Prior to the next recession, gold was very expensive, as the inflation fears were rampant (remember the uber-bullish oil forecasts?). You would still have done better from peak to through than you did if you held S&P but then again, you would have missed the rally too. Anyway, my point is that maybe gold is not that expensive this time around if you think in asset-growth adjusted terms. Maybe look at the total gold market cap vs global equity market cap and compare that to history?
FWIW, I never understood people that buy gold miners to get exposure to gold. These are companies that, on average, are poorly managed and have zero innovation edge.
It's hard to say, really depends on the reaction of the central banks. I honestly don't think gold is a good all-around safety asset in the modern times. Buying gold makes sense if you think that the CBs around the world will be able to counteract the contraction via some form of easing.