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What could a summer travel boom mean for kids who can’t be vaccinated yet?

The eagerness to leave mask mandates and pandemic practices behind may leave families with young children exercising extra vigilance while vacationing.

WASHINGTON — After the opening act of a post-pandemic America showed a remarkable resurgence in long-delayed and now delivered vacations, U.S. health authorities will closely track any increases in COVID-19 cases among millions who haven’t been vaccinated.

For children under 12 years old, unable to be inoculated yet, parents and pediatricians face an increasingly likely scenario of unvaccinated adults ditching both masks and social distancing around kids.

The eagerness to leave mask mandates and pandemic practices behind may leave families with young children exercising extra vigilance while vacationing, doctors and experts noted ahead of the Memorial Day weekend.

In response to this reality, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released tips and guidelines for families traveling with unvaccinated kids. The recommendations, above all, advise shorter trips, as direct as possible.

“If you must fly, try to take flights with the fewest stops or layovers,” the agency said. “Short road trips with members of your household or fully vaccinated people with few stops along the way” are the safest vacations, with long-distance trains, buses, and cruises to be avoided.

The CDC also urged parents to seek home rentals over hotels, and getting takeout with their children as opposed to venturing out to restaurants while on vacation.

“You just can't throw caution to the wind at this point,” said Dr. Roshni Mathew, a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatric Infectious at Stanford University.

“Children, just like adults, could potentially also have the long COVID. That is, persistent symptoms, beyond a few weeks.”

Pfizer said it plans to request emergency use authorization for its vaccine in children ages 2-11 by September. The pharmaceutical giant also plans to ask for authorization in children aged 6 months to 2 years old during the fourth quarter of this year.

RELATED: CDC loosens mask guidance for summer campers

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