Monthly Archives: August 2021

On Monday, the European Council passed a recommendation which removed the US from the "Safe Country List." Tourists from countries on the "Safe Country List" are allowed to enter the EU regardless of their vaccination status. This reverses a June recommendation which allowed any US tourist to visit the EU. What does this change mean for US travelers? The new recommendation states ONLY vaccinated US travelers should be allowed to enter any EU country and only those which allow vaccinated tourists to visit. However, individual member states can choose to allow unvaccinated tourists, regardless of this non-binding EU recommendation. ......

Let's talk about Covid-19 coronavirus doodle illustration dialog speech bubbles with icon. The European Union is set to consider new Covid-19 travel restrictions on US travelers as US cases soar. The US growth rate hit 507 cases per 100,000 inhabitants during the first two weeks of August. The EU’s own guidelines set a limit of 75 per 100,000. The EU guidelines also require that the trend of new infections in a country must be stable or decreasing. Whether the EU will re-impose restrictions isn’t clear. Tourism is vitally important to the economy of several EU member states. ......

Travel is back. Several cruise lines are experiencing record bookings. Land tours sales are rising. Vaccinations are making many of us feel safe traveling again. So why are we getting more questions from our readers wondering if they should travel outside of the US. Over the last couple of months our advice has changed. Airlines aren’t reliable First, air reservations have become unreliable. Airlines, especially American Airlines, has been cancelling flights and leaving customers stranded. While it is frustrating when US flights are cancelled, it is worse for overseas flights where re-booking options are more limited. Every customer we’ve ......

Let’s be clear, as a travel agency owner, I book my own travel. BUT, I use the same tools, resources and contacts that I use to book my clients travel. Here is why those resources are so valuable and only available from some travel agencies. Here’s my story: We had booked a Crystal cruise of the Bahama islands in April. The cruises were promoted and sold as a vaccinated guests only sailing of the Bahama islands. My best guess is that for foolish financial reasons, in late July (after final payment and after cancellation penalties kicked in) Crystal decided ......