Radio Guest List – New York – June 13, 2020

This week on Eye on Travel, Peter talks about the inevitable intersection between the Black Lives Matter movement and the travel experience. Joining Peter is The New York Times contributor Tariro Mzezewa, on the “great American road trip” and how it differs greatly for people of color. Brian Oliver, founder of the nonprofit BMore See More, on how education and exposure through travel creates better opportunities and worldviews to young black men in Baltimore. And as more states open up, Dr. Michael Cheng, Dean of Florida International University, discusses the steps restaurants have taken to ensure a safe environment for diners and what a Covid-19 surcharge might mean for your next restaurant experience. We’ll update on the explosive growth in the RV industry, Gene Sloan reports on which cruise ships will sail first, and Peter answers your emails. There’s all of this and more on this week’s broadcast of Eye on Travel.

Click here to listen to the show streaming live from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 13, 2020

Have a travel question? Then ask Peter. E-mail him at peter@petergreenberg.com, or tweet your questions to @petersgreenberg (include #AskPeter).

Tariro Mzezewa, The New York Times Reporter and Contributor, expresses how traveling if you’re black means something very different than traveling as a white person. Taking the “great American road trip” doesn’t mean the same thing for black people as it does for white people. She references the Green Book 2018 movie and the criticism that it focused on the friendship between two people and not the realities of how difficult it would have been to be a black man traveling through the South. She further discusses how there are Facebook groups for people of color to let them know places that are safe and friendly and places to avoid. She says the dynamics of planning a trip for black people is different. Time may have passed, but many of the concerns are still the same.

Craig Kirby, CEO of the RV Industry Association, explains how travelers want to travel safely more than ever before and they also want to travel in a self-contained way. RVs allow for people to see the United States by being able to cook their own food, not stay at a hotel and without having to stop and use public restrooms. This is an especially appealing option for those looking to explore outdoor locations like national parks. You don’t have to go to major national parks though, and he encourages people to look into the country’s lesser known parks for their trips. It’s also a great option for those traveling on a budget. There are RVs at every price point, including motorhomes starting at under $50,000. Manufacturers are doing their best to keep up with increased demand, and many manufacturers are now working overtime.

Kitten Kouri, Grammy Award Winning Singer and World Traveler, speaks about traveling the world and shares a few of her experiences as a black woman traveling. As a woman of color, she’s been targeted while traveling, especially within the United States. She says that she’s assumed to be guilty from being pulled over just for driving or pulled out of security lines because she is the only person in that location or country who officers have identified as a threat. She hopes moving forward and after this current surge of the Black Lives Matter movement, people will take more stock of their actions. She wants to see more people looking out for black people in tangible ways.

Gene Sloan, Senior Reporter, Cruise and Travel for The Points Guy, advises people to take the refund over the voucher if they’ve had a cruise cancelled because we don’t know what cruises are going to look like when they come back. So far, he’s seen one European cruise line in Germany start back up. The pool, gym, and spa are closed and there are socially distanced markers around the ship. It is likely that other cruise lines will follow these guidelines when they begin to sail again. Then, he helps address a listener’s question about what to do if you cancelled before the cruise line canceled. The unfortunate answer is that he has not seen much success with people getting refunds, even if the cruise was ultimately cancelled. 

Dr. Michael Cheng, Dean of the Florida International University – Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, dives into the “new normal” of restaurant experiences. Some restaurants are putting mannequins in the tables used to socially distance customers so that it doesn’t feel empty. There are also restaurants pumping in the low sound of chatter so it feels busier. In most places, bars aren’t even allowed to be open, but he thinks the one thing people miss is a good, craft cocktail. One thing we will probably get used to seeing is a “Covid-19 Surcharge.” In order to survive with decreased capacity limits and increased staff to clean and maintain social distancing, restaurants will have to find new ways of offsetting that revenue. He believes that people will understand a Covid-19 surcharge implemented at restaurants, especially more than just a gradual increase on the prices of items.

Brian Oliver, Founder of BMore See More, combines education and exposure through travel to help give better opportunities and worldviews to young black men in Baltimore. He’s glad that difficult discussions are coming to light and are allowing young people to question the world around them. Even though he went to one of the better high schools in the city, he didn’t get the same opportunities as people from high schools in more wealthy cities. He wanted to make sure he was helping to give those travel experiences to young black men. The main goal is to show young African American men a way of life outside of their city. The sad truth is that the majority of black men in the city have never been as far as 45 minutes away to Washington, D.C., let alone farther. He wants to change minds and hearts through travel.