might impact a pending or future H-1B request. Students travelling using an OPT Cap-Gap I-20 should see the H-1B Cap Gap page for more information.

Before you embark on a summer vacation, check out these suggestions for better travels

Here are 18 travel tips sure to make your next vacation a smoother experience:

1. It's best to always keep a travel checklist of items that you can update as you gain experience in your travels. I always check mine two to three times before I ever walk out the door.

2. If traveling abroad, carry an extra copy of your passport in a separate piece of luggage or on your phone. That will make it a lot easier to obtain an emergency replacement if you lose your original. Generally, it is never a good idea to carry your original around with you on the streets.

3. Always double-check all your confirmations of airline flights, hotels, rental cars. Too many vacations have been ruined because of a date error on a reservation.

4. If you are faced with suddenly having to rebook flights and hotels, often travel providers have “chat” features on their apps, which is a quicker communication method than being on hold for an hour or more.

More: Traveling abroad? Respect customs, traditions. Don't disregard local laws | Opinion

5. Always know the currency foreign exchange of the countries to which you are traveling. Avoid being taken advantage of by hotels, restaurants, etc. that want to do currency exchanges for you at unfavorable rates. The FOREX website is the best place to check exchange rates. Resist the urge to have it charged in U.S. dollars when you settle the bill.

6. Some countries will give you a more favorable rate if you exchange new, undamaged U.S. $100 bills at exchange kiosks.

7. If you want to have a little bit of foreign currency before you land, you can go to a major bank or AAA in the United States and have them order currency for you. However, be aware, even though they tell you there is “no fee,” the fee gets taken out by a less-than-favorable exchange rate.

8. I always have two to three alternate travel routes in mind before I ever go to the airport in case of cancellations. You are in a more powerful position if you know your alternate options.

9. Make sure you have pre-selected your phone plans for calls and texts. Understand the limits of your plan when out of the country to avoid high surcharge surprises

More: We want to hear from you | What travel precautions, preparations do you take to avoid delays?

10. Carry only a minimum amount of cash with you on the streets of a strange city or country. Pickpockets abound in many countries.

11. Most pickpockets depend on distraction to complete their task. “Distraction is always followed by extraction!"

12. Split up your credit cards to avoid one person carrying all of them.

13. Don’t put your medicine in a checked bag. It may not show up for two weeks.

14. If you take several medications, it is best to keep a list of those in case you need to replace them in a travel destination.

15. Make sure you explicitly understand your travel medical insurance policies in the event something happens such as illness or needed medical evacuation. Certain credit cards cover these types of events. Know those credit card policies. The devil is in the details!

16. On vacation, I always try to take some clothes that are at “end of life.” I can leave those behind as I go. Often a maid at a hotel or bed and breakfast knows someone who can use them. If you give them to the hotel maid, attach a note with them so management will know you gave them away.

17. Don’t overpack! You can buy just about anything you need in your travels ― unless you are going to Mt. Everest. Packing large containers of toiletries doesn’t make sense when you can buy them along the way if you run out.

18. The last thing to do before you walk out the door is to set the thermostat at minimum settings. You don’t want to pay for energy bills when you're not using your house.

Steve Barrymore, of Oklahoma City, has been a lifelong world traveler with recent emphasis on Latin America where he has attended over a dozen Spanish language immersion programs in nine different Spanish-speaking countries .

• Best overall
• Best for expensive trips
• Best for older travelers
• Best for affordability
• Best for annual plans
• Why You Should Trust Us

Best Travel Insurance for Seniors of June 2024

Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate insurance products to write unbiased product reviews.

Reaching your golden years doesn't mean your adventures have to end. In fact, in this stage of life, you'll hopefully have more time and resources to travel. But as a senior citizen, you'll want to ensure you have travel insurance that covers any health-related issues arise while you travel.

Best Senior Travel Insurance Companies

• Best overall: Allianz Travel Insurance
• Best for expensive trips: John Hancock Travel Insurance
• Best for older travelers:  TravelSafe Insurance
• Best for affordability: GeoBlue Travel Insurance
• Best for annual plans: Travel Guard

Compare the Best Travel Insurance for Seniors

Your health gets more unpredictable as you age, which makes travel insurance more important for seniors. Unfortunately, it's also more expensive. The best travel insurance for seniors won't have too steep of a price hike compared to rates for younger travelers. It will have high coverage limits for emergency medical coverage, trip cancellations, and and emergency medical evacuation. It's also important that your travel insurance offers pre-existing condition waivers , ideally at no extra cost to the traveler. 

Here are our picks for the best travel insurance coverage for seniors in 2024.

Best Senior Travel Insurance Overall

Allianz travel insurance.

Allianz Travel Insurance is one of the most widely recognized names in travel insurance, and it stands out as one of the top travel insurance providers for seniors. It offers a wide range of policies covering medical treatments overseas and emergency medical transport.

Allianz also provides options for varying trip lengths. Its annual multi-trip policies , for example, cover any trip you make during your policy period, even if they aren't yet planned, making it an excellent option for seniors who vacation multiple times per year.

Read our Allianz Travel Insurance review .

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Good option for frequent travelers thanks to its annual multi-trip policies
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Doesn't increase premium for trips longer than 30 days, meaning it could be one of the more affordable options for a long trip
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Some plans include free coverage for children 17 and under
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Concierge included with some plans
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Coverage for medical emergency is lower than some competitors' policies
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Plans don't include coverage contact sports and high-altitude activities
• Single and multi-trip plans available
• Trip cancellation and interruption coverage starting at up to $10,000 (higher limits with more expensive plans)
• Preexisting medical condition coverage available with some plans

Best Senior Travel Insurance for Expensive Trips

John hancock.

John Hancock Travel Insurance plans for seniors offer some of the best coverage available. It provides generous maximum benefit amounts while still offering affordable prices.

Each plan includes coverages like trip cancellation, emergency accident, and emergency medical, with the option to add benefits like CFAR (cancel for any reason) . Plus, getting a free online quote is a quick and straightforward process.

Read our John Hancock Travel Insurance review .

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers 3 travel insurance plans
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Cancel for any reason rider available
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Affordable travel insurance premiums
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Reviews of claims process are mixed
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Buyers may not get specialty coverage for sports equipment and other high value items
• Trip cancellation for 100% of the trip cost
• Trip interruption insurance for up to 150% of the trip cost
• Emergency medical coverage of up to $250,000 per person
• Medical evacuation coverage of up to $1,000,000

Best Senior Travel Insurance for Older Travelers

Travelsafe travel insurance.

TravelSafe Insurance is a great choice for older travelers, even among seniors, insuring travelers up to 100 years old. TravelSafe also offers pre-existing condition waivers for all its tiers when you purchase your policy within 21 days of your initial trip deposit. With a great deal of flexibility, travelers don't have to worry about eligibility when purchasing travel insurance with TravelSafe. TravelSafe even has two tiers of coverage devoted specifically to golfers. 

Read our TravelSafe travel insurance review .

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Up to 120 days' coverage available for travelers ages 79 and under (30 days for 80+)
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Up to $2,500 per person for missed connections over three hours or more
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Trip delay coverage of up to $150 per person per day kicks in after six hours or more
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Policy can be purchased by U.S. citizens living abroad
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Medical coverage ceiling of $100,000 may be low for some travelers' needs.
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Claims reviews from customers say performance is not always the best
• A well-rounded insurance plan for travelers who are concerned about missing connections for cruise-related travel
• Classic and Basic travel insurance plans
• GolfSafe travel insurance plans provide coverage for you and your equipment
• Travel medical insurance through partner Trawick International

Best Senior Travel Insurance for Affordability

Geoblue travel insurance.

GeoBlue Travel Insurance is a travel insurance provider that specializes in travel medical insurance . Because it doesn't offer much trip protection or travel inconvenience coverage, it can charge cheaper premiums than its competitors. 

GeoBlue's policies cover travelers who are under 95 years old, offering sizeable coverage for emergency medical treatments (up to $1 million) and medical evacuations (up to $500K). It's worth noting that while coverage for pre-existing conditions are available, it costs extra.

Read our GeoBlue Travel Insurance review .

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. A subsidary of Blue Cross Blue Shield
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers strong medical plans as long as you have a regular health insurance plan, but it doesn't have to be through Blue Cross
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers long-term and multi-trip travel protection
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Multiple complaints about claims not being paid or being denied
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Does not provide some of the more comprehensive coverage like CFAR insurance
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Buyers who do get claims paid may need to file multiple claim forms

Best Senior Travel Insurance for Annual Plans

Travel guard.

Travel Guard  offers comprehensive insurance plans for shorter and longer trips. One of its more unique offerings is its Travel Guard Annual Plan.

This annual travel insurance comes with standard coverage benefits (trip delay, baggage loss, etc.) and substantial coverage amounts, which is important for seniors who travel multiple times per year. Travel Guard also offers a pre-existing medical condition waiver, meaning those with certain medical issues can still gain coverage.

Read our AIG Travel Guard Insurance review .

Trip cancellation coverage for up to 100% of the trip cost and trip interruption coverage for up to 150% of the trip cost

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Trip cancellation coverage of up to 100% of the cost, for all three plan levels
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. CFAR covers up to 75% of total trip costs (maximum of $112,500 on some plans) 
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Medical coverage of up to $500,000 and evacuation of up to $1,000,000 per person
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Includes COVID coverage 
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Above average baggage loss and delay benefits
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. High medical evacuation coverage
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Premiums may run slightly higher than competitors

Travel Guard is a well-established and highly rated name in the travel insurance industry. It offers three main coverage options to choose from, and in general its policies have above-average coverage for baggage loss and baggage delays, plus high medical evaluation coverage limits.

• Trip cancellation coverage for up to 100% of the trip cost
• Trip interruption coverage for up to 150% of the trip cost
• Preexisting medical conditions exclusions waiver must be purchased within 15 days of initial trip payment
• Annual travel insurance plan and Pack N' Go plan (for last-minute trips) available

Understanding Travel Insurance for Seniors

Before diving into the specifics, it's essential to understand what travel insurance is and why it's particularly important for senior travelers. The best travel insurance offers financial protection against unexpected events affecting your trip, such as trip cancellations, medical emergencies, or lost luggage.

Types of coverage

• Medical Coverage: Ensures your medical expenses are covered in case of illness or injury.
• Trip Cancellation/Interruption Coverage: Provides reimbursement if your trip is canceled or cut short due to unforeseen events.
• Baggage Coverage: Covers loss, damage, or theft of personal items during your trip.

Benefits of travel insurance for seniors

• Peace of Mind: Knowing you're covered in case of emergencies can make your travel stress-free.
• Financial Protection: Shields you from potentially overwhelming medical costs and trip cancellations fees.
• Assistance Services: Many plans offer 24/7 assistance services, providing help whenever and wherever you need it.

Making the most of your plan

After choosing a plan, it's crucial to understand your policy fully and know what services are available to you in case of an emergency.

Understanding your policy

When you purchase a travel insurance policy, you'll be able to see a description of benefits, which is a long document that describes the exceptions and limitations to your coverage. You should carefully review this document so you're not blindsided by unexpected claim denials. 

For example, if you're canceling a trip because unexpected work, you may not be eligible for coverage if you haven't worked at your company for long enough. Additionally, you should review your policy to ensure that your pre-existing condition is covered, as companies often have very specific language around what qualifies as a covered pre-existing condition.

Emergency assistance services

Most companies offer a 24/7 concierge service that can help you navigate situations that arise during your trip, even issues beyond the scope of your policy. They can advise you on how to navigate these situations in accordance with your policy and make sure you acquire the necessary documentation when you need to file a claim down the line.

How to Pick Travel Insurance as a Senior Traveler

It's wise to compare several different travel insurance policies for the best coverage and pricing, as premiums vary widely between insurers and depend on factors like your age and travel destination.

That said, some of the more essential coverages to look for if you're a senior citizen include:

• Travel medical coverage - This coverage will pay for your medical bills outside the US.
• Medical evacuation coverage - If you're injured or become sick while traveling, this coverage will transport you to the nearest hospital or even back home if your condition necessitates it.
• Pre-existing conditions - Coverage for known health conditions. You'll need to purchase travel insurance within a certain time period from when you book your trip to qualify for a pre-existing condition waiver .
• Cancel for any reason (CFAR) - The name says it all! It'll cost extra and you'll need to purchase insurance early, but it's the most comprehensive trip cancellation coverage you can get. Note that CFAR insurance usually only covers up to 75% of your trip fees.
• Trip cancellation insurance - This coverage provides reimbursement for your prepaid and nonrefundable costs if you cannot make your trip due to an unforeseen event.
• Baggage delay insurance - This coverage will reimburse you for essentials like toiletries and clothes if your bags are delayed.
• Lost luggage insurance - This coverage will reimburse you up to a specified amount if your bags get lost en route.

Of these, the most critical to note are whether or not your policy covers pre-existing conditions and the limits for travel medical insurance and emergency medical evacuation.

Some insurance companies offer a waiver that will cover pre-existing conditions. You'll have to follow the requirements for adding a waiver to your policy, like insuring the entire cost of your trip. Or purchase the policy within a specific time after making your first trip deposit payments.

You'll also want to find a policy with high maximum limits for travel medical and emergency medical evacuation coverage. These types of expenses can be substantial, so you want to have appropriate coverage.

Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed Senior Travel Insurance

When comparing senior travel insurance options, we looked at the following factors to evaluate each travel insurance provider:

• Coverage limits: We looked at each travel insurance company's coverage amounts for benefits like medical emergencies and trip cancellation.
• Flexibility: We looked at how customizable a policy is, so you can choose what your travel insurance policy covers .
• Coverage for pre-existing conditions: Pre-existing conditions are one of the more critical factors for travel insurance for senior citizens, so we looked at travel insurance companies that offer the best coverage for pre-existing conditions.
• Price: We compared travel insurance providers offering reasonable basic and comprehensive coverage rates.
• Benefits geared towards seniors: We compared travel insurance companies that offer solid coverage for senior citizens, like medical evacuation, COVID-19 coverage, and trip cancellation.

You can read more about our insurance rating methodology here.

Best Senior Travel Insurance FAQs

Seniors should look for travel insurance policies that offer comprehensive medical coverage, including for pre-existing conditions and emergency medical evacuation. They should also consider policies with higher coverage limits to ensure adequate protection. Additionally, seniors should seek travel insurance plans that provide 24/7 assistance services, as well as coverage for trip cancellations, interruptions, and baggage protection.

The cost of senior travel insurance coverage can vary depending on your age, overall health, state of residence, travel destination, and length of your trip. While the average travel insurance policy costs 4% to 8% of your trip's nonrefundable cost, a 65-year-old's policy may cost 15% of their trip's cost.

All travel insurance companies, except World Nomads, included in this guide offer coverage for pre-existing medical conditions as long as you buy your policy within the qualifying period from when you placed your trip deposit.

Allianz is the best travel insurance for seniors due to its wide array of medical coverages and emergency medical transport. Allianz also offers multi-trip insurance policies , which could make sense for seniors who travel frequently.

In some instances, travel insurance companies will have age eligibility restrictions, often only insuring people 80 years old and younger.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

**Enrollment required.

• Main content

Operating Policies & Procedures

[Moderate revision–posted 1/6/23 (replaces 2/17/22 edition)] [ PDF Version ]

Operating Policy and Procedure

OP 79.01: Travel Authority and Definitions for Texas Tech University and TTU Employees

DATE:  January 6, 2023

PURPOSE:  The purpose of this Operating Policy/Procedure (OP) is to set forth legislative travel regulations from the General Appropriations Acts of the Texas Legislature and the policies of Texas Tech University.

REVIEW: This OP will be reviewed in November of odd-numbered years by the Section Manager of Travel Services with substantive revisions forwarded through the Chief Procurement Officer to the Senior Vice President for Administration & Finance and Chief Financial Officer.

POLICY/PROCEDURE

1.  Authority

The following rules were developed under the authority of the General Appropriations Act Article IX, Part 5 ; Texas Government Code, Chapter 660 ; and Texas Administrative Code, Title 34, Part 1, Chapter 5, Subchapter C, Section 5.22 .

2.  Responsibility of Agency and Employee

a.    Agency Responsibility

All travel must be for the benefit of the institution. It is the policy of TTU to follow travel requirements as outlined in:

• 2 CFR Part 220 ;

• 49 U.S.C. 40118 ;

• Internal Revenue Code §§ 1.62-2 ;

• Texas Administrative Code Rule § 5.22 ;

• General Appropriations Act (GAA) Article IX Part 5 ; and

• Textravel .

The requirements outlined in this policy apply to all official travel, regardless of funding source.

A travel expense may be reimbursed only if the purpose of the travel clearly involves official state business and is consistent with the university's legal authority.

A state employee who receives free transportation or lodging in exchange for points or other non-monetary credits or rewards has not incurred an expense for reimbursement purposes.

The university shall minimize the number of travel expenses reimbursed by ensuring that each travel arrangement is the most cost-effective considering all relevant circumstances.

b.    Employee Responsibility

A state employee shall ensure that their travel complies with applicable state laws, Textravel ( https://fmx.cpa.state.tx.us/fmx/travel/textravel/index.php ), and any policies adopted by TTU. Failure to comply will result in delayed payment or reimbursement or rejection of the employee's travel voucher.

A state employee may not seek reimbursement of a travel expense that the employee knows or reasonably should know is not reimbursable or payable. A state employee shall immediately reimburse the state (through TTU) for any overpayment.

3.  General Provisions

a.    Employee Travel

Employees shall make off-campus trips only after obtaining appropriate approval by designated administrative officials, in accordance with established procedures, and when the trip contributes to the university's mission.

Employee travel may not interfere with the primary academic or administrative responsibilities of the traveler.

Employees may claim reimbursement for travel expenses through TTU's online travel system: https://www.fiscal.ttuhsc.edu/travel2/ . Instructions are available at http://www.depts.ttu.edu/procurement/resources/training-and-work-aids/ .

b.    Travel Expenses Paid from Grant Funds

Employees traveling on official business may be reimbursed for travel expenses paid from grant funds but are expected to comply with provisions of the grant, university policy, and any state and/or federal regulations.

c.    Authority to Approve Travel

The traveler's supervisor will approve the travel expenses; however, the following officers and administrators have the authority to authorize and approve all employee travel within their area, except foreign travel. Foreign travel, including Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. territories, must be approved by the Office of International Affairs, as noted in OP 79.05, International Travel , provided that such travel contributes to the university's mission and follows current travel regulations. These officers and administrators may further delegate their authority.

(1)    Chancellor (2)    President (3)    Provost and Senior Vice President (4)    Senior Vice President for Administration & Finance and Chief Financial Officer (5)    Vice Presidents/Vice Chancellors (6)    Deans (7)    Director of Athletics (8)    Office of International Affairs for all foreign travel, including Canada and Mexico

4.  Definitions

a.    Cancellation Charge – A fee, charge, or payment that a travel services provider assesses or retains because of the cancellation or change of a travel reservation or other travel plan.

b.    Commercial Lodging Establishment – A motel, hotel, inn, apartment, house, or similar establishment that provides lodging to the public for pay.

c.    Commercial Transportation Company – A company or individual that transports people or goods at a cost.

d.    Contiguous United States – The District of Columbia and all states of the United States except Alaska and Hawaii.

e.    Designated Headquarters  – The area within the boundaries of the incorporated municipality in which a state employee's place of employment is located.

f.    Duty Point – The destination, other than the place of employment, to which a state employee travels to conduct official state business.

g.    Gratuity/Tip – Something given to a service provider voluntarily or beyond obligation, usually in response to or in anticipation of a service.

h.    Incidental Expense – An expense incurred while traveling on official state business. The term includes a mandatory insurance or service charge and any applicable tax, except a tax based on the cost of a meal. The term does not include a meal, lodging, or transportation expense; a personal expense that an individual would incur regardless of whether the individual was traveling on official state business; or a tip or gratuity.

i.    Lease – A contract with a term of at least one month that gives the lessee possession and use of property or equipment while the lessor retains ownership of it.

j.    Lodging Expense – A charge imposed by a commercial lodging establishment as consideration for providing lodging. The term does not include money paid as a donation, gratuity, or tip to the establishment.

k.    Meal Expense – The cost of a meal plus any tax based on the meal's cost. The term does not include a tip, a gratuity, or a mandatory service charge paid or imposed in conjunction with a meal.

l.    Non-working Hours  – All hours in a calendar day except working hours.

m.    Official Mileage – The mileage on official travel, including mileage to and from out-of-town destinations, as well as point-to-point mileage within cities visited. All official mileage is based on the shortest routes possible, which should include farm-to-market roads. The Official State Mileage Guide shall determine mileage reimbursement rates.

n.    Official Travel  – Travel approved by the university.

o.    Official Travel Status – The time between leaving designated headquarters for official travel and returning to designated headquarters from official travel.

p.    Per Diem Allowance – The actual cost of meals and lodgings, not to exceed the daily maximum allowed by the State of Texas for in-state or out-of-state travel.

q.    Prospective State Employee – An individual that a state agency considers for employment with the agency.

r.    Rented or Public Conveyance – A motor vehicle, train, aircraft, boat, or bicycle that a state employee rents or pays a fare to use for a period of less than one month.

s.    State Agency – A unit of state government that uses appropriated funds to pay or reimburse a travel expense of a state employee.

t.    State Employee – An individual employed by a state agency, including a key official, unless the travel allowance guide specifically provides otherwise. The term also includes a prospective state employee.

u.    Transportation Expense – A charge related to the cost of transportation, e.g., private auto, commercial airline, taxi, etc.

v.    Travel Expense  – A meal, lodging, transportation, or incidental expense.

w.    Travel Voucher – The accounting document used to reimburse a state employee for travel expenses incurred during the discharge of official state business.

x.    Workday – A day on which a particular state employee is regularly required to conduct official state business.

y.    Working Hours – The hours during which a state employee is regularly scheduled to conduct official state business.

OP Categories

01 Chancellor 02 Development 04 Audit Services 10 President 30 Academic and Student Affairs – General 32 Academic Policies – Faculty 34 Academic Policies – Students 36 Academic Programs 40 Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action 48 Communication Services 52 Information Technology 60 Environmental Health and Safety 61 Facilities Management 62 Financial and Accounting 63 General Services 64 Graduate Programs (Faculty and Students) 65 Research Accounting 66 Libraries 67 Mail Services 68 Communications and Marketing 69 Payroll and Tax Services 70 Human Resources 72 Purchasing, Contracting, and Payables 74 Research 76 Security 77 Student Services and Registrar 78 Traffic and Parking 79 Travel 80 Vehicles

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Houston soars in Forbes' top 10 best cities for summer travel

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Looks like people from all over the country will be flocking to Houston this summer - at least according to a new report by Forbes Advisor.

The report listed the best and worst cities for summer travel and Houston fared surprisingly well, coming in as the No. 10 best summer travel destination in the nation.

The study, published June 1, compared 43 of the most populous U.S. cities across 16 metrics in three major categories: City experience, air travel experience, and driving experience.

To read the rest of this story, visit our partners at Houston CultureMap .

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Op-ed: How Can the Travel Industry Recover?

Orlando's MCO airport earlier this month. Photo: Shutterstock.com. 

By now, everyone knows that the COVID pandemic has devastated every aspect of the travel industry. Hotels are empty, planes are grounded, cruise ships are docked. Businesses that depend on travel are shuttered, many never to reopen. People who crave to travel, for personal growth, business needs, or just plain fun, are stuck at home in various forms of quarantine, lockdown and healthcare emergencies that have killed more than 210,000 Americans and crippled an unknown additional number.

The virus continues to run rampant in many parts of the country, some of which have imposed travel lockouts and quarantine rules on travelers from other parts of the country. New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, for example, have a 14-day quarantine requirement for travelers from about 35 states based on a seven-day rolling average of positive tests in excess of 10%, or a rate of positive cases exceeding 10 per 100,000 residents. The states on the list are in constant flux.

I will not indulge here in arguing how we got into this catastrophic situation with no end in sight and no more government economic relief on the near-term horizon. Instead, I want to suggest how the travel industry can, within realistic limits (that are significant), begin to break out of the black hole into which it has fallen.

First, it’s important to have some principles of decision. The most relevant principles are these: (1) do not let the search for the perfect defeat achieving the good – there is no perfect here; (2) competition, of which the travel industry has plenty,  is the enemy of realistic near-term solutions to the core problem;(3) the core problem is consumer uncertainty regarding what may be somewhat low-risk behaviors that have very high-risk and far-reaching consequences; and (4) recognize and exploit the fundamental truth of the interdependence of the industry – travel advisors sell the most remunerative travel, airlines deliver those travelers to destinations where they stay in hotels, depart for cruises and so on. The travel business is inter-modal in every sense.

Consider now the issue of consumer uncertainty in a time of economic pandemonium and incipient collapse. For more and more Americans, money is tight and prospects are few. Moratoriums on evictions are running out, interest rates are near zero for such money as people still have, job opportunities for people who have been laid off or furloughed are negligible. On top of that, the school year has started and the early viral-spread returns from the colleges are disturbing though not unpredicted. Families with young children are terrified of what may happen to them at school. Hope for a near-term vaccine is slim and assured treatments for COVID-19 remain aspirational.

No one can reasonably argue that consumer uncertainty in these circumstances is unjustified. What has the travel industry done to address the uncertainty?

Not enough, I suggest, respectfully. There is much talk of the innate desire many people have to travel and that is accurate. Travel remains one of our most basic and strongest objectives. But as the consumer looks at the travel landscape, he or she sees mostly chaos or a close approximation. Since the beginning of the government-imposed lockdowns and quarantines, each element of the travel industry has had to largely fend for itself. Individual companies have adopted advanced cleaning, filtering, social distancing and other policies, but these policies have changed frequently, sometimes within days of adoption. Happy talk about the safety practices of cruise ships was overwhelmed by the realities of the Diamond Princess infection, announcements of countries denying docking privileges and passengers stuck in cabins for weeks on end. A large share of the cruise market consists of more senior travelers who have higher-than-average risks when contracting COVID-19.

Airlines, which in many ways are the carotid arteries of the travel system, were similarly troubled. Despite scientific evidence supporting mask-efficacy, the Department of Transportation refused to mandate mast-wearing. Faced with that vacuum of leadership, one airline would announce that it was requiring masks for passengers, but travelers discovered, and used social media to publicize, that there was little or no enforcement. Flight attendants disclosed that their instructions were to cajole, but not demand, compliance. The same thing happened with the issue of seat use rules – lateral separation, front-to-rear separation, different rules for different aircraft types and boarding practices. These issues were compounded by reports, with accompanying videos, of passengers who were intoxicated or otherwise refusing to mask-up, exposing other passengers to often failed attempts by carrier staff to negotiate with irrational and angry travelers. Airport rules were obscure and variable.

International organizations and governments, each facing unique and unprecedented struggles of their own, were not much help. Guidances, policies and directions were changing almost daily, or so it seemed. And what “seemed” is the controlling problem.

What would one reasonably expect of consumers’ reactions to this constantly changing mish-mash of rule and enforcement changes, combined with videos of sometimes violent confrontations with non-compliant travelers? I believe that it scared the hell out of most people, so that even when the opportunity to fly was presented, with all manner of previously sacred cancellation rules suspended and favorable pricing offered, people said “no, thanks. I simply can’t rely on the assurances that steps are being taken to  protect me and my family. I’ll wait for better times.”

It’s easy to point fingers, of course, and I don’t want to be misunderstood here. The industry was caught largely unaware and had to scramble initially to figure out what to do. And, this is crucial, they had to resolve these problems in an environment of near-constantly changing government policies regarding the nature of the pandemic threats and the practices that should be followed to reduce risk. Moreover, in normal circumstances the industry is highly competitive and it was natural for firms to act independently even as their various associations struggled to propose innovations while avoiding confrontations with an administration that insisted all was going just fine.

Trust in the traditional instruments of government health policy was undermined from the outset and has worsened as the pandemic has progressed. It is hardly a surprise that the industry has faltered in these circumstances. Its cooperative behaviors appear to have been limited mainly to joint attempts to induce the government to grant economic relief in a free-for-all involving every major segment of American industry. Even that effort has been only partially successful and has now effectively died with the president’s announcement that relief negotiations are over until after the election unless … whatever.

So, what’s the answer at this late stage to restoring some attainable level of consumer confidence that travel is safe?

I suggest that the atomization of the industry’s approach must be replaced with an across-the-board cooperative regime of joint decision-making to which individual firms commit to total compliance for a significant period into the future. For example, and as a great beginning, the cruise industry players (of which there are relatively few independent entities) have undertaken a collective effort to establish firm rules about how ships will be sanitized, how masking and social distancing will be applied and so on. Obviously, the science behind this is still evolving, but much is already known about how to manage indoor environments. I believe that the new rules should be vetted with a representative sample of cruise travelers to evaluate whether the rules are understandable, practical and reassuring. The likely outcome is not a return to full-on unlimited cruising and many economic challenges will remain. The concept is not a cure-all but an attempt to establish a common and trustable arrangement that will permit business to resume on some scale.

A similar process should be undergone by the other travel segments. These days there aren’t so many airlines flying large aircraft domestically that they cannot find ways to engage in cooperative negotiation, with perhaps the aid of their industry trade associations, to address the questions consumers have about safety.

Such a process faces many obstacles, including distrust among the competitors and the reality that some assets simply cannot be adjusted as required, placing some firms at a potential disadvantage. It may be helpful to bring in outside professional mediators to assist the parties in getting to ‘yes.’ Mediators don’t force outcomes, but they can be extremely effective in helping parties find commonly acceptable solutions.

Particular attention must be paid to how the rules are enforced. Today, for example, some airlines have said they “reserve the right” to ban non-compliant travelers from future travel for indefinite periods. That is fine but does little to assure the other travelers who must sit near them and are exposed potentially to deadly infection when these travelers refuse to comply when in flight. It may be necessary to enlist law enforcement so that these people face criminal charges upon landing, a prospect that might discipline behavior more effectively than the mere potential of being banned.

Because of the inter-modality of the industry, additional attention must be given to the interfaces between the steps in most trips. The ride-hailing, limo and taxi services have pretty straightforward rules on masking, for example. But what happens when the consumer arrives at the airport? At the gate? On the plane? At the next airport? Upon arrival at the hotel/resort? As long as consumers are unsure of what to expect, many will resist their innate longing to resume traveling the world as they did before the pandemic. The key is to reduce the uncertainty through unified and coordinate action. And governments and international health organizations must aggressively support these efforts to get everyone on the same page.

I don’t claim to have all the answers. I’m arguing for a process that could lead to comprehensive, uniform and enforced policies that could reassure consumers that traveling is as safe or at least safer than many of the other activities in which they routinely engage without much consideration of risk.

To further clarify, I understand that my proposals for inter-company cooperation and agreement may raise antitrust concerns. While there is good reason to doubt that industry cooperation on the subjects at hand has competitive significance, the risks can be eliminated through well-known mechanisms for quickly securing Justice Department consent to joint action. This situation cries out for a flexible government approach.

To sum up, there is little the industry can do to solve the problems of uncertainty arising from perverse government policies that have instilled distrust among consumers. There is, however, a plausible chance that smart people (with which the travel industry is well-populated) could, working together, produce a viable regime of enforceable rules and practices that would begin to restore public confidence in travel. This won’t be easy or fast, but salvaging this industry, which is one of the central arteries of economic growth and national development, is worth a try. Continuing down the traditional path of every firm for itself has not worked – it’s time to try something else.

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Top 10 Best Elden Ring Mods to Install for Shadow of the Erdtree

The Lands Between beckon once more, Tarnished! With the arrival of the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC comes a brand new Elden Ring adventure. But what if you crave a new twist on your Elden Ring experience? Look no further than the vibrant modding community! Depending on the kind of mod, it can add a ton of QoL and excitement to your experience if you’re tired of Elden Ring’s original formula. So today, we’ll share our picks for the top 10 mods for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree .

The Convergence (by The Convergence Team)

For a truly transformative experience, look no further than The Convergence . This ambitious mod expands the Elden Ring world significantly, introducing interconnected areas, unique starting points for new classes (27!), and a revamped fast travel system. The mod also boasts a plethora of new content, including spells, equipment, and a reimagined crafting system. The world feels more open and accessible, with progression tied to defeating specific Remembrance bosses.

Rune Loss Disabled (by TechieW)

If the constant fear of losing your hard-earned Runes dampens your excitement for exploration, then this mod is for you. Rune Loss Disabled removes the penalty for dying, allowing you to focus on mastering combat and uncovering the secrets of the Lands Between without the pressure of losing your progress.

Seamless Co-op (by LukeYui)

Yearning to conquer the Lands Between with a friend by your side? Seamless Co-op removes the restrictions of Elden Ring’s co-op mode. Explore the entire world together, fight bosses seamlessly without interruptions, and utilize your spectral steeds for a truly cooperative adventure. Miyazaki has recently shown his approval for the Mod, so you should check if Seamless Co-op works in Shadow of the Erdtree .

Martial Arts Moveset (by Clever)

Channel your inner Shinobi with this mod ! It implements a full martial arts combat system, complete with animations and attacks from FromSoftware’s acclaimed title, Sekiro. Unleash a flurry of punches, kicks, and devastating Ash of War techniques, adding a whole new dimension to your Elden Ring experience. The Shadow of Erdtree is bringing new martial arts movesets to the Lands Between, so this mod becomes important for practice for even the most skilled players.

Grand Merchant (by Vawser)

Ever wished you could buy everything in the game from the get-go? Grand Merchant makes that dream a reality. This mod allows you to purchase any item in the game from Merchant Kale at the Church of Elleh. This opens up a world of possibilities for experimenting with different builds and acquiring rare equipment early on. It’s one of the best mods for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree if you’re looking to stock up on resources before heading into the DLC.

Pause The Game (by TechieW and iArtorias)

The Soulsborne games are notorious for their lack of a pause function.  In Elden Ring, entering menus doesn’t stop the game world, leaving you vulnerable to enemy attacks while fiddling with your inventory.

The Pause the Game mod solves this frustration by allowing you to truly pause the game whenever you access the menus. This provides much-needed peace of mind, letting you browse items, tweak your build, or answer that real-world call without fear of being ambushed. Unlike the workaround of using the menu explanation function, this mod offers a seamless pause experience that’s exactly what you’d expect from a standard pause function.

Prepare To Die (Hard Mode) (by SilentVerge)

Craving a true challenge before the DLC arrives? Prepare To Die throws you into the fire. This mod significantly ramps up the difficulty: enemies are tougher, have improved AI, and fast travel is severely restricted. It demands mastery of combat mechanics and strategic resource management, making you a more formidable Tarnished before facing the new threats of the Erdtree.

Elden Ring Reforged (ERR)

For a comprehensive overhaul that refines the Elden Ring experience, look no further than ERR . This expansive mod tweaks core mechanics like enemy hitboxes, adds a bestiary for tracking encountered foes, introduces new player movement options, and even implements a New Game Plus mode with adjustable difficulty settings. It also boasts new spells, a revamped progression system with ‘Runeforging’ for passive stat boosts, and smoother traversal mechanics.

Item and Enemy Randomizer (by thefifthmatt)

Spice up your playthrough with a healthy dose of surprise! This mod shuffles the locations of items and enemies throughout the Lands Between. Familiar locations might hold unexpected treasures, while fearsome foes could lurk around every corner. This mod injects a sense of discovery and exploration, even for seasoned Players. If you want your Shadow of the Erdtree to be even more unique and different from everyone else, try this randomizer.

Capitalism Mod (by thefifthmatt)

This one’s for those who enjoy a darkly comedic twist. Capitalism injects a satirical dose of economic reality into the Lands Between. Every action you take – moving, attacking, even existing – costs you Runes! If you reach zero, you’re stuck or even die. The mod description by thefifthmatt explains it perfectly: “Souls are already a highly applicable metaphor for primitive accumulation (the dark soul is literally enclosed),” making it a thought-provoking and hilarious addition to the game. 

How to Enable Elden Ring Mods

Since mods are labors of love from fans and players, finding them is usually the easiest part. Your one-stop shop is the Nexus Mods website, a haven for mod enthusiasts. Here’s a simplified guide to get you started:

• Choose Your Mods : Head over to NexusMods and search for “Elden Ring” in the search bar. You’ll be presented with a treasure trove of mods to choose from. For this guide, let’s use the Elden Ring Reshade mod to change the game’s lighting.
• Download the Mod : Once you’ve found your chosen mod, click the “Files” tab and then “Manual Download.” Your download will begin shortly.
• Copy the Files : After downloading the mod, extract the files and copy them into your Elden Ring game folder. Finding the game folder is easy: Go to your Steam library, right-click on “Elden Ring,” navigate to “Manage,” and then select “Browse local files.4. Locate the ELDEN RING Folder:** Inside the Elden Ring folder, enter the “Game” folder. Paste the content from the downloaded file here, ensuring it’s placed next to the “eldenring.exe” file.
• Play with Mods! Launch Elden Ring, and your mod should be active. Remember, some mods might require a keybind to activate their functionalities. You can find these instructions on the mod’s page on NexusMods. To deactivate most mods, simply press the “END” key on your keyboard.

That concludes our list of the top 10 mods to get for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree. Remember, modding is a vast and ever-evolving landscape. Explore the treasure trove of creations available on Nexus Mods to find mods that perfectly suit your playstyle and preferences. While you’re here, check out our release time countdown so you know exactly when it drops. We’ve also got tips on the best ways to prepare for the DLC .

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Why You’ll Pay More and Behave Better When You Travel This Summer

From Barcelona to Bali, higher fees and new rules are targeting overtourism and unruly behavior. Some locals are worried the changes will keep tourists away.

By Paige McClanahan

A new tourist fee in Bali. Higher hotel taxes in Amsterdam and Paris. Stricter rules on public drinking in Milan and Majorca. Ahead of the summer travel season, leaders in many tourist spots have adopted measures to tame the tourist crowds — or at least earn more revenue from them.

All of this may pose headaches for travelers, although in most cases, the new fees or tax increases represent only a tiny fraction of the total cost of a trip. The goal is to ensure that tourism functions smoothly for visitors and locals alike, said Megan Epler Wood, managing director of the Sustainable Tourism Asset Management Program at Cornell University.

“All tourism is dependent on beautiful natural and cultural resources. You have to protect those resources in order to be a viable tourism destination — and if you don’t, they degrade,” Ms. Epler Wood said.

In some places, proposals for new fees or visitor rules have drawn opposition from residents, who fear they might scare away the tourists who bolster the local economy. But destinations need to find ways to counteract what Ms. Epler Wood calls “ the invisible burden ” of tourism, which includes strains on a community’s infrastructure, utilities and housing stock, as well as tourists’ carbon footprint and any challenges they might impose on residents’ daily lives.

“You put so much pressure on the place that the people who live there become unhappy, and then they don’t present a very good face to tourists,” Ms. Epler Wood said. “The longer you wait, the higher the cost to fix it.”

Here is a look at new measures that travelers can expect this summer, and where others might be coming in the future.

New visitor fees

Since February, visitors to the Indonesian island of Bali have been asked to pay a levy of 150,000 Indonesian rupiahs, or about $9.40 per visit. Revenue will be used to support the preservation of cultural and natural assets on the island, where tourism has brought major challenges related to litter, water supply and overcrowding. Visitors are encouraged to pay the new fee online before departure, although it’s also possible to pay on arrival at the airport.

Beginning Aug. 1, most foreign travelers to the Galápagos Islands — which had a record-breaking 330,000 visitors last year — must pay a $200 entry fee, double the current rate. The money raised will be used to support conservation, improve infrastructure and fund community programs.

The change is the first increase to the entry fee since it was introduced in 1998, said Tom O’Hara, communications manager for the Galápagos Conservation Trust . Mr. O’Hara noted that the increase comes a year after the UNESCO World Heritage Committee urged the government of Ecuador to work toward a “zero-growth model” for tourism in the Galápagos.

“It’s quite a complicated topic,” Mr. O’Hara said, noting that the fee increase has been viewed “as part of the solution to overtourism.” On the other hand, he added, “everyone is trying to reassure the local tourist industry that this isn’t going to kill tourism on the islands.

In April, Venice began imposing a fee — 5 euros, about $5.40 — on day-trippers visiting on peak days, with the goal of striking “a new balance between the tourists and residents.”

But the new Venice Access Fee has drawn criticism from residents. “This project is a disaster for us. We are a city, not a park,” said Matteo Secchi, the president of Venessia.com, an association of Venice residents. Mr. Secchi said that a communications campaign would have been more effective.

The possibility of a new tourist fee has also drawn local opposition in Hawaii, where Gov. Josh Green has proposed a “climate impact fee” for visitors to the state. The measure failed during a recent meeting of the State Legislature, but Governor Green has persisted in calling for visitors to help fund the state’s preparation for future climate shocks.

“We have to get this tiger by the tail,” he told journalists in May, adding that $25 per visitor could raise $250 million a year, which the state could use to guard against climate disasters, manage erosion, strengthen infrastructure and protect parks.

Hotel fees and other taxes get a bump

Hotel taxes, also known as occupancy or accommodation taxes, are widespread in the United States and Europe, where they were on the rise for a decade leading up to the pandemic. With tourism’s rebound to prepandemic levels, several destinations have increased or adjusted the tax to capture more revenue.

Like Hawaii, Greece — which also suffered severe wildfires last summer — is looking to steel itself against climate disasters, and the government wants tourists to help foot the bill. Greece is calling the charge a climate crisis resilience fee , and it will be collected by accommodation providers. The tax will be higher from March to October, when it will top out at €10 per night at five-star hotels. The rate drops from November to February, and for hotels with fewer stars. The fee replaces the previous hotel tax, which ranged from €0.50 to €4 per night.

In Amsterdam, the hotel tax, which was already one of the highest in Europe, rose to 12.5 percent from 7 percent on Jan. 1. City lawmakers have also raised the tax on cruise passengers to €14 from €11 per person per night.

The hotel tax in Barcelona also rose this year, increasing to €3.25 per night. The measure was the final step-up in a gradual increase that began before the pandemic. A spokesman for Barcelona City Hall said that further tax increases would be aimed at tourist rental apartments and cruises that make short stopovers, which contribute less to the city’s income. The spokesman also noted that revenue generated by the tourist tax is being used, among other things, to fund the installation of solar panels and air-conditioning in Barcelona’s public schools.

Ahead of this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, lawmakers in the Île-de-France region have imposed a new tax, on top of the normal hotel levy. With the new tax, which will fund public transportation in the region, a guest in a five-star hotel now owes a total of €10.73 in tax per night stayed, while a stay in a two-star hotel incurs a tax of €3.25 per night.

Though the measure was adopted by the regional government, it was not supported by the leadership in Paris itself. A spokeswoman for Paris City Hall called the move “a democratic power grab” that “in no way benefits the city of Paris.” She noted that even with the funds generated by the new tax, the region still raised the price of tickets for public transportation in the city during the Olympics — a measure that has disgruntled many Paris residents.

Introducing new rules

In other tourist spots, the focus is on curbing behavior that pollutes the local environment or harms residents’ quality of life.

In Japan, authorities at Mount Fuji will cap visitors at 4,000 per day. They have also imposed a new fee of 2,000 yen (about $13) for access to the iconic summit. Elsewhere in the country, a community council in the Gion neighborhood of Kyoto has closed some small roads to tourists, after complaints that the area, home to the city’s geisha district, was suffering from crowds.

“We will ask tourists to refrain from entering narrow private streets in or after April,” Isokazu Ota, a leading member of the community council, told Agence-France Presse in March. “We don’t want to do this, but we’re desperate.”

A spokeswoman for the city’s tourism board described the road closures as “a local initiative,” adding that “neither Kyoto City nor the Kyoto City Tourism Association are aware of any details beyond what is reported in the media.”

Rowdy visitor behavior has been the target of new rules in Milan. In some areas, city leaders have banned outdoor seating after 12:30 a.m. during the week and 1:30 a.m. on the weekend in response to resident complaints. They have also limited the late-night sale of takeaway food and drinks.

And in certain areas on the Spanish Balearic Islands of Majorca and Ibiza that are overrun with drunk tourists, the government has imposed a ban on late-night sales of alcohol and the consumption of alcohol in the street. New restrictions have also been imposed on party boats in the same areas.

“Tourism has negative externalities that must be managed and minimized,” Marga Prohens, the president of the Balearic Islands, told a local gathering this month , according to The Majorca Daily Bulletin. Local tourism, she said, “cannot continue to grow in volume.”

Paige McClanahan, a regular contributor to the Travel section, is author of “The New Tourist: Waking Up to the Power and Perils of Travel,” forthcoming from Scribner on June 18.

Open Up Your World

Considering a trip, or just some armchair traveling here are some ideas..

52 Places:  Why do we travel? For food, culture, adventure, natural beauty? Our 2024 list has all those elements, and more .

Ljubljana, Slovenia:  Stroll along the river, explore a contemporary art scene and admire panoramic views in this scenic Central European capital .

Cities With Great Beaches:  Already been to Miami, Honolulu and Sydney? These five other coastal destinations  are vibrant on land and on the water.

Southern France:  The Canal du Midi traverses the Occitanie region and gives cyclists of all skill levels  access to parts of France that are rich in lore .

Port Antonio, Jamaica:  The D.J. and music producer Diplo recommends spots in a city he loves  on Jamaica’s northeast coast. A dance party makes the cut.

New Mexico:  Visiting the vast and remote Gila Wilderness, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary, is both inspiring and demanding .

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AAA predicts record US Fourth of July travel; Bend again tops regional destination list; Redmond in Top 10

PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) – AAA says it expects record-setting travel for the Independence Day holiday, with 70.9 million Americans (21.2 % of the population) going 50 miles or more from home over the Independence Day holiday travel period. And in the Northwest, the top destination again is Bend, with Redmond also rounding out the Top 10.

For the first time, AAA looked at the entire July 4 th  week, plus the Saturday before and the Sunday after the holiday. This year’s projected number of travelers for that time period is a 5% increase compared to 2023 and an 8% increase over 2019.

In the Pacific Region, Region (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA), 10.85 million people (20.4% of the population) are expected to travel, a 5% increase compared to 2023. In Oregon, about 862,000 will travel over the long weekend. The Independence Day holiday travel period is defined as Saturday, June 29 to Sunday, July 7.

The number of Americans traveling by car and air over the holiday are expected to set new records. .AAA projects 60.6 million people including 676,000 Oregonians will travel by car over Independence Day week. For air travel, AAA projects 5.74 million Americans including 122,500 Oregonians will fly to their destinations. Find more details and tips for travelers below.

“Travel volumes for this year’s 4 th  of July holiday will be higher than ever before. Americans are ready for fun and fireworks. With summer vacations and the flexibility of remote work, travelers will be taking to the roads, skies and seas to celebrate Independence Day,” says Doreen Loofburrow, Senior Vice President of Travel at AAA Oregon/Idaho.

“AAA expects this Independence Day week will be the busiest ever for travel over the holiday, with an additional 5.7 million Americans traveling this year compared to 2019,” says Marie Dodds, public affairs director for AAA Oregon/Idaho.

Road Trips: highest on record for Independence Day

AAA expects car travel to set a record this 4 th  of July as 60.6 million Americans (85.4% of travelers) drive to their destinations. This is up 4.8% and an increase of 2.8 million car travelers over last year, and also surpasses 2019 when 55.3 million took a holiday road trip.

In Oregon, more than 676,000 will drive to their Independence Day destinations.

“The good old American road trip is the most popular way to travel for the 4 th  of July. Traveling by car tends to provide the greatest flexibility and can be the most economical way to travel, especially for families,” says Dodds.

AAA offers an entire library of digital resources to make your trip more enjoyable and it’s all available in one convenient spot at  AAA.com/TripCanvas .  If you are looking for maps or our Digital TourBooks, visit  AAA.com/maps . You can download entire books or print the pages you’d like to bring with you. The TripTik Travel Planner provides turn-by-turn directions to keep you on the best route. With the AAA mobile app, you can request emergency road service, book a last-minute hotel, and even find the cheapest fuel and closest EV charging stations along the way. Download it at  AAA.com/mobile  or visit the App Store or Google Play.

Air travel expected to set a new record

AAA projects 5.74 million Americans will take to the skies for Independence Day. This is up nearly 7% from last year and a 12% increase over 2019. In all, about 8% of all travelers will fly to their holiday destinations.

In Oregon, more than 122,500 will fly to their Independence Day destinations.

Jump in other modes of travel

Travel by other modes including cruises, buses and trains will rise by 9% from 2023, with 4.6 million people (6.5% of all travelers). This year’s number is just shy of 4.79 million in 2019.

Cruising continues its remarkable post-pandemic comeback. This time of year, Alaska cruises are in high demand, making Seattle and Anchorage top domestic destinations. Cruise travelers are also finding deals this summer. With new ships coming onto the market – and going for a premium – some cruise lines have been offering targeted discounts to fill older inventory for remaining cabins.

Approximately 59,000 Oregonians will travel by other modes.

Tips for those flying this Independence Day:

• Check your airline’s website or download their app to keep up to date on your flight status, including checking one last time right before you leave for the airport. Allow push notifications so the airline can alert you of any changes.
• Check-in online for flights 24 hours ahead
• Arrive at the airport at least two hours early for domestic flights and three hours for international. Expect long security lines due to the spike in travelers.
• Airport parking lots will likely be at or near capacity. Many airports including Portland International airport let you check current availability  https://www.flypdx.com/Parking .  Some parking facilities let you book in advance. 
• Consider taking transit, using a ride sharing service or taxi, or getting a ride with a friend or family member to the airport so you don’t have to park onsite.
• Carry your bags on your flight instead of checking them. If you do need to check bags, bring medications, a change of clothes, comfortable shoes, and any other necessary items with you on the flight. That way you’ll have provisions if your checked bags get lost or delayed. Make sure your bags have name tags, and also put your name and contact info inside each bag.
• Bring a refillable water bottle and plan ahead for meals and snacks. Airport restaurants can be very busy with long lines at times. Many airlines allow you to pre-order food up to 24 hours before your flight. The  TSA  allows solid foods through screening but liquids or gels (such as yogurt) must comply with the 3-1-1 liquids rule.
• Consider booking a flight during non-peak travel periods to cut down on wait times. In general, early morning flights tend to have fewer delays and cancellations than flights later in the day. Over the Independence Day holiday weekend, Saturday, July 1 is expected to be the busiest air travel day and Monday, July 3 will be the least busy. 
• Sign up for TSA PreCheck, Global Entry and/or CLEAR before your trip to expedite the security screening process. However, even these check-in lanes will be busier than usual. And confirm that the airports you use offer CLEAR as it’s not available at all airports.

Top Independence Day Destinations

AAA booking data reveals that theme parks, warm weather destinations, cruise gateway cities are the most popular based on searches and bookings by members of AAA Oregon/Idaho.

Anaheim and Orlando are top domestic destinations as Independence Day travelers head to theme parks. Seattle, Anchorage, and Vancouver, B.C. rank high because of the popularity of Alaska cruises this time of year. Beaches and cruise ports will also be packed. European cities dominate the list of international destinations. This year, Budapest and Basel are on the top 10 list for the first time.

In Oregon, Central Oregon and the Oregon Coast are popular destinations. Central Oregon has two cities and the coast has three cities in the top 10 list of regional destinations.

Best/worst times to drive and peak congestion

INRIX, a global provider of transportation data and insights, says the worst times to travel by car before and on July 4 th  are between 2pm and 7pm. Drivers should hit the road in the morning, and travelers returning on Monday, July 8 th  should avoid rush hour traffic in the morning and afternoon.

Here are the daily worst and best times to travel:

“With more people than ever heading out on a July 4 th  road trip, expect drive times that are longer than usual, especially in metro areas. The worst traffic delays are expected on Wednesday, July 3 rd , as folks leave town, and Sunday, July 7th, as they return home,” says Dodds.

Here are projected travel times out of Portland from INRIX:

Airfare, hotel, rental car, cruise and tour costs  

Air —AAA finds that travelers are paying a bit less for domestic flights and more for international flights for Independence Day travel.

• Domestic airfare is 2% cheaper this July 4th week compared to last year.
• Average price for a domestic roundtrip flight is $800.
• International flights are 7% more expensive this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average price for an international roundtrip ticket is $1440.

Hotels —AAA finds hotel prices are up compared to 2023.

• Domestic hotels are 17% more expensive this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average booking cost for a hotel stay (which is typically a few nights) is $660. That’s the average price of domestic hotel bookings through AAA – not a nightly rate.
• International hotels are 14% more expensive this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average booking cost for a hotel stay (which is typically a few nights) is $725. That’s the average price of international hotel bookings through AAA – not a nightly rate.

Car Rentals —Daily car rental rates are less than in 2023.

• Domestic car rentals are 16% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average booking cost for a rental car (which is typically several days) is $670 total – not the daily rate.
• International car rentals are 6% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average booking cost for a rental (which is typically several days) is $940 total – not the daily rate.

Cruises —AAA finds that cruises are less expensive this year

• Cruises departing from domestic cities are 24% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average cost for cruises departing from domestic cities is $1420
• Cruises departing from international cities are 6% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average cost for cruises departing from international cities is $2430

Tours —AAA finds tours cost less this year

• Tours in domestic cities are 21% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average cost for a domestic tour is $1100
• Tours in international cities are 8% cheaper this July 4 th  week compared to last year.
• Average cost for an international tour is $1620

Gas prices lower than last year

Drivers are paying less for gas this year compared to Independence Day 2023, and significantly less than in 2022 when as prices were at record highs for the holiday.

The national average is currently $3.45 and the Oregon average is $4.08 (as of June 20, 2024). Find current gas prices here:  https://gasprices.aaa.com/

Pump prices saw typical spring run-ups this year and have fallen in the last few weeks. The wildcard remains the price of crude oil, which is impacted by global unrest including the wars between Israel and Hamas, and Russia and Ukraine. Storms and hurricanes can also impact crude oil and gas prices, especially storms in the U.S. Gulf Coast.

For local news releases on gas prices, visit  https://info.oregon.aaa.com/oregon-gas-prices/

Use the AAA Mobile App ( AAA.com/mobile ) to help you find the least expensive gas in your area. You can also find the closest EV charging stations.

Find fuel saving tips  here .

AAA to the rescue this Independence Day weekend AAA expects to respond to more than 799,000 calls for roadside assistance nationally and 8,000 in Oregon this Independence Day travel period, with the most common issues being dead batteries, flat tires, and lockouts. 

AAA makes it easy to request assistance—by phone or text (1-800-AAA-HELP),  app  or  online —and members can track the service technician’s progress as they make their way to your vehicle.

Make sure your car is road-trip ready. Have your vehicle inspected by a trusted repair shop, such as one of the more than 7,000  AAA Approved Auto Repair  facilities across North America.

Be prepared for emergencies with a mobile phone and car charger, and well-stocked emergency kit including a flashlight with extra batteries, first-aid kit, a basic toolkit, jackets and blankets, and drinking water and snacks for all passengers and pets. Share your itinerary with family or friends so that authorities know where to start looking for you if you don’t reach your destination.

“Bring enough provisions so that you and your passengers can be comfortable if you get stuck somewhere for a long period of time, even overnight,” says Dodds. “A wreck can tie up rural roads for hours, and you don’t always have cell phone service in remote areas.”

Find more info on getting road-trip ready at  AAA.com/summerprep

AAA Travel Advice

With AAA projecting record travel for Independence Day, it’s important that travelers plan ahead and be flexible.

“Plan your trip in advance and have a plan B. Use your AAA membership to find discounts and rewards, work with a travel agent, and consider travel insurance as well as medical travel insurance,” adds Loofburrow.

AAA recommends working with a travel agent and considering travel insurance options. “A travel agent knows the ins and outs of travel and can help you plan a trip that meets your needs and budget. And if something goes wrong—from a flight cancellation to a medical emergency—or you need to make last-minute changes, your travel agent is your advocate,” says Loofburrow. “Travel agents can help you get the most out of your travel dollars as they know of special offers and rates that aren’t always available to the general public.”

AAA strongly recommends travel insurance to cover unexpected delays or trip interruptions. Travel insurance provides a safety net should something unexpected happen ahead of or during your trip. Medical travel insurance can provide coverage for illness and injuries and that may not be included in your regular health insurance plan. Travel agents can also advise on what travel insurance policy makes the most sense for your trip.

Visit  AAA.com/travel  or call (800) 529-3222 to reach a AAA travel agent.

Forecast methodology

In cooperation with AAA, S&P Global Market Intelligence (SPGMI) developed a unique methodology to forecast actual domestic travel volumes. The economic variables used to forecast travel for the current holiday are leveraged from SPGMI’s proprietary databases. These data include macroeconomic drivers such as employment, output, household net worth, asset prices, including stock indices, interest rates, housing market indicators, and variables related to travel and tourism, including gasoline prices, airline travel, and hotel stays. AAA and SPGMI have quantified holiday travel volumes going back to 2000. 

Historical travel volume estimates come from DK SHIFFLET’s TRAVEL PERFORMANCE/Monitor SM . The PERFORMANCE/Monitor SM  is a comprehensive study measuring the travel behavior of U.S. residents. DK SHIFFLET contacts over 50,000 U.S. households each month to obtain detailed travel data, resulting in the unique ability to estimate visitor volume and spending, identify trends, and forecast U.S. travel behavior, all after the trips have been taken.

The travel forecast is reported in person-trips. In particular, AAA and SPGMI forecast the total U.S. holiday travel volume and expected mode of transportation. The travel forecast presented in this report was prepared the week of May 27, 2024.

Because AAA forecasts focus on domestic leisure travel only, comparisons to TSA passenger screening numbers should not be made. TSA data includes all passengers traveling on both domestic and international routes. Additionally, TSA screens passengers each time they enter secured areas of the airport, therefore each one-way trip is counted as a passenger tally. AAA focuses on person-trips, which include the full round-trip travel itinerary. As a result, direct comparisons of AAA forecast volumes and daily TSA screenings represent different factors.

*Independence Day Holiday Travel Period

For this forecast, the Independence Day holiday travel period is defined as the nine-day period from Saturday, June 29 to Sunday, July 7. Historically, the Independence Day holiday period included only one weekend. This is the first year the Independence Day holiday travel period is a longer timeframe with two weekends included.

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