Only Vaccinated Travelers Welcome—Are These New Rules a Sign of Future Travel?

Want to take a vacation? Cyprus, Romania and the Seychelles will all welcome you—as long as you’re fully vaccinated against COVID-19. These countries are now waiving the quarantine and COVID-19 testing requirements for international travelers, provided that they have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at least two weeks prior (10 days for Romania). 

Could these new rules be a sign of what travel will be like in the future, with vaccine passports required to travel? It’s certainly looking likely.

It’s not just destinations that are beginning to require the COVID-19 vaccine either. British cruise operator Saga Cruises made waves recently when it announced that it will be requiring all passengers to have been fully vaccinated before they will be allowed to travel with them when Saga resumes sailing in May 2021. (Passengers must still take a COVID-19 test before boarding.)

Only passengers who have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine a minimum of 14 days before travel will be allowed to board, and Saga Cruises will be checking vaccine documentation at the time of boarding. There are no exemptions from this rule, including for people who are not able to get the vaccine for medical reasons.

Saga Cruises is a cruise line targeted at travelers 50 and up, and so they are banking on their clientele being among the early groups to receive the vaccination. Other cruise lines, including Norweigian, have indicated that they are considering similar measures for future travel, but Saga Cruises is the first to put a vaccine restriction in place.

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