The European Union announced they intend to open their borders to tourists again, soon, but haven’t said when or under what conditions yet.
If you are ready to fly the coop and want to go on an international vacation somewhere, you’ll discover it’s a mish-mash of rules specific to each country, though you can expect to wear a mask just about everywhere, will probably have to have proof of a recent Covid test, and may need to show a vaccination record.
Your best place to start is Airheart, an Austin company that monitors travel conditions all over the world. It will give you an idea of what to expect. Arie Litovsky co-founded the company, and has vacationed in Central America recently, with few limitations. His key advice is to be flexible. It’s still a fluid situation. While the land borders with Canada and Mexico are still restricted to essential travel only, flights have been taking planeloads of Americans to hotspots Cozumel and Cancun. However the number of Covid cases has been on the rise, and the governor of the region says they may have to go into a lockdown if conditions don’t improve.
A sampling of what to expect if you’re dreaming of a vacation on the European continent:
France opens June 9, though a travel pass will be required. They haven’t said what a travel pass is but it’s assumed it will involve proof of vaccination. On that date France will begin opening indoor dining, with occupancy restrictions, and their countrywide curfew moves back to 11pm.
Greece requires proof of vaccination and a negative test no more than 72-hours old. Random testing is conducted at airports and a positive result requires a mandatory 10 day quarantine.
Italy allows vaccinated Americans to enter on special “Covid tested flights” that require tests before and after the flight. The special flights depart New York and Atlanta, and go to Milan or Rome, but Venice and Naples are being added soon.
There are still limits to traveling to the UK, though the US is among the countries they accept visitors from. Tests are required before US departure and $300 self-administered tests must be bought from British authorities and performed on days 2 and 8. The pubs and restaurants and museums are open, but there are still capacity limits.
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