A Look At Travel, Party Destinations And Bars, Pubs & Nightclubs In The ‘I’m Vaccinated’ Era
After being cooped up for more than a year, PubClubbers around the world are beginning to emerge from their stay-at-home makeshift bars and are ready to venture out again.
With more of the population getting vaccinated, people are already booking trips to party destinations and going back to pubs and clubs.
In order to maximize your fun (and funds), here’s what to expect when you start to look at a destination or go out to pubs and clubs.
Higher Prices For Travel
Airlines are taking full advantage of the high demand for travel by hiking airfare rates and expect the same with hotels and other accommodation options such as AirBnB hosts. Traveling is very much a supply-and-demand business, and business in the post-pandemic world will be booming.
Tip: If you think you’re going somewhere then start looking for airfares several months in advance.
Concerts & Events Will Quickly Sell Out
You can already see this coming – the minute a promoter announces a concert it’s sold out in one day. That’s going to be the norm so if you hear of one – or read about it on PubClub – and want to go then don’t hesitate a second to get tickets.
The same applies to events such as ticketed festivals and other fun and social happenings.
Long Lines At Pubs & Clubs
Just like at concerts, expect pubs and clubs to be popular. Expect long lines to get into places, particularly on weekends.
Tip: go earlier than usual and don’t move around a lot. If you get into a place, stay there.
Reduced Or Non-Existent Happy Hours And Other Food & Drink Specials
I had one bar manager tell me they don’t have Happy Hour now and won’t until it “returns to profitability. And that won’t happen until we’re at 100% capacity.” So this is one fallout from pandemic recovery – the elimination or at least a reduction in Happy Hours and other food and drink specials.
Several bars where I live have reduced Happy Hours to end at 5 p.m., rather than their normal 6 or 7 p.m. It’s partly because of they don’t want to offer discounts right now but also because of reduced operating hours. Bars that have to close at 10 or 11 p.m., are losing substantial revenue and they are hoping to make up for some of it earlier in the evening, thus cutting into their Happy Hour times.
New Pubs And Clubs Rules
In some places, you may not be able to stand up, dance or – one of my favorite postures – lean against the bar. You may have to stay seated while you are in a pub and club. This is one of the many changes you are likely to encounter when going out now and in the near future.
Ordering food and drinks may be only via a menu on a QR code and while I hope this doesn’t catch on, you may not even have a server. You order everything from an app on your phone and an employee simply drops it off at your table. It’s very impersonal “service” but it may be coming to a bar near you soon. If it’s not there already. One of our local pubs, for some reason I cannot begin to explain, won’t break up a tab for others so you all have to pay together.
Tip: Whatever the rules are at a particular establishment, the quietly obey them. If you get upset or yell, that will not change its policy; simply don’t go back to that place.
Pubs And Clubs Socializing – Is This The End Of The Pick-Up Bars?
This is a tricky one – will socializing be back to normal? Or will people be sticking closer to their friends? In other words, will the scare of the pandemic temporarily put the brakes on pick-up bars?
That really depends on the location and the individual people so it’s difficult to predict. My gut feeling from seeing people out is that they will be a little more cautious to mingle, to carry on long conversations that can lead to a conversation starting with “good morning” the next day.
My advice is to approach a potential overnight mate with caution. Use your instincts to assess the situation and if the person is receptive and relaxed, then you can proceed with your best moves.
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