By Dan Weil The easing of the Covid omicron variant has led people to feel more comfortable about getting away for vacations. Now that the omicron Covid variant is waning, consumers are going out and spending, as was evident in the 3.8% rise in retail sales reported for January this week. And travel is one area seeing a big gain. “People really want to make sure they travel while they can,” Mark Matthews, marketing manager for Maui Seasons, a private tour company in Hawaii, told The Washington Post. “Who knows when the next strain is going to come and what it’s going to look like?” Maui Season…