The open road, oh how I missed thee.

So naturally, I didn’t hesitate to make the eight-hour drive from my home in Georgia down to Orlando, Florida to report on the reopening of Disney’s Blizzard Beach.

The long drive down is one I’ve been making my entire life. Orlando and the beach were frequent summer vacations for this Georgia boy growing up.

Of course, this time around came with several new restrictions in place.

Travel is different these days a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, but if there’s one place that’s shown it can be done, it’s Walt Disney World.

The parks can only operate at 35% capacity – masks are seen all over and enforced when customers aren’t following the rules. I break down more about the Disney experience here in this Facebook live video I did from my room last week.

The roads were much more crowded than I expected. This past weekend saw a record number of air travelers which no doubt some of that trickled over into highway traffic.

We extended the road trip to take our one-year-old daughter to the beach for the first time. Plus, I wanted to see firsthand what the spring break travel scene was like at the beach amid the pandemic.

An easy check-in process and a super clean room at Embassy Suites by Hilton Sarasota were a warm welcome after the long drive over from Orlando.

Siesta Key Beach in Sarasota, Florida has arguably the best sand in the United States, and its massive space also makes a socially distant beach outing that much easier. Aside from noticing how people spaced themselves apart, and the crowds not nearly as large as previous years, it otherwise felt like a normal spring break day at the beach. It left me feeling even more positive about the future of travel.

The little one loved the beach, and we captured tons of photos and videos to remember such a fantastic week. While the travel experience has changed some, creating lifelong memories will always remain a constant.

Did you have spring break travel plans this year? Let me know on Twitter and Instagram: @EricBowman_

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