It's been 619 days since I last travelled internationally. Prior to 1998, I had never gone more than a year between trips. I was either living abroad and would travel home, or I would travel abroad for work. 619 days is an eternity for a travel advisor to not travel but tomorrow is my Day 1 and I couldn't be happier!
To be completely honest, I'm not over the moon about traveling NOW. We are still in a world-wide pandemic. Infection rates are going up, immunization rates are stagnant. However, we have enough data now so we can try and do life, safely. The European Union has done it's best to use this data to recommend tourism can, and should, slowly return and that each member country should make it's own rules for tourist travel. EU travel information can be found here. I found it helpful for understanding the differences for immunized US based travelers and EU travelers. The EU has a digital Covid certificate option, there is not one similar available for US travelers. Each EU country has their own rules for testing, vaccination status, quarantine and travel.
It is VERY important to do research prior to travel to your destination of choice. The Covid protocols are not the same for every country, not every country is an EU member and will have different restrictions. It is not easy to just effortlessly travel between countries anymore. Things are....messy....very very messy!
I decided I needed to put my toes in the water so I could advise you guys on how this new normal of Covid travel is working! The potential is there to turn a dream vacation into a nightmare at the drop of a hat. The constantly changing rules, is part of this logistical mess. I decided I would return to the country I know best (and have the most pending travel rewards because I haven't gone anywhere in 619 days!) for this first trip. Ireland!
I started by researching what my own country is saying about traveling to Ireland and I found it here I think it's an important first step to not over look. Everyone wants to get out of this pandemic travel slump however we can't just overlook at we are indeed still living in a dangerous pandemic. The US State Department has Ireland at a Level 3 (out of 4) asking me to reconsider travel at this time. Not the best news I wanted to find but I did further research to make a decision based on what was smart for me. The Irish Government agrees, for the most part, that now isn't a great time to head over to the Emerald Isle, but you can visit if you decide to jump through a huge amount of hoops. I found this info on their government travel website here and it's important to note that I have been checking this page, daily since I made my initial reservations. This wasn't a once and done event and I think that has been the biggest learning curve of pandemic travel. NOTHING is set in stone anymore. You have to be prepared for the likelihood that something will probably happen: a flight cancellation, a hotel cancellation, a border closing, a vaccine booster requirement, quarantine requirement etc It's a long list nowadays and not one to be taken lightly. In addition to researching official websites, I also reached out to my Irish friends and family members to see what they had to say about it. Everyone misses tourism, maybe it's not a great time to flood the country with busloads of tourists again?
Ireland says I can skip the PCR Covid test to get into their country if I'm vaccinated. I can also skip arrival quarantine if I'm vaccinated. I can also dine indoors, visit pubs etc if I'm vaccinated. This is the new normal for what most of Europe is doing. Show us your card: your vaccine card! I'm fully vaccinated and felt confident with booking the trip based on these requirements. I will not be traveling to any other countries on this trip and didn't need to do research the intra-country travel requirements. It is important to note my vaccine card did not mean I could skip PCR tests and quarantines in other countries, just Ireland. I also had to fill out a passenger locator form to follow up on my travels in the country and my vaccine or testing status's. I'm flying with Irish air carrier Aer Lingus who suggested I download the app Verifly so I can get up to date information on Covid travel and upload my Covid travel documents. Right now, the USA doesn't have digital Covid travel documents, however I do have to take a PCR test to return to the USA and that test result can be stored on the app (or by email)
My next research project was finding an appropriate Covid testing location, in Ireland, that would provide me with the test and certificate required to return to my home country. Not all tests are the same, not all documentation is the same. I had to figure out where in my itinerary I was going to be and research my options locally. I found a place that was affiliated with the Irish Health service and the cost was approximately $85 and had to be pre-scheduled. The US State Department does have a take-home test you can grab at your local Walgreens and take with you on your trip but I was nervous about this. There were too man "what-if" variables and I didn't want to get stuck not having a legitimate test result for the sake of convenience. At this time, I personally wouldn't recommend it when traveling abroad. Find somewhere local.
The logistics of travel right now are as mind numbing as is the list of potential problems you might encounter while traveling. The array of problems that are cropping up while people are traveling range from the non-availability of rental cars and cancelled flights without warning but also food shortages, hotels closing at a moments notice and the EU having an "emergency brake" protocol as one of it's Covid safeguards. In a moments notice, they can "pull the brake" and close up everything, again. If you are choosing to travel right now, please be smart about it. Use a knowledgeable travel advisor, make sure you are constantly researching and be sure you have a plan b option if things take a nose dive.
I'll update as I go through my week in Ireland! Watch this space for more updates on what it's like to be an International Traveler again!