Craig, who made plans to hang out in someone’s backyard, was right to assume that if you’re going to see friends, it’s best to do so outside. Experts agree that outdoor spaces appear to be considerably safer than indoors, where poor ventilation and airflow make it more likely that the virus is hanging around in the air.
“Broadly speaking, it will probably be okay to see family and friends in small groups while carefully monitoring symptoms,” provided that groups really are small, and anyone who thinks they may have been exposed gets tested and continues to self-isolate, says Sandro Galea, MD, an epidemiologist and professor of family medicine at Boston University’s School of Public Health.