How Europe Can Lead the Way Out of Covid Travel Confusion
The European Union can develop travel guidelines for its own region that could set a standard for the rest of the world. Here are four places to start.
Joining this Madrid street scene and other travel destinations would be easier with set standards and guidelines.
Photographer: Paul Hanna/BloombergVaccines are a huge help in the Covid fight, paving the way for reopenings in towns, cities and countries around the world. But when it comes to cross-border commerce and travel, we need more than shots to get back to some kind of normal. Nowhere is that more evident than in the European Union, where varying standards and restrictions among member countries make travel confusing within the region, never mind between EU destinations and elsewhere.
Here are some real-world examples: U.K. citizens with proof of vaccination can travel to Portugal for a holiday without having to take a Covid-19 test before traveling, or quarantining when they return, because of both countries’ relatively low infection rates. If they travel to Spain, however, they will need to quarantine when they get back. If they travel to France, British citizens are advised to quarantine for seven days and take a test and, if to the U.K. from France, are required to quarantine for 10 days and have at least two tests. Similar variations exist between a large number of EU member states, so much so that the EU has made a tool to navigate the different standards.