Fear of 'travel shaming' has some people keeping their trips quiet on social media, but numbers show people are on the move

Sarah Dandashy

• Travel has continued to surge in July and August, and travel shaming and COVID-call outs are becoming more common.
• While some travelers continue to share their photos and experiences on social media, many are choosing to curb their online presence or to not post at all.
• "I think people are afraid. Everyone's under a microscope," said food blogger and influencer Ali Maffucci, who experienced backlash after traveling from New Jersey to Florida to be with family during quarantine.
• The US Travel Association has stated that with proper precautions like face masks and hand-washing, people can travel safely; the CDC still recommends that travel be limited to essential needs only.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

When my friend (we'll call her Jess) decided to meet her boyfriend (we'll call him Jason) last month in Baltimore, she was nervous about the trip. "It's like a secret rendezvous," I remember Jess saying before she left. Jess, who lives in New York and hadn't seen her boyfriend since before the pandemic began in March, said she was nervous for all of the obvious reasons — but also because of what people might say if they knew she was traveling during a pandemic. 

There's no doubt that COVID-19 has forever changed the way we travel. Traveling during the pandemic is a highly personal decision, and putting the ethical question of whether or not (and how) we should be traveling aside, how we choose to share our lives on social media is another issue altogether.See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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