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Which countries are open for travel?

More and more countries have begun to restart their tourism industries - albeit in a tentative and cautious manner.

According to brokerage firm IYC, all foreign travellers can now visit The Bahamas without the need for a COVID-19 test if they are fully vaccinated.

The tourism board website for French Polynesia has announced foreign tourists can now return to the islands.

Travellers to Monaco will not need to quarantine if they can provide a negative COVID-19 test result on arrival.

According to the Croatian tourist board, travellers from the EU and Schengen states can enter without restrictions. Traveller from other countries are allowed without restrictions if they have been fully vaccinated. Belgium has eased travel restrictions to allow entry for arrivals from the EU.

The Seychelles has reopened to all tourists, with no quarantine period required. All travellers will need to present a negative COVID-19 test result on arrival.

Mexico has opened borders to travellers without the need for a COVID-19 test or quarantine.

According to the Thai tourism board website, foreign nationals can now apply for a special visa to visit Thailand, but they will need to quarantine upon arrival. Sri Lanka has now also reopened borders.

Indonesia has reopened its borders to international travellers after many months of strict closure. Asia Pacific Superyachts (APS) has reported that visitors to destinations such as Bali are welcome if they can procure the new e-visa, as well as being able to present a negative COVID-19 test on arrival.

The Middle Eastern country of Oman has resumed the issuing of tourist visas, but travellers are only allowed to stay for a maximum of 10 days and will need to present a negative COVID-19 test result on arrival.

An agreed travel bubble means that travellers from New Zealand are allowed to Australia and vice versa. Any other foreign travellers are barred from entering both of these countries.

The British Virgin Islands and St Kitts and Nevis are the latest Caribbean countries to open for tourists.

They join Barbados, Jamaica, Bermuda, Dominica, St Barts, The US Virgin islands, Antigua and Barbuda, St Lucia, St. Maarten, Arbuba and the Dominican Republic, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Turks and Caicos and Curaçao. Each of these countries have varying restrictions and protocols in place concerning how travellers can arrive.

Until recently, only work related travel was allowed into Singapore. Now, travellers from Brunei, New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China can enter for leisure, with varying procedures in place.

The borders of South Korea are now open too, but all new arrivals are required to undergo quarantine for 14 days. Click here for more info.

Cambodia has reopened borders to tourists from certain countries. However, all foreign nationals arriving into the country must pay a $3,000 deposit at the airport to pay for what Sao Wathana, director of the Phnom Penh International Airport, has called “virus prevention services”. Those who test negative for the virus will only be charged the fees for the test and will receive back the rest of the deposit.

In the Indian Ocean, the islands of the Maldives are also open for travel again. The Maldives has also specified that tourists who have received two doses of a vaccine two weeks before departure will not need to test or quarantine on arrival.

When will international flights resume in the UK?

Regular flights between countries are once again beginning to pick up after the UK formed ‘air bridges’ with a number of different destinations.

Airlines which have now resumed flights to and from the UK include Emirates, TAP Portugal, Virgin Atlantic, BA Wizz Air, Easy Jet, Ryanair, Oman Air and United. Tourists can now resume travel to Chile but will only be able to enter via Santiago airport.

Very few international flights are allowed into New Zealand. Currently, Air New Zealand is only operating flights to and from Sydney, Brisbane, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Los Angeles and Niue, as well as a one-way only service to Singapore.

Most other airports across the world have now restarted international flights, even if operating at a limited schedule. The few countries where airlines remain grounded include India, Myanmar and some South American countries.

When will international flights resume in the US?

Though some airports are still operated at reduced capacity, a number of US airlines have announced plans to restart flight schedules.

American Airlines has now resumed international flights, with procedures in place that will allow passengers on full planes to switch to less crowded flights at no extra cost.

Southwest, which operates domestic flights in the US and international flights to the Caribbean, has restarted flights to almost all of its regular destinations (except Nassau in the Bahamas) with special procedures in place.

Delta is still not operating its full flight schedules, but plans to resume flights to most destinations shortly.

United Airlines has continued to fly to Europe and South America throughout the pandemic at a reduced capacity and is now begining to resume flights to other international destinations.

Antigua and Barbuda has reopened borders to international marine traffic and is actively encouraging the yachting community to return, with plans afoot to execute all of the yachting events on the racing calendar.

Fiji opened its borders to superyachts and other foreign-flagged vessels, despite remaining closed to tourists arriving by air travel. The only port of entry to the country will be Port Denarau Marina, and new arrivals will need to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result before disembarking.

The Maldives is open to land and sea travel for vessels from all countries travelling in the indian ocean, while In the South Pacific, French Polynesia is also welcoming international vessels with those on board required to present negative COVID-19 test results before and after arriving.

According to brokerage firm IYC, Croatia is now open again for chartering, with “charter clients / guests allowed to enter the country without any quarantine requirements”. The firm has also announced that Greece is open for yachting and chartering, but has nonetheless encouraged clients to book charter superyachts without a cancellation fee. Other European yachting grounds now open for travel include Cyprus, Monaco and Italy.

Those hoping to undertake a northwest passage journey may have to put their plans on hold. Vessels carrying more than 12 passengers will be barred from entering Arctic coastal waters of Canada (including Nunatsiavut, Nunavik and the Labrador Coast) indefinitely. However sailing is allowed in inland rivers and lakes in the Northwest Territories of Nunavut and Yukon.

Much like ‘travel bubbles’, ‘air bridges’ or ‘travel corridors’ are the result of an agreement between two countries that travellers from either location will not need to quarantine upon arrival. The UK had previously created air bridges with over 70 different countries which it has deemed ‘’no longer pose an unacceptably high risk’’ for travellers but these have no been temporarily closed.

Countries with high case numbers of COVID-19, including the US and most of South America, will still need to quarantine. To see the full list of locations which have agreed to a UK travel corridor.

What are travel corridors?

Countries with low numbers of reported coronavirus cases are now working together to create so-called ‘travel bubbles’ with one another. This means that people who live within the bubble will be allowed to cross borders without the need to go into quarantine upon arrival. Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania created the first European travel bubble when they opened borders to each other back in May.

Most recently, Australia and New Zealand agreed to begin operating a trans-Tasman travel bubble.

Officals have announced that a travel bubble will be created between Hong Kong and Singapore so that travellers between the two destinations will no longer have to quarantine. No date for the begnning of this bubble has been announced yet, however.

Canada has announced the recent introduction of a travel bubble with the neigbouring provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, which means that arrrivals from these areas will not have to undergo quarantine.

When will hotels reopen?

European countries including the UK, Croatia, Turkey, Monaco, France, Greece and Italy have already begun reopening some of their hotels to international visitors with social distancing measures in place. In regions like the US and Asia, which remain closed to international travellers, hotels have for now been reopened for locals to enjoy staycations.

For more information on which luxury hotels are now welcoming guests, read our comprehensive luxury hotels openings guide. European countries including the UK, Croatia, Turkey, Monaco, France, Greece and Italy have already begun reopening some of their hotels to international visitors with social distancing measures in place. In regions like the US and Asia, which remain closed to international travellers, hotels have for now been reopened for locals to enjoy staycations.

For more information on which luxury hotels are now welcoming guests, read our comprehensive luxury hotels openings guide. Which countries have the lowest cases of Coronavirus?

If you’re thinking about which countries will be the safest to travel to after lockdown, then you’ve probably been searching for which countries have the lowest numbers of COVID-19 cases and fatalities.

So far, countries with zero reported COVID-deaths include St Kitts, Anguilla and Dominica. Less than 25 deaths caused by COVID-19 have been reported in The British Virgin Islands, St Barts and Fiji.

Mediterranean countries with the least COVID-19-related deaths include Monaco, Cyprus and Malta.

The Nordic countries of Iceland and Greenland have some of the lowest numbers in Europe- so now might be the time to start planning that once in a lifetime arctic adventure.

In Asia, it looks like Macao, Cambodia and Laos, which have all reported minimal COVID-related deaths, may be the safest places to travel to once lockdown lifts.

keep checking back here for the latest travel updates of when coronavirus travel restrictions will be lifted and, while travel may not be possible, check out our roundup of the best virtual travel experiences to transport you abroad now.

Drink of the day

Blue Martini

2 ounces Vodka (BLue Ice american Vodka 3/4 ounce BLue curaçao 1/2 ounce sour mix 1/2 ounce pineappLe juice