Once the cherry blossoms bloom and turn into green leaves, students’ minds begin to wander from school work to worrying about getting the best tan possible. With the past year the world has faced, and now that vaccines have been accessible for people aged 16 and over, students are eager to jump into the deep end and have a “normal” summer. 

Covid-19 shocked the whole world last March, and although that gave people some leeway to reconfigure their summer plans, most were out of luck as travel restrictions were strict and summer camps across the country were cancelled. Because people have been stuck in tight quarters with their families for the past year, they are eager to begin travelling again. According to forbes.com, “Most travelers (59%) are booking seven-night trips and 37% are booking six-night trips, according to Allianz. By comparison, in 2019 the most popular choice (30%) for a summer trip was a four-night getaway.” 

Due to the lessening restrictions in the US and other countries, vacationers are taking this opportunity to catch up on missed opportunities. Senior Riya Kohli said, “I am really excited now that restrictions aren’t strict this year as they were last year because I am going to Bali and Singapore. This trip was planned for the Summer of 2020 but we weren’t able to go.” 

Not only was the air closed, but sleepaway camps were shut down last summer too. According to CNBC, 62% of summer camps were forced to close last year due to the Coronavirus. Junior Jenna Siman said, “I have been going to Capital Camps Retreat Center practically my whole life. It is like a second home to me. When I found out last summer that we weren’t going to be able to have camp I was so upset, but it made it even more special that I knew we were going to have it this year. I know it isn’t going to be the same because of COVID but I am still so excited for my summer to seem more normal.” 

When people think of summer break, minds may wander to vacations and camp, although not all students spend their summers that way. Some may get a summer job, do summer classes or prepare to leave their families and go on to college. “I am very excited for this summer because I am working at Lifetime Fitness in Gaithersburg as a lifeguard. I also have some trips to Bethany Beach planned with my friends to celebrate us graduating. Throughout the summer I will also be preparing all my stuff for the fall at Penn State University, I hope this will be a really good summer because last summer was taken away from us,” senior Thomas Jezek said.