Hello - My husband & I are both older & have high-risk health conditions. We have made a couple of trips, including a 24 hour one from Winter to Summer residences at the end of April with 2 overnight stops, and a 5 day vacation.

Here is how we did it:
-I plotted the trip via our normal route, and contacted hotels to ask their Covid precautions, then chose 2 which sounded the safest.
-We planned & packed all of our meals & snacks enroute, freezing soup & chili to eat in our room in the evening (most hotels have microwaves.) We packed our own dishes & utensils, as well dish soap & paper towels. We did eat the hotels' "to go" breakfasts & drank their coffee & tea.
-Another option is to pack prepackaged meals that do not require refrigeration - there are a lot of options on the grocery shelves. Or takeout meals from the drive-thru window of the many fast food restaurants that surround hotels.
-When we entered out hotel room, we immediately wiped all hard surfaces with sanitizer wipes, and sprayed all soft surfaces with Lysol. (We removed bedspreads to the closet in hotels which had them.)
-We tried to make our rest stops at wayside rests or very large, busy truck stops (found them cleanest) masked but did not glove and carried in sanitizer wipes in ziplock baggies to clean surfaces before using, then sanitized our hands again before getting into the car. We also frequently wiped down the "touch surfaces" in our car. We found smaller gas stations not as good about keeping clean.

We have come through our trips very safely - even making a short vacation trip where we ate outdoors in a restaurant & shopped quickly in a local grocery for extra items.

With respect to personal physical precautions, please keep in mind that masks which are worn should be handled as though contaminated & discarded safely or stowed in a bag and washed promptly. We carry at least 3 washable masks each, and hand wash and air dry at the end of each day. We also each carry N-95 masks to wear in case of close contact with anyone over a period of time.

Gloves are a special concern. They are meant to be worn once and safely discarded. Repeatedly putting the same pair of gloves on & off results in contaminating them inside and out AND potentially carries the virus from one location to another. Unless you have access to boxes of surgical gloves, it is better to be careful what you touch and to thoroughly wash or sanitize your hands frequently. We carry hand sanitizer "spritzers" in pocket, purse & car and refill from a larger bottle.

Face shields are intended as extra protection for prolonged or close contacts, and meant to be worn with a face mask. They are not adequate protection by themselves.

Good luck in your travels & treatment.
Sue

I am currently in Rochester with appointments at Mayo for the next two weeks. I am over 65 with type II diabetes so Ian in a high-risk class. I live in Tennessee and flew on Delta to Minneapolis and then to Rochester. Delta was very good about social distancing both in terms of boarding and then getting off the plane. Delta really did follow its stated practice of not putting passengers in middle seats. The Minneapolis airport was deserted....on a Saturday afternoon. I have stayed in the Kahler Grand but found an alternative in the Broadway Plaza. I am renting a small apartment with a kitchen (!) for less than what it would cost me to stay at the Kahler. The Broadway Plaza is a short walk to the Gonda Building, the Mayo Building, and Charlton. There are several restaurants that are following strict protocols in terms of co-vid 19; I also went to Hyvee to get groceries. The Mayo Clinic is scrupulous about cleaning and social distancing. For me, flying was better than driving. Please let me know if you have any questions.

@chiczebra
The drive from the Minneapolis airport is just and hour and a half to Mayo Clinic, you may want to rent a car at MSP and avoid the second flight.

In reply to chiczebra: it looks like you’re getting good travel advice....I have gone to Mayo Rochester during covid and am headed there again in early November for a brief appointment (hopefully). Anyway, if you have the money, I would recommend staying at the Hilton Mayo area hotel. They do an outstanding job of making you feel safe and comfortable.