Topic 94 (ONLINE) The Future of Travel

Topic 94 (ONLINE) The Future of Travel

Zoom Online Thursday 28 May 2020

1. How do you think the Covid-19 virus might change the way people travel in the future?

2. Do you expect to have a holiday next year? What will you do during your holiday?

3. Many people were trapped in foreign countries during the Covid-19 pandemic. It was difficult, or expensive, or impossible for them to get home. Where would you NOT like to be trapped like this?

4. Air travel might be much more expensive in future (many airlines have gone out of business). How much are you willing to pay for flights?

5. Worldwide, millions of people have lost their jobs. They won't be able to afford holidays for a long time. How will this affect their health and happiness .. and travel plans?

6. Bicycles have suddenly become very popular worldwide. People are afraid to travel on crowded buses and trains because of the Covid-19 virus. How long do you think this bicycle fashion will last? (Would you open a bicycle shop?)

7. We are "traveling electronically" a lot lately. For example we have online meetups with Zoom etc. There are even websites where you can go on "virtual tours" of other countries. Do you think that virtual travel will replace real travel much? Where would you like to visit in a "virtual tour" ?

8. Why do you think Australia does not have fast trains like China, or Japan or France? If you wanted to build a fast train network in Australia, what would the problems be? Will things change in the future?

9. I once took a Russian ship from Singapore to Perth. It took one week. Twice I took an Italian passenger ship from Sydney to Wellington in New Zealand. It took 3 days. What is the advantage of this kind of travel? What are the disadvantages? Will we see more, or less ship travel in the future?

10. Do you think long distance bus travel has a good future? Buses are usually the cheapest. Where have you been on a long distance bus? [I have been from Sydney to Perth on a bus (92 hours!) and from Adelaide to Darwin. I have been through Indonesia on buses (e.g. 32 hours in Sumatra). I have been from Delhi (India) to London mostly on buses (that took weeks)). Also I caught a bus from Hong Kong to Xiamen].