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Few can forget the first time they ever had a pizza in an idyllic piazza, a few scoops of gelato under the beating sun or fully embraced the aperitivo lifestyle – and this summer, there could well be scores of North American travelers experiencing these blissful Italian travel moments once more.
Speaking just yesterday, Italy’s Prime Minister revealed that his country would be changing the entry requirements for travelers from North America, meaning that the stunning country could be the latest to join a fast-growing list of countries accepting American travelers. Here’s what we know about the story so far.
Traveling to Italy Without Quarantine – Information For Travelers
In these uncertain times, rules and restrictions can change on an almost weekly basis. Just last week, Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Draghi encouraged travelers to book their flights to Italy, claiming the Italian vaccine passport would be ready by then and would allow them to enter. Whilst Italy’s pass has yet to fully materialize, travelers were handed encouraging news this week that suggests traveling to Italy next month may be a real possibility.
Answering questions from the Italian parliament, Draghi revealed that his government will support quarantine-free travel for vaccinated visitors, specifically mentioning travelers from the US, Canada and Japan. With Italy the fourth most popular international destination for US travelers, the news is bound to delight a lot of people who had previously been grounded as a result of the pandemic and didn’t want to spend their much-sought after vacation stuck in a hotel room.
Speaking about the decision, Draghi said:
“Our goal is to reopen Italy for tourism, domestic and international. The pandemic has had vast economic effects on the tourism industry and we’re working to get it going again as soon as possible and in maximum safety.”
It is thought that the first step towards reopening the country is to first oversee a vaccination campaign of Italian citizens before proceeding with changing the entry requirements for foreign travelers. Much like with their previous announcement about reopening in mid-May, the Italian government has yet to commit to a firm date as to when the change in quarantine rules will be effective from.
As well as removing the need to quarantine for some vaccinated passengers, Draghi also mentioned he was looking to expand the use of Covid-tested flights. Covid-tested flights allow passengers to skip quarantine providing they test negative for Covid-19 both on departure and on arrival. Currently only available to people flying from New York or Atlanta to Rome or Milan, Draghi pledged to extend the scheme to “more airlines, more routes and more airports”.
Who Can Travel To Italy Now?
Like most other countries in the EU, travel to Italy at present is highly restricted. Travelers from principalities such as the Vatican City and San Marino can travel to and form Italy with no restrictions. In addition, travelers from EU member states may also visit for any purpose, as can travelers from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Rwanda, Singapore, Thailand. Travelers coming from elsewhere are unable to enter Italy unless for specific reasons, such as work or study.
However, the list of countries that can visit Italy is set to widen in the coming weeks, following the announcement that the EU is set to allow vaccinated travelers from all countries to enter by June.
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Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Andrea
Sunday 16th of May 2021
Can a Canadian citizen enter Italy on a “COVID flight” out of New York? Or, do you have to be American?
Tans
Monday 17th of May 2021
@Kashlee Kucheran, I have just read the decree given by Italy on May 14th 2021. It mentions that Americans and Canadians can visit Italy as of May 16th, 2021 for tourism, however, there is still a mandatory 10-day quarantine in place effective until July 30th, 2021. Did you hear anything about this? Unless I misread the decree and misunderstood the information. I was really hoping Italy drops the quarantine :(
Kashlee Kucheran
Monday 17th of May 2021
I looked on the American Airlines site and they don't specifically say "American residents/citizens", it just says "customers" You might want to call Delta or American and ask. Let us know what they say :)
ajdj
Friday 14th of May 2021
they better not toy with us like Greece did. come on with a definitive date..
Derek
Sunday 16th of May 2021
@ajdj, once again, Italy is vague. We indeed need dates. In other articles, it lists the EU, UK and Israel as countries whose citizens can travel to Italy as of May 16th for non-essential reasons. In this article,there is no mention of these other countries.