Navigating The World’s Travel Restrictions Using Airheart.com

It’s always a good idea to plan trips as far in advance as possible, but this is especially important during the COVID pandemic.

Guidelines can change rapidly, and some mandatory requirements, like COVID testing, are time sensitive.

In this post we’ll highlight some of the most common restrictions you’ll see when planning travel, a few destinations that have limited restrictions right now, and some tips on how to use Airheart to plan your dream trip and travel with confidence.

Common Travel Restrictions During the COVID Pandemic

When planning international trips, some travel restrictions to look out for are COVID testing requirements, mandatory documents, proof of vaccination, and quarantines.

Negative Tests

Providing proof of a negative COVID test result before departing is a common requirement for countries. Be sure to review how far in advance you will need to take a COVID test and the type of COVID test that is required. Most countries will specify the maximum amount of time (such as 24 or 48 hours) that you can take the COVID test before departing. Additionally, some countries will only accept certain test types, such as PCR or antigen tests.

Documentation

Some examples of documents needed before you depart include health control or attestation forms and proof of insurance. Health control or attestation forms typically allow travelers to confirm their health status and personal information. Proof of insurance may be required in certain countries to cover the costs of all COVID-related care (testing, quarantine, and hospital care). If this is required for your trip, you can check to see if your current healthcare provider will cover international travel. If they do not, you may need to look into special coverage for your trip.

Vaccinations & Booster

If vaccinations are required to enter the country and you are vaccinated, double check that the ones you received are accepted. If your vaccination is not accepted, you will likely need to follow the guidelines for unvaccinated travelers when entering a country. We’re also seeing that many countries, especially in Europe, are now specifically stating that boosters are required to gain entry into countries if your last vaccination was received more than 9 or 12 months ago, for example.

When vaccinations are required to enter a country, they may also be required to enter public places and transportation. Some countries, such as France, call these “health passes” and ask travelers to present the passes to gain entrance into many businesses and public facilities. This is particularly important to pay attention to if you’re planning a trip around attending a certain event or seeing a major tourist destination.

Quarantines

Quarantines can be required if you’re traveling from a country that is deemed “high-risk” to your destination or based on your vaccination status. When reviewing quarantine policies, see where you can fulfill the quarantine requirement. Oftentimes, countries will specify whether you can fulfill your quarantine at your home/residence, at a designated government facility, or through approved hotels.

Multi Stop Trips

If your trip has multiple stops, we recommend viewing the guidelines for all countries you are transiting through to ensure there aren’t additional steps you need to take. Don’t get caught by surprise! Some countries require health control forms or proof of negative COVID tests to be presented, even if only transiting.

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Where to Travel Now

There are several destinations that have limited travel restrictions regardless of vaccination status at this time.

Mexico

All international travelers are currently allowed to travel to Mexico.

Travellers only need to fill out an online Multiple Immigration Form/Tourist Card, which replaces the paper form handed out by most airlines. The form must be completed per person and printed out to be presented with your passport to speed up the immigration process.

Ireland

Fully vaccinated travelers can travel to Ireland with proof of their vaccination and their completed Passenger Locator Form (PLF). After completing the PLF, you will receive an email that contains a receipt and will be asked to show the receipt when boarding a plane, ferry, or to border officials. Unvaccinated travellers need to provide a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test result and present it at check-in with their PLF. The COVID test must be taken a maximum of 72 hours before arrival in Ireland.

Slovenia

Travelers entering Slovenia need to provide one of the following to gain entrance: proof of vaccination, proof of a negative COVID-19 test result, or a proof of recovery document. Anyone entering Slovenia will need to fill out their Passenger Locator Form. Health passes are enforced while in Slovenia, so you’ll need to show either your proof of recovery or vaccination documents, or additional negative COVID test results, when entering certain businesses or public places.

We always recommend double checking these guidelines before you travel to make sure you have the most up-to-date information on traveling to and from your origin country.

How to Use Airheart.com to Navigate Restrictions

Using Airheart Explorer is an easy way to see what destinations are open for travel and understand what you need to do before you go.

You choose the country you are travelling from, which customises the restrictions for your destination.

Vaccination Status

The vaccination status filter at the top of the main Explorer map allows you to see a quick preview of what destinations are open and the guidelines for vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers. You can also change your vaccination status at the top of individual country pages.

Click on the “Status” column on the main Explorer page to filter destinations and see a list of countries open for travel.

Filtering Destinations

If certain travel policies hinder your travel plans, you can filter out destinations to exclude destinations that have mandatory policies such as quarantines.

Getting Live Covid-19 Information

Get public health information on the number of cases in a country, and get a sneak peek into what life is like at your destination by viewing local guidelines on whether restaurants and public transportation are open.

Pin Routes for Auto-Updates

Pin routes to receive automatic email alerts and never miss an update when specific restrictions and policies change. You can edit your pins at any time to change your subscriptions.

Each country page will list out what you’ll need for your trip including COVID testing, documents, contact-tracing apps, quarantine policies, and more. And, you can easily see what the guidelines are for your return trip as well.

For more information, and to start planning your trips, visit www.airheart.com.

Finishing Up (Editor’s Note)

I get dozens of approaches a month from companies to advertise or promote their product on this site, but it’s rare to find one I can actually see myself using.

With Airheart.com I instantly loved the design of the site and found the information they are providing on Covid-19 restrictions easy to navigate and (most importantly) accurate. I wanted to share it on this site as I will be using it to plan trips going forward and I think many of my readers will find it useful too.

I’ve also signed up to gain access to the main part of their business – an itinerary builder which automatically takes emails which include ticket and booking information to build a single trip itinerary. This will hopefully save me a lot of time in the future!

I hope you got as much out of this post as I did,

Happy travels,

Ben

P.S.
For all my latest travel trips click here.