Three cities in San Diego County were ranked among the top three for warm weather travel destinations in a recent study .
The cities of San Diego, Chula Vista and Carlsbad ranked third for the best Winter Vacation Destinations for Warm-Weather Lovers, graded with a score of 66.22 out of a 100-point scale, with the score of 100 representing the most ideal winter travel conditions. For the colder months, experts at WalletHub analyzed nearly 70 of the largest metro areas and grouped them as “warm” or “cold” based on 39 key metrics, including two weeks of flight data, safety indicators and weather predictions.
In their analysis, experts factored in each destination’s scenic quality, the cost and convenience of traveling to each location in addition to its affordability, and the variety of activities in each destination. The cities of Austin, Round Rock and Georgetown in Texas have the top total score of 66.69. Ranking as second, the cities of Las Vegas, Henderson and Paradise in Nevada scored 66.66.
With vaccines being accessible to individuals over the age of 5, many more people will be traveling during the holiday season. Recently, the American Automotive Association predicted more than 53.4 million people were expected to travel during the Thanksgiving holiday.
Post Thanksgiving numbers provided by the the U.S Transportation Security Administration said nearly 2.4 million travelers were screened through checkpoints nationwide. Travel volumes are anticipated to be noticeably higher, but not at pre-pandemic levels.
Travel restrictions have reemerged as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced their concern of a newly detected COVID-19 Omicron variant. The U.S issued a travel ban beginning Nov.28, not including U.S Citizens, of travelers from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana and other neighboring countries.
The first Omicron case was first reported in South Africa on Nov.11, according to a technical brief released by the World Health Organization. Infection rates have increased steeply in South Africa which coincided with the detection of Omicron. California is closely monitoring the new variant that hasn't arrived in California or in the United States, according to a statement released by the California Department of Public Health.
