Although many governments are still advising against “nonessential” international travel, a host of popular destinations have eased their Covid-19 border restrictions and are readily welcoming tourists back.
Destinations like Dubai, the Maldives, Croatia and Jamaica have already opened their doors to foreign visitors again, while Bali and Thailand hope to reopen in the coming weeks.
If you’re one of many travelers eagerly awaiting news on where you can travel to this year, here’s a guide to the top destinations making plans to reopen, as well as some of those that are keeping their borders firmly closed for now.
Latest updates: Officials have indicated that random coronavirus testing will soon be introduced at airports in the Republic of Ireland, while the UK has removed Spain from its list of “safe” countries.
Aruba
Aruba slowly reopened to tourists between June 15 and July 10.
Visitors from nearby Caribbean islands Curacao and Bonaire were permitted to enter first, followed by travelers from Canada and Europe on July 1.
Tourists from the United States were allowed to visit from July 10.
While it was previously suggested travelers would not be required to to take a Covid-19 test on arrival or prior to traveling, it seems this is no longer the case.
Like many other destinations, Aruba is giving visitors the option to either provide a negative test result taken no more than 72 hours before their visit, or receive a test on arrival.
However, the cost of the test, which must be paid for in advance, is the responsibility of the traveler.
The island has also introduced mandatory insurance coverage, the Aruba Visitors Insurance, which will cover any expenses if visitors test positive for the virus during their trip.
In addition, the department of Public Health has introduced the “Aruba Health & Happiness Code,” a mandatory cleaning and hygiene certification program for all businesses related to tourism in the country.
Bali
Bali hopes to welcome foreign tourists back in September, provided its infection rates stay low.
During a press conference back in June, Bali Governor Wayan Koster stressed the Indonesian island would be applying a “precautionary principle” when it comes to reopening its borders.
“Once again I emphasize, this is just a plan, not a schedule that will definitely be implemented,” said Koster.
“Whether or not this is carried out will greatly depend on the situation and the dynamics of the development of Covid-19 in the field, especially local transmission in Bali.”
Bali’s economy is hugely dependent on tourism and visitor numbers have been rising in recent years, with around 6.3 million people visiting in 2019.
“The coronavirus has collapsed the Balinese economy … it’s been a steep drop since [mid-March] when social-distancing measures were put in place,” Mangku Nyoman Kandia, a Bali tour guide, told ABC News in April. “No tourist, no money.”
All foreign nationals, except for diplomats, permanent residents and humanitarian workers, are currently banned from Indonesia, and anyone entering the island must undergo a swab test and provide a letter stating they are free of Covid-19.
Barbados
Barbados began reopening its borders to international travelers from July 12.
However, visitors must adhere to a number of strict requirements.
All tourists from “high risk” countries will be “strongly encouraged” to take a Covid-19 test at least 72 hours before departing for Barbados, according to a recent press release from the Barbados Tourist Board.
Meanwhile, those from “low risk” destinations can be tested a week before visiting the Caribbean island.
Visitors also need to complete an online Embarkation/Disembarkation Card (ED card), which asks a series of health questions connected to Covid-19 symptoms.
Those who don’t provide a negative test result “from an accredited or recognized laboratory” in advance will must take one on arrival, and will be placed in quarantine “at their own expense” until the results come through. This is likely to take up to 48 hours.
While visiting the island, travelers must comply with local protocols, including keeping a physical distance of one-meter away from others and wearing face masks in public.
Barbados’ nationwide curfew was lifted on July 1, while commercial air traffic resumed 11 days later.
Bermuda
Bermuda reopened its borders to international visitors on July 1, with the first commercial flight from the US arriving in the oldest self-governing British Overseas Territory on July 6.
However, travelers must take a Covid-19 test no more than five days before traveling to Bermuda and obtain a negative result, as well as complete the Bermuda travel authorization process online at least 48 hours prior to their visit.
Once they arrive, visitors must take their own temperatures twice a day and report the results via an online application.
In addition, travelers are required to take further tests at pop-up testing centers throughout the course of their trip.
“At a time when international travel is limited for many Americans, the island is a beautiful, close and comfortable option for those in need of an unforgettable escape,” Victoria Isley, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer for the Bermuda Tourism Authority, said in a statement.
“Bermuda offers guests an accessible, safe destination with wide open spaces and pink sand beaches, clean ocean breezes and brilliant turquoise waters, plus meaningful cultural connections and fresh island fare.”
Croatia
Tourism accounts for 20% of Croatia’s GDP, so officials have been keen to rejuvenate its travel sector.
The popular European destination reopened to international tourists in July.
And while US citizens were left off a list of those permitted to travel into EU countries, Croatia has gone against this by choosing to welcome Americans back.
According to a statement on the official website for the US Embassy in Zagreb, EU nationals and “all other foreign nationals, including US citizens, may enter Croatia for business, tourism, or other pressing personal reasons if they provide relevant proof.”
All foreign visitors must be able to supply evidence of a negative coronavirus test taken no longer than 48 hours before their arrival.
Those who fail to produce this will be required to self isolate for 14 days.
In addition, on entering the country, travelers are required to follow the advice stipulated in the “Pamphlet with Recommendations and Instructions from the Croatian Institute of Public Health,” for two weeks.
Cyprus
Cyprus is so keen to get its tourism industry back on track, officials are offering to cover the costs of any travelers who test positive for Covid-19 while on vacation in the Mediterranean island nation.
According to a letter shared with CNN, the Cypriot government will pay for lodging, as well as food, drink and medication for tourists who are taken ill with coronavirus during their visit.
The detailed plan was set out in a five-page letter issued to governments, airlines and tour operators on May 26.
Hotels in Cyprus began to reopen on June 1, while international air travel restarted on June 9.
Various countries have been granted access to the country, including Greece, Malta, Bulgaria, Norway, Austria, Finland, Slovenia, Hungary, Israel, Denmark, Germany, Slovakia, Switzerland, Poland, Romania, Croatia, Estonia and the Czech Republic.
Visitors from the UK were added to the list on August 1.
Travelers heading to Cyprus will need to provide a valid certificate proving they’ve tested negative for Covid-19, while they’ll be subject to temperature checks on arrival as well as testing at random during the course of their trip.
Egypt
Tourism brings in around $1 billion in revenue for Egypt each month, so the impact of the travel restrictions caused by the pandemic has been significant.
The government suspended passenger flights back in March, while all hotels, restaurants and cafes were closed and a night curfew imposed.
However, Egypt has since reopened to foreign tourists and international flights to the country have resumed.
Tourist attractions like the Great Pyramids of Giza are also open to the public again, while the compulsory curfew has been lifted. Masks are now mandatory in public places and on public transport.
France
France was the most visited country in the world before the coronavirus pandemic.
While restrictions were previously in place on all nonessential travel from outside the Schengen Zone (a grouping of 26 countries which normally have open borders), the measures have been lifted for 15 countries outside of the EU, including Australia, Canada and Japan.
The country’s hotels, bars, restaurants and cafés were granted permission to reopen on June 2.
Meanwhile Paris was downgraded from a “red zone” to a “green zone” in mid-June and the city has now reopened.
However, like Spain, France has experienced an increase in cases since lifting restrictions, and experts have suggested a “second wave” is likely.
“The situation is precarious and we could at any moment tip into a scenario that is less under control, like in Spain,”reads a statement from the French scientific committee published by the health ministry.
“It is highly likely that we will experience a second epidemic wave this autumn or winter.”
Georgia
Georgia was experiencing a tourism boom before the coronavirus pandemic, with five million travelers visiting in 2019, a 7% increase on the previous year.
But the country was forced to close its winter resorts and place a ban on all foreign visitors back in March because of the crisis.
Eager to revive its tourism sector, the country’s government had previously said it planned to reopen to international travelers on July 1, but this was pushed back until July 31 due to a “rapid increase in the number of new coronavirus cases in the partner and neighboring countries.”
“We are transitioning to the third stage [of Covid-19 response], which means post-crisis management of the economy and devising plans [on] how to kickstart different sectors,” Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia said at a council meeting focused on fighting Covid-19.
“[The] tourism sector will be first to which emergency relief measures will apply.”
Germany
The land of poets and thinkers lifted travel restrictions for travelers from 31 different countries on June 15.
The approved destinations included the 26 EU member states, as well as the UK, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
“The revitalization of tourism is important both for travelers and the German travel industry, as well as for the economic stability of the respective target countries,” read a statement from a paper called “Criteria for the Enabling of intra-European Tourism,” which was issued last month.
The Austria/Germany land border has also reopened – travel between Austria and Germany was possible as of June 15 – and restrictions around the country are being relaxed.
Visitors from destinations such as Australia and Canada will also be allowed to enter soon due to the EU’s decision to lift restrictions on various countries outside of the bloc.
Chancellor Angela Merkel recently announced social distancing rules would continue until at least October.
Greece
International direct flights to Greece’s many holiday destinations restarted on July 1 for travelers from most of the EU and a list of additional EU-approved countries, with travelers subject only to random checks.
The UK was added to the list on July 15. The US, Greece’s third largest market, is not included on the EU list. Nearly two million Americans visited Greece in 2019. The country has been attracting a growing number of US travelers in recent years and was projected to grow further in 2020.
Greece is also opening its international ports and some border crossings for the first time since the country imposed a strict lockdown over three months ago.
The country is being hailed as one of the safest destinations for holidaymakers in the Mediterranean this summer with under 200 deaths from Covid-19 and less than 3,500 cases in a population of 11 million.
As part of the measures to contain the spread of Covid-19, international travelers are required to fill in a detailed passenger form. The Passenger Locator Form (PLF) will have to be completed online at least 48 hours before entering the country and includes information such as duration of previous stays in other countries during the two weeks prior to travel, and the address of stay in Greece.
Travelers will receive QR codes based on an algorithm that will calculate those most at risk of spreading a coronavirus infection. Authorities will use the QR code to identify passengers who need to be tested upon arrival, Greece’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said.
Those tested must quarantine overnight pending results. Those who test positive will be quarantined f