As people make plans about where they want to vacation in a nation that's cautiously reopening amid declining covid-19 numbers, one state is hoping it can entice them to come on up. Emphasis on "up."
Unvaccinated? Want to vacation in The Last Frontier? You're in luck. You can do both at the same time.
"Alaska has begun offering covid-19 vaccines at airports, a move that was anticipated for the start of the summer travel season," the Associated Press reports. "Vaccines will be offered outside the areas secured by the federal Transportation Security Administration at airports in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau."
How about that? Plan a long enough vacation, and you can get both doses of Pfizer or Moderna right there in our northernmost state. Want the one-shot option? Alaska plans for Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to offer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, too.
If you take your kids along, remember the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for those as young as 12.
These latest offerings may come as a surprise to some, but apparently tourists that were making plans to visit Alaska this summer have been inquiring about vaccine offerings, according to Anchorage Daily News.
"We've already received calls from tourists who want to be vaccinated here, and some who plan to stay three to four weeks to receive their second vaccine," said Adam Crum, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services.
For those who are planning to stay three or four weeks to receive their second dose, it's hard to imagine a more beautiful place to enjoy yourself while your body builds up immunity to the deadly virus. Other than Arkansas, of course.
As vaccination rates slow, this is the kind of creative thinking that will keep America moving towards herd immunity.